When we think of yogurt we can think of breakfasts and snacks, from the most delicious with honey, chocolate chips and cereals to the healthiest with the addition of red and related fruits. Or, alternatively, various and any sweets, which can range from soft plum cake up to all the possible range of semifreddo. Hardly, however, the word yogurt could make us think of a first course, especially if based on pasta. Here, however, that to put an end to this prejudice comes a curious signed recipe Fabrizio Albini, chef of the white on Lake Oggiono, in the province of Lecco: Matt wheat spaghetti with cod, chili pepper and yogurt.

Creamy or powdered yogurt?

"In this dish I needed an ingredient that could balance the flavor and fatness of the cod with a good dose of acidity: yogurt, in this sense, is perfect", explains the chef. At this point, however, there are two possible alternatives: use low-fat yogurt like this, as from a jar, while being careful to calibrate the proportions well with the rest of the ingredients in order not to exceed the creaminess (and don't turn our pasta into a kind of strange breakfast dish); or opt for the yogurt powder, available mostly online or from specialized dealers, which allows you to insist more on acidity without affecting the consistencies of the dish.

The other combinations of yogurt

«In our mind, yogurt is automatically pigeonholed in the" breakfast "or" snack "category, but the truth is that it is a full-blown dairy product, just like cheeses or different types of cream. This is why it is much more versatile than you might think ", explains Albini, who in his winter menu usually offers a yogurt-based entree, dried sardines is cauliflower. «The mix of flavor, crunchiness and creaminess, in this case, is really interesting. Here then it can be really worth overcoming the fears dictated by custom and start experimenting with all the possibilities of a good yogurt in the kitchen. Maybe starting right from the tasty first recipe that we find below.

Matt wheat spaghetti, cod, chili pepper and yogurt
by chef Fabrizio Albini

Recipe for 4 people

For the cod
100 g of wet cod (better fatty parts)
50 g cod skin
40 g shallot
1 coffee spoon of delicate fresh red pepper
150 g extra virgin olive oil from Garda

Heat the extra virgin olive oil in a small saucepan with the chopped shallot and the chilli pepper, trying to keep the temperature at around 80 ° C. Prepare the cod and skin cut into small pieces in a steel bowl and slowly add wire as for a mayonnaise, the oil at 80 ° C continuing to mix until cool.

For spaghetti
320 g spaghetti Matt Monograno Felicetti
20 g of honey
30 g extra virgin olive oil from Garda

Cook the spaghetti, drain and mix them cold with honey and extra virgin olive oil.

Plating
20 chive stalks
10 g of low-fat yogurt powder or 50 g of low-fat yogurt
Green lemon peel

With the help of tongs and a ladle, place the spaghetti in the center of the dishes, cover as much as possible with the cod cream, sprinkle with the yogurt powder or add a few drops of yogurt. Complete with finely chopped chives and a grated green lemon peel. To be combined with a fragrant and structured white, such as Lugana Doc Demesse Vecchie from the Olivini family.