8-28-16 Tortellini in fresh Roma Tomato sauce w coconut cream

                                    

INGREDIENTS:

8 Roma/plum tomatoes peeled and chopped

One half medium onion sliced of diced

2 Dorot garlic cubes

one cube of fresh frozen basil in olive oil

Olive oil

Red pepper flakes

Asparagus – about 8 slender stalks cut into 1” pieces

Sweet Vermouth

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

Small can of coconut cream

PROCESS:

Make a small cruciate incision on the end of each tomato and place in boiling water for several minutes. Remove and cool under cold water, and peel away the skin.  Chop them into roughly one inch pieces and set aside in a bowl.  (Seeds do not have to be removed.)

Cook onions in olive oil until soft, then add the pepper flakes, garlic, and basil and cook until the cubes have melted.  Add the tomatoes and cook, covered, over medium-low heat, smashing occasionally with fork of spoon, until the tomatoes have broken down - about 30 minutes.  After 20-25 minute add a splash of wine and the aspargus.

In the meantime bring a pot of water to boil and add the tortellini (or other pasta).  And at this time add the butter and coconut cream to the sauce and continue cooking uncovered over low heat until the past is ready.

                                       

COMMENTS:

This is ten plus!  It is open to a variety of options:  pasta, no asparagus or a different veggie, cream instead of coconut cream, shrimp or crab meat, and more.

A LEGAL LADIES LUNCH AT LA CUCINA

I think a routine has just been established.  Once a month Patience and three of co-workers from WRH&S arrive at La Cuccina Renzulli for a mid-day repast.  The first time they were here the ladies were smart enough to praise the meal and the cook with unabashed enthusiasm, and basking in their praise I would have said yes to twice weekly lunches.  Fortunately their request was a modest monthly lunch date.  As busy as I am, and I am a very busy man – busy, busy, busy – you would think this is a burden for me; it is not.  I quickly realized that here was an opportunity to enjoy pasta and sausage in the middle of the day, a pleasure shared by my guests.  I suppose I could serve something other than the food of the gods (at least my gods), and I probably will, but it won’t be easy.

Let my say that the fact that my wife’s coworkers are three lovely women has no bearing on any of this

For our first lunch we had the treat of all treats, Spaghetti with Sunday gravy made with sausage and Chicken.  This month we enjoyed Tortellini soup with white beans and sausage.

INGREDIENTS:

1.     Cheese filled Tortellini

2.     Great Northern beans (Cannellini or other white beans can be used)

3.     Italian sausage cut into bite size piece

4.     Beef broth

5.     Olive oil

6.     Butter

7.     Onion and garlic chopped

8.     Celery and carrots chopped

9.     Dry Basil and Oregano

10. Tomato paste- about 2 tablespoons

11. Salt and pepper

12. Red pepper flakes - optional

13. Grana Padana Cheese

PROCESS:

Brown the sausage in oil, remove and set aside.  In a large pot heat the olive oil and butter and add the garlic, onions, carrots, celery, and red pepper flakes, and cook until soft., about 4-5 minutes.  Add the sausage and the tomato paste and mix well and cook for 2-3 minutes before adding the beans, the broth, and the seasoning.  Cover and simmer for at least 30 minutes.  (Mine simmered for almost 2 hours.)

Bring the soup to a boil and add the tortellini, cooking as directed on the package.

Serve with grated cheese and fresh Ciabatta bread from Kirchhoff's.

COMMENTS:

Life sometimes makes tough demands on us.  Being the tiger that I am, I am willing to go that extra mile to meet those demands.

LAUNCHING PATIENCE

Patience leaves this morning for the Whippet Nationals in Eugene Oregon. Last night, for her send off dinner, I prepared the following dish. I would like to say it was just for her, but, alas, I was also thinking of myself. She will be gone for four days, and my usual fare when she is away is hot dogs and baked beans. I’m not feeling sorry for myself, because the truth is, I love hot dogs, and the only time I eat them is when she is gone. In any event, we ate “high off the hog” last night.

As I’ve stated before, I don’t do recipes, and what follows is a general guide...you can’t go wrong with it! I used frozen artichoke hearts and frozen precooked and peeled shrimp.

Tortellini w shrimp, artichoke hearts, sun dried tomatoes, in cream sauce

This was a spontaneous dinner as a send off for P’s trip to Oregon tomorrow, and we both agreed it was easily a 15 on a scale of 10 !

INGREDIENTS:

Tortellini
garlic, shallot, fresh finely chopped parsley
red paper flakes
butter
olive oil
sun dried tomatoes
white wine
lemon juice
butter
heavy whipping cream
Old bay seasoning

Sauté the garlic, shallots, parsley with pepper flakes in olive oil. Add a little white wine and lemon juice along with the artichoke hearts (frozen), finely chopped sun dried tomatoes and . Cook for about 5 minutes then add the shrimp and a sprinkling of old bay seasoning When the wine is cooked off add a healthy pad of butter and the cream. Stir frequently for several minutes then add the almost cooked tortellini, stir and cook for another 1-2 minutes and serve with grated parmesan cheese.