Trumpet Herb Pasta with Peas

 

I got this pasta from Pappardelle's stand at the holiday farmer's market in Rehoboth, DE and had to share how excellent their pasta is. The wide selection at the market included everything from spinach lemon herb fettucine and garlic chive pappardelle to spicy Thai linguine and dark chocolate pasta! (Dessert pasta - crazy awesome.) They also have gluten-free pasta options such as porcini mushroom large trumpet and basil garlic penne, which is great considering the relatively limited variety in most gluten free pasta available. They retail online www.pappardellesonline.com and sell at farmers markets and festivals all over the country and British Columbia, apparently.

 

 

I chose the trumpet herb blend with a mix of carrot tarragon, chive, and dill & parsley peppercorn pasta, and I recommend this pasta blend if you're looking for a shorter-cut pasta with lots of flavor. Pappardelle's provides sample recipes to go along with their pastas to give you ideas (I took photos of the recipes on display at the market like a nutcase but they're on the website) and they recommended trumpet herb blend for pasta salad with tuna and cauliflower, which sounds great for a summer picnic. For a late autumn dinner, this is how I prepared the pasta:

 

1) Bring pot of water to a boil and salt; add pasta.

2) A few minutes before the pasta's done (8-10 minutes to cook al dente, but I use my "Italian timer" ;) to determine when pasta's ready) add about 1/2 cup frozen peas to the water to warm through.

3) Drain the pasta and peas, reserving some of the starchy cooking water for the sauce.

4) Pour the pasta and peas in a bowl and add 2 tbsp. low fat cream cheese, freshly ground black pepper, a pinch of oregano and red pepper flakes to taste. *I chose a simple cream sauce for this so that the pasta's intense herb flavor is the star of the dish.

5) Add a spoonful of the starchy cooking liquid to create a sauce and stir so the cheese melts over the pasta; add more water as necessary to thin out the sauce consistency.

6) Finish with a drizzle of good olive oil and serve warm. Enjoy!



Thanksgiving by the sea

Thanksgiving tablescape by my sister Caroline

 

Chocolate bourbon pecan pie by my mom

(which actually looked better than the photograph for the recipe)

 

Fit for Fall

Fall is the time when a plethora of squash is in season (okay, I do just love the word "plethora", but it's true) and there are so many different ways to use these healthy, fiber-filled vegetable marrows. Here are my latest ideas:

Spaghetti Squash Topped with Marinated Roasted Soy Glazed Tofu and Spinach

How I did it:
1) Roast the spaghetti squash in the oven on low heat until tender (325 degrees for about an hour for a medium sized squash.)
2) While the squash roasts, marinate extra-firm tofu, diced and patted dry with a paper towel, in a soy basil marinade. I used low sodium soy sauce seasoned with red pepper flakes and a tsp. of pesto whisked in with a drizzle of olive oil, and some torn fresh basil.
3) Saute the marinated tofu in a medium-high heat pan until lightly golden brown on the edges, pouring the remaining marinade (saving a tsp.) in the pan to reduce. Remove the tofu to a plate.
4) Add baby spinach to the pan and wilt down, seasoning with freshly ground black pepper. Turn off heat and squeeze lemon juice for a fresh finish.
5) Remove the squash from the oven and cut it open to scoop out the soft, stringy filling and place it all in a large saute pan with a little olive oil and minced garlic. Fluff up the "spaghetti" strings with a fork to achieve a sort of creamy pasta-like texture.
6) Add a few tablespoons of tomato sauce to the "spaghetti" with the last tsp. of soy basil marinade. The soy will work as an umami booster to enhance the savory flavors of the veggies, but the squash will not actually taste like soy. Add some fresh parsley and basil to finish, and season with salt and pepper to taste.
7) Top the spaghetti squash with the sauteed spinach with lemon vinaigrette and shaved parmesan. Add the tofu to heat through, and serve. This hearty vegetarian dish will feel like eating a bowl of pasta, but in fact it's all vegetables!

Another autumn vegetarian dinner I made:

Butternut Squash and Kale with Whole Wheat Gnocchi

 

 

 

I made this dish for a nutrient-packed dinner with healthy carbs the night before the annual breast cancer awareness 5K (and followed it with a protein-packed breakfast the next morning and had an excellent race!)



Appetizer Ideas

At my latest dinner party I put together a few quick appetizers for people to much on with drinks before dinner. The trick is to assemble a few things you don't have to cook, so they're simple and can be served at room temperature. First I put together a fall-themed cheese plate with blue stilton, English cheddar with caramelized onions, pecans, homemade roasted pumpkin seeds, dried cranberries, tart dried cherries, apricots, some pepperoni and roasted red peppers, and honey with cracked black pepper.

Then I topped fresh focaccia bread with caramelized onions with mixed greens, thin slices of prosciutto, shaved parmesan, and a squirt of lemon juice for a second appetizer option.

Followed by grilled veggies and kebabs for dinner and homemade ice cream for dessert. Fall feast!

