Limoncello
It's rather fitting that we bottled our latest batch of Limoncello on the first full day of Summer - it's supposed to hit 96°F today - and up to 113°F [*updated] later in the week. In June. In Oregon. It's definitely time for a frozen cocktail.
I think the first time we bottled Limoncello was back in 2005 - and we've continually tweaked the recipe ever since. Our original recipe called for 2 750ml bottles of 100 proof vodka and 4 cups of sugar. We thought it was too sweet. We made it once with Everclear and it almost uncurled our eyelashes. It was good because we used a lot of lemons and the full amount of sugar, but a little definitely went a long way.
The last few times it's been with standard 80 proof vodka and a lot less sugar.
For this batch, we used about 40 lemons, 3 1.75 liter bottles of vodka, and 3 cups of sugar. It may be the best batch, yet.
Here's the revised recipe if you want to make a smaller batch. Everything is personal preference, but I think the original recipe was way too sweet. You can always taste and add more sugar if you like - but you probably won't. We also go for the max 40 days of steeping.
Limoncello
- 15 organic lemons, well scrubbed
- 1 1.75 liter bottle vodka (80 or 100 proof - higher proof=stronger)
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 cup water
Wash the lemons well and pat dry. Carefully zest the lemons with a zester or vegetable peeler so there is no white pith on the peel.
Step One:
In a large glass jar (1-gallon jar), add the vodka and the lemon zest. Cover the jar and let sit at room temperature for at least 10 days and up to 40 days in a cool dark place. The longer it rests, the better the taste will be. (There is no need to stir – all you have to do is wait.) As the limoncello sits, the vodka slowly take on the flavor and rich yellow color of the lemon zest.Step Two:
In a large saucepan, combine the sugar and water; cook until thick and syrupy, approximately 5 to 7 minutes. Cool the syrup and then stir into the limoncello mixture. Allow to rest for another 10 to 40 days.Step Three:
After the rest period, strain and bottle: discarding the lemon zest. Keep in the freezer until ready to serve.
We bought the bottles from Specialty Bottle in Seattle. They're great folks.
Enjoy!
Two-Burner Cooking
Life continues to move forward...
Our ballots were received in Pennsylvania, all of the paperwork for the home financing has been submitted - and there is a ton of paperwork - VA appraisal is in progress, and we'll know our official move-in date in 8 days.
Moving forward.
We're even getting more creative with our two burner stove.
I made a batch of chicken soup for lunches and then did a Skillet Chicken Parmesan with Rigatoni.
A simple fried chicken breast covered in Victor's homemade sauce, and then topped with cheese. I used the skillet lid to melt the cheese.
Last night, Victor made a simple pasta sauce with cherry tomatoes, garlic, Italian herbs, crushed red pepper, and cheese.
Basic, simple, and totally delicious!
We finally bought a cutting board because I got tired of using a paper plate to slice and dice on. And a can opener. We had packed knives and the kitchen shears - and a favorite wooden spoon - but forgot a few of the other basics.
One can never have too many cutting boards...
I do realize that living in two rooms as we are would be considered a luxury for many people, but it really is not easy when you're used to space, open doors, and a full kitchen. I really miss a full-sized refrigerator and all of our pots and pans!
But... good things come to those who wait.
We're waiting...
The Oregon Trail
We have made it to Oregon.
It was a pretty uneventful trek across the country. We made the drive in 5 nights and 6 days. Back in our youth, we could have made it quicker. At our ages, 8-9 hours in a car with a dog was more than enough.
Blanche handled the trip like a trooper. It was a concern because she had never really spent long periods of time in a car and we really didn't know what to expect.
We rented the SUV because we thought we could put down seats and she could have lots of space.
She wouldn't get into the back.
Plan Two was to lay her bed on the back seat, propping it up to give her lots of space.
She couldn't really maneuver around.
Plan Three was to shove the bed into the area in front of the back seat to level off the area and let her have free rein of the back seat.
This, she liked.
All learning experiences.
We were really pleased to see that almost everyone, everywhere wore masks in stores, gas stations, etc. The lone exception was a Truck Stop in Sydney, Nebraska next to the huge Cabela's store. I don't think 20% of the folks there had masks. Lots of swagger.
