Penne ala Vodka

Vodka sauce is something that I always thought of as being ridiculously heavy, but a little cream goes a long way, to make this delicious sauce smooth and creamy without feeling like you are eating a stick of butter. The spiciness of the red pepper and the sausage go so perfectly with the creamy texture, on bite made me forget I was ever afraid of this sauce. This is a perfect way to "winter" up pasta night, something about the cream and spice just warms you inside out. Enjoy.

Penne ala Vodka:
1/2 lb of penne pasta
1 tbsp of olive oil
3 links of Hot Italian Sausage (optional)
1 small onion
1 29 oz can of tomato sauce
1 tomato
2 garlic cloves
1 tsp of oregano
1 tsp of red pepper flakes
1/4 cup of vodka
1/2 cup of heavy cream
salt, pepper

Make pasta according to package directions. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Brown sausage on all sides then remove from pan, and slice, add back to the pan. Dice onions and add to oil, cook stirring occasionally until onions soften about 5 minutes. Add tomato sauce and bring to a simmer. Dice tomato and garlic and add to sauce, and oregano and red pepper and cook and bring to a boil. Add vodka and stir, then reduce to a low simmer. Simmer sauce until pasta is cooked, then turn off heat and stir in heavy cream. Pour cooked pasta into the pan, and stir until pasta is coated. Enjoy.

Happy Eating.

Shrimp and Pasta Stir Fry

This week is an interesting experiment, it's called using up all the things in the fridge, freezer and pantry that I forgot I had. We didn't go grocery shopping this weekend because we were suppose to be getting a lovely vegetable box delivered from Pure Organics (I got a groupon). Then the day before the box was suppose to come, they are suddenly out of business (don't worry, I got my money back). I am extremely disappointed that I won't get my lovely fresh veggies, and too lazy to go grocery shopping during the week, so I will just have to see how much I can put the furthest and most forgotten corners of my pantry to work. Fortunately, I still have some leftover veggies. The tomatoes in this are actually from my garden (or the tomato jungle as I like to think of it). So here is a delicious and fridge/pantry cleaning hodge podge of pasta, veggies, and shrimp in an Asian-y sauce.

Shrimp and Pasta Stir Fry:
1/2 lb of spaghetti
1 lb of shrimp, peeled and deveined
3 tbsp of flour
Canola oil
2 onions
1/4 of head of cabbage
1 can of fancy bamboo shoots, drained
1 cup of cherry tomatoes, halved
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1 tbsp of hoisin sauce
3 tbsp of soy sauce
1 tbsp of rice vinegar
2 tsp of sesame oil
Sriracha
Salt, pepper, and chili powder
Cook spaghetti to package directions for al dente. In the mean time, heat a thin layer of canola oil in a large skillet over medium-high. Slice the onion and cabbage and add to the pan, when it's hot. Cook until cabbage wilts slightly and onions start to brown, about 3 minutes, then reduce heat to medium-low and continue cooking, stirring occasionally until cabbage is soft, about 5-7 minutes more. Season shrimp with salt, pepper, and chili powder and toss with the flour. Remove cabbage from the pan and set aside. Raise heat to high and add a little more oil to the pan, cook shrimp until browned and pink, stirring once or twice, about 2-3 minutes. Add cabbage back to the pan, and add bamboo shoots, tomatoes, garlic, and cooked pasta. In a small bowl, whisk together the hoisin, soy sauce, and vinegar and add to the pasta and veggies and stir. Add sriracha to taste and stir in. Sprinkle with sesame oil before serving.

Happy Eating.

Roasted Garlic and Sausage Pasta

Do you ever just crave something really garlicky? I don't know what it is but for me that flavor is the ultimate in deliciousness and the ultimate in comfort food. As this extreme rain seems intent on keeping me away from the grill, I am back to the stove and the oven for dinners. So I decided to whip up some delicious pasta with a fresh "sauce" in honor of the beautiful head of garlic I was staring at, and the brand new bottle of truffle oil gracing my shelves. Roasting the garlic first, makes the flavor shine but not over power and it goes perfectly with mushrooms and delicious, wonderful truffle oil. Enjoy!

