Perfect pasta
FETA AND CHICKEN MEATBALLS IN LEMON SPAGHETTI PEACH AND SAGE STUFFED PORK FILLET WITH GARLIC ROASTIES
INGREDIENTS: (serves 2)
2 chicken breasts, chopped; 1 garlic clove, peeled and crushed; 15g basil leaves, finely chopped; 20g chives; 80g feta; ½ slice of wholemeal bread; 4tsp olive oil, plus a splash for the spaghetti; 200g spaghetti; juice of ¾ lemon; 30g Parmesan cheese, grated; ½ lemon, cut into wedges; salt and pepper
METHOD:
1. Add the chicken breasts, half the garlic, three-quarters of the basil, salt and pepper, chives, feta and bread to a blender and mix into a rough mince (don’t overmix and add a dash of oil if sticking).
2. Take the mixture and roll into small balls around a ping-pong ball size. Put the oil and chicken meatballs in a heated frying pan and cook for about 10 minutes, turning regularly to get an even colour and cook all the way through. Remove and keep warm.
3. Meanwhile, place the spaghetti in a pan of boiling salted water and cook until al dente. Drain (reserving a little of the cooking water) and add to the frying pan over a high heat with a splash of oil and the lemon juice, the rest of the garlic and chopped basil. Add a splash of the reserved pasta water to loosen the sauce, then add half the grated Parmesan.
4. Serve the spaghetti with the meatballs, lemon wedges and a scattering of the remaining grated Parmesan.
INGREDIENTS: (serves 2)
150g chestnut mushrooms, very finely chopped; 50g butter; 30g sage leaves; 1 slice of wholemeal bread; 1 peach, peeled, stoned and finely chopped; 600g pork fillet (in one piece); 80g Parma ham; 400g Charlotte potatoes; 2 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed; splash of olive oil; 10 cherry tomatoes; 200g cavolo nero, chopped; salt and pepper
METHOD:
1. Preheat the oven to 220°C/200°C fan/gas 7. Add the mushrooms and 10g of the butter to a hot pan and season, then add three-quarters of the sage and cook for two to three minutes.
2. Roughly chop the bread into crumbs and scatter into the mushrooms with the peach. Cook for a further two minutes until soft and brown.
3. Cut the pork fillet down the middle horizontally to create a pocket, then add the mushroom stuffing and tightly close together.
Lay out a sheet of foil about twice the size of the fillet and cover the foil with layers of the Parma ham, creating a wrap effect ready to cover the fillet. Lay the fillet on the ham and tightly pull the ham over the fillet, then use the foil to tightly wrap the pork into a cylinder. Twist both the ends of the foil and place into a heatproof tin.
4. Boil the potatoes in salted water until starting to soften, drain and place in the same baking tin as the pork. Add the garlic, remaining sage and a splash of oil to the potatoes, season well and bake for 30 minutes, turning the potatoes every 15 minutes.
5. Take the pork out of the oven and unwrap, returning the potatoes to the oven whilst you do this (do not lose the juices created from the pork!).
Put the fillet in a hot frying pan and cook along with the cherry tomatoes until the ham is crispy and dark and the tomatoes start to pop. Leave to rest on a warm plate. Add the cavolo nero to a separate pan with the remaining butter. Season and cook over a high heat. If it starts to smoke, add a few splashes of water to start steaming it. This takes about four to five minutes.
6. Reduce the pork juices in a pan, then serve the fillet cut diagonally into circles and drizzled with any juices, along with the cabbage, tomatoes and crispy roast potatoes.