What do you normally do on Christmas day? I normally return to the family home I grew up in for
Christmas and my mum would usually be the one cooking up a big Christmas lunch feast or starting the BBQ as my siblings, closest aunts, uncles and cousins gather around the table to catch-up on events that happen during the year. There is guilt sometimes though as despite the enjoyment factor my mother derives from cooking for the whole family on Christmas day, and with her usual hospitality of never insisting anyone bring anything for her, I do feel obliged to lend a hand by cooking a dish and taking it with me to ease the burden. If you want to cook a dish that’s easy to do and delicious, then try this Barilla pasta dish. It’s pretty quick to whip up. There probably be enough so that you have leftovers the following days so you can take a break from the kitchen, which probably is ideal as most shops are on holidays.
Ingredients
Barilla Sundried Tomato Pesto 1/2 jar
Extra Virgin Olive oil 4 tbs
Dried chilli 1 teaspoon
Garlic, crushed 3 cloves
Green Prawns, heads removed and de-veined 16
White wine 1 glass
Cherry tomatoes, quartered 1 punnet
Broccoli, cut into florets 1
Rock salt, for pasta water enough
Salt enough
Preparation
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Bring plenty of water to the boil in a saucepan. When boiling, add rock salt (7g to a litre of water).
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Drop the pasta in the water and stir. Cut the prawns halved and half keep whole.
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In a large fry pan add oil, then garlic and chili, then add the prawn tails, and seasoning. Add the wine and cook for few minutes on each side.
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Mix the tomatoes in a bowl with the pesto.
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Three or four minutes before the pasta is ready, add the broccoli florets to the pasta water.
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Once the pasta is cooked, drain and toss into the fry pan, cook for 1-2 minutes over heat, adding the prawns and a little cooking water to allow to finish.
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Allow the pasta to absorb all juices then remove from the heat and stir through the tomato pesto mixture. Serve immediately with a drizzle of Extra Virgin Olive oil.