New Year's Eve Menu

APPETIZERS

• Antipasto platter
• cheese, salami, olives
• Funghi tagliati e fettine sottili, con mozzarella fusa e timo
• sliced mushrooms with melted mozzarella and thyme

SEAFOOD
Taittinger Brut Champagne

• Oysters rocafella
• Naked Cowboy, Kusshi, and Delaware raw oysters with champagne foam and mignonette
• Sea scallops crudo 
• with shaved fennel and extra virgin olive oil
• Baked clams
• parsley, oregano, shallot, parmesan and bread crumbs

PASTA
Michel-Schlumberger 2011 La Nue Chardonnay 

• Casonsei from Val Camonica
• Homemade pasta stuffed with a sausage, potato, and chard filling

MEAT
Canetto 2006 Reserve Vino Nobile di Montepulciano

• Tagliati di manzo con radicchio
• Thinly sliced beef with wilted radicchio and gorgonzola
• Edible rocks 

DESSERT
Loxton 2009 Late Harvest Zinfandel

• Salted caramel tart with chocolate ganache

Pasta with Cauliflower

It seems strange posting about a pasta dish while Chicago is caught in the midst of a heatwave! Temps in the 90s all week with highs over 100 a couple of days.

So maybe you need to wait a few days to try this one out. It was a great dish that could work year round. We did the cauliflower in a cast iron skillet on the grill in our quest to do as much of our cooking outside as possible. However, it can be done on the stove top just as easily.

We served this with a grilled lamb chop and side of sauteed beet greens.

1 Pound penne rigate pasta
1 Head cauliflower, broken down into florets
2 Small, red Thai chilies, seeded and sliced*
4 Cloves garlic, minced
Dry, unoaked, white wine (we used an Orvieto)
Olive oil
Salt and pepper
Handful fresh chopped parsley
1/4 - 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
*Substitute a fresh red chili or crushed red pepper flakes depending on availability

- Bring a large pot of salter water to boil. Cook pasta until al dente and drain.

- On the grill or stove top, heat approx. 2 Tbsp olive oil. Add garlic and chilies and saute until fragrant. Add cauliflower and season with salt. Cook until softened, splashing the pan with white wine as needed to cool the pan and prevent the garlic from browning.

- Combine cauliflower, pasta, parsley, parmesan, and 1 Tbsp olive oil in a large bowl and toss to combine. Add fresh ground pepper to taste.

Garlic Scape and Tomato Pasta

I've been trying to come up with some new ways to use garlic scapes. I managed to go for a run in this ungodly heat and after a long, cold shower I was starving! Luckily I had some leftover, plain cooked pasta from a few days before, several garlic scapes, a couple of fresh onions from the Corner Farm and one last jar of canned tomatoes left over from last summer. This is a quick and light pasta that didn't even make me regret turning on the stove top!

GARLIC SCAPE AND TOMATO PASTA

Olive oil
2 garlic scapes, sliced
pinch red pepper flakes
2-3 small spring onions sliced
1 cup or so of crushed tomatoes
splash balsamic vinegar
salt and pepper
parmesan
basil
pasta, either left over or cooked according to package

- Heat the olive oil in a pan over medium heat. Add the garlic scapes, pinch of salt, several turns of freshly ground black pepper and red pepper flakes and sautee until the scapes get nice and green

- Add the onions and continue cooking, turning down the heat if needed.

- Add the tomatoes and a splash of balsamic vinegar. Bring to a simmer and then turn down to heat through. Taste and add salt and pepper if needed.

- Add the pasta and toss with the sauce.

- Remove from the heat, chiffonade 8 or so leaves of basil and stir in

- Transfer pasta to bowls and serve with some freshly grated parmesan

Gluten Free Macaroni and Cheese

My sister-in-law had her baby last week!  A beautiful, healthy little boy.  They are home safe and sound and yesterday Jason and I went over to hang out and cook some food for the evening and into the rest of the week.

My sister-in-law is gluten-free and most of the time, especially when you cook a lot at home, a gluten-free diet can be adhered to without feeling like you are missing out!  However, when it comes to hearty comfort food, staying gluten-free is sometimes difficult.  She wanted something warm and filling, so Jason and I decided to adapt Tyler Florence's recipe for the Ultimate Mac and Cheese into a gluten-free, turkey bacon substituted version.  He called for just one type of cheese, but we ended up with a mix of four! 

