Prawns and Snowpeas with Wasabi Cream Sauce

Okay, NOW we're talkin'. This was a complete wing and I was so happy with how it turned out. This is really, really great and I think you should absolutely try it.

You'll need;

500g prawns, shelled
200g pasta shells
two big handfulls snowpeas, chopped
200ml cream
1 tbspn fresh REAL wasabi - not the green stuff you get from asian stores. There's a great company in NZ that does an awesome wasabi.
1 clove crushed garlic
2 tbspns mirin
1 finely chopped tomato
2 tbspns extra virgin olive oil.
salt to season.

Cook your pasta according to directions. Put the chopped snowpeas in the cooking water with the pasta for the last minute or so of cooking to blanch them. Drain the pasta and snowpeas, then put the olive oil and garlic in the saucepan and return to heat. Let the garlic infuse the oil, then pour in the cream. Add the wasabi, mirin, tomato and bring to a simmer. Season, then stir in the prawns and snowpeas. Serves two very happy people.

Smoked Salmon and Rocket Super Salad

I don't like rocket, usually. It's just a little too bitter. A friend of mine says it tastes like poison, and I have to agree.

However, this salad is so freakin' delicious I have to make the exception, here. Try it - I dare you.

You will need;

150g rocket
200g smoked salmon
1 handful capers
3 good quality salad tomatoes
300ml good quality fresh ceasar salad dressing
handful shaved parmesan
1 thinly sliced spanish onion
1 packet of crispy noodles (this is the big secret)

You could add avocado as a variation.

Simply toss it all in a bowl and serve.

Baked Vegetables with Pruscuito and Creamy Caper and Cherry Tomato sauce.

Whooaaahh! This was simply the most delicious thing I've made in ages. The sauce... I just wanted to drink the sauce...

Anyhoo, this is what you'll need...

Pre-heat oven to 180C

1 celeriac,
1 sweet potato,
1 swede, all peeled and diced into 2cm cubes.
150g finely shredded pruscuito
200ml cream
1 tspn dijon mustard
1 clove crushed garlic
1 tbspn capers
100g cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
1 good handful of finely grated Parmesan
Olive oil

Put the diced vegetables and pruscuito into a baking dish, drizzle with olive oil and put into the oven for 30-35 minutes until the vegetables are soft and the pruscuito crispy.

In a small saucepan over medium heat, place the cream, capers, garlic, mustard, and tomatoes and bring to a simmer, pressing down on the cherry tomatoes to release some juice into the sauce. When simmering, add the Parmesan, stirring, until the mixture is thick and saucy. Season.

Arrange the cooked vegetables in a serving bowl, and drizzle over the sauce. Serves two.

Fettuccini with Mushrooms and Truffle

Okay, okay so it's truffle. I swore I'd never put anything that was weird or pretentious here, but I simply couldn't resist - and the reason is that it's delicious. I don't mean that kind of Madagascan-lemur-kidney oh gosh it's so rare it must be good tasty, but really great. Truffles are expensive because they are freakin' AWESOME. Ahem.

Okay, rationalization aside, here's the recipe.

You'll need:

200g fettucini
150ml cream
150g mushrooms, thinly sliced
1 clove crushed garlic
25ml truffle oil (get the good stuff, with truffle bits floating in it)
10g butter
good handful of Parmesan
olive oil

In a frypan, get the butter frothing with a couple of glugs of the olive oil. Toss in the mushrooms and cook until very tender and rich. Set aside in a warm place. Meanwhile, cook your pasta.

When the pasta's done (saving a bit of the cooking water), put the cream, garlic and truffle oil in the pan and bring to a simmer. Grate your Parmesan into the simmering mixture until you get a lovely creamy sauce. Season.

Add the pasta and mushrooms, and toss until coated. Add a couple of glugs of the cooking oil to keep it from getting too gluey. Serves 2. A very happy 2.