BREAKING NEWS…BREAKING NEWS…BREAKING NEWS!

University of California, Davis researchers have found that drinking beer can help prevent weak bones.

You hear that Sally Fields? You can give it a rest now. My drinking buddies and I aren’t taking your Boniva…anymore.

To celebrate this life changing medical discovery, I decided to make a companion snack to my new beer diet regiment. The usual suspects came to mind…pretzels (which I will make some day but not this time), potato chips and/or maybe a ‘gourmet’ popcorn.

None of these options really struck my fancy. I wanted something different. Around the same time, I came across a recipe in Food & Wine magazine for an interesting way of turning pasta into a snack food.

Fettuccine & Wasabi ‘Breadsticks.’ This recipe called for frying cooked pasta until it takes on a crispy texture. They are unique, ridiculously easy to make and make a great party conversation piece. I was drawn to this recipe. It should be noted that as a person who grew up in Alabama, any recipe that starts by frying an ingredient that really doesn’t need to be deep fried is tops in my book.

Actually, the original Food & Wine magazine recipe called for Udon noodles and ground Nori. I liked the concept but it was a little too fancy smancy as a beer snack. And plus, I was way too lazy to go the market and hunt down Udon noodles. I also decided to add in a little heat with a dash of wasabi powder (oddly enough while I don’t have Udon noodles, I have lots of wasabi powder in the pantry).

I really like these babies. I think they are the ultimate party snack: crunchy, salty, with heat from the wasabi and best of all…fried.

As easy as they are, I have to admit, I had to cook a few of them before getting them just right. Here are a few things I solved through trial and error.

Don’t tie the knots too tight (they won’t cook). Don’t fry them extremely hard (you’ll get something with the texture of a brick). If you need to salt them again, do so right after they are fried (the salt adheres better). I would suggest making a few extra and cooking them one at a time until you get the technique just right. Enjoy.

Cheers!

FETTUCCINE & WASABI “BREADSTICK” KNOTS

Adapted from Food & Wine Magazine

30 strains of fettuccine

Vegetable oil, for tossing and frying

1 TSP wasabi powder (alternatively, you can use fine ground black pepper)

Kosher salt, to taste

In a medium saucepan of boiling water, cook the fettuccine noodles until they are cooked through and pliable, about 8-10 minutes. Drain thoroughly and transfer the pasta to a medium bowl. Gently toss the pasta with a teaspoon or so vegetable oil to keep them from sticking together. Lightly toss pasta with wasabi and Kosher salt to taste. (Add the wasabi powder a little at a time – tasting it as you go – to make sure that you season the pasta to your taste).

Take 3 fettuccine strands and carefully tie them in a loose knot near the end. Repeat with the remaining pasta. In a large skillet, heat 1/4 inch of vegetable oil until shimmering. Fry 2 of the fettuccine bundles at a time over moderately high heat, spreading the ends of the fettuccine out in a fan, until golden and crisp, about 1 minute per side. Transfer the bundles to paper towels to drain.

Makes 10

Everyone has one. For some it’s a no fuss baked chicken. For others it may be a satisfying tray of hearty lasagna.

It’s their ‘go to’ recipe. A dish that you’ve made so many times that you can cook it on autopilot – an easy dish that always seems to hit the spot.

I have several ‘got to’ dishes (a few of them from McDonald’s). This recipe for Spaghetti all Carbonara is one of my favorites. It’s delicious, filling and very pantry friendly – between the fridge and the cupboards, I tend to always have the ingredients on hand.

It’s an awesome marriage of flavors: smoky bacon, spice of freshly cracked pepper, salty-sweetness of the Parmigiano-Reggiano/pecorino romano cheese blend, and richness of the egg yolk fat all finished off with a fresh lift from the sweet peas. You can’t go wrong.

As easy of a dish it is to make, there is a tiny bit of technique required. And that is in making the sauce. Working fast, you have to stir the eggs into the hot spaghetti until they are no longer liquid but have not yet formed curds (between me and you, even if you go a bit too long and ‘overcook’ the eggs it’s still an amazing dish…the sauce won’t be as creamy). Ideally, you’ll end up with a beautiful, velvety sauce.

