Pasta Caprese (or, Is Anybody Out There?)

 

It's been forever and a year! (Mostly a year...In fact, truly, nearly a for-real year, since my last post was last June...Yipes!)

Let's pretend that never happened, shall we? I can't make any "will post twice a week" promises (as you'd know if you read my personal blog, which MAYBE gets updated once a month these days), but we can ACT like that will happen. Right? Right.

So. It's Memorial Day. And around here, that means one thing: Pasta Caprese. Well, actually, it means Music in the Park. Every Sunday (or Memorial Day Monday), our gang of four families, plus the occasional extra, heads to a local park, where we drink, eat, eat, drink, talk, laugh, eat, drink, and maybe listen to some music. Oh, and we bring the kids along so they can climb hills and play on the equipment, and sometimes we look up from our drinking and eating and talking and laughing to shoo them away again. (Don't look at me like that. I never said I'd win any parenting awards.)

But Music in the Park has come to mean, for me, Pasta Caprese. I try to make it, if not every Sunday, more Sundays than not. It's adapted from a Cook's Illustrated recipe, which suggests you eat it warm. But I like to make it mid-afternoon, then refrigerate it for the evening. Which means we eat it cold. I've yet to hear a single complaint. (Except from Baroy, who doesn't eat pasta. Don't. I know.)

Pasta Caprese (adapted from Cook's Illustrated's The Complete America's Test Kitchen TV Show Cookbook, 2010)

For the marinade:
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon crushed or minced fresh garlic
1/2 small onion, minced (the original recipe calls for a minced small shallot, which is totally yummy, too, but I grow onions in my backyard, so most of the summer I just pull one up and use that, rather than going out to buy shallots; your mileage may vary)
Salt, to taste
Ground black pepper, to taste
1 to 1-1/2 pounds ripe cherry tomatoes, cut in half (they suggest three large tomatoes, which you should then core, seed, and cut into 1/2-inch dice, but I like to do this the easy way; again, you can go your own way)

Then you'll need:
12 ounces fresh mozzarella, cut into small cubes
1 pound penne, fusilli, or campanelle
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil leaves

1. Make the marinade by whisking the oil, 2 teaspoons lemon juice, garlic, onion, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper in a large bowl. (By large, I mean the one you'll eventually dump a pound of cooked pasta into. THAT kind of large.) Add the tomatoes; toss to combine; set aside. (Cook's Illustrated says not to marinate for longer than 45 minutes, and I usually don't, but...I have no idea why. Anyone? What would happen in 45 minutes?)

2. While the tomatoes marinate, cook the pasta in 4 quarts salted water until al dente, then drain.

3. While the pasta is cooking, cut up the mozzarella, place it on a plate, and put it in the freezer until the cheese is slightly firm, about 10 minutes. (The point of doing this is so that when you add it to the still-hot or at least fairly-warm pasta, the cheese doesn't get too melty and stringy and clumpy and congeal on the bottom of the bowl. And it works really, REALLY well.)

4. Add the pasta and mozzarella to the tomato mixture and stir to combine. Let stand five minutes, then stir in basil and season with more salt and pepper as needed. (They also suggest that, if you want, you can add more lemon juice and/or a little sugar at this point if you want to make things interesting. I never do.)

5. They say to serve immediately, but as I said above, I then stick it in the fridge for a couple of hours before dragging it to the park, where it generally gets devoured. Which makes me happy. Very happy.

Farewell to summer dinner (with grilled veggie kebobs and garlic bread with fresh tomato and mozzarella)

My in-laws visited us this weekend and I wanted to make a "farewell to summer" dinner using some local produce.  So on Saturday, Betty and I took my mother-in-law to a nearby farm where I bought corn on the cob, zucchini, yellow squash, an onion, mushrooms, red potatoes, tomatoes, and fresh mozzarella.  All would find their way into that evening's dinner.

I wanted to make veggie kebobs on the grill and submitting this recipe seems like cheating here because my friend and fellow cook Kristen already posted a similar dish back in May.  (See her post Grilled chicken shish kebob.)

Grilled Vegetable Kebobs

I didn't really measure anything with this one.  Basically, I used two zucchini and two yellow squash, approximately a pound of small red potatoes, half of an Empire sweet onion, and approximately a dozen (maybe less) white mushrooms. 

I boiled the potatoes for 10 minutes while cutting the onion, squash, zucchini and mushrooms into chunks and marinating it for about 20 minutes with Italian dressing.  (I threw the potatoes - some of which I kept whole, others which I halved or quartered - in during the last 10 minutes of marination.)

