Ingredients

150 g spinach (or watercress)

200 g mascarpone or ricotta cheese

Zest from 1 lemon

3/4 tsp hot chilli flakes

50 g Parmesan cheese, plus extra for finishing

250 g large pasta shells

Extra virgin olive oil

1 red onion, peeled and finely chopped

2 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed

3 tsp capers

50 g chopped black olives

400 g chopped tomatoes (polpa ideally)

1 tin of sardine fillets or tuna (sustainably sourced)

1 buffalo mozzarella, torn up

Fresh basil for garnish, optional

Method

1. Preheat oven to 200 C / 180 fan. Fill a bowl with iced water. Fill a saucepan with water and bring to the boil.

2. Blanch the spinach (or watercress) in the boiling water until wilted, 15-20 seconds. Using tongues, transfer to the ice bath to cool. Drain, squeeze out excess water, roughly chop and place in the bowl of a food processor. Add the mascarpone, lemon zest, ¼ tsp chilli flakes, black pepper, and parmesan and blend. Season to taste.

3. Return the saucepan of water to the heat, bring to the boil and add 2 tsp salt. Add the pasta shells and turn off the heat. Leave the pasta for 15-20 minutes in the hot water until the shells have softened but are still al dente, then drain, place in bowl and drizzle with olive oil to prevent them from sticking.

4. Heat a splash of olive oil in a medium saucepan, add the onion and cook gently for 10 mins until very soft. Add the garlic, ½ tsp chilli flakes, capers, olives and chopped tomatoes. Simmer gently for 5 minutes, then add the sardines or tuna and stir gently to break them up.

5. Pour the tomato sauce into the base of a large baking dish. Fill each shell with a teaspoon of the spinach (or watercress) mix and place in rows in the sauce. Top with the mozzarella and a grating of parmesan cheese. Bake on the middle rack for 30 minutes until bubbling.

6. Sprinkle with basil and serve.

   Serves 2-3