Spork or Foon?

Capellini with Fresh Ricotta, Roasted Garlic, Corn and Herbs

Last night, one of my best friends from college texted me asking me for more savory foods on my blog --so this post is for PJ in LA!  Love you!

I often sign up for email communications from my favorite websites, stores, etc., hoping to find some great gem of a deal or a fantastic recipe, but more often than not, I get annoyed at the emails that clog my inbox and delete them in a huff.  Why do they send me so much crap? I think to myself, as I click my mouse or swipe my screen (iPhone users, you understand) to delete the pesky emails, never once reminding myself that it was I who initiated the email communication by signing up for email alerts.

Sometimes, though, an unexpected gem pops up. Like this recipe. Bon Appetit sent out one of their emails featuring recipes and this pasta just jumped out at me.  My eyes fixated on the “Fresh Ricotta”.  Recently, I’ve been wanting to use fresh ricotta in everything, mainly because I now know how to make it from scratch and, even though it’s the easiest thing in the world to make, I always feel so accomplished when I do it. Because I’m making CHEESE. Kind of.

So off I ran to the supermarket to pick up ears of corn, a variety of fresh herbs, and some cappellini, which I have never used before and now I knew why.  Out of the hundreds of varieties of macaroni (pasta), there was only one box of cappellini left.  The box had seen better days (aka, it looked like someone tried to beat the crap out or use it as a whiffle ball bat in a a 5-year old t-ball tournament) so I asked a salesperson for another kind.

“What kind of pasta are you looking for?” he asked, kindly.

“Cappellini.” I told him, my eyes scouring the variety of packed boxes and bags holding an array of different shaped noodles.

“Ha!”  He scoffed. I looked at him, confused.

“Good luck,” he said as he walked away.

Thanks, guy.

I could not find any more boxes and contemplated subbing a thin linguine, but I thought better of it, so battered box it was.

I returned home, roasted some garlic and corn, and began to chop the herbs. The nutty smell of the garlic intensified as time passed, while hints of lemon, pine, fennel and onion wafted through the air as my knife chopped through the dill, parsley and chives.

I made a sauce out of fresh lemon, lemon zest, and mashed roasted garlic.

When the cappellini was ready, I tossed the still warm noodles with the lemon and roasted garlic “sauce” and the citrus scent of lemon infused with the nutty roasted garlic and created a wonderful juxtaposition of light and earthy fragrance.  I added the herbs, greens, roasted corn, and fresh ricotta cheese, and finally, some grated Manchego cheese.

The dish, besides being beautiful, is one of the most interesting, wonderful summer pasta dishes I have ever tasted. The light notes of the lemon really shone through and was the perfect final touch to the dish that was bursting with flavor from the chives, parsley, and dill especially. The corn provided a nice textural surprise, and of course, the cream ricotta was superb and the mixed greens and radicchio provided a wonderful burst of color, and the Manchego cheese added the most perfect finish to the dish, tying all of the flavors together with it's nutty, sharp flavor.

A true gem, indeed.  Keep those emails coming (but not as frequently, please. Thanks.)

Capellini with Fresh Ricotta, Roasted Garlic, Corn and Herbs adapted from Bon Appetit

Ingredients

1 large head of garlic, top 1/2 inch cut off

6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided

4 ears of fresh corn with husks

6 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

4 teaspoons grated lemon peel

8 ounces capellini

2 cups (loosely packed) mixed greens

2 cups torn radicchio leaves

1 cup fresh ricotta cheese (7 to 8 ounces)

1/2 cup finely grated Manchego cheese plus shaved Manchego for

garnish

1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley

1/3 cup thinly sliced fresh basil leaves

1/4 cup chopped fresh chives

1/4 cup chopped fresh dill

Preparation

Preheat oven to 400°F. Place head of garlic on sheet of foil. Drizzle with 2 tablespoons oil; wrap foil around garlic and crimp to seal tightly. Place garlic and corn on rimmed baking sheet. Bake until corn is tender and garlic is soft, about 25 minutes for corn and 40 minutes for garlic. Cool slightly.

