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maltatoday, WEDNESDAY, 16 SEPTEMBER 2015 14 Food A bowlful of comfort Nothing is quite as comforting as a plate of pasta and the best thing about it is that it takes no time at all to prepare. Use fresh ingredients to ensure your pasta dishes offer a good balance of nutrients. Try Michael Diacono's bucatini with red mullet, fresh herbs and pistachios or Pippa Mattei's aspargus carbonara. Gourmet Today TV is back for a second season this October. Catch us on TVM every Friday at 18:15. Bucatini with red mullet and fresh herbs Asparagus carbonara with linguine Pippa Mattei Serves 4 Ingredients • 500g asparagus • 500g linguine • 4 egg yolks • 2 cloves garlic, crushed with a pinch of sea salt • 150g Parmesan, freshly grated, plus extra for serving • Salt and pepper Method 1. Snap off the tough ends of the asparagus, then cut at an angle into 2cm slices. Set aside, leaving spears intact. 2. Add linguine to a pot of boiling salted water, which you will be cooking until just al dente. (2 minutes less than the cooking time on the packet). 3. Halfway through cooking time (about 5 minutes left) add the asparagus to the pot. Continue cooking till the pasta is ready. 4. Meanwhile, put the egg yolks and garlic into a sauté pan (off the heat) and beat just until the yolks are broken up. Add 2 ladlefuls of the pasta water and keep to one side. 5. Sieve the linguine and sliced asparagus, keeping another 4 ladles of water aside. Add the linguine and asparagus to your sauté pan. 6. Add the Parmesan, put back on the heat, and toss the pasta by shaking the pan or using a wooden spoon, to coat the pasta in sauce. Add more water until you have the desired consistency. 7. Serve with more Parmesan and some freshly ground black pepper. Get more of Pippa Mattei's recipes in her books 25 Years In A Maltese Kitchen and Pippa's Festa. This recipe first appeared on Gourmet Today TV, aired on TVM on 15 May, 2015. Michael Diacono Serves 4 Ingredients • 500g bucatini (or pasta of your preference) • 6 red mullet (trill) • Plain flour • Salt and pepper • Olive oil • 10 cherry tomatoes • 2 cloves garlic, chopped • 1 tsp chilli flakes • Squeeze lemon • 1 glass white wine • Bunch fresh parsley, chopped • Bunch fresh basil, chopped • 1 tbsp black olives • 1 tbsp pistachios, roasted • A few rocket leaves Method 1. Bring a large pot of salted water to the boil. 2. Add the bucatini and cook until al dente. 3. In the meantime, fillet the trill (you can ask your fishmonger to do this for you) 4. Dredge the fillets through the plain flour, seasoned with salt and pepper. 5. Heat some olive oil in a pan and add the tomatoes. 6. Add the garlic and the chilli flakes. 7. Add the trill fillets when the tomatoes have started to soften. 8. Season with salt and pepper. 9. Add some lemon juice and the white wine and allow to evaporate. 10. Add the basil and parsley and the black olives. If the sauce is starting to look dry, add a ladleful of water from the pot where the pasta is cooking. 11. Allow to simmer for a few mins. 12. When the pasta is appox. 1 min away from being cooked, drain from the water and add to the pan with the sauce. 13. Mix and allow to simmer for approx. 1 min. 14. Place in individual bowls or in one large bowl to place in the middle of the table. 15. Add some more parsley and basil on the top as well as the pistachios and rocket. 16. Serve immediately. This recipe first appeared on Gourmet Today TV, aired on 27 March, 2015.