Simple Friday supper

I love pasta!!! I like pasta with tomato sauce (especially if the sauce is made from fresh, ripe tomatoes). I like pasta with creamy white wine sauce where you can experiment with lots of different ingredients and I like a simple pasta with just a drop of good quality olive oil, garlic, olives and chillies. I like penne, spaghetti, linguini, orecchiette, lasagne, etc. Give me pasta anytime and I'm a happy girl!!!

Yesterday I made Gordon Ramsey's:

"Mushroom & Leek Pasta"

(Serves 2)

Olive oil
200g chestnut mushrooms, trimmed and sliced
1 garlic clove, peeled and crushed
1 leek, trimmed and thinly sliced
250ml vegetable stock (or chicken stock if you not making this dish for a veggie)
4-6 lasagne sheets, dried or fresh
100ml double cream
2 tbsps tarragon leaves, roughly chopped
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Heat a large frying pan and add a dash of oil. Season the mushrooms and saute them, adding the garlic after 2 minutes and the leeks a minute later. Cook for 6-8 minutes until the leeks are soft and the mushrooms are coloured. Taste and adjust the seasoning.

Add the stock and boil until reduced by half. Meanwhile, cook the lasagne sheets in a large saucepan of boiling salted water until just al dente.

While the lasagne is cooking, add the cream to the frying pan and simmer for 2-3 minutes to reduce a little. When the pasta is cooked, drain and add to the pan with the sauce, stirring until well coated.

Turn off the heat, add the tarragon leaves and allow to sit for few minutes.

To serve, spoon he lasagne and mushroom mixture onto serving plates, layering them up attractively.

Gordon recommends serving the pasta with garlic bruschetta but I've served it with garlic bread, lots of parmesan cheese and glass of Sauvignon Blanc and although in the picture it looks a bit messy, trust me it was delicious! Very easy and quick to make dish (ready in about 20 minutes) with simple ingredients that everybody can find in their kitchen. Perfect for a simple Friday supper!!

And a mini Victoria sponge cupcake with fresh strawberries and a cup of tea for afters:) Yum!