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Posts Tagged ‘Martha Stewart’

Rigatoni with Chunky Vegetable Sauce – The Macaroni Marathon

Posted in Everyday Food, Tasty Tidbits Tuesday, We Called It Macaroni (Pasta recipes), tagged , , , , , , , , , on February 28, 2015| Leave a Comment »

Every day that I post another pasta recipe especially one that isn’t one with gravy, the traditional tomato sauce served with meatballs and/or sausage, I marvel at the seemingly endless ways there are to  incorporate two great food groups;  Pasta, that filling carbohydrate, whose very lack of flavor (except for Barilla), lends itself as a base canvas upon which we can create delicious vegetable dishes from nature’s own colorful palette.  And to think, growing up in my Italian household, I never had any pasta that didn’t have tomato sauce on it except for Friday’s Aglio e Olio, a recipe that I must post – maybe next Friday.

INGREDIENTS:

2 TBS EV Olive oil

1 medium yellow onion diced medium

2 medium zucchini, diced medium

1/2 lb cemini or button mushrooms, trimmed and quartered

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 can (28 oz) tomato purée

coarse salt and ground pepper

2 TBS fresh oregano leaves, coarsely chopped

1 lb rigatoni**

DIRECTIONS:

In medium pot or braising pan, heat oil over medium-high.  Add onion and cook till translucent, about 5 minutes.  Add zucchini and mushrooms and cook until vegetables soften slightly, about 4 minutes.  Add garlic and cook until fragrant, 30 seconds.  Add tomato purée, season with salt and pepper, and bring mixture to a boil.  Reduce heat to a rapid simmer and cook until zucchini is crisp-tender, about 8 mintues.  Stir in oregano.

Meanwhile, in a large pot of boiling, salted water, cook pasta until al dente.  Reserve 1 cup cooking liquid; drain pasta and add to sauce, tossing to combine and adding enough pasta water to create a sauce that coats pasta.  Serve immediately.

** You can substitute ziti or penne rigate for the rigatoni. Also dicing the vegetables rather small allows them to tuck into the tube pasta.

Recipe from Martha Stewart EveryDay Food

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Pasta with Roasted Vegetables and Arugula-THE MACARONI MARATHON

Posted in Everyday Food, Marthaspeak, Tasty Tidbits Tuesday, We Called It Macaroni (Pasta recipes), tagged , , , , , , , , , , on February 23, 2015| Leave a Comment »

Pasta with Roasted Vegetables and Arugula

Pasta with Roasted Vegetables and Arugula

What could be more appropriate for this season than a pasta dish that uses ingredients that are fresh and readily available?  This is another quick dish to serve on a busy weekday evening.  And the ingredients are simple enough to find, I might even send the hubby to the store while I’m at work today and whip this up later!

INGREDIENTS:

2 pints grape tomatoes

4 garlic cloves, unpeeled

3 shallots, cut into eighths

2 TBS fresh thyme leaves

2 TBS EV olive oil

coarse salt and ground pepper

8 oz rigatoni pasta

1/3 cup pitted olives such as Niçoise, coarsely chopped

3 cups baby arugula or spinach

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 450º.  Place tomatoes, garlic, shallots and thyme on rimmed baking sheet.  Toss with oil and season with salt and pepper.  Roast until tomatoes burst, shallots are browned and garlic is soft, 20-25 minutes.

Meanwhile cook pasta in boiling salted water till al dente.  Reserve 1/4-1/2 cup pasta water.  Drain pasta and return to pot.

Peel roasted garlic and mash flat with knife.  Add to pasta pot along with vegetables, olives and pasta water.  Cook over medium-high until sauce thickens, about 3 minutes.  Let cool slightly, then toss in arugula

Recipe from Martha Stewart EveryDay Food

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Linguine with Tapenade, Tomatoes & Arugula – The Macaroni Marathon

Posted in Everyday Food, Tasty Tidbits Tuesday, We Called It Macaroni (Pasta recipes), tagged , , , , , , , , , , on February 17, 2015| Leave a Comment »

Today’s entry in the Macaroni Marathon is a tasty pasta dish just perfect for the winter.  With fresh local vegetables out of reach and certainly we’re not buying any of those pink tennis balls that are being passed off as tomatoes, right?  Well of course not;  First of all you can make the best tomato sauce from canned tomatoes.  There are lots of sauces that can be made using the seasonal vegetables of winter and we’ll get to them too, but today I’m using those sweet cherry or grape tomatoes – I never eat any other kind in the winter because well really, they’re not really tomatoes.