The most difficult thing about crossing the country in the time of covid was meals. Neither of us were going into a restaurant to sit down and eat, so most of what we ate was drive-thru. And that stuff gets old after Day One. But... ya do what ya have to do.
And that's what we're going to be doing with our Extended Stay kitchen. You'll notice the lack of oven, for starters. Two burners. A skillet, a saucepan, and a baby refrigerator. Primitive doesn't begin to describe it - but we shall prevail.
We've already made a really good risotto...
This was just mushrooms and a grilled chicken breast. Simple but delicious! With our limited cooking facilities, we took over my sister's kitchen and cooked up a storm - sauce, meatballs, grilled chicken and flank steak... We're lucky we have a real kitchen to invade now and again. Everything is doable...
It's been great seeing family and spending time with them. - the reason we moved here in the first place.
We got to celebrate my SILs birthday and their anniversary on our second night back here.
It's good to be back.
Furniture arrived and went into storage. Our car arrived and we turned in the SUV. We now know for certain we don't want a standard SUV. Too damned big. We will probably remain a one car family for a while. Maybe a smaller SUV in the future. We'll see...
In the meantime, we found a house!
It's in Beaverton, minutes from my sister, and in the exact area we wanted to live. The housing gods smiled down upon us. We probably won't be moving in until mid-December... The paperwork involved with buying a house is unbelievable. The financing aspect is actually pretty good because it is all done online. But then it's the inspections, insurance... Oy... I was 20 years younger the last time we did this!
The new place is a downsize from the house in Pennsylvania. It's the perfect size for us and Blanche.
And it has a deck and a great backyard.
Puppydog has her outdoor space - all fenced in. We have options for seating, grilling, and gardening. It's perfect.
While we wait for closing, it's finding Doctors, getting a new Vet for Blanche, car insurance, drivers licenses, car registration... and then it will be setting up utilities, cable, trash pickup... learning a new recycling system...
And figuring out a new kitchen! We've been cooking on autopilot for years, now... It's going to be interesting...
And fun.
Heading West...
I haven't written a blog post since my birthday. It's not like we haven't been eating... one look at us confirms that we have. A bit too much in these days of pandemic...
Meals have been nothing noteworthy... mainly grills and throw-togethers. It's just been about using up stuff and getting ready for the big move west!
Nineteen years and eight months. That's how long we have lived in Pennsylvania. We never planned for it to be this long. When Victor was transferred back here in 2001, we thought it would be for a few years and we'd be back west. Funny how life has a habit of getting in the way of things...
We were the relative youngsters when we moved into the neighborhood back in 2001. It was mostly empty-nesters and grandparents back then. The only kids in the neighborhood were the twin boys next door. Now, we're the old farts with babies and toddlers and kids everywhere. The neighborhood has come full circle.
I had been working in Nutrition and Dietetics for about 13 years when we moved here and figured I could get a job anywhere - even if I went back to hotel F&B management. Victor was in corporate travel - and we had some great perks. Life was definitely good.
I had been denied unemployment, originally, because it was determined I had quit my job without reason. Even though we lived together and owned a home together, we weren't 'married' in the eyes of the California Unemployment Office, so quitting to move with Victor was considered different than a spouse quitting for the exact same reason. I appealed and a judge ruled in my favor with a pretty scathing court order. It was awesome. Thirteen weeks of checks arrived in one day.
In the meantime, we were remodeling our kitchen, so I stayed at home to manage that - looking for work, of course...
After our kitchen remodel and my California unemployment was coming to an end, I took a job at Trader Joe's just for something to do until a real job came along.
After about six months at Trader Joe's, I found a job as a Nutrition Services Director - and lasted three weeks. I hated the job, I hated the commute, I hated everything about it. I quit, went back to Trader Joe's, and my temporary job lasted almost 17 years. I have some great memories of Store #632.
19 2/3 years. It's longer than either of us have ever lived, anywhere - including with our parents and the ancestral homes. I led a pretty nomadic life for years in the hotel business. Victor moved from east to west to east to west to east a few times, himself. Somewhere along the line, we just settled in...
