This pasta is a show-stopper (and delicious).  It's extravagant in that it requires one bottle of drinkable red wine for about four serves. Details below.

During the 'Lockdown", I have been part of an on-line group (mainly as observer) that  connects by posting a daily photo of dinner on FaceBook. These are not professional cooks but an international, mixed bunch of people, staying/working from home. At the beginning, some were quick to point out that  they did not cook; they were too busy, their jobs, their social lives and net-working obligations were so intense that they just had to eat out most nights of the week.  I didn't buy it. 

In amongst the happy choppers there were also those who were rather startled to find they were enjoying themselves.  I've always said cooking was better than yoga.

It was interesting to watch the group grow, not just in number but in confidence and range. At first hesitant and apologetic, as the same names came up over and over, they showed more flair, more adventurous techniques.

But some thumbs down...

• Some poor photos, even for amateurs  - raw chicken is not photogenic.
• "Homade" could have been written home-made, but yes, I'm a nerd.
• Unnecessary garnish - branches of rosemary do not a gourmet make.
• Anaemic, pale pastry.  Cook it until it's golden and appetising.
• Recipe collection obsession.  With every good-looking image came the request "Recipe please". What we need is more practice, better technique not more recipes. (With Google, don't we have enough recipes?)
• Dry food i.e not juicy, no sauce, not a drizzle of olive oil, not a buttering of carrots, not a guacamole to finish a piece of salmon, not a dollop of yoghurt on a lentil and parsley croquette, not a pan deglazed with wine.

Left: Deliciously juicy
Right: "Healthy" variety  but some dressing please, some juiciness please.

And it seems that baking is the new status symbol, the new "power" activity.  We have the time to make something that is a luxury in that it is not totally necessary. And there was good baking and sad baking, the worst being a pumpkin and apple tart made without sugar or butter  so that it was "healthy".  No image recommended. 

Our Gastronomy Book Club was humming along nicely when the "Lockdown" happened.  Yes, we should have zoomed.  We might have to look into this but nonetheless, we're still reading. The book for 25th May is The Umbrian Supper Club - Marlena de Blasi.  It's nomination had a mixed reception, so we hope for some lively comments.
I am not too sure about this book but it did introduce me to the idea of cooking pasta in red wine.  (In fact, the Umbrians seem to cook with wine as though it were water!  I must investigate.) I've played with this and I'm now confident I can pass on the method.

Left: Have everything ready 
Right: Red wine pasta with figs and blue cheese
Pasta Cooked in Red Wine
For 2 people as a course within a meal. (Until you have the hang of this, don't try more than four serves at a time).

120 gm pasta (penne)
500 ml (2 cups) red wine
20 gm (1/4 cup) finely grated pecorino
30 gm butter (or 2 tbsp olive oil)
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1/4 tsp chilli flakes
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
Either 50 gm cubed pancetta (or bacon) or 30 gm chopped walnuts

This is not so much a recipe as a technique.  Be patient.
Have ready....

• The pancetta, crisped off in a pan or the walnuts lighted browned in a pan.
• The garlic chopped in a small bowl
• 1 1/2 cups of red wine, heated (not boiling) in a saucepan.  (Hold the rest of the wine in case it's needed.  If it's not, add it to your glass.)

• Have boiling 750 - 1000 ml lightly salted water.
• Drop in the pasta and cook for about 6 mins or until you consider it half cooked.
• Meanwhile, you have the wine heating in a small saucepan at the back of the stove.
• Drain the pasta, but leave it a little damp. Return it to its saucepan.
• Start adding the hot wine, approx. 1/2 cup at a time, stirring, stirring, stirring.  The pasta will start absorbing the wine and the whole will become creamy. Be patient.
•  When the pasta is near cooked to "al dente", it should also be a good red colour.
• Add the butter and the pecorino. Stir until it "disappears".
• Add the pancetta (or walnuts), the garlic, the seasonings & parsley.
• Serve in warm bowls.

Cook the pasta in less water than you've been taught.
I like to use scales.  Once you've made this you may like to adapt to cup measures.
Choose a drinkable (cask is fine) full-bodied red - Cabernet Sauvignon or Shiraz rather than Pinot.
Choose either pancetta or walnuts, not both IMO.
I've chosen to served it with figs, halved,  topped with some blue cheese and grilled, to start a meal,  but it could also accompany a main course.  Any ideas? 

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