Sweet Cherry Tomatoes

Sweet Cherry Tomatoes

INGREDIENTS:    

Coarse salt and ground pepper

1 lb linguine

1 TBS olive oil plus more for serving

3/4 lb cherry tomatoes halved                                         

1/4 cup plus 2TBS tapenade

2 cups baby arugula

2 TBS chopped fresh parsley

1 1/2 oz feta cheese, crumbled (1/4 cup)

DIRECTIONS:

Cook linguine according to package instructions.  Drain pasta.  In pot, heat oil over medium.  Add tomatoes and cook, stirring occasionally, until slightly softened, about 3 minutes.

Return pasta to pot, stir in tapenade and cook until heated through.  Add arugula and toss to combine.  Season with salt and pepper.

Divide among four bowls, drizzle with oil and sprinkle with parsley and feta.

Serves 4

Martha Stewart's Everyday Food

Martha Stewart’s Everyday Food

Recipe from Everyday Food

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I Say Tomato – You Say Tomato – Martha Says Pin Cushion!

Posted in Marthaspeak, tagged , , , , , , , , on September 13, 2014| Leave a Comment »

We’re not talking Jersey Tomatoes here – No sir, this is all about those red plump stuffed cloth tomatoes.  My grandmother had one, my mother had one and I had one.  It ends here no doubt.  I know my daughter doesn’t have one and wonder how many of her friends do?  Not likely!  Wonder if any of them have the pins or needles or thread that also go into this homemaker’s essential salad?

Well be that as it may, I was surprised to receive an email extolling the virtues and the origin of this at-one-time-ubiquitious household tool.  The Sourcerer strikes again – twice in one week!!! Thanks to Gail who tipped me off about my mentor Martha’s article about pin cushions, tomato pin cushions to be exact and her take on 21st century examples.  

The following is excepted from Martha Stewart’s web site:

Pincushions come in all shapes and sizes, but the tomato is the design that prevails as the classic. But why a tomato of all things? Turns out it’s not random: There’s actually a reason for the tomato design, and it dates back to the Victorian era.

The first-ever documented mention of a generic pincushion dates back to the Middle Ages. Of course, in those days, they were more whimsically called “pimpilowes,” “pyn pillows,” and “pin-poppets.” The pincushion was invented as a practical aid for storing pins and needles, but it also showcased one’s collection of pins and needles. (Needles were costly, after all.) But the less-iconic shapes of dolls, birds, and prettily-packaged boxes left something to be desired.
Enter the time-honored tomato. According to tradition, placing a tomato on the mantel of a new home ensured prosperity by warding off evil spirits. When tomatoes were out of season, people weren’t totally out of luck: They simply improvised with red material, sawdust, and a little bit of ingenuity.

A lady of the Victorian era would take immense pride in a parlor room stocked with shelves upon shelves of pincushions, but the tomato was always the crowning acheivement of her collection. Since then, we’ve been piercing our pins into stuffed fabric tomatoes without question. But it’s “sew” much more fun to know where they come from, am I right?

In this case a picture is really worth 1000 words:

NOT YOUR GRANDMOTHER'S PIN CUSHION

                      NOT YOUR GRANDMOTHER’S PIN CUSHION

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Roasted Tomatoes and Fennel Sauce

Posted in Everyday Food, We Called It Macaroni (Pasta recipes), tagged , , , , , , on September 2, 2014| Leave a Comment »

This was a very good Tasty Tidbits Tuesday – we just finished dinner and it was delicious and as my husband put it “very interesting, very unusual and it tastes delicious too and I’ve never tasted anything like it”.

