You know when you're dating someone...and you do the first date (maybe a drink, to see if you like each other), and then a second date (possibly doing dinner, maybe a movie), perhaps a third date (something a little more casual but still romantic because now know you actually like each other) and then, inevitably someone is going to invite someone over for a home-cooked meal.
Ahhh, the dinner date at home...your chance to buy a nice bottle of wine and impress your date with your skills in the kitchen. But it's a challenge, what should you make? You have to rule out something with too much garlic or onion (kiss-ruining ingredients), anything too spicy and anything too 'out there.' My rule for the dinner-at-home date? Make pasta. Everyone loves pasta and its carby-goodness. In my opinion you should pick a pasta recipe that allows your date to help you in the kitchen and is simple enough that you can sip wine and chat while you work. So where am I going with this? Well, you can thank me later because I've found the perfect date night recipe. Linguine carbonara my friends (AND it's healthy-ish! Score!). This recipe tastes impressive - the sauce is creamy and rich, and the pancetta takes it over the top. I also love the way the parsley cuts through the richness and adds a really fresh flavor. The onions and garlic season this perfectly (without requiring you to need a mint afterwards) and you won't feel overly full (especially since the recipe makes exactly two servings). This recipe is a lightened up version of a carbonara sauce (which often has more cheese and egg and more pancetta)...plus it's quick and fun to make. This dish needs to be served as soon as it's ready, so don't make it in advance. You can ask your date to help you chop and stir and then enjoy the meal together. Now get out there and get your romance on - let me know how it goes! PS - need a wine to pair with this? Try a red wine with a high acidity (to cut through the creaminess of the sauce), but not too heavy or if you like white, try a Sauvignon Blanc. Personally, I think you should go full throttle and drink champagne ;). Linguine Carbonara (from Cooking Light) Yield: 2 servings (serving size: about 1 1/4 cups) Ingredients
1. Cook pasta according to the package directions, omitting salt and fat. Drain pasta in a colander over a bowl, reserving 1/4 cup cooking liquid. 2. Combine milk and next 4 ingredients (through pepper) in a small bowl; set milk mixture aside. 3. Heat a medium nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add pancetta to pan; sauté 3 minutes or until lightly browned. Add onion and garlic to pan; sauté 3 minutes or until onion is lightly browned. Reduce heat to medium-low. Add milk mixture and pasta to pan; toss gently to coat. 4. Place egg in a small bowl; stir with a whisk. Gradually add 1/4 cup reserved hot cooking liquid, stirring constantly with a whisk. Gradually add egg mixture to pan, stirring constantly; cook 4 minutes or until sauce is thick and creamy.
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The pasta that I ate for dinner tonight was not meant to be. In fact, until I was physically making this pasta - I had no idea it even existed. You see, I had this idea that Jared would make a fantastic guest blogger tonight. He actually agreed to this (I know, right? all I had to do was ask), and went off to the store to get the ingredients for a healthy gazpacho. But alas, at the grocery store he was stricken with a headache that was so bad - that by the time he got home, he didn't even want a glass of water (let alone prepare and eat and entire pot of chilled soup). So where does that leave me? WIth my finger poised to dial for take-out, I suddenly remembered the ripe tomatoes that were bestowed upon me this weekend (fresh from the farm of the summer camp where my dad is working). Then I started thinking about the bulb of garlic and fresh basil in the fridge. And from those ingredients, my very own recipe for Simple Spicy Pasta Pomodoro was born. I started thinking about doing a quick saute of the tomatoes and garlic and then stirring in some basil at the last minute. As I was sauteing, the tomatoes started to fall apart - and I quickly changed my tune, grabbed the balsamic vinegar and red pepper flakes and made a quick pomodoro sauce. You guys, the sauce. The sauce was...so...good. And I can't take credit for it. The credit is due to the tomatoes - they were so ripe, they were no-fail. I put this sauce over