Category Archives: Pasta Rice & Potatoes

A Trio of Mushroom Dishes for a Trio of Mushrooms

If you’re ever in the Lake Winnipesaukee area, as we were last month visiting family, stop in at the New Hampshire Mushroom Company in Tamworth. If you’re lucky, the mushroom-growing rooms will be open to the public when you visit. Unfortunately, most of the crew was out giving a mushroom foraging tour the day we visited, so no back room tour for us. Nonetheless, we still managed to score a HUGE box of gorgeous shrooms – Lion’s Mane, Chestnut and Blue Oyster. I was a bit worried we’d never manage to use them all, but my fears were ungrounded, as we had several occasions the following week to share our bounty with family.

First, I made the most wonderful Mushroom Lasagna for dinner at Irene’s with Mr TBTAM’s family, based on a recipe from Martha Rose Shulman. We left the leftovers for Irene, and were pleased to hear it was just as delicious the next day when reheated.

Two days later, Mr TBTAM and I made a pasta using the leftover cooked lasagna noodles (If you cook the whole pound box instead of the half pound called for in the recipe you have a LOT of leftover noodles) that I sliced into long tagliatelle-like shapes and tossed with the same mushroom mixture as in the lasagna, substituting heavy cream for the bechamel. OMG, perfection!

Finally, again using that very same recipe as a base, Rachel and I made mushroom toasts to serve my family, who came over for dinner while she and brother Joe were staying with us. This time, we served that cooked mushroom mixture atop toasted slices of a baguette from Metropolitan Bakery in Reading Terminal Market. The only thing better than those toasts was having my sibs and their spouses around our dining room table, probably the thing I had missed most when moving to NYC 30 years go, and the thing that makes me happiest about our move back home to Philly.

Here are the three recipes. Enjoy!

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Mushroom Lasagna

Based on a recipe from Martha Rose Shulman in the NY Times. The bechamel is made with olive oil instead of butter, and is just lovely.

Ingredients

Mushrooms

  • 1 ounce mixed dried mushrooms
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 2 shallots finely chopped
  • 3 garlic cloves minced
  • 1 pound fresh mushrooms, sliced (I used Lions Mane, Chestnut and Blue Oysters, but you can use crimini if that's what is available)
  • Salt to taste
  • ½ cup fruity red wine
  • 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
  • Freshly ground pepper

Béchamel

  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 2 tablespoons minced shallots
  • 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • 2 cups whole milk
  • Salt
  • freshly ground pepper

Lasagna

  • ½ pound dried lasagna noodles
  • I cup grated mixed Parmesan/Pecorino Romano cheese

Instructions

  • Soak the dried mushrooms in a glass measuring cup with 2 cups boiling water for 30 minutes. Drain in a strainer lined with cheesecloth over a bowl, squeezing to extract all the juices. If using shiitakes, cut away and discard the stems. Measure out 1½ cups of the soaking liquid and set aside. Rinse the mushrooms until they are free of sand, squeeze dry and chop coarsely. Set aside.
  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Oil a 2-quart rectangular baking dish.
  • Cook the Mushrooms. Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large, heavy skillet over medium heat and add shallots. Cook, stirring often, until tender. Add the garlic, stir together for about 30 seconds, then add the fresh and reconstituted mushrooms and salt to taste. Cook, stirring often, until the mushrooms begin to soften and sweat. Add the wine and turn the heat to high. Cook, stirring, until the liquid boils down. Add thyme and stir in the mushroom soaking liquid. Bring to a simmer, add salt, and cook over medium-high heat, stirring often, until the mushrooms are thoroughly tender and fragrant and the surrounding broth has reduced by a little more than half, about 10 to 15 minutes. Remove from the heat, stir in some freshly ground pepper, taste and adjust salt.
  • Make the béchamel. Heat the oil over medium heat in a heavy saucepan. Add the minced shallot and cook, stirring, until softened, about 3 minutes. Stir in the flour and cook, stirring, for about 3 minutes, until smooth and bubbling, but not browned. Whisk in the milk all at once and bring to a simmer, whisking all the while, until the mixture begins to thicken. Turn the heat to very low and simmer, stirring often with a whisk and scraping the bottom and edges of the pan with a rubber spatula, for 10 to 15 minutes, until the sauce is thick and has lost its raw-flour taste. Season with salt and pepper. Pour while hot into the pan with the mushrooms.
  • Meanwhile, boil the water with a little olive oil for the lasagna and cook the noodles according to directions, till al dente. Drain. Spoon a thin layer of béchamel and mushrooms over the bottom of the dish. Top with a layer of noodles. Spread a ladleful of the mushroom/béchamel mixture over the noodles and top with a layer of Parmesan. Continue to repeat the layers, ending with a layer of the mushroom/béchamel mixture topped with Parmesan. Cover with foil and place in the oven. Bake 30 minutes. Remove the foil, and continue to bake uncovered for another 5 to 10 minutes till edges are slightly crispy and top is browned. Serve.
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Tagliatelle with Mushrooms

Dried and fresh mushrooms combine with a light, olive oil bechamel and Parmesan or mixed aged cheeses to make a delicious pasta. Serve with a tossed green salad.

