Pretty Is as Pretty Does

When I picked out this recipe to make, I was fondly recalling one of my favorite Philadelphia restaurants, Melograno. They're a relatively big deal in a fairly big space right now, but when we used to go, they had a tiny corner spot just a few blocks from our apartment. Despite a pretty tasty looking menu, I always ordered the same thing, beet ravioli. Here, read the menu description for yourself - homemade pasta filled with roasted beets & mascarpone cheese finished in a brown butter sage sauce and poppy seeds. It's like candy (unless of course, you're someone for whom beets taste like dirt. J, look away honey, it's going to get worse before it gets better). Dessert for dinner, in a delicate pasta shell. So in my head, this was going to be roughly the same thing. After all, it had pasta, beets, poppy seeds and brown butter. This version was much earthier, probably from the farro pasta and the goat cheese rather than ravioli with sweet mascarpone, but definitely still tasty. It wasn't all that filling though, so you may prefer it as an appetizer or with substantial sides. Also, it was seriously, mind bogglingly, pink. So, you know, if you ever need something pink to eat...

PRETTY PINK PASTA
adapted from epicurious

INGREDIENTS:
1 lb red beets, peeled and destemmed, this was about 4 bigger than a golf ball, smaller than a tennis ball sized beets
1/8 C water
1/8 C olive oil
1/2 lb farro pasta (I'm sure you could use regular or whole-wheat)
4 T butter
1 T poppyseeds
1 t salt
1/4 C pasta water
a young, mild, goat cheese

DIRECTIONS:
So, I tried to do what the recipe said in terms of roasting beets, and it didn't really work. I used a 400 F oven and cut the beets into quarters. I placed them in foil lined roasting pan and added the olive oil and water. I roasted them for an hour, but they weren't done. I upped the temperature to 450 for the last 15 minutes and it was fine. Let them cool.

Make the pasta according the the box directions.

Place the butter in a pan large enough to accommodate the pasta. Turn the heat on high and let the butter sit for 2 minutes. It should get to be a nice golden brown color. Add the poppyseeds and toast for 2 more minutes. Then add the beets, and mix well. Add your pasta water and again stir to combine. Add the drained pasta and toss well to coat. Serve with a dollop of goat cheese on top.

Not Just a Side Dish

It seems the men in my life, despite (because of?) being hearty eaters are a bit particular about what constitutes dinner. Sample cases:

Soup - Doesn't count as dinner unless it has a filling side. This has evolved into a game of culinary chicken. Will I break first and make something to go with the soup? Or will I stay strong and force Ryan to forage and make himself something to go with the soup?

Salad - Ah, salad. It's like gambling. Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose. With Ryan the odds are in my favor. Salad will count. With my father, it's betting a longshot. You might get lucky, but chances are you're just wasting your time.

Macaroni and cheese has always been a side dish in these parts. Without meat or its own side dish, I just couldn't get it to pass for dinner. Luckily my mom has years of experience trying to get meals past my father. With just a few tasty additions, mac and cheese can appear in the starring role.

FANCY MAC AND CHEESE

INGREDIENTS:
1 1/2 oz bacon (this was about 2-3 strips)
8 oz sliced baby bella or button mushrooms
1 C frozen peas
1/2 lb elbow macaroni
1 T flour
3 T butter
1/2 C milk (whole milk is best, but any will do)
1 T mustard (I use whatever I can grab first)
1 1/2 C grated cheddar cheese

DIRECTIONS:
Set a pot of water to boil for the macaroni. Chop the bacon into smallish bacon bits - maybe 1/4" squares? Eyeball it, do not measure with a ruler or anything picky like that. Cook in a fry pan over medium high heat for 3-5 minutes until it is crisp. Remove from the pan and set aside. Retain some of the fat in the pan (pour off some if it looks like a ton). Add the mushrooms, sprinkle with salt and cook for 5-7 minutes until golden and tender. I often add a splash of balsamic. It's up to you. Then add the peas and cook for another 3-5 minutes.

When the water boils:
When it reaches a rolling boil, toss in the pasta and cook until done 8-10 minutes. Drain, and set the pasta aside in the colander. In the pan you made the pasta in, melt the butter and add the flour. Mix well and cook on very low heat for about four minutes. Turn off the heat and add the milk and the mustard. Whisk to blend. Return to heat. I always add back the cheese and cooked macaroni alternately, stirring to combine in between each addition. Then add the mushrooms, peas and bacon. Fancy.

Beat the Heat - Tortellini Salad

Right now I feel like a spoiled brat. I just got back from a week on Cape Cod. Do you know how beautiful it is on Cape Cod? How there's almost always this lovely sea breeze even when you're not actually at the beach. I wore pants. I wore a dress with three-quarter length sleeves. I brought a sweater out with me at night. I am currently a sticky melting mass of ick. Being a complete and total wimp, I succumbed and turned on the air-conditioning. I can't help it. This is not the Cape, and there is no cool breeze wafting in off the porch. There's only sun beating mercilessly down through my windows. I've closed the blinds. The dog has slunk off to a dark corner of the kitchen where he can stretch out on the cool tile. We are going to do as little as possible today. On the upside, this dinner is so easy it almost makes itself.

TORTELLINI SALAD
INGREDIENTS:
for salad:
1/2 lb tortellini, although I made that amount up, I have no idea how much I really used because I do not have a scale and I do have a family jumbo club pack of tortellini. I eyeballed it. Whatever it was it was enough for two people.
2 C broccoli
1/2 - 3/4 C julienned carrots
1/2 C quartered grape tomatoes
1 T finely chopped red onion
1 C rinsed drained small white beans
asiago cheese
for dressing:
2 T plain yogurt
1 T red wine vinegar
1 T freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 T plus 1 t olive oil
1 T honey

DIRECTIONS:
Put on the water for the tortellini, use a medium to large pot, and salt the water. When it boils, add the tortellini and cook for 2-3 minutes, whatever the package says. Steam your broccoli, I did mine in the top part of a double boiler. I added the broccoli once the water boiled and then steamed them for 2 minutes. I removed from heat and then ran under cold water to stop the cooking. I threw the carrots in with the tortellini for the last minute of cooking because I didn't want them super crunchy, but that's up to you. When the tortellini and carrots are done, drain thoroughly and put in a big serving bowl. Add the broccoli, the white beans, the red onion and the grape tomatoes. In a separate bowl whisk together the dressing, then pour it over the pasta salad. Then grate some asiago over the top of it all. Serve.