And it was delicious.  The cheese blend was outstanding and the pea, onion, turkey bacon topping made the dish.  For those of you who eat pork, I might go with real bacon, but the substitution worked out great!  We made a giant double batch (2-3qt baking dishes worth), ate some last night, took some left overs home for us and left more than an entire pan for the new parents! 

A couple of notes,
1)  We bought the pre-shredded cheese from whole foods.  It is the only place I have ever seen shredded fondu cheese.  Feel free to subsitute whatever cheeses you would like.
2)  I like Ancient Grains Quinoa pasta.  It comes in a light blue box and can be found at Whole Foods, Dill Pickle Co-op and even stores like Strack and VanTil. 
3)  Bear in mind this makes 2 - 3qt. baking dishes of deliciousness.  I would recommend cutting the recipe in half or even in 1/4th.  It is very rich and a little bit goes along way.  One dish full of this is probably going to give 12 servings. 
GLUTEN FREE MACARONI AND CHEESE - Double Batch!

2 pounds gluten free elbow macaroni
2 cups shredded sharp cheddar
4 cups shredded fondu cheese (gruyere and swiss)
4 cups shredded mild cheddar
6 Tbsp butter
3/4 cup rice flour
8 Tbsp corn starch
1/2 gallon 2% milk
1/2 cup chopped parsley
6 slices turkey bacon thinly sliced (substitute pork bacon if you like!)
1 onion diced
1/2 bag frozen peas
1-2 sprigs fresh thyme
2 garlic cloves minced
salt and pepper

--Preheat over to 400

--Bring water to a boil (we had to use two pots for all of this pasta), cook pasta as recommended and drain.  I find with gluten-free pastas you want to make sure they are quite al dente or they can fall apart.  This brand I use seems to hold up quite well.

--Mix all of the cheeses together in a large bowl (if you are using only 1 type of cheese you do not need to worry about this step)

--In a large sauce pan, melt the butter over medium heat (you will be adding all of the milk and most of the cheese to this pan so make sure that it is large enough)

--Add the rice flour and cornstarch and whisk until the mixture begins to darken (you are essentially making a gluten-free roux)

--Add the milk and continue whisking until everything is dissolved and the sauce begins to thicken slightly

--Add 7 1/2 - 8 cups of the mixed cheeses to the pot and continue whisking until it becomes a lovely cheesey sauce.  Reserve the last 2 - 2 1/2 cups cheese for sprinkling at the end.

--Stir the chopped parsley into the cheese sauce and season with salt and pepper. 

--Fill both of the baking dishes about part way with pasta.  Begin spooning the cheese sauce over the pasta and mixing as you go.

--Continue adding pasta and sauce to the baking dishes until they are full.

--Sprinkle the leftover shredded cheese over the baking dishes

--Bake the pasta for about 30 minutes.  With two batches we had a dish on the top rack and one on the bottom.  Toward the end we switched them so that both were able to get nice and browned on the top.  Let sit to cool for a few minutes

--Meanwhile, sautee the turkey bacon in a pan

--Once crispy, remove, add a little oil to the pan and begin sauteeing the diced onion and garlic.  Strip the leaves off the thyme sprigs and add.  (turkey bacon doesn't give off any fat, if you are using real bacon you should not have to add any oil, in fact, you may want to pour off some of the bacon fat before adding the onion)

--Add a couple of cups of the thawed green peas to the onion sautee and mix until heated through.

--Once the onions are softened, return the bacon to the pan and remove from the heat.

--Serve a dollop of the macaroni and cheese sprinkled with some of the onion, bacon, pea mixture.

Late Harvest Greens Pasta

I recently read a wonderful book, The Season's on Henry's Farm.  Literally, it is the story of a year in the life of a small, sustainable, family farm in Central Illinois.  Appropriately, the book starts in November and gives a glimpse into the day to day workings of a small producer, the story of the family themselves and their history, recipes and incredible insight into the life cycles of vegetables and herbs.