Ingredients

  • 1 ounce mixed dried mushrooms
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 2 shallots finely chopped
  • 3 garlic cloves minced
  • 8 ounces fresh mushrooms, sliced (I used Lions Mane, Chestnut and Blue Oysters, but you can use crimini)
  • ½ cup fruity red wine
  • 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
  • Freshly ground pepper
  • Salt
  • 1/2 cup heavy cream
  • 1/2 pound dried tagliatelle
  • grated Parmesan or Pecorino Romano cheese

Instructions

  • Soak the dried mushrooms in a glass measuring cup with 2 cups boiling water for 30 minutes. Drain in a strainer lined with cheesecloth over a bowl, squeezing to extract all the juices. If using shiitakes, cut away and discard the stems. Measure out 1½ cups of the soaking liquid and set aside. Rinse the mushrooms until they are free of sand, squeeze dry and chop coarsely. Set aside.
  • Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large, heavy skillet over medium heat and add shallots. Cook, stirring often, until tender. Add the garlic, stir together for about 30 seconds, then add the fresh and reconstituted mushrooms and salt to taste. Cook, stirring often, until the mushrooms begin to soften and sweat. Add the wine and turn the heat to high. Cook, stirring, until the liquid boils down. Add thyme and stir in the mushroom soaking liquid. Bring to a simmer, add salt, and cook over medium-high heat, stirring often, until the mushrooms are thoroughly tender and fragrant and the surrounding broth has reduced by a little more than half, about 10 to 15 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Stir in cream and simmer for 5 minutes. Adjust seasoning as needed.
  • While the mushrooms are cooking, boil salted water for the pasta and cook the pasta in the water till al dente, then drain and toss in with the mushroom-cream mixture. Sprinkle generously with grated cheese and serve.
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Mushroom Toasts

Serve cooked mixed mushrooms atop toasted baguette slices, topped with grated Parmesan.

Ingredients

  • 1 ounce mixed dried mushrooms
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 2 shallots finely chopped
  • 3 garlic cloves minced
  • 1 pound fresh mushrooms sliced (I used Lions Mane, Chestnut and Blue Oysters, but you can use crimini if that’s what is available)
  • Salt to taste
  • ½ cup fruity red wine
  • 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
  • Freshly ground pepper
  • extra virgin Olive oil
  • 1 long baguette
  • 1/2 cup grated Parmesan or Pecorino Romano cheese

Instructions

  • Soak the dried mushrooms in a glass measuring cup with 2 cups boiling water for 30 minutes. Drain in a strainer lined with cheesecloth over a bowl, squeezing to extract all the juices. If using shiitakes, cut away and discard the stems. Measure out 1½ cups of the soaking liquid and set aside. Rinse the mushrooms until they are free of sand, squeeze dry and chop coarsely. Set aside.
  • Cook the Mushrooms. Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large, heavy skillet over medium heat and add shallots. Cook, stirring often, until tender. Add the garlic, stir together for about 30 seconds, then add the fresh and reconstituted mushrooms and salt to taste. Cook, stirring often, until the mushrooms begin to soften and sweat. Add the wine and turn the heat to high. Cook, stirring, until the liquid boils down. Add thyme and stir in the mushroom soaking liquid. Bring to a simmer, add salt, and cook over medium-high heat, stirring often, until the mushrooms are thoroughly tender and fragrant and the surrounding broth has reduced by a little more than half, about 10 to 15 minutes. Remove from the heat, stir in some freshly ground pepper, taste and adjust salt. Keep warm while toasting the baguette slices.
  • Toast the Baguette Slices. Heat the oven to 400 degrees. Slice baguette, arrange slices on a baking sheet and generously brush with olive oil. Bake until lightly toasted, 5 to 10 minutes.
  • Assemble Toasts. Spoon warm mushroom mixture atop the baguette slices. Sprinkle generously with grated cheese and serve.

Farro with Oyster Mushrooms & Onions

One of my goals in retirement is to shop more at the farm markets, in order to support local farmers and eat more seasonally. It’s something I could never find the time to do when I was working. (Though I have friends who managed to do so even with full time jobs, so really, what was my excuse?…)

Although I adore the Union Square Green Market, it’s a bit of a schlep to visit on a regular basis. Thankfully, we have a wonderful farmer’s market every Sunday here on the Upper West Side, on Columbus Avenue just behind the Museum of Natural History. That’s where some lovely-looking oyster mushrooms caught my eye last weekend. Actually, they were the only variety the mushroom guy had left by the time we reached the market late afternoon. I brought them home in a brown paper bag. Then they sat in the fridge for a day or so while I wondered what to do with them.

I decided not to make this mushroom-broth infused farro, or this mushroom risotto with those oyster babies. Rising food prices have led us to commit to cutting out food waste and working first from the fridge, freezer and pantry when planning dinner. So instead, I reached for the leftover farro I discovered in the fridge, and concocted a little mushroom-onion delight. We served it alongside some sausages we found in the freezer and a salad made with greens and leftover homemade lemon dressing from the fridge. It was a delicious and satisfying dinner.

I’m really enjoying shopping the farm markets and looking for meal inspiration in my own fridge and pantry. Not to mention the upside of seeing our overcrowded, impossible-to-find-anything shelves take on a Marie Konda-like serenity as we begin to work our way through their contents. And the gratitude of realizing that these are the first-world problems of a life lived in abundance.

