We are cooking our way through Persian Everyday by Sabrina Ghayour. We struggle like everyone to eat well on busy days but this book is perfect for just that.
Wine Suggestion: White, lemony and medium bodied. Maybe a youthful Verdicchio, or our current fave, Zuani’s Ribolla Gialla Sodevo, from Collio in North East Italy. A grape that was so higly regarded by the Romans they implemented laws to protect it from adulteration … possibly the world’s first appellation laws …we’ll need to investigate further.
Pasta with sage butter, feta & pine nuts – serves 2
- 200g pasta shells
- 75g butter
- 20 sage leaves
- 25g pine nuts
- 100g feta cheese
- 2 pinches of pul biber chilli flakes
Cook the pasta in lots of very salty water according to the timings on the packet.
When the pasta is almost cooked, put a large frying pan over a gentle heat. Add the butter and sage and allow the butter to melt gently but don’t let it sizzle much. Keep stirring so the sage flavours the butter.
Roughly drain the pasta (you want a little bit of water still on the pasta) and add to the pan with the butter and sage. Turn up the heat and season very generousy with black pepper and a little sea salt. Add the pine nuts and toss everything together, then add the feta and stir until melting and starting to coat the pasta.
Serve spinkled with extra black pepper and a pinch of pul biber.
(Original recipe from Persiana Everyday by Sabrina Ghayour, Aster, 2022.)
Jono & Jules do food & wine 
O, that’s so nearly a good Italian recipe – but it cries out for ricotta, not feta. I’d lightly toast the pine nuts, too.
I must look through the book: I know my daughter has a copy.
It’s good. Great for weeknight stuff.