One of the most interesting tidbits I picked up from the book had to do with greens.  In my mind, I think of most greens as a spring and early summer delight, while knowing I will see kale and some of the hardier greens throughout the summer.  What I didn't consider is that greens can continue to be grown and harvested into the late fall.  The book discussed how the late fall greens are often an overlooked culinary delight.  Because of the lateness of the season and cool weather, the flavors of the greens are even more concentrated than in the spring.  I guess it makes sense.  We know that the most flavorful wine grapes are often grown in stressed conditions to concentrate their flavors, a kind of survival of the fittest. 

With this idea in mind I came across a pasta dish using late fall greens on the website 101 Cookbooks that I had to try.  I played a bit with her original recipe and was really happy with the results.  As an added bonus I threw in some rotisserie chicken pieces for a more wholesome meal that both of us loved.  It was also a great way to use up some greens and cheese I had in the fridge. 

LATE HARVEST GREENS PASTA  

1/2 bunch kale
Equal amount arugula
2 cloves garlic peeledand sliced in half
2 shallots peeled and sliced in half
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/3 cup goat cheese
12 oz gluten free rotini (I used gluten free, feel free to substitute your favorite here)
salt and pepper
lemon juice
**optional - chicken

--Bring a large pot of salted water to boil

--Add the garlic and shallots and boil for 2-3 minutes

--Add the kale and cook for another 30 seconds

--Using a slotted spoon remove the garlic, shallots and kale and transfer to a food processor

--Add the oil and cheese and process until smooth.  Add a little bit of the pasta water if needed to thin out the sauce

--Season with salt, pepper and lemon juice and set aside

--While the water is still boiling, add the pasta and cook until al dente

--Drain and toss with the green sauce

**optionally, add in some chicken pieces.  We had a rotisserie chicken that we added to the dish on the second day that was delicious.

Linguine with Spring Vegetables and Cream

Sunday J came up with a creative new dish with some ingredients we had around the house.  Although the title involves cream, it is a very, very light cream sauce, barely a coating.  We had it for a main course but it could also be served as a side dish to a larger meal.  The dish was really delicious and lovely for a leisurely lunch served with a glass of Roussette de Savoie called Altesse from Domaine Giachino.

LINGUINE WITH SPRING VEGETABLES AND CREAM

1/2 lb linguine
1 Tbsp butter

dash olive oil (so butter doesn't burn, less than a Tbsp)
6 stalks asparagus chopped
1/4 red bell pepper diced
3 leftover grilled baby portabella mushrooms, diced
pinch of crushed red pepper flakes

fresh ground black pepper
1 tsp rosemary garlic rub (rosemary, garlic powder, salt)
scant 1/4 cup half and half
1/4 cup white wine
handful of shredded parmesan cheese

In a large pot of boiling water cook the linguine until al dente

In a sautee pan, heat oil and butter.  Sautee over high heat the asparagus, mushrooms and peppers and season with black pepper, red pepper flakes and rosemary garlic rub.

Add the wine and cook until alcohol is gone (you can smell this) but some liquid remains.

Reduce the heat and add the half and half and parmesan cheese. Stir vigorously and remove immediately from the heat.

Add the pasta to the sautee pan and toss together.

Rotolo

Greetings!  I've been remiss since Thanksgiving.  I have to say I have been doing a lot of cooking. 

The day after Thanksgiving we had a great group of friends over.  Due to the nature of J's job, he gets a lot of presents at this time of year.  Usually in the form of cash or gift cards.  This season, we received something new, fresh pasta!  J was given 4 bags of ravioli (2 pumpkin and 2 spinach and sausage) and something I had never seen before, a Rotolo.

rotolo before adding sauce on top and baking

In this form, a rotolo is a stuffed pasta roll.  Three types of pasta - plain, tomato and spinach - in a large sheet, layered with mozzarella, ricotta and spinach and rolled into a log, almost like the pre-cooked polenta logs you can buy in the store, but larger. 

To serve, spread a baking dish with a thin layer of red sauce (we just used a store bought arrabiata), slice the rotolo, lay the slices in the dish and add more sauce on top and around the slices.  Put in a 350 degree oven and cook for about 20-25 minutes.

We served with sauteed spinach and roasted cauliflower.  Add in a couple of bottles of wine and a side of 6 friends and 3 kids and you have the perfect way to recover after Thanksgiving!