The variety of flour products in supermarkets amazes the imagination of even the most sophisticated buyers, according to some versions of pasta types around the world - more than six hundred. Exotic farfalle attracts consumers' attention - these are bows of the color of the Italian flag, one of the most beautiful pasta.
Butterfly-shaped pasta
This special type of flour products is a distant relative of pasta and spaghetti. Farfalle has the appearance of bows with serrated edges, although some argue that these are butterflies, based on the translation from Italian farfalle - "butterfly". Such flour products are prepared from special durum wheat according to a special technology, in which the middle is dense, and the wing edges are more tender and soft. That is why when cooking it is necessary to strictly adhere to the recipe, otherwise the dough will fall apart and turn into a shapeless mass.
Farfalle is a favorite type of flour products for children, especially if they are made from color dough, into which, when kneading, add natural coloring matter from spinach or red beet varieties.
What is served with?
It can be anything: meat, fish, shrimp or other seafood, boiled or stewed vegetables, even just a good gourmet sauce - and farfalle will break the applause of the household. In Italy, for example, this type of flour products is often the basis for warm salads, and in France it is believed that farfalle is more combined with exotic sauces than spaghetti.
The best farfalle sauces
Knowledgeable chefs say that the main thing in the dish is the sauce. And how skillfully it will be prepared will decide the whole fate of the food.
Sauce can spoil, but you can save the situation, giving a simple dish royal sophistication. Most popular pasta lovers sauces:
- Bolognese: from minced meat, with the addition of tomatoes and cheese;
- mushroom: porcini mushrooms or champignons, combined with heavy cream;
- carbonara: slices of ham or bacon, tomatoes and spices, drenched in cream - this is a classic version of the sauce, in which each cook adds something from himself;
- “Sea cocktail”: it contains any seafood in assortment, cream and, of course, cheese - a constant companion of pasta;
- the pesto needs no introduction: basil, parmesan cheese, pine nuts, garlic and olive oil - a classic of Italian cuisine.
Farfalle recipe
First you need to prepare the following ingredients:
- 1 chicken breast;
- 50 grams of parmesan cheese;
- 300 grams of farfalle;
- 1-2 sprigs of fresh green (not purple and not lemon) basil,
- 1 medium-sized tomato, it is better to choose a meaty variety, not watery and without white veins;
- 2 cloves of garlic;
- olive oil - about 3 tbsp. spoons;
- salt, pepper and other spices to taste.
Cooking farfalle with chicken should start with cutting the fillet: it must be beaten to a thickness of two centimeters, sprinkled with pepper, salt and any dry herbs to your taste. Then put the olive oil crushed by a spoon into a olive oil heated in a frying pan - it is crushed clove, not crushed in mashed potatoes. Its task is only to give the oil a unique garlic flavor.
When the exciting smell spreads through the kitchen, remove the garlic, place the prepared chicken fillet in a pan and fry on both sides until a delicious brownish crust. Boil farfalle in three liters of water, following the time indicated on the package. If you let it go, the wings of the butterflies will fall apart, and the dish will be hopelessly ruined. Fold in a colander and lightly (!) Rinse the prepared farfalle with warm water.
Grind the basil leaves with a blender, add grated cheese there and beat a little more - this will be very similar to pesto sauce, which is also good with flour products.
Finished fillet cut into cubes or strips, add chopped tomato and pasta from basil. Stir, put on boiled farfalle and serve.
Farfalle with cream
For those who do not eat meat, there is also an option: we cook farfalle in a creamy sauce.
- 500 grams of farfalle;
- 1 cup of fat cream;
- 1 small bunch of finely chopped green onions;
- 1 lemon and onion;
- 2 teaspoons flour and olive oil;
- half a glass of good dry white wine;
- 100 grams of parmesan cheese.
Sliced onions in olive oil until soft, add flour and mix well. Warm up for about 1-2 minutes and pour the wine in small portions, stirring so that there are no lumps. Minimize the fire, pour in the cream, stir, add one tablespoon of freshly squeezed lemon juice and mix the sauce thoroughly again. Add green onions, salt and spices, remove from heat and pour on boiled farfalle. Gently mix this mass, place on serving plates and sprinkle generously with grated cheese.
Who invented farfalle pasta ?
Among the culinary experts there is a legend that farfalle was invented by children! In the distant 16th century in Lombardy, on Christmas Eve, baker's children decorated the tree with homemade paper toys, carving various unusual figures from it. Parents were intrigued by butterfly crafts and tried to repeat this with a test: after several trials it was possible! They shared the innovation with a local famous chef, giving the name of this product - farfalle. It was a triumph! A new type of pasta gained unprecedented popularity, and even farfallini and farfaletto appeared - smaller butterfly pasta that was available to the "cream of society".
Since then, the cooking technology has changed several times, but the name has been fixed as before. Classic, colored and even black farfalle became available to every pasta lover, and the options for the sauces served to it are becoming more and more every year.