Orange!

No, I did not buy anything from Hermes. But I did get another orange thing during our trip to New York...

I was deciding between Tory Burch reva flats or my lovely orange kitchen bling...and I decided on the food thing. When it comes down to it, I don't have a shoe blog. I have a food blog. So we all know where my priorities stand :-)

I decided to make something orange in my orange, so tonight it was Aligue Pasta with Prawns and Scallops. Aligue is the Filipino word for crab fat, and my mom's recent visit resulted in a couple of bottles in my pantry. Woohoo!!!



Recipe below:
1/2 bottle of crab fat (taba ng talangka) or about 5 heaping teaspoons
450g spaghettini
400 g prawns, peeled and deveined
200 g scallops
4 cloves garlic, minced
3 stalks green onions, chopped
1/4 cup olive oil
zest of 1 lemon plus 1 tablespoon of lemon juice
salt
pepper

1. Cook you pasta until al dente and save a cup of the pasta water. Don't forget to add salt to your cooking water.
2. Meanwhile, pat the prawns and scallops with paper towels until they are dry to touch.
3. In a large skillet/pan, heat olive oil and gently saute the garlic and green onion.
4. Add the prawns, saute for a couple of minutes, then add the scallops.
5. Turn heat to low, add the crab fat, lemon zest and lemon juice.
6. Add the pasta water and stir until the sauce is thick and creamy. Taste and adjust seasonings at this point. Remember that the crab fat is a bit salty already, so taste and adjust accordingly.
7. Add the pasta and toss gently until each stand is coated with the yummy goodness.
8. Serve with additional lemon wedges.

Spaghetti with garlic, anchovies and capers

After all the festivities of Christmas, I was in the mood for something clean and simple. This pasta dish has always been a favorite and you can't really get much simpler than this. Because this recipe has so few ingredients, technique is crucial in bringing out the best in the dish. And when I say technique, it's not that this dish is difficult to make. On the contrary, anyone can make this! There are just a few minor details that make a whole lot of difference in the end product.

1 lb spaghetti
2 whole cloves garlic, peeled and minced finely and uniformly (crucial point #1)
6-8 anchovy fillets
1/2 to 1 tsp. chili flakes
1/2 cup good olive oil
1/2 cup capers, drained and chopped

1. Cook the spaghetti according to package directions. Don't forget to salt the water and make sure not to over cook the pasta. (crucial point #2)
2. Meanwhile, place olive oil, garlic, anchovies and chili flakes in a large pan. Cook over low-medium heat (crucial point #3), stirring occasionally and breaking up the anchovies as you go along. Cook until garlic if soft but not brown. The point of using low heat is to cook the garlic very slowly until it becomes sweet, soft and mellow. If you use high heat, the garlic will burn and will acquire a bitter edge to it. That's definitely not what we want for this dish!
3. When the garlic is soft, turn off the heat and mash the garlic and anchovies together with the back of a spoon or spatula. You don't need to make a homogeneous mass, but you want the flavors of the anchovies and garlic to meld together as one. (crucial point #4)
4. Add the capers at this point.
5. By this time, the pasta should be about done. Drain briefly and put the pasta into the pan with the "sauce." Toss well and make sure each strand of spaghetti is coated with garlicky goodness.

That's it. Done!

Spaghettini alle Vongole

We had a very memorable farewell meal for my father-in-law in a small, quaint Italian restaurant the other night. They had the BEST spaghetti alle vongole I had ever tried. The pasta was redolent with the taste of the sea and the clams were fresh, clean and flavorful.

So of course, I just had to try making the dish at home. My end product was not quite as transcendental, but better than most generic pasta with clams that I've tried. The trick to making this dish special is removing the pasta from the boiling water a couple of minutes before it's done and finishing the cooking process in the clam sauce/broth. The pasta then absorbs all that rich brininess and garlicky goodness in the sauce which makes for excellent eating.

1 lb. dried spaghettini (any other long noodle such as spaghetti or linguini would work too)
1 whole garlic, minced
1/2 cup olive oil
3 lbs. fresh clams, soaked to make sure they have no sand in them
1 can clams (yes, I cheated), drained, juice reserved
1/2 cup white wine
1/2 cup chopped Italian parsley

1. Put clean clams in a deep pot with white wine. Steam until the clams open.
2. Discard clams which did not open.
3. Remove the clams from the liquid and strain the liquid to remove any sand. You can use a cheesecloth, which I didn't have, or a coffee filter, which I did have.
4. Combine the liquid with the juice from the canned clams. Set aside.
5. In a large pot, saute the garlic in the olive oil until the garlic barely has a hint of gold.
6. Add the whole and canned clams.
7. Add the clam juice and most of the parsley, reserving some for final garnishing.
8. Taste and season with salt (I didn't need to) and freshly ground pepper (this I did).
9. Simmer until you have about 1 and 1/2 cup of liquid left in your pot.
10. Meanwhile, boil pasta in lots of salted water. A couple of minutes before it's done, drain it and throw it into the pot with the sauce.
11. Toss the pasta with the sauce over low to medium heat until the pasta absorbs the rest of the liquid.
12. Serve with a sprinkling of fresh parsley on top.

