Pasta para P

Sometimes a rush and some basic ingredients create the most wonderful dishes. And one of them became the absolute favorite of my husband, hence the name. The secret ingredient? Lots of fresh dill, I’ve already tried it without and it honestly makes all the difference…

 

• Cook pasta. I like to use rigatoni for this dish, but penne or any short, ribbed pasta would do.

 

• In the meantime, cut up some spring onions, slice a bunch of ‘candy tomatoes‘ (it’s a kind of very sweet cherry tomato, but longer, like a teeny tiny version of roma tomatoes – it has to be really sweet) and toss them in a pan, pot, wok, whatever. Let them simmer and get warm.

• Add mascarpone, one big spoon will do for now. Season, but be careful with the salt…

 

• cause you’ll add your cooked pasta, along with little slices of smoked salmon. Keep some of the salmon apart to sprinkle over it once done. Now it’s the art to make it come together, the pasta just coated, the salmon just a different color, and heaps of chopped dill. Make sure everything is warm, but don’t overdo it.

• Serve in bowls or big plates, sprinkle with the rest of the salmon and a bit of leftover dill.

• Enjoy. Take seconds. Thirds. Fight over the last spoon.

 

 

Pitzas

When you frowned at that title, you’re right. I just made up a word. But this one has been on the menu a lot lately, so I thought I should share the recipe. If it’s even a recipe.

I’ve never really liked pizza. There. I said it.

It has to do with the crust. For a while I liked the traditional crust of PizzaHut pizzas but then my boyfriend at the time started to work there and they caused a dramatic drop in occasions to see each other. Plus, the stories ‘behind the scenes’ made me not wanting to eat pizza for a very. long. time. Yikes.

Later, when I decided that I should know how to cook and dived right in with my favorite, cheese croquettes (which is a complicated recipe and because of that not my best idea ever), gained some experience, I tried to make pizza dough. Hey, I managed to make decent bread, pizza could not be so hard, could it?

Euh… yes it could. I fought with the dough, I turned it and twisted it and made it awful. I gave up and used pre made dough instead but it didn’t help with my pizza-hate-affair. And then supermarket was closed, I hadn’t a thing left to eat, I thought, and my husband could come home hungry any minute now.

Enter mini-pizzas on a pita. The bare fact of using pita as bottom solved the problem of not making good dough AND baking time. My husband loves them and it’s the best way ever to use leftover veggies. It’s so simple it is ridiculous.

 

 

 

Take little pita breads. Don’t bake them, don’t cut them, just leave them like that. Put tomato sauce on them. I use a mix of concentrated tomato puree and tubed tomato sauce. (If you’re lazy, you can as well be super lazy.) Put anything you like on it. Mozzarella cheese, bell pepper cubes, anchovies, shredded chicken, snack tomatoes, spring onions, … Sprinkle with your favorite dried herbs, season and put in the preheated oven. They will take ten minutes, twelve maybe.

They’ll be gone in less.

 

 Sharing with
Raia @ Savoring Saturdays

Zucchini sauce with apple

Maybe I should start with a warning. (Or shouldn’t I – does a warning scare you off?)
A lot of the blogs I follow and discover and love are all about whole foods and healthy eating. This is NOT a whole food recipe. While I do believe in cooking from scratch, some processed foods are very convenient to have on hand. I guess this recipe would work with any kind of pasta that takes well a thick sauce, but I like the extra touch of the filling and I don’t want to make tortellini myself.
I also love anything that’s cream-related. Not very healthy, I know, but I love the luxurious feeling of a rich, creamy sauce. It’s not even my guilty pleasure, as I don’t feel guilty about it.

There, I said it. If you’re still with me, behold, for here is my beloved zucchini-with-apple-sauce recipe.

• Slice the zucchini (I used two of them for the two of us, but we had some leftovers, that were well-cared for the next day) and cut the slices into small cubes. No need to peel – the skin adds much needed color to the dish.

 

• Cook them until they are translucent. I do it in a wok, but any pot will do. A little nob of butter (or oil) is all you need to make it work. Add dried herbs now if you use them. I did: those lovely herbes de Provence are just perfect for zucchini. If you want to use fresh herbs, throw them in at the very end, when your sauce is almost finished.

• Dice the apple (I think I went with only one, but you could use more if you feel like it). I do peel my apples because I don’t like the skin, especially when cooked. Yeah, I’m picky like that. My favorite apple right now is the French Golden. They’re lovely sweet and juicy. Microwave the cubes for a minute or two, until they’re just tender but still keep their shape.

 

• Put most of the zucchini in the blender (let’s say three quarters), add two big spoons of mascarpone and enough cream (or stock if you’re going into cardiac arrest by reading cream and mascarpone in the same line) to make blending go smooth. I like to blend just a little, so my sauce still has a good texture and a bit of bite to it. Season to taste.

• Add the sauce to the rest of the zucchini left in the pan. Put in the apples and the pasta and adapt the thickness of your sauce until you like it. Season again, add the pasta. Enjoy.