This week in my kitchen :: Pasta Puttanesca and Affogato with quick, espresso and amaretto ice cream

A tiny bit of what's been happening in my kitchen:

• Preparing aubergines for tangy kashkeh badamjoon
• Washing new vintage finds like this pretty 1930's china teaset bought for kipperbone. I couldn't resist using it just one time...
• Reading about Nordic Faroe knitters in this article and learning that women of the islands 'used to collect milk crossing mountains with a bucket over both arms and two on their backs whilst knitting sweaters for their fishing-drenched men...'  Can you believe it? Doing all those things...WHILST KNITTING SWEATERS...It spurred me on to pick up the one that I'm making for my non fishing-drenched man, in Icelandic Lopi yarn...I'm now madly knitting everywhere. Standing in the kitchen watching onions saute, walking in the garden, talking on the phone, uploading photos, in the passenger seat...everywhere.
• Making the easiest espresso and amaretto ice cream. It really feels like cheating and not worthy of the praise that I get for it.
• Wine making...Not mine but A's. There's always some bubbling away. I love the gentle plopping sound that the  escaping air makes. It's somehow very comforting. Like a samovar humming on the stove top.
• Rice and mast mosir supper.
• Making butternut squash and lentil curry with creamy coconut milk.
• A change from the usual Sunday lunch, fiery Pasta Puttanesca (lady of the night spaghetti) and fruity salads.

Easy Espresso and Amaretto Ice Cream

Ingredients:

• 600 to 660 mls of cream
• One can of condensed milk (approx 400g)
• About four tables spoons of  INSTANT espresso powder. Not the actual ground espresso beans. 
• About four tablespoons of amaretto liqueur 

Simply combine all the ingredients together and beat with an electric whisk until thick. Place  into a container and freeze until set. This can be made a few hours before serving. 

This is so easy. It doesn't require any churning and turns out lovely and creamy.  It's delicious just eaten as it is but for a special treat is wonderful served as affogato. I'll be making lots of different versions of this now the sun is shining. I'll be back with lots more ideas for you.

Affogato 

Ingredients:

• Ice cream of choice. Vanilla is lovely but this is extra special made with the espresso and amaretto ice cream.
• A single espresso per person.
• A shot of liqueur. I used Amaretto, almond liqueur. (optional) Also nice with maple syrup.
• Small biscuits like amaretti or biscotti.

Method:

1. Make one shot of espresso for each person
2. Remove the ice cream from the fridge. Run a table spoon under the hot water tap and carefully scoop spoonfuls of ice cream  and placing them into individual serving dishes. Small glass desert dishes or tea cups are nice for this. 
3. Pour shots of the liqueur over the ice cream.
4. Serve with the demitasse of coffee so that each person can poor it over the ice cream and eat before it all melts. 

This is a very grown-up desert. 

You can find the recipe for Pasta Puttanesca here. It's a nice simple spaghetti dish made with a tomato sauce that's flavoured with capers, shallots, garlic and olives with a fiery hit of chilli served with fresh basil. I made the version with tiny little anchovies added for extra salty deliciousness...yummy...Especially with a glass of A's homemade wine for a special leisurely Sunday lunch...