So we’re now in mid Spring. The weather is warming up, and sunny days are with us for a few weeks at least. Flowers are springing up in the garden and everything starting to look glorious.
What do you want to eat for dinner? You don’t just want salad, salad, salad. You don’t want anything too heavy. Why not look to the Italians for ideas?
Pasta is incredibly versatile in its various forms. We all know a lasagne can be meaty or made with vegetables, and served with a salad is a great Spring and Summer main dinner meal.
Pasta can make a lovely salad dish – a tomato-based cold pasta salad, simple cooked pasta and pesto, a pasta cheese salad; there are numerous options.
One dinner dish I love is a creamy chicken and mushroom tagliatelle – you can of course adjust to taste by swapping chicken for more mushrooms or paneer, swap the tagliatelle for linguini, spaghetti, penne or other pasta, leave out the wine, use a different stock. But the basic recipe is the same.
I use my own home-made chicken stock (frozen in ice cubes) but do use any stock cubes or fresh stock you prefer.
Ingredients:
- Chicken breasts (one per person) sliced into strips
- Generous handful of halved or quartered mushrooms
- Small onion, chopped fairly finely
- 2-3 cloves of garlic, minced or finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon cornflour
- Glass of dry white wine
- Approx. 100ml chicken stock
- 375ml double cream
- Pinch of Rosemary (or other preferred herbs)
- Pinch of nutmeg
- Salt and pepper
Method:
Fry the chicken in a little oil until golden but not fully cooked. Remove from the pan and set aside.
In the same pan, cook the onions and mushrooms in a little oil, for a couple of minutes with some salt and pepper. Add the garlic.
Stir in the cornflour, then the wine. Stir the pan well, scraping all the browned bits until the pan is clear (deglazing the pan).
Return the chicken to the pan (with any juices released by resting), and add the chicken stock then the cream and stir while bringing to the boil. Once boiling, add the rosemary and nutmeg and turn the heat down to a simmer while you cook the pasta. Taste your sauce and add any more seasoning you like.
Once all cooked, spoon the pasta into the sauce – never sauce to pasta! If you find the sauce has over-thickened, add a little of the pasta water until it reaches the consistency you like.
Serve with some grated Italian hard cheese and lovely buttered crusty bread!
We all know, living in the UK, that weather can be turbulent. Unlike other countries, we can experience all 4 seasons in one day! Our bodies aren’t as used to the heat as others, so be sensible.
Sunscreen and a hat is essential for young children, but also remember your pets. If you have white cats, the hair on their ears can be very thin and cats
have been known to get skin cancer. Using a dab of sun block can help (no they won’t like you doing it!). Ensure there’s easily-accessible fresh water daily for them to drink. If you serve your pets wet food, remove any uneaten food or it will very quickly get slimy and begin to smell – and attract pests. If you go out and leave your pets – eg to go to work, do ensure they have shade to shelter under as well as water available. Consider closing curtains if a room is particularly sunny.
Dogs might love lying in the sun, but do bear in mind how hot it gets and the type of dog you have. Generally, they will be OK if under 25°c, but the flat-faced breeds such as Pugs, overweight dogs, elderly dogs or those with health conditions, all may not fare as well in the heat as they appear to. Look out for over-panting and if too hot to go for a walk, it really won’t harm them to miss out. Never, ever, leave a dog in a car on a hot day! Not even to nip into a shop. A car heats up very quickly and is significantly hotter inside than outside.
Well that’s enough nagging from me. Let’s all enjoy the sunshine now while we have it. Go for picnics, enjoy eating out in the garden. Let the kids, and animals, splash in a pool. It will be wet and cold again before we know it!
For picnic ideas, or having a gathering, my book ‘Picnics, Parties and Drinks’ is available on Amazon for just £2.99. https://tinyurl.com/ym2v7eb3
love
Maggie x