We travelled. London and Paris and Italy and Sicily... One year, we went to The Cayman Islands, San Francisco, Portland, Seattle, and Rochester. Up to Boston and across the country to Las Vegas. To Los Angeles...
I really can't count the treks to New York City on Amtrak - or the treks to Washington, DC. The number of Broadway shows... I think we still have some serious Amtrak miles accumulated.
Through it all, we got comfortable. We got fat and lazy. But comfort or not, the call to the west coast was always there. Sometimes louder, sometimes softer - but pretty much always there.
We had started seriously talking about moving back west right before Victor's mom had a stroke. We thought moving her in with us would be for a few months at most and we'd be on our way. Those few months morphed into seven years.
Everything works out for a reason and we were both able to retire, relax a bit, and plan a move a bit more carefully. And then a pandemic hit and threw everything into another uproar. We went from thinking about Clear Lake, California to Vancouver, Washington, and, finally, Portland, Oregon. Contrary to what you see on the news or what the occupant of the Oval Office says, Portland is a great city and ANTIFA hasn't burned it down. On a side note, the first time I was teargassed, I was 16. I don't really remember the last time, but I know it's been more than 35 years.
And now we do the divesting... We sold the truck. I bought it brand new in the fall of 1992. We gave away our huge kitchen table and lots of kitchen utensils, plates, pots, pans... Donated tons of clothes and books,.. It's ridiculous the amount of stuff we have accumulated over the years. Totally ridiculous.
I have excel spreadsheets about what is going where - what's in the car we drive, what's in the car we ship, what's dropped off at my sister's house with the dresser we're giving our niece... My brain is a sieve. It has to be written down.
We've been asked what we're going to miss about the east coast...
Not the weather. The heat and humidity of summer and the freezing winters are going to be a thing of the past. I am going to miss how pretty our area is. The trees, the 2-lane roads leading to shopping... the changing colors and the fresh buds of Spring.
And I'm going to miss a lot of people. Family, definitely, but also some neighbors - and the totally awesome people I worked with at Trader Joe's for so many years. Fortunately, the online world means we'll still be able to keep in touch.
We're in the calm before the storm... Thursday we sign the final papers on the house. Friday we pick up the rental car and the junk haulers arrive. Monday, the packers arrive and Tuesday everything is loaded onto the Bekins Truck and we head west.
We've been in serious purge mode for months, now, but it's really hitting the fan this week. The kitchen cabinets are empty - old herbs and spices tossed. 12 kinds of vinegars dumped. The liquor cabinet dumped - a collection of practically empty bottles of creme de menthe, Sweet Iced Tea Vodka, Anisette, Apricot Brandy - all the things I used for cooking and baking... Marsala - sweet and dry - sherry, port...
Anything unopened will be packed. Anything opened is trash - and there's not a lot opened. We've been planning this and using things up, accordingly.
We'll be moving into an Extended Stay while we house-hunt. Great location - 2 miles from Trader Joe's 5 miles from Zapans where my nephew and niece work, a few miles from Safeway, Albertsons, Fred Meyer. And 4 miles from a huge Asian grocer and less than 5 miles from 6 Mexican grocers. And a few blocks from an Italian Deli.
You notice the priorities - good groceries! Real ethnic foods.
My stomach is smiling...
To all of our family and friends along the way - don't take it personal, but we're not stopping to say Hi. We have a time crunch and are driving straight through. We'll wave out the window as we speed by on the interstate! And do know that we want to do a leisurely drive one of these days... We'll catch up!!
We'll definitely do pictures along the way...
The Evolution of a Roast
An eye of the round roast is not, necessarily, the most tender of cuts - they're too lean. On the other hand, they're relatively inexpensive and you can do a lot with them.
Day One
I took a 2 1/2 pound roast and did a simple roast - rubbed with oil, dusted with salt, pepper, and garlic powder, quickly seared on the stove, and then into a 350°F oven. I wanted to pull it out at an internal temperature of 135°F, but didn't hear the thermometer beep - so I overcooked it to 145°F and after resting, it made it up to 155°F. Oh well... Medium-well, that is... In theory, I prefer my beef really rare - but I am not opposed to the end cut of a prime rib or a char-grilled steak.