In that vein, I’ve committed us to use our food dollar savings towards a monthly donation to City Harvest, whose goal is to rescue NYC’s excess food so it doesn’t go to waste, distributing it to food pantries and soup kitchens across the five boroughs. They also run free neighborhood mobile markets, teach healthy cooking, and work with corner markets and groceries to encourage and support them in selling fresh produce and other healthy foods in their neighborhoods. Check out their App and online map that folks can use to find free food across NYC. A cause worth your contribution!

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Farro w/ Oyster Mushrooms and Onions

A great use for leftover cooked farro or rice. To make using uncooked farro, you can add the uncooked farro to the mushroom and onions just after they've sauteed, along with the recommended amount of water (or better yet, mushroom broth), and cook them all together till the farro is done. Serve as described.

Ingredients

  • 2 large clumps Fresh Oyster Mushrooms
  • 2 tbsp butter
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 Onion, large, large mince
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 sprig Fresh thyme, minced
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • sun dried tomatoes packed in oil for garnish
  • Grated Parmesan cheese for the table
  • 2 cups Leftover Cooked Farro or Rice

Instructions

  • Clean oyster mushrooms with a dry brush or paper towel. (Do not wash, as they will suck up all the water.) Chop the mushrooms into largish bite size pieces. They will be all sorts of shapes. Use all of the mushroom, even the stems.
  • Heat butter and oil in a large skillet or cast iron pan. When hot, add onions and saute over medium high heat till translucent. Add garlic and thyme and stir for a minute or so.
  • Add mushrooms and saute, letting them sit for spells so they brown, but being careful not to let them get too dry. (Oyster mushrooms don't have much water to give off, unlike other mushrooms you may be used to using. Although mine stayed nice and moist, if yours seem dry, at this point you can add a little mushroom, chicken or beef broth – but be careful the mushrooms will absorb it all if you let it cook too long.) Season with salt and pepper to taste.
  • Add farro and cook till heated through.
  • Plate and garnish with thinly sliced sun-dried tomatoes. Pass the Parmesan.

Orecchiette with Basil Pesto, Fennel & Sausage

As the weather turns towards winter, the basil plant on my windowsill begins to worry me. Sure, it has sun in that spot, but less and less with each day, and eventually not enough to keep it alive when cold winds pummel the adjacent glass. Time to harvest what basil remains before it’s lost. I had just enough basil for a batch of pesto, but no pine nuts. What I did have was a tiny jar of walnuts in my freezer – exactly the amount I needed! So I made a batch of pesto using my recipe for basil pesto, substituting walnuts for pine nuts.

I also had about 2 cups of homemade chicken broth in the freezer. So I scouted around for a good way to use both the broth and the pesto and discovered this recipe from NYT Cooking. I substituted the basil-walnut pesto for the broccoli-rabe pesto in that recipe and Viola! A new recipe. It was delicious!

I love it when ingredient availability drives cooking invention.

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Orecchiette with Sausage and Basil-Walnut Pesto

Ingredients

  • 1 generous cup basil-walnut pesto Recipe link in instructions
  • 4 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 cup finely chopped fennel bulb
  • 1 cup finely chopped onion
  • 1 pound sweet Italian sausage, casing removed
  • 2 cups chicken stock
  • 500 grams orecchiette about 1 1/4 pounds dried, or fresh (made with 4 cups flour)
  • Sun dried tomatoes, thinly sliced, for garnish (optional)

Instructions

  • Make a batch of Basil pesto, substituting walnuts for pine nuts, using this recipe.
  • Heat olive oil in a large sauté pan on low. Add fennel and onion, and cook until soft but not brown. Add sausage and cook, mashing it to a fine crumble, until it is no longer pink. Add chicken stock and cook until the stock has mostly evaporated and just glazes the sausage. Transfer sausage mixture to a food processor and pulse until finely ground (But Not too much! ). Return sausage mixture to the pan. Fold in a generous cup of the pesto.(Can be made ahead and held here.)
  • Bring large pot of salted water to a boil. Add orecchiette and cook until al dente. Reheat sausage mixture and add 1/2 cup of the pasta water. Drain pasta and add to pan with the sausage mixture. Toss until pasta is evenly coated. Fold in remaining ½ cup cheese, check seasoning, add more pasta water if needed, and serve topped with grated Parmesan and thinly sliced sun-dried tomatoes.

Basil Pesto

Posting this recipe for easy reference in an upcoming post. Enjoy!

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Basil Pesto

Ingredients

  • 2 cups loosely packed basil leaves
  • 1/4 cup pine nuts
  • 2 large garlic cloves, peeled
  • 1/2 cup olive oil
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Instructions

  • Combine the basil, garlic, and salt in the bowl of food processor and grind till the mixture forms a paste. While running the food processor, slowly drizzle in the olive oil.  Fold in grated Parmesan. (If freezing, hold the Parmesan till just before using the thawed pesto.)

Maccheroni alla bolognese

Before there was Stanley Tucci’s Searching for Italy, there was Regional Italian Cuisine, a cookbook tour of Italy’s regions through its foods and recipes. While Stanley’s show is a light aperitivo, this book is the ten course meal, with recipes for dishes that will make you feel like you’re one of the Famiglia.

