Super foods recipe: Italian spirals with watercress and olive dressing

In this recipe, peppery watercress provides a zingy bite to pasta spirals tossed in a gremolata dressing. Finish it off with crunchy pistachio nuts and a little Parmesan for a unique flavour that can't be beat.

• Preparation: 10 minutes.
• Cooking: 10 minutes.
• Serves 4.

Ingredients:

• 275 g (10 oz) pasta spirals or fusilli
• 2 small leeks
• 1 medium bunch watercress
• 50 g (1/4 c) shelled pistachios
• 75 g (1/3 c) pimento-stuffed olives, halved
• 60 ml (4 tbsp) olive oil
• 3 cloves garlic, crushed
• 30 g (2 tbsp) chopped fresh parsley
• Grated zest of 1 lemon
• 75 g (1/3 c) grated Parmesan

Instructions:

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the pasta, return to a boil, and partly cover the pot. Reduce heat and cook for 10 minutes, or according to package directions, until pasta is tender but still firm to the bite. Slice the leeks into rings, cut the rings into quarters, and rinse. Chop the watercress and pistachios.
2. Halfway through cooking the pasta, heat the oil in another pot over high heat. Add the garlic and leeks and reduce heat to medium-low. Cover and cook for five minutes, stirring once, until the leeks soften.
3. Pour the pasta into a colander and quickly return it to the hot pot without draining all the cooking liquid. This will keep the pasta moist and hot. Add the leeks, watercress, parsley, pistachios, lemon zest and stuffed olives. Toss to mix well and divide among four plates. Serve topped with grated Parmesan.

• Packed with essential nutrients, watercress contains calcium to help maintain bone strength, iron for preventing anemia and folate to promote heart health.
• It's also a good source of antioxidants, which may have anti-cancer effects that protect the body against harmful free radicals.

Each serving provides:

• 588 calories
• 31 g fat
• 7 g saturated fat
• 61 g carbohydrates
• 20 g protein
• 7 g fibre

• For faster preparation — though the final dish won't look quite as attractive — finely chop the watercress, parsley and pistachios together in a food processor.

• Boost the nutty flavour by using a mixture of olive oil and walnut oil. Cook the leeks in 30 millilitres (two tablespoons) olive oil, then add 30 millilitres (two tablespoons) walnut oil to the pan when the leeks are cooked. Add walnuts instead of pistachios.
• For herb-flavoured pasta, add tarragon or basil to the recipe in addition to the parsley. Chop two fresh tarragon sprigs with the parsley. Basil loses its flavour when chopped, so it's best to add two to three tender shredded leaves just before adding the olives in step 3.
• Try other cheeses, such as gruyère, manchego, pecorino-romano or a sharp cheddar, instead of Parmesan.

Fill up on powerful vitamins and minerals with this delicious pasta dish. Try it today with ripe cherry tomatoes for a tasty flavour that will appeal to your entire family.