Welcome to the opening recipe in Mealtime Strategy's first annual Sega-Flavour Easter Eggspo, or to be more precise the opening 214,176,000 recipes! Inspired by Sega's streamlined 8-bit console, the Master System, our simple and ingenious "Pasta System" will ensure that you never end up with boring spaghetti and plain sauce ever again.
In Japan and the USA, the Sega Master System was hugely overshadowed by the Nintendo Famicom / NES. However in Italy, the home of pasta, and the rest of Europe the sleek black-and-red Sega machine was at least as popular as its grey, shoebox-like rival. Some of the best Master System exclusives were not even released in the USA, and we will highlight five of the best of these at the end of todays recipe.
Incidentally, the console in the header image was the first Sega Master System sold in the UK, bought on launch day! The launch was so low-key as to be pretty much non-existent, and coincided with my eleventh birthday. Seeing as the game was being distributed by Virgin Mastertronic, we thought the best place to buy one on launch day would be the flagship Virgin Megastore in London. Sadly the staff in the games department knew nothing of the launch and we had to wait until phone calls were made and a console was brought to the store. None had been delivered to any UK stores at all, such was the lack of fanfare over console launches back then, so I am the proud owner of the first UK retail Master System :)
This exclusive "Sega Pasta System" is incredibly simple but is adaptable enough to suit a simple student supper or a cosy romantic meal for two.
Recipe: The SEGA Pasta System - Over 2 Hundred Million Recipes in One!
Serves 2 but can be easily scaled for larger numbers
Ingredients:
- 8 oz (250g) freshly cooked pasta of your choice
- Capers
- Toasted pine nuts
- Sultanas
- Sun dried tomatoes, chopped
- Sauteed eggplant
- Coarsely chopped black olives
- Roasted bell peppers
- Crumbled bacon/pancetta (cooked)
- Mushrooms sauteed with garlic
- Strips of prosciutto
- Steamed broccoli florets
- Zucchini (courgette) sauteed in garlic
- Pepperoni
- Grated lemon zest
- Meatballs (cooked)
- Crumbled italian sausage (cooked)
- Cooked shrimp (prawns)
- Fresh basil, torn into pieces
- Sauteed onions
- Chopped walnuts
- Baby spinach leaves
- Fresh chopped parsley
- Lightly sauteed garlic
- Anchovies, melted in a pan in a tsp of oil
- Toasted breadcrumbs
- Pesto (Jamie Oliver's recipe is great)
- Marinara / spaghetti sauce (again, Jamie Oliver has a decent simple recipe )
- Juice and zest of 1 lemon and a hefty glug of good olive oil
- White wine cream sauce (this recipe would be perfect)
- Parmesan Reggiano
- Asiago
- Pecorino
- Grana Padano
- Cheddar
- Mozzarella
- Aged Provolone
- Crumbled feta
Method:
Now, if you've read through the ingredients, you've probably guessed that there isn't really much of a method to write, but for the purposes of completion, here you go!
- Make sure your sauce is heated through (not necessary for pesto or lemon and oil) and your 3-5 ingredients are prepared.
- Drain your pasta when it is cooked, return to pan and add a handful each of your chosen ingredients. Mingle it well to make sure each forkful contains a bit of everything!.
- Add your chosen sauce and mingle the pasta again.
- Serve with a sprinkling of any of the cheeses and eat while hot and yummy.
And as a bonus, tomorrow we will give you a few of our favourite combinations, as well as providing you with yet another brand new recipe inspired by one of Sega's greatest franchises...
Now, as promised here are the Mealtime Strategy Top Five Sega Games Never Released in the USA:
5. Asterix
The French hero and his chum, Obelix, have attended Mickey Mouse's platforming 101, but with bright, clear graphics and well designed levels, Asterix stands as one of the best platform games on the system.
4. Master of Darkness
Master of Darkness makes no attempt to hide the fact that it's a Castlevania clone. However, with the Belmont clan restricted to the NES at the time, there's no blaming Sega for wanting a piece of the horror-action pie, and a very fine example of the genre it is too!
3. Land of Illusion
There were quite a few Disney games on the Master System that never saw store shelves in the USA. We were torn between this and Donald Duck's Lucky Dime Caper for our top 5, but in the end the puzzles and slightly better controls saw Mickey win out.
2. Powerstrike 2
This classy Compile-developed shmup may flicker when there's lots onscreen, but it's by far the best scrolling shooter on the 8-bit Sega. Good sound too, considering the capabilities of the Master System sound chip.
1. Ninja Gaiden
Now, all you Nintendo fans are probably wondering why Ninja Gaiden is topping a list of Master System exclusives, but this version is developed by Sega themselves, not Tecmo. This makes for a very different game, reminding me of the Game Gear versions of Shinobi more than Ninja Gaiden.
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See you tomorrow for the second recipe in our Easter Eggstravaganza!
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