Cook Daily

Pasta with Peas and Pancetta

The picture doesn't do it justice at all (where's the bacon?), but this is easily my favorite pasta dish. I remember making if for the first time when I first moved to L.A. and after a rather trying day that probably involved one of many plumbing disasters that plagued me when I first got here, it was infinitely comforting. I prefer my pasta more "bitty" than "saucy" and nothing disappoints me more than perfectly cooked pasta destroyed with too much sauce soaking it. If you like your pasta like I do, with a sauce made more from reserved starchy pasta water than anything else, this recipe is perfect. I mean come on, bacon, peas, parmesan goat cheese and a healthy grind of black pepper? How could you go wrong?

The next day at work I got an email from David with the subject line "Cheese" (Does the man know how to get my attention or what?) Someone at work had asked which kind I'd used in this dish. To which I replied, "Stop sharing your damn food."   I'm pretty sure  he's NOT sharing his food, but I would love to be a fly on the wall when he trots out his leftovers every day, and tries to explain the concoctions. This one's aroma was a big hit apparently, but I wonder about that Eggplant Curry from a few days ago. Oh well, at least I never send him off with a tupperware of fish.

Pasta with Peas and Pancetta
(From: Tyler Florence's Real Kitchen)

1/2 pound spaghetti
Extra-virgin olive oil
6 ounces pancetta or thick-cut bacon, diced
1 onion, minced
1 bay leaf
1 cup sweet peas, frozen or fresh
1 ounce goat cheese
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
Juice of 1 lemon
Freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup fresh basil, hand-torn

1. In a large stockpot, cook the spaghetti in plenty of boiling salted water for about 10 minutes; it should still be a little firm.

2. At the same time, heat a 2-count drizzle of olive oil in a large skillet over medium-low heat. Add the pancetta, and stir it around. When the fat starts to render, after about 3 minutes, add the onion and bay leaf. Cook and stir until the onion caramelizes, about 10 minutes. Now add the peas and cook for 2 minutes just to heat them through.

3. Drain the pasta, reserving 1 cup of the starchy water for the sauce. Fold the goat cheese into the hot pasta and give it a toss so it melts. Scrape the pancetta, onions, and peas into the pasta pot (toss the bay leaf). Add the Parmigiano, parsley, and lemon juice. Slowly pour in the reserved pasta water to dissolve the cheese and thin it out to a sauce consistency. Hit it with a healthy dose of olive oil and quite a few turns of freshly ground black pepper to give it bite. Return the noodles to the pot and gently toss to coat in the sauce. Split the pasta between 2 large bowls and shower it with the shredded basil.

Penne with Butternut-Sage Sauce

As I've said before, I am a sucker for squash. Especially butternut. So when I was thumbing through the November issue of Gourmet on my way home from work yesterday, I decided that this recipe was dinner. Especially since I had bought some butternut at the store the day before. Now don't get me wrong, this was tasty, and you can't really go wrong with butternut, sage, pasta and cheese. But it lacked something. I'm not sure what.  It was also most definitely NOT a 10-minute main. Not for me anyway. Possibly because I had to process the squash in batches (I had a lot of squash - I even weighed it in a bowl using the bathroom scale, thinking that I MUST have more than a pound. I didn't). Mostly though, the cooking time for the squash was off. Mine was nowhere close to soft and tender after just 8-10 minutes. Oh and then there's that compulsion to clean up as I go. So really the 10 minute meal is not an expectation I should have from ANY recipe. Ever.

Now there is a great deal of this hanging out in Tupperware right now. I can't let it all go to waste. I'm thinking it might taste a bit better reheated with some marinara sauce from a jar. I'm going to go and test the idea.

I served this with some garlic toast that I made from the very delicious whole grain loaf from La Brea bakery.  The recipe's from the bag the bread came in. Very easy. Just slice the bread fairly thinly, spread it with butter, garlic, red pepper flakes and chopped shallots and bake in a 300 degree oven until golden on top.

And speaking of deliciousness. On the way back from the airport on Monday morning we stopped at Porto's for brunchy things. Among other things (can you say "over-ordered"?), we got potato balls. I think those are truly one of the best things ever.

Butternut Squash Lasagna

Aside from dragging my boots out of the depths of the closet, or for this season, wearing my new ones, one of the best things about fall is the return of The Squash. Especially The Butternut. On a recent trip to Whole Foods I saw a magnificent specimen--easily the size of one of my calves. I knew I had to take it home and make something of it. I found what I was looking for in Giada's latest book. I used to find her a bit contrived and stiff, but she's gradually grown on me and she does know how to put a recipe together. My sloppy photography doesn't really do the dish justice (maybe I should have used a different plate than the one that happens to be the exact color of this dish's star ingredient), but it was very good. I love the idea of blending basil into a bechamel sauce. Such a pretty green. And while I questioned the amaretti cookie thing, it really works here. I'm thinking of making this for Thanksgiving dinner, which might (gasp!) be chez nous this year.