fettucine (because I had some on hand) but I'd do angel hair pasta next time (less pasta, more sauce). Also, keep in mind that I tend to like my food well seasoned and spicy, so taste as you go and adjust the seasoning as necessary. Happy Monday everyone - eat well this week! Spicy Pasta Pomodoro Serves 1 really hungry healthy-ish girl Ingredients: 2 ripe medium sized tomatoes (doesn't matter what kind, as long as they are red) 3 cloves of garlic (yup 3) 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar 1 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon pepper 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes 1 teaspoon olive oil 3 tablespoons parmigiano reggiano small bunch of basil, torn (I used about 8 leaves, but you can do this to taste) Preparation: Heat oil over medium heat in a small saute pan. Add garlic, saute until fragrant (about 1 minute). Add tomatoes, salt, pepper and red pepper flakes, stir. Continue to saute tomatoes until they begin to fall apart. Add balsamic vinegar, and heat for 5-8 more minutes until flavors are combined, and tomatoes have become a chunky sauce. Take sauce off of heat and stir in basil and parmesan cheese. Taste, and adjust season. Enjoy! green = good I have spent the majority of my work-week celebrating the joys of mass transit. If you don't know me, and you've been reading this blog thinking to yourself, "Wow, Katie seems incredibly patient and full of love" - then I've haven't been communicating properly. I am pretty irritable and impatient - and if I'm being honest - mass transit brings out the hater that lives within. So when I disembarked from the NJ Transit today at 5pm - let's just say I wasn't awesome to be around. Which brings me to the hell-ride that was my local grocery store. I thought - "this would be a nice night to cook" - I thought wrong. Maybe you didn't know this - so let me share my newly acquired knowledge....DO NOT GROCERY SHOP ON THE FRIDAY BEFORE A HOLIDAY WEEKEND. Do I sound bitter? I do? Ok then, on to the good news... Due to the crowd at the grocery store and my indecisiveness - this recipe is a Katie Safrey original. I knew going in to the store that I wanted to make pesto - but when I got too frustrated with the lack of fresh basil, I just grabbed arugula (although, I wasn't sure if the recipe for arugula pesto needed to be modified - walnuts instead of pine nuts? I still have no idea). Then I started thinking about baked ziti - and figured if I made a pesto and mixed it with some fat free ricotta cheese and ziti - then melted some cheese on top - I'd have a healthy-ish masterpiece on my hands. And I gotta tell you....I'm proud of the result. Arugula is so peppery - it makes a really unique pesto, and the ricotta really helped the pasta to hold moisture and added some creaminess. The beauty of pesto is that you can't screw it up. Too dry? Add more olive oil. Not dry enough? Add more arugula. Needs flavor? Add a bit more parmesan. And always make a double batch of pesto - you can use it for 2-3 days on crackers, in pasta and on chicken breast. One day when I'm famous with my own cookbook - you'll be demanding this recipe...so without further adieu.... Saf-tastic Arugula Pesto Bake Ingredients For the Pesto: 4 cloves of garlic (I love garlic - if you don't, or are making this for a date, reduce this to two cloves) 2 cups of arugula (packed) 1/2 cup parmesan (grated) 1/2 cup olive oil 1/3 cup pine nuts salt and pepper (taste the pesto, if you need salt and pepper - add it to taste) For the Rest: 1 lb ziti 1/2 cup ricotta cheese 1/2 cup shredded reduced fat mozzarella cheese 1 tsp red pepper flakes 3 shakes of chili garlic sauce (optional) salt and pepper to taste Pre-heat the oven to 350. Put a pot of salted water on for the pasta. Now it's pesto time - put all ingredients for the pesto in your food processor and combine until smooth (like I said above, if it seems dry add oil). Combine the pesto with the ricotta cheese, red pepper flakes, chili garlic sauce and salt and pepper. Combine the cooked pasta with the pesto/ricotta sauce and mix well - I used a large foil baking dish (same dish you'd use for baked ziti - can you tell this is a pretty informal recipe?). Taste this combination - adjust season based on what your tastebuds are telling you. Top with mozzarella cheese (and if you are on the "ish" side of healthy-ish, top that with a sprinkle of parmesan). Bake for 15 minutes, remove and enjoy with a glass of Pinot Grigio. |