I didn't measure the amount of dressing either, but if I had to do this again, which is very possible, I would cut down the amount of dressing I used. (Nobody said anything, but I thought the kebobs were slighty too tangy.)

Then I threaded the vegetables onto metal skewers.  (Even when I soak the bamboo skewers, they tend to catch on fire.  I spent most of my summer looking for metal skewers and finally found them at a different farm, also nearby.)

The Husband grilled the kebobs for about 10 minutes, turning once.  This made 8 kebobs.

Along with this, we grilled hot dogs (for the kids and in-laws) and veggie burgers for us. I also boiled corn on the cob. Finally, I changed my mind from preparing a caprese salad and instead enhanced some store-bought garlic bread by adding slices of fresh mozzarella and fresh tomato.

I left one side of the garlic bread plain because several folks at our table aren't fans of tomatoes.  Cooked it in the oven for 7 minutes and then let it cool, cutting each of the sides into smaller pieces and arranging on a serving platter.  (No pictures of that ... they disappeared too quickly.)

Dessert was a selection of homemade ice creams from another nearby farm - vanilla, chocolate, peach, and coffee. 

All in all, a delicious ending to a wonderful summer.

Late summer chicken and rice bake

I was inspired by grey skies, rain and a cool late summer breeze. A craving for something warm and hearty, but not too heavy. And since chicken and rice are pretty much "pantry" staples in my kitchen, I figured I could throw something together for dinner that was loosely based on this delicious chicken with rice dish. It was a somewhat risky move to make at 5 p.m., an experiment that my husband and son could easily balk at. But I've been away from this blog and from trying new recipes for so long, that I figured it was worth a try.

Here's what you need (you'll have to read through to the end for the thumbs up or thumbs down):

4 boneless, skinless breasts
@ a cup and a half of rice
a handful of vermicelli
1 can of artichoke hearts, quartered
1 can of petite diced tomatoes
chicken broth
butter, olive oil, fresh lemon, salt, pepper, thyme, paprika---for seasoning

Rub the chicken breasts with a bit of olive oil and fresh lemon juice. Season with salt, pepper, thyme and paprika. Set aside.

In a heavy saucepan, melt two tablespoons of butter and brown the vermicelli. Add the rice and mix well. Place the rice mixture in a buttered casserole dish. Add the tomatoes and artichoke hearts, including the liquid from both cans. Pour in about 1 cup of chicken broth. Layer the chicken on top, sprinkle in more seasoning to taste, and cover the dish tightly with foil.

Bake at 375 degrees for about 1 hour, or until the liquid is absorbed, the rice tender and the chicken cooked through.

The verdict: Thumbs up! All three of us loved it. The chicken was tender, the rice flavorful—I would definitely make this again.

Ratatouille (in the crockpot)

I had a bit of an eggplant dilemma over the weekend.  You see, I have a bit of a habit of buying unknown-to-me-produce at the farmer's market.  The cuter the name and the cuter the item, the chances are great that it is coming home with me, even if I have no idea what I am going to make with it. 

That was the situation last weekend, when I purchased these at the farm:

The purple and white globe is apparently a Graffiti Eggplant, the long and narrow ones are Green Goddesses, and the short round ones are the adorably named Kermits. 

(C'mon, would you have been able to leave a Kermit at the farm?  Especially with the meat case just a few dangerous feet away?)

So they came home with me and there they sat, awaiting some decision from me as to what I would make. 

Over the weekend, I had ratatouille on my mind so I turned to Not Your Mother's Slow Cooker Cookbook  by Beth Hensperger and Julie Kaufmann. Sure enough, on pages 133-134, there's a slow cooker recipe for ratatouille, described as a regional vegetable stew from Provence.

Ingredients:
1 large eggplant, 1.5 lbs., peeled and cut into 1" cubes (I used the graffiti eggplant, one Kermit, and one Green Goddess because the graffiti wasn't what I would have considered large)

salt
1 medium sized yellow onion, coarsely chopped
2 medium-size or large bell peppers (green, red, orange, or yellow), seeded and cut into big squares
10 plum tomatoes, peeled and chopped, or one 14.5 oz. can diced plum tomatoes, drained
2-3 cloves garlic, to your taste, minced
1/2 cup olive oil
5 zucchini or summer squash , ends trimmed and cut into thick rounds
1-2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil, to your taste
freshly ground black pepper, to taste

1. Put the cubed eggplant in a colander and sprinkle with salt.  Let stand 1 hour to drain.  Press out the excess moisture with the back of a spatula and pat dry with paper towels.

