Pasta pie is an occasional treat that our boys always have fun making. I’d never heard of pasta pie until Michael and I started dating and he took me to the original Generous George’s in Alexandria, an institution known for its eye-popping colorful décor and filling pasta pies, which is simply a pizza pie topped with various creative pasta toppings. The Alexandria restaurant closed last year, a victim of the economy, but Michael is carrying on the tradition in our home making pasta pies with our boys. Their favorite topping is spaghetti and meatballs, but you can put any kind of pasta on top of a pasta pie. I say go for lots of vegetables, sneak some spinach in there, whatever you can get your kids to eat.

Now for the pizza dough, use whatever recipe you prefer. We have several different recipes we use, including one from Artisan Pizza and Flatbread in Five Minutes a Day that we like. If you haven’t tried the Artisan Bread in Five method yet, I highly recommend it. We’ve done it for several years, and it’s truly easy, you just need a a bucket with a lid and some space in your frig. If you prefer a more traditional method, the recipe below is how we make a part whole wheat pizza dough. We use a stand mixer, but you can also do this completely by hand.

Here’s how to make the pizza dough, as demonstrated by Hockey Guy, 9 years old.

Measure the flour, yeast, and salt and add to the mixing bowl.

Make a well in the dry ingredients and add the honey, olive oil, and warm water. Stir well.

Knead with the dough hook until the dough comes together in a ball. Use a spatula to scrape any flour and bits off the sides of the bowl as necessary. Then shape it into a ball and let it rise in another bowl.

Roll each round of dough.

Pat it into an 8-inch pan and bake, then top with your favorite pasta.

Make sure to visit The Kids Cook Monday for more recipes to cook with your kids.

How Adults Can Help the Kids

• Demonstrate and assist with any tasks that might be new: measuring, stirring, using a rolling pin.

Safety Tips

• Make sure an adult is present at all times and supervises uses the stand mixer.
• Teach children to keep hands out of the bowl when the stand mixer is running.

PASTA PIE

Makes 4 8-inch pies.

Equipment

stand mixer with dough hook and paddle attachments
large mixing bowl
plastic wrap
4 8-inch cake pans, lightly coated with olive oil and coated with coarse cornmeal

Ingredients

2 cups (270 g) bread flour
1-1/4 cups (160 g) whole wheat flour
4 teaspoons instant yeast
2 teaspoons salt
1-1/4 cups (300 ml) warm water, not more than 115° F/46° C
3 teaspoons honey
4 tablespoons olive oil

Preparation

1. In the bowl of the stand mixer, whisk together the bread flour, whole wheat flour, yeast, and salt. Make a well in the middle and stir in the warm water, honey, and olive oil. Use the paddle attachment to stir the ingredients together until it’s combined, then attach the dough hook and knead until the dough on a medium low speed until the dough cleans the sides of the bowl, about 3 to 4 minutes. (Note: You can also do this all by hand.)

2. Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and turn a couple times until it’s shaped like a ball. Spritz the large mixing bowl with olive oil and turn the ball of dough around in the bowl a couple times until it’s coated with olive oil. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and set it in a warm place to rise until the dough doubles, about 90 minutes.

3. Preheat the oven to 450° F/230° C.

4. Punch down the dough and divide it into 4 equal pieces. Shape each piece into a ball and roll into a round. Spritz each 8-inch cake pan with olive oil and sprinkle coarse corn meal in the bottom. Pat the pizza dough in the bottom of the pan, pressing it into the edges.

5. Bake in the preheated oven until the pizzas are golden brown, about 8 to 10 minutes. Remove from the pans immediately and cut in half or quarters, then top with your favorite pasta dish.

More Kids Cook Monday Recipes

More Creative Pizza Recipes From Around the Blogs

The Perfect Pantry – Garlic Naan Pizza with Roasted Peppers and Cheese

Closet Cooking – Thai Chicken Pizza with Spicy Peanut Sauce

Food Blogga – How to Make Easter Pizza Chena (Pizza “Gaina”)

101 Cookbooks – Japanese Pizza (Okonomiyaki)

Thanks for subscribing to this blog! Copyright © 2005-2012 Andrea Meyers: making life delicious.

