BLT Carbonara

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BLT CarbonaraI feel like we’ve been crazy busy lately – it’s always something on our schedules one weekend or another. Poor Jon just got to brew beer for the first time in two months last week! Plus, we’d all been sick for pretty much the entire month of January. Stomach bugs? Check. Coughing up lungs? Check. Faucets for noses? Check.

This has been the first week this month where we’ve all felt good, and I’ve been playing catch-up with house chores that kind of got put by the way-side while I was sick myself, or playing nurse maid. Seriously, where does all this laundry come from? I’d swear I live in a house with 5 teenage girls the way these boys go through clothes! Anyways, with all the housework, I wasn’t feeling cooking dinner the other night. But, I wasn’t feeling anything out either. So, I mustered up some energy and went to the kitchen to make this quick pasta. A few ingredients, and a little bit of time – and you’ve got yourself one terrific and satisfying meal.

If you’re worried about using raw eggs in your pasta – hear me out. It’s not really raw eggs, because the eggs cook (more or less) in the pan with the hot pasta. It transforms into a thick and luxurious sauce that can’t be achieved with any substitutions. If you’re that worried about it, let it cook on the heat for a little bit longer than 2 minutes. But, there really isn’t anything to worry about – you don’t think anything about licking brownie batter off the spatula when you’re done baking, do you?

The original recipe just calls for bacon and tomatoes, but I happened to have a half a bag of baby spinach hanging out in the fridge that I needed to use – and thought that a green leafy component would make it a BLT, which is always a fun twist. I served it with simple green salads and focaccia bread.

BLT Carbonara

2 whole eggs
1/3 cup heavy creamy
3/4 cup Parmesan cheese
12 ounces bacon, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1/2 small onion, chopped
3 Roma tomatoes, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/3 cup white wine
Fresh parsley, minced
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
2 cups baby spinach leaves
16 ounces spaghetti

Whisk together the eggs, cream and Parmesan together in a bowl. In a large non stick pan, fry the bacon until crisp and set aside on a paper-towel lined plate to drain. Remove all but one tablespoon of the bacon grease; add the onion, tomatoes, and garlic and sauté over medium-high heat for 3 minutes. Deglaze the pan with the white wine; stir in the parsley, salt and black pepper.

Meanwhile, prepare the pasta according to the instructions on the box. Reserve 1/2 cup of the pasta water. Drain the pasta and while still warm, add to the onions and tomatoes. Add the baby spinach. Pour cream mixture into the spaghetti, and toss over low heat for one to two minutes using tongs. If it seems a little dry, add a splash of the reserved cooking water from the pasta. Serve in warm bowls, top with bacon and serve with additional Parmesan.

Source: adapted from So Tasty, So Yummy

Penne with Sausage & Olive Sauce

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Olive Sauce

It’s no secret that I love those dear Housewives of New Jersey. When my favorite matriarch of the Manzo family, Caroline, talked about an olive tomato sauce that her family always had on Christmas Eve – I immediately put that on my “to-do” list in the kitchen. Her recipe is top-secret of course, but in the scene it showed her slicing up fennel so I knew that went into the mix. So, I started there and just kind of winged it.

I added some sliced up Italian sausage, two kinds of olives, and fennel – as well as all the other standard tomato sauce fare. The brininess of the olives add such a different twist from a standard tomato sauce. Also, a greater depth of flavor. And, as most pasta dishes go, it didn’t take long to throw together. If you wanted to make this a vegetarian dish, it would be just as delicious without the sausage.

If you’re like me, and find yourself in a rut when it comes to new pasta dishes – give this one a try!

Penne with Sausage & Olive Sauce

1 lb Italian sausage links (I used hot)
1 can black olives, drained and roughly chopped
1 can green olives, drained and roughly chopped
2 (28) oz cans whole tomatoes, lightly crushed with clean hands
1 onion, diced
1 fennel bulb, thinly sliced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 lb. penne pasta
olive oil
kosher salt
fresh chopped parsley, for garnish
Parmesan cheese, for garnish

Add 1 tbsp olive oil to a large, heavy bottomoed saucepan (I used a dutch oven) and place over medium-high heat. Add the sausage links, and brown well on all sides. Don’t worry if they’re not cooked all the way through, they’ll finish cooking in the sauce. Remove from pan to a plate, and set aside.