Last night Angela and Seth joined us for some wine and apps on the porch.  It was a warm evening and since it’s getting dark so early these days, we scattered candles all around giving the porch a soft and inviting atmosphere.  We sat and talked for quite some time drinking most of the bottle of Malbec they brought.  Angela brought us a bag of Heirloom cherry tomatoes that one of her customers from the bakery brought her!  It was an Ocean Grove food chain lol.  Turns out Angela is not really fond of tomatoes, there’s something about the consistency that she doesn’t like – all the better for me who LOVES tomatoes, JERSEY TOMATOES and even better FREE JERSEY HEIRLOOM TOMATOES.

I popped a few in my mouth, God they were like candy and there were a lot.  I started to think about what I could make with them.  This morning I saw just how many tomatoes there were and decided to leave some on Michael’ s porch (hope he found them when he got home tonight) and left some watermelon on Angela’s porch – the food chain continues….

Tonight I made Roasted Tomatoes and Fennel Sauce with linguine, well actually half linguine and half whole grain spaghetti.  It was so good, I plan to make it again soon.

Fennel

Fennel

1 Fennel bulb cut up

2 pints grape or cherry tomatoes, half of them halved ( I gave away too many, so I chopped up half of medium tomato)

1/4 cup white wine

3 TBS olive oil

5 sprigs of Thyme (I didn’t have any, so I used dried thyme leaves )

pinch of sugar* (I didn’t use any, the tomatoes were sweet enough)

Coarse salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 450 degrees

In a 9″ x 13″ baking dish, toss together the fennel, tomatoes, wine, oil and thyme.  Add a pinch of sugar and season with salt and pepper.

Bake, stirring occasionally until fennel softens and pan juices thicken, 35-40 minutes, maybe less.

I reserved a full cup of the pasta water and used it to create the sauce.  I didn’t have a lot of pan juices and some of it burned along the edges of the pan.

Toss pasta with sauce and sprinkle with grated Parmesan

Recipe from Martha Stewart’s Every Day Food – November 2009

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Hot Italian Sausage and Tomato Pasta – Just Light Enough For Summer

Posted in Everyday Food, Tasty Tidbits Tuesday, We Called It Macaroni (Pasta recipes), tagged , , , , , , , , on June 10, 2014| Leave a Comment »

hot-italian-sausage_300

I truly think pasta, well of course I meant to say macaroni is my favorite food.  The ways to prepare it are endless and seasonal too.  I know because I make it in all the seasons.  My sister-in-law, Stacey, brought this recipe with her when she and Matt visited us in Ocean Grove.  When she told me to buy just 1# of Gemelli, I thought to myself that we would never have enough food BUT I was wrong.  I was also concerned about the heat because our air-conditioners are not in yet and I was afraid this was going to be a heavy meal BUT I was wrong!

Hands on time – 10 minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients:

1 lb of Gemelli pasta (recipe calls for fettucine)

3 TBS olive oil

1 medium red onion, sliced

2-3 garlic cloves, smashed

4 hot Italian sausages, casings removed – we used hot turkey sausage and used the whole package of 6

1 pint of red or yellow cherry or grape tomatoes

2 TBS red wine vinegar

3/4 tsp Kosher salt – I don’t measure

1/4 tsp black pepper – I don’t measure

1/2 cup torn fresh basil leaves – we used close to a cup

1 cup of arugula, torn

1/2 cup grated cheese (Peccorino, Parmesan, Romano)

Directions:

Heat oil over medium-high  heat in braising pan or deep skillet.   Add onion and garlic and cook till onion softens 2-3 minutes. Add sausage, using wooden spoon to crumble sausage, cook about 5 minutes.  

Once the water is boiling, add the pasta.

Add tomatoes and cook until the skins burst, about 8 minutes.  Stir in the vinegar, salt and pepper.

Once pasta is cooked, drain it and add to the sausage mixture.  Add in the basil and the arugula.  Toss gently to combine and sprinkle with the cheese.

