The Family Cook Book

This recipe is the most famous in Sicily and comes from Trapani. We first tried it when we visited the beautiful island for a fabulous family holiday. Up until now we have been cooking an excellent version from one of Rick Stein's books but Since Gus bought this lovely book and we tried this I think it's shaded it and become my favourite version. The thing that, for me, makes this one interesting is the idea of pounding the almonds, garlic and parsley into a paste. ingredients 250gms cous cous 350gms fish fillet (could include uncooked prawns) 1 small onion, finely chopped 6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided, plus a little extra if you like 1 small dried chili 1 bay leaf 1 small bunch flat-leaf parsley 3 tablespoons blanched almonds 1 garlic clove 350ml light fish stock 1 tin chopped tomatoes Method Fry the onion in 4 ½ tablespoons of the oil with the chili and bay leaf over a medium heat until soft and golden – about 10 minutes. Chop the parsle

Its been a while, not sure how I managed to let work get in the way of blogging ... anyway here's a little simple supper dish from Rick Stein that I was reminded of by Saturday Kitchen yesterday. It also meant that I visited a local Italian deli for the first time where I had a nice chat with the Sicilian owner and his mother. They sell the perfect sausages for this dish which are called luganega, which normally come in one long length. If you are using ordinary sausages, add a teaspoon of fennel seeds to the onions when frying. Ingredients 450g/1lb luganega sausages 4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil 1 small onion, halved and thinly sliced 2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced 750g/1½lb small waxy potatoes, peeled and each cut into quarters ½ lemon, pared zest (I did mine on a microplane) and juice only 4 fresh bay leaves 2 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped salt and freshly ground black pepper 120ml/4fl oz water method Preheat the oven to 180C/350F Twist the sausa