Each chapter of Regional Italian Cuisine focuses on a different region of Italy, summarizing in sequential, gorgeous two-page spreads of perfectly balanced text and photos its climate, crops, food specialties, regional events and sights to see. It then follows with short, well-written recipes of dishes native to the region. Every single recipe has an accompanying photograph, and some have photos of the recipe in progress. The recipes presume some knowledge of cooking, but I’ve never found them lacking in needed detail.

I don’t know where or when I bought this gorgeous tome, or when I annotated its regional map of Italy with notes to summarize the foods made there (I’m always prepping for an exam…). I do know that for years, it’s been my go to for all dishes Italian. The book (and it’s update in 2008) is out of print, but available used at a reasonable price.

Craving Ragu Bolognese

Recently, I found myself craving a ragù bolognese and remembering the light bolognese lasagna my friend Fabrizio had served us some years back. Unfortunately, Fabrizio was in Rome and not immediately available to give me his recipe. So I turned to my mainstay Italian reference, where I found a recipe for Maccheroni alla bolognese.

The first thing I noticed was that this Bolognese has no milk or cream, an ingredient that seems to be ubiquitous in most ragù bolognese, including the one officially notarized in 1982 by the Bologna Chamber of Commerce. Nor does it have tomatoes, though tomatoes are offered as a variation for those who just cannot imagine a ragù without them. (I used a small amount of tomato paste). And it has a single chicken liver!

So is this really a Bolognese?

Yes! In fact, it is closer than many to the most famous early recipe for ragù bolognese, published in 1891 by Pellegrino Artusi in his book La Scienza in Cucina e l’Arte di mangiar bene (Science in the Kitchen and the Art of Eating Well). The translated recipe is below.

Maccheroni alla Bolognese (Macaroni Bolognese)

For this dish the people of Bologna used a medium-sized pasta called denti di cavallo (horse’s teeth), and I agree that this kind of pasta is best for cooking in this style. … The following proportions are approximate for seasoning 500 grams (a pound) or more of pasta. 150 grams lean veal (better if in fillets.) 50 grams pancetta. 40 grams butter. One quarter of a regular onion. Half a carrot. Two palm-length ribs of white celery or the herb portion of a green celery. Just a little pinch of flour. A little pot of broth. A small amount of salt, depending on the saltiness of the pancetta and broth. Pepper and nutmeg to taste.

Cut the meat into small cubes, chop the pancetta, onion and herbs with a mezzaluna, and put them under the heat with the butter. When the meat has browned add the pinch of flour and broth and continue cooking until it is done.

Drain the pasta thoroughly and toss it with Parmesan cheese and this sauce, which you can make even better by adding some dried mushrooms, or sliced truffle, or a bit of chopped cooked chicken liver. Finally, you can add a half cup of cream to the sauce at the end of the cooking to make it more delicate. In each case, it is best that the macaroni arrive at the table not dry, but bathed in a bit of sauce..

Note that Artusi does suggest adding a half glass of cream at the end of his recipe, but this is only a suggestion and is entirely optional, according to Thomas Gwinner, who published an impressive history of the ragù bolognese.

Let us remember for comparison with later recipes that Artusi uses twelve ingredients and offers three optional ingredients for his ragù bolognese recipe. The twelve ingredients are veal, pancetta, butter, onion, carrot, celery,flour, broth, salt, pepper, nutmeg and Parmesan cheese. The three optional ingredients are dried mushrooms or sliced truffles, chopped cooked chicken liver, and cream.

Gwinner goes on to cite an even earlier related recipe from Alberto Alvisi in the 18th century. that uses chicken gizzard and cinammon, but never mentions milk or cream.

Ragù per li maccheroni appasiciati (Sloppy Macaroni)
Put well-rendered lard, an ounce of butter, a finely chopped onion, and veal, pork loin or even some finely-minced chicken gizzard in a pot, and cook the mixture over high heat until nicely browned. Add the broth little by little along with an ounce of flour to give body to the sauce as it reduces. Be aware that this ragù must be neither too watery nor too thick, but perfectly cooked, and sufficiently flavored with salt, pepper, cinnamon or other spices. The pasta must then be perfectly cooked in meat broth or well-salted water before serving with the above mentioned ragù.

Drain the pasta thoroughly and put it into a large bowl. Add the ragù and give it a stir. It will suffice at least for a first course at lunch. It is essential that the dish be hot and well mixed before bringing it to the table. Please note that in order to give the above mentioned ragù more substance it may be necessary to unify the savory flavors by adding some finely chopped mushrooms or truffles.

Eataly and Lydia Bastianich have published ragù bolognese recipes without milk, so I think I’m in good company with this recipe. And check out Massimo Bottura’s ragù bolognese – not only does he omit the milk, he chops the meat himself ! (Well, his assistant chops it …)

While my recipe uses tubular pasta, these days it is considered traditional to serve ragù bolognese on tagliatelle (preferably homemade). Like Artusi, Bottura cooks his tagliatelle in the same broth he uses in his ragù, and then finishes the pasta off in a pan with the ragù. I think that will be my next iteration of this incredible dish.

