Italian Recipes: Delicious Pasta Dinners

Italian food is popular across the world for good reason, fantastic recipes made from the best ingredients. Especially well-regarded for the diverse pizzas and pastas, like the stringy spaghetti, the tubelike forms of macaroni, the swirls of fusili, sheets of lasagna and filled types like ravioli and tortellini, it's one of the most widespread foods across the world, and enjoyed by millions. Dried or fresh, here's a couple of recipes for some great pasta dishes than can feed the family.

Spaghetti Carbonara
Ingredients
50g pancetta, finely chopped
100 g spaghetti
50 g pecorino cheese
50 g parmesan
Olive oil
1 whole egg, plus 1 extra egg yolk

This recipe will serve one, but of course you can easily bump up all the ingredients to feed many more.

So, start by heating a frying pan with a dash of olive oil, and fry the small pieces of meat until good and crisp. Use a large slotted spoon to take out the meat and set aside for now. But keep the oil and fat ready to go.

Now, bring a large pan of water with a little salt to the boil, and cook the spaghetti for up to 10 minutes until delicious and tender (or al dente, if you want to be technical).

Now, mix the whole egg and egg yolk,adding the cheese and plenty of black pepper to taste. Use a few tbsp of the water you used to cook the spaghetti to loosen it up. Add some more of the water to the fat in the pan to let it simmer, and once the spaghetti is cooked, drain it and add it to the frying pan, tossing it around.

Now season the egg mixture with salt and add to the pasta. Turn
off the heat and toss again, adding more water and cheese if you need to. This should make a smooth sauce.

Serve up and scatter the meat on top and add extra cheese as desired. Enjoy!

Orecchiette pasta with broccoli and prosciutto

Ingredients
6 tbsp olive oil
50 g prosciutto or pancetta cubes
1 clove of garlic
1 small red chilli
6 cherry tomatoes
200 g broccoli florets
2 tbsp fresh parsley
400 g orecchiette pasta
40 g pecorino cheese

Start by heating the olive oil, then add the meat until golden, for a few minutes. Add the garlic, chili and tomatoe, and fry for another 2 or 3 minutes, and stir in the broccoli. Add a small amount of water to the pan, and cover and simmer for 5 - 6 minutes. Then stir in the parsley.

Now cook the pasta for 12 - 15 minutes. Drain and add to the sauce. Toss the pasta and season to taste.

To serve, add the pasta to the serving dishes, and if you like pour some grated cheese over.

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