MORE PLEASE - THE NIGHTS ARE DRAWING IN ONE

My comfort food killers - Puttanesca, Chilli Con Carne and hearty Lentejas with Chorizo

For this episode of More Please I wanted to share the recipes for three of my most ultimate comfort dishes that I make myself at this time of year. I shan’t harp on too much about how much I look forward to dusting off my woolly jumpers, re-watching Practical Magic and jumping into piles of leaves because this is not a tiktok BUT let it be known - I bloody love October and all the snuggling that comes with it. 

Habitual cooking is exactly how I approach the advent of colder weather. I ease in by feeding myself dishes that I know well, that keep me warm and soothed and satisfied. So that’s what we are doing today. 

First up in my repertoire is everyones favourite slutty pasta Linguine Alla Puttanesca. Spicy, sour and salty - what’s not to love? I have been making this dish for myself ever since I learned how to cook and it is a pretty unbeatable supper after a sweaty gym class / shit day at work / both. I love that it is only reliant on my pantry too - as long as I make sure I have tomatoes, olives, capers, anchovies and linguine (and I always have those things) then dinner is sorted.

Next is a dish I was introduced to by my sweet father who is also a brilliant cook. Lentejas is the Spanish name for lentils but is also the name of the most classic Spanish preparation for them - cooked with chorizo and potato in a hearty stew. Lentils are such a comforting food for me, probably because I first started eating them when dad made us this stew. It’s very easy to make, only uses a few ingredients and is easily customisable - use vegan or veggie chorizo if you prefer and top it with all manner of good stuff. Crusty, oil soaked bread is a must. 

Finally we have a dish that I think everyone has their own version of - Chilli Con Carne. CCC is Tex-Mex in origin but the versions we grew up with are highly anglicised, mainly due to the right chillies being hard to come by. Thankfully these days it’s much easier to get your hands on the excellent dried chillies which are, in my opinion, the backbone of this dish. Toppings here are very much essential and I’ve included the ones we would have growing up, but by all means make it your own if something is missing. 

LINGUINE ALLA PUTTANESCA
A good puttanesca is by no means rocket science. In fact the very essence and particular brilliance of this dish is that it needs very little thought - all the ingredients do the work. Having played with this recipe over the years I have landed on this version which is definitely my best and in fact is also the cheapest.