Roman Raw Sauce
SERVES 4
(as a main, 6 as a starter)
200 g (7 oz) cherry tomatoes, halved
1 garlic clove, peeled and finely chopped
20 g (3?4 oz) capers, rinsed well 100 g (31?2 oz) whole green olives, stones removed and quartered 1 red chilli, finely chopped
125 g (4 oz) mozzarella, cut into approx. 2 cm (3?4 in) cubes
5 tablespoons extra-virgin
olive oil
salt and freshly ground black pepper
3 tablespoons finely chopped flat-leaf parsley, plus extra leaves, to serve handful of basil leaves
100 g (31?2 oz) ricotta
Method:
1. Gently mix the tomatoes, garlic, capers, olives, chilli, mozzarella and and oil together in a bowl.
2. Warm a large mixing bowl ready to toss the freshly cooked spaghetti in. Drain the spaghetti and toss it in the warm bowl with the tomato mixture, season well and then mix in the herbs.
3. Serve with spoonfuls of ricotta on top.
For the pasta
Makes enough long pasta for 4
(as a main, 6 as a starter)
Ingredients
200 g (7 oz/1? cups) ‘00’ flour, plus a little extra if necessary
2 large free range eggs
The standard recipe for fresh pasta calls for 1 large egg to every 100g of ‘00’ flour.
For dusting use coarse semolina as it acts like tiny ball bearings which don’t stick to the pasta.
Method
1. Put the flour and eggs into a food processor and whizz to combine just until it starts to come into a ball of dough.
2. Tip onto the table and knead until smooth.
3. Leave the pasta to rest covered in cling film for 20 minutes at room temperature or for up to a day in the fridge. This allows the dough to relax and makes it easier to roll out through a pasta machine or by hand.
4. To cut fresh pasta by machine.
5. Roll out the rested dough dusting it with semolina or ‘00’ flour using a rolling pin or simply flatten it with your hands into a rough rectangle just wide enough to fit through the rollers of the pasta machine.
6. Set the machine to its widest setting and roll the pasta through.
7. Dust the pasta again and roll it through again on a notch down on the machine to reduce the gap between the rollers.
8. Cut the length of pasta in half or quarters depending on the amount you are rolling. Repeat the dusting and rolling process again this time two notches down.
9. Finally repeat the process on the last or the penultimate notch to obtain the required thickness of the pasta.
10. Cook for 2 minutes in salted boiling water.