A note about the cookbook, Essentials of Italian: Normally, I am not a fan of ‘corporate cookbooks’ – books that are not produce by a chef or individual but rather a corporate committee (some Martha Stewart Living books are the rare exceptions). These books tend to be impersonal and filled with generic recipes and uninspiring photography.

This book, produced by Williams-Sonoma, is an exception. The recipes and photos make me want to get in the kitchen and start cooking my way through the book. Several of the recipes have already become staples in my kitchen (including one for Braised Balsamic Chicken). All in all it’s an approachable, comprehensive and tasty guide through a modern take on Italian cooking.

Have a ‘go to’ recipe that makes your stomach sing? Share and tell us about it.

Cheers!

SPAGHETTI ALLA CARBONARA

Adapted from Essentials of Italian from Williams-Sonoma

6 oz precut bacon or slab bacon cut into ¼” thick batons

1 TBL extra virgin olive oil

Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

1 lb spaghetti

1 cup frozen peas

½ cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese (or a mix of Parm-Reg or pecorino romano)

2 large whole eggs, plus

1 large egg yolk, at room temperature

In a large frying pan over medium-low heat, combine the pancetta and olive oil and slowly heat slowly until much of the fat is rendered and the meat has browned a little, 10-15 minutes depending on the type of bacon or pancetta that you are using. Leave the meat and fat in the pan and cover to keep warm.

Bring a large pot three-forths full of water to the rolling boil and add about 2 tablespoons salt. Add the spaghetti, stir well, and cook, stirring occasionally, until al dente, according to the package directions.

Meanwhile, in a bowl, mix together the cheeses. In another bowl, whisk together the whole eggs and egg yolk until well blended. Stir the cheese mixture and several grinds of pepper into the eggs.

From this point on, timing and temperature are crucial. Put a large serving bowl in the sink and set a fine-meshed strainer or colander in the serving bowl. Place frozen peas in the bottom of the strainer. When the spaghetti is done, pour it into the strainer, so that its hot cooking water thaws the frozen peas and warms the serving bowl.

Toss the drained spaghetti into the pan with the bacon/pancetta and stir a couple of times to coat the pasta with the fat. Being careful not to burn your fingers, empty the hot water from the serving bowl, reserving about 2 ladlefuls. Transfer the pasta to the warmed bowl, add the egg mixture and stir and toss vigorously with wooden spoon to coat the pasta evenly. Adjust the consistency of the sauce with some of the cooking water if needed. Divide among warmed plates and serve at once.

Serves 4-6.

I’m happy to report that rehab is going well. Actually, it’s safe to say, “Rehab rocks!!!”

If you read the last post for Pumpkin Pie Granola Bars, you know I’m on a self created and monitored seasonal rehab program to wean myself off of my addiction to summer. I’ve thrown myself into autumn: the crisp days, the fashion and more importantly, the hearty produce.

How am I doing? As far as the crisp days, I’m enjoying my morning runs even more. Fashion wise? Last weekend, I picked up an awesome winter white jacket and a pair of winter suede loafers (‘winter suede?’ yes, I fell for this ridiculous marketing gimmick. What can I say? They were on sale).

And in terms of food, I’ve been cheffing up a variety of seasonal recipes that have really given me inspiration.

The other night I was going through my TIVO programs to see what had been recorded.

Along with an alarming number of reality shows, there were tons of recorded episodes of the Martha Stewart Show (don’t laugh). I randomly picked one and hit play. I struck gold.

There was this chef, Ron Suhanosky, who was demonstrating his recipe for Sweet Potato Gnocchi.

I’ve made Gnocchi before, but I was intrigued by the process of this recipe. Plus, it seemed so easy. I decided that I would give this recipe a try.

Suhanosky’s recipe called for pairing the gnocchi with ‘drunken prunes.’ This was too many layers of sweetness for me so I omitted it. I wanted to go for balance.

