Perpetuating Stereotypes: Pasta, 3 ways
Act One:
This always happens in the witching hour. It's quiet, late and you need an alternative to getting fucked up. You've had a pretty neutral sounding day, except for the daily dose of misogyny and irresponsible politics. A spoonful of sugar makes the medicine go down? So I call upon my ancestors that I'll never know and that also really only exist somewhere between my cast iron pan, deep dissatisfaction, and the pretty aprons that accumulate over the years to make me the right kind of postmodern Italian American woman. Kahlo is usually snug in a box at this point, lulled by the sound of cool running water and dishes clanking around hopefully with care. The kitchen routine is kind of a soothing bond that we share together. Since she was little, it's been mostly me and her occupying space near the warmth of the stove, the tight knit embrace of the cabinets, and the dripping faucet that reminds us to stay hydrated during this endeavor. Kahlo is my cat. We have a thing. The kitchen is our favorite spot. Frying things makes a great substitute for the obligatory social call.
Slice a nice eggplant 1/8 of an inch thick, long ways. Stack them in salted layers in a colander on a towel. Let drain for 30 minutes. Dredge in flour and fry in olive oil cut with vegetable oil until a deep golden brown. Turn once and don't burn. Drain on paper bags. When cool, slice into strips. Save a couple for snacking.
Heat a few tablespoons over medium heat and saute about 4 chopped cloves of garlic. Once fragrant, throw in a tiny handful of chopped parsley, a big can of Italian plum tomatoes, a teaspoon of red pepper flakes, some salt and pepper. Bring to a gentle simmer and leave covered for 25-30 minutes. After this, add the strips of eggplant, adjust seasoning and serve with spaghetti.
Act Two:
A friend comes from what seems like another world- Pennsylvania. I think it is the "sylvania" part that makes me skeptical. What is the relationship between Translyvania and Pennsylvania anyways? Who knows...I'm confronted with the realty of gluten free living. My pantry is amazing. Over the years I have secretly stocked it full of every flour I've come across. My pantry is a collection of all the places I've been. And now I've officially been to the land of gluten free banana corn waffles. It was a nice visit. I'll go back more often. Then we decided to explore some gluten free pasta from Italy. I kind of loved it! When given the support of a strongly impressive network of vegetables and fresh herbs, gluten free alternatives are no alternative at all! They are exciting! A challenge! A new way! I LOVE FOOD RESTRICTIONS! This one's a doozy.
Peel about 5 sunchokes, otherwise known as Jerusalem artichokes. They are the root of a certain kind of sunflower and taste vaguely of artichokes and potatoes. Cut them into 1 inch pieces.
Slice one onion and place in pan with olive oil and cook at medium heat until translucent. Add some garlic and cook for a few seconds. Stir in a small handful of cooked parsley, give it two whirls of the wooden spoon and then add a smaller can of torn up plum tomatoes with their juices. Add just a touch of water or broth. Bring to a gentle simmer and 45 minutes later you will have delicious sunchokes smothered in a sweet oniony olive oily tomato sauce. This was just the side dish.
For the pasta course I just threw together a bunch of really simple items that are so wonderful when paired together... as long as you don't burn the garlic or make the fiddleheads mushy. I boiled the ferns for 5-7 minutes and reserved the cooking water, then immediately dumped the ferns into a ice cold bowl of water. Blanched. Then I quickly sauteed some shallots in lots of olive oil, added garlic and fiddleheads next, then some white wine, salt, pepper and red pepper flakes to taste. 5 minutes! Maybe! Then when the pasta was done I tossed all of the above with fresh parsley. Made a sunflower seed crumble to go on top! Beat that!
Act Three: Mourning the loss of Heath Ledger even after all this time, I watched the Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus and made dinner. Something sweet. Something spicy. Nostalgic but new. What to do? Where am I going? Heath. This recipe. I can't remember what type of pasta this was, but let's just say it was somewhere between cavatelli and gemelli. Curse my bad memory! Even so, it was memorable.
Finely chop one carrot, one onion and one stalk of celery. Cook over medium heat. Add 3 cups of fresh or canned tomatoes, a little chopped garlic, 1/4 cup of vodka, salt and red pepper flakes. I used this Ukrainian Honey Pepper Vodka that blew my mind. I think it should be solely made for tomato sauce, Bloody Mary's and screwdrivers with Italian Volcano Tangerine juice. Simmer for 35-40 minutes until the tomatoes break down. Puree and put back on the heat. Bring to a simmer, splash a tablespoon more of vodka in there and add 1/2 cup of vegan cream. I use Mimicreme which is nut based. Add fresh parsley and marjoram, sauteed mushrooms and peas. Make sure the vodka cooks through and you are all set! Another total winner.