I’m very excited to be part of the new cookbook Good Bite Weeknight Meals: Delicious Made Easy, created by the contributors to GoodBite.com and photographed by the super talented Matt Armendariz. The recipes are all about helping you get delicious healthy food on the table with less fuss on busy weeknights. Most of the recipes have between 5 and 10 ingredients and can be prepared within 15 to 30 minutes using widely available ingredients. With dishes such as Chicken Tinga, Five-Spice Pork Chops with Hoisin Glaze, Baked Salmon with Seville Orange Marmalade and Wasabi, and Spicy Bean-Stuffed Bell Peppers, plus a number of slow cooker recipes, you’ll have plenty of flavorful options to choose from when planning your menus.

To celebrate the release of the book, I created a video to share with you one of my favorite recipes to make for weeknight meals, a pasta dish with zucchini, mushrooms, fresh lemon basil, and white wine.

Giveaway

I have five copies of the book to give away, courtesy of Good Bite and Wiley. For a chance to win a copy for your collection, tell us about your favorite easy meal for busy weeknights in the comments below.

Please make sure your email address is correct so I can contact you if you are one of the five lucky winners, and winners must respond within 48 hours or another winner will be chosen. The books can be shipped to any U.S. or Canadian address. The giveaway closes at 8 P.M. EST on Monday October 10, and Random.org will select the winners. Look for the announcement of the winners in this post soon after.

UPDATE: The winners have been selected and announcement emails sent. Please check your email for the announcement.

Thanks for sharing your dishes, and be sure to check out the blogs of the rest of the contributors.

Thanks for subscribing to this blog! Copyright © 2005-2012 Andrea Meyers: making life delicious.

Chow fun is a classic Chinese noodle dish often served with beef. The fresh rice noodles (ho fun) typically used are very wide and sliced into strips before cooking, but I’ve never seen them in our local international groceries, so I substitute L or XL bahn pho (dry Vietnamese rice noodles). Though not authentic, it’s very close and works for us, but if you can find them I highly recommend giving it a try with the real thing.

Chow fun is an easy dish to make with the kids. Builder Guy, age 8, helped with mixing the sauces, rinsing the bean sprouts, and hydrating and draining the noodles, while I cut the chicken, ginger, and green onions and did the woking. We made a good team and he was very proud of the finished dish.

Because I was doing the final cooking, I set my Canon 40D on a tripod, cranked it up high, handed the wireless remote to Builder Guy, and asked him to take the photos while I cooked. He had a blast! He climbed up on the step stool next to the tripod and shouted, “Abracadabra!” while pointing the remote like a wand every time he pushed the button. In the end, we had over 70 pictures of the approximately 7 minutes it took to me to finish the dish, and he was so proud of every single one of them.

When we served the chow fun, we heard mostly approving comments from the boys:

“This is good!” (Builder Guy)

“Awesome!” (Top Gun)

“Can I have cheese on top?” (Monkey Boy)

No cheese on this ingredient list, just some basic widely available Chinese condiments. Younger children can help with simple tasks such as:

rinsing the bean sprouts…

and mixing the sauces.

Of course let an older child, teen, or adult take over at the wok.

And enjoy!

How Adults Can Help the Kids

• Demonstrate and assist with any tasks that might be new: measuring, stirring, pouring, chopping, stir-frying.
• Assign the simpler tasks, such as mixing the marinade and sauce and washing the bean sprouts, to the younger kids, and save the more challenging tasks for the older kids and adults.

Safety Tips

• Make sure an adult is present at all times.
• Young children should not handle sharp knives or hot woks. Make sure an adult or older child or teenager does the chopping and stir-frying.
• The oil in the wok will be hot, so be careful when adding the chicken and watch for splatters.

Update: Featured on DailyBuzz Moms Top 9 Family-Friendly World Cuisine!

CHICKEN CHOW FUN

Serves 4 to 6.

Equipment

4- to 5-quart pot with lid
wok
2 small bowls
medium bowl or glass pie plate
colander

Ingredients

1 pound (454 g) XL bahn pho (dry Vietnamese rice noodles)
1 pound (454 g) boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into 1/4-inch thick slices
2 tablespoons light soy sauce, divided
2 tablespoons Chinese rice wine, divided
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 teaspoon sesame oil
2 tablespoons oyster sauce
5 tablespoons peanut oil, divided
1 pound (454 g) bean sprouts, rinsed and drained
3 slices ginger, peeled
3 scallions, thinly sliced on the diagonal

Preparation

1. Bring about 3 quarts of water to boil. Remove from heat, put the dry noodles in the hot water, and allow them to soften about 5 minutes, but do not allow the noodles to get too soft or they will break apart in the wok. Drain well and set aside.