Ragù bolognese is not your mama’s spaghetti sauce

It’s a whole different dish, a true meat sauce. Unlike your mama’s tomato sauce, it does not take hours to make and is light yet rich in flavor. You must try it.

Don’t be put off by the clove in this recipe – it’s there, but it’s not. Or the chicken liver – you cannot taste it individually, but it really enriches the flavor. Not to mention that you now you have something to do with the some of the giblets inside that chicken you just bought!

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5 from 1 vote

Maccheroni alla bolognese

Macaroni with meat sauce, Bologna style (Emilia-Romagna)

Ingredients

  • 1/2 pound ground beef
  • 1 chicken liver (1 ounce)
  • 2 thick slices bacon, minced (3 ounces)
  • 1 carrot, minced
  • 1 celery stalk, minced
  • 2/3 cup Parmesan cheese, freshly grated
  • 1 lb Pasta I used pasta al ceppo
  • 1/2 cup beef stock Warmed, plus more to thin the sauce later if need be
  • 2 tbsp butter
  • 1 tsp flour
  • 1 onion
  • 1 whole clove
  • 1 bay leaf
  • Freshly ground nutmeg to taste I used about 1/2 tsp
  • 1 pinch cayenne pepper
  • salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
  • 3 tbsp tomato paste

Instructions

  • Melt butter in a large frying pan. Add carrot, celery and bacon and stir-fry lightly
  • Add ground meat and brown. Dust the meat with flour and add beef stock and tomato paste. Season w salt, pepper and freshly ground nutmeg. Add the clove and bay leaf. Simmer, covered, about 20 mins.
  • In a large pot bring 8 cups of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook al dente.
  • Mince the chicken liver and add to the ground beef. Cook 3-4 mins. Season again with salt and pepper and a pinch of the cayenne. Remove the bay leaf (and the clove if you can find it).
  • Drain the cooked pasta. Plate and top with the meat sauce. Serve with Parmesan cheese.

Notes

Variation – Peel and seed 11 ounces tomatoes, chop and cook together with the sauce.
Note – If you mistime the pasta and ragu, and the sauce thickens while you’re waiting for the pasta, just add some warmed beef stock or pasta water to thin the sauce out.
 

Foraged Sumac / Ottolenghi’s Gigli with Chickpeas & Za’atar

I first encountered wild sumac in 2015 in Pennsylvania’s Loyalsock Forest. I’ve foraged for it most summers since, both there

and along the Pine Creek Rail Trail.

This year’s sumac crop was a little disappointing. Despite how much I picked, most of the fruits had worm infestations that limited the amount of usable berries. (Note to self – pick sooner in the season next year…) Still, I got about a cup and a half of dried sumac for my efforts, more than enough for my needs. (If you want to know how to harvest and dry sumac to make the spice, read here.)

I used the fruits of my harvest to to make Za’tar, a Middle Eastern spice mix of sumac, thyme, oregano, salt and sesame seeds.This year, my friend Paula gifted me some dried oregano just around the time I finished drying my sumac, so I used that and discovered that home-grown dried herbs make a superior spice blend! (Duh…)

If you’re looking to use za’atar in cooking, look to the cookbooks of Yotam Ottolenghi, the Israeli-born Brit who has introduced many a home cook to the flavors and spices of the Middle East. (He sells Sumac and a Palestinian Za’atar on his site.)

From Ottolenghi’s cookbook Simple comes this recipe for Gigli Pasta with Chickpeas and Za’atar. Here he uses za’atar as a garnish, which I find is a wonderful way to showcase the individual spices in the mix.

Even if you don’t forage your own sumac, za’atar is not too hard to find in most good grocery stores or online. I urge you to give it a try!

Gigli with Chickpeas and Za’atar

As much as I love this dish as published by Ottolenghi, I’ve made a couple of changes. First, I increased the garlic from 2 to 3 cloves (and may go to 4 cloves next time) and doubled the spinach. I’ve saved some pasta water to thin out the sauce at the end, as it really thickens if you let it sit. And I feel like the dish needs tomatoes to complete it. There are two ways to accomplish this. One is to add tomatoes to the sauce itself or to leftovers the following day. An even better option is to serve the pasta with flatbreads topped with tomato sofrito and garlic, as I’ve done up there. The combo is perfection.

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Gigli with Chickpeas & Za’atar

Ottolenghi's recipe for pasta with chickpeas, spinach and za'atar.
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Mediterranean
Keyword: anchovies, Chickpeas, Pasta, sumac, Za’atar

Ingredients

  • 3 tbsp olive oil
  • 1/2 onion, finely chopped
  • 3 garlic cloves, crushed
  • 2 tsp ground cumin
  • 10 grams thyme leaves, finely chopped 1/2 cup
  • 7 anchovy filets drained and finely chopped
  • zest of 1/2 lemon
  • 2 tbsp lemon juice
  • salt and black pepper
  • 2 cans 15.5 oz/480 g chickpeas, drained and rinsed
  • 1 tsp brown sugar
  • 1 2/3 cup chicken broth
  • 7 ounces gigli pasta
  • 100 grams baby spinach leaves
  • 3/4 cup chopped parsley (15 grams)
  • 1 1/2 tsp za'atar
  • 1 small can diced tomatoes (optional)

