tako

a duo of recipes from Polpo:

 bigoli in salsa: the salsa is an onion sauce accented with anchovies. 

I was impatient and didn't cook down the onions that much, nor caramelize it much, hence the sauce is visually indistinguishable from the pasta. This is definitely some cucina povera magic in this sauce. I see it as an alternative to cacio e pepe, in cases where there's tinned anchovy but no pecorino.

lentil salad with burrata and basil sauce

Opps, forgot to photograph the dish with the corresponding page in the book. The cheese shown is also but burrata but buffalo mozzarella, which is the only thing I can source in Bath where I have some certainty of its freshness (the shop receives shipments every 2 weeks, so it can't be that old...).

Since I've never had proper burrata before, a comparison is moot but damn this mozzarella is good. If the concept of luxury is distilled into an eating experience, it's this ball of cheese. Not because it tastes especially luxurious, but rather...bear with this odd explanation please...it has the right balance of substance to emptiness. There's no abundance or strength of flavour in this mozzarella, but the taste is subtle in a way that a well constructed shoe / clothing / bag  is subtle. The mouthfeel is also appropriately supportive in a way an ideal shopping or fine dining experience is: never abrupt or intrusive, but flawless and reliable. But in the end, you're paying for what goes into your head and not what ends up in your hands (or mouth). Okay enough of this greatly extended metaphor.

The basil sauce is great with the lentil, but it is a lot of effort grinding it in a mortar and pestle. I do very much miss having near unlimited access to basil, it's my official herb of summer haha.