Recipe of the Week: Spanish Pasta with Crispy Spinach Salad

Yes, I admit: I am a salad fan. So I do my best to have salads as often as possible. Always eating the same stuff though is dreadfully boring...so I try out what fits together and what can be eaten raw. And found out that spinach is rather yummy as a salad - particularly with some parmesan shavings or nuts on top....perfect company for a pasta dish.

My verdict for this week's recipe of the week:

Wonderful colours and even better flavours. The slightly sour and lemony salad dressing sets of the taste of the slightly hot pasta off perfectly. The chorizo  - even if such a small quantity – emphasizes the wonderful mix of Mediterranean flavours. Plainly delicious.

Extra Tip: use a bit more pasta  - i.e. 300 g and keep a portion for the next day. This is a dish that can be warmed up perfectly well and lunch for one person is done!  My hubby loves this dish, so he loves to take another portion to the office the next day.

What you need:

• 60 g Chorizo
• 2 red peppers
• 1 onion
• 1-2 garlic cloves
• 1 tea spoon of paprika (hot or mild – I like the hot better)
• 120 ml of red wine
• 1 can of chopped tomatoes
• Sugar, salt pepper
• 200 g pasta (I take 300 and make it another meal for lunch time for either of us)
• 3-5 stems of coriander (or parsley if you don’t like coriander)
• 50 g cheese (like Manchego)
• 80 g spinach
• 1 lemon
• 4 – 6 walnut halves

How to prepare it:

1. Start with the  water for the pasta and then prepare the stuff for the sauce while the water can boil – add at least 2 spoons full of salt (otherwise the pasta will taste like card board)
2. Cut the chorizo in ½ cm small cubes
3. Prep the peppers, wash them and cut them in 2 cm small pieces
4. Peel and dice the onion and the garlic
5. Heat the oil in a pan and fry the chorizo – be careful, it can burn quickly, so only use medium heat (2 minutes)
6. Add the on onions for another 1-2 minutes
7. Add the garlic and the peppers, fry briefly, then add the paprika powder and stir
8. Add the red wine and reduce to about half the quantity (the wine, not the rest ;-) )
9. Add the tomatoes and salt, pepper and a couple of pinches of sugar. Let it simmer for about 10 minutes  - keep it open – this intensifies the flavours
10. Add pasta to the water and boil as mentioned on the package – that’s probably 10 -12 minutes.
11.  While the sauce and the pasta cook happily, it’s time to prep the salad. Super easy! Distribute the spinach to two plates, mix the juice of the lemon with salt, pepper, 2 pinches of sugar (or a dash maple syrup if you don't want to use sugar) and 3 – 4 spoons of olive oil. Mix well
12. Chop the walnuts and pick the leaves from the coriander, grate the cheese
13. Drain the pasta and mix with the sauce immediately, serve with cheese and coriander
14. Pour the dressing over the spinach, sprinkle the walnuts over and serve with the pasta.

Enjoy!