Miss Pips and I are packed, have said our good-byes, and are headin' down the road. Who knows where this adventure will lead us? And, since Pipi insists on driving the first leg, I'm going to get a little shut-eye (Gee, I hope she remembered to bring a map!). Here's a tasty recipe to tide you over while we're gone......... I used Acini di Pepe, a very small tubular pasta, to make this delicious side dish. If you are unable to find it in your grocery, substitute orzo.
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Ancini di Pepe with Tomatoes and Corn
loosely adapted from a recipe in Food & Wine | June 2001
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 cup Acini di Pepe or Orzo
• 1/4 cup finely diced onion
• 2 large garlic cloves, minced
• 1 1/4 cup organic chicken broth
• salt and freshly ground pepper
• 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved or quartered if large
• 1/2 cup frozen corn, thawed
• 1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan
• 2 tablespoons coarsely chopped basil leaves
• Salt and freshly grated pepper to taste
1. Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a medium saucepan. Add the small pasta and cook over moderate heat, stirring, until lightly browned. Add the onion and cook, stirring for about 1 minute. Add the minced garlic and cook, stirring for half a minute. Add the chicken broth, cover pan, and reduce heat to low. Cook for 12 minutes, or until the pasta is tender.
2. Stir the tomatoes and corn into the pasta mixture and season with salt and pepper; cook over low heat momentarily to warm the just-added ingredients. Gently stir the chopped basil and parmesan cheese into the pasta. Serve immediately.
The Cherokee Purple, Aunt Ruby's German Green, and Red Siberian heirloom tomatoes in my garden are practically a memory (thanks in part to the drought conditions in Minnesota and my lack of desire to water any longer on a daily basis). But nothing seems to slow the yield of my lingering Sweet 100 Cherry Tomatoes. They just keep on comin', which is fine by me. If you are still being inundated with cherry tomatoes, you should consider making this pasta dish. The combination of fresh tomatoes, minced garlic, and olive oil create a luscious aroma while the linguine is boiling.
Cherry Tomato, Arugula, and Pecorino Linguine
adapted from a recipe in O, the Oprah Magazine | September 2007
• 2 pints cherry tomatoes, halved
• 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 cups fresh baby arugula
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt, or more to taste
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
• 1 pound linguine
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
• 1/2 cup shaved Pecorino Romano cheese
• 1/3 cup basil, shredded
1. In a large bowl, combine tomatoes, olive oil, arugula, garlic, salt, and pepper. Set aside.
2. Prepare linguine according to package directions. Strain, reserving a bit of cooking water. Transfer pasta to the tomato-arugula mixture and add butter, tossing until arugula is wilted and butter is melted. Add some of the reserved water if the pasta seems too dry. Transfer to a serving platter; garnish with cheese and basil.
Well, here I am. I'm back and caught up, or maybe I should say, more caught up... and over the next several days I will be showing you photos of things I have done and recipes I have made. I spent my days visiting friends, sitting on the patio with friends, baking, cooking, and working in the garden (photos of the garden and patio will be posted this week along with an answer to Julia of Mélanger's question, "Wow, what were you doing for 9 hours?"). I celebrated my 56th birthday on Friday, and dined on the patio alone at noon (Really, it was fine... I don't mind being alone. I usually have a stack of magazines in hand and can spend hours pouring over the pages. And, I was later joined by two very close friends for a celebratory glass of wine.) It was a very tastey lunch. This is a recipe for a pasta salad I clipped from somewhere about 25 years ago. It makes a big bowlful, so consider this salad if you're feeding a lot of people (or, if you like eating the same meal over and over and over for several days). Don't be put off by all of the olive oil that is called for in this recipe. You will not use all of the vinaigrette.
TORTELLINI SALAD with RED WINE VINAIGRETTE
source...?
Red Wine Vinaigrette:
• 3 tablespoons Dijon mustard
• 1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
• salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 1/2 cups extra-virgin olive oil
• 3 cloves of garlic, peeled and lightly crushed
Tortellini Salad:
• 6 quarts water
• 1 1/2 tablespoon salt
• 1 1/2 pounds cheese-filled tortellini
• 1/2 cup chopped red onion
• 3/4 cup chopped Italian parsley
• 1 red bell pepper, diced
• 1 cup large black olives, sliced
• 1/4 pound thinly sliced salami, julienned
1. To make the vinaigrette, whisk mustard and vinegar in a small bowl. Season with salt and pepper. Slowly add olive oil while whisking. Add the garlic and let vinaigrette stand at room temperature at least an hour. Remove the garlic, adjust seasoning, and whisk again before using.
2. To make the salad, bring the water to a boil. Stir in salt and tortellini and cook until tender. Pour into a colander to drain, shaking well to remove all of the water.