Pumpkin Kale Black Bean Stew

Now that autumn's here, it's time for fall produce! At the farmer's market this week I got pumpkins, spaghetti squash, acorn squash, greens, some purple tomatoes that looked like chestnuts ...

For these chillier nights, I decided to make Pumpkin, Kale, Black Bean Stew - here's how I made it:

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 large yellow onion, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 small to medium sugar pumpkin, peeled, seeded, cut into large dice
• 1 large sweet potato, peeled and cut into large pieces
• 4 cups beef broth
• 1 tsp. turmeric
• 1 tbsp. paprika (or to taste)
• 1 (16 ounce) can diced fire-roasted tomatoes, undrained
• 1 tbsp. pumpkin butter (I use Trader Joe's)
• 1 bunch lacinato/dino kale, stems removed, chopped 
• Pinch of nutmeg
• 1 tsp. white pepper
• 1 fresh roma tomato (I just had one around and decided to use it)
• 1 (15 ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
• 2 tablespoons sherry vinegar
• 1 bay leaf
• salt to taste
• ground black pepper to taste
• Red pepper flakes to taste
• Dash hot sauce (optional)

Directions

1. Roast pumpkin in the oven at 325 for 45 min. or until tender when prodded with a fork. (I don't season the pumpkin or anything, just simply put the whole thing in the oven and let it roast away.) Remove pumpkin and let it cool enough to touch and then slice and scoop out the seeds and dice flesh into large chunks. *I save the seeds to bake later for snacking.
2. Heat olive oil over medium heat in a soup pot. Cook onion until it begins to soften. Add garlic and diced sweet potato. Season with salt, pepper, red pepper flakes and turmeric, stirring around to distribute golden color throughout the onion pieces. Add a splash of water to the pot if the spices start to stick to the bottom, to bring up all the little bits.
3. Add the pumpkin and cook for another few minutes. Stir in the pumpkin butter, allowing the sweet pumpkin to coast the savory roasted pumpkin, and cook out. Season with salt and pepper. Then stir in the beef broth, tomatoes, and paprika. Bring heat up, then turn down to low and simmer until vegetables are tender, about 15 minutes.
4. Add the rinsed/drained/chopped kale and wilt into the broth. Season the kale with nutmeg and more pepper. Add the diced fresh tomato if you have it - adds a nice contrast to the smoky fire-roasted tomatoes and peppery broth.
5. After soup has simmered for 15 minutes, add black beans and bay leaf; simmer for another 5 minutes. Stir in the sherry vinegar and hot sauce; turn down the heat. Let the stew sit so the flavors combine.
6. Serve up the stew with some crusty bread to mop up the spicy broth - enjoy!

Egyptian Find

 

At our local farmer's market there's a regular who sells homemade Middle Eastern delights, from Lebanese stuffed grape leaves to every hummus flavor you can imagine, and recently I discovered this authentic Egyptian dish: spiced fava beans! Having tasted them in Cairo I had to get some - what a find. In Egypt they eat a lot of fava beans, even with breakfast actually. This was the real deal.

Anniversary Dinner

For our three-year anniversary I decided to make a nice dinner at home, combining rustic and elegant for the perfect celebratory meal. With fall upon us in New England, I went for fresh and local: seared sea scallops with roasted butternut squash, leeks and crispy pancetta.  Here's how I did it:

First, I picked up some Tuscan bread from our neighborhood Clear Flour Bakery. I served it with a couple of options to dip/top the crusty bread with - white bean spread (I pureed cannelini beans with good olive oil, salt, pepper, and mixed in rosemary and red pepper flakes), and tomato "jam" (I roasted cherry tomatoes in the oven with olive oil and salt until wrinkly sweet, mashing them a bit in a bowl to release their juices and topping with a sprinkle of parmesan), and of course good oil.


Next I made dinner:
1) Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Slice and rinse a leek, spreading about half the pieces on a baking pan. Lay peeled and cubed butternut squash on the pan, tossing with olive oil, salt and freshly ground pepper, and drizzling with good maple syrup and a pinch of cayenne pepper. Bake the squash and leeks until caramelized (with golden brown edges.)
2) Crisp minced pancetta in a pan with about 1 tbsp. olive oil until frothy. Remove the pancetta from the pan and lay on a paper towel to drain the fat.
3) Put the remaining leek pieces into the pan - yes, cooking them in pancetta grease, but only on a special occasion would I do this - and sautee until soft and the white parts translucent. (Add a tbsp. of butter if you're feeling really decadent.) Remove the leaks.
4) Increase the heat and saute the sea scallops in the pan, grating a hint of sea salt so that it forms a golden crust. Deglaze the pan with a splash of white wine (I used the Pinot Grigio we were drinking with dinner) to loosen up those little bits of pancetta flavor, and cook a few minutes on each side so the scallop edges are just about crusty.
5) Lower the heat and add the pieces of squash to the pan, putting the leeks and pancetta back in, so all the flavors come together. Serve and enjoy!