Easy is the order of the day around here lately where the store cuboard is hero. This is an easy peasy, yet delicious pasta dish that can be knocked up in minutes. I just adore sauces that can be made in the minutes the pasta is cooking. You could use tinned tuna but it really doesn't compare (texture particularly) to the pricier jarred tuna fillets in olive oil.


Serves 2

Ingredients
Short pasta shapes such as Fusilli, Farfalle, Penne
4tbs olive oil (from the tuna jar if good quality)
Dried chilli flakes, or a few sliced of fresh red chilli
Half a small red onion, thinly sliced
200g of tuna in oil (preferably jarred)
Small handful of fresh parsley
Seasoning
More olive oil to dress

Method
Cook the pasta according to the packet instructions in plenty of salted boiling water.

Heat the oil in a frying pan, add the chilli flakes or sliced chilli (as hot as you want) and gently fry the onion until soft. Add the tuna, trying not to break up the flakes too much. Cook until the tuna starts to brown ever so slightly, 5-10 minutes. Add the parsley and stir through, cooking for another minute or two. Check for seasoning and adjust accordingly.

Drain the pasta but reserve a few tablespoons of the cooking water.

Add the pasta to the tuna, adding a spoon or two of the reserved water. Stir through. Add more olive oil to dress.

Don't add cheese!

Well motherhood has sure given me even more to talk about. Baby, baby, baby, blah, blah, blah. I've decided to set up a new blog which will have the same ethos as The Graphic Foodie but will be kept separate to save the sanity of my non baby interested readers. Seriously, baby talk would bore the ever living daylights out of me pre-baby, so totes understand.

For those that are interested and would like weaning recipes, book and product reviews, baby friendly restaurant reviews and some baby related design thrown into the mix, visit: thebabyfoodie.blogspot.co.uk

Fran x

I spent many an hour at art college painting food of some sort, fish, fruit, veg... turns out that swedes are particularly tricky to "capture". But what if you could paint tastes that really represent the food or drink?

Seeing Is Believing is an interesting exhibition by synaesthetic artist Phillipa Stanton. Apparently she can see sound, taste and smell in shape, colour and texture which she represents in her paintings such as Rwanda Coffee Taste, Rosso Toscano 'Ciclope' or even Pimms and Lemonade. The image at the top, taken from the artists website, is titled (in quite some detail!) Springbank Whisky, 10.5yrs, Without Water - (Private Cask).

Interesting taste bud diagrams from one of my favourite sites www.informationisbeautiful.net (great for geeks like me). See the rest of the diagrams in detail here.

This is a beyond easy recipe for some last minute drinks nibbles or a take along dish. Seriously, I had our local street party to go to in T minus 1 hour and nothing in the fridge apart from a block of ready made puff pastry (sssshhhhh) and a tub of mixed antipasti. I had to get creative. Throw in some fancy rolling and a chill in the freezer and you can knock these up in no time at all.

Your friends will be impressed. You will be smug.

You could also try these with pesto, mixed cheeses or feta and pine nuts...pretty much anything.


Makes around 30

Ingredients 
500g Block of ready made puff pastry
250g Jar or tub of mixed pitted olives (I used black, green and pimento stuffed) and sun-dried tomatoes
Pecorino or Parmesan


Method
Roll out the pastry into a rectangle, roughly 3mm thick.

Drain the olives and tomatoes and mop excess oil with some kitchen paper. Finely chop and spread evenly over the pastry.

Grate over a generous layer of cheese.

Mark the centre point on the two shorter sides of the pastry and carefully roll one long side to the middle and then the second side to the middle. Moisten the join in the middle with a little water and press together.

Wrap the roll in cling film and place on a tray in the freezer for 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 200

Remove the roll, uncover and cut into 1 cm slices.

Place on baking trays lined with baking paper with plenty of space around for  15-18 minuters until golden and crisp. Cool on a wire rack.

These are best made just before needed. You could make the roll up well in advance and refrigerate, sticking in the freezer 30 minutes before cooking as above.