3. In a large bowl, combine hot tortellini, onion, parsley and 1 cup of the vinaigrette. When cool, add the additional ingredients and more vinaigrette if necessary. Toss before serving.
What a great salad this is! I will be making it often this summer when the green beans from my garden are ready. Be sure to use tuna that is canned in olive oil. Also, the recipe calls for orzo, but I substituted Acini Di Pepe. It's a tiny, tiny, tubular pasta. If you can find it (I purchased the DaVinci brand), use it in this recipe.
TUNA, GREEN BEAN and POTATO SALAD
adapted from a recipe by Giada De Laurentiis
• 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 3/4 pounds thin green beans, halved
• 2 large Red Bliss potatoes, cut into 3/4-inch pieces
• 1 cup Acini Di Pepe, or orzo
• Two 4.5-ounce cans tuna in olive oil, drained
• 1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1/4 cup chopped basil
• 1/4 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
1. In a large bowl, whisk the olive oil with the lemon juice, garlic and oregano. Season the dressing with salt and pepper.
2. In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook the green beans until tender, about 4 minutes. Transfer the beans to a colander. Add the potatoes to the pot and cook until tender, about 10 minutes. Transfer the potatoes to the colander. Add the Acini Di Pepe to the boiling water and cook until al dente; drain well.
3. Add the green beans, potatoes and pasta to the dressing and toss gently to coat. Fold in the tuna, cherry tomatoes and fresh herbs and season with salt and pepper. Serve warm or at room temperature.
It's spring, I'm outdoors working in my formal vegetable garden, and I'm making pasta salads.
In addition to adding several new planting beds for my heirloom vegetables, I also decided it was time to raise the original bricks that have been edging the garden for the past eleven years.
 Needless to say, after three days of hauling bricks home from the brickyard, digging up the original bricks, and laying the old and new, I wanted something simple for dinner last night. Along with a grilled flank steak, I served this Tortellini Salad with Snow Peas.
We are now having a gentle, cool rain, and temperatures are predicted to warm up nicely by the middle of the week. At that point I will start planting haricot verts, my favorite green bean in bush form. My husband is getting extremely anxious to plant his heirloom tomatoes that he started as seedlings in March, but it is still too early. No matter how nice the weather is, it's always the safest bet to wait until Memorial Day weekend for planting tomatoes in Minnesota.
TORTELLINI SALAD with SNOW PEAS
adapted from a very old House Beautiful magazine
• 1 1/2 pounds uncooked, meat or cheese-filled tortellini
• 1/2 pound snow peas
Dressing:
• 3/4 cup sesame oil
• 1/4 teaspoon Chinese hot oil
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• Pinch of each: cayenne, salt and freshly ground pepper
• 1/8 cup fresh ginger, finely diced
• 1/2 cup sesame seeds
• 3/4 cup pine nuts (pingoli)
• 2 cans sliced water chestnuts
1. Cook tortellini until al dente in boiling water. Plunge into cold water to stop cooking and drain. Toss snow peas into boiling water and cook for only 20 seconds. Plunge into cold water and drain.
2. Combine all of the dressing ingredients in a bowl and beat well with a whisk. Add dressing to the tortellini and stir in the rest of the ingredients.
All I can say is, "man, did I ever screw up!" LIVING TASTEFULLY is in big trouble when I start messing around on the computer, which is exactly what I was doing yesterday. Hopefully, everything is back to where it should be this morning... If you run across anything that makes absolutely no sense to you, please let me know so I can correct it. In the meantime, here is a recipe for Cincinnati Chili I made the other night. It was very good. Nothing wrong with this.
CINCINNATI CHILI
Chili:
• 1 1/2 pounds ground bison or lean beef
• 1/2 pound ground pork
• 2 8 ounce cans tomato sauce
• 1 6 ounce can tomato paste
• 5 cloves of garlic, minced
• 2 cups diced onion
• 2 tablespoons chili powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon allspice
• 2 bay leaves
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa
• 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon celery seed
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 pound thin spaghetti, broken in half, cooked and tossed with 3 tablespoons olive oil
toppings:
• 2 cups light red kidney beans
• 2 cups chopped onions
• 2 cups grated cheddar cheese
1. Sauté the ground bison or beef and ground pork in a large pot until browned. Drain any grease.
2. Add all of the remaining chili ingredients, except of course, the spaghetti. Cover and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for about 1 to 1 1/2 hours, uncovered. Discard the bay leaves.
