SWORDFISH with POMODORINI

I am so delighted by the choice of fish I have in Italy!
Me and my husband love fish and when we were living abroad
we always missed fish shops abundant of freshly caught fishes.
Although also here in Italy the majority of fish is farm raised,
you can still find wild fishes, like swordfish, tunafish, anchovies,
clams, cuttlefish, squids, etc.

The other day I bought nice slices of swordfish and I prepared it
Sicilian way, with fresh tomatoes, capers and origanum.
Here is the recipe.


PESCE SPADA ALLA SICILIANA

Ingredients for 3 people:

3 slices of fresh swordfish
2 cups of small tomatoes (cherry or Roma)
1 onion, thinly sliced
1 TBS capers, drained
1 tsp of dried origanum
1 TBS of fresh origanum leaves
2 TBS extra virgin olive oil
salt and pepper

Rinse swordfish and dry it.
Sprinkle it with salt and pepper on both sides and put it aside.

In a frying pan cook onions in olive oil until soft.
Meanwhile slice tomatoes in halves and add them into the frying pan.
Add caper, dry origanum and salt and cook for 5 minutes or until tomatoes are
tender. Once done, add fresh origanum leaves and set it aside.

Warm up a grill and cook swordfish slices until they are brown on
both sides.
Spread tomatoes mix on top and serve them warm.

Arugula, Rocket, Rugola is the star of Spring time

I love this tiny green leaf that grows nicely from Spring to Summer!
Along with other leafy greens, arugula contains very high nitrate levels.
High intakes of dietary nitrate have been shown to lower blood pressure,
reduce the amount of oxygen needed during exercise and enhance
athletic performance.
This means that if you are feeling athletic when the sun comes out,
arugula will give you more energy to keep moving.
I use arugula in salads, but I also make a delicious pesto with it.
My dear friend Piera shared this recipe with me when I was living in
South Africa.

HOMEMADE PASTA WITH ARUGULA PESTO

Ingredients for 4/5 people:

1 bunch of arugula (around 2 cups)
2 cups of small sweet tomatoes (cherry or roma)
half cup pine kernels
half cup grated parmesan cheese
half tsp salt
few basil leaves (optional)
extra virgin olive oil to blend and make it creamy

500 g home made pasta or linguini

Combine the arugula, basil, and pine nuts in a food processor and
pulse until coarsely chopped.
Add 1 cup of tomatoes and pulse.
Add parmesan and salt.
Add 1/2 cup ( or more) of oil and process until fully incorporated
and smooth.

Add 2 TBS of olive oil in a frying pan and roast the rest of tomatoes, cut in halves,
for few minutes , then add the pesto in the pan.

Cook the pasta in boiling water following package instructions,
drain it and mix it with the pesto.

Serve warm or cold.