2. Combine the eggplant, onion, bell peppers, tomatoes, and garlic in the slow cooker. Pour over the olive oil and toss to coat.  Cover and cook on HIGH for 1-1.5 hours or on LOW for 2-3 hours.

3. Stir in the zucchini.  Cover and continue to cook for HIGH for another 1.5 hrs. or on LOW for 2-2.5 hours. The last hour, add the basil and season with salt and black pepper.  The vegetables will be cooked but will still hold their shape.

Some serving ideas mentioned in the book include serving hot with crumbled goat cheese sprinkled on top (this is what I did, especially since I can't resist any opportunity for goat cheese), at room temperature with lemon wedges and freshly grated parmesan cheese, or cold drizzled with balsamic vinegar. Serves 4-6.

Beef and bean chili

Yes, it's true. I'm Texan and I put beans in my chili. Purists will recoil, but they don't have to feed five people using organic beef on a budget. Beans add bulk, flavor, and nutrition, and they are very, very cheap. Viven los frijoles!

Brown about a pound of beef in oil (I also add about a half cup of water) with one medium-sized chopped onion and a couple of cloves of garlic. When the beef is thoroughly browned and crumbled, cover it, visually speaking, with several shakes of chili powder. You'll need to do this to the level of spice that you can bear. I probably end up putting a few tablespoons in. A couple of shakes of cumin (about the equivalent of maybe a tablespoon), and salt and pepper to taste. Stir it up nicely and let simmer for a few minutes.

Then add a couple of cans of tomatoes stewed with poblano peppers. Here we use RoTel, which comes in regular or spicy, but any kind of canned chopped tomatoes with poblanos will do, or separate cans of each. I drain the cans first or the chili gets too acidy. Stir that in, then add in one or two cans of pinto beans. Please do not use kidney beans or I will have to come to your house, confiscate the "chili," and turn you into the Tex-Mex police for violation of Code 7.21, "Thou Shalt Not Use Kidney Beans in Any Dish Purporting to Be of Mexican or Tex-Mex Origin." Next in the code comes 7.22, which reads, "Black Olives Are Not Really Part of Tex-Mex or Mexican Cuisine."

At this point, I rinse the each can by filling it about a quarter to a third full with good water, swirling it, and then depositing the liquid into the chili, too. This gives it a good consistency for serving over rice, etc.

Stir it up. Let it simmer for about a half hour, stirring occasionally. We serve this over steamed rice or bean and cheese tamales or regular tamales, with cheese sprinkled on top (colby/jack mix is our choice) and corn chips--decent ones--on the side. It's satisfying as it can be, and with the beans added, you might just get two dinners' worth out of it for your family.

Tomato-basil panzanella

Here on this part of the East Coast, this weekend ushered in a burst of summertime weather typically more conducive to early August instead of early May.  It was downright HOT outside and I had zero interest in turning on the oven (or doing much cooking, truth be told).

I did, however, have a craving for one of my absolute favorite summertime dishes, a simple panzanella salad. That's a fancy way of saying "bread salad."  I could eat this as a meal and on Saturday night when everyone else in the family had leftover pizza, that's exactly what I did. 

My go-to-panzanella recipe comes from page 42 of Veggie Meals, by Rachael Ray. For Saturday's salad, I halved the ingredients since it was just me having the salad.  (The Husband and Boo sampled some of it.)  According to Rach, this serves 2 as a supper and 4 as a starter.



3 medium vine-ripe tomatoes, diced
20 leaves fresh basil, stacked, rolled into logs, then thinly sliced
1/2 pound fresh mozzarella, cubed into bite-size pieces (optional)
2 crusty, chewy rolls, cubed (day-old Italian is fine)
3 tbsps. extra-virgin olive oil (3 turns around the bowl)
1.5 tbsps red wine vinegar (a couple splashes)
coarse salt and black pepper, to taste

(My notes: on Thursday, I purchased some delicious breadsticks from the farmer's market.  They were already seasoned with basil and oregano, so I just added a little dried basil - didn't have fresh - to the salad.  The three breadsticks that I used were perfect, as they were the perfect amount of staleness for this.  I substituted some shredded mozzarella for the fresh.  Not quite the same, but in my book, any mozzarella is better than no mozzarella. Finally, I added in some diced cucumber.)