2. In a small bowl, combine 1 table spoon soy sauce, 1 tablespoon rice wine, cornstarch, and sesame oil. Pour over the chicken in the medium bowl and stir to coat.

3. In the other small bowl, combine the oyster sauce, 1 tablespoon soy sauce, and 1 tablespoon rice wine.

4. In the wok, heat 1 tablespoon of peanut oil over high heat. Stir fry the chicken until it just turns white, about 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer to a plate.

5. Add 2 tablespoons of peanut oil to the wok. Add the bean sprouts and stir just until lightly coated with oil, about 1 minute. Add the ginger and scallions and stir-fry until the sprouts are just limp, about 2 minutes. Transfer to the plate with the chicken.

6. Add the remaining 2 tablespoons of peanut oil to the wok along with the noodles. Spread the noodles around the wok and let them rest until slightly crusty on the bottom, about 1 minute. Stir-fry the noodles gently so they do not break until light brown, about 2 minutes. Return the chicken and bean sprouts to the wok and pour in the oyster sauce mixture. Gently stir-fry until it’s all heated through, about 3 minutes. Serve immediately.

Substitutions

Traditional recipes call for fresh broad Chinese rice noodles known as ho fun, just separate them and cut into long strips 1/2-inch wide.

More Kids Cook Monday Recipes

More Chinese Noodle Recipes From Around the Blogs

Nook & Pantry – Chinese Fried Noodles

Use Real Butter – Chinese Cold Noodles

Tezcape – Braised Chinese Noodles, Steamed Noodles

Viet World Kitchen – Taiwanese Spicy Beef Noodle Soup (Niu Rou Mian)

Thanks for subscribing to this blog! Copyright © 2005-2012 Andrea Meyers: making life delicious.

Ten years ago Michael and I made a trek to Germany for our honeymoon. We travelled around the country with a tour group—not exactly romantic for a honeymoon, especially since we couldn’t convince the strict tour guide to get us hotel rooms with a double bed instead of two singles—but we had a great time visiting the cities and sampling the terrific wines, beers, and food. We chose an itinerary that would get us to Munich in time for the opening day of Oktoberfest, which we thought would be fun for our honeymoon since the 16-day festival started in 1810 as a wedding celebration. Much to the chagrin of our tour guide, who emphatically told us we would die if we dared venture near the Oktoberfest grounds, we skipped out on most of the scheduled tour itinerary and set off to see the city and festival for ourselves. Since I had been to Munich on a previous trip, I led some of the other travelers in our group on a night tour of the Marienplatz and Karlspatz area and then we went to the Hofbräu Haus for beer.

The next morning Michael and I headed out to experience the opening day of Oktoberfest for ourselves. We didn’t die (obviously), and actually we heard the first day or two of the festival are pretty tame compared to the later days. The beer tents are huge and amazing, filled to the brim with people singing and dancing on the floor and the tables. Each beer company has its own tent with a band loudly playing German music, and there are food tents as well with roasted duck and chicken, cheese, and baked goods. Outside the tents there are carnival rides and games and food vendors with wursts, pretzels as big as your head, and many other things. We walked around in the rain and just took it all in, loving every minute of it, and thankful that we got to experience it together.

Each year we celebrate our anniversary with some good German food, beer, and wine to commemorate our honeymoon. This year is our 10th wedding anniversary as well as the 200th anniversary of Oktoberfest, which starts on September 17 with horse races and runs through October 4. We will certainly celebrate for the next few weeks, and I will share a few more German recipes with you throughout Oktoberfest.

We’ve had some amazing experiences during our first 10 years of married life, and we look forward to many more.

Recipe Notes

I had my first taste of traditional cheese spaetzle (kaesespaetzle, käsespätzle) on a trip to Germany in the mid 90s, and it was easy to fall in love with this German comfort food. The simple flour and egg noodles are made by scraping a thick batter across a small wooden board or grater, or pressed through a spätzle schwob, a device similar to a potato ricer, then dropped into hot water to cook for a couple minutes. The cooked noodles are served with just a dollop of butter or are tossed with sautéed onions and Emmentaler cheese, or even layered with the onions and cheese and baked. We don’t have a spaetzle board, but I’ve made them with both a potato ricer as well as a grater type of spätzle maker. Of the two I prefer the ricer for the shape of noodles, but both work well. My recipe varies slightly from the traditional in that I brown the butter and cook the onions until they start to caramelize, which complements the richness of the cheese.