3. Serve over the spaghetti and add the toppings of your choice.
PASTA with PROSCIUTTO and PARMESAN
adapted from Cooking Light magazine
• 1/2 pound uncooked pasta (I used a beautiful handmade Italian fuisilli)
• Olive oil
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh parsley
• 2 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 ounce thinly-sliced Prosciutto, cut into thin strips
• 1/4 cup (1 ounce) freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
1. Cook pasta according to directions. Drain, reserving 3 tablespoons cooking liquid.
2. Heat large sauté pan over medium-low heat. Pour in a small amount of olive oil and add the garlic to the pan, and sauté for about 1 minute. Do not let garlic brown. Remove from heat. Add reserved 3 tablespoons cooking liquid and pasta to pan; let stand for 2 minutes. Stir in parsley, 2 tablespoons olive oil, salt, pepper, and prosciutto; sprinkle with cheese. Serve immediately. Yield: 3 servings.
SEVEN FLAVOR PRECIOUS CHICKEN
a recipe by Leann Chin
• 4 tablespoons soy sauce, divided
• 2 tablespoons sesame oil, divided
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• 2 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves, cut into strips
• 8 ounces uncooked vermicelli
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 2 tablespoons distilled white vinegar
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil, divided
• 1 medium carrot, julienned
• 1/4 pound fresh snow peas, trimmed and julienned
• 1/2 cup chopped green onions
• 1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger root
• 1/2 to 3/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
TO MARINADE CHICKEN: Blend 1 tablespoon soy sauce and 1 tablespoon sesame oil with cornstarch. Stir in chicken. Let stand for 10 minutes.
TO COOK NOODLES: Break vermicelli in half. Cook according to package directions, omitting salt. Drain. Keep warm in a large mixing bowl.
TO MAKE VINEGAR: Dissolve sugar in remaining soy sauce, sesame oil and vinegar. Set aside.
TO STIR-FRY CHICKEN and VEGETABLES: In hot wok, heat 1 tablespoon vegetable oil over high heat; add chicken. Stir-fry for about 3 minutes; remove and heat remaining oil. Add carrot and snow peas. Stir-fry about 1 minute. Add green onions, ginger and red pepper; stir-fry 1 minute longer. Remove from heat. Stir in chicken and vinegar sauce. Pour over vermicelli. Toss to combine. Serve immediately.
Above: One for the oven and one for the freezer.
BAKED PENNETTE with MEAT SAUCE
adapted from Food & Wine Magazine
• 1 pound penne pasta
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 pound ground lamb
• 1 pound ground veal (or venison like I served my unsuspecting family)
• One 28-ounce can diced tomatoes, drained
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 1 teaspoon dried marjoram
• 2 tablespoons chopped flat-leaf parsley
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 stick unsalted butter
• 3/4 cup flour
• 1 quart whole milk
• 2 large egg yolks
• 1 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
1. Preheat oven to 350˚ F. In a large pot of boiling, salted water, cook the pasta until done. Drain well.
2. In a large, deep skillet, heat the olive oil. Add the onion and cook over moderately high heat, stirring occasionally, until softened. Add the ground lamb and veal and cook, stirring to break up the lumps, until the meat is beginning to brown. Remove from heat and stir in the tomatoes, tomato paste, marjoram and parsley. Season with salt and pepper. Transfer to a large bowl.
3. In a large saucepan, melt the butter. Add the flour and cook over moderate heat, whisking, for 2 minutes. Gradually whisk in the milk and cook over moderately high heat, whisking constantly, until the sauce is very thick and boiling, 7 to 8 minutes. Remove from the heat and whisk in the egg yolks and the Parmigiano-Reggiano. Stir in all but 1 1/2 cups of sauce into the meat mixture along with the pasta and season with salt and pepper. Spoon into a 3-quart baking dish (or do what I did; divide between two shallow baking dishes and freeze one for later). Spread the reserved 1 1/2 cups of sauce on top.
4. Bake the pasta in the center of the oven for about 30 minutes, until bubbling. Preheat the broiler. Broil the pasta 8 inches from the heat for about 2 minutes, until the top is browned and bubbling. Let rest for 10 minutes before serving.
FARFALLE with SAUSAGE and SWEET PEPPERS
adapted from Country Home Magazine
• 8 ounces Farfalle (bow-tie pasta)
• 3/4 pound fresh spicy Italian sausage links, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 2 medium sweet peppers, cut into strips
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 cup beef broth, divided
• 1/4 teaspoon coarsely-ground black pepper
• 1/4 cup chipped fresh Italian parsley
Cook pasta. In a large skillet over medium-hi heat, cook sausage and sweet peppers in the olive oil until sausage is brown. Add 1/2 cup broth and black pepper. Bring to boiling. Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered for 5 minutes. Remove from heat. When pasta is cooked, drain well. Add to sausage mixture and heat, adding additional 1/2 cup beef broth. Sprinkle with fresh parsley and serve. Grate Parmesan on top of pasta.
Makes 4 servings
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