Spaghetti with Blistered Tomatoes, Burrata and Corn

spaghetti with tomatoes

This recipe is summer freshness at it’s best, and the great thing about it is that the preparation is nice and simple but yields the most amazing results!

What you’re looking at are strands of spaghetti intertwined with juicy, cherry tomatoes that have burst and blistered in the oven to create the most luxurious tomato and garlic flavored sauce with the special addition of sweet, fresh corn kernels and burrata cheese.

spaghetti with tomatoes

Fresh summer flavors are what makes this dish such a hit, there’s no special skills you need in making it because the ingredients speak for themselves.

Do a search and you’ll see roasted tomatoes and pasta all over the place, but I make this every summer and this is my way of doing it and what works for me. So rather than a recipe at the bottom of the post I’ll just walk you through the steps now.

blistered tomatoes

I use a quarter sheet pan that has a rim on it. Heat the oven to 425F and line the pan with foil. Lining it with foil helps to gather and hold on to those precious, silky juices, plus it helps prevents the juices from burning off.

I really don’t measure the amount of tomatoes I use, I just load the pan from rim to rim, single layer with cherry or grape tomatoes, you could use all red or colored.

I leave the tomatoes whole so they can burst on their own when ready.

Add in four cloves of crushed garlic, torn basil, salt, pepper and dowse it generously all over with extra virgin olive oil.

When you start to see the tomatoes split pull the pan out of the oven and with the tip of a small paring knife pierce each tomato to let the hot juices release, word of caution, lean back  because sometimes the juice will squirt out at you, then before it goes back into the oven add the fresh kernels of two ears of sweet corn, continue cooking until you see the tomatoes wrinkle and all the juices mingling together with the olive oil, garlic and corn.

blistered tomatoes and corn

It should look like this. Now all you have to do is cook up your spaghetti or pasta of your choice and then toss everything together, make sure you get every bit of that juice incorporated, use a rubber spatula to make sure you scrape off all that glorious juice. For this amount of saucey goodness I used twelve ounces of pasta.

spaghetti with tomatoes

When all the silky sauce is mixed in break open your burrata cheese, (as much as you want) and spread it on top, it will start to melt slightly, then adorn it with more basil, grated Parmigiano Reggiano and a quick drizzle of olive oil to finish it off.

spaghetti with tomatoes

That’s it, dig in and enjoy summer tasting at it’s best!

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Sorbetto di Limone Dressed Up in a Frozen Lemon Shell

sorbetto di limone

Sorbetto di Limone, or lemon sorbet is one of the most refreshing desserts to serve on a hot summer day.

This version is so easy to prepare because no ice cream maker is required, just purchase a quality, store bought lemon sorbet and whirl it up in a food processor together with dreamy mascarpone cheese.

The mascarpone gives the sorbet a wonderful creamy texture that goes so well with the sweet and tart lemon flavor of the sorbet.

What makes this version a little extra special is that it’s presented and served in a frozen lemon shell, yes, it’s a little more prep but so worth it for it’s impressive presentation.

I’ve posted before about this lovely marriage of the lemon sorbetto and the mascarpone cheese before but it’s my first time presenting it in a frozen lemon shell.

lemon shells

Let me first say that all this prep, every step for this recipe can be done days ahead and I recommend you doing that. You’ll want to give yourself at least three days ahead of time, but with that being said it’s prepared and ready to go on the day you’ll be serving it, just grab it right out of the freezer.

To prep the lemon shell look for larger sized lemons, if they’re too small you’re not going to have enough room to stuff it and believe me you’ll want all that goodness inside.  Cut the tip off the top of the lemon where the point is and set that aside.

lemon shells

Make a tiny slice off the bottom of the lemon because you want them to sit flat, being careful not to cut the bottom completely off. Next take a small pairing knife and cut around the flesh and scoop it out as best you can with a spoon or a grapefruit spoon, ( you can strain the juice and pulp and save it for later use) then take a lemon reamer and ream it out so the insides are nice and smooth.

Now you want to freeze the lemon shells along with all the tops that you cut off. Place them into a container single layer, cover and freeze hard.

 

lemon sorbetto

Let the sorbet and the mascarpone sit out on the counter for a while before you start the blending together, then the mix will go into a food processor.

lemon sorbetto with mascarpone

After the mascarpone and the lemon sorbetto have been blended together nicely without any lumps, feel free to add some lemon zest for more flavor, the mixture will be on the melted side so it has to go back into the freezer to get nice and frozen again, at least overnight.

sorbetto di limone

An elegant dessert that’s simple, light and so refreshing!

sorbetto di limonesorbetto di limone

Present this either on individual pretty plates or fancy martini glasses for an extra “WOW” from your guests.