I wanted to counter the sweetness of the gnocchi. So, I added a cream sauce and lardons of smoked bacon.

I really like these gnocchi and the balance of flavors in the dish. Slightly sweet gnocchi, creamy sauce, hearty smoked bacon and the sweet-saltiness of the parmesan cheese really worked well together. I mean, what could be better?

NOTE: The original recipe called for using rice flour to complement the all-purpose flour. You know how lazy I can be…I axed the specialty rice flour and only used all-purpose. It could be for this reason that I need more than the 2 cups of flour that the original recipe called for. I ended up using more like 2½ cups. Be careful not to add too much flour (or you’ll end up with tough, poached hockey pucks) but feel free to add a little more flour until the dough isn’t sticky. Depending on your conditions (i.e. humidity, wetness of the sweet potatoes) you may need a more or a little less flour.

SWEET POTATO GNOCCHI WITH BACON & CREAM SAUCE

Adapted from by Pasta Sfoglia by Ron & Colleen Suhanosky

For Gnocchi:

1½ pounds sweet potatoes (1lb 11oz)

1½ pounds russet potatoes

2 ½ cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting

1 large egg

¼ cup pure maple syrup

1 TSP coarse salt

For Cream Sauce:

1½ TBL unsalted butter

1½ TBL flour

2 cups milk

salt and pepper, to taste

1½ cup bacon, cut into lardons

1 cup of chives, diced

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Wrap sweet potatoes in parchment paper-lined aluminum foil. Bake until easily pierced in the center with a fork, about 1 hour. Let cool.

Place russet potatoes in a large pot; add enough water to cover. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat and cook until easily pierced in the center with a fork. Drain, and let potatoes cool to the touch.

Wrap both sweet and white potatoes in a clean kitchen towel and rub to remove skins. Pass potatoes through a ricer, into a large mixing bowl.

Spread all-purpose flour on a clean, dry work surface. Place potatoes on top of flour. Add egg, maple syrup, and salt. Using your hands, mix together ingredients on work surface until well combined to form a dough. Gently knead dough into a 10-by-8-inch rectangle. Let rest for 2 minutes.

Lightly dust a clean, dry work surface with rice flour. Cut the rectangle into 4 equal pieces. Roll each piece into a 1-inch-thick rope. Cut each rope into 1/2 inch gnocchi.

Store gnocchi on a rice flour-covered baking sheet until ready to use. Dust with rice flour. Gnocchi can also be frozen up to 2 weeks. To freeze, place them, dusted with rice flour, in a single layer on a baking sheet and freeze. Once frozen, place them one on top of the other in an airtight container. To thaw for cooking, place gnocchi in a single layer on a baking sheet in the refrigerator for not more than 1 hour before cooking.

To cook, bring a large sauté pan of salted water to a boil. Boil the gnocchi in batched (about 4) in they begin to float, about 3 minutes. Remove with a strainer and set aside. Continue cooking the remaining gnocchi.

In a medium sauce pan, cook bacon over medium heat until crisped and cook through, about 5-8 minutes. Remove and drain bacon on a paper towel. Discard rendered bacon fat from saucepan – do not clean bacon bit out of the saucepan.

Melt butter in sauce pan and whisk in flour. Cook over medium-low heat until flour is cooked, about 3 minutes. Pour in milk and whish until liquid slightly reduces to a gravy-like consistency, about 4 minutes.

Add gnocchi into cream sauce and stir to heat through. Salt and pepper to taste.

Pour gnocchi and sauce into a serving platter. Garnish with bacon and herbs. Serve immediately.

Makes about 2 1/2 lbs of gnocchi.

Honey-Lemon Goat Cheese Raviolis

I was excited about this dish before I even thought about it. Ok, I realize that that doesn’t make much sense…so I better explain.

I was walking through one of my favorite local farmers’ market (Larchmont, NY) when I came across the booth for Coach Farms – a local diary purveyor that produces amazing artisanal goat cheeses.

Actually, they don’t just make cheese. Coach Farms offers a range of fabulous and delicious goat milk products (such as milks and yogurts). While everything looked delicious, I really only had eyes for one thing…the cheese!