I know that was a lot. But moral of the story is that I want to go to a far away land that may or may not exist in time and space as we know it somewhere parallel to the Ukraine fused with Italy. I want to eat pasta there and explore the limitations of my own imagination...as a cat.
buh bye!
This always happens in the witching hour. It's quiet, late and you need an alternative to getting fucked up. You've had a pretty neutral sounding day, except for the daily dose of misogyny and irresponsible politics. A spoonful of sugar makes the medicine go down? So I call upon my ancestors that I'll never know and that also really only exist somewhere between my cast iron pan, deep dissatisfaction, and the pretty aprons that accumulate over the years to make me the right kind of postmodern Italian American woman. Kahlo is usually snug in a box at this point, lulled by the sound of cool running water and dishes clanking around hopefully with care. The kitchen routine is kind of a soothing bond that we share together. Since she was little, it's been mostly me and her occupying space near the warmth of the stove, the tight knit embrace of the cabinets, and the dripping faucet that reminds us to stay hydrated during this endeavor. Kahlo is my cat. We have a thing. The kitchen is our favorite spot. Frying things makes a great substitute for the obligatory social call.
Spicy Fried Eggplant and Tomato Sauce with Spaghetti!
This recipe is mostly from this amazing Italian cookbook I have called Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking by Marcella Hazan. It is very veg-friendly, because well all Italian food is.
Heat a few tablespoons over medium heat and saute about 4 chopped cloves of garlic. Once fragrant, throw in a tiny handful of chopped parsley, a big can of Italian plum tomatoes, a teaspoon of red pepper flakes, some salt and pepper. Bring to a gentle simmer and leave covered for 25-30 minutes. After this, add the strips of eggplant, adjust seasoning and serve with spaghetti.
Act Two:
A friend comes from what seems like another world- Pennsylvania. I think it is the "sylvania" part that makes me skeptical. What is the relationship between Translyvania and Pennsylvania anyways? Who knows...I'm confronted with the realty of gluten free living. My pantry is amazing. Over the years I have secretly stocked it full of every flour I've come across. My pantry is a collection of all the places I've been. And now I've officially been to the land of gluten free banana corn waffles. It was a nice visit. I'll go back more often. Then we decided to explore some gluten free pasta from Italy. I kind of loved it! When given the support of a strongly impressive network of vegetables and fresh herbs, gluten free alternatives are no alternative at all! They are exciting! A challenge! A new way! I LOVE FOOD RESTRICTIONS! This one's a doozy.
Sunchokes Smothered in Tomato and Onion: Sauteed Fiddleheads Tossed with Olive Oil, Lemon, Shallots, Garlic, Red Pepper Flakes
Peel about 5 sunchokes, otherwise known as Jerusalem artichokes. They are the root of a certain kind of sunflower and taste vaguely of artichokes and potatoes. Cut them into 1 inch pieces.
Slice one onion and place in pan with olive oil and cook at medium heat until translucent. Add some garlic and cook for a few seconds. Stir in a small handful of cooked parsley, give it two whirls of the wooden spoon and then add a smaller can of torn up plum tomatoes with their juices. Add just a touch of water or broth. Bring to a gentle simmer and 45 minutes later you will have delicious sunchokes smothered in a sweet oniony olive oily tomato sauce. This was just the side dish.
For the pasta course I just threw together a bunch of really simple items that are so wonderful when paired together... as long as you don't burn the garlic or make the fiddleheads mushy. I boiled the ferns for 5-7 minutes and reserved the cooking water, then immediately dumped the ferns into a ice cold bowl of water. Blanched. Then I quickly sauteed some shallots in lots of olive oil, added garlic and fiddleheads next, then some white wine, salt, pepper and red pepper flakes to taste. 5 minutes! Maybe! Then when the pasta was done I tossed all of the above with fresh parsley. Made a sunflower seed crumble to go on top! Beat that!
Act Three: Mourning the loss of Heath Ledger even after all this time, I watched the Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus and made dinner. Something sweet. Something spicy. Nostalgic but new. What to do? Where am I going? Heath. This recipe. I can't remember what type of pasta this was, but let's just say it was somewhere between cavatelli and gemelli. Curse my bad memory! Even so, it was memorable.
Tomato Cream Sauce with Honey Pepper Vodka, Peas and Mushrooms
I know that was a lot. But moral of the story is that I want to go to a far away land that may or may not exist in time and space as we know it somewhere parallel to the Ukraine fused with Italy. I want to eat pasta there and explore the limitations of my own imagination...as a cat.
buh bye!
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