Instructions

  • Place large saute pan over high heat, All olive oil, then onion, garlic, cumin, thyme, anchovies and lemon peel, 1/2 tsp salt and a good grind of pepper. Fry, stirring often till soft and golden. Decrease heat to med-high, add chickpeas and sugar and fry , stirring occasionally, till chickpeas begin to brown and crisp up. Add chicken stock and lemon juice and simmer 6 mins, till sauce slightly reduced. Remove from heat and hold. (Can make ahead) If you are going to add tomatoes, I would do so along with chicken stock and lemon juice.
  • Boil large pot salted water. Cook pasta for 8 mins till al dente, Drain and set aside. (Save some pasta water if the sauce has gotten too thick, you can thin it a bit.)
  • Stir spinach and parsley into chickpeas, warming it to wilt the spinach if needed. Add pasta to the chickpeas and stir to combine. Divide among 4 plates and srpinkle za'atar atop. Finish with a drizzle of olive oil and serve.

Blackened Shrimp with Citrus and Roasted Fennel

It’s been quite a long hiatus from blogging, and I for one am glad it’s over.

Nothing special made me stop blogging, just the overwhelming business of life and work. It’s a good life, but one that for the past year or two has lost the balance between work and private life that I seem to have achieved when I was blogging more frequently.

At any rate, things in general have settled down a bit and I find myself actually having free time again to write. And so the blog is back!

What’s new, you ask?

Well, I am about 30 pounds thinner, that’s one big thing.  Nothing magic or amazing, just a food delivery diet that let someone else do the work for me. I still have at least another 40 pounds to go, but decided to see if I could take myself there without the crutch of a delivery diet. And so, I’m on a mission to find a stable of light and healthy but delicious meals that I can begin to incorporate into our life and my diet. It’s only week two of this new on-my-own diet and I am pleased to tell you I have found one amazing dinner that I know I’ll be making over and over again.

Try it, and I predict you will be too.

Blackened Shrimp with Citrus and Roasted Fennel

This recipe is a modification from a recipe found in Cooking Light, a magazine I highly recommend for anyone, not just dieters, who is looking for great recipes. The recipe written here is with my modifications, mostly made to accommodate my larder, which did not at the time include fresh herbs or more than one shallot. I also made my own rice/grain mix. (The original recipe called for a box mix.).

Next time I will add an additional fennel bulb – found myself wanting more! You could also add a few more shrimp when serving 4, as this only gives about 7 per person. Farro would make a nice alternative to rice.

Ingredients

  • 2 oranges
  • 2 medium fennel bulbs with stalks (about 7 oz. each)
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 1/2 tsp sea salt
  • 1 large shallot, quartered
  • 6 cloves garlic, peeled
  • 1/2 large sweet onion, peeled and cut into quarters

For Shrimp:

  • 2 teaspoons paprika
  • 1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme (or 1/2 tsp dried thyme)
  • 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
  • 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 pound large shrimp, peeled and deveined, tails on

For Rice-Grain mix

  • 1/2 cup basmati rice
  • 1 tsp olive oil
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1 cup water
  • 1/2 cup quinoa (I used a red/white quinoa blend)
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1 cup water
  • Reserved orange rind

Instructions

Preheat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit

Grate one orange to equal 1 teaspoon rind; reserve for use in the rice/quinoa mix. Cut oranges crosswise into 1/3-inch-thick rounds. Remove stalks from fennel; chop fronds to equal 2 tablespoons and reserve for garnish. (Save the stalks for future use in a salad, broth, meat braise or fish dish.) Cut fennel bulbs into 1/2-inch-thick wedges. Combine orange slices, 2 tablespoons oil, 1/2 teaspoon salt, shallots, garlic, onion and fennel wedges on a rimmed baking sheet, spreading them out in a single layer to cook. Bake at 425°F for 25 minutes or until fennel is tender and lightly charred.

While veggies are cooking, make the rice/quinoa mix.

Cook the rice: Rinse rice well under cold running water; drain. Boil 3/4 cup water in a pyrex measuring cup in the microwave. Heat 1/2 tbsp oil in a small pot till shimmering. Add rice and salt, stirring well while sauteing over medium high heat for about 2 minutes, till slightly toasted. Add the boiling water, cover and simmer over a low heat until done.

Cook the quinoa: Rinse quinoa well under cold running water. Add to saucepan with water and salt. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, for 15 minutes or until done.

While rice and quinoa are cooking, combine 1/2 teaspoon salt, paprika, thyme, garlic powder, oregano, red pepper in a small bowl. Toss with shrimp, being sure it is evenly coated with the spice mixture. Hold in the fridge if veggies and rice mix are not yet done. (You’ll be cooking up the shrimp at the last minute before serving.)

Toss cooked rice and cooked Quinoa in serving bowl with the reserved orange rind. Cover to keep warm while shrimp cooks.

Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add shrimp; cook 3 minutes, tossing frequently, or until done. Arrange fennel orange mix on serving platter. Top with shrimp and garnish with fennel fronds.

Serves 4. Shrimp/fennel/orange mix has 141 cals per serving. Adding 1/2 cup cooked rice/quinoa brings it to 428 cals per serving.