Squeeze garlic out of skins into large bowl; add any oil from foil. Add lemon juice, lemon peel, and 3 tablespoons oil; mash garlic, then whisk mixture. Shuck corn; cut kernels from cob and transfer to same bowl.

Meanwhile, cook pasta in pot of boiling salted water until tender but still firm to bite. Drain. Rinse with cold water; drain well. Place in medium bowl; toss with 1 tablespoon oil. Using kitchen shears, cut pasta crosswise several times.

Add pasta, greens, radicchio, ricotta, grated Manchego, and herbs to bowl with garlic mixture; toss to coat. Season with salt and pepper. Garnish with shaved Parmesan.

Tagliatelle with White Truffle Oil, Parmesan, and a Poached Egg

 

This is a fun little dish.  For dinner with friends the other night, I was trying to thing of a fun, easy appetizer and found this recipe on What's Cooking America.  It's a quick, simple dish that is whimsical and delicious. 

What I love about this dish (besides that it is quick to make), is that it is a play on carbonara and has some fun little elements.  I love poached eggs on anything, because I love to plunge my knife in the center of the egg and watch the yellow yolk ooze out of the center, adding luxury to any simple dish.

I also get excited because I am proud of myself for poaching an egg correctly.  I've been doing it for years, and I still get excited.  It's the little things, people.

Tagliatelle is cooked to al dente, tossed with parmesan cheese and a little bit of butter and of course, earthy white truffle oil. The recipe calls for two tablespoons, and you are going to have to use two tablespoons. Yes, they are the most expensive two tablespoons you'll ever use in a dish, but you just need to do it.  The flavor will suffer.

Finally, the gills of a large portobello mushroom are "shaved" atop the dish, bearing resemblance to black truffles.  Sure, you could use actual truffles, making you cool and super rich, but for those of us uncool and not super rich people, portobello gills it is. 

The result is a luxurious, creamy pasta with fragrant white truffles, poached eggs, and lots of fun.

And it only takes about 15 minutes to make.
 

Click here for the recipe.

Spaghetti tossed with Spicy Tomatoes and Arugula with Chicken Meatballs

I need to come up with a catchier, less wordy title for this dish. 

Friends and family often say to me, "Teanna, you need to post simpler things on your blog. Your recipes are too complicated."

And to them I say, "What? You mean people don't like to sweat, curse, and cry in their kitchens while trying to juggle tons of ingredients, 3 burners and an oven like I do?"

But my friends and family are right. Sometimes simple is best.  Yes, I like challenging recipes, but there are nights where I just want to throw something together with what is in my pantry.

Oh, and when I say "pantry", I mean "make-shift shelving that hovers between my kitchen and living room". This is New York City. There are no pantries in New York City unless you are a bajillionaire. 

Last night, I opened my freezer and stared into its meager depths.  Frozen fruit, veggie sausages, ice, frozen mocha buttercream (Seriously. I don't even know if you can freeze buttercream, but I did), short ribs... ah! Ground chicken.  I always keep ground chicken on hand to make my favorite go-to, simple dish: Chicken Meatballs.

I normally serve these chicken meatballs as a salad atop arugula and sprinkled with fontina cheese with a basil pesto vinaigrette, which was inspired by a favorite lunch place of mine, Penelopes (I love to adapt salads that I have at restaurants).  But this time, I wanted something different. I rummaged through my make-shift shelving.  I have 15 different types of pasta (all people should have 15 different types of pasta. You'll never know when the mood will strike for trottoloni. I'm still not even sure what trottolini is, but I bought it because it looked cool), but grabbed what tugged at my heartstrings: spaghetti. I plucked a can of San Marzano pomodori pelati (whole peeled tomatoes) from the shelves, grabbed some fresh arugula and a half a ball of mozzarella from the fridge, and, finally, a head of garlic.  I didn't know where I was going, but I knew wherever I ended up, it would be delicious. 

