A very good tuna and bean salad
plus the greenest spaghetti!
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I make a tuna salad a good few times a week for lunch. It’s my go to when I’m at home working and always varies depending on the season. Usually I just throw everything into my bowl, a quick dressing of extra virgin olive oil and some sort of acid (vinegar/lemon) and I’m done!
On this occasion I set out to make a salad that you could proudly serve up for lunch to friends or make for yourself. It’s a main meal kind of salad with beans (cooked and canned), fennel, radicchio, lots of herbs and some olive oil fried croutons! The dressing is lemon and olive and is just so delicious.
Instead of a squeeze of lemon juice, I share with you one of my favourite ways to use lemon in the kitchen! If you have my latest cookbook, you’ll see the trick in my marinated mozzarella too!
Also sharing a recipe that is a riff on one in my third cookbook, Around the Table and is so popular! It’s a super green cavolo nero pasta. This version I added a dollop of creme fraiche instead of the ricotta and it was lovely!
MELBOURNE readers, I’ve teamed up with Pidapipó to bring you an incredible dessert of Maritozzi stuffed with gelato for Mother’s Day! This limited-edition dessert will be served in-store only at all our stores from 2 – 16 May.
We’re off to Japan next week for a family holiday, so expect some Japan things in the coming soon!
And finally, the next newsletter will be these gorgeous Pansotti, stuffed with lots of greens and served with a walnut sauce which you can totally just serve up with regular dried pasta too, so stay tuned!
Julia x
CAVOLO NERO SPAGHETTI
Serves 4
1 bunch cavolo nero
5 garlic cloves
150 ml extra virgin olive oil, plus extra to serve
80 g full-fat ricotta or a dollop of creme fraiche
Salt and black pepper
350 g spaghetti
Bring a large saucepan of salted water to the boil. Strip the leaves from the cavolo nero stalks (keep the stalks for another use). When the water is boiling, blanch the cavolo nero leaves and garlic cloves for 3-4 minutes, then use tongs or a slotted spoon to transfer to a fine mesh strainer to drain. Keep the water boiling for the pasta. When cool, squeeze most of the excess water from the cavolo nero leaves.
Transfer the cavolo nero and garlic to a food processor or blender and pulse until finely chopped. With the motor running, gradually pour in the olive oil and blitz until smooth. Add the ricotta and blend until fully incorporated. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Cook the pasta according to the package instructions, until al dente, then reserve ½ cup pasta water and drain. Transfer the cooked pasta to a serving bowl, then pour over enough cavolo nero sauce to coat the pasta. If it’s too thick, add a splash of pasta water to coat. Toss well to coat.
Serve with an extra drizzle of olive oil.
TUNA AND BEAN SALAD WITH LEMON OLIVE DRESSING
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