Oktoberfest official website

CHEESE SPAETZLE (KAESESPAETZLE)

Serves 6.

Equipment

small mixing bowl
medium mixing bowl
large skillet
4-quart pot with heavy bottom
spaetzle press (or spaetzle board, potato ricer)

Ingredients

1-1/2 cups (180 g) unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
3 large eggs
3 ounces (89 ml) lowfat milk
3 tablespoons butter
1 medium white or yellow onion, thinly sliced
6 ounces (170 g) Emmentaler cheese, shredded (or Gruyère, baby Swiss, or a combination)

Preparation

1. In the small bowl, whisk together the flour, nutmeg, salt and pepper. Beat eggs in the medium bowl, and alternately add the milk and flour, stirring until smooth. Let the batter stand for 30 minutes.

2. While the batter rests, melt the butter in the large skillet over medium-high heat until it starts to brown. Add the onion and cook until it begins to caramelize, about 10 to 15 minutes.

3. Bring the 4-quart pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Press the batter through a spaetzle press into the water. When the spaetzle has floated to the top of the water, remove it to a bowl, draining well. Mix in 1 cup of the cheese. Add the cooked spaetzle to the butter and onions and stir well. Add the remaining cheese, stir, and serve hot.

Variations

Baked Spaetzle – Preheat the oven to 375° F/190° C. Lightly grease a 2-quart baking dish. Spread half the spaetzle on the bottom of the dish and top with half the cheese and onions. Repeat with the remaining spaetzle, cheese, and onions. Bake until bubbly, about 15 minutes.

Bacon or Ham – Sauté about 3 ounces of ham or bacon, then cook the onions in the rendered fat and toss with the cooked spaetzle.

More German Food

More German Recipes From Around the Blogs

Steffen’s Dinners – Sauerbraten

Off the (Meat) Hook – Pork Schnitzel

No Recipes – Homemade Sauerkraut (Choucroute)

Thanks for subscribing to this blog! Copyright © 2005-2012 Andrea Meyers: making life delicious.

GoodBite.com has a new video series called Everyday Meals with a Twist sponsored by Heinz 57 sauce, and I shared one of our favorite easy recipes for the series. My dish with a twist is Orzo Salad with Pesto, a simple salad that you can serve warm or cold anytime of the year.

We make basic basil pesto and sun-dried tomato pesto with our homegrown basil, but you can also use purchased pesto. Just toss with the cooked orzo, tomatoes, and kalamata olives, sprinkle a little Parmesan on top, and it’s ready to serve.

Thanks for subscribing to this blog! Copyright © 2005-2012 Andrea Meyers: making life delicious.

The garlic only has a few more weeks in the ground, then it will be time to dig it up, and if the flavor of the scapes is any indication, we are in for some spicy garlic this year. We harvested the scapes over the weekend and made three different things with them: pesto, cannellini bean dip, this pasta with chicken, tomatoes, and basil. We saved the pretty flowers and curved parts for the pasta and use the stems for the pesto and bean dip.

The raw flavor of the scapes was pretty intense with a lot of bite, but once sautéed the flavor softened became more like a buttery roasted garlic. Because the raw flavor was so strong we thought the boys might not eat them in the pasta, but Builder Guy actually enjoyed them, though Top Gun and Monkey Boy regarded them with deep suspicion. For extra flavor we added some of our homegrown basil, which is doing very well this year. The tomatoes aren’t quite ready yet, but in a few weeks we should have plenty of warm summer tomatoes fresh from the vine.

We hope you will join us for Grow Your Own, a blogging event that celebrates the foods we grow, raise, hunt, or forage. If you are new to the event, you can read more about the rules for participating at the Grow Your Own page, and you can send post information to me at andreasrecipesgyo AT gmail DOT com. The deadline for this month’s event is June 30th.

(Print this recipe)

PASTA WITH CHICKEN, GARLIC SCAPES, TOMATOES, AND BASIL

Serves 4.