Polenta & Eggs

Polenta & Eggs

We made a big batch of butternut squash polenta with sausages and onion, adding an extra cup of grated squash to the polenta as it cooked. While this made for a delicious flavored polenta, there was quite a bit left over.

The great thing about polenta is that it hardens as it cools, so we spread it into a class refrigerator dish and put it in the fridge. Next morning, I cut it into rectangles and sauteed it up beside my egg as it cooked in olive oil. A sprinkling of freshly ground pepper topped off a delicious breakfast!

What do you do with your leftover polenta?

Spaghetti w/ Garlicky Breadcrumbs & Anchovies

Spaghetti w/ garlicky breadcrumbs & Anchovies

You know the apple hasn’t fallen far from the tree when your daughter texts and asks what you’re doing tonight, and you text back that you are making this for dinner, and she texts back “OMG!! I just watched that video this morning!” followed by a little icon that she describes as “Me running home for dinner!”

Yep, it doesn’t take much to excite us in the TBTAM household, and this recipe, along with the utterly charming video of Melissa Clark making it, was the highlight of our day yesterday.

We made the dish exactly as written, but but did add a little grated Parmesan when serving.

Try to have just one helping, okay?

Penne w/ Broccoli Rabe, Sausage & Sun-Dried Tomatoes

Penne w: broccoli rabe, sausage and sundried tomatoes

If you’ve spent the afternoon at the Signature Theater seeing Open House by Will Eno (“People have been trying nobly for years and years to have plays solve in two hours what hasn’t been solved in many lifetimes. This has to stop.” I laughed so hard I cried…) and want to have dinner over in time to watch the Oscars,  this is the dish to make. I hate to even use the word “quick” to describe this meal, because it cheapens it. This is no fast food you’ve ever eaten before. It is rich, complex, and absolutely delicious.

Thank you, Lidia Bastianich for this recipe. If there were an Oscar for great Italian cooking, it’s be yours.

(See Recipe after the jump)  Continue Reading

Penne with Vodka Sauce

A guest post by OBS Housekeeper, pasta cook extraordinaire and sister of TBTAM.

penne vodka 5The kids are all together for the first time in months and we have just 5 days until Christmas so it’s time to decorate the tree. In need of something simple and delicious for dinner I hit the freezer for some Vodka Sauce that I had made a few weeks ago.

penne vodka 1

Pair it with penne,

Penne vodka 2

a Caesar saladpenne vodka 3 and crusty Italian bread and dinner is served.

It must have been tasty because there were no leftovers! And the tree couldn’t be more beautiful! Happy holidays!

PENNE with VODKA SAUCE
Vodka sauce traditionally does not include garlic, but OBS housekeeper says “What’s a pasta sauce without garlic?”

Ingredients
1 stick Butter
1 Onion, finely diced
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 Cup Vodka
2 – 28 ounce cans Crushed Tomatoes
1 pint heavy cream

Directions
1. In a skillet over medium heat, saute onion in butter until slightly brown and soft, add the garlic in the last munite or so.
2. Pour in vodka and let cook for 10 minutes.
3. Mix in crushed tomatoes and cook for 30 minutes.
4. Pour in heavy cream and cook for another 30 minutes.
5. Toss sauce with penne.
6. Add plenty of freshly grated parmesan cheese.
7. Enjoy!

Parmesan Potatoes Anna

Parmesan Pommes Anna
Parmesan Pommes Anna

I wanted to share the successful making of this version of Pommes Anna that uses olive oil instead of butter and adds a bit of Parmesan. It went great with Ina Garten’s Perfect Roast Chicken and a side of steamed green beans. And it flipped out of the cast iron skillet perfectly!

PARMESAN POTATOES ANNA

I used Yukon gold potatoes, which have a thin skin that does not require peeling, making this an even faster preparation than the original Pommes Anna. If you use Russet potatoes, I’d peel them first.  As soon as it was in the oven, I found myself wishing I’d added in some fresh thyme or Rosemary, so I added it as an optional ingredient. if you make it that way, do let me know. 

Ingredients

  • 8 medium  Yukon gold potatoes, of equivalent size, longer than wide and able to fit into the feeding tube of your food processor
  • Olive Oil (about 2-3 tbsp total)
  • 1/4 cup parmesan cheese, finely grated.
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • Fresh Rosemary or Thyme (optional)

Preheat oven to 450 degrees fahremheit.

Rinse and dry the potatoes, cutting away any brown spots and trimming them if need be to fit into the feeding tube of the food processor, in which you will slice them 1/8 thick.

Place a well-seasoned cast iron pan on the stovetop, brush the bottom and sides generously with olive oil, and turn on the heat to medium-high. Start layering the potato slices in the pan immediately, starting in the center, in concentric overlapping circles. Brush every layer with the tiniest bit of olive oil, and sprinkle with salt, freshly ground black pepper and Parmesan cheese (plus herbs if you are using them). Continue layering, working quickly, until you use all the potatoes (5 layers for my pan) and the pan is sizzling hot. Sprinkle the last layer with parmesan and cover with aluminum foil. Place the skillet in the hot oven and bake for 15 mins, then remove the foil and bake another 15 minutes till the top is nicely browned.

