Wonderpot – one pot pasta magic

Wonder pots have been doing the rounds of late, but I must admit…I am a little obsessed. For starters, how can you not want to cook something with such a cool name? I also love the fact that I have one dish to wash up – yes, ONE (okay, so the cutting board and knife will need a going over, too, but I have made peace with that).

I play around with what ingredients I will add on the day, so there isn’t really a recipe to follow, but I have listed the ingredients and method below, purely for your convenience but really many things (not anything!) go.

This is what we will be enjoying as a family tonight. Mondays, as you know, are always Meatless Monday’s in our house, which we started back in 2012. If it were another night, I might add some pan-fried pancetta or stir through some cooked shredded chicken right at the very end, but it is not lacking without these things and merely a variation.

You could also add spinach, basil, parsley, and spices and substitute the water for stock, should you want a bit more oomph.

You should not skimp on the salt here. It is needed – make it a good salt like Murray river salt flakes, and it will lift it to great heights.

The one catch – you need to use a pot that is able to fit the spaghetti in it flat. Alternatively, break your spaghetti in half or use a shorter-style pasta.

Okay …drum roll…..here comes the recipe that might just change your busy Mid week life!!!

Enjoy beautiful people.

Nellie

x

P.S – If you have your own wonder pot recipe that is a star in your house, I would love for you to share it in the comments below.

One pot pasta – the wonder pot

400g spaghetti or spaghettini (I have used premium Martelli brand from Tuscany)
400g cherry tomatoes
The zest & juice of 1 lemon
2 generous teaspoons of sea salt
1 litre of boiling water
100ml olive oil
1 bunch of broccolini
400g kale (I used cavolo nero / Tuscan cabbage) or you could substitute for spinach
A handful of pitted olives (optional)
Parmesan or buffalo mozzarella to serve

Other options – add thinly sliced onion at the commencement of cooking, add basil, parsley, spices, stock instead of the water, you could substitute the fresh tomatoes for 1 x 400g good quality Italian tinned tomatoes….the list goes on! Play around….make it your own and enjoy! 

Halve some of the tomatoes, but not all and remove any thick stems from the kale.

Place the pasta, lying flat, in the pan. Add the tomatoes, lemon zest and juice, as well as 1 heaped teaspoon of salt. Add 1 litre of boiling water straight from the kettle, and now add 100ml olive oil.

Place the pan on high heat with the lid on until it comes to a boil. Once boiling, remove the lid and set a timer for 7 minutes. Lower heat to medium. Stir the pasta every minute or so to avoid sticking and so that it cooks evenly. After 7 minutes, add the broccolini as well as the remaining heaped teaspoon of salt and cook for two minutes. Now add the kale and cook for a further minute or two, tossing fairly frequently. Once all the water has been absorbed, stir through the olives just to warm.

Serve in the same dish (it just keeps getting better, doesn’t it!) and bring to the table and serve with parmesan cheese and or mozzarella.