Mediterranean fregola & mushrooms

For ➋

200 g fregola sarda

300 g bite size chopped cremini, baby bella or fresh porcini mushrooms or a mix

1 medium sized shallot

2 garlic cloves, finely chopped

5 cl olive oil

5 cl balsamic vinegar

1 tbs  marjoram (of thyme or oregano.)

2 tbs unsalted cold butter (or plant-based)

To cook  the fregola, the trick is to have enough water for the fregola to boil freely to avoid sticking, so salt and bring 0,5 - 0,75 cl of water to a gentle boil.

Cook Fregola as you would pasta for about 13-15 m and taste for firmness. You want it to be al dente.

Scoop a cup of water and set aside to water down the mushroom sauce.

Strain and keep fregola warm in the pan off the fire.


Clean mushrooms with a damp paper towel. Washing them under water can make them turn slimey.

Heat a large skillet or frying pan on a low flame. Cut the mushrooms to small bite size pieces without or without the stems.  If you do decide on using the stems, cut off the bottom third. It is usually drier and more fibrous than the rest of the stem.
 Finely chop the shallot.
Add olive oil, shallots and mushrooms to the pan and increase to medium heat and cook for 5-7 m stirring occasionally until the mushrooms are still crunchy but not raw.
 Add the chopped garlic and sauté for 1 m.

Add the balsamic vinegar, mix well and simmer the vinegar liquid until it is nearly gone. The idea here is cook off the tangyness of the vinegar until it is sweet. 
Stir in the half cup of the water from the boiling pasta, add half the marjoram and give a little stir.

On a very low fire finish off the mushrooms by quickly blending in cold butter 1 tbs at a time. You do this by using the tip of fork to gentle stir the butter through the mushrooms. You are not cooking but gently emulsifying the butter with the liquid.
 Salt to taste.


Add the cooked fregola, increase heat to medium and cook for a couple of minutes to allow the pasta to absorb the liquid and butter. If too dry add a little more pasta water.
 Garnish with rest of herbs and serve with freshly grated Parmigiano cheese.

♥︎Roasted pumpkin & fregola

For ➋

2 small round pumpkins* (Hokkaido type) or 1 large one (approximately 1 kg unpeeled weight)

3 white onions

200 g pearl couscous*** or fregola Sarda

100 g Parmigiano

20 sage leaves

olive oil

lemon juice

salt & pepper

chili flakes (optional)***

Preheat the oven to 210°C. Meanwhile, cut the pumpkin(s) into wedges about 2 cm wide, after scooping out the seeds. You don't need to peel the pumpkin; roasting softens the skin, making it perfect to eat.

Toss the pumpkin wedges with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Peel the onions and cut them into six wedges. Toss the onions with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Roast the onion and pumpkin in the oven for about 30 minutes, or until the pieces are tender and browned at the edges. Place the pumpkin pieces far enough apart in the oven so they roast well (and don't steam through). Keep the onions separate: they can go on the same baking sheet, but don't mix them with the pumpkin; we'll use them separately later.

For the pasta sauce, blend half the roasted pumpkin with 65 g grated Parmigiano. You can do this with an immersion blender or a food processor. Deglaze the empty pumpkin baking sheet with a splash of water and scrape up any browned bits with a wooden spoon. Add this juice to the sauce, along with a squeeze of lemon juice. Taste and season with salt and pepper. Set the other half of the roasted pumpkin pieces aside.

Simmer the pearl couscous in salted water for about 8 minutes, until tender. Taste regularly (and reserve a cup of the cooking liquid when draining the pearl couscous). Meanwhile, heat a generous amount of olive oil in a large pan. Sauté the sage leaves over medium heat (not too hot, otherwise the leaves will brown and become bitter). Turn them over and season with salt. Remove them from the pan and place them on a paper towel to drain and cool.

Mix the pearl couscous into the pumpkin sauce. Add a little more cooking liquid, if necessary, to loosen the sauce. Serve with the remaining roasted pumpkin and the onion on top, and garnish with the sage leaves and the remaining Parmigiano cheese.***

*Don't use butternut squash for this dish; that silky squash is delicious in soups or stews. But for roasting, I prefer a firm, round squash. It holds its shape better and roasts beautifully brown.