Note: Remember, no cheese with this dish, please. Traditionally, seafood based pasta dishes are never served with cheese. Although as you can see here, I've never been a stickler for rules.

Spaghetti alla Carbonara with Sea Scallops

What do you do when you have a pound of excellent bacon and a wedge of parmegiano reggiano? Make carbonara, of course! The name of this simple but delicious pasta dish comes from the Italian word carbone, which means coal. Pretty ironic since the pasta is white, no? But many believe that the origin of the name comes from the fact that this pasta was a staple meal of coalminers because it could be made with very few ingredients, all of which kept well without refrigeration: pasta, eggs, hard cheese, and dried meat.

I used the recipe from Mark Bittman's How to Cook Everything and just fiddled around as I went along. Sea scallops were on sale, so why not make a good thing even better?

Spaghetti alla Carbonara with Sea Scallops

1 pound spaghetti (I used spaghettini)

1/2 pound bacon, sliced into 1 inch pieces

2 eggs

1 cup grated parmegiano

freshly ground black pepper

seared sea scallops*

1. In a skillet, cook bacon until crisp. Drain most of the fast, leaving about 2 tbsp. in the pan. (In an ideal world where calories wouldn't matter, I'd use all the drippings. But, oh well.)

2. In a separate bowl, mix eggs and cheese together.

3. Cook pasta according to package directions.

4. Add pasta to egg and cheese mixture. Add bacon and season generously with pepper. Mix well.

5. Top with sea scallops and a sprinkling of sea salt.

*For the sea scallops, melt butter in a small skillet. Pat scallops dry and season with salt and pepper. Sear scallops until caramelized, about a minute per side.

Rotini with Shrimp and Spanish Chorizo

It's Friday night. Time for one of my "throw together what's available" pasta dishes. My basil needed a "trim", I had some Spanish chorizo, shrimp, and sundried tomato pesto. There was a box of rotini pasta in the pantry. Yup, all I needed for a tasty pasta dish.

Rotini with Shrimp and Spanish Chorizo

450 g box rotini (or whatever pasta your heart desires)

300 g peeled shrimp

1 Spanish Chorizo

1/2 cup water

2 tsp. garlic

1 bunch italian parsley, chopped

12-15 whole basil leaves

3 heaping tbsp. sundried tomato pesto

1/4 cup grated sharp cheese (like pecorino or manchego or parmegiano)

1. Cook pasta according to package directions. By the time the pasta is done, the sauce will be ready too.

2. For the sauce, chop or slice the chorizo into small pieces. Put in a large pan with about 1/2 cup water.

3. Simmer until chorizo renders its fat and the water evaporates.

4. When the chorizo has rendered its oil and is gently frying, add garlic.

5. Saute for a few minutes then add the shrimp.

6. Cook just until shrimp is opaque then add herbs.

7. Turn off stove. Mix in drained pasta and pesto.

8. Add cheese and mix everything together.

9. Done!

On the side, we had marinated goat cheese on slices of pane di casa from Cob's bread and a glass of South African Pinot Grigio. Simple, quick and satisfying...

I think this will be another submission to presto pasta nights.

My Mom's Marvelous Macaroni Salad

Just a little alliteration there :-)

This recipe is inspired by my mom's version but somehow, I can never duplicate that perfect balance of sweet, salty and tangy that made her macaroni salad a favorite of many a gathering.

But this version of mine has been a hit many times too and so tomorrow, for a picnic of 40 people, this will be my contribution.

A word of warning: this recipe will feed an army.