I ended up making a quick sauce out of the tomatoes (sans juice), garlic, and a bit of olive oil and tossed my al dente spaghetti with said sauce and some fresh arugula.  I shaved some fresh mozzarella on top and topped my dish with three tender chicken meatballs.  I was in heaven. 

So no crying, cursing, and very little sweating went on in my kitchen that night. Maybe I'll start to like the simpler things. 

 

Spaghetti tossed with Spicy Tomatoes and Arugula with Chicken Meatballs

For the Meatballs:
1 pound ground chicken
1/2 cup fresh breadcrumbs
1/3 cup finely chopped flat-leaf Italian parsley
1/3 cup grated parmesan cheese
2 eggs
1 1/2 teaspoons minced garlic
Kosher Salt and Freshly Ground Pepper

For the Sauce:
1 35-ounce can whole peeled tomatoes (San Marzano, preferably)
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
1/3 finely chopped flat-leaf Italian parsley
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
Kosher salt and fresh ground pepper, to taste

1- pound spaghetti (or other type of macaroni)
1 cup loosely packed asparagus
1/2 cup grated mozzarella cheese

Directions:

For the Meatballs: Preheat oven to 350F. Line a two rimmed baking sheets with aluminum foil and spray with cooking spray. Set aside.

Combine all ingredients in a medium bowl until just incorporated. Season to taste with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper.  Roll meatballs into 12 balls, approximately 2" in diameter. 

Arrange meatballs approximately 2" apart on baking sheets. Bake for 20-minutes or until meatballs are cooked through. 

For the Sauce: Remove the whole tomatoes from the can.  Reserve the juice for another use.  Roughly chop tomatoes (keep the juices that come out of the tomatoes for the sauce). Set aside. 

Heat 2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil in a large saute pan over medium heat.  When glistening, add garlic and cook until garlic is brown and fragrant, about 2 minutes. Add tomatoes (and their juices) to pan and let cook for 2 minutes, until the sauce is slightly thickened.  Add parsley and red pepper.  Season with salt and freshly ground pepper.  Set aside until ready to use. 

To Assemble:  Cook spaghetti according to package directions.  Drain and add arugula. Toss with sauce until arugula is just wilted. Sprinkle mozzarella atop spaghetti and serve immediately. 

Butternut Squash Rigatoni with Prawns

I want to apologize to Macduff of Lonely Sidecar for being late on the Cafe Volcano cookies.  I will be posting them, but not until this weekend.  I have 600 more cookies to go this week for my catering gig for Theory, so they have taken all of my cookie energy until the weekend.

I first posted about this butternut squash dish last September and I still love it as much today as I did then.  The squash is creamy and rich, tricking the mind into believing that this healthy dish is filled with cream and fat and artery-clogging goodneess.  Perfectly cooked prawns are the perfect protein for the dish, with sweet basil adding a deliciously fresh flavoral contrast and the dish is finished with sharp, freshly grated parmesan cheese.   Best of all, this dish only takes about 15 minutes to make.  Unless, of course, you are me and can't find a good butternut squash to save your life (anyone who lives in Manhattan knows how poor the produce sections are at the supermarkets, but bad butternut squash? Really? Does that exist?)  Three attempts and $20 later (produce is also extremely expensive), I finally achieved the perfect color and consistency for the sauce.  And it was well worth it.

Butternut Squash Rigatoni with Prawns

Recipe Adapted from Giada DeLaurentiis

3 tablespoons olive oil, plus 3 tablespoons
1 pound butternut squash, trimmed and cut into 1-inch cubes
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon salt, plus 1 teaspoon
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus 1/2 teaspoon
1 cup vegetable stock
1 pound rigatoni
1 pound prawns, peeled and deveined
3/4 to 1 cup whole milk
1/2 cup chopped fresh basil leaves
1/4 cup grated Parmesan

Directions
Warm 3 tablespoons of olive oil in a large, heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Add the butternut squash, garlic, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper. Saute until the squash is golden and tender, 5 to 7 minutes. Add the vegetable stock, bring to a simmer, cover and cook until the squash is very soft, another 5 to 7 minutes. Transfer the squash mixture to a blender or food processor and puree.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 8 to 10 minutes. Drain pasta.

