Year of the Noodle: Week 21

Shaped pasta is hard.  I tried to make this pasta recipe into a shaped fusili or rotini pasta, but it got complicated. I wrapped strands around a chopstick, making little twists, but they unfolded as soon as I pulled them off.  Maybe they need to dry on the chopstick.  That’s not reasonable.  Then I tried to twist long strands by hand and cut them into littler strips.  They unwound, too.  Oh well, no shaped pasta (today anyway.)  I settled for making angel hair with the pasta machine instead.

This dish is like spinach artichoke dip in pasta form (sorta), and it is very good.  Rich, too.  But I’m off cream recipes for a while now.  It’s too hot to be eating such heavy meals.  Have a great weekend!

Spinach Pasta with Artichoke Cream Sauce

Ingredients

Spinach Pasta

• 5 ounces fresh spinach, blanched and squeezed dry
• 1 pound all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 large egg
• 6 large egg yolks
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil Continue reading »

Year of the Noodle:  Week 20

If you ever have bell peppers wasting away in your fridge, you should roast them.  Just 15 minutes under the broiler transforms those sad peppers into aromatic and flavorful amazingness.  Two weeks ago I had three peppers that I managed to save from a withering death by roasting them for a quinoa dish.  This week, three more peppers were saved by this recipe.  Instead of using the bottled peppers as the recipe below calls for, I substituted in the fresh roasted ones.  I’d bet it tasted better with the fresh ones.

Since it was a rainy day, John is still feeling sick (and wanting comfort food), and I’ve still got extra cream on hand from my birthday cake, we opted for a creamy sauce today.  While there is probably one more cream sauce in my not-so-distant future (have to use that cream!), I’m on the lookout for some healthier recipes that incorporate more vegetables than sauce.  Particularly ones with Asian roots.  If you have a good one, please send it my way!

Bow Tie Pasta with Roasted Red Pepper and Cream Sauce

Ingredients

• 1 pound uncooked farfalle (bow tie pasta)
• 2 teaspoons extravirgin olive oil
• 1/2 cup finely chopped onion
• 1 (12-ounce) bottle roasted red bell peppers, drained and coarsely chopped
• 2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
• 1 cup half-and-half
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 1/8 teaspoon ground red pepper
• 1 cup (4 ounces) freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, divided
• Thinly sliced fresh basil (optional) Continue reading »

Year of the Noodle: Week 19

When I was in college and needed a quick meal I’d often saute garlic in olive oil and toss it with angel hair pasta and parmesan cheese.  This recipe is like a more adult version of that dish.  The zucchini adds a crisp freshness, and the basil gives the flavor an extra boost.  If you have extra zucchini from your garden laying around that you aren’t sure what to do with, I’d suggest this recipe as a good way to use (at least some) of it.  If you’re like me, however, and have only the remnants of a withered zucchini plant in your garden, buying the stuff fresh from the Farmer’s Market works just as well :)

Happy Monday!

Zucchini Strand Spaghetti

Ingredients

• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 3/4 pound whole-wheat dried spaghetti
• 3/4 pound zucchini
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 2 tablespoons minced garlic
• 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 3 tablespoons coarsely chopped fresh basil leaves
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan, plus a small piece Continue reading »

I’m excited to be 28.  Mostly because it’s an even number.  I don’t know why, but I just prefer the years when my age is an even number rather than an odd one.  It’s a weird quirk of mine.  Don’t judge me.

Last year I started a tradition for myself of having friends over for dessert and wine, and I like where it’s going.  I love baking, and never really have a good reason to make the crazy elaborate desserts that call to me when I see them on Foodgawker.  But these overly tempting chocolate fabrications make excellent birthday desserts, particularly when you are sharing the calories among twenty of your finest friends.

For my 27th birthday I made the enormous and fantastic Cappucino Fudge Cheesecake.  (Still drooling over how good that one was.)  This year I decided to blend elements of this recipe with this recipe for a towering Chocolate Hazlenut Cake.  Two layers of hazelnut mousse sandwiched between three layers of chocolate cake covered in Nutella buttercream frosting and topped with Nutella ganache.  It isn’t the most beautiful cake ever made, but we all know that slightly lopsided and imperfectly decorated means it tastes better.  Plus, it includes an absurd amount of Nutella.  Awesome.

Last night I sent 27 out in style with cake, wine, and blueberry pie.  Today I’ll welcome 28 with a relaxing afternoon outside and a delicious dinner at my favorite restaurant.  Happy Birthday to me :)

Year of the Noodle: Week 18

Yes, I am behind on the Year of the Noodle.  By a lot.  But I promise to make it up over the next few weeks.  We’ll be eating noodles like crazy around here to catch me up.  I am convinced of this.

I made this dish a few weeks ago, right when the asparagus was hitting its’ peak.  So good.  I love fresh asparagus, and this dish is a nice way to dress it up.  I’d advise using a little less lemon juice than the recipe calls for and adjusting to taste.  In the end I only used half of the amount listed, so be careful not to go overboard if you aren’t a citrus lover.

Many, many more recipes to come soon!

Creamy Goat Cheese and Asparagus Farfalle

Ingredients