There are not many things that I love to eat more than a great cheese. So I was excited when I saw a full range of free cheese samples. Yeah! I tried them all. They were all amazing. I felt like a kid in a candy store. With every bite, I was struck by the rich and full flavors that filled my mouth. And while I really did like all of them, there was one that stuck out in my head…the Honey-Lemon Goat Cheese Spread. Yum!

It has this wonderful complex profile. The richness of the fresh and creamy goat cheese was front and center. But this is no one note cheese. There was the added layer of the sweet and almost floral accent of the honey.

I instantly knew that I wanted to use this cheese for a pasta stuffing. I also knew that I didn’t want to mask the cheese’s flavor with too many ingredients. There were just a few flavor compliments that I thought would work with the cheese and let it shine. I would add a bit of truffle oil to give the filling some earthiness, lardons (bacon) to add a touch of smokiness, and sense all of these elements be somewhat bold, I would add a little ricotta cheese for a bite of creaminess to pull the other elements together.

As for the pasta itself, I went with my easy “One-Two-Three Pasta recipe (as in ONE teaspoon of olive oil, TWO cups of flour and THREE large eggs). While this pasta doesn’t have the richness and silky texture of a seven-yolk pasta, it is easier and faster t make.

By the way, if you can’t make it to the Larchmont, NY farmers’ market, you can always browse through Coach Farms’ online store.

Discovering food purveyors like Coach Farms is one of the reasons that I am so excited to be taking part in the first ever “Westchester Farmers’ Market Blog-a-Thon.” Here’s the scoop.

Some of Westchester County’s coolest food bloggers are banding together to launch this week-long effort.

Throughout the week, participating bloggers will publish delish recipes that are made primarily with ingredients purchased at one of Westchester’s many farmers’ markets. (Westchester is a suburb of New York City).

In addition to recipes, each blog will spotlight a local market by providing photographs of the market and the available produce, as well as provide details on the market’s location and hours of operation. The objective is twofold – first, enjoy and share delicious recipes with fresh and healthy ingredients; and secondly, to support local sustainable farmers.

The following Westchester bloggers are participating in the week-long effort (click the links and check them out):

Chick in the Kitchen

Cooking in Westchester

Culinary Comments by Cinnamon Girl

Farmers Market Cooking

Small Bites

Somebody’s Mom

Sweet Paprika

HONEY LEMON GOAT CHEESE

7oz honey-lemon goat cheese

4 oz ricotta cheese

1 TSP truffle oil

½ TSP kosher salt

¼ cup of slab bacon, cut into batons (alternatively, use thick cut bacon)

In a medium bowl stir goat cheese, ricotta, truffle oil and salt until blended. Set aside.

In a medium pan, sauté bacon until brown and cooked through. Set aside.

ONE, TWO, THREE PASTA

3 large eggs

1 TSP extra virgin olive oil

½ TSP kosher salt

2 cups all-purpose flour

In a medium bowl, mix together the eggs, olive oil and salt.

Mound the flour on the countertop creating a well in the center large enough to hold the egg mixture. Pour egg mixture into the flour well.

Using your finger or fork, begin making a circular motion in the egg mixture to slowly start incorporating into the flour. If needed, occasionally push a little of the flour into the well. Continue until the egg mixture becomes incorporated with the flour. Once the dough begins to form, mound it together into a rough ball.

Knead the dough on a clean, lightly floured area of the countertop. The dough will be sticky at first, but will be come smoother as you continue kneading. Sprinkle with a bit of flour if the dough is too sticky to work with.

Knead the dough by pushing down and away from you with the palm of your hands and turning the dough onto itself. Knead dough for no less than 10 minutes. After kneading, the dough should have a smooth texture. Cover with plastic wrap and let stand for 1 hour.

Assembling the ravioli: Cut dough into 4 equal parts. Starting at the widest setting, run each piece through the pasta press attachment of KitchenAid mixer. Gradually, press the dough through smaller and smaller settings until you get about 1/8″ thick (setting “4″ on the KitchenAid pasta press). Work pressing only two pasta strips at a time.

