Category Archives: Pasta

Spaghetti with Fried Egg and Pangritata

What is pangritata, you ask? Well it is some bread crumbs cooked in olive oil with some herbs.. I added some lemon zest for good measure… It creates an amazing texture in any dish. This recipe is simple with pasta and eggs topped with breadcrumbs… so, so simple and so good! Perfect for meatless Mondays…

Pangritata

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
½ cup panko bread crumbs
1 tablespoon fresh rosemary, minced
Zest of a small lemon

Heat a large frying pan with the oil. Add the bread crumbs and sauté on medium heat for 4 to 5 minutes till golden brown. Add the rosemary, stir and turn heat off. Take out in a small bowl and add the lemon zest and mix well and keep aside.

½ pound spaghetti, cooked al dente with 1 cup of pasta water spare
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon butter
2 garlic cloves, minced
3 eggs
2 tablespoons fresh chives, chopped
½ cup grated grana padano cheese

Heat the same frying pan with the oil and butter. Add the garlic and cook for a minute on low heat. Add the eggs and cook on medium heat till the whites are cooked just barely through and the yolks are still runny. Add the cooked spaghetti and mix well, incorporating the eggs well. Add the chives and cheese. Mix well and check for seasonings. Add salt if necessary. Garnish with the Pangritata and serve immediately.

Mushroom Pasta with Marsala Sauce

I’ll start off the New Year with a delicious mushroom pasta- my daughter loves, loves mushrooms- she sneaks away some as I am slicing them to prepare the dish… she loved this one…

2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
10 ounces shiitake mushrooms, stemmed and sliced
10 ounces Cremini mushrooms, stemmed and sliced
Salt
Pepper
2 tablespoons fresh thyme, minced
2 garlic cloves, minced
½ cup Marsala wine
1 cup chicken/mushroom or vegetable broth
1/3 cup heavy cream
½ pound farfalle, cooked al dente with ½ cup pasta water spared
½ cup Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, grated
½ cup parsley, chopped

Heat a large frying pan with butter and olive oil. Add the onion and sauté on medium heat for 3 to 4 minutes. Add the shiitake mushrooms and sauté for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the Cremini mushrooms and sauté on medium heat for 6 to 7 minutes. Add thyme, garlic, salt and pepper. Saute for another 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer the mushrooms to a bowl. Add the Marsala wine and scrape off the brown bits from the bottom of the pan. Add the broth and bring to a boil. Take off heat and add the cream and mix well. Adjust seasonings with salt and pepper. Add the cooked pasta, cheese, mushrooms and parsley and cook over medium heat until pasta absorbs most of the liquid, about a minute or two. Adjust consistency with spare pasta water. Taste for seasonings and serve.

Mushroom Penne with Pesto

A quick weeknight meal- ready in minutes and delicious!!

20 ounces mushrooms, a mix of white and cremini, sliced
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
3 ounces pancetta, chopped
1 large shallot, sliced
2 garlic cloves, sliced
½ pound penne pasta
½ cup pesto, store bought
Salt to taste

In a medium pan, bring salty water to a roaring boil and add the pasta. Cook according to the box directions.
In the meantime, in a large frying pan, heat the olive oil and add the pancetta. Saute till light brown on medium heat, for about 5 minutes. Add the shallot and garlic. Saute for another 3-4 minutes. Next, add the mushrooms and cook on high heat stirring constantly. They will wilt down to almost half their size. Add the cooked pasta and the pesto. Turn the heat off, stir and check for salt.

Baked Sausage and Mushroom Pasta

Another one pot meal one can whip up in no time. I played around with marsala wine in this dish to give an extra yummy flavor… really good!

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
4 to 5 sausage links, casings removed and crumbled (I used with roasted garlic)
1 10 ounce pack Cremini mushrooms, cleaned and sliced
Salt
¼ cup Marsala wine
2 cups fresh tomato sauce, homemade or store bought
½ pound penne, cooked a bit less than al dente
½ cup fresh full fat ricotta cheese
1 cup grated mozzarella cheese, divided in half
½ cup fresh parsley, chopped

Heat a wide frying pan with the olive oil. Add the crumbled sausage and cook on a medium heat for 4 to 5 minutes. Add the mushrooms and continue to sauté for another 4 to 5 minutes. Add a teaspoon of salt and Marsala wine. Stir well and add the tomato sauce. Bring to a boil and add the cooked pasta, ricotta cheese and ½ cup mozzarella cheese. Mix well, turn heat off and check for seasonings. Add parsley, mix well and transfer to an oven-proof dish. Top with the remaining grated cheese. Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 30 minutes. Remove the foil and turn the broil function on and brown for 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from oven and let sit for 10 minutes and serve.