Effortless

As in, requiring no effort. Clearly I can't handle anything else these days. I know I barely post anymore, but honestly, I barely cook anymore either. I work later now than I ever have - Monday nights I'm lucky if I walk in the door before 7pm, Thursdays tend to fall in the 6:15-6:30 range. That (plus some other stressful stuff) means that I am exhausted. It's a miracle if I can tell you what I ate a few days ago, much less what I'm going to eat in the next few days.

Last night I ate hot dogs. I was sulky because I had to buy buns for the damn things.

Tonight I'm debating the pros and cons of pasta with butter and cheese or Trader Joe's gnocchi.

But this meal? This one was effortless.

ASPARAGUS AND GOAT CHEESE PASTA
Would you believe Martha does effortless?
adapted for 2 people

INGREDIENTS:
1 bunch asparagus
1/2 lb rotini
1 T olive oil
2 T butter
2 oz goat cheese
salt and pepper

DIRECTIONS:
Put a pot of water on to boil to make your pasta. Turn on your oven to 450 F. Rinse the asparagus. Chop off the bottom third of the asparagus and cut the top parts in 1 1/2" sections. Like this:
Line a sheet pan or baking dish with foil. Pour the tablespoon of oil over the asparagus and add some salt and pepper. Bake for 10-12 minutes. They should be tender but not mushy and bright happy green. I pulled my tips after 10 minutes and left the thicker parts to go for 12. Add the pasta when the water boils. Cook the pasta according to the directions. Before draining the pasta, reserve 1 C of the pasta water. You can reuse the now empty pasta pan. Over low heat melt the butter. Add the goat cheese and whisk until melted and smooth. Slowly start to add in the reserved pasta water. I added 1/4 C and that was plenty, but go according to how thick or thin you like your sauce. I tossed the pasta back in with the sauce and stirred to coat well, then I mixed in the asparagus. Definitely taste for salt and pepper, mine needed a bit. Simple, tasty (especially if you can get good asparagus), effortless.

Insert Pig Joke Here

A few years ago when we had that whole swine flu scare, I ended up in a very serious pig-based discussion with my third grade class. My contributions were limited to helpful observations such as: "Um, we're calling that H1N1 now." and "You know you can't get it from eating pork or bacon or ham right?" As the children paused to reflect on these pearls of wisdom, S, a terrific kid with impeccable timing said (and I quote!) "I just love pigs..." then she sighed audibly and added, "they're so adorable...and they taste delicious!"

I could not agree more. However, I am married to one of the many people out there who does not eat pork. You could say it's because he's Jewish (he is, but it's not) or because he's Muslim (he's not, so it's not) or because he's watched Pulp Fiction too many times and over associates with Samuel L. Jackson's character (although he hasn't and he doesn't). The fact is, it doesn't matter why he won't eat any tasty swine products, all that matters is that he won't.

And of course, I'm the one who suffers. Oh sure, I buy poultry sausages and I eat turkey bacon now without too much complaint. If it's hidden in a recipe, it usually won't pain me too much. But as much as turkey bacon is a cheap and slightly sad substitute for bacon, it's just painful to use it in place of pancetta. So I've been suffering along (in silence, I promise) until something better came along.

And that something better is... duck bacon. Okay, so it's pricey. But duck bacon is actually delicious. And gives off delicious fat just like pancetta would. And has a texture that is pleasing and not sort of leathery. It's not for every day, but if you've got a dish where the pancetta should shine and you're pigless? Duck bacon.

I made this Pasta with Pancetta and Leeks with turkey bacon the first time, but it is far more delicious when made with duck bacon. I can only dream what it would taste like with pancetta.

PASTA WITH DUCK BACON! AND LEEKS
adapted from The Pioneer Woman
serves between 2-4 depending on how hearty your appetites are - we had a fair amount left over

INGREDIENTS:
8 oz farfalle
4-5 slices duck bacon
2 leeks, sliced and properly cleaned (cut into rings, push rings apart with your fingers, soak in cold water, lift out the rings leaving all the sandy ick on the bottom of the bowl) - use only the white to light green parts, don't use the thick dark green leafy parts
1/4 C vermouth
1/4 C light cream (Oh for crying out loud, I usually add a smidge more. I'm a bad person)
1/4 C - 1/2 C parmigiano-reggiano cheese, plus more for garnish.
reserved pasta water

DIRECTIONS:
Cook the pasta according to the directions on the box. Chop your duck bacon into small tasty bits. Drop them into a large skillet and cook on medium-high until cooked (5-7 minutes). They will give off tons of fat, so you won't need any other oil/butter nonsense. Add the leeks and cook 8-10 minutes. You do not want them to crunch (well, I don't anyway). I like them nice and tender. They will likely not stay a pretty green like on Pioneer Woman. They are cooking in a pan full of delicious duck fat. They will become golden. Add the vermouth. Cook 1-2 minutes. Add the cream, toss well to combine. Add the pasta (I did say a large skillet). Add the grated cheese and toss. If it seems dry, feel free to add a bit of reserved pasta water, or some more cream (come on, I'll never tell). Serve and garnish with some shaved parm (use a potato peeler for pretty curls). Be very grateful that being pig free is no longer a hardship.

Dinner and Movie

I have to say, I admire my parents' style of entertaining. Back in the day, they'd have friends in for fabulous dinner parties. The next morning, while my parents and their guests were still in bed, I would pad through the living room and dining room in my jammies surveying the damage. Empty bottles of wine were lined up along the mantle; small plates holding uneaten chocolate bonbons waited on the table (fine, maybe I stole a few for breakfast). So where was I whilst all the merry-making took place? My parents hired the best babysitter money can buy - Fred Astaire (actually, he was totally free). Since TV watching was a rare treat, and eating in front of the TV, absolutely verboten, my Saturday night dinner and a movie set-up was just about the biggest treat I could imagine. My father would make me a special pasta dinner and set me up with an old musical and I'd be in heaven. It became such a tradition for me that when I was old enough to babysit on weekends instead of stay home I really missed my special movie time.

