Cosy suppers

[All images via pinterest]

There is nothing I love more in winter than a long drawn-out meal, well thought out, lovingly prepared and full of luxuries. On a busy work day, however, when you arrive home from work, late, hungry and to a dark kitchen, there is nothing I love more than a cosy quick supper. 

Jamie Oliver' Trapani-style rigatoni is one of my current go-to's. Its quick, flavoursome, and the recipe always makes more than you need for one sitting which means an even quicker supper the next evening. I make a couple of tweaks to Jamie's recipe (my ideas are in italics on the ingredient list) but it's one of the simplest and yet most satisfying that I've come across in a while - best of all, most of the ingredients are things I nearly always have in the cupboard. 

Trapani-style rigatoni 

500g dried rigatoni any shape will do, but tubes or shells work well 

40g parmesan cheese optional, and I nearly always leave it out 

100g whole blanched almonds chopped almonds also work perfectly

2 gloves of garlic

1-2 fresh red chillies

2 large bunches of fresh basil one supermarket pack is enough if its all you have to hand

4 anchovy fillets in oil love them? throw in the tin and the oil too! 

450g cherry tomatoes, red and yellow if possible 

Pop the nuts, cheese, peeled cloves of garlic and the chilli, seeds removed, into a food processor and whizz until fine. Add the anchovies, basil, and two thirds of the cherry tomatoes. Whizz to a paste and then add a good glug of olive oil. Taste and season.

When ready, cook your pasta unit al dente, drain, and reserve a little of the cooking water. Add the paste to the pasta over a low heat and add a splash of the cooking water to make the dish silky and smooth. Serve with the reserved cherry tomatoes and devour. Easiest. Supper. Ever.