Health+Nutrition

Bob Blumer’s Five-minute Aglio Olio

Bob Blumer hosts the Food Network’s Surreal Gourmet and Glutton for Punishment and has authored four cooking-related books. The Montreal native is an avid cyclist and takes annual bike touring trips in exotic locations around the world. When not travelling for work or pleasure, he now lives under the Hollywood sign in Tinseltown and rides the Hollywood Hills six days a week on his Cervelo R3.

Five-minute Aglio Olio

2 servings fresh angel hair pasta (or dried, if you have an extra 2 or 3 minutes to spare)

1 tbsp salt

3 tbsp olive oil

4 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 - 1 tsp chili pepper flakes (depending on your heat tolerance)

Zest of 1 lemon

1/2 cup fresh parsley (regular or Italian), chopped finely

1/4 cup freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano

1/2 tsp freshly-grated black pepper

Serves two hungry, impatient diners

1. Bring a pot of water to a boil.

2. Add salt to the water, then add pasta. Cook according to directions. Fresh pasta should take about a minute, dried pasta about three.

3. In a sauté pan over medium-high heat, add oil, garlic and chili flakes. Sauté for one minute or until garlic just begins to turn golden. Remove from heat until pasta is cooked.

4. Drain pasta, reserving 1/4 cup of the pasta water. Return pan to heat and add pasta and reserved pasta water. Toss.

5. Add zest, parsley and black pepper. Toss thoroughly and top with Parmigiano. Serve immediately.

To transform your aglio olio into an instant Puttanesca, add a few anchovies along with the garlic and chili flakes. After the garlic has turned golden, add 1 cup of crushed canned tomatoes (ideally San Marzano), 1 tbsp of drained capers, a palmful of pitted olives and 1/2 tsp of dried oregano, basil or thyme. Let it simmer for a couple of minutes before adding the pasta and pasta water.

Per Serving:

Calories: 329

Carbs: 18g

Fat: 25g (Saturated Fat 5g)

Sodium: 3.7g

Fibre: 1g

Protein: 9g