Tag Archives: pasta

Apr19

Dinner for one — Mushroom bourguignon

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One of the main excuses that I hear from people who don’t cook for themselves is that it doesn’t make sense to cook for one. If you don’t like to cook, that’s fine, but if you want a home-cooked meal and are eating solo, I don’t see why you shouldn’t be able to make something delicious in a single portion!

Paco was out late at a baseball game last night, so I decided to make myself a mushroom bourguignon. I love beef bourguignon (this recipe from Baked Bree is amazing), but it takes hours and genuinely doesn’t really make sense for one (unless you want to make a full batch and save the leftovers for later). However, it’s easy to make as many or as few mushrooms as you’d like, and the mushroom version is a lot quicker because there is no beef to braise.

I used the mushroom bourguignon recipe from Smitten Kitchen, but I added some bacon and a few touches from the beef recipe above.  The bacon adds a nice savory quality, but you can follow the original recipe to keep it vegetarian.

Mushroom Bourguignon for One
(Adapted from Smitten Kitchen)

1 T butter
1 T olive oil
2/3 lb mushrooms, I used a mixture of portobello and crimini
1/3 onion, diced
1/2 carrot, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
3-4 springs of thyme, leaves removed
1/2 c red wine
1 T brandy
1/2 c – 1 c water, beef broth, or vegetable broth
1 T tomato paste
1/2 T flour
kosher salt
black pepper

2 strips bacon, diced
1/2 c frozen pearl onions, defrosted
1 tsp brown sugar
1/4 c parsley, chopped

egg noodles, prepared according to package directions

Begin by making the bacon and onion garnish. Brown the bacon over medium heat in a small skillet, remove to drain on paper towels once crispy. Drain off some of the excess bacon grease from the pan, but leave a little bit to fry the onions in. Add the onions, tossing in the bacon fat. When they begin to brown, add the brown sugar and continue to cook for another minute, so that a nice crust forms over the onions. Set aside.

Heat 1/2 T of olive oil and 1/2 T of butter in a pot over medium-high heat. Add the mushrooms and brown for a few minutes, until they are dark brown but before they begin to release a lot of liquid. Remove them from the pot and set aside.

Add the remaining olive oil to the pot and add the onions, carrots, and thyme. Season with salt and pepper. Saute for 5 minutes, then add the garlic, and saute for an additional minute. Add the wine to the pot, stirring to deglaze the pan. When the wine has reduced by half, add the brandy, tomato paste, and water or broth. Add the mushrooms to the pot and bring to a simmer. Simmer for 20 minutes.

Mix 1/2 T of room temperature butter with 1/2 T of flour to make a paste, then add this to the sauce and stir. This should thicken the sauce. Simmer for another 10 minutes, or until the sauce has reached the desired consistency. Taste and reseason if necessary.

Serve over egg noodles and garnish with the pearl onions and bacon.

Apr11

Pork ragu and buttered egg noodles with herbs

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On Saturday, I tried to think of something that would be easy to make for a group but special enough for company, and after flipping through several cookbooks for inspiration, I decided on a pork ragu. I used a mixture of ground pork and sausage because I was pressed for time (it still took 2 1/2 hours), but if you have 4 hours or so, you could make this with pork shoulder.  The long simmering time is what allows it to really develop its flavor, so try not to take too many shortcuts!

Pork Ragu

1 T olive oil
1 onion, finely chopped
2 carrots, peeled and finely chopped
2 stalks of celery, finely chopped
3 cloves of garlic, minced
6 oz can of tomato paste
1 c red wine (I used primitivo)
1 lb ground pork
1 lb mild Italian sausage, casings removed
1 32 oz can of crushed tomatoes, preferably San Marzano
1/2 tsp paprika
1 bay leaf
10 sprigs of thyme, tied into a bundle with butcher’s twine
kosher salt

Heat a large dutch oven over medium high heat. Coat the bottom of the pot with olive oil.  When the oil is hot, add the onions, carrots, garlic, and celery, and stir to coat with oil. Season with salt. Allow the vegetables to really brown, then stir and allow to brown again. Repeat 2-3 times.

Add the tomato paste the the pot and stir to coat the vegetables in tomato paste. Allow the tomato paste to brown for 2-3 minutes, stirring frequently to prevent it from burning. Add the wine, stir, and allow to reduce by half.

Add the sausage and ground pork. Break up the pork with a wooden spoon, and begin to brown the pork.  (It will be hard to tell because it will be covered in wine and tomatoes at this point, but give it 10 to 15 minutes to cook.)

Add the can of crushed tomatoes, then fill the can halfway with water, and pour into the pot. (This helps you to include any remaining tomato from the can in your sauce.) Add the paprika, thyme, and bay leaf. Stir, taste, and add additional salt if necessary.

Bring to a simmer, cover, and simmer for 1 1/2 – 3 hours, depending how much time you have. Every 15 minutes, stir, taste, and add water if necessary. Season again if desired.

Server with parmesan over plain spaghetti, or make buttered egg noodles with herbs (see below).  I highly recommend the egg noodle option!

Egg Noodles with Herbs
 (From Tori Ritchie’s Braises and Stews)

12 oz egg noodles
1 c Italian parsley, chopped
2 T chives, finely chopped
1/2 c basil, chopped
kosher salt
black pepper
2 T butter
2 T olive oil

Prepare the egg noodles according to the directions on the package.  Remove from the pot and drain.