Meanwhile, warm the remaining 3 tablespoons of olive oil in a large, heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Sprinkle the prawns with the remaining 1 teaspoon of salt and remaining 1/2 teaspoon of freshly ground black pepper. Add the prawns to the pan and cook until just pink, about 3 minutes.

In a large pot over low heat combine the cooked pasta, pureed squash mixture, and 3/4 cup milk. Stir to combine. Add the remaining 1/4 cup milk if the sauce needs to be moistened. Add the cooked prawns, basil, and cheese. Stir until warm and serve.

Top Chef with Teanna - Season 1, Episode 9 - Truffled Cognac Macaroni and Cheese, Filet Mignon with Truffled Mirepoix

No, you are not reading that incorrectly.  I did skip from week 6 to week 9, but for good reason.  You see, I have this problem.  I don't read recipes fully before cooking.  This week's dish was actually supposed to be Leanne's Fig Stuffed Gnocchi with Duck Confit.  I was going to make this dish for our weekly dinner with our friends Chris and Chelsea.  Knowing that I would have to wing the recipe fully, as there is no recipe online nor in the Top Chef Cookbook, I looked up a recipe for duck confit.  It takes 2 days to make. Dinner was in 36 hours.  No go.

Well, why not episode 7, you ask?  Well, the winning dish was roast chicken. Not something I want to serve my beloved dinner guests.  Week 8?  An appetizer won.  I may be able to eat only an appetizer for dinner, but I did not want to starve my guests.  So episode 9 it was.  

A few hours before dinner, I read the ingredients and discovered that the dish needed a veal demi glace.  I know that demi glace takes at least two days to cook.  Dinner was in 6 hours.  

Do I never learn?  

I asked my friend's on Twitter if there was a quick demi glace method that only took about three hours.  They laughed at me.  But Michelle of From Laptop to Stovetop sent me this link for a pan sauce that would have done the trick.  It was perfect, but I actually lucked out and found a demi glace at Harris Teeters (ah, Harris Teeter, how I will miss you so). Problem solved.

Since this episode aired, I have remembered this dish.  The judges went wild for Dave's truffled macaroni and cheese.  

The challenge was to cook with black truffles.  The chefs were given $250 to shop for ingredients.  I, however, was not.  And since black truffles are currently $300 a pound and I needed 6 ounces of black truffle, I decided that my trusty $12 bottle of black truffle oil would do the trick.  

Unfortunately, my Stephen was kicked off of the show by this point, so there is no Stephen moment to revel in this episode.  So I will just imagine Stephen instructing viewers on the finer points of black truffles. Cue Stephen's voice:  The black truffle, also known as the Perigod Truffle is named after the Perigod region in France and only grows on oak trees.

Ah... I am fulfilled.

But let's talk about the dishes, shall we?  I really thought that the macaroni and cheese was going to be the standout star of the dinner.  But the Filet Mignon.  Ohhh. The filet mignon.

I just have to stop for a minute and give homage to the wonder that is this filet mignon dish.  The filet was the most tender, succulent, melt-in-your-mouth piece of filet that I have ever tasted.  It was then topped with a complex truffled mirepoix that was flavored by mushroom stock, demi glace, and truffle oil. 

HEAVEN. IN. YOUR. MOUTH. 

Don't get me wrong.  The mac and cheese was pretty stellar as well.  This was also a complex, creamy dish flavored by sweet cognac, pungent truffle oil, sharp parmesan, creamy fontina cheese, and is finished by a slight kick from the addition of pepper sauce.

Dave Martin, I have a feeling you don't swing my way, but will you marry me?  And make me this every night?

