Two Cheese Pasta Alla Caprese by Chef Kandla Nijhowne
Two Cheese Pasta Alla Caprese by Chef Kandla Nijhowne

If you could eat just one food your whole life, what would you pick? For me, it’d be pasta without a doubt! I love pasta in all sizes, shapes and forms and it’s the one food I’ll never get tired of eating. And my obvious love (read obsession) for pasta has led me on a quest to find the best pasta recipes and recreate them.

This time, I got extremely lucky as I got my hands on a recipe straight from Chef Kandla Nijhowne, one of the top 5 finalists of Masterchef India Season 1. She shared her Two Cheese Pasta Alla Caprese recipe and I cannot wait to try it out for myself. If you too share the same love for pasta and want to try this one out, then scroll down to check out the full recipe!

What You’ll Need

250 gm fusilli pasta

150 gm cherry tomatoes

200 gm broccoli florets

4 cloves of garlic

1/4 cup sliced black olives

1 tbsp Oleev Extra Virgin Olive Oil

2-3 tbsp Oleev Olive Pomace Oil

70 gm mozzarella

Few shavings of parmesan cheese

1/2 cup fresh basil

Salt, pepper, dried oregano to taste

Here’s How You Can Put It All Together

Step 1: Add 2 tsp of salt into a pan full of boiling water and cook the pasta until tender, yet firm to the bite (al dente). Towards the end of the cooking time, scoop out 1/2 cup of the pasta water and keep it aside.

Step 1
Step 1

Step 2: Drain the pasta and drizzle some extra virgin olive oil into the colander. Proceed to toss it lightly to ensure that the pasta bits don’t stick to one another.

Step 2
Step 2

Step 3: Gather the essential ingredients on your counter and get ready!

Step 3
Step 3

Step 4: Slice the garlic, halve the cherry tomatoes, shred the basil leaves and dice the mozzarella cheese.

Step 4
Step 4

Step 5: Sauté the garlic in the olive pomace oil then toss in the cherry tomatoes.

Step 5
Step 5

Step 6: When softened, smash the tomatoes slightly, then tip in the broccoli florets. Cook briefly till the broccoli has wilted slightly.

Step 6
Step 6

Step 7: Scatter the pasta into the pan along with the olives, salt, pepper, oregano, and the reserved pasta liquid. Tumble all the components around till they are melded together and the flavours are well infused.

Step 7
Step 7

Step 8: Turn off the heat and add the mozzarella cheese and basil to the warm pasta. The mozzarella will melt into the pasta by itself while the fresh basil will lend its fragrance to the dish. Tip out the pasta onto a wide platter and garnish it with parmesan shavings. Serve hot. Bon appetite!

Step 8
Step 8

Did You Know?

This dish originated in Caprese Island. In the chef’s version of this classic, she likes to add broccoli and black olives to lend an extra spark of colour and texture.

Chef’s Pro Tip

  1. Fusilli is the ideal pasta to use for this recipe. Its corkscrew shape beautifully allows the sauce to cling along its spiral contours.
  2. You can also add cooked chicken, mushrooms, bacon bits or any other ingredient into the pan. Use your imagination!
  3. Care for that extra zing? Shake in some chilli flakes to amp up the final experience!

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