Celebrate the summer holiday season with light, simple seafood pasta dishes.
Gone from my mind (nearly) are the comforting and soporific pasta dishes of winter that involved meat stews and heavy cheese sauces. Instead, I am looking forward to a summer season of light and easy pasta dishes that use seafood and fresh local ingredients.
That said, this is probably the dish to do if you want to show off a bit. After all, I don’t imagine that we all have a dozen oysters in our refrigerators just waiting to be used. Double-podding the broad beans may seem a little off-putting, but it doesn’t take long and is quite satisfying.
FETTUCCINE WITH POACHED OYSTERS, BROAD BEANS AND LEMON
750g broad beans
200g fettuccine or tagliatelle
2 cloves garlic
1 tbsp olive oil
200ml cream
1 lemon, zest only
12 rock or Pacific oysters, rinsed of grit
or sand
small bunch of mint
salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 tbsp salmon roe
Remove the beans from their pods – you should end up with a good cupful. Bring a saucepan of salted water to the boil and cook the beans until tender – about 5 minutes. Drain them and rinse under cold running water before slipping off the skins. If the beans are small, they can be left unpeeled. Bring a large saucepan of salted water to a rapid boil and add the pasta. Following the packet instructions, cook until tender, then drain. Slice the garlic finely put it in a frying pan with the oil. Cook over a low heat until soft and without colour. Add the cream and bring it to a simmer, then add the lemon zest and oysters. Cook until the oysters tighten slightly. Add the beans. Finely shred the mint leaves and add to the frying pan. Season with salt and black pepper. Add the drained pasta and mix together lightly. Divide the pasta between 4 individual bowls. Sprinkle some roe on top of each bowl.
Serves 4.
SUGO IS A LIGHT tomato sauce that contains few ingredients, so it’s essential that the tomatoes are absolutely ripe and flavoursome. It is tremendously versatile and equally good poured over cooked spaghetti with or without cockles.
SPAGHETTI, COCKLES AND FRESH TOMATO SUGO
400g spaghetti
100g butter
2 tbsp olive oil
2 cloves garlic, finely sliced
1kg cockles
salt
1 lemon
Bring a large, deep saucepan of salted water to a rolling boil. Cook the spaghetti until tender – about 12 minutes. Reserve ½ a cup of the cooking water before draining the spaghetti. Heat the butter and oil in a frying pan until the butter begins to foam but is without colour, then add the garlic. Once the garlic has taken on a little colour, carefully add the reserved pasta water and the cockles. Cover and cook until the shells open – about 7 minutes – discarding any that don’t. Season with salt and a squeeze of lemon juice. Remove the cockles and set aside. Tip the cooked spaghetti into the pan and stir to combine. Divide the spaghetti between individual bowls, surround with cockles and pour over the sugo.
Serves 4.
TOMATO SUGO
120ml olive oil
2 tbsp finely chopped garlic
1kg ripe tomatoes, skinned and roughly
chopped
salt and freshly ground black pepper
Over a medium setting, heat the oil in a deep saucepan then fry the garlic until it begins to turn golden brown – about 3 minutes. Add the tomatoes and cook for 20 minutes, using a spoon to break them up. Continue cooking until the sauce reduces to a thick consistency. Season with salt and pepper. Sugo can be used immediately or refrigerated for up to 7 days.
I AM ESSENTIALLY A lazy cook during summer, so although I enjoy making my own gnocchi, I am not such a purist as to insist that only homemade will do. To that end, I have a packet of commercial gnocchi in my refrigerator. I’ve found that some brands tend to disintegrate when cooked in boiling water, and they are never as cloud-light as the handmade variety, but they are quite acceptable when sautéed in butter to a light golden crust. Add cream if you wish to make it a touch more refined.
Although it’s not essential, I prefer to remove the cockles from the shells before adding them to the pasta. This is because I want to eat the dish without having to fuss with shells coated in sauce.
STEAMED COCKLES, POTATO GNOCCHI, ANCHOVIES AND OLIVE OIL
1kg cockles
½ cup water
1 cup white wine
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1 bay leaf
100g unsalted butter
1 small bunch of parsley, chopped
Put the cockles, water, wine and garlic in a deep saucepan with the bay leaf and butter. Cover with a lid and steam the cockles over a medium heat until they open – about 7 minutes. Discard any unopened ones and add the parsley. Shake the saucepan gently to mix all the juices. Remove the cockles and set aside. Reserve a cup of the cooking liquor, and remove the cockles from the shells.
100g unsalted butter
2 cloves garlic, sliced
400g store-bought potato gnocchi
4 anchovies
2 tbsp parsley, chopped finely
reserved stock from the cockles, to moisten
steamed cockle meat
freshly ground black pepper
100ml olive oil
Melt the butter in a frying pan over a medium heat and add the garlic. When it begins to sizzle, add the gnocchi, tossing carefully until it turns a golden colour. Add the anchovies and parsley. Once the anchovies have broken up, add enough of the reserved stock to moisten the gnocchi without swamping it. Add the cockles, and season with pepper. Carefully spoon the mixture into a deep serving platter and drizzle with the oil.
Serves 4.