Friday 12 June 2015

Summer Simplicity!

Risoni Caldi con Pomodorini Crudi, Erbe Miste & Ricotta Salata
Hot Risoni Noodles with Raw Cherry Tomatoes, Mixed Herbs & Salted Ricotta


Friday evening, happy to be out of the office, walking home from work... And suddenly the storm they had forecast was there, it was nasty... And it was time to stop walking and start running!

So, before I knew it, I was home, without passing "GO", without picking up £200... And worse still... Without going to the supermarket on the way as I had intended!

This meant, that basically, all I had left in the fridge were the last of the cherry tomatoes, herbs and a few pieces of cheese, including my ever-shrinking chunk of salted ricotta...


 

Well, as you can see, it didn't take me much fussing or fumbling to turn my few simple ingredients into another simple, but delicious meal... It never should! And sometimes, those very simple dishes are the very best of all!

 

Another epic ingredient list for you... Hold on to your horses! 2 handfuls of risoni pasta, 1 shallot (which I forgot to add to this photo!!!), 9-10 cherry tomatoes, 1 lemon, a little salted ricotta for grating, salt, pepper, olive oil and fresh herbs- in their case, parsley, basil, oregano and thyme.

 

Basically, what this dish is, is a lukewarm pasta salad, with the pasta hot and the other ingredients (most often than not tomatoes) cold. This is a well-loved preparation for pasta dishes in the hot summer months in Italy and a perfect and light way to make a delicious pasta salad.

 
 
Chop the shallot into a very fine dice, the cherry tomatoes too... Respectively speaking of course!

Finely chop the larger leaved herbs, the basil and parsley, also the larger leaves of oregano, and pluck the leaves from the stems of the thyme.

Either grate or finely chop a little lemon zest... And you have everything you need, right there... And just need to boil that pasta!


 

When the pasta is almost done, add the finely chopped shallot, stir it on well, turn off the heat and let it sit for 5 minutes. The residual heat of the pasta will take away the harsh "raw" edge of the flavor of the shallot, making it much more enjoyable to eat... And that's a good thing!

 

Add all of the other ingredients together in a bowl with plenty of salt, pepper and olive oil.

 

That's a whole lot of flavor there, just waiting to be unleashed!

 

And although it looks ugly, having the hot pasta heaped on top is the thing that will unleash that flavor... The heat will coaxe all of the flavor out of the herbs and tomatoes and the oil will blend it together wonderfully with the pasta... All you need to do is stir!

 
 
Gently toss the pasta over, add the juice of half a lemon and a little more olive oil if necessary and stir it together until everything is nicely and evenly mixed.


Grate with salted ricotta and enjoy whilst it is still hot, when it is lukewarm... Or even chilled as a classic pasta salad... It is good every which way!

 

The taste of an Italian Summer!

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