Sunday, March 19, 2006
Spaghetti al Salmone
Spaghetti al Salmone? What's with the Italian
title? I don't know. Somehow, it just slipped out. I was in the middle of writing "Spaghetti with Smoked Salmon Cream Sauce" when it hit me. I am not trying to imitate Jamie Oliver by going all Italian and I am not trying to be trendy or show off with the use of a foreign language (well, none other than English that is). In fact, why is it that totally ordinary things suddenly become something special when we give them a foreign name? Posh restaurants have an à la carte menu, which really comes down to a menu's menu. They serve a soupe du jour or pommes purées where you and I would just have a soup of the day and mashed potatoes and in the afternoon you could have a cappuccino and a tarte au citron. Don't get me wrong, I'm not one of these language purists who feel that any one tongue is being poisoned by others and in need of special preservation. Some foreign words are more than needed to denote concepts that don't exist outside their language - such as espresso, curry or chocolate. I think I would feel very strange ordering a spicy Indian stew followed by a short, strong Italian coffee and a sweet made from the beans of the cocoa tree.What annoys me are people who use foreign languages where they are not needed in an attempt to appear cool, educated or knowledgeable. Germans in general, and the people of my native Munich in particular, are masters at that. They disliked the term Mobiltelefon, so they called it a "Handy". Einkaufen is way too uncool, too, modern women go "Shopping". And forget about ever finding a Kaffeehaus again; they are a thing of the past. Depending on whether your self-image is that of a bourgeois student, a chic wannabe Paris Hilton or a young trendsetter, you now have a choice of Café, a Caffè or a Coffee Bar.
It used to drive me mad that, when I went for a coffee with my mum, I always had to fight my way through the jungle of mispronounced Anglicisms before emerging at the other end with a totally ordinary cup of filter coffee with milk. My mum always wants what the menu calls a "Tall Low-Fat Latte". The first time I went into one of those, I tried to order just that (along with a white Mocha for myself), but was met by blank stares from the bloke with the expensive hair due on the other side of the counter. "A what?" he asked totally puzzled. So I translated the whole lot into German - which works out roughly as a "large espresso with lotsa low-fat milk and a coffee with milk and a shot of white chocolate syrup". This time he understood, but visibly disapproved. "Ach so," he corrected me, "ein tahl Lo-Fett Latte und ein Vait Mokka!" Ouch.
So why am I doing the same tonight? I think the reason is my intense feeling of disgust with the Northern European winter. I felt like dreaming of a southern summer. And this, I suppose, answers the question I asked above. People use language to express their inner self and, in some cases, to help them become what they are not. My mum is no more a trendy IT lawyer from San Francisco than I am an Italian chef. But sometimes it makes us feel good to pretend we are. In case you want to join in, here's a foolproof recipe that will impress even the most avid spotter of wannabes. So go on, be what I wannabe!
enough pasta for 2 people (I recommendlong, thin noodles such as spaghetti, vermicelli or fettuccini), cooked, drained and set aside
2 tbsp olive oil
1 shallot, finely chopped (alternatively ½ mild onion)
1 garlic clove, chopped
50 ml white wine
100 ml fish stock
75 ml double cream
2 big handfuls of baby spinach, washed and drained well
100 g smoked salmon, sliced into strips if you like, but I prefer to leave the slices whole to give you something to chew on
salt and pepper to taste
freshly grated Parmesan and, if you like, some chopped parsley or spring onion rings to serve.
Heat the oil in a medium saucepan over medium low heat. Add the shallot/onion and garlic and sauté for three minutes, until the onion has softened. Turn up the heat to medium.
Deglaze with the wine and bring to the boil. Cook until the liquist has almost completely evaporated. Now add the stock and again boil until it is reduced substantially. Reduce the heat again, add the cream and continue to simmer for about 5 minutes, or until the sauce has thickened slightly and the flavours have mixed.
Add the spinach and pasta and heat through.
Serve with freshly grated Parmesan and chopped parsley or spring onion rings.
Christine at 1:46 pm