Dave's Black Truffle Mac and Cheese 

Adapted from Top Chef

Black Truffle Mac and Cheese

1 Tbsp. EVO
1 small shallot, brunoise
6 cloves of roasted garlic
3 teaspoons black truffle oil
One pint heavy cream
One pint whole milk
one cup of cognac, reduced to demi sec
2 tsp. fresh oregano, finely chopped 
2 tsp. fresh thyme stems removed
1 Tbsp. sherry
2 tsp. kosher salt
1 tsp. white pepper
8 oz. Fontina, finely grated
6 oz Parmiggiano reggiano,finely grated
2 tsp. chipotle Tabasco
2 cups seasoned sourdough croutons, run thru food processor to turn into crumbs
1 lb Fresh pasta noodles (rigatoni or other noodle that will hold sauce), cooked in salt water to al dente

Method:
Heat oil on stove top in stock pot and then add shallots and garlic and heavily sweat until aromatic. Deglaze with sherry and then add fresh herbs, truffles and cream and reduced cognac. Cook over low heat until reduced by half and truffle flavor is infused. Season and add parmesan and Tabasco. To this hot mixture add the cooked and drained noodles and the fontina and mix cheeses are melted. Taste noodles for seasoning and adjust as needed.  Set aside.

Other ingredients:
8 oz unsalted butter

Assembly:
Take small 4 -6 oz. baking dish and butter the bottom and sides. Set one slice of truffle on bottom of each dish. Then add noodles and sauce to the dish and top with the crumbled croutons, finely grated truffles and a pinch of the finely grated parmesan and back in the oven at 350 degrees for 10 minutes or until mixture is bubbly and toasted on the top.

Peppered Filet Mignon with Truffled Mirepoix 

EVO for pan
8 oz Angus Filet Mignon, seasoned on all sides with kosher salt and black pepper
2 tsp black truffle oil
2 carrots, peeled and small dice
2 celery stalks, small dice
1/2 yellow onion, small dice
1/2 shallot, brunoise
2 tsp. fresh thyme stems removed
1/2 cup sherry
2 cups veal demi glace
1/2 cup mushroom stock

Method:
Heat evo in sauté pan and then add mirepoix and heavily caramelize. Then deglaze with sherry. Add truffles, demi glace and mushroom stock and reduce.  Pan sear filets in EVO on high heat to just under medium rare and set aside to rest until they come to medium rare and slice. Place 3 strips of filet on plate and then add solid tablespoon of truffled mirepoix over the filet.

 

Recipe Inbox

Every day, I email myself recipes that I want to make.  Sometimes, I email myself up to 15 recipes a day. I then look at my inbox a week later and I have 100+ emails of recipes alone. I sigh to myself, realizing that I do not have the time nor the metabolism to make such things.  

I do, however, bookmark these sites with the hopes of making the dishes for someone that I love.  I'll think, "Oh, Jack would love this" or "This is exactly the kind of recipe my dad would want" or "OK, I totally need a dining room table so I can have my friends over for a dinner party."

So instead, I have decided to share some of my recipe inbox with you.  Because I love you, too.

You'll thank me later.  

Amy over at Sing for Your Supper has made a Coconut Cake.  She makes the bold assertion that it is the best cake ever.  By the looks of it, I'll have to agree. Come on! Look at it! 

In more great cakes, Irene at Baking, Baseball and Books has made a delicious Banana Cream Cake with Brown Sugar Frosting.  I don't know if I can express to you the speed in which the drool was flying out of my mouth for this one.  My family would flip over this one.

Also, in tropical news, Dawn at Vanilla Sugar has made a White Chocolate, Macadamia Nut, Pineapple, and Coconut Bark.  My mom would flip for this. I will make it for her.  She will be happy and I will be Golden Child.

In a more traditional, I'm going to eat my computer screen to try to get a bite of this one sense, Jaime over at Sophistimom made some gorgeous S'mores Cupcakes. GO LOOK AT THEM.

Want something fun for the kids this summer? The Cooking of Joy has a Apple Pie Apple.  Apple on a stick. Rolled in white chocolate. Then rolled in caramel.  Then rolled in cinnamon brown sugar. Then rolled on my face. 

Never had a melting moment? Me, neither.  Let's melt together over the Quadruple (yes) Chocolate Melting Moments cookie sandwiches over at Chocolate Fool.  My coworkers would love me forever. 

