Pasta Giardiniera Nuovo
One of my favourite pasta dishes created by the late Antonio Carluccio is Penne Giardiniera. His original recipe is made with penne pasta in a courgette sauce. The highlight of his dish are the amazing spinach balls.
I wanted to create my own version of this fabulous dish and my little twist was to make a pea and basil purée instead of using the courgettes. The peas really add a freshness and sweetness to the pasta. I finished the dish off with delicious, crispy spinach balls on top.
It really is an utterly, yummy pasta recipe 😋
Mangia, mangia! 👩🏻🍳
Creamy Pea and Basil Pasta with Spinach Balls recipe:
Spinach balls:
300g frozen spinach - once cooked out it will leave about 250g spinach
100g fresh breadcrumbs from 3 slices of bread
25g parmesan or pecorino grated
1 garlic clove crushed
Seasoning - salt & pepper
Grating of nutmeg
3-4 tbsps olive or vegetable oil for frying
Pea and basil purée:
200g frozen frozen peas/petit poi
25g butter
Handful of basil leaves
Seasoning
To finish off the sauce:
1 tbsp of olive oil
1 garlic clove finely chopped
1 fresh chilli finely chopped or chilli flakes
50g parmesan or pecorino grated
200-250g dry rigatoni pasta or another pasta shape
Serves 2-3
1. To make your breadcrumbs, get 3 slices of bread and pulse in the food processor.
2. If using frozen spinach then put it in a small pan and cook it out on a low heat till it’s fully cooked and the water evaporates (about 10 mins). Let it cool.
3. In a bowl, mix together the cooled spinach, garlic, nutmeg, breadcrumbs and cheese, then season with salt and pepper. Taste a small amount of the mixture to make sure it’s well seasoned and adjust if necessary.
4. Take a teaspoon of the mixture and form a ball and place on a large plate, repeat until all the mixture is used up. Place in the fridge to firm up for about 15-20 minutes. Note will you end up making about 18-20 balls.
Spinach balls all prepped ready for chilling.
5. To make the pea and basil purée - melt the butter in a saucepan, add the peas with a couple of tablespoons of water, season with salt and pepper and cook for about 1-2 of minutes.
6. Blend the peas with the basil leaves with a hand blender or in a blender and add a little bit more water (about 3 tbsps) so you result in a purée that’s not too thick. Set aside.
7. Boil your pasta in salted water until al dente.
8. Whilst the pasta is cooking, in a large frying pan fry the spinach balls for about 3-4 minutes in at least 3 tablespoons of oil. Turn the balls midway and cook until golden.
9. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside to drain on kitchen paper
10. Using the same frying pan the spinach balls were cooked in, firstly get rid of the oil and wipe clean with kitchen paper then add a tablespoon of oil and gently fry the garlic and chilli for a minute then add the pea purée and a ladleful of the pasta water and cook for a couple of minutes. Add the cooked pasta and toss in the cheese and season with salt and pepper.
11. Serve in individual bowls with 5-6 spinach balls per serving, finishing off with a scattering of cheese.