Equipment

6-quart pot with lid
12-inch skillet

Ingredients

8 ounces (227 g) farfalle pasta
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 chicken breasts, boneless and skinless, thinly sliced
sea salt, to taste
black pepper freshly ground, to taste
1 cup garlic scapes, cut into 6-inch lengths
1-1/2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved
10 basil leaves, chopped
1/2 cup (120 ml) white wine, dry
grated Parmesan cheese, to sprinkle on top

Preparation

1. Bring water to boil in the pot, then cook the pasta until ad dente, about 10 minutes. Drain.

2. While the water boils, heat the olive oil in the pan and add the chicken, cooking until it’s almost cooked through, about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

3. Add the scapes and cook until the start to brown, about 3 to 4 minutes. Add the tomato halves and sauté until they brighten and just begin to release their juices, about 1 minute. Add the white wine and the basil leaves, cooking until the basil begins to wilt.

4. Toss the cooked pasta with the chicken and scapes until it’s all thoroughly mixed. Divide among plates and served garnished with grated Parmesan cheese.

More Summer Grow Your Own Recipes

More Scapes Recipes From Around the Blogs

Grow Cook Eat – Hake with Tomato-Coconut Sauce

Apple Pie, Patis, and Pate – Garlic Scapes 12 Ways

Herbivoracious – Garlic Scape, Ricotta, and Zatar Pizza

Love and Olive Oil – Beet Green and Garlic Scape Bruschetta

Click the button to save this recipe to your Springpad.

Thanks for subscribing to this blog! Copyright © 2005-2012 Andrea Meyers: making life delicious.

My introduction to soba noodles was actually on a plane flying from Tokyo to Honolulu, admittedly not the best place to get good food. The flight attendants came around with breakfast and asked if I wanted the Japanese or the American breakfast, and I chose the Japanese because I could see the noodles that someone else already had on their tray. I swirled them in the sauce and enjoyed the slippery sensation and flavor while the American woman next to me eyed them with a look that said, “I can’t believe you are eating that.” I just smiled and enjoyed my breakfast.

Soba noodles also make a perfect light lunch on a hot day and I’ve got my 6-year-old, Builder Guy, hooked on them. Sometimes we have them plain with the traditional dipping sauce, but other times I like them as a salad tossed with some vegetables. This particular recipe has lime juice, soy sauce, sesame oil, honey, grated ginger, scallions, and cilantro for flavor, and zucchini, carrots, and avocado for vegetables. I could eat this all the time, but it tastes best when zucchini is in season, so now is a perfect time of year for this salad. I follow Maki’s method for cooking soba noodles, and it works perfectly.

One common question about soba noodles is whether they are gluten-free because buckwheat is not actually wheat at all and is naturally gluten-free, and the answer is it depends. Many soba noodles have wheat flour added to act as a binder, but you might find some gluten-free soba such as Eden Selected Buckwheat Soba or King Soba Noodles in larger grocery stores, Whole Foods, or even an international grocery store. Of course, you can also make your own gluten-free soba. And if you cook gluten-free, make sure you also choose a gluten-free soy sauce.

I made this with our homegrown scallions, which have started to peak in production. Our ginger isn’t quite ready, but hopefully next month we’ll have fresh homegrown ginger root. Squash vine borers defeated our efforts to grow zucchini this summer, but there’s always next year.

Just a quick reminder that the deadline for the second anniversary of Grow Your Own is coming up on August 30. If you haven’t yet sent your post information, you still have time. Email me at andreasrecipesgyo AT gmail DOT com. If you are new to the event, you can read more about the rules for participating at the Grow Your Own page. I’m excited about the anniversary event and can’t wait to see all your posts!

ZUCCHINI SOBA SALAD

Adapted from Epicurious.

Makes 4 to 6 large servings.

Equipment

5-quart pot
wire mesh strainer
large serving bowl

Ingredients

8 ounces (227 g) soba noodles
3 to 4 tablespoons fresh lime juice
6 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
1-1/2 tablespoons peeled and finely minced fresh ginger
1-1/2 teaspoons honey
2 tablespoons sesame oil
3 carrots, cut into 1/8-inch matchsticks
2 medium zucchini, cut into 1/8-inch matchsticks
4 scallions, thinly sliced crosswise
2 avocados, cut into chunks
sea salt, to taste
fresh ground black pepper, to taste
cilantro, for garnish

Preparation

1. Bring water to boil in the pot. Add the soba and reduce the heat so the water is simmering, not at a hard boil. Cook until soft and pliable, but not mushy. Drain and add very cold water back to the pot, add some ice if necessary. Stir the noodles with your hands or long chopsticks to loosen any remaining starches. Drain again and run cold water over the noodles until the water runs clear.

