Recipe of the week: Creamy antipasto orecchiette

As you can probably tell from the title, this week’s recipe is NOT health food. But it’s delicious and incredibly easy to make.

And, as you are accustomed to expecting, I forgot to photograph it. So I’ve served you up a pic of Host The Toast’s Creamy Pesto Pasta Salad.

The youngest is crazy about this recipe (without the sugary ham) and requested I make it again just days after I served it up the first time.

Here goes …

Creamy antipasto pasta

Olive oil

1/2 cup homemade pesto (or store-bought – I got mine from Harris Farm because I was in a rush)

4 sticks of Wood Smoked Chilli Croatian Pepperoni, sliced (also from Harris Farm, but any good salami-style meat would do)

300ml Carnation Lite Cooking Cream

1 pkt orecchiette pasta, cooked to al dente

1/4 cup pine nuts, toasted

1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes, thinly sliced

75-150g Primo Shredded Ham (depending on how much you like your deli meats)

10 Kalamata olives, halved

Parmesan cheese

METHOD: Fry pepperoni in a little oil for a minute or so. Add cream, sundried tomatoes, shredded ham and pesto. Bring to a simmer for a minute or so. Toss cooked pasta through sauce with olives and pine nuts. Serve sprinkled with parmesan cheese.

You could also toss through some fresh baby spinach or rocket leaves at the end to add more vitamins. Coles makes a delicious looking version without the cream: