Brown Butter Bucatini with Charred Cabbage

Brown Butter Bucatini with Charred Cabbage is an unusual vegetarian pasta. The Pecans to me are a great idea. I can't remember before ever having Pecans in a Pasta. When cooked they had a chewy texture. The pasta was great. We decided to serve sautéed Japanese Dry Scallops with it. A great hearing. This was a real un-expected delight.
New York Times
 
Charred cabbage brings a complex combination of flavors, from savory to bitter to sweet, to this simple but satisfying weeknight pasta. As it cooks, the cabbage also turns silky, clinging to the bucatini like the most delicious of frills. The pecans play off the natural nutty notes of the charred cabbage and brown butter. Like cacio e pepe or other pastas that fuse melted cheese with pasta water, this dish tightens up quickly, so make sure to have plenty of pasta water on hand to loosen it as needed. 

Brown Butter Bucatini with Charred Cabbage

Yield:4 servings 

INGREDIENTS

 
Salt and freshly cracked black pepper
2       tablespoons grapeseed or other neutral-flavored oil
1       small green cabbage (about 1 ½ pounds), halved, cored and thinly sliced
12     ounces bucatini
8       tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into chunks
½      cup roughly chopped raw pecans
2       cups/6 ounces coarsely grated Parmesan
⅓      cup parsley leaves, roughly chopped
 
PREPARATION
 
1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Season the water with enough salt that it tastes like a slightly salty soup.

2. In a large skillet over medium-high heat, heat the oil until it shimmers. Add the cabbage and a large pinch of salt. Cook, stirring frequently, until the cabbage softens, shrinks and becomes deeply charred in spots, 20 to 25 minutes. Season aggressively with pepper, taste for salt and season accordingly, and transfer the cabbage to a plate. Wipe out the skillet.

3. Add the bucatini to the boiling water and cook for 1 minute less than the package instructs. Drain, reserving 2 cups of pasta water.

4. To the large skillet, add the butter, pecans and a pinch of salt. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until the butter turns golden brown and smells nutty, 2 to 3 minutes. Add 1 cup of pasta water, the cabbage and the cooked pasta and stir to coat. Simmer until the sauce thickens, 3 to 5 minutes. Add half of the cheese and all the parsley and stir vigorously until the sauce coats the pasta and the cheese melts. If the pasta seems too dry, add a splash of pasta water.

5. Divide among bowls and top with the remaining cheese and some freshly cracked black pepper. Serve immediately.

Risotto con Luganegh (Risotto with Pork Sausage)

 

We love Risotto and we make this recipe quite often. It is a great recipe for: Risotto con Luganegh (Risotto with Pork Sausage). The recipe can be found on our blog of: April 21, 2009. Click the date to get the recipe. We started with a Caesar Salad. What a perfect meal!

Creamy Butternut Squash and Coconut Noodle Soup

Ok, everyone, listen up! Creamy Butternut Squash and Coconut Noodle Soup is a MUST MAKE Soup. It is beyond delicious. I loved it and can't wait till we make it again. We enhanced the soup in two ways. We used Delicata Squash instead of the called for Butternut Squash. The reason we did this is that the Delicata Squash does not need to be peeled. Life is easier! The second thing we did was to add cleaned, shelled Deveined Shrimp to the hot soup at the end for about 5 minutes to cook them. They were a great addition. This is just such a wonderful soup. I really hope you make it!

Creamy Butternut Squash and Coconut Noodle Soup

New York Times
 
Sweet, savory, and full of flavor, this easy weeknight noodle soup takes a cue from the warmly comforting northern Thai dish khao soi, with a curry-spiced coconut broth and toppings that offer crunch and contrast. First, the butternut squash is simmered in the fragrant broth until very tender. Then the squash is mashed, becoming one with the coconut milk before stock and sweet and savory seasonings are added (to keep the soup vegetarian, use soy sauce instead of fish sauce). You can use any type of egg noodles here, from wide dried egg noodles to flat fresh egg noodles (sometimes labeled as wonton noodles). Ladle the flavorful squash broth over the noodles and garnish with as much garnish as your heart and stomach desires. Those toppings can be — but are not limited to — a lot of lime juice to cut the richness, cilantro, sliced fresh shallots, crispy shallots, fried noodles, chile oil or pickled mustard greens.
 
INGREDIENTS
Yield:4 servings
 
3               tablespoons vegetable oil
1to 1¼      pounds peeled butternut squash, cut into 1-inch chunks
Salt 
2                tablespoons red or yellow curry paste
1                (3-inch)     piece ginger, grated (about 3 tablespoons)
1                teaspoon ground turmeric
2                (13-ounce) cans full-fat coconut milk
2 to 3         cups vegetable or chicken stock
2                teaspoons fish sauce or 1 tablespoon soy sauce
2                tablespoons brown sugar
8                ounces fresh or dried egg noodles (wide or thin)
Lime wedges, cilantro, thinly sliced shallots and chile oil, for serving

PREPARATION
 
1. Bring a pot of water to a boil for the noodles. Meanwhile, in a large pot or Dutch oven, heat the vegetable oil over medium-high. Add the squash, season with salt and cook, stirring occasionally until slightly softened and lightly golden in spots, 5 to 7 minutes. Stir in the curry paste, ginger and turmeric. Cook, stirring often, until very fragrant, about 1 minute, lowering the heat if necessary to keep from scorching.

2. Add the coconut milk and bring to a simmer. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until squash is tender enough to mash, 10 to 12 minutes. Uncover and use a wooden spoon or potato masher to crush the squash into small pieces. Add 2 cups of the stock, fish sauce and brown sugar. Bring to a boil, then turn the heat off. Add more stock for a brothier soup. Season with salt and adjust other seasonings to taste.

3. While the squash simmers, cook the noodles per the package directions.

4. To serve, divide the noodles into bowls, ladle the soup over, very generously squeeze lime over, and top with cilantro, shallots and chile oil.
 
Note: we substituted Delicata Squash (you don’t have to peel it!) and added Shrimp to the soup at the end.

One-Pot Braised Pork Ragù

Pork and Pasta, how wonderful a combination. We love Pasta and this recipe for One-Pot Braised Pork Ragù was a great one! I love the idea of chunky meat sauces. This was a good and easy dinner. Try it! This is a delicious Pasta! You can get the recipe on our blog of: Feb 26, 2024. Click the date to get the recipe.

We started with a Pear Salad with Walnuts (from our 50 pound bag!) and Blue Cheese. Delicious Fall Salad.

Braised Chicken Legs With Wild Mushrooms

Braised Chicken Legs with Wild Mushrooms is an excellent one-dish wintery dinner. Somehow when you have a rich dark sauce (especially with lots of Mushrooms) it adds an earthy heartiness to any dish. We liked this recipe. We served it with Potatoes.

Braised Chicken Legs With Wild Mushrooms
New York Times
 
A good roasted chicken is a simple pleasure, but a braised chicken dish is always more interesting. Here, dried wild mushrooms, smoked bacon and red wine perfume the sauce to give these chicken legs depth and character, with a flavor nearly similar to a game bird. Using turkey broth makes this braise even more heady. For a quick, concentrated broth, simmer 2 pounds of meaty turkey wings with 6 cups water for about an hour. Finding a dried wild mushroom is not like hunting for its fresh counterpart in the forest. Most Italian delis and nearly all supermarkets sell little packets of dried wild mushrooms.
 
INGREDIENTS
Yield:6 servings
 
1       ounce dried porcini
1       ounce dried morels
6       large chicken legs (about 4 pounds)
Salt and pepper
4       tablespoons unsalted butter (½ stick)
2       cups finely diced onion
3       ounces thick-cut bacon, sliced crosswise ¼-inch wide
1       tablespoon tomato paste
2       garlic cloves, minced
Pinch of cayenne
2       tablespoons all-purpose flour
1       cup red wine
4       cups turkey or chicken broth
1       bay leaf
1       large thyme sprig
1½    pounds small yellow-fleshed potatoes
3       tablespoons chopped parsley
 
PREPARATION
 
1. Rinse porcini with warm water (they are often sandy), then place in a small bowl, cover with hot water and soak until softened, about 15 minutes. In a separate bowl, soak the morels in hot water.

2. Heat oven to 400 degrees. Place chicken legs on a baking sheet in one layer. Season generously on both sides with salt and pepper. Roast, uncovered, for about 20 minutes, or until nicely browned. Remove and set aside. Turn oven to 350 degrees

3. Meanwhile, make the sauce: Melt 2 tablespoons butter in a Dutch oven or heavy-bottomed pot over medium-high heat. Add onions and cook, stirring, until softened and beginning to color.

4. Add bacon and tomato paste, stir to incorporate with onions, and cook for about 1 minute, then stir in garlic and cayenne. Sprinkle with flour and stir to coat. Add wine and cook for 1 minute, then whisk in turkey broth and bring to a simmer. The sauce will thicken slightly. Add bay leaf and thyme sprig. Drain porcini and morels and add to sauce.

5. Submerge browned chicken legs in sauce and bring to a brisk simmer. Cover and transfer pot to oven. Bake for about 1 hour, until chicken is tender. Remove from oven and keep covered.

6. While chicken bakes, make the potatoes: Put potatoes in a saucepan and cover with 1 inch of water. Add 1 teaspoon salt and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce to a brisk simmer and cook until tender, about 15 minutes.

7. Drain potatoes and let cool. Peel potatoes with a paring knife and return to saucepan. (Alternatively, potatoes may be peeled before cooking, or you may opt to leave skins on.) Add remaining 2 tablespoons butter and 1 cup water. Bring to a simmer over high heat to warm potatoes through, then set aside, covered.

8. To serve, divide legs among 6 warm plates. Spoon sauce and mushrooms over each serving. Sprinkle parsley over potatoes and place a few potatoes on each plate. Transfer remaining potatoes and buttery juices to a serving dish. Serve remaining sauce in a gravy boat if desired.
 

Lobster Risotto

We love Lobster Risotto! It is rich and decadent. I am always tasked with getting the Lobster Tail out of the shell in one piece. The trick is to use a kitchen shears to cut the shell on the full length from on both the top and the bottom. You can then basically peal the the shell off. You can find the recipe for this fantastic Risotto on our blog of May 2, 2015. Click the date to get the recipe.

We started with a Pear Salad with Walnuts and Blue Cheese.
 

Dinner and a Fire

Skillet-Braised Chicken with Greens and Olives is an exceptional dish. It really appeals to me. I love the crispy Skin and it is the 2nd best use of Olives (the first, of course being in Martinis). I highly suggest you make this great recipe. You can find the recipe for Skillet-Braised Chicken with Greens and Olives on our blog of September 30, 2024. Click the date to get the recipe.

We started with a Persimmon Salad.

It was a freaky night as we looked out our window and could observe the Los Angeles Fires. We were worried enough to actually bring up a suitcase and pack it with our prescriptions in case we had to flee. Luckily for us the fires never approached our house, too many others weren't as lucky.

Persimmon Salad

Every year in the late fall I buy a 50 pound bag of Walnuts. I then distribute them to friends and use in salads. A Persimmon Salad is always enhanced with freshly cracked freshly cracked Walnuts!

One-Pan Pork Tenderloin With Mushrooms

Pork, Mushrooms, what's not to love? This was a great recipe. One thing I especially like about Pork Tenderloin is that there is no waste. It is all edible. Because there isn't a lot of fat it takes on the flavors of what it is cooked with. In this case the richness and earthiness of the Mushrooms.

With the Pork we made Brown-Butter Orzo with Butternut Squash. This is a wonderful winter recipe. The Orzo Pasta makes a perfect foil for the Squash. If you don't eat a lot of Squash this would be a great recipe to start with. You can get the recipe for the Brown-Butter Orzo with Butternut Squash on our blog of: Feb. 19, 2024. Click the date to get the recipe.

One-Pan Pork Tenderloin With Mushrooms
New York Times
 
When pork tenderloin roasts with mushrooms in the same skillet, the results are deeply delicious. The pork’s garlic, rosemary and fennel coating mingles with the crisping mushrooms, which grow rich and savory cooking in a knob of butter — exactly what the lean meat needs. Tearing a variety of mushrooms into ragged pieces creates a mix of textures with little effort. To double the recipe, sear the tenderloins and mushrooms in batches in a skillet, then transfer everything to a sheet pan to roast. Serve with couscous and a green salad.
 
INGREDIENTS
Yield:2 to 3 servings
 
2       rosemary sprigs
4       garlic cloves, smashed and peeled
½      teaspoon fennel seeds (optional)
Salt and pepper
1       pork tenderloin (1 to 1¼ pounds), silver skin removed (see Tip), meat halved crosswise and patted dry
3       tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
8       ounces mixed mushrooms, torn into 1-inch pieces
2       tablespoons unsalted butter, sliced
2       teaspoons red or white wine vinegar
 
PREPARATION
 
1. Heat the oven to 425 degrees. Pluck 1 tablespoon leaves from the rosemary sprigs (reserve the rest). Using a mortar and pestle or knife and cutting board, combine the rosemary leaves, 3 garlic cloves, the fennel seeds (if using) and a pinch of salt and pepper. Pound or chop until a coarse paste forms. Season the pork with salt, then coat with the garlic-rosemary mixture. (You can season and refrigerate the pork up to 8 hours ahead.)

2. Heat the oil in a large, oven-proof skillet over medium-high. Add the pork and scatter the mushrooms around (skillet might be snug). Sear until browned underneath, 4 to 5 minutes. Season the mushrooms with salt and pepper and add the butter, remaining garlic clove and the reserved rosemary sprigs. Flip the pork, stir the mushrooms and spread them to fill the skillet. Roast, stirring the mushrooms halfway through, until a thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the pork registers between 140 and 145 degrees, 10 to 12 minutes.

3. Transfer the pork to a cutting board to rest at least 5 minutes. Stir the vinegar into the mushrooms and scrape up any browned bits stuck to the bottom of the skillet. Thinly slice the pork and serve with the mushrooms, spooning the pan drippings over top.
 
TIP
To remove the silver skin, a tough connective tissue, without cutting off too much meat, locate the white, shiny membrane and insert your knife at one edge of the silver skin to cut between the skin and the meat, creating a flap to hold onto. Pulling the flap of silver skin tight with your nondominant hand, continue to slice along the length of the skin until you’ve removed and released all the silver skin.

 

Char Siu Pork Lo Mein

`

We had delicious leftover Roast Pork. What better than to make Char Siu Pork Lo Mein. It is a perfect use of the Pork. Highly recommend it! You can find the recipe on our blog of January 28, 2020. Click the date to get the recipe. 

Miso-Marinated Pork Roast

Miso-Marinated Pork Roast was a new recipe for us. We will definitely make it again! It was both sweet and crispy. This is an excellent recipe. Highly recommend it! The Miso creates a rich Umami flavored Pork.

Miso-Marinated Pork Roast

New York Times

 

Total Time:     4¾ hours, plus 4 hours' marinating

Prep Time:     15 minutes

Cook Time:    4½ hours, plus 4 hours' marinating

 

This pork roast tastes and smells like the holidays, savory with the scent of rosemary, cozy with a caramelized crust and warming with black pepper. Even though the marinade has only four ingredients, the finished roast has the wow factor of a restaurant dish. The best part about this centerpiece? You can’t mess it up. And though the accompanying cranberry sauce is optional, it brings a welcome fruity tang and pop of red to the table. The sauce can be made up to a week ahead of time and the pork can be marinated the morning you plan to roast it.