Start out with Swing Time, one of my favorite Astaire-Rogers films, and another classic, chicken with shells. And while this very first dinner and a movie post is perfect for occupying small children so that you can have an evening to yourself on the cheap, stay tuned. I'm planning on featuring some of my favorite movies and meals that would perfect accompaniments, because even though I'm a grown-up now I still love settling down to a delicious dinner in front of a terrific film.


DADDY'S CHICKEN AND SHELLS
serves 2

INGREDIENTS:
1 large breast of chicken
6 slices bacon
1 C frozen peas
1/2 lb shells
1/2 C chicken stock
1/4 C - 1/2 C cream
2 T butter
1 T olive oil
1/4 C Parmigiano-Reggiano

DIRECTIONS:
Chop the bacon into medium sized squares. Cook in a skillet for 5-7 minutes or until crisp. Set aside. Then raise the heat to high and add your tablespoon of olive oil. Sear for 2 minutes per side, then add the 1/2 C of stock and reduce heat to low and cover. Cook for about 5 minutes or until cooked through. When it's done remove it from the pan and let it stand for a few minutes so the juices don't all run out when you cut it. After it has rested cut it into bite sized pieces. Cook the shells according to the package directions. When they're done drain them quite thoroughly. Make sure to shake them a bit to get the water out. Then melt 2 T of butter over them and mix gently to coat. Cook off half the chicken broth, then add 1 C of frozen peas and cook them for 3 minutes. Add the 1/4 C of cream and the chicken to the broth and peas. Add the shells and 1/4 C parm. Add the bacon. Mix gently and serve.

Simple Comfort

This is what to have for dinner if you are feeling like a fractious five year old. Or possibly what to make for dinner if you have a fractious five year old. It is not fancy or complex. It is simple and comforting. There is nothing unexpected or deep about it. Just a nice simple chicken and pasta casserole. It would be great to have for dinner if you've had a bad day.

If, for example, you'd spent a solid 10 minutes hyperventilating this morning because when you walked to where you'd parked your car, it WASN'T THERE. And you realized that not only was your car GONE, but there was NO ONE you could call for help, because your husband was in New York, or Boston, or somewhere in between New York and Boston, and your parents were in Canada and you know NO ONE in the stupid city you live in. And you couldn't decide whether you should call 911 or the tow lot first. And you knew that if (when) your husband found out your car was stolen he would say "that's it, that's enough, we're moving out of this hellhole" never mind that we have a lease, no movers and no where to go. And besides all that, HOW WERE YOU SUPPOSED TO GET TO WORK WITH NO CAR?? And about when you'd decided to head home and start calling the tow lot and 911 and your boss and possibly Canada, you walked one more block and found your poor, sad, 15 year old car tucked into a parking space and breathed a sigh of relief so great it probably reached Canada...If that had been your morning? You definitely would want this for dinner. I wouldn't know that first hand of course. I'm just guessing.


BAKED CHICKEN AND DITALINI
adapted from Giada De Laurentiis

INGREDIENTS:
1 C ditalini
1 -2 C cooked chicken breast, diced. I used one very large breast, probably yielding about 1.5 C
14 oz of canned crushed tomatoes
1/2 C onion chopped fine
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 T oregano
1 1/2 C shredded mozzarella cheese
2-4 T olive oil
1-2 T butter
1/4 C bread crumbs
1/4 C grated parmesan cheese
salt and pepper

DIRECTIONS:
Preheat your oven to 400 F. Put a pot of water on the stove, and bring it to a boil. Cook 1 C of ditalini according to the package directions. Drain, toss with 1 T of olive oil and set aside.
Put some olive oil in a pan and bring to medium high heat. Salt and pepper your chicken and chop it into medium sized pieces, like this:Add your chicken to the pan and cook for 3-5 minutes until done, turn often. Chop into bite sized pieces. In another pan, add another tablespoon of olive oil, the chopped onions and the chopped garlic. Cook for 3 minutes until the onions and garlic and softened. Add the 14 oz of tomatoes and the oregano. Stir until mixed. Butter an 8x8 baking dish. Add the ditalini and chicken to the sauce. Add the grated mozzarella and stir until well combined. Pour into the baking dish. In a small pan, melt the butter and add the bread crumbs. Toss until they are all buttery and golden. Off heat, add the parm, then use that to top the chicken pasta mixture. Bake for 20 minutes, or until golden and melty, like so:

Suddenly Fall

Frankly, with all the complaining some of us did about the heat this summer, we were asking for it. The first weekend after Labor Day was cold in these parts. On Sunday we had the added bonus of a steady drizzle. Honestly, I couldn't have been happier. What better way to while away the day than curl up on the sofa and watch football while tomato sauce burbles away on the stove. This absolutely satisfied my meatball cravings.

Speaking of which, can we talk about my meatball cravings? Point of fact: as a child I did not like meatballs. Not even a little. I don't mean to cast aspersions on my mother's cooking skills, it was just the meatball itself. They just always seemed so squishy. And I did not like certain kinds of squishy. (Who are we kidding, I still don't. See: bananas, eggplant and rare hamburger.) But at some point, I outgrew this. Not only did I outgrow it, I just kept on heading in the other direction. Currently, there are three meatball recipes on this website. This makes four. I swear I'm not obsessed.

EAT MEATBALLS
adapted from For the Love of Cooking
NB: THIS TAKES ABOUT 3 HOURS TO MAKE. I wasn't kidding about the football game and the rainy day.

INGREDIENTS:

for the sauce (PS - this is what takes so long, so if you want to speed things up, buy sauce!)