For something a bit more savory, go check out the Sausage Cheese Rolls over at My Daily Delicious. Sausage. Wrapped in cheese.  Blanketed by a warm, delicious, hand-kneaded roll.  Think of it as a Pig-In-A-Blanket for GIANTS.  My friend, John, would love this. Minus the cheese.

Want to Throwdown with Bobby Flay?  Then get a restaurant. Want to pretend like you are on a Throwdown with Bobby Flay?  Then make this Shrimp and Salt Cod Ravioli with Yellow Pepper Romesco Sauce. He beat hometown favorite, Durso's of Queens, NY, with this delicious dish.  I licked my screen. And not because Bobby Flay is a sexy man (although, he kind of is).

Natasha over at Five Star Foodie takes you on some amazing adventures in food. I need to make this Okonomiyaki.  It takes me about 5 minutes to pronounce the name of this Japanese pancake filled with shrimp, scallions, salmon and topped with a Japanese mayo, which is about 4 more minutes than it would take for me to eat it. 

If you like to be enlightened in your quest for delicious food, head over to Tangled Noodle and read a bit about Indo-Chinese foods, then grab a mango and make this OUTRAGEOUS Cajuu Manga-Chicken Salad sandwich.  For all of you mango haters, please give mango a chance. It is the best fruit out there.

And last, but not least (definitely not least),  taking it back to my true love - baked goods - I present to you the Loveliest Carrot Cake You Ever Did See.  Before I eat it.

Orecchiette Carbonara

In my next installment of "Who needs to spend $88.95 on a pasta maker when you can make it by hand just like an Italian great-nonna?", I present to you "Homemade Orecchiette in a Carbonara Sauce".

This is one of those dishes that makes you shout "Holla!!!!"  It is the only carbonara recipe I have found that is not heavy.  Instead, it is light, yet deliciously creamy. I added shiitake mushrooms and green peas to the recipe which already included leeks and smoky bacon.  If you are not making the orecchiette from scratch, this dish takes all of 10 minutes to prepare.

TEN. MINUTES.

HOLLA!

Making homemade orecchiette is turning out to be second nature.  The more I make homemade pasta, the more I live in delusions of grandeur, where I close my eyes and transport myself to a small flat in Rome, standing over my counter, covered in flour, with my windows opened wide as  listen to the sounds of the streets below.  I spent some time there one summer as I learned to teach English to foreign learners and ever since, I dream about one day returning to the city that I love so much.

But for now, dishes like this are the next best thing.

I wonder how to say "Holla!" in Italian...

Click here for the homemade orecchiette recipe.  

Orecchiette Carbonara adapted from Bon Appetit

4 slice applewood bacon, diced

2 medium leeks (white and pale green parts only), halved lengthwise then cut crosswise into 1/3" slices

10 ounces orecchiette

2 large eggs at room temperature

1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese, plus additional for serving

1 tablespoon chopped Italian parsley

1 cup sliced shiitake or cremini mushrooms

1/2 cup freshly shelled green peas

1 tablespoon olive oil

Kosher Salt and Freshly Ground Black Pepper

Cook bacon in large skillet over medium heat until crisp, about 8 minutes. Using slotted spoon, transfer bacon to paper towel to drain. Pour off all but 2 tablespoons fat from skillet if necessary. Add mushrooms and saute over medium heat about 3 minutes.  Add green peas and saute for 2 more minutes.  Add 1 tablespoon olive oil and add leeks and sauté over  about 6 minutes. Set aside.

Meanwhile, cook pasta in large pot of boiling salted water until just tender but still firm to bite, stirring occasionally. Drain pasta, reserving 1/2 cup pasta cooking liquid.

Whisk eggs and 1/2 cup Parmesan in medium bowl to blend; gradually whisk in 1/4 cup pasta cooking liquid. Add pasta to leeks and mushroom mixture in skillet and stir to heat. Remove skillet from heat. Pour egg mixture over pasta and stir until sauce is just creamy and eggs are no longer raw, about 2 minutes. (Return skillet to very low heat if egg mixture is runny; do not overcook or eggs will curdle.) Add some of remaining 1/4 cup pasta cooking liquid to pasta if needed to moisten. Stir in bacon and parsley. Serve pasta, passing additional cheese separately.