Macaroni Salad

900 grams macaroni, cooked according to package directions

large can (540 ml) of crushed pineapple, drained well

1 bottle (375 ml) sweet pickle relish, drained well

1 bottle pimiento (cooked red peppers bottled in water), chopped/minced

1 large jar (950 ml) Hellman's low fat mayo (or full fat if you so desire)

1/4 cup sugar

1 1/2 tsp. kosher salt (use less if using regular table salt)

1 tsp. ground pepper

1 whole chicken

Procedure:

1. Boil chicken in salted water, cool, shred (do not include the skin and, obviously, the bones), then set aside.

2. Mix together the mayo, pineapple, pickles, pimiento, salt, sugar and pepper.

3. Let the dressing stand for about half an hour to let the seasoning meld together.

4. Mix together the macaroni, dressing and chicken.

5. Serve well chilled. Tastes better the next day.

A few notes. When you boil the chicken, you can add a quartered onion and a couple of stalks of celery to the boiling water. Don't forget to salt. Salting the cooking water is also very important when cooking the macaroni so you don't end up with tasteless pasta. Don't overcook the macaroni and don't rinse after cooking. There's nothing worse than mushy or watery pasta in a salad. Drain everything well (pasta, pineapple, relish, pimiento) before mixing together. This will prevent your dressing for becoming too runny. And lastly, taste the dressing before mixing in the chicken and macaroni. It's definitely easier to adjust the seasoning before you put in the "solids" and the seasoning will mix in more evenly if you do it before putting the salad all together.

A few other notes not related to the recipe above. When I prep onions, carrots, and celery for other dishes, I always put the small bits and scraps in a ziplock bag which I then stash in the freezer. I'll also freeze the celery leaves and the outer layer of the onion. When I make stock, I then have my aromatics always ready to throw into my stock pot. I also freeze chicken bones from grocery rotisserie chicken and home-cooked roast chicken. It's perfect for making stock and is definitely better than the store bought stock/broth.

Ok, I think that's all for now. Gotta pack for that picnic...

Penne with Chicken

I have a small herb planter hanging on our fence. Having it inspires me to be more creative about using herbs in cooking. Plus, it's so convenient to have the herbs right outside, ready for picking. And, having an herb garden makes me feel more "Martha Stewart-ish." Right now, I have 3 kinds of basil, italian parsley, chives, thyme, rosemary, and mint.

The picture above showes some italian parsley, globe basil and small leaf basil that I picked for our dinner. I got home late so it had to be a quick one. So I looked at what I had on hand and this is the dish I came up with.

Penne with Chicken

450 grams penne pasta, cooked and drained

2 chicken breasts, boneless and skinless
steak seasoning

5 strips bacon, chopped

1/4 cup olive oil

2 tsp. chopped garlic

1/2 tsp. chili flakes

200-250 grams sliced mushrooms

1/2 red bell pepper, sliced into strips

8-12 grape tomatoes, sliced in half

1-2 cups baby spinach

a handful of parsley and basil, chopped

freshly cracked black pepper

salt

grated cheese for garnish (I had some Manchego so I used that)

1. Cook bacon until crisp. Set aside. Drain most of bacon fat from pan, reserving about 1 tbsp.

2. Season chicken breasts with steak seasoning and pan fry in same pan. This takes about 5 minutes per side. I cook the chicken until the outside is very brown. I find this add so much to the final flavor of the dish.

3. Remove chicken to a cutting board and slice into 1/4 inch pieces. Set aside

4. In the same pan, add olive oil, garlic and chili flakes. Saute until garlic is soft.

5. Add mushrooms, peppers, and tomatoes. Cook til veggies are soft but not mushy.

6. Add in chopped herbs, sliced chicken plus all the juices, and bacon bits. Season with salt and pepper.

7. Add pasta, baby spinach and cheese. Toss until everything comes together. The heat of the pasta will wilt the spinach.

Finished product...

Squid ink pasta

Don't you just love the way the redness of the tomatoes contrasts with the dark, inky strands of pasta? A sprinkling of green from the parsley and basil provides just the right accent. So simple, yet so stunning.

Squid Ink Pasta with Shrimp and Tomatoes

1 package of squid ink pasta, cooked as directed

1/2 c olive oil, preferably extra virgin

2 heaping tsp. chopped garlic

3-4 slices of bacon or pancetta, chopped

1/2 tsp. chili flakes

400 g peeled shrimp

16-20 pcs. grape or cherry tomatoes, sliced in half

handful of parsley or basil or a combination of both, chopped

salt and pepper to taste

In a large pan, heat olive oil and saute pancetta (or bacon) until almost brown. Add in garlic and chili flakes. Saute until garlic is very slightly brown. Put in shrimp and tomatoes. Season with salt and pepper. Cook until shrimp is opaque and tomatoes are slightly wilted but not mushy. Turn off flame. Add chopped parsley and/or basil.

Put drained pasta into pan. Toss with the "sauce" until well-blended.

Ooohh, I think I will submit this for Presto Pasta Nights...