recipe du jour

Pasta with Roasted Garlic & Cherry Tomatoes

This recipe hails from my friend Anne Marie who provided it to me when I encountered a cherry tomato emergency a few years ago. I had too many tomato plants and about a million cherry tomatoes ripened all in the same week.

It's the end of August again and they're back.  The tomatoes have ripened.  Ominous sounding, isn't it?   We're going to be all tomatoes all the time around our house until the last one is off the vine and either canned, in the freezer or eaten whole with salt, while standing over the sink, thinking that really there is nothing that compares to a fresh picked tomato.

Anne Marie's Pasta with Roasted Garlic and Cherry Tomatoes

4 cups cherry tomatoes, halved
12 cloves garlic, halved
1/4 c. extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp dried basil
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp each hot pepper flakes and black pepper
1 lb pasta
1/4 c. chopped fresh parsley
1/2 c. shaved parmesan cheese

In a 13 x 9 inch metal (she says this but I always use pyrex) cake pan, toss together tomatoes, garlic, oil, basil, salt, hot pepper flakes and pepper; roast in a 400 degree oven until tomatoes are shrivelled and garlic is tender about 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, in large pot of boiling salted water, cook pasta until tender but firm (8 to 10 minutes if using Bucatini)
Drain and return to pot.  Add tomato mixture and parsley, tossing to coat.  Serve sprinkled with parmesan.

Makes 4 to 6 servings.

My notes: I cooked the sauce for about 45 minutes.  I didn't bother with the parsley.  I didn't have Bucatini and used the only pasta I had, some rigatoni which was too big for such a thin sauce.  The sauce is very very thin, let it sit for about five minutes to firm up a bit and then another five or so with the pasta and the starch from the pasta will help.

 

This is one of the most flavourful summer pastas that I make.

Kath

creamy tomato artichoke pasta for the pioneer woman

this is one of those recipes that occasionally one of the kids will ask, when are you going to make the artichoke pasta? some of the friends of the kids demand a standing invitation to dinner if this is on the menu.  actually, even as small children they loved this and in those days i went easy on the vodka!  it does not seem to be kid friendly, it is spicy, but full of flavour and with all that cream, comforting.

5 - 6 large chopped fresh tomatoes

1 medium vidalia onion chopped, not too small

one 8 oz can of artichokes

3 - 4 garlic cloves minced

1 T italian herb mix

1/2 tsp hot pepper flakes

1/4 cup of vodka

1 cup of whipping cream (notice we are bilingual up here in canada and i have the french side showing, creme a fouetter)

1/2 cup of parmesan cheese

2 T of butter and 2 T of olive oil

cheese tortellini or penne

i don't like to waste too much time cooking so i move quickly through the actual cooking portion of a recipe.

melt the butter and olive oil together, add garlic, pepper flakes, onion, and saute for a few minutes. 

add the chopped tomatoes, artichokes, the herbs, vodka and cook a way long enough for it to become saucy.  like this:

then pour in that cream, woo hoo.

let that bubble away and remember the pleasure of real whipping cream is that it doesn't curdle.  it just gets thick and creamy.

slowly, and i mean slowly, mix in the parmesan, and stir it around, at a fairly high heat because you want that parmesan to melt.   

boil up the pasta, drain and either dump it back into the pasta pot or a nice bowl if you are having company, pour the sauce on top, or dish up bowls right at the stove and let the kids put their own sauce on, or even better, teach the kids how to make this!!!   you can adjust the amount of red pepper flakes depending on the taste of the family.  we like spicy.

now that's a dairy recipe!!!

Zucchini & Pepper Quinoa (aka Wine Country Grain Medley*)

I was running late tonight and we're having company at the end of this week. I wanted to empty the fridge. I dragged all the vegetables out on to the counter. BB made salad and I made this:

2 zucchini cut in 1/2 and sliced
1/2 each red, yellow and orange pepper cut into strips
2 cloves garlic
2 tbsp olive oil
tomato paste
curry powder
quinoa

Heat olive oil & garlic and when it starts to brown, throw in the veg to start browning.

Squirt some tomato paste in (about 2 tbsp)

(If you don't have tomato paste in a tube - get some - it's the best!)

Add as much curry powder as you like, mine is rather mild so I used more than one tbsp.

Add one cup of water, bring to a boil (I measured this with a coffee mug because I couldn't get at the measuring cups because BB was making salad on the other counter)

Add a 1/2 to 3/4 cup of quinoa, bring to a boil (it doesn't matter how much you use, just make sure the water and quinoa are in equal amounts.)

Simmer 5 minutes

Cover and simmer another 10

Stir every now and then during the 15 minutes.

You could use whatever veg you have. It's also lovely with mushrooms, eggplant, and/or yellow zucchini. I threw in the four ripe cherry tomatoes that I grabbed from the tomato plants as I passed from the garage to the house in the pouring rain on my way in.

And voila

I served it with fish tonight.

*the real recipe is in the Sonoma Diet Cookbook

WINE COUNTRY GRAIN MEDLEY

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 cup quartered fresh mushrooms
1 1/2 cups water
3/4 cup quinoa
1 cup canned red beans, rinsed and drained
1 cup chopped zucchini
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved if desired
1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
6 cloves garlic, minced (1 tablespoon minced)
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

In a very large skillet heat olive oil over medium heat. Add mushrooms; cook about 5 minutes or until golden brown, stirring occasionally Add the water; bring to boiling. Add quinoa. Return to boiling; reduce heat. Cover and simmer about 15 minutes or until liquid is nearly absorbed. Stir in beans, zucchini, tomatoes, basil, vinegar, garlic, kosher salt, and pepper. Heat through. Remove from heat; let stand, covered, for 5 minutes before serving. Makes 6 servings.

The original is delicious, but some nights I just have to do what I have time for and use what is handy.

enjoy!

Kath