We used the braising pan as our serving dish (which is why I LOVE my braising pan)

Original recipe from Martha Stewart

 

 

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Saturday Night Supper- Orange and Balsamic Chicken

Posted in Everyday Food, Ha-P 2 B in OG, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , on March 30, 2014| 2 Comments »

Braising Pan by Schulte-Ufer

Braising Pan by
Schulte-Ufer

As I said in an earlier post, there’s a whole lot of cooking is going on this weekend.  It doesn’t hurt that it’s been raining for most of the time.

I had had some chicken thighs in the freezer for a while and thought I should  use them so I looked through my recipes to see what I could make.  Two caught my eye and ultimately I opted for the quick and simpler version. You will note that in this recipe and many others, that I use a braising pan.  I never owned one until a couple of years ago and now I can’t imagine cooking without one.  I use it all the time and if you want to cook or like to cook, I suggest you invest in one.  Actually the one I have in my cottage is more the perfect size  (11 1/2 “) than the larger one in NYC.  I always forget to mention that I use the braising pan as the serving dish/bowl for my meal.  That could be because although the cottage is filled with kitchenware and dish ware, I don’t have that medium size shallow bowl in which to serve my dish.  Maybe, BUT it sure makes cleaning up easier and keeps the food hot right from the stove to the table.

Balsamic Orange Chicken

Balsamic Orange Chicken – courtesy Martha Stewart

Ingredients

4 bone- in, skin-on chicken thighs

1 TBS olive oil

2 TBS Balsamic vinegar

1 orange cut into 8 wedges

1 TS unsalted butter

Directions

Pre-heat oven to 450 °

Heat oil on med-high in oven proof skillet ( I used a braising pan) and brown chicken skin side down till golden crispy, about 7 minutes.  Remove from pan to plate and pour off fat from skillet.  Return chicken to pan skin side up and put in oven for 10 minutes (I checked the temperature of the meat with my thermometer). Return chicken to plate.

Heat skillet over medium  and add vinegar and orange wedges to pan.  Scrape up any bits stuck to bottom of pan.  Cook till oranges get soft, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in butter.

To serve, return chicken to pan and toss pieces around in the sauce.  Squeeze the oranges over the chicken and serve with crusty bread to soak up the sauce.

Recipe from Martha Stewart’s Every Day Food – November 2010

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Linguine with Lemon-Cream Sauce – Pasta recipe

Posted in Everyday Food, Tasty Tidbits Tuesday, We Called It Macaroni (Pasta recipes), tagged , , , , , , , , , on May 14, 2013| Leave a Comment »

This image shows a whole and a cut lemon.

LEMONS-It Must Be Spring

We mostly called it macaroni, sometimes shells and sometimes spaghetti – today it seems it’s just pasta.  But whatever you call it, this dish is a delightfully different main or side dish for this season.

Coarse salt and ground pepper

1 lb linguine

1 tsp extra virgin olive oil

2 shallots minced

1 cup heavy cream

1 tsp grated lemon zest, plus 2 TBS lemon juice (from 1 lemon)

In a large pot of boiling water, cook pasta according to package instructions.  Reserve 1 cup of pasta water; drain pasta and return to pot.  Meanwhile, in a small pot, heat oil over medium  Add shallots, season with salt and pepper, and cook, stirring, until tender, 4 minutes.  Add cream and lemon zest.  Bring to boil and cook until slightly thickened, 8 minutes.  Add lemon juice and season to taste with salt and paper. Pour cream sauce over pasta and toss, adding enough pasta water to create a thin sauce that coats pasta.

Recipe from Martha Stewart’s Every Day Food

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Orechiette with Brocoli Rabe, Oregano and Lemon Zest

Posted in Everyday Food, Marthaspeak, Tasty Tidbits Tuesday, We Called It Macaroni (Pasta recipes), tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on May 1, 2013| Leave a Comment »

Tasty Tidbits Tuesday has been missing in action more often than I would like to admit.  I made the pasta dish I featured a week or so ago – the Penne with Cauliflower and Swiss Chard.  OMG, I have to tell you it was sooooooo delicious.  It had a delightfully light flavoring yet strong enough that you could savor every bite.  I admit I couldn’t taste the  Swiss Chard but since it added a different texture and the goodness of a dark leafy green vegetable, I was happy it was in it.