**Other small pasta such as shells, spiralized or short macaroni, or nutty whole wheat pasta.

***the sweet, mild flavors of pumpkin and onion are enhanced by a bit of heat. A generous pinch of mild chili flakes (like Aleppo flakes) is also delicious.

Fregola Sarda alla vongele (fregola with clams)

For ➋

200 g fregola Sarda

500 g vongele clams

3 cloves of garlic, pressed or chopped

1 sweet onion, finely chopped

2 stalks of celery, finely chopped

15 cl white wine

100 g Parmigiano

2 tbs mascarpone

zest of 1 lemon

handful of parsley, finely chopped

salt & pepper

olive oil

Fry the onion and garlic in a dash of olive oil over medium heat until they start to colour. Add the celery and let it stew a little. Rinse the clams well under cold water and let them drain. Add them to the pan and deglaze with the white wine. Let them cook for 3-4 m with the lid on until the clams open. Remove them with a slotted spoon, so that the cooking liquid remains in the pan. 

In the meantime, cook the fregola as indicated on the packaging (probably 10 m). 

Let the clam juice in the pan simmer for another 2-3 m for extra flavour. 

Add the cooked fregola to the pan with the reduced clam juice. Stir in the mascarpone, salt and pepper, chopped parsley and grated Parmigiano. Add the clams (either shelled or with shells). Finish with some extra pepper, a drizzle of olive oil and some more parsley.

♥︎Fregola Sarda with shimeji in lemon & tarragon sauce

For ➋ 

150 g fregola Sarda

2 garlic cloves

200-300 g shimeiji (or torn oyster mushroom)*

½ lemon, grated zest & juice

handful tarragon, chopped

1 spring onion, sliced ​​

handful sunflower seeds

olive oil

mushrooms* (optional)

feta** (optional)

Bring a pot of salted water to the boil and cook the fregola sarda until al dente in 8 m. Drain and cool under cold running water. Crush the garlic. Tear the oyster mushrooms into strips and slice the mushrooms. Wash the lemon well and grate the zest. Squeeze the juice from the lemon. Finely chop the tarragon. Cut the spring onions into rings. Roast the sunflower seeds in a non-stick pan without fat on a medium heat. Remove from the pan when they start to colour.

Heat the olive oil in the pan and fry the mushrooms and oyster mushrooms until golden brown and crispy in 5-7 m. Then add the garlic and fry for 2 m. Deglaze the pan with the lemon juice and stir in the lemon zest and half of the tarragon.

Put the fregola sarda in a bowl and stir in the rest of the finely chopped tarragon and the extra virgin olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. [

Spoon the fried mushrooms on top*]. Sprinkle the roasted sunflower seeds on top. [Crumble the feta over it**]. Finish with the spring onions.

*If wanted, replace some with sliced ​​mushrooms

**If wanted.

♥︎Fregola Sarda with clams & fennel

For ➍ 

350 g fregola Sarda

1.5 kg clams/ vongele

1 l fish or vegetable stock

2 cloves of garlic

2 large fennels, cut in small cubes, stems reserved

1 bunch of flat-leaf parsley, chopped finely

1 organic lemon, juice & zest

1 glass of white wine

sea ​​salt & pepper

extra virgin olive oil

If you still have to clean the shells yourself, soak them in a large container of cold water beforehand. Then rinse them under the tap. The mussels will then open for a moment and you can rinse away the sand.

Boil a pan of water with the fish or vegetable stock.

Take a deep pan and now add a dash of olive oil. Cut 1 clove of garlic into slices and fry it together with the fennels for 5 m on medium heat until the fennel is translucent and just turns a brown color. Add the fregola and stir well.

Add enough stock (approximately the same volume as the pasta) to the risotto, reduce heat and cover with a lid for +/- 10 m. Fill if necessary. add extra stock.

5-6 m before the end of the risotto cooking time, cook the clams. Place a large frying pan or wok over low heat with a dash of olive oil. 

Crush 1 clove of garlic and fry with the skin on briefly in the oil. Remove after the oil has been seasoned. 