2 tsp oil
1/2 of a medium onion
6 oz of mushroom (I used baby bellas)- basically this is an 8oz pack with 6-7 mushrooms pulled out
3-4 cloves of garlic
42 oz of crushed tomatoes (this is about a 28oz can and a half)
1 T balsamic
1 t oregano
1 t sugar
at least 1 t red pepper flakes, but more if you like it on the spicier side.

for the meatballs/penne
1 box of penne
enough sauce (see above) - otherwise, I bet you'd need at least a full jar.
1 lb ground turkey (or beef)
6-7 mushrooms (what was left from the sauce)
1/4 C of onion
2 cloves of garlic
1/4 C bread crumbs
1 egg
1/2 C Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese - 1/4C for the meatballs, 1/4 C for the topping
1 t salt
pepper
1 - 2 C shredded mozzarella cheese

DIRECTIONS:http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif
for the sauce
Using a food processor, chop the onion, mushroom and garlic until it is a large dice. In a large pot, heat up your oil to medium heat. Add the onion, garlic, mushroom mixture and cook until soft 2-3 minutes. Add the rest of the ingredients. Simmer covered for 2 hours (although I tasted mine after one, and it was really good, so you could probably quit there).

for the rest
Preheat your oven to 350F. Cook the penne according to the directions on the box. In a large bowl, mix together the bread crumbs and egg. Let this stand while you prepare the other ingredients. Blend the mushrooms, garlic and onion in the food processor until finely chopped, but not a paste. Mix this into the bread crumb and egg mixture. Add the 1/4 C of parm, plus the salt and pepper. Finally add the ground turkey and mix gently. Form into small meatballs. In a large skillet, cover the bottom with a thin layer of oil and heat to medium high. Add the meatballs and cook until they are browned on all sides, maybe 15-20 minutes. When they are done, set them aside. Mix the penne in with the sauce. Then VERY gently, stir in the meatballs, you do not want them to break. Then even more gently stir in about half of the mozzarella cheese. Carefully spoon into a large baking dish (I used my lasagna pan). Top with the remaining mozzarella and the final 1/4 C of parm. Cook for 20-30 minutes, but don't overcook or the cheese will dry out a bit.

Yummy.

Sorry Folks

As about 90% of my readership already knows - I'm on vacation. Right now I'm on Cape Cod, visiting my Nana. I'm not going to lie, I've had lobster twice in the past two days. Life is good, but I can't say as I've been doing much cooking. I'll be home in a week and I just can't guarantee anything new or exciting until then. For now, have a little scallop pasta to tide you over.

SCALLOP PASTA
adapted from Marcella Hazan

INGREDIENTS:
3/4 lb bay scallops (you can use sea scallops, but you'd need to chop them into smaller, maybe 1/2", pieces - if you live in New England and you wait until November - March, you can get Cape Bay Scallops which are the best!)
1/2 lb spaghetti
1/8 cup bread crumbs
1 T butter
1/4 cup olive oil
1 cloves garlic minced
1 t red pepper flakes

DIRECTIONS:
Start your water for the pasta. When it boils, add the pasta and start the sauce. In a large pan, heat the olive oil and the garlic and the red pepper flakes on low heat until the garlic is pale golden. Wash and dry the scallops. Turn the heat up a bit and add the scallops. Cook for 1-2 minutes until they are no longer translucent. Add the pasta when it is done and swirl it around, mixing well so it picks up all the oil and garlic and scallopy goodness. In a small pan, combine the bread crumbs and a tablespoon of butter. Stir until butter melts into the bread crumbs. Serve the pasta and top with sprinkles of bread crumbs. You do not need to use all the bread crumbs.

Not So Neighborly

As you can see, this is clearly NOT bread salad. Why not you ask? Well this is a tale of shopping gone wrong, when good neighbors go bad.

Failure 1: Our local bakery sold us a stale baguette. What do you even do about that? Can you return it with a chunk missing and explain you nearly lost a molar trying to gnaw on it? That you are not a beaver equipped with tree tearing teeth?

I tried to make the best of it. When you get lemons, make lemonade. When you get stale bread, make bread salad. A beautiful, fresh, Greek Bread Salad.

Failure 2: There was no feta in the fridge. Not behind the pickles, not stacked under the leftovers. Nowhere. Ryan was forced to run out for some. Turns out not only were we out of feta, but also out of cash. The store would not let him use a credit card. "Minimum credit card purchase $10," they said. Very neighborly. Also, illegal. Ryan abandoned the feta. I abandoned all hope of a well made greek bread salad.

The silver lining: I'd planned a whole greek meal, so there was pastitsio in the oven, and it was delicious. It's like a greek lasagna, with layers of sauce and noodles, the cinnamon making a subtle but tasty difference from italian fare.

PASTITSIO

INGREDIENTS:
For the meat sauce:
2 T butter
1.5 C chopped yellow onion (this was 3/4 of a large onion for me)
1 clove garlic minced
1 lb ground turkey (or beef, or lamb)
1 t salt (plus more to taste)
pepper (to taste)
1 t oregano
1/2 t cinnamon
2 C canned tomatoes (use crushed, or crush whole ones yourself)
1 bay leaf
2 T tomato paste

For the bechamel/crema/whatever you want to call it
3 T butter
1/2 C flour
2 C milk
3 beaten eggs

Also you need:
3/4 pound ziti, penne or elbow macaroni cooked according to the package directions and drained.
2 C grated parmigiano reggiano or romano cheese
1/4 C bread crumbs

DIRECTIONS:
In a Dutch Oven (or other pot/pan with lots of surface area and high sides), melt 2 T of butter on low heat. Add the onions and cook for 3 minutes until the onions are translucent and softer. Add the garlic and cook 1 minute more. Add the ground meat and increase the heat to medium. Add your salt, pepper, oregano and cinnamon. Use a spoon to break down the meat and brown it. When there is no more pink, stir in the canned tomatoes and tomato paste and add the bay leaf. Reduce the heat to low and cook for 35 minutes covered.

Preheat your oven to 350 F. Cook the pasta according to the box, drain and set aside. Begin on the cream sauce. Melt the butter in a pot, then whisk in the flour to form a roux. Cook for 2-3 minutes on low heat. Stream in the milk, whisking constantly (this works best with warm milk, but I'm often too lazy to heat it separately). Make sure your heat is very low, and add the eggs, one at a time, whisking thoroughly between each. If the heat is two high you will have scrambled eggs. Once they are incorporated, you can increase the heat and keep whisking until it starts to thicken. Ideally, you'll time it so that this is ready when it's ready to be layered on, and not before, but because everything's baked together, it's okay if you mess it up a little.