And we planned on sandwiches, so it was all okay.
Thin slices of roast beef on a homemade whole wheat roll that was spread with a garlic and caper mayonnaise, and topped with a homemade caponata that Victor whipped up.
Caponata
- 1 medium eggplant, cubed
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 2 stalks celery, chopped
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 fennel bulb,, chopped
- 12 oz. fresh tomatoes
- 1 tbsp capers
- 1/2 cup green olives
- 2 tbsp sugar
- 3 tbsp wine vinegar
- 2 tbsp pine nuts
- salt and pepper, to taste
Sauté fennel and onion in a large skillet until onion and fennel begin to wilt. Add garlic and quickly sauté. Add eggplant and cook until it begins to break down. Add tomatoes and cook until they begin to break down.
Add capers, olives, sugar, and vinegar, and cook until thick.
Stir in pine nuts and check for salt and pepper.
Cool and serve at room temperature.
It was a knife and fork sandwich that could adorn the menu of any restaurant. Unique and full of flavor. The mayo was excellent - just mayonnaise, garlic powder, and capers mixed together - and the entire dish really blended together well.
Day Two
With two-thirds of a roast left, it was time to channel my mother. She was queen of a roast on Sunday and hash on Friday. It was time to get creative.
Even though I was making sandwiches with caponata, I had made gravy from the pan drippings - no way was that goodness going to waste.
I made a basic beef stew.
I cubed the beef and added carrots, celery, leeks, and potatoes. In went the gravy and some beef broth, and then it all simmered until the vegetables cooked and the meat was tender.
When it was cooled, half of it went into a pot pie and the other half went into the 'fridge.
I had a leftover crust from the apple crostata I had made a few days ago, so I rolled it out, placed it in the pan, added the stew, wrapped it up like a crostata, and baked it at 425°F for about 45 minutes. It was slightly more than the two of us should have eaten - but we did it, anyway.
There are two things I can consistently make without fail - pie crust and gravy. And when the two come together, it's difficult to stop.
We'll be back to the gym one of these days...
Day Three
The reality is... Days One and Two were merely so I could get to Day Three - and some homemade beef soup!
We eat soup most days for lunch, and, lately, they've been more chicken, lentil, split pea, bean... Most of the beef in the house has been ground - and while you can make some really good soups with ground beef, it wasn't quite what I was looking for.
Time to channel mom, again...
I sautéed a small onion with a couple of celery chopped stalks in a bit of olive oil. When they were nicely wilted, I added the leftover stew, and about 6 cups of beef broth. When it started getting hot, I added a can of diced tomatoes and a can of kidney beans and brought it to a boil.
Next went in another potato, cubed, and about a half bag of frozen mixed vegetables. I brought it back to a boil, covered it, and then let it simmer for an hour - until the potatoes were cooked through.
Tastes and smells can really evoke a memory, and this one brought back the soups my mom made when we were kids.
I think she would have been proud of this one.
A Strange Few Months...
Calling this a strange few months is the ultimate understatement.
The pandemic has hit us harder than most people with the death of Victor's mother, but we've been spared the fear that far too many have of how to pay their bills and feed their children - or figuring out if the jail time would be worth murdering the little blighters. I can't even imagine what that would be like. With six of us, I'm sure my mother would have gone for the jail time.
There's no question that this has taken a real emotional toll on almost everyone, but we've been able to isolate with high speed internet and a roof over our heads in relative quiet and comfort. We're lucky we like each other.
And, we're eating well. I guess that pretty much goes without saying - we have always eaten well. We're just getting more creative as ingredients run out or become unavailable.
The last time I was physically in a store was the end of March - wearing a mask before they were mandated. Since then it has been all delivery - from the local grocery store and a local restaurant. to a local brewery and a local distiller. It's been great being able to put money into the local economy - and we've been tipping really well. That's important, also.