Butternut Squash Lasagna

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 (1 1/2 to 2-pound) butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and cut into 1-inch cubes
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup water
3 amaretti cookies, crumbled
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
3 1/2 cups whole milk
Pinch nutmeg
3/4 cup (lightly packed) fresh basil leaves
12 no-boil lasagna noodles
2 1/2 cups shredded whole-milk mozzarella cheese
1/3 cup grated Parmesan

1. Heat the oil in a heavy large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the squash and toss to coat. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Pour the water into the skillet and then cover and simmer over medium heat until the squash is tender, stirring occasionally, about 20 minutes. Cool slightly and then transfer the squash to a food processor. Add the amaretti cookies and blend until smooth. Season the squash puree, to taste, with more salt and pepper.

2. Melt the butter in a heavy medium-size saucepan over medium heat. Add the flour and whisk for 1 minute. Gradually whisk in the milk. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to medium and simmer until the sauce thickens slightly, whisking often, about 5 minutes. Whisk in the nutmeg. Cool slightly. Transfer half of the sauce to a blender*. Add the basil and blend until smooth. Return the basil sauce to the sauce in the pan and stir to blend. Season the sauce with salt and pepper, to taste.

3. Position the rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 375 degrees F.

4. Lightly butter a 13 by 9 by 2-inch glass baking dish. Spread 3/4 cup of the sauce over the prepared baking dish. Arrange 3 lasagna noodles on the bottom of the pan. Spread 1/3 of the squash puree over the noodles. Sprinkle with 1/2 cup of mozzarella cheese. Drizzle 1/2 cup of sauce over the noodles. Repeat layering 3 more times.

5. Tightly cover the baking dish with foil and bake the lasagna for 40 minutes. Sprinkle the remaining mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses over the lasagna. Continue baking uncovered until the sauce bubbles and the top is golden, 15 minutes longer. Let the lasagna stand for 15 minutes before serving.

Cook's Note: The no-boil lasagna noodles can be substituted with fresh spinach lasagna sheets. Look for fresh lasagna sheets in the refrigerated section of specialty markets.

Spinach & Artichoke Tortellini

I can't even believe I'm posting this. I warned you... This is serious pantry staple stuff. I'm not even sure I could provide the recipe for it. It's basically tortellini with a sauce made up of canned artichoke hearts, frozen spinach, garlic, onions and Parmesan.

It goes something like this:

1. Defrost a box of frozen spinach in the microwave. Squeeze out all excess water.
2. Crack open a can of artichoke hearts, drain and chop finely
3. Saute onions and garlic in a little olive oil
4. Add chicken broth, reduce a bit
5. Meanwhile cook a package of frozen tortellini (any kind)
6. Add spinach and artichoke hearts to garlic, onions and broth and simmer several minutes. Remove from heat when sauce has thickened slightly and stir in Parmesan, salt and pepper.

This is nothing, nothing to get excited about. But it'll do when there's just nothing else to eat. And when you still haven't restocked the fridge with fresh vegetables. My excuse is that I've had family visiting from Montreal, a friend visiting from San Francisco and too many meals out to justify a decent trip to the store. But that is all about to change...

Spaghetti with Asparagus, Shiitake Mushrooms, Lemon and Chives

This one's from my latest issue of Bon Appetit (April 2006), and can also be found on Epicurious.com, over here. Quick, very easy and so good.

Cook's Notes:

1. I ended up not having any spaghetti, but did have a slightly fatter noodle, pericatelli I think?  It was still good, but I think that the sauce would coat spaghetti better.

2. I grated the cheese, rather than shaving it. I prefer it that way over pasta.

Seafood Linguine

I'm very much a grocery shopper that figures out what I'm going to make that week, goes to the store and gets exactly what is on that list. But every once in a while, I buy things that I have no idea what I'm going to do with. Most people have these flashes of inspiration when eyeing the beautiful fresh produce at the farmer's market. My last flash of inspiration happened over frozen shellfish from Trader Joes. When I saw the bag sitting there in the freezer section with a perfect mix of calamari, scallops and shrimp, I suddenly thought that a seafood pasta dish sounded like something I might want to make. And I love the no-pressure aspect of frozen things. No throwing away once perfectly good, now ominously stinky seafood that I was too lazy to cook after a long day.