Build your pastitsio in a large pan (9 x 11). Grease the bottom. Then lay down the breadcrumbs to coat. Add half the pasta, making sure it covers completely. Next comes the meat sauce, all of it. Smooth it down so that it covers the pasta, make sure to get the edges too. Then you add half of your crema/bechamel/cream sauce thing. Pour it over the meat sauce so the whole layer is covered. Top with half of the cheese (about a cup). Next comes another layer of pasta (the rest of the pasta). On top of the pasta, use the rest of your bechamel, then the rest of your cheese.

Bake for 45 minutes at 350F. Let rest before cutting into it.

Mom's Macaroni and Cheese

I believe that I was in college before I'd ever had macaroni and cheese from the infamous blue box. My mother always made it from scratch. Honestly, there's a time and place for everything, and as far as I'm concerned, the time and place for the blue box is the after party. (I'm afraid to admit how many times I was invited to an after party based on my ability to whip up blue box mac and cheese). Now mom's mac and cheese? That's for when you need true comfort. And am I in need of comfort. In just two weeks I'm having surgery on that damn torn ankle ligament. That will be followed by SIX weeks of cast/crutches/no weight bearing. So yesterday I put some cheesy goodness away for a grumpy day. A frustrated day. A day when I want my cast off, when I'm hot or itchy or otherwise annoyed. And it is waiting in the freezer to cheer me up. I'll be grateful. Not nearly as grateful as I'd be if my mom were there but it will do in a pinch.

MOM'S MACARONI AND CHEESE

INGREDIENTS:
1/2 lb elbow macaroni
1 T flour
3 T butter
1/2 C milk (whole milk is best, but any will do)
1 T mustard (I use whatever I can grab first)
1 1/2 C grated cheddar cheese
breadcrumbs
salt and pepper

DIRECTIONS:
Fill a large pot with water, toss in a healthy pinch of salt and bring to a boil. When it reaches a rolling boil, toss in the pasta and cook until done 8-10 minutes. Drain, and set the pasta aside in the colander. In the pan you made the pasta in, melt the butter and add the flour. Mix well and cook on very low heat for about four minutes. Turn off the heat and add the milk and the mustard. Whisk to blend. Return to heat. I always add back the cheese and cooked macaroni alternately, stirring to combine in between each addition. Add salt and pepper to taste at this point. If you are feeling in a hurry, or lazy, you may stop here, and serve from the pan.

To make it even more delicious:
Spray a casserole dish, add the mac and cheese. Top with bread crumbs (bonus points if you want to drizzle a bit of melted butter over those crumbs). Bake at 325 for 20-30 minutes.

Tweaked Ziti

The eight year old in me is entirely delighted at anything that involves the merger of mini meatballs and mac & cheese. Especially when the weather is as nasty as it has been on the east coast these past few days. SmittenKitchen was underwhelmed by her version of this, but I could not resist the temptation to tweak.

TWEAKED ZITI
altered from Smitten Kitchen

INGREDIENTS
for the meatballs
1/8 C bread crumbs
1 lb ground turkey
1 egg
1/4 C ground parmiggiano reggiano
1 clove garlic minced
1 cup flour on a plate
vegetable oil for frying
salt and pepper

for the pasta
1 lb ziti
2 C milk (I used 1 C whole milk, 1 C lowfat)
1/4 C asiago cheese
3/4 C cheddar cheese
3 T butter
3 T flour
salt and pepper

topping
extra 1/4 C or so parmiggiano reggiano

DIRECTIONS:
for the meatballs
Mix together the turkey, egg, breadcrumbs, garlic, parm and salt and pepper. Roll into eensy raspberry sized meatballs. This takes some time, but isn't terrible. Then roll those meatballs in the flour and shake off the excess. Smitten recommends doing that by placing the flour coated meatballs in a strainer and shaking, but for me that just make them stick together. I did it by hand. In a large fry pan, pour a nice coating of vegetable oil and turn the heat to medium high. Working batches, cook the meatballs until nicely browned. I did about a minute to two minutes a side. Set the meatballs aside.
for the ziti
Cook according to package directions. Set aside. Save the pot.
for the sauce
Preheat your oven to 400 F.
In your now empty ziti pot, melt the 3 T of butter. Add the flour and whisk well over very low heat. In a separate pot, heat 1.5 C of the milk. Once bubbles form around the edge of the milk, but before it boils, add some slowly to the flour and butter mixture, while continuing to whisk. Once mixture is fairly smooth, continue adding milk a bit at a time, until all is smooth and creamy. Slowly add the grated cheese. Again, whisk until the cheese is melted and the sauce is smooth and creamy. Add salt and pepper to taste.
to assemble
Add the ziti to the sauce and stir gently to coat the pasta. Then carefully add the meatballs. Again, mix carefully. Pour over the last .5 C milk. Transfer to a 9 x 13 greased baking dish (I used two smaller baking dishes so I'd have one to serve for dinner and one to freeze). Top generously with parm and pop in the oven for 15-20 minutes until everything is warm and the top is brown and cheesy.

Sausage and White Bean Pasta

You may have caught on that there's been a wee bit of snow around these parts lately. We're currently experiencing a lovely bouncy type of sleet while waiting for the nor'easter to begin pounding our region. While many are getting a touch of the cabin fever, I am still completely pleased and looking forward to a long day of movies, books and baking. Beer bread, perhaps? I'm also very much looking forward to having my leftovers from this sausage and cannellini bean pasta for lunch. It's so delicious and warming. It reminds me a bit of black eyed peas and sausage, but you know, without the hours of work. Although, I suppose I do have hours available, what with waiting for the next 12-18 inches of snow and all.

SAUSAGE AND CANNELLINI BEAN PASTA
from Cooking Light (probably made not light - sorry)

This makes a ton. I made a full recipe of the sauce, and a half recipe of the pasta. I took half the sauce and froze it for use later. The half recipe of pasta was probably about 4 conservative servings or 3 hearty servings.