I miss grocery shopping - it's the only shopping I actually like - and I like walking up and down the aisles at my leisure, stopping and looking at things, getting ideas, creating recipes on the fly. Although I always shop with a list, I also like being able to make an impulse buy when something catches my eye, or change my mind and not get something on the list. None of that is possible with online shopping - and with product availability being what it is, you're never quite sure what you're going to get, so it's impossible to really plan meals. One merely gets ingredients and hopes for the best.
And then... get creative.
For me, that is the fun part of all of this. Once Upon A Time, I got paid good money to be creative with different foods, create recipes, and sell the hell out of things. I find it's actually quite easy to take an idea and completely rework it to fit what you have in front of you. A large part of that, no doubt, is because I grew up with a mother who fed her family like that. To boldly go where no man - or woman - has gone, before...
Monday's dinner is a perfect example...
I saw a post from a Facebook friend about a Southern Italian dish called a Tiella - a layered casserole of sorts. I didn't have the ingredients that were used in the original recipe, but, in reading through the post, there are as many variations on the recipe as there are people making it. It's often used as a side dish, but can also be used as a main dish. Without a single Italian ingredient, I gave it a go. Later, I realized that years ago I made a totally different style of Tiella based on a recipe from Lidia Bastianich. You can check that one out, here...
Into a small casserole, I layered:
- sliced potatoes
- chopped onion
- barely cooked chicken
- sliced andouille sausage
- a can of cannellini beans
- colby jack cheese
- white wine
- sourdough bread cubes drizzled with olive oil
- thyme
- garlic powder
- salt & pepper
I covered it and baked it at 375°F for 30 minutes and then uncovered and baked at 425°F for another 15.
It came out great. Taste-wise, it was nothing like the original recipe, but it followed the concept in spirit - and was a damned fine meal!
Yesterday was a use-things-up-because-we-have-more-coming day.
The thought was open-faced burgers on the last of the Whole Wheat Buttermilk Bread - because I was baking more and making some rolls - and a salad Victor had found a recipe for a fennel salad with a creamy dressing of mayonnaise, olive oil, anchovies, lemon, olives...
We didn't have the fennel, but we had the ingredients for the dressing. To work he went!
Creamy Olive and Lemon Dressing
- 3 tbsp mayonnaise
- 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
- 1 tsp lemon zest
- 1 tsp anchovy paste or 2 anchovy fillets, minced
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1/4 cup kalamata olives, chopped
- 1/4 cup grated parmigiano reggiano
- salt and pepper, to taste
Mix all ingredients together, cover, and refrigerate until use.
For the actual salad, Victor sliced celery, cucumber, and green unions and mixed them with the dressing, topping it all with fresh chives, a sprinkling of parmigiano reggiano, and crushed black pepper. It was perfection.
And then it was the burgers...
Thick slices of toasted Whole Wheat Buttermilk Bread topped with the same dressing as the salad, lettuce, thick slice of tomato, and a burger topped with provolone cheese.
Today, we have fresh bread and fresh rolls - ready for some BBQ Brisket, tonight...
It really doesn't get much better...
Caramelized Onion Crostata
We tend to use a lot of onions in our house. Along with garlic, carrots, and celery, they seem to go into everything.
Victor kept looking at the onion stash, visualizing an onion tart. As soon as he mentioned it, our collective brains started working... The whiskey probably helped a little bit to get the creative juices flowing, but we ended up with a solid plan...
The following day, we put the plan into motion - and since we actually remembered what we talked about, what the plan, and how good the final dish was, shows we didn't over-imbibe.
- Pie dough
- Onions caramelized in butter, olive oil, and a drizzle of bacon fat - salt and pepper.
- Our homemade tomato paste.
- Boursin cheese
- Cherry tomatoes
I used my basic pie dough, omitting the sugar. This makes enough for a double-crust pie. I used half of it for the crostata and the other half will be for a pie for Victor's birthday on Sunday.
Pie Dough
- 2 cups flour
- 1/3 cup pastry/cake flour
- 2 sticks butter, frozen
- pinch salt
- 2 tbsp sugar
- 1/2 cup ice water
Using a food processor, add flours, salt, and sugar. Pulse to mix.