Add the shells, increase the heat and add a dash of white wine. Cover the pan with a lid and cook the shells for a few m. Shake the pan regularly to ensure they all open. 

After 10-12 minutes, when the fregola is just al dente and the mixture looks soupy, stir in the clams and the cooking liquid with a little chopped parsley and the lemon zest.

Squeeze half a lemon and add it, season the pasta with salt and pepper.

Serve the dish in bowls with some of the fennel fronds kept aside and a drizzle of olive oil on top.

♥︎Fregola, cucumber & orange

For ➋ 

2 small cucumbers about 150 g* 

1 tbs caster sugar 

1 ts sea salt 

1 ts coriander seeds 

5 tbs white wine vinegar 

2 tbs dill, finely chopped

150 g fregola Sarda** 

2 tbs olive oil 

1 large orange

2 spring onions, finely chopped 

a handful of watercress 

To make the pickle, thinly slice 1 cucumber and put in a small mixing bowl. Mix the sugar, sea salt, coriander seeds, vinegar and dill and stir until the sugar has dissolved. Pour over the cucumber, cover and place somewhere cool for at least 1 hour. The cucumber will darken a little in colour and soften slightly, but should retain its crunch. 

Bring a saucepan of water to the boil, salt it lightly, then tip in the fregola. Simmer for about 10 m, testing regularly for tenderness. Drain thoroughly, tip into a bowl then sprinkle a few drops of olive oil over it and toss to coat evenly. This will stop the beads sticking together as they cool. 

Peel the second cucumber, halve it lengthways and cut it into 1cm chunks. Peel the orange with a kitchen knife, taking care to remove the white pith, then cut into thin slices. Warm the oil in a shallow pan, add the raw cucumber pieces and continue to fry them gently. 

Add the spring onion to the pan with the drained fregola. Season with salt and black pepper. Fold the pickled cucumber and its liquid into the ingredients, add the watercress then stir briefly. 

Divide between plates and place the orange slices at its side. 

*When using larger cucumber, cut the slices in half. 

**Use Sardinian roasted fregola. Or plain pearl couscous

Braised fennel with lemon

For ➋ or ➍ (as side dish)

3 fennel bulbs, quartered

15-25 cl water**

8 cl olive oil

2 ts ground fennel seeds

2 tbs freshly squeezed lemon juice* 

1 tbs chopped fennel fronds

Arrange the fennel in a large skillet. Add enough water to the pan to come at lease halfway up the sides of the fennel. **

Drizzle the fennel with the olive oil, sprinkle with the fennel seeds and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. 

Bring the fennel to a simmer, cover and cook over medium heat, shaking the pan every now and then, until the fennel is tender, 20-30 m.** 

Remove the lid for the last few m of cooking to allow the liquid to reduce and thicken. 

Stir in the lemon juice* and fennel fronds. 

Serve the fennel drizzled with the thickened cooking liquid. 

Serve with roasted chicken, grilled halibut or salmon, grilled or roasted meats. 

*Use fresh blood orange juice instead.

**Chop the fennel, add 4 tbs blood orange juice, 2 tbs olive oil, cover and cook in the microwave (about 7 m for 500 g fennel). Serve with cherry tomatoes and fregola, and roasted salmon.

Fregola & sausage with harissa

For ➋

2 tbs olive oil 

6 large sausages, herby rather than spicy* 

400 g assorted tomatoes** 

150 g fregola*** 

1-2 tbs harissa paste

olive oil 

Warm the oil in a large, shallow-sided pan and fry the sausages over a low to moderate heat until nicely browned. Remove the sausages, slice them thickly then return them to the pan. 

Roughly chop the tomatoes and add them to the sausages, letting them soften and collapse into a rough sauce over a moderate heat. ut a large pan of water on to boil and add a little salt. Tip in the fregola and leave to boil for 10 m. Check its progress regularly, draining it as soon as it is tender. Stir the harissa paste into the tomatoes and season with a little salt. Cook until you have a rich, thick sauce then stir in the drained fregola. 

Check the seasoning and serve. 

*Use eggplant chunks for a vegetarian version. Use more oil. 

**Add a little sugar for a stronger taste.

***Fregola (or fregula) is a Sardinian couscous-like toasted pasta from durum wheat.