Well the day did turn out bright and sunny after all. I did not wear a coat, just a cardigan in the middle of January !

So with glorious weather we did glorious things and I visited the largest inner city garden in Europe

and in the most beautiful garden of dreams

we picked lemons, cauliflowers, cabbages and broccoli

Jane came with me. She is the mother of a very popular tv celebrity. I am working on a feature about Owen and apart from speaking a lot about his career and aspirations, we have also discussed food and what he enjoys eating and cooking.

Today I am going to speak about a part of our session with Roberto who is half Brazilian and half Italian. He is friendly and fun and we had a good laugh as well as ate wonderful food. Over the next few weeks, I will tell you more and share the recipes Jane and I have been working on. She is a fantastic home cook and she had already passed on a number of great old Mediterranean recipes which I am trying out.

Roberto has been on the island for three years and he cooked several pasta dishes today so that Jane can have some new recipes to prepare for Owen and her family. Roberto explained that this pasta is popular in the Piedmont region of Italy. You must try it, it divine and I have today included a recipe by photos, keep scrolling to see the end result

In the kitchen with Roberto and Jane …

And for this wonderful pasta you will need :

200g pumpkin, cooked and cubed
200g pancetta
1 small onion, finely chopped
4 garlic cloves, very finely chopped or minced
2 teaspoons very finely chopped fresh sage leaves
100g chestnuts, peel, boiled and finely chopped
400 g Pappardelle, we used Barilla
4 spoons freshly grated Parmegiano Reggiano
150ml single fresh cream or half and half
Freshly chopped parsley
Sea salt and freshly ground pepper
Drizzle of olive oil

The ingredients

The pasta

The pancetta, onion and garlic are sautéed in a drizzle of olive oil

Add the pumpkin, parsley, chestnut and sage. Cook through.

Add the cream and cook through. If the sauce is too thick, simply add some hot water.

Add the freshly grated Parmesan

Pappardelle with pumpkin, chestnuts, pancetta and sage….. Fit for a queen…

And Queen Jane’s verdict ?

Could not be better …

And here we are in the magnificent dining room and Joe explains all about the different regional foods of Italy….