Recipe: Osteria Oggi’s Casarecce with Scorched Leek, Radicchio and Squacquerone Cheese

Sour, salty and bitter. That’s how chef Max O’Callaghan describes the casarecce (short, curled pasta) with scorched leek, radicchio and squacquerone at Adelaide pasta bar Osteria Oggi. It’s a divisive dish – “there are no sweet elements,” O’Callaghan says – but regulars count the warming pasta among the restaurant’s best. “It’s different to all our other dishes here – there’s no garlic in it and there’s no parmesan,” O’Callaghan says. As for the sourness? That’s the squacquerone – a soft and creamy Italian cheese with a slightly tangy taste. The radicchio adds the bitterness. “It’s a comforting dish,” says O’Callaghan.

Casarecce with Scorched Leeks, Radicchio, Squacquerone and Hazelnuts

Serves one

Ingredients
1 medium leek
120g casarecce pasta
50g butter
30g hazelnuts, crushed
20g capers
50g radicchio, chopped
50g squacquerone
1 lemon
Salt and pepper
20g parsley, chopped

Method
Scorch leek until the outside skin blackens, either over a gas stove or in a 250°C oven. While the leek is still hot, remove the blackened outside layers and set aside. Once cool, roughly chop.

Fill a pot with salted water and bring to the boil. Cook the casarecce in the salted water.

In a pan, brown off the butter with the crushed hazelnuts and capers. When the butter has coloured, add the chopped leeks and a ladle of pasta water. Add radicchio.

Just before the pasta has reached al dente, add to the sauce and finish cooking. Add more pasta water to maintain a wet consistency.

When the pasta is cooked, add the squacquerone, a squeeze of lemon, and salt and pepper to taste. Toss lightly and garnish with parsley and roasted hazelnuts to serve.

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