Homemade Pappardelle with a Rabbit and Mushroom Ragu`

I will write this quickly because I am still fighting this cold Mortal Kombat Style.  If my nose doesn't stop running, I'm going to have to hadouken this cold like Ryu in Street Fighter.  

As a side note, I used to be so bad at those video games.  I used to just press all of the buttons as fast as I could and say "PEW PEW PEW!!!" (even though there were no guns in the games) until my character did something cool.  Then I'd play it off as if I were some sort of video game master.  This, of course, was in ancient times of video games, where controllers only had two buttons and up, down, left, right. Video game controllers scare me now.

Anyways... 

I am convinced that I do not need a pasta machine anymore.  Rolling out homemade pasta is easy and a fantastic workout for my arms.  And I somehow feel like an Italian nonna, standing at 4'11", armed with a wooden spoon in case any children got out of hand, lovingly rolling out precious sheets of pasta.  Making homemade pasta is unbelievably simple and absolutely satisfying.  In this case, the pappardelle is thick, fresh and delicious and tossed with a ragu` made of an entire rabbit (which I used the leftover bones and all of the gizzards to make a fantastic rabbit stock), mirepoix, mushrooms, and vegetable stock.  The end result is flavorful broth that ever-so-slightly clings to the thick pappardelle noodles and moist, plump rabbit meat rich with flavor. 

If you cannot find rabbit (we found ours in the frozen food section), you can easily substitute a small chicken.

Oh, and if you do not subscribe La Cucina Italiana, the magazine where I found this recipe, you are missing out.  It is a fantastic magazine and I am so glad I subscribed. I have every recipe in every edition doggy-eared.  I gots a lots of cooking to do.

Pappardelle al Ragu` di Coniglio e Funghi Porcini (adapted from La Cucina Italiana)

2 hours, 30 minutes cooking time

6 servings

2 garlic cloves
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 celery stalk, finely chopped
1 medium carrot, finely chopped
1/ cup finely chopped onion
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 (3-pound) rabbit, cut into 10 pieces
3 1/2 ounces fresh porcini, shiitake, or Cremini mushrooms
2 1/2 cups low-sodium vegetable broth
1 1/4 cups finely chopped flat-leaf parsley

1 1/2 pounds fresh pappardelle egg pasta (click for recipe)

Freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

Peel and finely chop 1 garlic clove.  Heat oil in a large Dutch oven or other wide heavy pot over medium-high heat.  Add celery, carrot, onion, chopped garlic, and generous pinch salt and pepper.  Reduce heat to medium and cook, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are softened, about 5 minutes.  Add rabbit pieces and broth.  Tuck pieces into broth to mostly cover and bring to a gentle simmer.  Reduce heat to low, cover and cook, turning pieces occasionally, until meat is tender, about 1 hour.

Meanwhile, wipe mushrooms with paper towels to remove any dirt or grit.  Keeping stems attached, trim any discoloration from stems.  Cut mushrooms into 1/4 inch dice.

Gently smash and peel remaining garlic clove.  In a medium skillet, heat garlic and 1 tablespoon butter over medium heat.  When butter is melted and bubbling, add mushrooms;  cook, stirring frequently, for 3 minutes.  Stir in parsley and pinch salt.  Remove from heat.

Remove rabbit from heat.  Transfer rabbit pieces to a plate, reserving sauce in pan.  When cool enough to handle, pull meat from bones,  taking care to remove and discard any small shards of bone. Chop meat into small pieces and return to sauce.  Add mushroom mixture to sauce, bring to a gentle simmer and cook for 30 minute;  remove from heat and adjust seasoning.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.  Just before adding pasta to water, gently reheat sauce;  add remaining 2 tablespoons butter to sauce and stir to combine.  Add pasta to water and cook until just tender, about 2 1/2 minutes (fresh pasta cooks much faster than dried).  Drain pasta and transfer to a large serving bowl;  add ragu` and toss well to combine.  Serve immediately, sprinkled with cheese.

