It’s World Pasta Day on the 25th October, so it’s about time I shared this easy yet tasty recipe. This is one of my go-to meals when you need a simple bowl of comfort food. It was originally a recipe from Jamie Oliver’s book “Return of The Naked Chef” which was the very first thing I bought on the internet back in May 2000, and it’s been in my repertoire ever since. Obviously you can use any pasta shape you want, though the juices stick wonderfully to fusilli, and you can be more authentic to the original and use pancetta if you’re feeling fancy. This recipe is for 4, though it’s easily halved or doubled; I even double up the cabbage if I’m having a low carb day.

10 rashers of smoked streaky bacon or pancetta

Olive oil

1 clove garlic, finely chopped

1 good handful of thyme, leaves picked, or 1 tsp dried thyme

1 large Savoy cabbage, quartered, cored and finely sliced

1 generous handful of grated Parmesan cheese

455g dried fusilli

Salt & freshly ground black pepper

Extra virgin olive oil

200g mozzarella, cut into 1cm cubes

2 handfuls of pine nuts, lightly toasted

Method

• In a large pan that has a lid, fry the bacon in a little oil until starting to go golden. Add the garlic and thyme and allow it to soften, then add the Savoy cabbage and Parmesan, give it a stir and put the lid on the pan.
• Cook the fusilli pasta in salted boiling water until al dente while the cabbage cooks – shake the pan every now and then to stop it from catching on the bottom.
• Once the cabbage is nice and tender, season it and add some extra virgin olive oil to loosen it all up. Drain the pasta and toss it into the cabbage and bacon, then at the last minute add the mozzarella cubes and top with the pine nuts. Serve immediately.

Thyme – love, courage, inner calm

Garlic – protection, healing, family bonding

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