I know, another pasta-based recipe, but it’s summer! For me, warm weather and fresh vegetables means as little time and effort as possible and as much tasty fresh vegetable goodness as I can get. Plus, today was the perfect day for a light and easy pasta lunch.

The gentleman and I spent the first half of today, a perfectly amazing example of summer, swimming, bobbing and sunning at an outdoor pool.

It might have looked like this…

After a few hours in the pool, lunch had to be the right combination of filling but not too heavy. Swimming works up quite an appetite, but I was interested in spending as little time as possible near the stove.

A quick dig around in the fridge and I had a pile of mushrooms and some green onions. Paired with fresh basil, fresh pasta and some parmesan cheese, we were in the running for lunch. I’d like to try this with some walnut pieces tossed in, but unfortunately there weren’t any at home so … next time.

If you’re using fresh pasta, sauteeing the mushrooms and cooking the pasta will take the same amount of time. If not, start the pasta, and with about 5 minutes left, start heating up the oil. The whole thing, including chopping, should take about 10-15 minutes.

After lunch it was time for some homemade iced coffee and the Wimbledon final. I may not be from the UK, but it’s not hard to get swept up in the Andy Murray fever, and to watch Britain win its first men’s Wimbledon final in 77(!) years.  Pretty exciting, especially when paired with caffeine.

It’s quite possible that I wrote this sitting on the balcony; the smell of basil, the sounds of the neighborhood and the touch of a gentle breeze made this one of the most pleasurable posts to write. Days like this just don’t happen often enough.

Serves: 2

On the Counter

7 oz (200 g) fresh tagliatelle
4 medium portobello mushrooms, halved and sliced
2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
2 green onions (scallions), sliced, separated into 2 piles
1/2 tsp red pepper (chili) flakes
6 fresh basil leaves, chopped
2 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
freshly grated parmesan, (optional) to taste

What to Do

Heat a skillet or cast iron pan with 2 tbsp olive oil to medium-high heat. Once it’s shimmering (but not yet smoking!) add 1/2 of the green onions and mushrooms. Salt lightly and stir.

Meanwhile, add the tagliatelle to a pot of salted boiling water and cook for 4 minutes (or less depending on pasta) until al dente.

After 2 minutes of cooking the mushrooms, add in garlic and chili flakes, turn down the heat to medium. Stir until the mushrooms have darkened and softened, but not turned mushy.

Drain the pasta and mix with 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil and the mushrooms. Top with basil, toss and onto the plate with it. Top with parmesan if desired.

(And also use a jam jar for drinking because all the glasses are in the dishwasher.)

I don’t think this needs any meat, especially since the mushrooms do a lot of that hearty umami work in this meal, and I just don’t like heavy lunches on hot days. And… without the parmesan, it’s vegan. If you’re skipping the parmesan, I might add a tiny bit of sea salt at the end, just for  bit of texture and some of the seasoning that the parmesan offers.

Eggs are pretty fantastic. There are so many ways to cook them, and they have so many uses. Some of my favorite desserts are egg-based, which probably comes from growing up in a Portuguese family where we’d eat lots of custards, eggy bread (like pão de ló, made with 9 eggs) and puddings.

But even though I frequently have them for breakfast, and love them for dessert, they just don’t seem to make it onto my lunch menu. It’s even a rare occasion for me to have a hard boiled egg on a salad.

A summery Sunday afternoon seemed the right time to change that. The original inspiration was a craving for baked eggs, but with no interest in turning on the oven and a streak of impatience, I decided to switch to skillet eggs.

Skillet eggs can come in all sorts of combinations, and if you have some pre-made sauce handy, they’re even quicker! I recommend keeping the sauce simple; you don’t want to overpower the eggs.

It was the perfect day to have lunch in the garden, where I could enjoy some of the bounty of my overfilled cupboards and sit with the potted herbs lining the fence.

Serves: 2

On the Counter: 

the sauce:
1 can (14.5 oz/400 g) of chopped tomatoes
1/2 medium white onion, diced
1 medium clove garlic, minced 
1 tablespoon (17 ml) balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon (17 g) demerara sugar
2 tablespoons (34 ml) olive oil

the eggs:
4 large eggs
chopped fresh basil and parsley
salt and pepper

8 inch/20 cm skillet/frying pan

What to Do: 

The sauce: Heat olive oil in skillet, on medium heat, until it shimmers. Add onion, cook until soft and translucent. Add garlic, cook for 2 minutes. 

Pour in can of tomatoes, stirring the garlic, onion and oil into the tomato sauce. Turn heat up to high, and stir occasionally, until the tomato sauce starts to bubble. Cook for 5 minutes. 

Add balsamic vinegar, sugar and season with salt. Stir to combine. Once the sauce has thickened a bit  (to your taste), make an egg-sized well in the sauce with a big spoon. Crack the egg into the well. Repeat for each egg. 

Cook the eggs on medium heat until they’re cooked to your taste. About 5-6 minutes leaves you with a runny yolk but a firm white, which is my preferred way to eat them. 

Once they’re finished, spoon an egg + sauce into a small bowl. Garnish with freshly chopped herbs. This goes really nicely with a bit of buttered bread on the side, which you can use to dip into the tomato sauce. 

These eggs are an easy and filling lunch meal that still leaves room for dinner!