Anyone can cook pasta

I love Pixar- their films always fill me with warmth and calm my racing brain. One of my favs has to be Ratatouille- I have adopted its "Anyone can cook" mantra into my own studio as "Anyone can sing." This is a ratatouille- inspired pasta (with cheese- because rats and mice love cheese, and so do I!).

Ingredients:

6 oz pkg cavatappi

1 zucchini, sliced

1 bell pepper, sliced

14 1⁄2 oz can whole peeled tomatoes

1 ounce parm, freshly grated

1 bunch basil, chopped

4 ounces ricotta

Method:

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add pasta to boiling water. Cook, stirring occasionally, until al dente. Reserve 1⁄4 cup cooking water; drain pasta and return to pot off heat. Cover to keep warm until needed.

On a rimmed baking sheet, toss zucchini and peppers with 2 tablespoons oil and a generous pinch each of salt and pepper. Broil on upper oven rack until charred and tender, 5–8 minutes

Roughly chop tomatoes directly in can using kitchen shears.

Add tomatoes, reserved cooking water, and a pinch of sugar to the pot with the pasta. Cook over medium-high heat until warmed through. Add roasted zucchini and peppers, chopped basil leaves, and 2⁄3rds of the Parmesan . Stir until pasta is well coated, about 1 minute. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Transfer pasta to a serving platter and dollop ricotta over top. Sprinkle with remaining Parmesan and whole basil leaves. Season to taste with pepper.

Comments

Raspberry Pomegranate Jam

Tis the season to be making homemade gifts! Pomegranates are in season and their juice is a festive deep ruby red color. I knew I had to make them into a jam to give away. Straight pomegranate flavor is a little tart for me; I added raspberries for the texture of their seeds and their sweetness. This is a very simple recipe to make and will yield 6 to 7 8 ounces jars of jam or 12 to 14 4 ounce jars, if you like to give away sample sizes during the holidays. Enjoy! Ingredients: 3 1/2 cups pomegranate juice 1 cup mashed raspberries 7 cups sugar 1 tablespoon butter 1 1/75 ounce package Sure Jell Method: Sterilize your jars and lids. Set aside. In a heavy bottomed large stock pot, add the pomegranate juice, raspberries and butter. Mix well. Add in the sugar. Bring to a full rolling boil then stir in the Sure Jell. Allow to boil hard for 1 minutes. Remove from the heat and skim off any foam. Ladle into the sterile jars, twist on the lids and pr

Samosas with Yogurt Sauce

I love exploring many kinds of cuisine in my kitchen because I can control the spice level, and in the case of this recipe, the use of cilantro. Cilantro lovers out there- sub it info the parsley here. I have the gene that makes cilantro taste like soap, which limits my ability to enjoy some dishes in restaurants, but is easily rectified in my own kitchen. I hope you enjoy! Ingredients: 3 russet potatoes 2 cloves garlic, minced 1 bunch fresh parsley, chopped 2 teaspoons curry powder 5 ounces peas Six 8 inch flour tortillas 4 ounces Greek yogurt Oil, salt, pepper, vinegar 4 tablespoons butter Method: Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Lightly oil a rimmed baking sheet. Scrub potatoes and cut into 1⁄2-inch pieces. Place in a large saucepan with a generous pinch of salt and enough water to cover by 1 inch. Cover and bring to a boil over high; uncover and cook until tenderDrain potatoes and transfer to a bowl. Heat 2 tablespoons oil in reserved saucepan over medium. Add chopped garlic and al

Peek-a-boo Squares

My grandma, Mimi, taught me this recipe. I used to make this with her and my mother as a child. It is my very favorite dessert. It is incredibly easy to make, and even easier to eat. My favorite part of making this as a child was dusting every bar generously with snowy white powdered sugar. My favorite version of this dessert uses canned blueberry pie filling; I vastly prefer Libby brand over the store brand. You can make blueberry pie filling from scratch with sugar, cornstarch, bleberries, etc. but using the canned stuff is easy in a pinch and is much for nostalgic for me. Plus, I don’t notice a vast improvement over my homemade blueberry pie filling and the Libby brand; it just takes me longer to put this dessert together. I have been known to whip up a pan of these Friday night and have them disappear by Saturday afternoon. Be warned, these things are addictive! Ingredients: 3 cups of all-purpose flour 2 cups of granulated sugar 4 eggs 2 sticks of

Watership Down Kitchen

Search This Blog