Also, congratulations to Deb from knitstamatic, for winning the Coconut Oil Giveaway!

Roasted Garlic and Sausage Pasta:
1/2 head of garlic
2 Pork Sausages
2 tbsp of olive oil
1/2 lb of spaghetti
5 oz of gourmet sliced mushrooms (1 package)
1 lb of tomatoes
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper
3 oz of fresh mozzarella cheese
salt, pepper
truffle oil (optional)

Pre-heat the oven to 300 degrees. Roast the garlic (whole and unpeeled) for an hour until the garlic is soft. This can be done ahead of time. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat and add the sausages. Pour the olive oil into a small bowl. Peel 3 cloves of the roast garlic, smash them lightly and add to the oil. Make the spaghetti according to the package directions for al dente. Brown the sausage on all sides and cover with a lid to cook almost through, about 6 minutes. Remove the sausages from the pan and add half the garlicy oil. Add the mushrooms and cook until they soften, about 3-4 minutes. Chop the tomato and add that to the pan as well. Add the crushed red pepper. Thinly slice the rest of the roasted garlic and add to the pan. Slice the sausage and return to the pan, cook until opaque through out, then turn the stove off. When pasta is cooked, reserve 2 tablespoons of the cooking water and add to the sausage, drain the pasta and add to the pan. Pour in the rest of the garlic oil and season with salt and pepper. Serve with fresh mozzarella and a drizzle of truffle oil.

Happy Eating.

Daring Cooks: My Noodle Hands

Steph from Stephfood was our Daring Cooks' July hostess. Steph challenged us to make homemade noodles without the help of a motorized pasta machine. She provided us with recipes for Spätzle and Fresh Egg Pasta as well as a few delicious sauces to pair our noodles with!

I loved this challenge, but I have already done it. I love making pasta, and I got a hand roller for Christmas this past year, so this is how I make pasta (although I do sometimes use the food processor to make the dough). So I decided to add a personal challenge to this: ravioli. I have wanted to make ravioli for some time, this is actually a second attempt at it. The taste great and texture came out great, and these came out a lot better than the first attempt. However, I'm not going to put this in the total win column yet, because as you can see, they are not so pretty. They tend to come out very large and in a variety of shapes and sizes. But they are delicious, and one day they will be beautiful too. I did learn something very important from this challenge. It is MANDATORY to let the dough rest. It makes it so much easier to work with! I cannot even believe the difference. The dough was so beautiful (before I mangled it into ravoli that is), I am confident that had I just done fetticuni it would have come out looking so incredible (but less cheesey, tradeoffs). Here is my methodology and recipe for this awesome challenge!

Pasta Dough:
2 cups of unbleached AP flour
1/2 tsp of salt
3 eggs
1 tbsp of water (varies)
Semolina flour, for dusting

Mix the flour and salt in a large bowl and form into a dome, make a hole in the center. Crack eggs into the hole. Slowly mix the flour into the eggs, until flour is incorporated and a sticky dough forms, add water as needed to form dough. Knead the dough until smooth, about 5 minutes. Roll the dough into a ball and wrap in plastic wrap, let the dough rest for at least 15 minutes and up to 2 hours. Assemble your pasta roller. Divide the dough into 4 pieces. Keep the pieces you aren't using covered with plastic wrap. Flatten out a piece of the dough using a rolling pin until it is thin enough to go through the pasta machine. Lightly flour dough with semolina and run through the machine on the 0 setting, then fold the dough in half and run through again. Repeat until dough is extra smooth, about 9 times, ending so that the dough is in a fairly uniform rectangle. Change the setting to 1 and run the dough through. Run the dough through each setting until 7. Lay the rolled dough on a paper towel and cover with a damp paper towel. Be careful not to let the dough touch itself or the other pieces because it is very sticky. Repeat with remaining dough.