2. Whisk together lime juice, soy sauce, ginger, honey, and sesame oil in a large bowl. Add the zucchini, carrots, scallions, and avocado chunks and toss to combine. Season with salt and pepper.

3. Serve immediately at room temperature with cilantro for garnish.

More Salads

More Zucchini Salad Recipes From Around the Blogs

Kalyn’s Kitchen – Zucchini Carpaccio (Raw Zucchini) with Lemon, Herbs, and Goat Cheese

Closet Cooking – Grilled Asparagus, Zucchini, and Halloumi Salad

Almost Turkish Recipes – Zucchini Salad with Yogurt

A Veggie Venture – Tomato and Zucchini Salad

Thanks for subscribing to this blog! Copyright © 2005-2012 Andrea Meyers: making life delicious.

The Daring Cooks have begun! An offshoot of The Daring Bakers, group members strive to hone our skills by tackling one cooking challenge each month. For this inaugural challenge, our founders Lis and Ivonne chose the Zuni Cafe ricotta gnocchi from The Zuni Cafe Cookbook, by Judy Rodgers. I was thrilled to try the challenge because we dearly love gnocchi and though I’ve never been to the Zuni Cafe, I’ve heard wonderful things about it and have had the cookbook on my shelf for some time.

The ricotta cheese makes this gnocchi lighter than the traditional Italian potato gnocchi and the flavor reminded us of a very light omelet. Because we have plenty of chives and sage in our garden, I added both to the gnocchi and use more chives for garnish, a combination we thought worked well. We usually toss gnocchi with our homegrown basil pesto or sun-dried tomato pesto, but this time I decided to keep it very simple and made a browned sage butter.

The ricotta needs to be drained of as much liquid as possible before making the gnocchi, so put it in a strainer over a bowl the day before and let the liquid run off. As the book points out, use the best fresh ricotta you can afford because it makes such a difference in flavor. Check your local farmers market or store or try making your own ricotta cheese.

Thanks to our founders Lisa of La Mia Cucina and Ivonne of Cream Puffs in Venice for choosing a delicious and fun first challenge for the Daring Cooks. You gals continue to inspire me with your dedication to all the Daring folks.

To see all of the ricotta gnocchi, visit The Daring Kitchen Blogroll and the Daring Bakers Gallery at Foodgawker.

RICOTTA GNOCCHI

Abbreviated from The Zuni Cafe Cookbook, by Judy Rodgers with my variations.

Makes about 48 gnocchi.

Equipment

fine mesh strainer
cheesecloth
medium bowl
stand mixer with paddle attachment
shallow baking dish (a pie pan works fine)
sheet pan, lined with parchment and dusted with flour
small pot
wide pan, 10 inches or more, at least 2 inches deep

Ingredients

16 ounces (454 g) fresh ricotta cheese
2 large cold eggs, lightly beaten
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, melted
2 or 3 fresh sage leaves, chopped (or a few pinches of fresh grated nutmeg or lemon zest)
10 chives, chopped (5 in the gnocchi, 5 for garnish)
1/2 ounce (14 g) Parmigiano-Reggiano, grated (about 1/4 cup, very lightly packed)
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
unbleached all-purpose flour (for forming the gnocchi)

SAGE BUTTER
8 tablespoons (4 ounces/113 g) unsalted butter, sliced
5 fresh sage leaves, chopped

Preparation

1. PREPARE THE RICOTTA: Whether you have made your own or purchased, you need to drain the ricotta before using. Line a fine mesh strainer with cheesecloth and put in your ricotta cheese in it. Let it drain for 8 to 24 hours in the refrigerator before using. You can also wrap it up like a ball in cheesecloth and give it a squeeze to help it along. Test for liquid by placing 2 teaspoons on a dry paper towel. There should only be a small wet spot under the cheese, otherwise it’s still too wet.

2. Bring about 2 cups of water to a simmer in the small pan.

3. MIX THE GNOCCHI: In the bowl of the stand mixer, beat the ricotta vigorously, then smash a little of the cheese against the side of the bowl. If you still see little firm curds, press the cheese through a strainer to break them up.