Actually it wasn’t the ingredients as much as it was the cooking technique that brought such flavor into every mouthful.  If you recall, the cauliflower was blanched for 3 minutes in the pot of boiling water that would also be used to cook the pasta.  So when the pasta was cooking in the water that the cauliflower had been in, it absorbed a light flavor that was as I said, delicious!  

Well my passion for pasta got me thinking about how many of my Tuesday recipes were pasta dishes and so I’ve decided to make a new category on the blog; We Called It Macaroni.  And I’m going to be publishing a LOT of pasta recipes! I’m no Lydia however, I’m taking on the job of educating my readers to the joys of Italian cooking, particularly PASTA, and taking them beyond red sauce and meatballs!  You can now search the blog category We Called It Macaroni for any of the pasta recipes published previously.  “Mangia”

Lovely light and flavorful pasta dish.

Lovely light and flavorful pasta dish.

Orchiette with Brocolie Rabe, Oregano and Lemon

Coarse salt and ground pepper

3/4 orchiette or other small pasta shape

1 bunch broccoli rabe (1 lb) – trimmed, cut into 1 1/2 ” pieces

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced

1/2 tsp red pepper flakes

1 TBS fresh oregano leaves, for serving

2-3 TBS fresh lemon juice , for serving

In  a large pot of boiling salted water, cook pasta according to directions, adding broccoli rate 4 minutes before the end of cooking.  Meanwhile, in a small saucepan heat oil, garlic and red pepper flakes over medium heat until garlic begins to sizzle, 2 minutes.  

Drain pasta and broccoli rabe and return to pot.  Add oil mixture and toss to coat;  season to taste with salt and pepper.  * I always sprinkle a little Peccorino-Romano or other Italian grating cheese on top of my pasta dishes

To  serve, sprinkle oregano over pasta and drizzle with lemon juice.

** As you can see, this recipe uses only olive oil as the sauce for the pasta dish;  Therefore you should definitely use the small pasta shapes such as orchiette and secondly when I see a recipe calling for so little sauce I often save a cupful of the pasta water to add to the sauce. Also I would use as many garlic cloves as I wished and just shake the red pepper flakes in and not measure.

***  You can also add cherry tomatoes with the garlic and cook them till they burst, add yet another dimension of flavor and texture to your dish.

Recipe from Martha Stewart’s Every Day Food

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Braised Chicken with Butternut Squash and Cranberries

Posted in Everyday Food, Tasty Tidbits Tuesday, tagged , , , , , , , , on December 4, 2012| Leave a Comment »

Tasty Tidbits Tuesday

Ocean Spray brand dried cranberries

Ocean Spray brand dried cranberries

This is a great dish on its own and could also be served over couscous

1 large butternut squash-peeled and cubed

2 TBS extra-virgin olive oil

4 chicken leg quarters

coarse salt and ground pepper

1 red onion, cut into 1/2″ wedges

2 TBS chopped fresh sage

4 tsp ground coriander

1 tsp ground nutmeg

2 cups low-sodium chicken broth

1/2 cup dried cranberries

In large Dutch oven or heavy pot, heat 1 TBS oil over medium-high.  Season chicken with salt and pepper and in two batches, cook skin side down until skin is golden and crisp, about 5 minutes per batch.  Transfer chicken to plate; pour off fat from pot.

Add 1 TBS oil, squash and onion to pot and cook until vegetables are beginning to soften, about 5 minutes.  Add sage, flour, coriander and nutmeg and cook, stirring until fragrant, about 2 minutes.  Add broth and cook, stirring and scraping any browned bits with a wooden spoon, 1 minute.  Nestle chicken, skin side up in squash mixture, add cranberries, and bring to boil.  Reduce heat, partially cover, and simmer till chicken is cooked through and squash is tender, 20-25 minutes.

Recipe from Martha Stewart Every Day Food

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