Fettuccini with Spring Vegetables in a Lemon Butter Sauce

I can't write too much because of this stinking head cold.  Can't think straight.  Too much Dayquil.  Loopy.  But this dish is yum. Yum yum yum. Springtime is good. Veggies are good. Pasta is good. Butter is awesome, but calories aren't but who cares because yum yum yum. 

Make this dish. Fast and easy. Delicious. 

Merry Christmas.

Fettuccini with Spring Vegetables in a Lemon Butter Sauce

Serves 4

1/2 small head leaf lettuce, cut into a chiffonade

3 tablespoons unsalted butter

2 cups shelled young peas

2 medium carrots, julienned

9 pearl onions, peeled

1 small bunch chervil or parsley

1 tablespoon sugar

1 tsp salt

For the sauce

6 tablespoons butter

5 garlic cloves, minced

1/2 cup low sodium chicken stock

1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice

zest from 1/2 lemon

1/2 lb fettuccini pasta

Heat salted water over medium high heat in a heavy saucepan.  When water is at a rolling boil, add pasta and cook until al dente, about 10 minutes.

For the peas:  Heat the butter in a heavy saucepan over medium heat.  Add the lettuce, peas, and onions to the pan and stir gently until the lettuce wilts.  Add 1/4 cup water, sugar, and salt.  Cover and cook over medium low heat until the peas are tender, 15-20 minutes.  Set aside and keep warm.

For the sauce:  Heat the butter in the same heavy saucepan over medium heat until melted.  Add garlic and cook until fragrant, about 5 minutes.  Do not let the garlic brown.  Add chicken stock, lemon juice and zest and let simmer. 

To serve: Toss pasta with spring vegetables and sauce and top with shaved parmesan. Serve immediately.

Homemade Orecchiette with Chickpeas - Festa Italiana!

Maryanne of Finding La Dolce Vita and Marie of Proud Italian Cook are hosting the Second Annual Festa Italiana! As a Trinitalian (Trinidadian and Italian) girl, I love to embrace both sides of my culture! I grew up in an extremely Italian neighborhood on Long Island, where you could enter any store (most of which are Mom and Pop places) and be transported right to Italy - meaning that more people were speaking Italian than English.  And I loved every second of it!  Every name in my high school yearbook ends in a vowel, and there were tons of Giuseppes, Antonellas, and Giovannis. I always look forward to heading back to Franklin Square to visit my parents and head into the La Bottega, Carmelas, Cafe Frosinone, Monreale Bakery, Maria's Deli, Romeo's Pizzeria... you get the point.

So thanks to Maryanne and Marie for bringing a little piece of Italy to the blog world!

I was inspired to make fresh pasta after dining at our friend's apartment. There, they rolled out deliciously light tagliatelli noodles with ease as I watched (and sometimes lent a hand, if by lending a hand you mean ruining each sheet of pasta I ran through the machine, which went in smoothly on one end and came out looking light shredded wheat), aching for a pasta machine so that I, too, may make pasta at home.  The flavor just doesn't compare. Softer and richer, the noodles are a nice welcome to their starchy boxed counterparts. But alas, I do not have the sufficient equipment.

Well,  I am now proud to say that I am a pasta MACHINE! Not literally, as I don't cost $89.00.  I'd hope to think I'd reel in a bit more than that at Sur La Table.

Making homemade orrecchiette is surprisingly easy. Semolina flour, water and salt. That's it. Even vegans would eat this pasta.

This got me thinking. Do vegans eat pasta?  Because there are eggs in the dough. Ponder that.

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The chickpeas are complimented well by the soft, light texture and fresh taste of the tomatoes, and the flavor is finished with a subtle kick from the red pepper flakes. The flavors are earthy, yet light, complex yet simple.  And of course, nothing beats fresh pasta.

Click here for the recipe.  Both Jack and I agree, this is one of the best things we have ever eaten... and it only gets better as you eat it.