Chop up frozen butter and add. Pulse until butter is incorporated and mixture looks grainy.
Slowly add ice water and pulse until mixed.
Turn out onto counter. Press and form mixture into two disks . Wrap in plastic and refrigerate about an hour to allow the flour to properly absorb the water and to relax the gluten.
Roll out crust and proceed with recipe.
I rolled out the dough and spread it with a couple of tablespoons of tomato paste. The caramelized onions went on top of that, then dollops of Boursin cheese. Next went sliced grape tomatoes. I folded the crust up and over and baked it in a preheated 425°F oven for 30 minutes.
I have to admit this was pretty awesome. Totally easy to do and easy to switch out things to make use of ingredients at home - change the cheese, omit the tomato paste, add any other vegetable you may have that needs using up...
Have fun!
Pasta and Bread
Around 2:30 yesterday afternoon, Victor asked what I was planning for dinner... I had taken a pork tenderloin out of the freezer and was going to braise it with some cherry tomatoes. He said how about some pasta? and I immediately said yes. He then said we needed bread...
Fresh bread usually takes a few hours to do - mixing, kneading, multiple risings - but I do have a couple of James Beard recipes that can be done quicker...
James Beard is definitely one of my culinary heroes. He just had the right attitude...
James Beard Single Rise Loaf
- 2 package of active dry yeast
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 2 tsp salt
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1 1/2 cups warm water (100-115 degrees)
- 3 to 3 1/2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 egg white beaten with 1 Tbsp water
- course salt, sesame seeds, poppy seeds
In a large mixing bowl combine yeast and sugar. Let proof about 5 minutes. Add oil and 1/4 cup water. Mix.
Add salt. Add 1/2 cup of flour and continue mixing. Slowly add remaining flour.
Knead for several minutes until the dough springs back and is satiny and smooth. It is a fairly wet dough.
Form into a loaf about 20 to 22 inches long, let loaf rest about 20 minutes.
Brush lightly with egg wash and sprinkle with salt or seeds.
Bake in a preheated 300°F oven about 55 minutes.
Fresh bread in less than 90 minutes... I didn't do the egg wash on this one...
While the bread was cooling, Victor went to work...
Olive oil, garlic, fennel, anchovies, crushed red pepper, oregano, and cherry tomatoes, along with a pinch of salt and pepper.
It took longer to boil the water than it did to make the sauce.
Totally delicious.
We do feel it's important to eat well during a pandemic.
We're selflessly doing our part...
Cauliflower Bolognese
I received my latest Bon Appetit magazine the other day and found a recipe that intrigued me - Cauliflower Bolognese. It was especially timely as I had just bought a head of cauliflower with no particular idea in mind - it just looked good so into the basket it went.
We keep the basics around the house - onions, garlic, celery, carrots, mushrooms - but the other fresh vegetables vary with my shopping mood. I don't plan meals in advance, so it all depends on what looks good.
Victor had just bought a new pappardelle cutter attachment for the pasta roller, so... dinner, as they say, was served. He used his favorite pasta recipe from Alon Shaya. He wasn't totally sold on the new pasta cutter - it's actually quicker to cut by hand - so we ended up with some varying widths of pasta. Regardless of width, it tasted fabulous.
Pasta Dough
- 1 1/4 cup 00 flour
- 1/2 cup semolina
- 2 eggs
- 2 egg yolks
- 2 tsp olive oil
Mix flours. make a well and add the eggs, egg yolks, and oil. Slowly mix in the flour and knead until smooth. Let rest 30 minutes before rolling to desired shape.
The Bon Appetit recipe is vegetarian, but I had some spek in the freezer, so I used it for some added flavor. And since I already had the food processor out, I used it for the onion and pepper, as well. It made it all pretty easy.
Cauliflower Bolognese
Ingredients
- 4 oz speck
- 12 oz mushrooms
- 1 medium head of cauliflower
- 1 large onion
- 6 garlic cloves
- 1 jalapeño pepper
- 1 tsp rosemary
- 1 tsp thyme
- 6-8 oz tomato paste
- 12 oz white wine
- finely grated Parmesan
- 3 tbsp finely chopped parsley
- Pasta of your choice
Instructions
Pulse mushrooms in a food processor until finely chopped. Set aside.