Filling:
1 cup of part skim riccotta cheese
1/2 tsp of salt
1/2 cup of mozzerella cheese, shredded
1 egg

Mix together the cheeses and salt. Beat in the egg. To assemble ravoli, Take one sheet of pasta at a time and cut it in half. Along one sheet drop cheese by heaping teaspoon, about 1 inch apart, (I did about 5-6 per sheet). Place the other half of the sheet on top and press edges. Using a knife or a pizza roller, cut inbetween the cheese. Press the edges to seal. Repeat with remaining sheets. Cook the ravoli in boiling water until they float to the top, about 5-6 minutes.

Tomato Broth Sauce:
1 can of italian style plum tomatoes
1/2 cup of tomato sauce
3 cloves of garlic
1 handful of fresh basil
Any leftover of the riccotta mixture, (I had about 1 tbsp)
Salt, pepper
Extra Virgin Olive oil, for drizzling

In a large skillet over high heat, heat the tomatoes and their juices. Break up tomatoes using a wooden spoon. Add the sauce. Dice the garlic and basil and add to sauce. Add any leftover cheese and season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve over cooked ravoli. Drizzle ravoli with olive oil before serving.

Happy Eating.

Spring Pesto Pasta Salad

This weather could not be more perfect! The warm, the sunshine, the fresh veggies(my farmers market opens this weekend!), the promise of summer being right around the corner. For me, that means it's time to put away those heavy sauces and stir up some light and deliciously fresh tasting pasta salads. This is a springy derevation of my classic favorite, which I will have to share at some point, but while I am obsessing over the lovely asparagus in the markets right now, I have this bit of bright deliciousness for you to enjoy.

Spring Pesto Pasta Salad:
1/2 box of whole wheat pasta, twists or penne
1 1/2 cups of aspargus, about half a bunch
1 cup of mushrooms
1/2 cup vegetable stock
1 cup of cherry tomatoes, halved
1 cup of spinach
1/4 cup of Pesto sauce
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
A few fresh basil leaves
Salt and Pepper
Olive oil non-stick spray

Cook the pasta according to package directions. Heat a large skillet over medium heat and coat with non-stick. Chop aspargus into bite size pieces, each stalk should be in about 4 pieces. Add to the pan, add mushrooms as well. Cook until asparagus begin to stick and crisp, then add vegetable stock, reduce heat to low and coninue cooking until asparagus are tender, about 5 minutes. Add halved cherry tomatoes and spinach, cook until spinach begins to wilt, about 1 minute. Add cooked pasta and pesto sauce. Remove from heat and toss until combined, stir in basil and cheese. Season with salt and pepper. Serve with additional parmesan, warm or chilled.

Happy Eating.

Homemade Spinach Pasta

Guess what I got?!! A Cuisanart Food Processor and a pasta roller! That can only mean one thing... Homemade pasta and lots of it!!! The pasta was so much fun to make, and tasted amazing. So fresh, plus it cooked in about 2 minutes. To add a little extra veggie to my meal, I decided to make spinach pasta, which was a fantastic idea. It's a beautiful green, with just a hint of veggie flavor. For dinner, I made a red sauce (my all short cuts, easy for winter, the tomatoes in the store are terrible, and don't even try to find fresh herbs, sauce) and meatballs. The for lunch the next day I ate the left over pasta with grilled chicken, goat cheese, spinach, and a little olive oil. Both were excellent. The pasta was so much fun to make I can't wait to use it again, maybe on some ravioli...

The pasta recipe is from Williams-Sonoma. I halved the the recipe, rolled it out to the seventh setting, and cut the pasta with my thinnest slicer blade.

Rolling out the pasta:



Needed the boyfriend's help by the end...