Linguini with Haricot Vert, Potatoes and Pesto

Perfect dish for meatless Mondays! I have made this dish many times but I decided to jazz it up a bit with adding my own homemade croutons. It’s not in the recipe below but it’s quite simple. I took a baguette and diced it into 1 inch squares. I then cooked some grated garlic in olive oil, drizzled it all over the cut up bread on a cookie sheet and baked the whole thing for 5 minutes- and voila.. I had yummy croutons. It adds a great crunch to the dish…

2 medium yellow skinned potatoes, peeled and cut into 1 inch dice
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
Salt

Heat a wide frying pan with the butter and olive oil. Add the potatoes and sauté on medium high heat, stirring, for about 4 to 5 minutes or till the potatoes are golden brown and cooked through. Take out of the pan and keep aside.

2 cups Haricot vert, trimmed
½ pound linguini
Salt

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add salt and the beans. Cook for a minute and immediately place under cold water, dry and keep aside. Add the pasta in the same boiling water and cook till done. Drain and spare half cup of the pasta water.

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
½ cup basil pesto, homemade or store bought (recipe follows)
Salt

Reheat the frying pan and add the olive oil. Return the potatoes to the pan with the green beans, pesto, pasta and the ½ cup pasta water. Mix well and heat everything through on medium heat. Check for seasonings and serve.

Basil Pesto

1 cup fresh basil
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
½ cup freshly grated Pecorino Romano cheese
2 garlic cloves
1/3 cup pine nuts
Juice of half a lemon
Salt

In a food processor, add the garlic and pine nuts. Process till smooth. Add the fresh basil and while the processor is on, drizzle the olive oil slowly till the consistency is smooth and wet. Take out in a bowl and add the cheese, lemon juice and salt. Store in the fridge.

Baked Ziti with Meat Sauce

My daughter loves baked ziti and she loves pasta with meat sauce- so I made baked ziti with meat sauce. Why not?? It is easy to make and yummy!!

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 pound ground dark meat turkey
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, chopped
1 tablespoon fresh thyme, chopped
1 tablespoon fresh rosemary, chopped
3 cups fresh tomato sauce
Salt
1 pound penne, cooked al dente
1 cup fresh mozzarella, cut into 1 inch pieces
1 cup fresh basil, chopped
1 cup shredded mozzarella

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Heat the olive oil in a saucepan. Add the turkey meat and brown at a high heat for 4 to 5 minutes. Add the onion and garlic and sauté on medium heat for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the thyme and rosemary and tomato sauce. Add salt and bring to a boil and simmer at a low heat covered with a lid for 20 to 25 minutes. Take the lid off and add the al dente pasta and mix well and check for seasonings.

Transfer half of the pasta mixture to an oven proof dish. Top with the fresh mozzarella and basil, distributing evenly. Top with the rest of the pasta mixture. Add the shredded cheese and top and bake, covered for 45 minutes. Take the foil off and bake to brown the top for another 15 minutes. Serve warm.

Mushroom and Spinach Meatless Balls

This is a great dish for Meatless Monday or really any other day you want to eat healthy… try it for a get together.. no one will guess this is meat free

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon butter
1 pound Cremini mushrooms, chopped
Salt
1 small yellow onion, chopped fine
3 garlic cloves, chopped fine
10 ounces spinach, chopped
½ cup quick cooking oats
½ cup shredded Parmigiano Reggiano cheese
½ cup panko bread crumbs
¼ cup fresh basil, chopped
¼ cup fresh parsley, chopped
2 eggs, beaten

4 cups fresh or store bought pasta sauce

Heat a skillet with the olive oil and butter. Add the mushrooms and some salt and cook over medium heat. Cook for about 5 minutes. Add the onion and garlic and cook for a minute or 2. Add the spinach and cook for another 4 to 5 minutes or till all the spinach is wilted and cooked. Take the mixture out into a mixing bowl and let cool.

Add the oats, cheese, bread crumbs, basil and parsley. Mix well. Add the eggs and 1 to 2 teaspoons of salt. Mix well and refrigerate for at least 2 to 3 hours.

Preheat oven to 450 degrees and line a baking sheet.

Form mixture into balls using a small scoop. Roll the balls lightly and bake for 15 minutes. Take out and keep aside.

Bring the sauce to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Gently add the balls and cook on a simmer for about 45 minutes. Serve with pasta.

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