Add the butter and oil to the empty still-hot pot.  The residual heat will melt the butter. Add the drained noodles back to the pot and toss. Season with salt and pepper, then toss with parsley, chives, and basil.

Mar29

Macaroni and cheese

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I made this as a side to Paco’s barbequed chicken, because I wanted to make something different from my usual barbeque sides (potato salad, cole slaw). It was a nice hot accompaniment, but this could definitely act as a main dish with a side of vegetables or salad.

What I love about macaroni and cheese is there are a million different variations. You can use whatever cheese you’d like (I used what I had on hand). You can add eggs to make a more casserole-like dish. You can add vegetables or meat (broccoli, bacon). You can top it with breadcrumbs, potato chips, cracker crumbs, fried onions, or anything crispy.

Macaroni and Cheese
(Serves 8 as a side)

3 strips of bacon, diced
1 onion, finely sliced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 lb macaroni
4 T butter
1/4 c flour
1 1/2 c milk
1/2 c cream or half-and-half
4 c of the cheese(s) of your choice (I used cheddar, mozzarella cheese, pecorino romano, and goat cheese)
kosher salt
pepper
pinch cayenne pepper
2-3 tsp Tabasco
a handful (about 1/3 c) of panko breadcrumbs

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Spray a 9 x 13-inch pan with cooking spray.

Prepare the macaroni using the directions on the package, boiling until it’s a little bit short of al dente (one minute less than al dente).  Remove from the heat and drain.

In a large skillet, brown the bacon until it is not quite crispy and most of the fat has rendered out. Remove the bacon from the pan.  Add the onions and garlic to the bacon fat and toss in the fat.  Season with pepper, and allow to caramelize. When the onions are golden but not falling apart, remove them from the pan as well.

To make the cheese sauce, melt the butter in a large skillet.  Add the flour, and stir with a whisk to break up the lumps.  Allow to cook for a minute or two, then add the milk and cream.  Bring to a gentle simmer, and stir continuously, allowing the mixture to cook for 5 minutes.  Once it has thickened, add the cheese a little bit at the time, stirring continuously. Season with salt, pepper, cayenne, and Tabasco.

Add the caramelized onions, bacon, and pasta to the cheese sauce, mixing so that the macaroni is thoroughly coated.  Sprinkle the panko over the top.  Spread the macaroni into the baking pan, and bake for 20 minutes.

Feb24

Linguine all’amatriciana

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Our dinner plans for the other night were postponed, so we decided to stay in and open a bottle of wine instead of going out two nights in a row.  After browsing through Anne Burell’s Cook Like a Rockstar, I decided on a modified version of her bucatini all’amatriciana.

I used bacon and linguine because that’s what we had on hand, and the whole point was to not leave the house!  I also had to add garlic and only used one onion (the recipe in her book uses 2 onions for each 28 oz. can of tomatoes). In the picture you can see that I added peas, but honestly they didn’t add much to the sauce, so I didn’t include that in the recipe.

The sauce turned out really well!   Simmering it for an hour really developed the delicious bacon-y flavor.

Pasta All’Amatriciana
Adapted from Anne Burrell

olive oil
8 oz pancetta or bacon, diced
1 large onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
kosher salt
black pepper
1 28 oz can whole tomatoes, pureed in the food processor
1/2 lb. bucatini, spaghetti, or linguine
grated parmigiano reggianno

Coat a deep skillet with olive oil and heat over medium heat. Add the pancetta or bacon, and cook until the meat is crisp and the fat has rendered out. Remove the pancetta or bacon from the pan, and drain on paper towels. Drain off about half the fat if using bacon, which is generally fattier than pancetta.

Add the onion and garlic to the pan and stir to coat in the fat. Season with salt, black pepper, and red pepper flakes. When the onions are soft, add the tomatoes. Pour about a cup of water into the empty tomato can and pour the water into the pan (this rinses out the remaining tomato juice). Add 2/3 of the pancetta or bacon to the pan as well.

Bring the sauce to a boil and simmer, stirring occasionally, for an hour. Taste and reseason, adding more water to thin it if necessary.

Cook the pasta in salted water for a minute less than the instructions on the package. Remove two cups of sauce from the pan and reserve, then add the cooked pasta to the sauce. Allow to simmer in the sauce for a minute or two to finish cooking.

Serve the pasta with some of the extra sauce if necessary.

Feb6

Cooking over the weekend

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Happy Monday! Last week kind of dragged for me, so I’m glad to be starting fresh this week.

We had a pretty busy weekend, but I wanted to share a few delicious recipes that I tried out.

This Blue Cheese and Bacon Dip from Baked Bree is pretty addictive. Perfect for the Superbowl.

Emeril’s veal paremesan was delicious.  My only complaint is that it takes a lot longer than the indicated 50 minutes to prepare.  Unless you have an enormous skillet, just breading and frying 8 veal cutlets takes about 45 minutes.  It’s worth it, though, so plan ahead!  I kept the cutlets warm in the oven at 200 degrees F while making the sauce and hanging out with our guests.

These potato chip cookies from Smitten Kitchen (another Emeril recipe) were a hit. They are salty, crisp, and sweet.