4. Stir in the eggs. Add the melted butter, chopped sage, and 5 chopped chives to the batter. Add the Parmigiano and salt and beat until the whole mixture is very soft and fluffy.

5. SHAPE: In the shallow dish, make a bed of flour. Use a spoon to scoop out about 2 to 3 teaspoons of the batter. Hold the spoon at an angle and draw it across the surface of the batter so it makes a little oval shape. Use your finger to flick it off into the flour. Gently shake the pan side to side and flip the gnocchi to coat all sides. It’s ok if the gnocchi has a few wrinkles, dimples or bumps (mine had plenty).

6. Test the first gnocchi in the simmering water. It should sink, then swell, roll, and float to the surface and should cook in about 3 to 5 minutes. If it spreads or starts to fall apart, the ricotta was probably too wet. You can try to fix it by adding a teaspoon or so of egg white to the batter. If the gnocchi seems very heavy, trying add 1 teaspoon of beaten egg. Test another gnocchi to make sure it works.

7. Finish forming the gnocchi and just leave them on a the floured sheet pan. Cook right away or refrigerate uncovered for about 1 hour. The resting and cooling makes them easier to cook and handle. They will keep in the refrigerator for up to 8 hours.

8. Bring 2 to 3 quarts of water to boil in wide pan. Add 1 teaspoon of water per quart. Add the gnocchi one at a time, adjusting the heat as you go to maintain a simmer. The gnocchi will puff and float to the surface.

9. SAGE BUTTER: While cooking the gnocchi, melt the 8 tablespoons of butter over medium heat. Add the chopped sage and cook until the butter browns. Keep warm.

10. Use a slotted spoon or skimmer to remove and drain the gnocchi. Roll them in the browned butter and serve immediately with chopped chives for garnish.

Other Daring Challenges

Thanks for subscribing to this blog! Copyright © 2005-2012 Andrea Meyers: making life delicious.

A few days before we left for vacation, I picked five pounds of San Marzano tomatoes and a dozen bell peppers from our garden and had to do something with them fast. I had planned all along to turn those beautiful tomatoes into sauce, but now that the task was at hand and I only had a few short hours, I knew this would have to be a quick and easy freezer sauce.

This sauce is inspired by a couple recipes from Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking, by Marcella Hazan, my go-to book for Italian cooking. We used all five pound of the San Marzanos (which I forgot to photograph before chopping), six bell peppers, a whole head of garlic, olive oil, salt, pepper, and tossed in some fresh basil from the garden at the end. The recipe made about three quarts/litres of sauce, and we froze two of them. You can use Roma tomatoes instead, though they have a lot more juices. If you want to limit the juices, try seeding the Romas before cutting into small pieces. Many sauce recipes call for blanching the tomatoes and removing the skins, but we never bother with it.

As fortune would have it, we’re glad we hurried and made the sauce before vacation because when we returned we discovered some animal had been eating away at the ripe San Marzanos and leaving the half-eaten tomatoes lying on the ground under the plants. Heartbreaking, truly. At least we still had some green San Marzanos, and to increase chances of survival we purchased a garden net and carefully wrapped it around the plants. Fortunately that has kept the critters away and our tomatoes are thriving again.

This is my contribution to Grow Your Own, a blogging event that celebrates the dishes we create from foods we’ve grown, raised, foraged, or hunted ourselves. Our host for this round is Wiffy of Noob Cook, so visit her blog for more information on how to participate. Entries are due September 15.

[Updated August 20, 2011.]

SAN MARZANO SAUCE WITH PEPPERS

Inspired by Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking, by Marcella Hazan.

Equipment

6-quart pot with lid

Ingredients

5 pounds (~2.3 k) San Marzano tomatoes, cut into small pieces
6 bell peppers, cut into small pieces
1 whole head of garlic, peeled and minced
1/2 cup (~120 mil) olive oil
1s2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
1/2 cup (~20 g) torn fresh basil

Preparation

1. Put all the tomatoes, bell peppers, garlic, olive oil, salt, and pepper in the pot. Turn the heat up to medium high and cook for 20 to 25 minutes, until the oil floats free from the tomatoes.

2. Remove the pot from the heat and stir in the torn basil. Add more salt and pepper to taste. Serve with pasta. Will keep in the refrigerator for 3 days and up to 3 months in the freezer.

