This Friday is even more special since it is Good Friday and in Italy many observe this day with a meat-free menu. Here a few ideas from La Cucina Italiana - fairly easy and quick dishes to prepare. With seasonal vegetables and/or fish. The most popular dishes in Italy for Good Friday are those based on blue fish, in particular anchovies and sardines, but mackerel and, certainly unmissable, as per tradition, cod or stockfish are also very popular.
Pasta con fave e bottarga - Pasta with Broad Beans and Bottarga (Fish Roe)
Reduce the number of ingredients and you will feel how satisfying the flavor of simplicity is.
Ingredients:
400 g shelled fresh broad beans; 350 g mixed pasta; 50
g fresh mullet roe
Preparation:
Step 1: For the recipe for pasta with broad beans and bottarga, boil the broad beans in salted water for 1 minute, then drain them, keeping aside a ladle of cooking water; peel them and blend about 2⁄3 of them with 3-4 tablespoons of oil, a pinch of salt (if necessary) and a few tablespoons of cooking water until you obtain a thick sauce. Step 2: Boil the pasta in salted water and drain it al dente. Step 3: Remove the thin skin covering the bottarga, then slice it finely. Step 4: Pour the broad bean sauce onto the plates, spread the pasta over the top and complete with the bottarga, the remaining whole broad beans, a grind of pepper and a few leaves of marjoram.
Ravioli con salsa di caprino alle menta - Ravioli with mint goat cheese sauce
To make your low-fat ravioli even more inviting, prepare a colored dough, enriched with a spinach puree, and season them with a delicious sauce.
Ingredients:
FOR PASTA
400g flour; 100g trimmed new spinach; 3 pcs yolks
2 pcs eggs; extra virgin olive oil; salt
FOR THE STUFFING
450g ricotta; 160g herbs; 40g grated Parmigiano Reggiano Dop; mint; salt; pepper
FOR THE SEASONING
160g fresh goat's cheese; 50g chicory; 1 clove of garlic;
butter; milk; mint; salt; pepper
Preparation:
FOR PASTA
Step 1: Blanch the spinach for 1 minute in boiling salted water, drain it, squeeze it carefully and blend it with the eggs, egg yolks and a drizzle of oil. Work them with the flour until you obtain a smooth paste; shape it into a ball, cover it with cling film and let it rest in the fridge for at least 1 hour. Flour the work surface and roll out the dough, obtaining a long rectangular sheet approximately 10-12 cm wide and 1 mm thick.
FOR THE STUFFING
Step 2: Dry the ricotta by placing it on kitchen paper. Clean the herbs, blanch them for a few seconds and squeeze them. Chop up about ten mint leaves. Mix the ricotta with the grated parmesan, herbs and mint, seasoning with salt and pepper.
FOR THE SEASONING
Step 3: Mix the goat cheese with 3-4 tablespoons of milk, a pinch of salt, a few grinds of pepper and a few chopped mint leaves. Peel the chicory and fry them in a large pan with a knob of butter, the crushed garlic clove with the peel and a pinch of salt for a couple of minutes.
FOR THE RAVIOLI
Step 4: Distribute small knobs of filling at the top of the pastry, at a distance of about 5 cm from each other. Brush the pastry with a little water all around the filling. Cover the walnuts with the filling with the lower part of the pastry and make it adhere well by pressing it around the filling to eliminate the air.
Step 5: Cut out the ravioli with a pastry cutter with a notched edge. Cook them in boiling salted water until they float to the surface; drain them and let them flavor for 1 minute in the pan with the chicory, stirring gently. Serve the ravioli with the chicory, mint leaves and goat cheese sauce.
Spaghetti con alici e pomodoro - Spaghetti with anchovies and tomatoes
Spaghetti with anchovies and tomato is a perfect first course for your Easter Friday Lunch!
Ingredients:
1 serving
100 g a tomato; 60g spaghetti; 40g fresh anchovies, boned; 15g breadcrumbs; two teaspoons of extra virgin olive oil; half a clove of garlic; half a lemon; thyme; dill; salt; black pepper.
Preparation:
For the spaghetti with anchovies and tomato recipe, marinate the anchovies, opened like a book, for 30 minutes, with lemon juice, a pinch of salt and pepper. Peel and empty the tomato, then cut the pulp into pieces (70 g), sauté it in the pan for 5 minutes with the garlic and without fat. Turn off the heat, add salt and flavor with a pinch of thyme and dill. Pour half the oil and the grated bread into a pan, toasting it until golden. Boil the spaghetti, season them with the tomato, the anchovies, drained and dried from the marinade, the fried bread and the remaining oil.
Write a comment