Italian

I had this pasta sauce for the first time when I was visiting my friend Katrin in Hamburg. It took a while for her to prepare it before she was satisfied with the taste. The quality of the sauce depends on your patience. It should be well reduced. That’s crucial for the taste and the substance. Patience it is, but it’s for a good cause.

That’s what I love about the Italians. With just a few ingredients – often no more than cinque, so five – they create something incredible. This is a snack to accompany your drinks or something you can have for lunch. We do that all of the time. You have some great bread. Put some great olive oil on it. Then you cut real ripe tomatoes in two and rub the open side on the bread. While you squeeze out the juice and the seeds. You add some salt and freshly grounded pepper and some fresh basil. You pick up the bread, bring it to your mouth …

Risotto is comfort food to the max. It is full of taste, such a nice mouth experience and the taste stays with you for a long time. There are endless possibilities but this one is really great. And because this time we make it with quinoa instead of rice, it is a light version.

A great risotto stays with you for a while. You keep eating because of the intense taste. Living on the edge, I know. Risotto is an attention junkie, you need to stay by its side all the time. It keeps on talking to you when you prepare it. The advantage is that your guest at the table will be silent for while, terribly enjoying what they’re eating.