(Alternatively, you can roll out the pieces of dough with a rolling pin on a lightly floured counter top until you reach the desired thickness.)

On a lightly floured countertop lay out the first press strip. Mound about 1 ½ tablespoons of filling on the pasta strips. Continue, mounding the filling about 3” apart in a row down the pasta. Dipping your fingers into a small bowl of water, wet all around each mound of filling. Place second strip of pasta on top of the one containing the filling. Carefully press the top sheet of pasta around the mounds making sure to press out any air bubbles and creating a tight seal around each mound.

Using a lightly floured, 2” ravioli or cookie cutter, separate and remove each ravioli. Place the ravioli on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper that has been lightly covered with cornmeal. Repeat process for remaining 2 pasta pieces. If not immediately using, drape the raviolis with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator. This should yield about 12 extremely plump raviolis.

To cook pasta, bring a large sauce of salted water to boil. Cook the raviolis for 4-5 minutes (about 2 or 3 minutes after they began to float while cooking.)

Duo of Lamb (Ravioli and Seared Loin)

First, I want to apologize for the plating and photography in this post – not my best work – and it doesn’t do the dish justice. But…

I’m excited to introduce what will be a fun feature on this site – ‘The Dinner Party Chronicles’ – where I will recap the successes AND failures of dinner party menus and recipes. Each posting of the ‘Chronicles’ will highlight one specific dish or coarse (i.e. appetizer, main, soup, cocktails…) -with subsequent postings featuring other dishes of the same meal. Sometimes the dishes will turn out well and other times, it probably would have been best if I had just ordered a pizza and called it a day. Either way, I’ll chart the good, bad and the ugly.

My objective is twofold. First, to just share things I learned in putting the meal together. And secondly, provide a place for readers to share their thoughts and recommendations on doing it better.

With all of that said, let’s get started with Volume One: June 22, 2009, Chapter One: The Appetizers.

First, let me say, that this was a fun party – which is to be expected when you blend, booze, designated drivers and my looney group of friends. It’s always a good time.

Here’s what we had:

The Menu

Pre-Dinner Cocktails: Lemongrass Caipirinhas

Appetizer: Duo of Lamb (Ravioli & Seared Loin) with Garden Scapes

Soup: Cream of Leek & Parsnip Soup with Lardons

Main Coarse: Port/Orange Sauce Braised Duck Breast & Asparagus Salad

Dessert: Fennel Ice Cream on Sugared Puff Pastry with Caramel Sauce

First up, the appetizer: Duo of Lamb (Ravioli and Seared Loin).

A very good friend of mine, Roderick (who happens to be an amazing chef) offered to bring me some fresh scapes from his garden. I immediately said, “Yes! I’ll take them!” Upon hanging up the phone, I logged on to Google and typed, “What in the hell are scapes.” Yikes. Unlike me, many of you probably know that scapes are the top portion of the garlic plant – the bud part of the plant before it blooms. I thought to myself, “Hmmmmm, I had no idea that people actually ate this. What a strange world we live in.”

So with doubt swirling around in my head, I used the scapes as the jumping off for the dish. Here’s how my train of thought went, “scapes…OK, a mild garlicky flavor…what goes with garlic…lamb…what about a lamb ravioli…good, but that’s not enough for a entire course…I’ll pair the ravioli with a lamb chop…I can do a sweet-savory balancing act…I’ll make the ravioli rich (braised lamb shank), creamy (mild goat cheese) and slightly sweet (a tad of honey) and balance that with a simple salt and pepper crusted loin from the chop…it can also be a play on textures, soft ravioli and the crunch of the seared salt and pepper crust on the loin…I can serve them both on top of the scapes…maybe, thinly slice some garlic to make chips and sprinkle them on top as a final layer and play on the scapes.”

And that’s roughly how this course came together.

In my opinion this dish was pretty damned good. There was this wonderful marriage of flavors and textures that worked well together.