I perused my recipe books and my favorite cooking web sites and finally settled on a recipe I found on Epicurious, that I then adapted completely. Here's what I ended up making:

Seafood Linguine

• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/2 cup finely chopped onion
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 medium zucchini, diced
• 1 bell pepper, diced
• 1 tablespoon all purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1/4 cup dry white wine
• 1/2 cup  chicken broth
• 1/4 cup whipping cream
• 16 oz bag of mixed seafood from Trader Joes (you could use fresh, of course. It would probably be better...)
• 1lb linguine, freshly cooked
• Fresh parsley for garnish (chopped)

1) Heat olive oil in heavy, large skillet over medium high heat. Add onion and saute until golden (about 5 minutes)
2) Add garlic, zucchini, bell pepper and saute for about 3-4 minutes
3) Stir in flour and coriander and cook 1 minute
4) Add wine, chicken broth and cream and bring to boil, stirring constantly.
5) Add seafood and simmer, until cooked through, about 5 minutes
6) Toss cooked linguine into pot, and coat with sauce
7) Shower with parsley

The orginal recipe didn't have the other vegetables, didn't call for chicken stock, used less wine and 1 whole cup of whipping cream. I wanted the vegetables for some added color and texture, and because they were headed for the trash if I didn't do something with them. 1 cup of cream was just too much ass-widening dairy for my taste, and if cutting back on cream means adding more wine, well then I'm all for it.

Again, my apologies for the blurry picture. How do all those talented food bloggers do it? Half the time I'm so ravenous and anxious to sit down and enjoy a hot dinner that the picture taking tends to be a very scattered, and not even remotely styled afterthought.

Peanut Sesame Noodles

I love love love peanut sauce. I can eat it neat. When I order Chicken Satay in a restaurant, they have to pry the little dish from my hands, as I scrape out every last drop.  It was just a matter of time before a recipe that required peanut sauce appeared here. It's from Gourmet, via Epicurious, and I'm trying to link to it, but have been unsuccessful, so:

Peanut sauce

• 1/2 cup smooth peanut butter
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 1/3 cup warm water
• 2 tablespoons chopped peeled fresh ginger
• 1 medium garlic clove, chopped
• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 1 1/2 tablespoons sesame oil
• 2 teaspoons honey
• 1 teaspoon dried hot red pepper flakes

For noodle salad

• 3/4 lb dried linguine or spaghetti
• 4 scallions thinly sliced
• 1 red bell pepper, cut into 1/8 inch thick strips
• 1 yellow bell pepper, cut into 1/8 inch thick strips
• 3 tablespoons sesame seeds, toasted

Make dressing:
Puree dressing ingredients in blender until smooth, about 2 minutes, then transfer to large bowl

Make salad:

1. Cook pasta in a 6-8 quart pot of boiling salted water until tender. Drain in colander then rinse well under cold water

2. Add pasta, scallions, bell peppers and sesame seeds to dressing, toss to combine and serve immediately.

Serves 6 as a side dish or 4 as a main dish

No pictures of this one, unfortunately. You'll just have to take my word that it both looked and tasted delish. The sauce does thicken a bit once you refrigerate it, so it doesn't work so well for leftovers, but that's more a looks thing, rather than a taste thing.

Baked Orzo wth Shrimp, Tomato Sauce and Feta

Every once in a while I will surprise myself and make dinner on a night that i hadn't planned to. This is particularly unusual for a Saturday night which is often an eat out night or a pizza night. But tonight I just felt like something homemade. Perhaps it was the gigantic bean, rice and cheese log I lumbered down for lunch at the Beverly Center. Or that even though we had been invited to a party, we just didn't feel like dealing with Hollywood traffic the night before the Academy Awards. And besides, the party going on at the new club on Melrose Place at the end of our block was so loud that we felt as if we were there.

So. At the last minute I decided to make an old staple that I got from Epicurious.com a few years ago and have made pretty regularly ever since. With the exception of the shrimp, it calls for things that you probably have in your pantry, and is quite delicious. There is actually a slightly different version of this, also on Epicurious, that I like too, and would have made last night since the quantities are smaller, but I kind of forgot about it until I was mid-cook and remembered that I had really intended to make the other one. These things happen. But no matter, because either one is good, and unlike the fateful curry noodle balls, these leftovers will be eaten, and possibly even more delicious the next day, which is today, for lunch.

A link to the recipe I made is here. The other one is here. As you can see, I served this with a very simple mixed green salad, and a hunk of delicious baguette. Seriously, I've had many a baguette in my day (it was those and nutella that turned me into a beached whale after a year in Paris), and this one from a humble (okay maybe not so humble) grocery store just up the street is one of my favorites.

P.S. This could be made without the shrimp for a vegetarian version (that's specially for you, Heidi)
P.P.S I am working on those photography skills.