INGREDIENTS:
1 lb penne or ziti pasta
1 C chopped onion
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 lb turkey sausage (remove the skins that make them into links)
1/2 C dry white wine or vermouth
1/2 C chicken broth
1 28 oz can chopped tomatoes
2 15 oz cans cannellini beans (rinsed and drained)
1/2 t fennel seeds (I had none, so skipped them)
1/2 C shaved Romano cheese (I used parm, still super yummy)
pepper

DIRECTIONS:
Cook the pasta according to the package directions. I think I started the water when I added the onion and garlic and it worked out well.

Brown the sausage in a large skillet on medium high heat. Use a spoon to break down the sausage into nice little bits. When the sausage is cooked through, remove it to a plate covered with a paper towel and set aside. Lower the heat and add the onion and garlic and cook on medium low until softened, about 3 minutes. Then add the sausage back in. Increase the heat and add the vermouth and stir to get up all the browned bits that have stuck to the pan. Add the broth, the tomatoes, the beans and the fennel (if you're using it). Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and cook for 10 minutes. Add plenty of pepper, but I found it needed no salt. You can add the pasta to the sauce to incorporate it, or just spoon the sauce over the pasta (which is what we did since we wanted to save half the sauce for another meal). Top with the shaved cheese.

Spinach with Rotini, Beans and Asiago Cheese

To be honest, right now I'm pretty glad the only part of my life you can see is the food. Because while you wouldn't know it to look at this blog, things have fallen apart around here on a pretty massive scale. Last weekend Dexter (seen below)had to go to the emergency room where it was determined that he'd eaten something he's not supposed to and would need surgery to remove it. He spent two nights at the veterinary hospital and then came home, quite a bit worse for the wear. Then, I managed to get a bit of a stomach bug, which was not helped by the anxiety over Dexter's well being. So basically, Dexter looks a mess, I look a mess, the apartment is truly shameful and we've eaten almost nothing that would pass for real food for about a week.

Luckily, things are finally on the mend and last night I managed to try out that Cooking Light pasta recipe I'd planned to make last week. First reaction - oh my STARS that is a lot of spinach. Seriously, look at that photo. How can you call that pasta with spinach? It is clearly spinach, with a bit of pasta. Truth be told, I didn't even make the recipe exactly. Nope. I messed with it. Know what I did? I made HALF the spinach they called for. HALF. Reflect on that for a moment.

But. The dish was truly delicious. Even with that much spinach. Ryan said maybe it would like some tomatoes (N.B. Ryan thinks every pasta dish would improve with tomatoes). But I loved it and would gladly make it again.

SPINACH WITH ROTINI, BEANS AND ASIAGO CHEESE
adapted from Cooking Light (also, probably not "light" anymore)

INGREDIENTS:
1/2 bag of spinach, washed, dried and roughly chopped
1/2 lb of rotini or other spiral pasta
3-4 T extra virgin olive oil (originally it only called for 2 T)
1 can cannellini beans rinsed and drained
2 garlic cloves, smashed
1/2 C shredded Asiago cheese
salt and pepper (I add more salt than Cooking Light would ever sanction).

DIRECTIONS:
Get your water on for your pasta. While you're waiting for it to boil, drain and rinse the beans and set aside, grate the Asiago cheese and clean dry and chop your spinach. When the water boils, add your pasta and cook according to the box directions (about 8-10 minutes for rotini probably). In a large saucepan, add 2 T of olive oil and the smashed garlic, cook for 2-3 minutes. The garlic will get golden in color but it's not really cooked through. Add the beans and a pinch of salt and cook on very, very low heat. You just want the beans getting a nice garlic flavor, you don't really need to be cooking them. When the pasta is done, drain it and then toss it in with the beans. If you don't want the garlic chunks in your meal you can pick them out now. Stir carefully (you don't want mushed beans). Then add the spinach. Give it a nice sprinkling of salt and add the other 2 T of olive oil. Turn it slowly and carefully. The spinach will start to wilt. When the spinach has melted down enough to be manageable (maybe 1-2 minutes) add the cheese and mix once more. That's it! Super fast and tasty!

White or Red?

We have a fundamental difference of opinion around here that nearly eight years of togetherness has done nothing to resolve. Ryan does not like any sauce but red sauce on his pasta. I like red sauce with certain specific types of pasta dishes, but often prefer something else. Even when something else is as basic as butter and cheese. Tonight Ryan offered to make dinner and asked me for the recipe for pasta with clams. I was a little surprised, because he's told me before that he doesn't really like pasta with clams. The recipe's not written anywhere, it's just something my parents made when I was growing up, so I scribbled it down on a few post-its for him and handed it over. He looked it over and said, "I thought this was supposed to be a red sauce." Right. So I directed him to Rachael Ray, who has a pretty good pantry red clam sauce (no, really), and Marcella Hazan who can do no wrong. He flipped through the recipes, but then announced he was going to make it my way. After 8 years we may not agree, but at least one of us knows how to compromise.

CLAM PASTA
my recipe, but with a few things changed by Ryan
makes enough for 2

INGREDIENTS:
1/2 lb spaghetti or linguine
3 garlic cloves minced
2 anchovies (or about a teaspoon of anchovy paste, or omit it if you're a wimp)
1 T olive oil
2 cans clams (We usually use Snow's Chopped Clams)
salt and pepper to taste - the anchovies will make it saltier, so be careful
1 t red pepper flakes
1/4 C vermouth or dry white wine
fresh parsley (feel free to take some liberties with this, we used dried oregano tonight)

DIRECTIONS:
Put on a big pot of water to boil for your pasta. When the water boils cook your spaghetti according to the package directions. In a large saucepan, add the oil, the garlic and the anchovies. Cook on low for about 3 minutes, until the garlic is pale yellow but not brown at all. While its cooking, use the back of a wooden spoon to break up the anchovies so they're all mushed in. Then add the clams (and all the liquid in the can). Cook for 5-7 minutes until everything is warmed through. Add the vermouth and increase to high for 1-2 minutes, so that it boils. Then reduce the temperature again and season with salt and pepper, red pepper flakes and parsley. Add the cooked spaghetti to the sauce and mix up. Serve (especially with garlic bread.) Yummy.

