32 The Times Magazine- 75g unsalted butter
- 100g parmesan, finely grated,
plus extra to serve - Sea salt and freshly ground
black pepper
1 Heat a large saucepan on a
medium heat and add the sausage
meat pieces and rosemary. Cook
for 10 minutes, until the fat has
rendered and the meat has some
colour. Remove the meat to a
plate and set aside.
2 Add the olive oil to the pan,
along with the onion and celery
and cook gently for 3 minutes,
until soft. Add the rice and
cook for a further 3 minutes,
so the rice absorbs the fat
and goes translucent. Add the
sweet red wine or port and stir
until the liquid has evaporated.
Gradually start adding the stock,
a ladleful at a time, for about
15 minutes, stirring from time to
time, until the rice still has a bite
but is not crunchy. The risotto
should be very wet at this stage,
almost soupy. Add the shredded
radicchio and cook for a further
5 minutes.
3 Add the butter, parmesan and
the browned sausage meat, then
stir for 2 minutes until everything
is heated through and the butter
and parmesan have melted into
the risotto. Check the seasoning,then place a tight-fitting lid on
the pan and turn off the heat.
Leave for 2 minutes, then remove
the lid and give the risotto a
good stir. The risotto should have
a nice, chewy texture and the
radicchio will have wilted and
lost its bitter flavour. Serve in
warmed bowls, sprinkled with
extra parmesan and black pepper.- PACCHERI WITH PRAWN,
COURGETTE AND
PARSLEY SAUCE
Serves 4 as a starter
This is my son’s favourite dish.
Whenever he is home, he asks
me to make it. You need to slice
the courgettes into matchsticks,
but it’s not as fiddly as it sounds.
Slice into 1cm rings, then place
three rings on top of each
other and slice downwards
in 1cm widths. Easy!- 350g paccheri
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 1 garlic clove, finely sliced
- 2 courgettes, cut into
1cm matchsticks - 150g datterini (baby plum)
tomatoes, halved - 1 tbsp finely chopped flat-leaf
parsley leaves- 250g uncooked prawns, halved
lengthways (frozen are fine) - Sea salt and freshly ground
black pepper - 75ml dry white wine
- 250g uncooked prawns, halved
1 Bring a large pan of salted water
to the boil. Add the paccheri and
boil for 2 minutes less than the
packet instructions, until very
al dente.
2 Meanwhile, make the sauce.
Gently heat 2 tbsp oil in a large
nonstick frying pan on a medium
heat. When hot, add the garlic
and courgettes. Cook for 3 minutes
to soften, then add the tomatoes,
parsley and halved prawns.
Season with salt and pepper,
add the white wine and cook
on a medium heat for about
3 minutes, until the liquid has
reduced by half.
3 Once the pasta is ready, using
a slotted spoon or small sieve,
transfer it to the sauce. Add
a ladleful of the pasta cooking
water and cook for a further
2 minutes, until the sauce
becomes syrupy. Add 1 tbsp olive
oil and check the seasoning. The
pasta should have a lovely bite to
it and it should be coated in the
sauce. Serve in warmed bowls.- TROFIE WITH PESTO,
POTATOES AND
GREEN BEANS
Serves 4
This Ligurian classic originates
from Genoa, the home of pesto.
Trofie pasta can be difficult to
find, but the chewy texture makes
such a difference.- 8 new potatoes, peeled
and very finely sliced on
a mandolin - 150g fine green beans, topped,
tailed and halved - 500g trofie
- Freshly ground black pepper
For the pesto- 1 small garlic clove
- Pinch of sea salt
- 100g basil leaves,
roughly chopped - 75g pine nuts
- 75g parmesan, finely grated,
plus extra to serve - 150ml olive oil
1 First, make the pesto. Using
a pestle and mortar, crush the
garlic with a good pinch of sea
salt to a fine paste. Add the basil
leaves and crush until the leaves
become a pulp. Add the pine nuts
and crush again to a paste, then
add the grated parmesan and
2 tbsp water. Mix to combine,
then slowly stir in the olive oil.
Set aside.
2 Bring a large pan of salted
water to the boil. Blanch the
potatoes for 1 minute, then
remove with a slotted spoon
and set aside. Boil the beans in
the water for 3 minutes, then
remove and set aside.
3 Add the pasta to the water
and cook for 2 minutes less
than the packet cooking time.
Take the pasta out with a slotted
spoon and place in a nonstick
frying pan with 1 ladleful of
the cooking water (reserve the
remaining water).
4 Add the potatoes and beans
to the frying pan with the trofie
pasta and 1 tbsp pesto. Move the
pan around vigorously to coat the
pasta in the sauce, then cook on
a low heat for about 2 minutes,
until the pasta seems syrupy (if
it seems a little dry, add more
cooking water). Stir in 2 more
tbsp pesto then divide between
warmed bowls. Sprinkle with
a good grinding of black pepper
and a little extra parmesan. nExtracted from The
Italian Deli Cookbook
by Theo Randall,
published by
Quadrille on
March 18 (£26)Eat!
ITALIAN DELI
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