The pasta freshly sliced:



The pasta all cooked and ready to be sauced:



Winter Tomato Sauce:
1 yellow onion
3 cloves of garlic
1 tbsp of olive oil
1/4 cup of red wine
2 tbsp of tomato paste
1 15 oz can of tomato sauce
1/2 tsp of pepper
1/2 tsp of salt
1/2 tsp of red pepper flakes
1 tsp of dried oregano
1 tsp of dried basil

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Dice onion and garlic and add to the pan. Cook until the onions are soft and translucent, stirring frequently. Add wine and tomato paste. Stir together. Add sauce and seasoning to taste. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Allow to sit on low heat for about 20 minutes.

Meatballs:
1 lb of ground beef (your preference of leanness
1/2 small yellow onion
1 egg
1/4 tsp of salt
1/4 cup of bread crumbs
1 tbsp of olive oil

Pre-heat the oven to 375 degrees. Line a baking sheet with tinfoil and grease it. Dice the onion. Mix the beef, onion, salt and egg in a bowl. Add the bread crumbs a little at a time, mixing. When the mixture looks like it will hold together and isn't runny, it does not need any more bread crumbs, you may not need the whole 1/4 cup. Form the meat into balls and space evenly on the baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil. Bake until the meat is brown and the balls stay together, about 10 minutes. Finish the meat balls my adding them in the simmering sauce and cover.



Happy Eating.

Garlic Spaghetti and Shrimp

Back to reality. No more vacation, no more Halloween treats. A brief interlude of everyday cooking before the Thanksgiving rush happens. I am using this opportunity to try all those dinner ideas I have been craving, and all those recipes I have been bookmarking. Revamping basics and trying classic and new flavor combinations. Today I have something pretty classic for you, garlic, pasta, and shrimp. Simple, fast and delicious, it was a great way to ease myself back into everyday cooking.



Spaghetti and Shrimp in Garlic Sauce:
8 oz of spaghetti (half a box)
1 lb of shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 medium shallot
5 garlic cloves
2 tbsp of olive oil, divided
1/4 cup of sherry
1/2 of a lemon, juiced and zested
1/4 cup of Parmesan cheese
Salt, Pepper
Truffle oil (optional)

Cook pasta according to box directions. In a large skillet, heat 1 tbsp of olive oil over medium-low heat. Add shallots and garlic and cook until tender, stirring often to prevent burning, about 6 minutes. Toss the shrimp in lemon juice, salt and pepper in a small bowl and let sit. Add sherry and cook until almost all the sherry is evaporated, 2-3 minutes. Add shrimp to skillet and raise heat to medium-high. Cook stirring frequently until shrimp are pink and curled, about 2 minutes. Add The cooked spaghetti to the skillet and toss to combine. Add in additional tbsp of olive oil and cheese, toss to combine. Salt and pepper to taste, and sprinkle with truffle oil if you are using it. Serve and enjoy.

Happy Eating.

Meaty Baked Ziti

Sometimes I crave gooey melted cheese and when I do there is nothing as satisfying as baked ziti. This ziti was full of ground turkey, which made it super hearty. Granted I decided to eat this at not the most weather appropriate time, but it was still delicious. And as a bonus, I now have one in the freezer for a lazy cooking day. This recipe will make 2 medium sized zitis (more than enough for 2 people, even when one eats like a starving football player) or one very large ziti. I made the two, then had a little leftover for a lunch, and one whole ziti comfortable at home in my freezer, until he is needed...




Baked Ziti:
2 lbs of penne or ziti
1 15 oz container of ricotta cheese
1 cup of Parmesan cheese, divided
8 oz of mozzarella cheese, shredded
1 egg
1 lb of ground turkey (or beef)
2 cans of tomato sauce
1 tbsp of olive oil
1 medium shallot
1 clove of garlic
1 handful of fresh basil
1 tsp of dried oregano
salt, pepper and red pepper flakes (to taste)

