Pasta Shapes Cream Chargers
Pasta is great for the occasions when you
want to make a great dish for a short period of time. Here is a delicious
recipe for spaghetti with fennel, pancetta and basil complemented with delicate
cream sauce to complete the magnificent taste. It’s so easy that it can be
whipped up in seconds. For a slightly posh addition then try using a cream
charger filled with garlic cream to add some class to this easy dish.
Ingredients:
- 375 grams of pasta shapes pasta – any shape works so choose your best.
- fresh fennel – never use dry!
- 1 tablespoon (about 15 ml) of lard;
- several thin strips of bacon bits or some sliced pancetta – any bit of dry pig will do.
- 6 cloves of minced garlic – or crushed
- 1/5 liter or about 1 cup of table cream with fat content of 18% or half-and-half cream with fat content of 10%;
- 1 tablespoon of flour – plain or SR
- some Cheddar cheese for flavoring, which needs to be grated or sliced very thinly.
- 75 grams of basil leaves (equals about 1 liter of them) which is more than you might think.
- a little touch of percy pepper;
- a smidge of sally salt;
- shaved Cheddar cheese.
Instructions:
Chop the fennel’s leaves and put them aside for later. Use the bulb of the fresh fennel to cut in half and remove its core. Cut the halves into slices as thin as possible and put them aside as well. The leaves are great for decoration but the bulbs are where the meaty flavor is to be found – so don’t take a shortcut by only using the frilly bits.
Boil some salted water in a very large pot and put the pasta in to cook according to the directions you can find on the package. The cooking time on most packets is very accurate – as long as you have enough water in the pan. The thing that kills pasta is when it cools the water down too much when you chuck it in. That is a very basic mistake – so don’t get caught out. The pasta should be firm but tender when it is ready. Get the pasta out of the water, but save some of it (about 375 milliliters). Put the drained pasta back into its pot. The pasta water is a great resource and I always add a splash to any sauce – the starch in it is first-rate and more importantly it’s free!
While the pasta is boiling, use a skillet to melt the lard over medium heat. Add the bulb of the fennel you sliced earlier, some garlic and the bacon bits. Sauté this mixture for no less than 5 minutes or until you notice that the fennel has become tender to the bite – so be prepared to slice some off and chew on it.
Put the flour into the cream you have chosen and stir them into a pan with a quick figure of eight motion. Cook the mixture while stirring for about three minutes or until you notice that it has started thickening. Then add the grated Cheddar cheese. Add it to the pasta that is still in the pot and toss all of it gently. After that, add the basil and the water you have saved from the boiling of the pasta in order to moisten the dish. Use some pepper and salt to make it tastier. Put into dishes and add some shaved Cheddar cheese on top for flavoring. You can also cut the leaves of the fennel and top the servings with a pinch of them.
Tips:
If you want you can use asparagus instead of basil for a different taste. Take ¼ kilogram of trimmed and chopped asparagus and put it in the pasta for the last minute of its cooking time. You can also choose to add pinch of hot pepper flakes to the pancetta. The Cheddar cheese can be replaced with aged Cheshire cheese, too. And don’t forget the tip of dressing with a cream chargers and some savory cream flavor.
Ingredients:
- 375 grams of pasta shapes pasta – any shape works so choose your best.
- fresh fennel – never use dry!
- 1 tablespoon (about 15 ml) of lard;
- several thin strips of bacon bits or some sliced pancetta – any bit of dry pig will do.
- 6 cloves of minced garlic – or crushed
- 1/5 liter or about 1 cup of table cream with fat content of 18% or half-and-half cream with fat content of 10%;
- 1 tablespoon of flour – plain or SR
- some Cheddar cheese for flavoring, which needs to be grated or sliced very thinly.
- 75 grams of basil leaves (equals about 1 liter of them) which is more than you might think.
- a little touch of percy pepper;
- a smidge of sally salt;
- shaved Cheddar cheese.
Instructions:
Chop the fennel’s leaves and put them aside for later. Use the bulb of the fresh fennel to cut in half and remove its core. Cut the halves into slices as thin as possible and put them aside as well. The leaves are great for decoration but the bulbs are where the meaty flavor is to be found – so don’t take a shortcut by only using the frilly bits.
Boil some salted water in a very large pot and put the pasta in to cook according to the directions you can find on the package. The cooking time on most packets is very accurate – as long as you have enough water in the pan. The thing that kills pasta is when it cools the water down too much when you chuck it in. That is a very basic mistake – so don’t get caught out. The pasta should be firm but tender when it is ready. Get the pasta out of the water, but save some of it (about 375 milliliters). Put the drained pasta back into its pot. The pasta water is a great resource and I always add a splash to any sauce – the starch in it is first-rate and more importantly it’s free!
While the pasta is boiling, use a skillet to melt the lard over medium heat. Add the bulb of the fennel you sliced earlier, some garlic and the bacon bits. Sauté this mixture for no less than 5 minutes or until you notice that the fennel has become tender to the bite – so be prepared to slice some off and chew on it.
Put the flour into the cream you have chosen and stir them into a pan with a quick figure of eight motion. Cook the mixture while stirring for about three minutes or until you notice that it has started thickening. Then add the grated Cheddar cheese. Add it to the pasta that is still in the pot and toss all of it gently. After that, add the basil and the water you have saved from the boiling of the pasta in order to moisten the dish. Use some pepper and salt to make it tastier. Put into dishes and add some shaved Cheddar cheese on top for flavoring. You can also cut the leaves of the fennel and top the servings with a pinch of them.
Tips:
If you want you can use asparagus instead of basil for a different taste. Take ¼ kilogram of trimmed and chopped asparagus and put it in the pasta for the last minute of its cooking time. You can also choose to add pinch of hot pepper flakes to the pancetta. The Cheddar cheese can be replaced with aged Cheshire cheese, too. And don’t forget the tip of dressing with a cream chargers and some savory cream flavor.