The trick in pulling this dish together is all in the timing. The raviolis should be assembled well ahead of time, covered and stored in the refrigerator and ready to cook just before serving. Likewise, the scapes should be pre-boiled, shocked with ice water to lock in the color and stored in a Zip-loc bag in the fridge. Fifteen minutes before you want to start the meal, start boiling a large pot of salted water. Directly, before serving I suggest sautéing the lamb loins and setting them aside. Cook raviolis in boiling water and remove. Drop scapes in the water to heat through and remove. This entire process should only keep you away from your guests for no more than seven minutes. They won’t even know you’re gone.

I make pasta a lot. Often, I will make seven-yolk pasta (sometimes with beets some times without). But not this time – the menu was a very involved one already. So, I went with my easy ‘3-2-1 pasta dough’ recipe – three eggs, two cups of flour and 1 teaspoon of olive oil. This dough is not as silky as the 7-yolk version but it’s relatively fast and easy.

SCAPES

12 garlic scapes

1 tsp kosher salt

Using a sharp knife, trim off the bottom of the scapes to just below 2” of the flower bud. Cut each scape into cross-sectioned halves.

Bring about 4 cups of water to boil in a medium sauce pan. Add kosher salt. Boil scapes until they are cooked through and their color turns bright green, about 3-4mintes. Remove scapes from water and immediately plunge them into an ice bath to stop cooking and preserve their color. Set aside until ready to use.

LAMB ‘LOIN’

8 lamb chops

4 tbl canola oil

Kosher salt and fresh and roughly cracked pepper, to taste

Using a sharp knife, cut the round lamb meat away from the bone. Salt and pepper each side. Set aside the bone and its attached fat for another use (perfect for making lamb stock).

Heat a grill pan over medium-high heat. Pour in canola oil and heat until it shimmers (before reaching its smoking point). Sear each side of the lamb meat until desired doneness – about 2.5 minutes per side.

Remove lamb from pan and cover until ready to use.

RAVIOLI

For the Pasta:

3 large eggs

1 tsp olive oil

½ tsp kosher salt

2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for kneading

For the ravioli filling:

3 tbl extra virgin olive oil

2 lamb shanks, pat dry and salt & peppered

1 medium onion, diced

1 celery stock, large diced

1 carrot, large dice

2 garlic cloves, diced

2 cups chicken stock, low sodium if using canned

1 cup red wine

1tsp thyme, dried

1tsp Sichuan pepper corns

3 tsp kosher salt, divided

Goat cheese, plus more to taste

1tbl honey, plus more to taste

1 tsp ground pepper, plus more to taste

For the filling: Preheat oven to 240˚.

In an ovenproof sauté pan over medium-high heat, warm olive oil until shimmering. Sear lambs shanks, turning occasionally, until all sides have caramelized, about 7 minutes. Remove shanks and set aside. Add and sauté onion, celery and carrots until the onions are translucent, about 7 minutes. Add garlic and cook for an additional minute. Pour in stock and red wine. Deglaze pan by stirring up any lamb or vegetable bits that may have been seared to the bottom of pan. Add thyme, peppercorns and one teaspoon of salt. Return shanks to the pan (if shanks are not completely covered, add water). Bring to a boil. And place in oven. Braise shanks for 3 hours – until they are fork tender and the meat easily pulls away from the bone.

Removed cooked shanks from the pan and place them in a medium bowl until they are cool enough to handle. Meanwhile, strain the vegetables and peppercorns out of the braising liquid and pour back into the original braising pan. Over medium-high heat, bring liquid to a simmer and let reduce to about a quarter of its original volume, about 25 minutes. Set reduced sauce aside.

When shanks are cool enough to handle, pull meat from the bones with fingers. Stir the meat, goat cheese, salt and pepper. Ideally you want the filling to have a slightly sweet flavor but add more of filling ingredients to suit your taste. Set filling aside.

For the pasta: In a medium bowl, mix together the eggs, olive oil and salt.

Mound the flour on the countertop creating a well in the center large enough to hold the egg mixture. Pour egg mixture into the flour well.