Pre heat the oven to 350 degrees. Cook the pasta to al dente. Heat olive oil in a large pan over medium high heat. Dice the shallot and garlic and add to the pan, cook for about a minute, then add in the sauce, basil, oregano, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes. When the sauce is hot, stir in the ground meat. In a medium bowl, mix the ricotta with 1/2 a cup of Parmesan, a handful of the mozzarella, and the egg. When the pasta is done cooking. Divide it into two baking dishes if you are making 2 zitis, or pour into 1 large baking dish. Stir in the cheese mixture, then the sauce mixture. Top with the remaining Parmesan and Mozzarella cheese. Cook uncovered for 35-40 minutes for the smaller dish, or 50-55 minutes for the larger one, until the top has browned and the sauce is bubbling. If freezing, allow to cool down then cover with tinfoil and put flat in the freezer. To cook from oven, bake at a 350 degree oven for about an hour.



Happy Eating.

Chocolate Chip Explosion

Continuing my cooking up a storm quest, and exploiting the season's wonderful zucchini, I concocted an explosion of chocolate chips, in cookie form (this did not use zucchini) and a delicious and rich summer pasta dish (this did). The pasta made me melt and lick the bowl clean, as for the cookies, well, I dare you to eat just one. My cookie recipe drew it's inspiration from my girl Martha (that's Stewart, in case you were wondering) the original recipe can be found here



Chocolate Chip Explosion Cookies:
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 sticks butter, softened slightly
3/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
3/4 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups rolled oats
1 large package (24 oz) semi-sweet chocolate chips

Pre-heat the oven to 375 degrees. Mix together butter and both sugars, until creamy and smooth. Add eggs and vanilla, mix to combine. Add in baking soda, salt and 1/2 cup of flour, mix together. Add another 1/2 cup of flour and stir again. Add final cup of flour and mix to combine. Stir in oats and chocolate chips, do not do this all at once because it is a lot of chips. I did it in about 4 additions. At this point the batter can be refrigerated for up to 3 days, or you can make the cookies now (I did both, they both turned out really well). On a non stick pan (or a pan sprayed with non-stick spray) drop cookies by rounded tablespoons. They should be small, I made them in between regular cookie and mini cookie size. Enjoy.



Summer Pasta

1/2 box of Penne
1 large zucchini
1 medium yellow onion
1 large can of plum tomatoes, drained
1 garlic clove
1 tbsp of olive oil
2 tbsp of butter
2-3 tbs of flour
1 1/2-2 cups of chicken stock
1/2 cup grated Fontina cheese
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese

Cook the pasta according to the package directions. Heat a large skillet over high heat, and heat oil. Chop zucchini into bite size pieces and add to the skillet. Mince garlic and finely chop onion and add to the skillet as well. Allow onions and zucchini to brown slightly then lower the heat to medium-low. Crush plum tomatoes (I used a potato masher), they should still be very chunky. Add to the zucchini. Salt and pepper to taste, then cover. In a small pot over low heat, melt the butter. Whisk in flour to make a rue. Add the stock and raise heat to bring to a simmer. Whisk until the mixture thickens. Reduce heat to low and add cheeses in slowly, whisking them in. To serve, put pasta in a bowl and top with desired amount of tomato zucchini mixture, then add cheese sauce and stir to combine, top with additional Parmesan cheese, if desired. Enjoy!

Happy Eating

Pasta Bake

Is there anything more comforting than warm, cheesy pasta on a rainy night? I don't think so. Which is why Monday, was past bake night. This is my fastest bake, it is something similar to baked ziti, but with penne and very little effort. What came out of the oven was hot and delicious and beyond comforting, the perfect end to a rainy day.