Pulse cauliflower in food processor until pieces are about the size of a grain of rice. Set aside.
Pulse onion, garlic, jalapeno, thyme, and rosemary. Set aside.
Heat olive oil in a large heavy pot over medium-high. Add speck and cook until lightly browned. Add mushrooms and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden brown, 4–6 minutes.
Add onion. Cook, stirring occasionally, until onion is very soft and golden brown, 6–8 minutes. Add garlic, chile, and rosemary and cook, stirring occasionally, until garlic is softened and mixture is very fragrant, about 3 minutes. Add tomato paste and cook, stirring constantly, until paste is slightly darkened, about 2 minutes.
Add cauliflower and cook until cauliflower is cooked down slightly and begins to stick to bottom of pot, 6–8 minutes. Add wine and stir well and cook until boiling and cauliflower is tender. Season with salt and pepper, then keep warm over low heat.
Meanwhile, cook pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water, stirring occasionally, until almost al dente, about 1 minute less than package directions.
Transfer pasta to pot with sauce. Add Parmesan cheese and increase heat to medium. Cook, stirring occasionally, until pasta is cooked and sauce is clinging to pasta, about 3 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in parsley.
Divide pasta among plates. Top with more Parmesan, then drizzle with oil.
The sauce took literal minutes to pull together. Victor has pasta-making down to a science, so it took him no time at all to make the dough, roll, and cut.
A bit of crusty bread and dinner was complete.
Between the mushrooms and the cauliflower, it had a real meaty flavor and consistency. The speck was a really nice addition, but it still would have been a good dish without it.
Fresh Pasta and Fresh Tomatoes
We're not done, yet, with those tomatoes! They really are the gift that keeps on giving!
When we cleared out the majority of the garden the other day, we brought in a lot of unripe tomatoes - the upcoming weather was just not conducive to keeping them outdoors.
We had a bunch of yellow tomatoes ripen together, so that started us off on a path to fresh pasta and yellow tomato sauce.
And I have to tell ya - it was a pretty yummy path!
First, Victor made cavatelli - little semolina pasta shells. Perfectly light and tender, but sturdy enough to stand up to the sauce.
Cavatelli
- 1 1/8 cup semolina flour
- 3/4 cup Tipo "00" flour
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup water
- 2 tbsp olive oil
Mix flours and salt on board. Make a well and add the water and oil. Slowly mix the liquid into the flour forming a dough. Knead about 5 minutes. Wrap and let rest about 30 minutes to an hour.
Roll pieces of dough into a thin rope and cut into 1/2" pieces. Press and roll to make little shells.
Cook in salted boiling water. Drain and serve with your favorite sauce.
For the sauce, I blended several yellow tomatoes in the blender to make a sauce.
Into a skillet went garlic, leeks, and fennel. When it was wilted, I added white wine and cooked it down. Next went the tomato sauce.
I brought it all to a boil and added oregano, crushed red pepper flakes, and a pinch of salt.
I brought it to a simmer and poached monkfish medallions in the sauce, and then added chunks of yellow tomato.
I cooked the pasta about 3/4 of the way though and then added it to the sauce to finish cooking.
The end result was pretty spectacular for being such a simple meal.
I am really going to miss these fresh tomatoes.
Orzo Salad
We did a bit of tag-team in the kitchen, today... I had planned burgers with a mushroom sauce because I had mushrooms that needed using up. Victor decided to make an orzo salad because orzo salads are really good. I had also harvested another huge bowl of tomatoes.
You can see how logic plays right into our meal decisions.
The salad consisted of:
- orzo
- fresh tomatoes
- tomato paste
- leeks
- celery
- kalamata olives
- olive oil
- garlic powder
- salt and pepper
Fresh and refreshing!
The burgers were pretty basic and the mushroom gravy was:
- crimini mushrooms
- shiitake mushrooms
- brandy
- red wine
- beef stock
- pepper, garlic powder
- cornstarch to thicken
Neither were anything fancy, but they really hit the spot.