Using your finger or fork, begin making a circular motion in the egg mixture to slowly start incorporating into the flour. If needed, occasionally push a little of the flour into the well. Continue until the egg mixture becomes incorporated with the flour. Once the dough begins to form, mound it together into a rough ball.

Knead the dough on a clean, lightly floured area of the countertop. The dough will be sticky at first, but will be come smoother as you continue kneading. Sprinkle with a bit of flour if the dough is too sticky to work with. Knead the dough by pushing down and away from you with the palm of your hands and turning the dough onto itself. Knead dough for no less than 10 minutes. After kneading, the dough should have a smooth texture. Cover with plastic wrap and let stand for 1 hour.

Assembling the ravioli: Cut dough into 4 equal parts. Starting at the widest setting, run each piece through the pasta press attachment of KitchenAid mixer. Gradually, press the dough through smaller and smaller settings until you get about 1/8″ thick (setting “4″ on the KitchenAid pasta press). Work pressing only two pasta strips at a time.

(Alternatively, you can roll out the pieces of dough with a rolling pin on a lightly floured counter top until you reach the desired thickness.)

On a lightly floured countertop lay out the first press strip. Mound about 1 ½ tablespoons of filling on the pasta strips. Continue, mounding the filling about 3” apart in a row down the pasta. Dipping your fingers into a small bowl of water, wet all around each mound of filling. Place second strip of pasta on top of the one containing the filling. Carefully press the top sheet of pasta around the mounds making sure to press out any air bubbles and creating a tight seal around each mound.

Using a lightly floured, 2” ravioli or cookie cutter, separate and remove each ravioli. Place the ravioli on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper that has been lightly covered with cornmeal. Repeat process for remaining 2 pasta pieces. If not immediately using, drape the raviolis with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator. This should yield about 10 extremely plump raviolis.

PLATING THE DISH:

Cooking ravioli: In a sauce pan of rapidly boiling water, cook raviolis until the pasta is cooked through and the filling has been reheated. About 4-5 minutes. Drain and set aside.

Scapes: Plunge scapes into boiling pasta water to reheat, about 30 seconds. Remove and place on a paper towels. Pat dry.

Sauce: Warm reserved and reduced braising liquid.

Plating: Put one lamb loin in the center of each plate. Place three scapes around the lamb. Set one cooked ravioli on top of the loin. Dress plate with braising liquid. Serve.

Serves 8

Fresh Beet Pasta & Sautéed Cod

Growing up, I never liked beets. As a matter of fact, it is safe to say that I hated them. When I was a little kid, my mother would always try to sneak them in by putting a plate on the table in front of me filled with my favorites – roasted chicken, green beans – and I would get excited. Then my eyes would settle on the party crasher – those damned beets! I would cross my arms, look up at her and put on my most intense pout, one that nonverbally said, “Oh, that ain’t gonna happen today.”

She would counter with a nonverbal and equally intense stare that communicated, “You’re not getting up from that table until you eat them.” Thus, kicking off the ultimate test of wills. In the end, we would come to a non-negotiated truce. I would reluctantly eat half of the beets and she would let me go play with my Atari 2600. (I’ll admit it. I was a hyperactive little brat. If I was a child today, I’d be a prime candidate for Ritalin. But that was a different era.).

So, I NEVER liked beets. Then something funny happened. For some unknown reason, somewhere north of say, 30 years old, I suddenly got into them. I began to love their complicated flavor. Part sweet, part hearty. Sort of like liquorish but not really. I eat them quite often these days. And although it would make her day, this is something that I keep from my mother. She would take delight in the fact that although it took 30 years, she ultimately prevailed in the ultimate battle of the wills. I would never hear the end of it.

Besides simply roasting them, one of my favorite ways to use beets is in pasta. While it gives the pasta a very subtle flavor, what really stands out is the color – a bright, intense and deep reddish pink. It’s a show stopper. Only thing I struggle with is what to pair it with. Hot pink is not the easiest color to balance on a plate. So many things just look weird next to it.

