It’s about time to do something good for our body again and our soul of course. Today we are going to make a short trip to Tuscany, Italy and discover some soul-food.
The mentality that surrounds food in Italy is unlike everything typical about food in the US or some other European country’s. Italians eat slowly. They savor every single bite and every single moment at the table, „family style“ means more than just passing around a plate of food for everyone to try.

  Italians like a table in their national colors.

A lady  in Italy once told me her family never served a meal without setting the table, complete with a white tablecloth. And yes, of course I realize that setting up a gorgeous tables cape with a movie-worthy view is not something most people have the privilege of re-creating at home, but what we can (and should) copy is the overall idea. Eating is a time to unplug from the rest of the world and to connect with the food and the people right in front of you.

Table decoration: Why not simple – but effective.

And most importantly, authentic Italian cooks let the ingredients shine. If you start with the best quality ingredients you can find, you only need a few to make an amazing dish.

The best thing you can do is start out with really, really good olive oil. Spend the money on that fancier bottle — it’s 100 percent worth it. Because, as I learned, olive oil is just as much an ingredient as pasta or Parmesan cheese. When you simply use olive oil to sauté vegetables or throw in a tablespoon to prevent your pasta from sticking before adding other ingredients, the pure flavor gets lost in translation. The rich flavor of homemade olive oil is unlike anything else, and it’s truly at the heart of Italian cooking — let it be the shining star.

                         
Luckily we get meantime in Uruguay excellent ingredients for gourmet cooking, even good Parmesan cheese.

Use good salt and fresh garlic. Invest in the freshest seasonal vegetables when you can. And, most importantly, take the time to savor every single bite.  Many years ago I already realized that good Italian food is about: freshness, simplicity, and flavor.  See also my post „It’s Pizza Time“, less is more !

  A vineyard near Siena Tuscany.

Grab a forkful of happiness by making  the following dish.

Allow me, as a pasta addict, to introduce you to one of my favorite pasta recipes. Olive oil, garlic, chilli flakes, lemon, white wine, thyme, and Parmesan cheese. If you’ve got all the ingredients on hand, you’re on your way to a fast and easy Italian dinner that will fill you with pure joy. I couldn’t believe it either, but this dish is amazing. Just try it – so easy.

  It looks so simple, but believe me it tastes FIRST CLASS !

Warning: your place will be filled with the intoxicating aroma of garlic and white wine, no problem to me, in my opinion it’s always better than the scent of a candle. So get ready to be showered with compliments if you’ve got others around.

  Its all about the right ingredients.

Spaghetti With Garlic, White Wine, Lemon, and Thyme.

Ingredients.

salt
1/2 pound spaghetti
2 large lemons, zested and juiced
2 tablespoons olive oil
5 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 teaspoon chilli flakes (red pepper flakes for the US)
1/3 cup white wine
pepper, to taste
2 tablespoons salted butter
leaves from a handful of fresh thyme (about 5 sprigs), plus more for garnish
1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese, plus more for garnish and your taste

  Zesting the lemons.

How to do.

Bring a pot of water to a boil, add a generous pinch of salt, and cook spaghetti 1 minute less than the package directions instruct.
While the water is cooking, I like to start by mincing the garlic and zesting and juicing the lemons so that everything is ready to go when it’s time to add it to the pan. Once everything is prepared, the whole dish comes together in no time.

  All ingredients are together, butter melts down.

Before draining the pasta, reserve about a cup of the water for later use.
Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium heat until heated through, about 3 min.
Add the garlic and cook, stirring, until fragrant but not browned, about 1 minute.
Add the chilli flakes and stir for a few more seconds.

  Spaghetti’s are tossed in the sauce, now decorate with thyme.

Add lemon juice and white wine, increase the heat to medium-high, and simmer until the liquid is reduced by half, about 5 minutes.
Season with a pinch of salt and pepper.
Add 2 tablespoons of the pasta water, add the butter, and turn off the heat once it’s melted.
Add the lemon zest and Parmesan cheese into the pan, directly followed by the spaghetti, tossing to coat all the spaghetti with the sauce.
Sprinkle the dish with thyme leaves and directly serve hot.

  If you can get your hands on one of these, grab it. The „solosole“ (means „only sunshine“) , second from left, goes perfect with our „Fork Full of Joy“.

Tips.

Add more pasta water as needed, 1 tablespoon at a time. Taste and add more salt and pepper if needed.
Serve topped with additional Parmesan cheese, thyme, and chilli flakes, if desired. I liked it a bit more spicy (some chilli flakes) but not as much lemon juice.
You need to cook this dish – and believe me, you will – a few times to find out your personal taste. And, you will like some baguette to dip up the sauce.
With such cooking I always like to use the wine I choose for drinking. In this case I would prefer a glass of fresh Chenin Blanc or Riesling.

Variations.

   Some seared scallops on the top. Or linguini instead of spaghetti. Sadly no fresh scallops in Uruguay.

  Delicious with fresh blue mussels or clams and pancetta. Sadly no fresh mussels/clams in Uruguay.

These variations we do sometimes, even in Uruguay:

    Same recipe made with gnocci (on 29th each month it’s gnocci day in Uruguay anyhow). Or try integral pasta, same wonderful taste. Also done with shrimps or gambas added to the sauce before the pasta is tossed into it.

                              What a feast the garlic wine sauce with gambas ! Right, with cream and pancetta into the sauce and then decorated with lemon zest, Parmesan cheese and parsley or coriander.

A fork full of joy !! Hope you’ll enjoy this dish as we do, please tell me !!