Penne Pasta Bake:

1 Lb penne pasta
2 cups of pasta sauce (my recipe can be found here, but you need a lot less than that makes, so adjust accordingly, 1 15 oz can as the base of the sauce is plenty, but make more if you want extra sauce on the side (totally optional))
15 oz of ricotta cheese
1 large egg
1/2 cup of grated/shredded Parmesan cheese
1 cup of mozzarella cheese
salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Make pasta according to box directions for al dente. In the mean time make the sauce (or heat your favorite jarred version). Mix ricotta and Parmesan cheese in a small bowl. Salt and pepper to taste, then beat egg into mixture. Pour cooked noodles into a large glass baking dish, you want the pasta spread relatively thin. Cover with sauce and stir. Stir in cheese mixture so it is evenly distributed and the pasta is same thickness throughout the pan. Top with the mozzarella and some additional Parmesan (if you want). Bake for about 30 minutes uncovered. The top cheese will be melted, but not browned and everything should be very hot. Move the oven rack towards the top and turn on the broiler. Broil for 3-4 minutes until top layer is browned and a bit crispy. Be careful with the broiler, it is so easy to destroy things (I have so many, many times). Serve and enjoy.

Because this bake doesn't have a lot of sauce, it stays together really well in the oven and isn't one of those best the next day or make in advance bakes. Don't get me wrong, it taste great the next day, but it is definitely better the right from the oven unlike it's pastalicious brothers and sisters.

Happy Eating

Let's Get Saucy

So, last night my wonderful boyfriend took met to Limoncello in West Chester. It was extremely excellent. I was very impressed with their sauce, which is a difficult task, as I am a total sauce snob. I love red sauce. I love to eat it and I love to make it. I do many variations on my classic sauce, thick or thin, chunky or smooth, spicy or mild, wine or no wine, meat or no meat), but they all start the same way. A can. You may think it's cheating, but you can't get even half way decent tomatoes in winter. And all it does is save you from boiling and pureeing the tomatoes, which I will do in summer (sometimes), for absolutely fresh sauce, but if your lazy, or you can't find succulent tomatoes, a can will do just fine. Make it right and no one will no the difference.

Basic Tomato Sauce:

1 Yellow onion
2-4 garlic cloves
Olive oil
3-4 oz of tomato paste (about half a small can)
1 Large Can of Tomato Sauce
Salt, Pepper, Red Pepper Flakes.
Fresh herbs or dried (any number of): oregano, parsley, basil, sage, thyme (or you can use Italian seasoning)
Fresh Cilantro (sounds weird, but trust me (ok it's optional)

Dice the onion and garlic as small as you can, season with salt and pepper. Heat some olive oil in a skillet and sauté the garlic and onions until onions are soft and translucent. Add tomato paste to the onions and swirl around, add the can of tomato sauce. Stir around add dry herbs and red pepper flakes to taste, you may also want additional salt and pepper. If using fresh herb add a little more than half now and save the rest for later. Season to taste, and let sauce simmer until the pasta is ready. Right before serving mix in the rest of the fresh herbs.

Voila it is that easy. (I told you it was simple). Feel free to kick the spice up a notch with more red pepper flakes and chili powder. Or fancy it up (and thin it out) with your favorite red wine. Simmer meat balls (homemade, of course) in the sauce, sausage pieces, or ground beef. If you want it thicker, use stewed tomatoes (or fresh tomatoes) and any fresh veggies you like (I like pepper's and mushrooms).

Just because I'm feeling generous (and because I'm thinking about meatballs) I will tell you how I make my meatballs.

1 Pound of Ground beef (85-5)
1 Pound ground lamb
1 small yellow onion
1 egg
1/2 cup (approximately) of bread crumbs
Salt, pepper, garlic powder
Parmesan cheese
Olive oil

Preheat oven to 375 and grease a cookie pan (Pam is fine). Chop the onion as small as possible, and mix with the meat. Add seasonings and mix around. Mix the cheese (as much as you want) with the breadcrumbs. Add eggs and breadcrumb mixture. Stir with your hands until everything is combined and distributed evenly. Make into balls, as small or large as you like. Put on the cookie sheet and drizzle olive oil over them. Cook at 375 for about 10 minutes, then finish cooking covered in the sauce.

Now I want spaghetti and meatballs...

Happy Eating.