Pappardelle with ricotta, tomatoes and herbs

June 1, 2017 Published by Dina

You know that saying that you can never be too thin, too rich or eat too much pasta? Well, the last part is my ad lib but that’s how I feel. I am always ready for a delicious and comforting steamy bowl of pasta.

I was at the farmers market this week and picked up fresh ricotta from a local organic cheese producer, Bella Stella Cheese from Lumby, BC. The Swiss born Igor and German born Irma left other careers to pursue their passion in agriculture and cheese making. After mountain-farming and making cheese in the Swiss Italian Alps, they decided to relocate to Lumby where they have been making cheese ever since. They operate a certified organic cheese plant, using a combination of age-old Swiss and Italian recipes from Ticino in the Italian Alps. Their cheeses are made only with pasteurized milk of grass fed Jersey cows.

Igor does the rounds of local farmers market (Vernon, Kelowna, Salmon Arm, Nakusp and Rossland) where you can find him and buy their product. In Kelowna you can also find their cheeses at Okanagan Grocery in Guisachan Village and at Sunshine Market on Lakeshore.

 


 

Pappardelle with ricotta, tomatoes and herbs


The ricotta I bought was creamy white with mild flavour and soft texture. I can think of many ways to enjoy it and today used some on grilled bread, like we used to do in Italy, and the rest went into this pappardelle pasta. The cheese was creamy and sweet and the tomatoes complimented it with their tangy acidity that cut through the richness of the cheese. We enjoyed it as a substantial lunch with a fancy little dessert that I was experimenting with (Matcha cake).

I used dry noodles for this dish although it’s fairly easy to make pappardelle at home

Enjoy.


Crostini with fresh ricotta and figs with fig balsamic crema


Recipe adapted from On Top of Spaghetti. by Johanne Killeen and George Germon


Ingredients:


1 lb pappardelle

1 1/2 cups fresh ricotta
A large handful of parsley, chopped
Coarse sea salt

1 small shallot, minced
2 tablespoons sherry vinegar

5 ripe tomatoes
1 tablespoon each, fresh thyme, oregano, chives, basil, chopped
6 tablespoon olive oil
Salt and pepper


Directions:


Place the ricotta in a bowl, add the parsley and salt and mix gently.

Place the chopped shallots in a small bowl with the vinegar and let steep 10 minutes.

Chop the tomatoes, squeezing out some of the seeds and juice.
Add the oil, salt and herbs.
When shallots have steeped long enough add them to the tomatoes with the vinegar.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil, add a generous amount of salt and drop the pasta into the boiling water. Cook according to package directions until al dente.

When pasta is cooked, drain and  add it to the bowl with the tomatoes, mixing well so the pasta is coated with the tomatoes and oil.

Add half the ricotta and mix it in gently.

Pile pastas into pasta bowl, scatter remaining ricotta over, drizzle with additional olive oil and garnish with herbs.

Serve immediately.


 



 

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