As in most dilemmas, the answer is usually found in keeping it simple. So, in this post, I’m pairing beet linguine with a simple piece of sautéed cod and a Sauvignon Blanc reduction (the word ‘reduction’ makes this sound more difficult then it actually is…it’s a very simple sauce). For a garnish, I went to my old stand by – chiffonaded leeks wilted with salt.

I like how the elements of this plate play with one another – a nice balance of flavors and textures. The cod, delicate and mild is rounded off with salt and pepper and the taste from the butter it was sautéed with; the pasta, has a mild beet flavor; the sauce adds a ‘don’t forget about me’ sharpness that keeps your taste buds alive and finally; the salt wilted leeks complete the dish with a bit of freshness.

I hope you like it as much as I do.

Note: The beet pasta is really the subject of this post – thus no recipe for the cod and leeks is included. For this dish, I just salt and peppered the cod and sautéed it with butter. The leeks are cut into chiffonades and mixed with a ¼ teaspoon of salt and allowed to sit at room temperature until the leeks are wilted and pliable, about one hour. The Sauvignon Blanc reduction preparation is after the pasta recipe.

ON A RELATED NOTE: About two years ago, we remodeled our kitchen. I had my heart set on marble countertops but felt discouraged by all of the warnings about marble being porous and easily stained. After much research and deliberation, I went with marble anyway. After two years of heavy use (including making fresh BEET pasta), so far so good. So note to the daring, seize the day and live without fear!

FRESH BEET PASTA – LINGUINE

4 tbl pureed red beets (about two medium beets)
7 egg yolks
1 tbl milk
2 tsp extra virgin olive oil, plus more for roasting beets
¼ tsp salt
2 ½ cups flour, plus more for kneading dough

Preheat oven to 365˚. Wash, dry and lightly coat beets with olive oil. Tightly wrap beets in aluminum foil and roasted in oven for about an hour (or until the beets can be easily pierced with a knife). Set a side. Once the beets are cool enough to handle, peel and puree in a food processor until they reach the stage of a smooth puree.

In a medium bowl, mix together the egg yolks, milk, 2 teaspoon of olive oil and salt. Stir in beet puree.

Mound the flour on the countertop creating a well in the center large enough to hold the beet mixture. Pour beet mixture into the flour well.

Using your finger or fork, begin making a circular motion in the beet mixture to slowly start incorporating into the flour. If needed, occasionally push a little of the flour into the well. Continue until the beet mixture becomes incorporated with the flour. Once the dough begins to form, mound it together into a rough ball (see unkneaded dough photograph above). Knead the dough on a clean, lightly floured area of the countertop. The dough will be sticky at first, but will be come smoother as you continue kneading. Sprinkle with a bit of flour if the dough is too sticky to work with. Knead the dough by pushing down and away from you with the palm of your hands and turning the dough onto it self. Knead dough for no less than 10 minutes. After kneading, the dough should have a smooth texture (see kneaded dough photograph above). Cover with plastic wrap and let stand for 1 hour.

Cut dough into 6 equal parts. Starting at the widest setting, run each piece through the pasta press attachment of KitchenAid mixer. Gradually, press the dough through smaller and smaller settings until you get about 1/8″ thick (setting “5″ on the KitchenAid pasta press). Once you have pressed all six pieces. Run the pasta strips through the linguine cutter attachment. Separate and hang (or layout) linguine until ready to cook.

Alternatively, you can roll out the pieces of dough with a rolling pin on a lightly floured counter top until you reach the desired thickness. Roll pasta into loose cylinders and cut into strips of linguine.

Bring a large sauté pot of salted water to boil. Cook the pasta until done, up to 2 minutes – overcooking will drain the pasta of its rich color. Drain and serve.

SAUVIGNON BLANC REDUCTION SAUCE

1tbl butter, unsalted
½ shallot, diced
1 cup chicken stock
1 cup Sauvignon Blanc (or any dry white wine)
3tbl heavy cream

Over medium heat, sauté shallots in butter in until they are translucent, about 5 minutes. Add chicken stock and wine and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer uncovered until the mixture reduces to about ½ cup of liquid, about 15 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in heavy cream.