Pasta - Nettle and Lardon Frittata
I decided to involve nettles in my supper – I was already planning a frittata – so it just became even m re interesting than normal. It is ‘rocket sciencely simple’ (not easy to say when you have had a glass or three of shiraz).
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Ingredients
- 50 gm nettles or spinach
- 75 gm pancetta or lardons
- 2 green chillis - one sliced and deseeded
- dried oregano
- garlic clove - chopped
- 2 tbls olive oil
- 400 gm tin of chopped tomatoes
- splash of tomato sauce
- 2 eggs
- 100 g milk
- pepper
- parmesan cheese
Details
servings 4
Level of difficulty Average
Preparation time 20mins
Cooking time 20mins
Cost Average budget
Preparation
Step 1
Pan fry a finely chopped onion until translucent. Add a 75 gm pack of pancetta or lardons and continue til it is nicely browned. Put to one side.
Step 2
I used about 50 gm of nettle tops – washed and rinsed well. I pan fried them lightly in olive oil til they wilted. Set them to one side and let them cool. Nettles do not wilt as much as spinach so you get a little more. But of course – you could use spinach if you can’t get nettles.
Step 3
For the tomato sauce – pierce a green chilli – add to a saucepan with a good sprinkle of dried oregano, a chopped garlic clove and a finely sliced, deseeded green chilli plus at least two tbsp of olive oil. Then add a 400 gm tin of chopped tomatoes. Bring to a gentle simmer and leave for around 20 minutes with a lid on. Taste – add some tom sauce if you like or a tsp of sugar.
Step 4
Ok – I used 500 gm of spaghetti cooked as per the packet – then drained. In a jug I popped 2 eggs and about 100 gm of milk plus some black pepper, a dash of salt and a good handful of parmesan cheese grated. I mixed this all together with a fork.
Step 5
I popped the spag into a large bowl and stirred in the egg mixture. Then I put a large frying pan on the stove with a dash of olive oil. I then added half of the spaghetti mixture to the pan – flattened it down with a plate. Into the centre I added the bacon mixture and the finely chopped nettles. Then I carefully add the rest of the spaghetti – pressed down again with the plate – so that the filling is all covered.
Step 6
Pan fry it for about 5 minutes til it looks a little browned underneath – use a slice to lift it to check. Then whizz it under a preheated grill to brown the top a little. It is just a matter of being patient and attentive. Put on some good music and watch – when it it is as you want it - pop a large plate over the frying pan and carefully flip it so that the fritatta ends up on the plate.
Step 7
Bring to the table – use a sharp knife to cut wedges and serve with the tomato sauce. This is frighteningly simple and scarily tasty! The pancetta and nettles blend so well.
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