Fillet of Cod with Spicy Red Pesto

I cooked this dish overlooking the beach at Pescoluse, on the Puglian coast. It’s known as the Maldives of Salento and is a hidden paradise. I used swordfish, but tuna would work well too. Gremolata is a dressing of raw chopped garlic, parsley and lemon zest. It is usually sprinkled over meats, such as osso bucco or carpaccio, but it also makes a great garnish for grilled fish. Always make sure you...

This is a family favourite and a staple for the kids. True Italians never serve spaghetti with meatballs; it has to be fettuccine or pappardelle pasta to be authentic.

This is a great vegetarian alternative to raw meat or fish carpaccio. The marinating of the thinly sliced courgettes makes them so soft they don’t need any cooking. If using small, young courgettes you can use the whole vegetable, but for larger courgettes I suggest you use the flesh only, as the seeds can be spongy when eaten raw. Just halve the courgettes lengthways, run a teaspoon down the centre...

For burgers, lamb makes a really nice change from beef. These need to be prepared ahead and rested in the fridge to make sure they don’t fall apart when they are cooked, so they’re a great make-ahead meal. The yogurt makes a lovely cooling accompaniment to the spicy burgers. Light that barbecue and open the cold beers...!

Whenever we are in Olbia, a port town on the northeast coast of Sardinia near my home, we order courgette fritters instead of chips. They make a great side dish or snack, but if you include cheese, as I have done here, they make a more substantial first course. Pecorino sardo, a traditional Sardinian hard cheese made from sheep’s milk – is similar to the better-known pecorino romano (which...

There’s nothing quite like the taste of a good pasta puttanesca. It’s a real Italian classic and, when I’m back in Naples, my mother cooks this for me at least once a week. She always says that it reminds her of my late father – apparently this was the dish they both ordered on their first date. Well, it must have been pretty good – otherwise I wouldn’t be here, would I?