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Sorbetto di Limone Dressed Up in a Frozen Lemon Shell
 
Can be, and should be made days before serving it.
Author:
Ingredients
  • 1 pint lemon sorbetto/sorbet
  • 6oz. mascarpone cheese
  • lemon zest
  • large lemons, cleaned and scrubbed
  • mint leaves for garnish
  • NOTE;
  • This recipe can be doubled, tripled or what ever according to how many lemons you have and how deep your shells are. I always make extra because its nice to have it in the freezer.
Instructions
  1. PREPARING THE LEMON SHELLS
  2. Cut a third off the top of each lemon where the point is, save the tops.
  3. Slice a shallow cut on the bottom so it can sit up straight and flat being careful not to cut through to the inside.
  4. Hollow out each lemon with a pairing knife then scoop out with a spoon then use a lemon reamer to smooth it out inside, reserve pulp and juice for something else.
  5. Put them single layer into an airtight container and into the freezer they go until nice and hard along with the tops. ( Remember, this can be done days ahead)
  6. PREPARING THE SORBET MIX;
  7. Take your sorbet out of the freezer and set it on the counter so it can defrost and soften a little.
  8. The mascarpone can be close to room temp for easy no lump blending.
  9. In a food processor place the sorbet and the mascarpone, give it a whirl until it's nice and smooth.
  10. Place back into a container, add the zest and freeze it until hard again, overnight or longer is good.
  11. FILLING THE SHELLS
  12. When both things are nice and frozen just fill the shells with the sorbet mix and place the tops back on, at this point you can put them back into the freezer in a covered container until ready to serve.
  13. Serve them on pretty individual plates or martini glasses, garnish with one mint leaf on top.

 

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Summer Stone Fruit Clafoutis

stone fruit clafouti

Clafoutis is a rustic French dessert and it’s the perfect way to showcase seasonal stone fruits. This is the time of year when peaches, plums, nectarines, apricots and cherries are in abundance and peak condition. I can’t think of a better way to feature those summer stone fruits.

This delicious dessert comes together quickly, tossing all the ingredients into one bowl then mixing or blending the batter together until nice and smooth. The end result when baked will be a light, rich and custardy texture.

stone fruit

I used plums and nectarines in mine but feel free to use any combo of stone fruit that you like, just cut the fruit in half and remove the pits.

stone fruit clafouti

I personally like leaving the halves in tact, I like the way it looks visually but slicing the fruit and arranging them in the batter is pretty as well, I also like using a cast iron pan because of the heat retention and when it bakes you get nice crusty brown edges.

 

stone fruit clafouti

When it comes out of the oven it will look puffy but let it rest because it needs to deflate and settle down all around the fruit, you can serve it warm or cooled down completely, then pretty it up with some powdered sugar and toss on some nuts!

stone fruit clafouti

You can slice it or scoop it out of the pan, you can eat it as is or you can top it with whipped cream, ice cream or a dollop of mascarpone like I did.

stone fruit clafouti

Don’t be intimidated, this is one of the easiest desserts to make, you can be creative with whatever stone fruit you decide to use and forming it into your own rustic look.

Summer Stone Fruit Clafoutis
 
Author:
Ingredients
  • 10" cast iron skillet or casserole dish
  • 1 tablespoon butter
  • fresh stone fruit, pitted, halved or sliced, a mix of your favorites such as nectarines, cherries, plums, apricots or all of the same kind, enough to fit into the bottom of a 10 inch skillet, maybe a pound or a little less depending what kind of fruit you use.
  • 1 cup heavy cream
  • 3 large eggs
  • ½ cup all purpose flour
  • ½ cup sugar
  • 1 teaspoon, vanilla
  • ½ teaspoon almond extract
  • 1 teaspoon, salt
  • powdered sugar for sprinkling
  • nuts for garnish, hazelnuts or slivered almonds
Instructions
  1. Heat the oven to 400F
  2. Butter the skillet sides and bottom.
  3. In a blender or bowl add the cream, eggs, sugar, vanilla, extract and salt and flour then wizz it until it's nice and smooth.
  4. I prefer mixing the batter in a blender because it comes out nice and smooth, but a hand mixer will work as well, just make sure there are no lumps.
  5. Gently pour the batter into the buttered skillet then gently place your stone fruit all around.
  6. Put it into the oven for 10 minutes at 400F then reduce the temperature to 375F until it's deep golden on the edges.
  7. Oven's vary so keep checking but mine took about 45 minutes.
  8. Remove it from the oven and let it sit for a good 15 to 30 minutes, it will deflate and settle around the fruit.
  9. sprinkle with the powdered sugar and toss your nuts around.
  10. Scoop or cut a slice and serve as is or with ice cream, whipped cream or mascarpone.

 

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