 

INGREDIENTS

Yield:12 to 16 servings

 

FOR THE ROAST

 

½      cup red miso (see Tip)

⅓      cup granulated or light brown sugar

2       tablespoons minced fresh rosemary, plus 2 sprigs

1       tablespoon freshly ground black pepper

One 4- to 5-pound bone-in or boneless pork shoulder roast

1       large onion, cut into wedges

 

FOR THE SAUCE (OPTIONAL)

 

24     ounces fresh or frozen cranberries (6 cups)

1⅓    cups light brown sugar

2       ripe but firm pears, diced

8       slices fresh ginger, smashed

Juice of 2 oranges

1       cup dry white wine, such as vinho verde

Pinch of salt

 

PREPARATION

 

1.    Prepare the roast: Mix the miso, sugar, minced rosemary and black pepper until well combined. Unfurl the pork if it’s boneless and cut along its natural breaks to butterfly the meat without cutting all the way through. Rub the marinade all over the meat in an even layer.

2.    If needed, roll the pork back into a somewhat cylindrical shape. Use kitchen twine to tie it in 1-inch intervals. Refrigerate in an airtight container for 4 to 8 hours.

3.    If you’re making the sauce, bring all of the ingredients to a boil in a large pot, stirring occasionally. Reduce the heat to medium-high and continue boiling, skimming off and discarding any pink foam that rises to the surface, for 10 to 12 minutes. The liquid should be syrupy and the pears tender. The sauce can be refrigerated in jars or airtight containers for up for up 1 week. You’ll have about 6 cups.

4.    Remove the pork from the refrigerator an hour before you want to start cooking (about 4½ hours before you want to serve it). If the sauce has been refrigerated, let it sit at room temperature as well.

5.    Heat oven to 325 degrees. Wipe off any thick patches of marinade from the pork and place on a roasting pan or sheet pan. Scatter the onion and rosemary sprigs around the meat and pour in ¼ cup water (or wine or stock).

6.    Cook for 1 hour, then baste with the pan juices. Continue cooking, basting every 30 minutes, until an instant read thermometer registers 165 degrees in the thickest part, about 2 hours longer. Tent with parchment paper when the pork is dark brown.

7.    Let rest on a cutting board for at least 30 minutes. Slice and serve, with the sauce, if you’d like.

 

TIPS

 

·      Red miso, generally made with a higher proportion of soybeans and fermented for a longer period, is strong and savory, making it ideal for meat. If you can find only milder white or yellow miso, which is also sweeter, you can use it instead and reduce the sugar to ¼ cup. 

·      Pork shoulder, which comes from the upper portion of a pig’s foreleg, is usually split into the fattier top, known as Boston butt, pork butt or just butt, and the lower portion, called the picnic shoulder, blade roast or picnic roast. They all can be labeled pork shoulder and they all work in this recipe.

Persimmon Salad

In the fall we make many Persimmon Salads. Arugula, Persimmons, Salt, Pepper, Olive Oil and Balsamic Vinegar. We usually arrange Prosciutto on the plate. It is a great seasonal salad.

Annual Holiday Cake

Every year in December we make this Holiday Cake. We bake the cake and let it sit for a couple of weeks in the refrigerator. I know Fruit Cake gets a well deserved bad rap, but I can guarantee you this one is great. Everyone loves it, it freezes well, it can be toasted or eaten at room temp. It is a winner! Try it. It is called Mary Ann's Fruit Cake from a recipe by Craig Claiborne of The New York Times. You can find the recipe on our blog of January 1, 2011. Click the date to get the recipe. Trust me it is delicious.

