Six best lemon recipes from Sardinia

[Celerity]

Creamy linguine, zesty bruschetta … Simple, delicious Mediterranean dishes by Letitia Clark

https://www.thetimes.com/life-style/food-drink/article/six-best-lemon-recipes-letitia-clark-7rl82gtfd

https://archive.ph/kqAKF


Creamy lemon linguine, and baked red vegetables with lemon, anchovy and basil

The first lemon I fell in love with was made of plastic and lived on the top shelf of my grandmother’s refrigerator,” Letitia Clark recalls. “It came out on special occasions or, more precisely, for prawn cocktails and pancakes.” Now that she lives in Sardinia, the chef, who trained with Skye Gyngell at Spring and Sam and Sam Clark at Moro, reaches for her favourite citrus fruit in all her cooking, whether to brighten an otherwise dull plate of food or to add a summery fragrance to a pudding. “Even now after seven years in Italy, I still delight at the sight of a lemon — more so a lemon with leaves,” she says. Her latest book, For the Love of Lemons, is full of recipes that make the most of the fruit, from bowls of tuna pasta and cheese and tomato bruschetta to lemon-scented crema catalana.

Baked red vegetables with lemon, anchovy and basil

Serves 6 as a side or 4 as a main

A lazy summer side or vegetarian main (just add cheese and bread), this dish makes the most of the sweetness of red peppers and tomatoes. You can leave out the anchovies if you are not a fan like me. The lemon zest is important here, and I like it in big strips, not finely grated.

Ingredients

• 3 large ripe red peppers
• Sea salt
• About 120ml olive oil, plus extra for roasting
• Zest (peeled with a peeler) and juice of 1 lemon
• 300g small, sweet tomatoes
• A pinch of dried chilli flakes
• 6 anchovy fillets
• A few basil leaves, torn
• 1 tsp runny honey

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 150C fan/gas 3½. Halve and deseed the peppers, then cut into thick strips. Place in a roasting dish and add a few pinches of salt and a good glug of olive oil. Add the strips of lemon zest and throw in the tomatoes and the chilli flakes.
2. Roast in the oven for about 1 hour until the peppers are soft and collapsing and just browning around the edges.
3. Meanwhile, chop or pound the anchovies, tip into a bowl and mix in the torn basil leaves, honey, lemon juice and olive oil to make a loose dressing. Taste for seasoning and add a pinch of salt if it needs it. Toss through or drizzle over your roasted veg while they are still hot. Serve at room temperature.

Spaghetti with tuna and lemons

Serves 2

This is a combination of different recipes all thrown together, a sort of improved spaghetti aglio, olio e peperoncino — the simplest classic pasta dish of fried garlic, olive oil and chilli. The “sauce” is more of a saucy coating and takes seconds.

Ingredients

• 200g spaghetti
• Sea salt
• 4 tbsp olive oil, plus extra to serve
• 2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
• A small glass of white wine
• 1 x 150g tin of tuna in oil, drained
• Zest of 1 small lemon
• A pinch of dried chilli flakes
• A large handful of rocket, large leaves roughly chopped, small leaves left whole
• A little chopped parsley (optional)
• 1 scant tbsp caper

Method

1. Cook the pasta according to the packet instructions in a large saucepan of well-salted boiling water until al dente.
2. Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large saucepan. Add the garlic and sauté until just turning golden.
3. Pour in the wine and allow to boil for a minute or two, then add the tuna and stir for a minute. Add the lemon zest, chilli flakes, rocket and parsley, if using. Add the capers and taste for seasoning. Add a pinch of salt and a spritz of lemon if necessary or a bit more chilli for heat. Set aside.
4. Drain the pasta, reserving a few tablespoons of the cooking water. Add the pasta and cooking water to the tuna pan over a medium heat and place over the heat again for a couple of minutes. Toss and stir so the pasta is well coated.
5. Check the seasoning again and serve with an extra drizzle of olive oil.

snip


Bruschetta with stracciatella, anchovies, confit tomatoes and lemon zest


Lemon-scented crema catalana

[crim son]

1. Bookmarking.

Lemon makes everything better.