Butternut Squash Lasagna

I've been away from the blog for the last two weeks for many reasons. Some fun, some stressful, but let's pretend it's just because all my energy has been focused on bringing you more ways to make butternut squash, which I consider to be one of the true joys of fall. I'd been working on perfecting my butternut squash risotto recipe when I got distracted by the idea of butternut squash lasagna. This recipe seemed to be very highly recommended, but as someone who's spent a day picking the tiny shards of skin off a pan of hazelnuts, I'll admit, I was daunted. So I found one by Giata that did not require any earth-shattering efforts on my part and was quite pleased. It's sweet and cheesy and just may be that vegetarian entree you were looking to serve at Thanksgiving.

BUTTERNUT SQUASH LASAGNA
from Giata De Laurentiis
INGREDIENTS:
3 T olive oil
1 (1.5 -2lb) butternut squash, peeled, seeded and diced into 1 inch cubes
salt and pepper
3 amaretti cookies*, crumbled
1/4 C butter
1/4 C flour
3 1/2 C whole milk
pinch nutmeg
1/2 C fresh sage leaves
12 no boil lasagna noodles
2 1/2 C shredded mozzarella
1/3 C grated parm (I always mean the real stuff, parmigiano reggiano, not a shaker from Kraft)

*You may be able to find amaretti cookies at your local grocery store, but definitely at your Italian market or grocer. For heaven's sake, unless you love amaretti cookies, don't pay the premium to get Lazzaroni which are easily double or triple the price of less famous brands.

DIRECTIONS:
Preheat your oven to 450 F. Toss the squash with the olive oil and salt and pepper. Roast for 20-30 minutes, until tender. Cool slightly then puree the squash together with the amaretti cookies in a food processor. Taste and add salt and pepper as needed. Reduce oven temp to 375 F.

Melt the butter in a saucepan. Add the flour and stir for a few minutes until all flour is coated with butter and is sort of goldeny sludge. Add the milk slowly, whisking to incorporate the flour butter mixture. Bring to a boil then reduce the heat slightly and simmer for 5 minutes, stirring often. You are looking for slight thickening, the sauce should coat a spoon lightly. Add the nutmeg and stir through. Mince your sage and add that as well. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Assemble your lasagna. Lightly butter a 9 by 13 baking dish. On the bottom, put down a layer of the sauce, you should have plenty so be generous. Then add a layer of noodles. Cover with a layer of squash, then a layer of the mozzarella, then a layer of the sauce - I had a lot of extra sauce and just poured it over, it all got soaked up and the lasagna was not watery at all. Repeat three times. On the top add a bit more shredded mozzarella and the parm. Cover the top tightly with tin foil and bake for 40 minutes. Remove the cover and bake for 15 minutes more. Finally, remove from the oven and let sit for 15 minutes before serving. It will look delicious and golden and bubbly. Like so:

Shrimp with Orzo

At some point, I fully expect the reader(s) of this blog to turn on me and insist I cook something that was not initially from an Ina Garten/Barefoot Contessa cookbook. I sincerely hope that you can bear with me for at least one more recipe though, because this is so delicious, and despite its use of the oven, is pretty quick and painless to make even in the hot summer. You can make it ahead, so if you live somewhere that has cooler mornings, just whip it up and pop it in the fridge until dinner. Roasting gives the shrimp a great flavor, the lemon and olive oil dressing is refreshing and the creamy feta works so well with the crunch of the cucumbers. This recipe does use raw red onion, which I know not everyone can eat. If someone you know is anti-raw onion, just saute red onion in a smidge of olive oil until it's lost its bite. The recipe won't suffer that much.


SHRIMP WITH ORZO
modified slightly from Barefoot Contessa at home (really wonderful cookbook, you should buy it).

INGREDIENTS
1 lb shrimp (peeled and deveined)
1/2 lb orzo
1/4 c red onion minced
1 small cucumber, seeded and chopped
1/4 c extra virgin olive oil (plus more for drizzling)
1/4 c lemon juice
1/4 c dill
4-5 oz feta crumbled
salt and pepper

DIRECTIONS:
Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Put a pot of water on the stove, on high. Bring it to a boil. Cook the orzo according to the package (mine said 8 minutes). When done, remove and drain. Put in a large bowl. Whisk together the lemon juice and olive oil, add 2 t salt and 1 t pepper and set aside so the orzo can absorb the dressing.

Spread your shrimp out in a single layer on a cookie sheet (one with an edge helps because they'll give off juices). Drizzle your shrimp with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Put in the oven. Roast for 6 minutes, flipping them when they're half way through.

While the shrimp are cooking prepare your onion, cucumber and dill. Add the onion, cucumber and dill to the orzo and mix. When the shrimp are done, add them too. Crumble the feta over the pasta and then mix again until everything is incorporated. Set aside to allow the flavors to blend. Ina says at least an hour, but I don't usually have that kind of time. Of course, you can always make it the day before, pop it in the fridge and take it out before you're ready to serve. Let it get back to room temperature though, don't serve it freezing cold.

Salmon with Asian Noodles

True confession time - I don't love eating fish. I love mussels, clams, crab, lobster, all manner of shrimp, crawfish and langoustine, but fish is not my favorite. Ryan loves fish, and so sometimes because I love him, and I know it's good for me, I'll make fish. This salmon is so good, that the first time I made it, I wanted to make it again almost immediately. A very good sign indeed.