Tomorrow night, we're thinking of reworking the salad into a pasta dish with shrimp!
Stay tuned.
Another Batch of Pasta Sauce
It appears that I'm going to be forever banned from posting my recipe site on Facebook... Yeah... it says they're 'reviewing my content' but... I'm not hopeful. One message says I've spammed. I guess three or four recipe posts a week is an awful lot... I mean, it's not quite like Russian bot postings or phony accounts trying to undermine our entire political process...
Oh. Wait. Those are happening as I type this... But that doesn't seem to violate their terms of service.
When I try to share a post from my blog I get a message that states I can't post because people have reported the recipe site as being abusive.
Abusive.
I guess advocating for healthy food is pretty abusive. In a kafkaesque sort of way... Sorta... Abusive spammer.
That's me.
The only thing that pisses me off about it is I have no recourse. There is no one to call, no one to email, no one to speak with or contact in any way, shape, or form. They control it all. The ban extends to Instagram, too.
There, it states: "It looks like your profile contains a link that is not allowed. We restrict certain content and actions to protect our community. Tell us if you think we made a mistake." I have pressed the "report" button a bazillion times to no avail.
An abusive spammer their "community" needs protecting from. Yeah, that pretty much describes me.
Oh, well...
In the meantime, the recipe site is alive and well - just not accessible through Zuckerberg Enterprises. I'll survive.
We're still cooking up a storm, and just made another huge batch of pasta sauce. It will definitely get us through until the next crop of tomatoes.
16 quarts of sauce. That's a lot, even for us. It's Victor's basic recipe... He used 4 #10 cans of San Marzano tomatoes and a couple pounds of fresh San Marzano tomatoes from the garden.
Victor's Pasta Sauce
- 2 – 28oz cans of crushed tomatoes
- 1 – Sm can tomato paste
- 1-2 cloves of garlic (or to taste if you like more) chopped fine
- Olive oil
- Dried Italian seasonings
- Hot red pepper flakes (a tsp or more or less to taste)
- Salt and Pepper to taste
- Red wine (always cook with a decent wine, never “cooking” wine) about a cup or cup and a half
- Meat – such as Italian sausage or some nice beef or pork ribs or pork chops
Ok…I ALWAYS make my sauce with meat, so start with a deep, heavy pot and add about 3-4 TBS of olive oil. On high heat, once the oil is hot, start frying the sausage or pork, Let the meat get good and caramelized although you don’t have to cook it all the way through because you’ll add it back to the sauce to finish. Once the meat is browned take it out of the pot, put it on a plate and set aside.
Lower the heat to medium and sauté the tomato paste for a couple of minutes until it begins to “melt”. Add the chopped garlic and sauté with the tomato paste for just a minute (no longer or it will burn). Then add about a cup of the red wine and deglaze the pan with it, scrapping up all the good bits that stuck to the bottom when cooking the meat.
When the wine reduces by about ½ start adding the canned tomatoes. Add one can of hot water for every can of tomatoes you use.
Now start adding the dried Italian seasonings. I eyeball it but I would guess a good 2 TBS is fine. Add about another ½ cup of red wine, with red pepper flakes, salt and pepper. Stir everything into the sauce. It will be very thin at this point.
Add back the cooked meat. Now this is important….at the bottom of the plate you let the meat rest on will be some of the oil and juices that seeped out. Pour that back into the pot. It has a lot of flavor in it.
Bring the sauce back to a boil then turn the heat down low and let it simmer for at least 1 and a half hours, stirring every 15 to 20 minutes to keep it from burning. It should reduce by about a third or a little less and get thicker. The meat will absorb the sauce and get very tender.
When I make meatballs, I don’t fry them, I bake them on a sheet pan. When I do, I add them to the simmering sauce when they’re done so they also absorb the flavor.
I usually make the sauce early in the day and after it’s done, just let it sit on the stove until dinner then I re-heat it. This should make enough sauce for a couple of dinners or good sized lasagna.
Sauce is down in the basement along with jars of plain sauce, tomato paste, and a couple dozen quarts of soup.
We're ready for winter - and hell freezing over if I ever get reinstated.