Variations

Skinless seeded tomatoes: Blanch them first and then peel. Cut out the stem, then cut a little X on the bottom of the tomato. Put into boiling water for about 1 minute, then remove quickly. Put into a cold water bath. When the tomatoes have cooled, peel the skin away starting at the X. To seed the tomato, cut it in half lengthwise and remove the seeds. The tomatoes are now ready for the sauce.

More Tomato Recipes

More Tomato Recipes from Around the Blogs

The Perfect Pantry – Slow Roasted Tomatoes

Simply Recipes – Homemade Tomato Juice

Matt Bites – Tomato & Zucchini Gratin

Laylita’s Recipes – Eggplant and Tomato Appetizer

Thanks for subscribing to this blog! Copyright © 2005-2012 Andrea Meyers: making life delicious.

Simplicity has been our theme this summer. I went back to work in June and realized that I wasn’t superwoman. Oh, I knew it way before then, but adding big deadlines to my juggling pile made me think less about what I wanted to do and more about what I could realistically do, and the first thing on my list was to make our meals easier and faster to prepare.

We’re still cooking from scratch; no take out, no pizza delivery guy ringing our doorbell, we’re just making our weekday meals less complicated. Not that I was serving cordon bleu before, but now we are even more mindful of our menu and time required to prepare food. The season is in our favor, with so many fresh fruits and vegetables available it’s easy to pull together a quick meal. Our tomatoes are ripening beautifully, and we gathered some of the fresh grape tomatoes and parsley and basil from the garden and added all of it to the bowl.

I chose this pasta salad from Stonewall Kitchen Favorites because the beautiful colors jumped out me and the flavors seemed just right. This recipe makes enough for a crowd. I cut it in half and noted it could still comfortably feed four people as a light meal.

This is my contribution to Grow Your Own, hosted by Jessica of Finny Knits. Visit the Grow Your Own information page to learn more about the event, and visit Jessica’s post with information on this round. Entries are due tomorrow August 15.

P.S. If you missed the give away for the Stonewall Kitchen Favorites cookbook, you still have time to enter today!

MEDITERRANEAN ORZO SALAD

Adapted from Stonewall Kitchen Favorites, by Jonathan King, Jim Stott, and Kathy Gunst.

Makes about 6 to 10 servings.

Equipment

large pot with a lid
fine mesh strainer
large mixing bowl
small bowl

Ingredients

16 ounces (~455 g) orzo or other small pasta
1/4 cup (~60 mil) olive oil
1/3 cup (~80 mil) plus 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
2 tablespoons grated lemon zest
1/4 cup (~60 mil) freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 cups Kalamata olives, chopped
2 pints (~680 g) grape tomatoes, halved lengthwise
1 large red onion, finely chopped
1/2 cup drained capers (optional)
1/2 cup (~20 g) lightly packed chopped fresh parsley leaves
freshly ground black pepper
pinch of sea salt

Preparation

1. Bring about 3 quarts of water to boil in the large pot. Add salt and the orzo and cook until al dente. Drain well in the mesh strainer, then pour hot orzo into the mixing bowl.

2. While the orzo cooks, stir together the olive oil, red wine vinegar, lemon zest, and lemon juice in the small bowl. Pour the mixture over the hot orzo and toss. Allow it to sit for about 5 minutes. Stir occasionally.

3. Add the olives, grape tomatoes, onion, capers, and parsley, and stir well. Season with fresh ground pepper and a pinch of sea salt. Serve warm, cold, or at room temperature.

Variations

• Mix Kalamata with green and black olives.
• Double the lemon zest and juice.
• Add 1/4 cup freshly chopped basil leaves or fresh oregano.
• Add 1/4 cup chopped sun-dried tomatoes.
• Add 1 cup chopped seedless cucumbers or red bell pepper.
• Add 1 cup crumbled feta cheese.
• Substitute a different cooked grain for the orzo, such as Israeli couscous, barley, or quinoa.

Other Light and Healthy Recipes

More Pasta Salads from Around the Food Blogs

The Kitchen Sink – Grilled Vegetable Orzo Salad

The Cooking Adventures of Chef Paz – Orzo Salad

Simply Recipes – Pesto Pasta Salad

Kalyn’s Kitchen – Pasta Salad with Slow Roasted Tomatoes, Grilled Zucchini, and Basil

Thanks for subscribing to this blog! Copyright © 2005-2012 Andrea Meyers: making life delicious.