There's always plenty of lively conversation when you work in a kitchen. Everyone loves to share food stories, favorite foods, to debate what's traditional and what's not. When I met Francesco, who comes from Puglia, he told me about his mum making orecchiette and busiate like a machine – she was so efficient and fast! Back then I hadn't really made either of these shapes, so Francesco's mum decided I needed to learn. She sent me a ferretto and her orecchiette knife with instructions to practice. It's wonderful how food connects you to people you haven't even met.
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Pasta Masterclass by Mateo Zielonka (Photo courtesy of Dave Brown)
Ingredients
400g/14oz busiate (page 138) [in the book]
350g/12oz fresh San Marzano tomatoes (or any good plum tomatoes)
80g/3oz blanched whole almonds (or use skin-on if you prefer)
105ml/7 tbsp olive oil
2 garlic cloves, slightly crushed
juice of ½ lemon
4 stalks of basil, leaves only
2 stalks of mint, leaves only
60g/2 ¼ oz pecorino, plus extra to serve
Vegan option:
Replace the pecorino with pangrattato
Directions
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First, prepare the tomatoes. Score a cross in the stalk ends with a sharp knife, place the tomatoes in a large bowl and cover them with boiling water. After 1 minute, drain, then transfer to another bowl filled with ice-cold water. It will now be very easy to peel the skins, which can be discarded. Set the peeled tomatoes aside.
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Place a frying pan (skillet) on a medium heat and toast the almonds for 6–8 minutes, shaking the pan from time to time until the almonds are golden brown. Transfer them to the bowl of a food processor and allow to cool.
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Using the same pan, heat the 30ml/2 tablespoons olive oil on a medium-low heat, add the garlic and fry it for a couple of minutes to soften the cloves and flavor the oil. Tip the oil and garlic into the processor bowl with the almonds. Add the lemon juice and herbs and pulse for 20 seconds until the almonds are crushed.
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Now place the tomatoes into the processor bowl, switch on the food processor and slowly pour the remaining olive oil through the funnel to blend everything together to create a thick, slightly grainy sauce.
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Transfer to a large saucepan, season to taste with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, then set over a very low heat.
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Bring a large pan of water to the boil before salting generously, then drop in the busiate and cook for 2–3 minutes. Transfer the pasta to the warm sauce. Toss everything together, adding a splash of pasta water if needed, then scatter over the pecorino and toss again.
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Season with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, then share between plates with extra pecorino and a bowl of greens on the side.
Excerpted with permission from Pasta Masterclass by Mateo Zielonka published by Quadrille Publishing, May 2023
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