Combine all ingredients in a large bowl.  Let stand for 10 minutes to allow bread to absorb juices, then serve.

Seriously, could this be any easier? (No, it really couldn't.) Plus, it is especially delicious the next day, after the flavors have had time to blend overnight ... and you can make this in advance for any summertime get-togethers or when you need a simple dinner.

Bubbly cheddar tomatoes/Roasted vegetable and cheese canapes

A couple weeks ago, I went to a demonstration class at the local Viking Culinary Center. On the menu: five great appetizers. I don't make a lot of appetizers when I entertain—I might throw together a cheese platter and some fresh vegies, hummus and pita, maybe a selection of olives, but I've never really considered myself an "appetizer" sort of gal. I'm really more about the main course—and dessert.

But it was a fun night and the recipes were fairly simple and easy to prepare. So, when my friend—who also attended the class—suggested we make two of the appetizers for a recent family party, I grabbed my camera and my wooden spoon and got to work.

Bubbly Cheddar Tomatoes

40 large cherry tomatoes
3 oz of aged cheddar cheese, cut into 1/4 inch cubes
1/4 cup prepared pesto
1/4 cup crushed herb croutons
1 tablespoon melted butter
40 small shrimp: peeled, deveined, tail off

(Yes, I'm still allergic to shellfish, and can only say that it is perfectly fine to completely omit the shrimp from this recipe.)

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. With a sharp knife, slice the tops off of each tomato and using a small spoon, remove the membrane and seeds from inside. Then slice a small piece off the bottom so that the tomatoes will sit flat without rolling.

Place the tomatoes on a baking sheet and then spoon in some pesto and top with a cube of cheese.

Combine the crushed croutons with the melted butter and sprinkle over the top of the tomatoes. Bake for 5 minutes or until bubbly.

While the tomatoes are baking, saute the shrimp in a bit of butter and garlic until pink. Top each tomato with a piece of shrimp. Serve warm.

******

Roasted vegetable and Boursin canapes

1/2 of a small red bell pepper, finely diced
1/2 of a small red onion, finely diced
1/2 of a small eggplant, finely diced
1/2 of a medium zucchini, finely diced
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
15 frozen miniature phyllo tart shells
a small container of Boursin cheese
chopped fresh basil (for garnish)

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Combine the bell pepper, onion, eggplant and zucchini in a bowl. Drizzle with olive oil, salt and pepper and mix well.

Spread the vegies out in a shallow roasting pan and roast for about 20 minutes or until tender and golden brown.

Place the frozen pyhllo shells on a baking sheet and fill each cup with about a teaspoon of the Boursin cheese.

Top with the vegetables and bake for about 8 to 10 minutes, or until the shells are a light golden brown. Garnish with fresh basil and serve either warm or at room temperature.

Chicken spinach tomato cappellini

It started the way it often does. I had a couple of thawed chicken breasts. I had a lot of organic baby spinach wilting away in the fridge. And then there were the luscious red ripe tomatoes calling to me, saying "Don't let us go to waste, either!" Food speaks to me, you see.

And as I often do, I made something up. Ingredients drive what limited creativity I have as I mentally group various potential additions, trying to find one that seems exactly the right fit for what I want to achieve for dinner that night.

This night, I felt the mood should be light. Something vegetably yet savory. Something with a bit of zing that would cling softly to a nice, lean pasta, like cappellini. So, that's what I went for.

When I cook, I don't measure, so the following is my best guess at what I did.

First, I put water on to boil for the whole-wheat cappellini I was using, and then...reader, I boiled it.

As Jamie Oliver would say, I started the sauce with a couple of lugs of olive oil, heated to a fine warmth, along with a couple of tablespoons of butter. It's all bettah with buttah.

Then, I added the chicken breasts, sliced into about half-inch pieces, and knocked in a few good dashes of oregano. After letting that sizzle up until the chicken was cooked completely, I tossed in tomatoes, letting them get to sizzle. Then came the spinach, lid on top to give it a good wilt, then stirred. With a nice wilt on, I added in the juice of a single lemon, some ground sea salt and ground pepper. For the finale, I sprinkled freshly grated Parmesan over the entire thing and heated it all through.

Pop this on top of the steaming toothy cappellini, add more Parmesan as needed and a good, crusty hunk of ciabatta, and you're good to go with a light, savory, satisfying bowl of food that won't make you feel terribly guilty. This was a fast, easy, and absolutely beautifully colored dinner to make, and it received The Viking seal of approval, high praise indeed.