Sometimes, food excites me more than makeup.🙊 Such is the case when this basket loaded with Contadina goodies arrived in the mail this week. My mom and I were over the moon! I couldn't wait to get started! From the makers of Del Monte, let's welcome the newest cooking brand that will enable you to create pasta dishes (and more!) with minimum effort and maximum flavor. (I like that!)
Contadina is an Italian word meaning "woman of the fields", a symbol of the care and passion that women of old poured into the making of savoury dishes. The brand takes to heart the Mediterranean philosophy of cooking with passion, using only the finest ingredients to deliver rich and authentic flavours.
Let's take a look at their products:
Contadina olive oils are extracted from freshly-pressed Hojiblanca olives cultivated in Andalucia, Spain. I'm seriously new to cooking; good thing the back label of these bottles were very informative as they have a story to tell. Contadina Pure Olive Oil is best used for sauteing, frying, roasting, or grilling due to its high smoke point, while Contadina Extra Virgin Olive Oil has fresh and fruity tones, ideal for salads, dressings, dips, and pastas.
Contadina pastas are made from premium-grade 100% Durum Wheat Semolina, and they come in 3 variants: Spaghetti, Linguine, and Penne. For our special holiday dish, I used Linguine (which was perfectly al dente in 8 minutes).
My favorite from their product lines has to be their bottled pasta sauces! These are all made in Italy, with no preservatives and coloring added. They make everyone's life easier, and taste-wise, they're bursting with flavor! You can make restaurant-quality pasta dishes in the comforts of your own kitchen with these. My forever favorite is Pesto, but I was equally excited to try the red sauces.😍
These versatile canned tomatoes are convenient to use, and they can enrich your recipes.
Panda and I invented a holiday dish that is very easy to make. You can also easily find the ingredients at home! We thought of this because you can easily prepare and serve it to guests during this bustling holiday season.😉
Pasta Arrabbiata a la Casa
Main ingredients:
1 box Contadina Linguine 500g
1 bottle Contadina Arrabbiata Pasta Sauce 446ml
1 bottle Contadina Pure Olive Oil 250ml
*Optional: Contadina Diced Tomatoes with Italian Herbs (for added chunky texture)
For sauteing:
1/2 onion (sliced)
5 cloves garlic (sliced)
1 slice sweet ham (sliced into squares)
1 piece hotdog (sliced pa-slant para mas sexy daw sabi ni Panda) HAHA 🐼
Seasonings:
Sugar and salt (to taste)
Spanish paprika (for an added kick)
Tarragon leaves (to spark herby flavor)
Toppings:
Parmesan cheese
Parsley leaf (as garnish)
Directions (pasta):
1. Boil 4 liters of water with 2 Tbsp salt. You may drizzle Contadina Pure Olive Oil to prevent the pasta from sticking.
2. Add pasta.
3. Boil uncovered while stirring occasionally.
4. Cook for 8 minutes.
5. Drain and rinse immediately with running water to keep the pasta al dente.
While waiting for the water to boil, you may do the sauce to save time.
Directions (sauce):
1. Saute the onion, garlic, ham, and hotdog in Contadina Pure Olive Oil. (I usually use butter, but pure olive oil is the healthier way to go.)
2. Add the whole bottle of Contadina Arrabbiata Pasta Sauce (a spicy pasta sauce made from Italian tomatoes and red chilli peppers cooked in garlic and olive oil) into the pan. Add sugar to taste and Spanish paprika if you want it even spicier. The Pasta Sauce, on its own, has a mild kick, but Panda is very fond of fiery dishes.🔥
You may also opt to add salt and sprinkle on some Tarragon leaves to taste.
The sauce is now ready for our linguine pasta! 💛
Linguine pasta with perfect texture after exactly 8 minutes!
3. Toss the pasta into the sauce. We cooked the entire box of pasta, and there were leftovers. We estimate that this bottle of Arrabbiata Pasta Sauce (when mixed with pasta) is good for 4 servings dahil matakaw kami. Hehe! If we added more pasta into the sauce mix, the flavor might "thin out". Have no fear, we have a surprise dish coming up with the leftover pasta (around 3 servings left).
4. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and add a parsley leaf as garnish.
Congratulations! You have made your own "Pasta Arrabbiata a la Casa"
We shared this dish with our families, and it was gone in minutes. Not one tiny bit survived. The pasta had a firm and very nice texture, and the sauce had an amazing kick to it. Not too tangy, not too spicy, but definitely very tasty. MASARAP!
~~~🍝~~~
Now because we had some pasta left, Panda and I proceeded in making our forever favorite, Pesto Pasta! If the first dish we featured above was in easy mode, our Contadina Pesto Pasta is cheat mode! LOL
Directions:
1. Chop 3 cloves of garlic and saute in Contadina Pure Olive Oil.
2. Add the entire bottle of Contadina Pesto alla Genovese (190g) into the pan. This pesto sauce is made from freshly-picked Italian basil, Grana Padano cheese, cashew and pine nuts.
3. Toss in the cooked Contadina Linguine Pasta and mix.
4. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and add a parsley leaf as garnish.
I've bought instant pesto sauce mixes in powder form before, and it had a strong salty flavor that I usually tone down with all purpose cream, but this Contadina Pesto Pasta had the most delightfully light and balanced flavor. I can also distinctly taste the cheese in it. It's amazing! The small jar of pesto sauce plus the (leftover) pasta is good for around 3 servings. This makes for a very quick but satisfying meal. I'm definitely repurchasing this sauce since we've already ran out.
In total, we were able to make 7 servings from 1 box of pasta: 4 servings of Pasta Arrabbiata a la Casa, and 3 servings of Contadina Pesto Pasta.😍
I can't wait for you to try Contadina products!😋 Because of that, I'm hosting an easy Christmas giveaway. One reader of Lucky Citrine (residing in Metro Manila) will win a Contadina holiday package (to be claimed in Makati). The winner will be randomly chosen. The first 3 steps in the Rafflecopter widget are mandatory, and incomplete entries will be disqualified.
God bless! 💖
Love,Helen
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