RECIPE 01: SECOND HELPINGS - SPRING
Saffron cavatelli w baby globe artichokes, asparagus, peas, broad beans, goat’s cheese & pecorino (v)
This is a riff on a dish we served one spring at Small Town Food + Wine.
We love it because it’s a full-circle dish — using the stock (from braising the artichokes) as the vessel that carries beautiful spring veg and pasta along for a joyride to flavour town.
Cavatelli is vegan, so remove the cheese from the dish to make it vegan-friendly. But if Meat-free Mondays aren’t your thing, try adding flaked Snowy River rainbow trout to add a seafood touch.
SEASON & SAVOUR CAVATELLI
Serves 4
Globe artichokes:
2kg small globe artichokes, leaves, heads & tails trimmed away, stalks peeled and held in seasoned, lemon water
100g extra virgin olive oil
1 carrot, peeled & sliced
1 stalk celery, sliced
2 eshallots finely sliced
2 cloves garlic, finely sliced
2 bay leaves
10 sprigs thyme
5g coriander seeds
5g fennel seeds
250ml white wine
50ml white wine vinegar
1L vegetable stock
Sautee the prepared artichokes with extra virgin olive oil in a shallow pan for a few minutes until golden, add the veg and aromatics & season with a pinch of sea salt.
Deglaze with wine and vinegar then reduce the liquid by half.
Cover with stock and bring to a gentle simmer, taste, re season and pop the lid on the pot.
Cook until tender. Approx. 20-30 mins.
Allow to cool, store in the braising liquid in jars or airtight containers in the fridge.
Saffron Cavatelli:
200g fine semolina
200g ‘00’ flour
200g water
1 x pinch (10 threads) saffron
Bloom the saffron in the water by warming gently on the stove, just to a simmer. Remove from heat and allow to cool to room temp.
Make the dough by sifting the flours together in a large bowl and add the water until the dough comes together, then transfer to a floured surface. Knead for about 5 minutes, until the dough feels smooth, springy, and elastic. Cover with a damp cloth and rest until ready to shape.
Shape the cavatelli by dusting your bench and a tray with flour and semolina. Work with small portions of dough at a time, keeping the remainder covered. Roll into logs about 1cm thick, spreading with your hands, then cut into 1cm pieces. Press each piece against a textured surface – like a wooden gnocchi or garganelli board, I have even seen a piece of decking board from the hardware store used, but the kitchen bench would also work perfectly – push it slightly with your thumb to create a curled, ridged shape. Arrange the finished pieces on the tray, dust them with additional flour to prevent them from sticking together. Continue until all the dough is shaped. Store uncovered in the fridge overnight.
To Assemble
400g Cavatelli
2 bunches thick local green asparagus – base removed & cut into 3cm lengths – blanched for 1 min in seasoned water & refreshed in ice water. Drain & reserve.
4 globe artichoke hearts cut into quarters
300ml artichoke braising stock
1 cup broad beans – if you can’t source fresh from the greengrocer use frozen. Peel the outer skin by blanching in a pot of seasoned water for 20 seconds and then plunging into ice water. Drain & peel the outer skin and reserve
1 cup of fresh peas – same as above if you can’t source fresh (no need to peel)
100g Meredith goat’s cheese - marinated or not
50g Pecorino Romano (or parmesan f you can’t source)
50g butter – cubed
A good slug of your best EVOO
A handful of finely chopped flat leaf parsley
1 lemon
Salt & pepper
Method
Once all the veg is trimmed, peeled, blanched and you have all your prep in place, the dish will come together pretty quickly. Pop a pot of water on the boil and season w salt. Have a good sauce / sauté pan handy for cooking the dish, one that you can toss “like a chef does”
Drop the cavatelli into the boiling water and cook for 2-3 mins - once they float cook for another 30 seconds.
Bring the artichoke braising liquid up to a simmer in the saucepan and add all the green veg & artichokes. Once it returns to the boil, add the butter and stir or toss the pan to emulsify. Season with EVOO and a squeeze of lemon juice.
Drain the cavatelli and toss into the pasta, season to taste with salt & pepper, add the parsley and prepare to plate up.
Divide the pasta evenly into 4 bowls, equally dividing the cavatelli & spring veg. Crumble over the Meredith goat’s cheese & grate pecorino over the top with a microplane. Another drizzle of EVOO never goes astray and voila, dinner is served. Best eaten with a spoon & fork with a hunk of crusty fresh sourdough bread.
Notes:
This recipe is broken into 3 parts:
The artichokes can be prepared ahead of time and used in a variety of meals they are great in salads, on grazing platters, and are delish served with fish, chicken or red meat, so yum & versatile!
The cavatelli can be prepared the day before or even stored in the freezer for future meals.
Then all you need to do is get a few veggies prepared and dinner is cooked & served in 5 mins.
