Linguini a la Campagnola

I used to live down the block from a little neighborhood Italian restaurant where they make this dish: a fantastically savory pasta in garlic and oil with sun dried tomatoes, perfectly sauteed broccoli and a hunk of broiled goat cheese to swirl into the mix.

I made a double batch, thinking we'd eat the leftover portion for lunch the next day, but BT went back for fourths, until finally all that remained was an empty pan. Instructions to follow.

oil
scallions
broccoli
sundried tomatoes
garlic
parsley
goat cheese
salt and pepper

linguini

Ben & Jerry's Strawberry Ice Cream

Cook the eggs or don't cook the eggs - that part's entirely up to you. But make this ice cream. Make it without any further delay.
This is my ideal strawberry ice cream, exactly as is.
(The only element I might play around with in the future is maybe mixing everything in the blender for easier pouring and fewer bowls to wash.)

1 pint fresh strawberries, hulled and chopped
juice of half a lemon
1/3 cup sugar
2 large eggs
3/4 cup sugar
2 cups heavy cream
1 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Combine strawberries, lemon juice, and 1/4 cup sugar in a mixing bowl, and set aside to macerate in the fridge for 1 hour. In a large mixing bowl beat eggs until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Gradually add 3/4 cups sugar, mixing well. Stir in milk and vanilla and mix well. Mash strawberries to a puree. Add the strawberry puree to the custard and mix well. Gently stir in whipping cream just until combined. Pour into a chilled ice cream maker and follow the manufacturer's instructions.

Rotelli, Asparagus and Peas with Saffron Cream

Unable to leave well enough alone, I made a number of strategic changes to (an already perfectly good) recipe from Deborah Madison's The Greens Cookbook. (Not using any saffron in the saffron cream, for one thing...!)

Madison writes: "The peas are small and fresh, the asparagus, pencil thin. The fragrant saffron-flavored cream makes this pasta filling and substantial. This is a rather special dish, fine for a company dinner." I most wholeheartedly agree.

4 - 6 ounces fresh pasta (tagliatelle or wide fettuccine would be ideal.
1/2 bunch asparagus
1 cup green peas
1/4 teaspoon tumeric
1 tablespoon butter
2 scallions finely diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
½ cup heavy cream
Salt, to taste
1 cup parsley, roughly chopped
1 thin strip lemon peel; very thinly slivered
Parmesan cheese
Pepper

Bring a large pot of water to boil.
Melt the butter in a wide saute pan, and gently cook the shallots for several minutes, or until they are soft. Add the cream and the saffron infusion, bring to a boil, reduce slightly, and season with salt. When the pasta water is boiling, add salt, and cook the asparagus, and then the peas, in the boiling water. Scoop them out when they are done and add them to the cream. Next cook the pasta; when it is done, add it to the cream, turning it over several times with a pair of tongs to coat it with the sauce. Add the chervil leaves and the lemon peel, and serve on warm plates with grated Parmesan and freshly ground pepper.

Serves 2

Linguine a la Vongole

Not much of a recipe to record, but damn if this wasn't extra special good...
1/3 - 1/2 lb linguine
1 sundried tomato chicken sausage, sliced lengthwise and then horizontally into 1/2 inch slices
4 plum tomatoes, quartered
3 garlic cloves, sliced thin
12 littleneck clams, cleaned
generous pinch crushed red pepper
generous glug of white wine
handful chopped fresh oregano or basil
handful chopped fresh parsley
2 tablespoons pesto
salt, to taste
handful chopped fresh spinach

Spaghetti al Burro e Formaggio

This is really an amalgam of two comfort dishes from the Italian restaurants I worked at a million years ago when I was still cooking for pay. At Ciro and Sal's the pasta al burro e formaggio is pure solace: a whiff of garlic, handfuls of freshly grated cheese and lots of chopped parley to brighten the whole thing up. At Carmine's the lemon butter sauce is also a favorite of mine -- the flavors given extra depth and complexity with the addition of white wine and chicken stock and basil. So here, then, is Ciro and Carmine's love child, all grown up: a little lighter and more modern, with the combined wisdom of north and south. (Bill went back for third helpings. How bad could it be?)

1/2 pound whole wheat spaghetti
4 tablespoons of butter
1 clove garlic, finely minced (or more to taste)
1 hearty glug of white wine
1 hearty glug of chicken stock
1 small zucchini, cut in half lengthwise and then crosswise into thin half moons
2 handfuls of fresh baby spinach (or substitute 1/2 fresh basil, if you have it)
1/2 cup fresh parley, chopped
freshly grated Parmesan cheese, to taste
salt and pepper to taste

Scallion Spinach Pesto

I adapted this recipe from the Wild Leek Pesto over at Kalofagas, using almonds instead of walnuts, and changing all of the proportions in small but (I think) important ways. It was extremely delicious on pasta the first night; equally tasty smeared on a piece of broiled fish the next; and finally, tonight, wickedly good stuffed into brined and pan-roasted chicken breasts. (Bill's favorite variation.)

Looks like the scallion pesto may stay in regular rotation for a while...Thanks, Kalofagas!


Ingredients:
1/2 cup almonds
1 cup chopped scallions (green part only)
1 clove of garlic
1 1/2 cup of baby spinach
1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/3 cup grated Romano cheese
Salt and pepper, to taste

Blend. Taste. Adjust. Apply liberally.

Sizzling Rice Soup

I loved this soup when I was a kid. Over the years it has completely and inexplicably disappeared from all but a few old-school NYC Chinese restaurant menus; but no matter, I've started making it at home. In fact, we've eaten it three times this week, in an effort to make up for lost time.

The loud sizzle is a special moment in my day. What can I say? I've always loved those little tableside flourishes. Plus, it's a kind of perfect duo: combining the guilty-pleasure-sensation of pop rocks, with the inarguable health benefits of chicken vegetable soup.

3-4 ounces frozen shrimp, thawed
2 tablespoon rice wine
2 teaspoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon sesame oil
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 large skinless, boneless chicken breast
4 cups chicken broth
1 cup chopped raw broccoli
½ can of sliced water chestnuts
¼ cup sliced scallions
handful of snow peas
4-6 rice cakes from 1 package Chinese rice cakes (or you can make your own, which I did the other day but would prefer to not ever have to do again in the future.)

In a bowl, mix together the shrimp, cornstarch, sherry and soy sauce and set aside. Poach the chicken breast in the chicken broth in a soup pot over medium heat. Bring to a boil and then immediately reduce the heat and allow it to simmer until the chicken is just barely cooked through. Remove the chicken breast and set aside too cool slightly.

Add the shrimp mixture, green onions, water chestnuts and broccoli to the pot over medium heat. Simmer for 3 minutes. While the shrimp is simmering, cut the reserved chicken breast into chunks and add the chicken back into the soup. Add the snow peas and adjust for seasoning.

Meanwhile, heat 3 tablespoons of oil in a frying pan. Brown the rice cakes in the oil very briefly on each side. They should be very hot. Remove the rice cakes from the oil with a slotted spoon, and blot on paper towels.

Add the rice cakes to the soup at the table. If both are hot enough, the soup will sizzle loudly.