A new recipe a week: Week two

Today I carried on my love affair with courgettes. They are now my number two vegetable, behind only parsnips. I made two dishes today, Courgettes in Tomato Sauce and Mountain Ham (both from The Classic 1000 Italian Recipes). They were delicious, and will be added to my repertoire!

Zucchini in Salsa di Pomodoro

Serves 4

• 30ml/2tbsp olive oil
• 1 onion, sliced
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed
• 750g/1.5lb courgettes, sliced
• 1 large green pepper, chopped
• 225g/8oz tomatoes, skinned and chopped
• 10ml/2tsp chopped fresh basil
• 1 bay leaf
• Salt & freshly ground black pepper
• 6 canned anchovy fillets, drained and chopped
• 50g/2oz/.25cup Parmesan cheese, grated

Heat the oil and fry the onion, garlic, courgettes and pepper for 7-8 minutes until the onion is brown. Stir in the tomatoes, seasoning, basil and bay leaf and reduce the heat. Simmer for 30 minutes until the sauce has thickened and the vegetables are soft. Discard the bay leaf and remove from the heat. Spoon the mixture into an ovenproof dish and scatter over the chopped anchovies and cheese. Grill (broil) for 5 minutes until the top is brown.

Prosciutto di Montagna

Serves 4

• 30ml/2tbsp olive oil
• 2 onions, sliced
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed
• 100g/4oz mushrooms, sliced **I used double this amount and it came out great
• Salt & freshly ground black pepper
• 450g/1lb tomatoes, skinned and chopped
• 250ml/8floz/1cup dry white wine **I used a cheap Pino Grigio and 2 cups, just because
• 5ml/1tsp chopped fresh oregano
• 5ml/1tsp mustard
• 275g/10z Parma ham slices **I used Boar’s Head Virgina Ham
• 15ml/1tbsp unsalted butter
• 15ml/1tbsp capers, chopped
• 2 sprigs of parsley, chopped

Heat the oil in a saucepan and fry the onions and garlic for 5 minutes. Add the mushrooms and season with salt and pepper. Fry for 3 minutes and stir in the tomatoes, wine, oregano and mustard and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat and cook for 35 minutes. Cut the Parma ham into strips and fry in the butter. Place the meat in an ovenproof dish and pour over the sauce. Cover loosely with foil and bake for 15 minutes at 180*C/350*F/gas mark 4. Remove the foil, stir in the capers and serve garnished with the parsley.