Pasta With Spicy Italian Sausage and Jimmy Nardello Peppers

Jimmy Nardello Peppers are a wonderful fall treat. The peppers are sweet and not very spicy. They are only available in the fall. This delicious Pasta made full use of them. If you have never had Jimmy Nardello Peppers, and your local grocery store has them definitely buy them!

Pasta With Spicy Italian Sausage and Jimmy Nardello Peppers
Kendall Andronico
 
Saturday is my favorite day of the week because it means a trip to the Ferry Building Farmer’s Market. I get so inspired during my market visits – seeing all of the beautiful in-season produce and chatting with the farmers about their favorite ways to cook with the ingredients from their stands is the best.
At my most recent trip to the market, I picked up some Jimmy Nardello peppers (among a ton of other stuff!). They’re a long, waxy, red Italian pepper with a mild, slightly sweet, but very fruity flavor. They’re delicious pickled or, my personal favorite, melted down in a pan with olive oil and served on toast with burrata or whipped ricotta with a drizzle of honey on top. This time, I wanted to try something different and when my friend from cooking school, Nora, mentioned she loves Nardellos with sausage in pasta, I was sold!

I came up with this easy, incredibly flavorful pasta dish that comes together so quickly and is SUCH a crowd-pleaser. My boyfriend even said he’d pay $30 in a restaurant for it…LOL. Hope you enjoy it as much as he did!
Serves 4-5
 
INGREDIENTS
 
½      lb sweet Italian sausage
½      lb spicy Italian sausage
1       large yellow onion, thinly sliced
Kosher salt
1.5    cups thinly sliced jimmy nardello peppers (from about 3 large handfuls of peppers)
2       cloves garlic, thinly sliced
1       cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese, plus more to finish
1       lb any short, tubilar dried pasta (rigatoni, penne, etc.)
Basil
Ricotta (optional)
 
METHOD
 
1. Bring a large pot of water up to a boil. While that’s happening, brown your sausage. Add the sausage to a large skillet or cast iron pan. Turn on the heat to medium after the sausage is in the pan (this allows the fat to render out slowly – this way you don’t need to add any additional oil to get it started!). Once the sausage has started to release its fat, turn up the heat to medium-high and cook for 5-7 minutes until brown on the outside and just cooked through. As it’s cooking, use a wooden spoon to break it up into bite-sized pieces.

2. Remove the sausage from the pan and transfer to a plate but leave the fat behind. This is what we’ll cook our veggies in.

3. With the pan on medium heat, add the sliced onions and a big pinch of salt to the fat. Cook the onions until they begin to soften but not brown, about 2 minutes. Add the sliced peppers and garlic along with another pinch of salt. Cook the vegetables for 5-7 minutes, until everything is soft and melted down.

4. At this point, your pasta water should be boiling. Salt the boiling water generously and add in the pasta.

5. While your pasta cooks, add the browned sausage into the pan with the melted down onions, pepper and garlic. Take 1 cup of the pasta water out (you can do this while the pasta cooks!) and add to the sausage and veggie mixture. Stir in the Parmesan cheese and allow the mixture to simmer for 1-2 minutes, until the sauce reduce.

6. Add the pasta to the pan with the sauce once it has been cooking to 1 minute UNDER al dente – we will finish cooking it in the sauce.

7. With the heat on medium, toss the pasta continually to coat it with the sauce. Allow the pasta to simmer in the sauce while you stir it for about 1 minute until it’s thick and coated. Stirring the pasta constantly will agitate the gluten and help to thicken and emulsify the sauce. If the sauce becomes too thick, add more pasta cooking water to help thin it out.

8. Serve in bowls topped with more freshly grated Parmesan cheese, fresh basil leaves and a dollop of ricotta, if desired.

NOTES
If you don’t have a farmer’s market nearby and/or can’t find Jimmy Nardello peppers, you can use any mild pepper – I’d recommend Gypsey or Padrone peppers but if you can’t find those either, a mixture of green and red bell pepper will work here!
If you don’t like spice, just use 1 full pound of sweet Italian sausage and skip the spicy stuff.