A simple summer supper

My ponderings over morning coffee were not wasted. The book I had chosen to accompany my breakfast was Nigel Slater’s “Tender”, which never fails to give me an idea, teach me something or raise a smile. The page to which I randomly turned described a simple supper of courgettes, bacon and basil that he liked to make on Thursdays, when clearing out the week’s leftovers before the arrival of his organic box on Friday and Saturday”s market shopping, which I read with interest, flicked over some other pages and then set off to work. Going to work entailed standing up and taking 10 paces to my left. The morning’s mission was to repair winter’s depredations to a wooden hatch that covers the filter system of the pool. This involved honest toil to which I try not to get accustomed but which continually rears its ugly head and, with the sun shining brightly, excuses were thin on the ground. By mid afternoon the unseasonably hot weather had driven me to take refuge in the cool of the kitchen. As I sipped on a refreshing glass of icy beer my eye fell upon a lone courgette in the vegetable bowl. Life was mirroring the book. There were lardons in the fridge and a burgeoning basil plant on the window ledge. I should mention that the fabulous basil plant was there by the grace of Lidl’s who were also stocking fabulous Pecorino and a range of good wines at insane prices, but I digress. The lardons were soon sizzling in a spoonful of olive oil, and were joined by cubes of courgette and a grind of black pepper followed by a final flourish of torn basil leaves. There was a saucepan of linguine already on the boil as pasta, with a tomato and chili sauce, had been my original thought for dinner. Once drained, the linguine was tipped into the frying pan and stirred through with the courgettes, bacon and basil before being given a  final sprinkling of fresh breadcrumbs seasoned with Pecorino and black pepper. As I write this in the warmth of the evening sun the birds are still battling and courting whilst tucking into the hordes of airborne insects. Even though there would be plenty for me, I’m opting for the pasta.

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