SALMON WITH ASIAN NOODLES
Ingredients:
6 T tamari
1 inch piece of ginger, grated
2 dried thai chilis
juice of 1 lime
1 lb salmon (make an effort to get a piece that is as even in thickness as possible, it will make it easier to cook)
snap peas
shitake mushrooms
1-2 carrots julienned
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 t brown sugar
1/4 c white wine or vermouth
1 T mirin
lo mein noodles (I used between 1/4 and 1/3 of the package)
2-3 T oil (peanut is good, veggie is fine)

DIRECTIONS:
Warning, this is not the easiest recipe, partially due to my own half-ass recipe writing. It would help if you know how to cook fish and vegetables. Okay let's get started.
1. Marinade - Mix 6 T tamari, grated ginger, chili and lime juice in a baking dish or pie plate large enough to accomodate your salmon. Marinate the salmon for 5 minutes on each size.
2. Veggies for the noodles - feel free to use any kind you like! I used snap peas, carrots and shitakes. Just trim the snap peas and slice the shitakes. The carrots you could grate with a mandolin or julienne if you're up to the knife work. The snap peas you'll want to steam quickly either in your microwave or in a small pot, using a steamer for 2-3 minutes. Set aside the cooked snap peas and the cut carrots and mushrooms.
3. Put on the water for your noodles, it will take a while to boil.
4. While waiting for the water to boil, cook your salmon. RESERVE THE MARINADE! In a frying pan, add a T of the oil and swirl so the bottom is covered. Put the salmon on skin side up. Cook for 3-5 minutes on each side depending on the thickness of the fish. The fish should no longer be as glossy, it should be more opaque. Just keep an eye on it. When it's done, set it aside.
5. Wipe out the fish pan and throw in another T of oil and maybe 2 T of water. Add your garlic, shitakes, carrots. Cook, covered, on low to medium for 3-4 minutes.
6. About the same time as you start your veggies, start your lo mein noodles. They'll only take about 3 minutes, read your package.
7. When the noodles are cooked, drain and set aside.
8. When your mushrooms have given off their liquid and the carrots are tender, add the cooked snap peas. Add 2 t brown sugar and 1 T of mirin to the marinade you used for the salmon. Mix it up and then add to your veggies. Then add the 1/4 C of white wine or vermouth and raise to a boil. Boil for 1-2 minutes. Add your lo mein noodles to your veggies and sauce. If they are sticking together, gently use a pair of tongs and sort of swirl them around in a circular motion, this should loosen them a bit as they take in the sauce. When the noodles are fully coated, you're ready to serve.
9. Plate the noodles and top with a portion of salmon.

Behind the Curtain

Given that I go through phases of infrequent posting I've often wondered what you all think I'm doing about food during those times. Do you picture me huddled over a bucket of KFC or microwaving my Lean Cuisine? Slathering two slices of bread with peanut butter and jelly ready to smack together a sandwich? Dining out at top restaurants?

The truth is neither damning nor glamorous. Most of the time, I'm making something I've already posted on the blog, dashing back and forth between the computer and the kitchen. Sometimes I'm trying to be patient and focused enough to write you a recipe for something I make and haven't told you about. Once a week I am eating out, although rarely glamorously.

And sometimes, I'm making this -

It's technically called Spaghetti alla Ceci, but around here we refer to it as Chickpea Pasta. It's not fancy or all that pretty to look at, but it is seriously fast to make and tasty.

CHICKPEA PASTA
from Rachael Ray's Expresslane Meals. Okay so a little damning.

INGREDIENTS:
1 lb pasta (I use spaghetti)
salt
2 T extra virgin olive oil
1 can chickpeas drained and rinsed
3 to 4 cloves garlic
1/2 t dried thyme
1/2 C dry white wine (or vermouth) or chicken stock
red pepper flakes (1/2 t to 1 t depending on how spicy you like things)
black pepper
1 14oz can crushed tomatoes

DIRECTIONS:
Boil the water for pasta. When the water boils, cook your spaghetti according to the directions on the box. Meanwhile, mince your garlic. In a large saucepan, add the olive oil and over low heat saute the garlic until golden. Add the red pepper flakes. Pulse your chickpeas in a food processor until they're finely chopped, but not pure mush. Add the chickpeas to the garlic and red pepper. Add thyme, salt and pepper and cook for 3-4 minutes. Add the wine and cook for 30 seconds to let the alcohol burn off. Add the tomatoes. Heat through. Serve over the pasta.

Tyler Florence's Sesame Noodles

Do you remember that old show on the Food Network, Food 911? This was back when they still had chefs for most of the programs, and not "personalities" who give you tips on how to take a store bought cheesecake and smush it into muffin cups so you could pretend you baked it yourself. For those of you who are too young to remember, the premise of the show was, you wrote in to Tyler Florence with a food dilemma, like "My fabulously wealthy great-aunt from Scotland is visiting and she said she'd disown me if I couldn't produce a tasty haggis by age 25!!" or "I finally met a nice Jewish boy, but I can't make matzo ball soup OR kugel. Please help me before my future mother-in-law calls off wedding!" Then Tyler would come over and show you how to make a marvelous version of your dish so that you could prevent any family disasters. My current letter would be "The Chinese restaurant around the corner, that we order from at least once a week, is closed for renovations, with no sign as to when they'll open again. Help us get our Chinese food fix without walking the 20 blocks to Chinatown!" Although Tyler didn't come over and personally save me, this is his recipe for sesame noodles, and will help you with your cravings, whether they're due to a closed restaurant or living in a Chinese food impaired part of the country.
TYLER'S SESAME NOODLES
adapted very slightly from Tyler Florence, Food Network

INGREDIENTS:
1/2 lb spaghetti
3 T sesame oil
2 T peanut oil
3 T soy sauce
3 T rice vinegar
1/2 C smooth peanut butter (I'm usually an organic kind of girl, but sadly, Jif, Peter Pan and the like work better in this recipe, if you do go the wholesome route, get the smoothest kind you can, serve immediately if you need it to look pretty, since refrigeration will make the sauce clump)
6 T hot water
1 T ginger peeled and minced
3 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
2 T brown sugar
2 scallions, thinly sliced on the diagonal
1 t sambal (this is a red chili paste), or I use 2 of the small dried chilies you can buy at any Asian food market, just pull them out at the end if you don't want to shock your guests. Break them open first if you want it spicier.

Optional: 1 T toasted sesame seeds, cucumber slices, shredded carrot

DIRECTIONS:
Cook the spaghetti according to the package directions, drain, toss with the sesame oil and set aside.
Put the peanut oil in a pot and heat to medium-low. Add the garlic, scallion, ginger and chili and cook for a minute or two. Then add the brown sugar, soy sauce, rice vinegar, peanut butter and hot water. Mix well (I use a ball tip whisk), until smooth. Then pour over noodles and toss to coat. If desired top with toasted sesame seeds, cucumber slices or shredded carrot.