Remove from the oven and flip over onto a large plate. Cut into wedges and serve.

Parmesan Potatoes Anna
Parmesan Potatoes Anna

Grilled Polenta w/ Spicy Tomato Sauce & Fried Egg

Grilled Polenta with tomato sauce and an egg

I may not be a believer, but I do love it when the stars align to point me toward something wonderful. In this case, it was the convergence within hours of a tweet by Mario Batali, a visit to a native heirloom grain website, a recipe from David Tanis in the NY Times and a yearning for home cooked comfort that led me to this marvelously spicy and heart warming dinner.

Mario Batali, who generously gives advice to those who preface it with @mariobitali, had this to say on Twitter yesterday –

batali tweet

Which led me to Anson Mills website, where I spent a half hour reading about and yearning for traditional grains.  I almost placed an order online for their Rustic Polenta Integrale, but was deterred by the minimum order and $16 shipping charge, which I was bemoaning to Mr TBTAM that evening when he pulled out that day’s paper to show me an entire page devoted to cooking with polenta.

That was it. Well, that and the chilly temperatures and tomorrow’s coming storm. I knew I had to have polenta for dinner.

And while I did not have artisinal grain, I did have some Bel Aria Bramata Oro Polenta (Did I get it from Eataly? I forget…), which made for a delicious porridge that did not require too long a cook, firmed up beautifully in less than a half hour, sliced with an oiled pizza cutter cleanly and easily and grilled like a dream in our cast iron skillet.

grilled polenta

Mr TBTAM made the spicy tomato sauce (I recommend cutting the red pepper to 1/4 tsp) and fried the eggs as only he can. And we had a new favorite dinner.

Dinner recipe here. Basic polenta recipe here.

And if anyone knows where I can lay my hands on some Anson Mills Polenta here in NYC, do let me know.

Herbed Whole Wheat Israeli CousCous with Roasted Cauliflower

Whole Wheat Cous Cous w: Roasted Cauliflower and Rosemary

Whole wheat Israeli couscous. A delicious and healthy way to enjoy these addicting little balls of roasted semolina flour. In Israel they call it ptitim, invented by the Osem food company when Ben Gurion asked them to develop a wheat based substitute for rice during a shortage there. The original ptitim were rice-shaped, but evolved over time to this round pearl couscous.

Israeli couscous is similar to Lebanese Maftoul (which I am dying to try), although Maftoul is made using bulgur and wheat rather than semolina.

Until now, I’ve always eaten the refined white flour version of Israeli couscous, and felt unsatisfied no matter how much I ate at a sitting, which was often considerable. But this whole wheat version is so much more flavorful and filling that a 1/2 cup serving is enough for me.

WHile Wheat Israeli Cous Cous uncooked

We made whole wheat Israeli Couscous tonight using chicken broth and fresh herbs, then served it tossed with roast cauliflower and fresh rosemary alongside pesto-topped broiled basa filet, with some homemade applesauce for desert. A hearty yet healthy dinner, I must say.

Whole Wheat Israeli Cous Cous

We got our couscous at Fairway, but you can get it almost anywhere these days, including online. The traditional brand is Osems, but Bob’s Red Mill makes it, as does Roland. Make sure you get the whole wheat version.

HERBED WHOLE WHEAT ISRAELI COUSCOUS w/ ROASTED CAULIFLOWER

The key to great Israeli cous cous is to pan roast it to bring out the nutty flavor before cooking it in liquid. Some people cook Israeli cous cous like pasta, draining the water off before serving. Others treat it more like rice, which to me seems preferable.  This difference may account for the wide range of ratios of couscous to liquid found in recipes around the web. I”ve settled on 1 1/4 cups liquid per cup of couscous. This is a very simple preparation, but you can make it as complex as you want depending on what you add to it – onions, garlic, you name it.  

  • 2 cups whole wheat Israeli CousCous
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 1-15 oz can chicken broth + enough water to make 2 1/2 cups liquid total
  • 2 tbsp thyme leaves
  • 2 tbsp chopped fresh rosemary (plus whole leaves for garnish)
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • Roast cauliflower (recipe here)
  • Sheep’s MilkYogurt (Optional garnish)

Heat olive oil in a medium saucepan. Toss in couscous and cook over medium high heat till lightly toasted (about 4 mins), adding the herbs about half way through. Add liquid and bring to a boil, then turn down to a low simmer, cover and cook till the liquid is absorbed, about 15-20 mins.

Toss with roast cauliflower and fresh rosemary. Serve with a dollop of Sheeps’ Milk Yogurt.

Pommes Anna

Pomme Anna TBTAM
Pommes Anna

Pommes Anna – Crunchy on the outside, soft and delicious inside. Everything a potato was meant to be.

This classic French recipe, made with just four ingredients – potatoes, butter, salt and pepper – will wow your friends and family and make them think you slaved hours in the kitchen, when all you really did was run a few potatoes though the thin slicing blade of the food processor, layer them in a skillet with butter, salt and pepper, bake them in the oven and then flip it over onto a plate.

I still haven’t gotten the flip part down perfectly – probably because my cast iron pan still isn’t seasoned well enough – and parts of the top still stick. But I’m getting there.

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