Often the simplest pasta dishes are the most delicious and this colorful recipe is no exception

This fig, Parma ham and gorgonzola pappardellea is an unusual, but incredibly successful combination of ingredients, relying on the balance of salty, sweet and umami flavors with a touch of lemon freshness and chilli for a hint of heat.

Feel free to adapt this pasta recipe to suit your tastes, leaving the Parma ham out for non-meat eaters; removing the creamto make it a little lower calorie, or swapping the chopped rosemary for torn basil leaves.

No matter how you customize it, this dish delivers a perfect harmony of bold, fresh, and comforting flavors.

Ingredients

• Serves 4
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 10 ripe figs, trimmed and quartered
• 1 red chilli, deseeded and finely chopped
• 2 rosemary sprigs, leaves stripped and finely chopped
• 1 lemon, finely grated zest and juice
• 2 tbsp single cream (optional)
• 1.75 oz walnuts, lightly toasted and roughly crushed
• 3.5 oz gorgonzola cheese, chopped
• 12.3 oz dried pappardelle pasta or other long pasta shape such as tagliatelle
• 12 sheets Parma ham, torn (optional)
• 2 tbsp snipped micro herbs or cress, to serve

The Homes & Gardens Method

1. Put the olive oil in a large, deep frying pan set over a medium heat. Add the figs and chilli and cook, stirring every now and then, for 3 minutes or so. Reduce the heat to low and add the rosemary, lemon zest and juice and the cream (if using).
2. Warm through for a few seconds and stir in the cheese, most of the walnuts, a very little salt and plenty of black pepper, being careful not to break up the figs too much.
3. Cook the pasta in boiling salted water, according the pack instructions and drain, reserving a few tablespoons of the cooking water.
4. Return the pan to the heat. Add the pasta and half the reserved cooking water and mix through carefully. If needed, add a little more water to thin the sauce slightly – it should coat the paste strands but not be claggy and thick. Add salt and pepper to taste.
5. Serve straight away with the reserved walnuts scattered over, the Parma ham (if using), draped in and around and the micro herbs or cress scattered over to finish.

No pasta dish is complete without the perfect pasta bowl, such as this Famiware Milkyway Pasta Bowl Set from Walmart, with just the right depth and shape. It will work well for your summer salad recipes, too.