It was when I lived in South Africa where I got familiar with Ina Paarman. I just emigrated from The Netherlands to South Africa and my life started in the little village of Tulbagh where we rented a cottage in famous Church Street next to Paddagang restaurant.
Famous Church Street, as in September 1969 Tulbagh was hit by an earthquake and a lot of Cape Dutch homesteads were destroyed but restored over the years. Gawie and Gwen Fagan have produced a beautiful book on the history of Tulbagh and restoration of Church Street. You can order this book, entitled “Church Street in the Land of Waveren” by Amazon.
We rented part of Danie Theron House at 21 Church Street from Tulbagh Manor Country House, where I sometimes popped in after a long jog through the land of Waveren. My long jog took me to Montpellier estate, where we bought the remainder part of 50,567 hectares with the intention to build Carolinahoeve. On the way back home I stopped at Tulbagh Manor Country House to have a delicious bacon & egg breakfast with fried mushrooms and tomatoes added with Ina Paarman Rosemary & Olive seasoning.
The chevin I use is bought from Fairview Goatshed in Paarl. We spent many long Sunday brunches enjoying life with friends and family here and lots of Fairview wine and Fairview cheese.
Utensils needed
apron, cutting board, Le Creuset casserole or any other heavy bottomed pan, kitchen knife, table spoon, wooden spoon, spaghetti spoon, cup, teaspoon, soup spoon
Ingredients for 4 to 6 people
1 sachet of Ina Paarman’s sun-dried tomato quarters (reserve the olive oil vinaigrette), 1 small onion, 4 garlic cloves, 1/4 cup of tomato paste, 2/3 cup dry white wine, 400 g Barilla capellini (angel hair pasta), salt and freshly ground rainbow pepper, 100 g Fairview Chevin Garlic & Herb cheese (or Boursin), 2 T fresh Italian parsley leaves, 1 t Robertsons crushed chillies, reserve 1/2 cup of cooking liquid from your cappellini
Preparation
Clean and chop the onion. Mince the garlic cloves.
Heat the olive oil vinaigrette from the sun-dried tomatoes in your Le Creuset (or any other heavy large pan) over medium heat
Add the onion and sauté until tender
Stir in the garlic and sauté until fragrant
Add a pinch of salt
Add the tomato paste and cook for 2 minutes, stirring constantly
Add the wine and sun-dried tomatoes and simmer until the liquid reduces by half, about 2 minutes
Cut the soft goat cheese in slices with a wet knife and chop them into small quarters
In the meantime, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the capellini and cook al dente (see my other recipe on How to cook pasta al dente), stirring occasion ally, see package instruction for time.
If you use Barilla, the cooking time is 3 minutes.
Take out 1/2 cup of cooking liquid with your soup spoon
Drain the pasta and add the pasta to the tomato mixture and toss to coat, adding some reserved cooking liquid to moisten
Season the pasta to taste with freshly ground rainbow pepper
Serve into bowls with goat cheese and parsley on top
Delicious with KWV Sauvignon Blanc
Recommendations
- Add shrimps and chopped black olivesAdd artichoke hearts and black olives
- Blend Fairview chevin, sun-dried tomatoes and basil in a food processor and serve on bruschetta or in celery sticks
- In The Netherlands you can buy Ina Paarman here and if you can’t find a goat cheese with garlic and herbs, use Boursin
Music As this dish represents the colours of the flag of Italy I like to listen to the Italian national anthem (Inno Nazionale) Fratelli d’Italia
Romance of this recipe It was here where Pumbaa, my 4 year old Rhodesian Ridgeback passed away of heatstroke and was buried in Church Street. Pumbaa, beautiful daughter to Nyambi, who was my first Ridgeback of many. It was also here where my new baby Ridgebacks Umtata & Umtali where raised. I can still see the puppies chasing the tarentals and peacocks in the garden of Paddagang Restaurant.
