For company
Special seafood & saffron pasta
Linguine tossed with king prawns, scallops and mussels in a golden saffron, white wine and lemon cream, finished with fresh tomato, parsley and toasted pine nuts.
Use a large frying pan with a lid — the mussels need to steam. Discard any mussels that stay closed.
Method
- 01
Bring a large pan of salted water to the boil and have a bowl of cold water to hand. Cut a small cross in the base of each tomato and add to the hot water, then after 15 seconds, scoop out with a slotted spoon (but keep the water boiling for the pasta) and plunge into the cold water. Leave the tomatoes to cool for 30 seconds, then remove. Use a small sharp knife to peel away the skin, starting at the base where you made the cross. Cut each tomato into quarters then cut out and discard the seeds and any membrane. Cut into small dice, then set aside.
- 02
Add the pasta to the boiling water and cook for 2 minutes less than it says on the pack.
- 03
Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large frying pan (you'll need to use one with a lid) and add the garlic, sizzle for 2 minutes until just starting to turn golden, then push to one side of the pan. Increase the heat and add the prawns and scallops, fry for 1–2 minutes until the prawns are pink and the scallops are just turning golden, then scoop out of the pan and set aside on a plate.
- 04
Add the mussels, white wine, saffron (with its soaking liquid) and some seasoning. Cover the pan with a lid and leave to steam for 3 minutes until the mussels open (discard any which stay closed).
- 05
Next, add the lemon zest and juice and the cream to the sauce and check the seasoning. Drain the pasta and add this too, along with prawns, scallops and diced tomato. Toss everything together, and bubble for another 2 minutes, or until the pasta has absorbed some of the sauce and is cooked through.
- 06
Scatter with parsley and pine nuts and give everything a final toss together.
In the glass
Paul Clüver Seven Flags Chardonnay — Elgin
Cass’s chosen bottle. Seven Flags is the flagship Chardonnay of Paul Clüver Family Wines in Elgin, the cool, high-lying apple-and-pear valley over Sir Lowry’s Pass. The Clüvers are Elgin pioneers — the oldest commercial Chardonnay producer in the valley — and the grapes for Seven Flags come from the estate’s two oldest Chardonnay vineyards, first planted in 1987 on decomposed Bokkeveld shale and now carrying Heritage Old Vine status. The wine is fermented spontaneously and matured in selected Burgundian barrels, with minimum intervention. Expect fresh citrus zest and stone fruit, a mineral, linear line of bright natural acidity and a subtle touch of oak adding texture. The estate itself recommends it with creamy pastas and fish — made for the saffron cream, sweet scallops and prawns here.
Keep cooking