Add the onion and the fennel, and saute until starting to soften, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, and cook for an additional minute. Add in the tomatoes, and olives and stir to combine. Season to taste with salt, I add about 1 tsp.

Slice the sausage into 1-inch pieces and add slices to the sauce. Reduce heat to low, cover, and let simmer for 40 minutes – stirring occasionally.

Cook pasta according to package directions, reserving 1/2 cup of the pasta water before draining. Add the drained pasta to olive sauce, stirring to combine. If it seems dry, add a splash of the pasta water to help loosen up the sauce a bit.

Garnish with chopped parsley and grated Parmesan cheese before serving.

Source: inspired by The Real Housewives of New Jersey’s Caroline Manzo

Porcini & Pumpkin Ale Mac & Cheese

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The first time I tired a beer mac & cheese, it was bad – reaaaaaallly bad. I used a hoppy pale ale, which in retrospect, was definitely not the best choice. That was about a year ago now, and a recent trip to Dogfish Head’s Brewpub got me thinking about the concept again. They have a delicious porcini macaroni and cheese on the menu there. We’d been planning a trip there for about a month now, but keep having to put it off for one reason or another – sickness, hurricanes, whatever. So, I made my own version at home this week – adding in a bit of our home brewed pumpkin ale, and it turned out absolutely incredible. Maybe even better than the original!

It’s really no more effort than a standard macaroni and cheese recipe, aside from soaking the porcini mushrooms before hand. It never ceases to amaze me the flavor punch that those little dried mushrooms contain. Love, love, love them! I’ve already added it to our menu for next week, this one is most definitely a winner!

Porcini and Pumpkin Ale Mac & Cheese

1 oz. dried porcini mushrooms
1 cup cremini mushrooms, chopped
1 shallot, finely diced
1 clove garlic, minced
1 pound (16 oz.) small pasta shape, such as shells
6 Tbsp. butter
3 Tbsp. flour
2 1/2 cups milk
1/2 cup Pumpkin ale (such as Dogfish Head’s Punkin Ale)
1/2 tsp. salt
2 cups sharp white cheddar cheese, shredded
1 cup Fontina cheese, grated
1 cup breadcrumbs or panko
kosher salt

Boil water and 1 tbsp kosher salt in a large stockpot. Once boiling, add pasta and cook for 5 minutes. Drain, rinsing pasta with cold water, and set aside until ready to use.

Place the dried mushrooms in a microwavable-safe bowl and cover with water. Cook on high for 30 seconds, and let sit and rehydrate for 10 minutes. Strain, and rougly chop.

In a large saucepan over medium-high heat, melt 6 tablespoons of the butter. Add the cremini mushroom and shallot, and saute for about 3 minutes, until starting to brown on the edge. Add the garlic, and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the flour, and let cook, stirring constantly for about 3 minutes. Slowly whisk in the beer, as well as the milk, scraping the bottom of the pan to release any browned bits. Cook over medium heat, whisking constantly, until mixture thickens. Add in cheese and chopped porcini mushrooms, and stir to combine. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Add pasta to the saucepan with the cheese sauce, and mix to combine. Place in 2 quart cassarole dish, sprinkle the breadcrumbs on the top, and bake for 1 hour or until browned and bubbly.

Source: inspired by Dogfish Head Brewings & Eats

Crab Ravioli with Saffron Cream Sauce

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We’ve been enjoying the final days of blue crab season here in Maryland, as it will be coming to a close in the next month or so. It’s actually the best time of year for them, as crabs are at their fattest and heaviest late in the year, right before they burrow into the mud for a long winter’s nap. While  my favorite thing to do with them is steam them, and eat them as is – often we’re left with a plethora of meat that we’ve picked to use up. I usually go with our standard favorites – crab cakes or crab dip (which reminds me, I was featured on our local news recently making the crab dip – check it out here!) but I wanted to do something a little fancier.

I’d been wanting to try my hand at homemade ravioli, so I thought why not stuff it with crab? I just took my basic ricotta pasta filling and gently folded the crab meat into it. The sauce takes only a few minutes to throw together. I more or less did an alfredo sauce, adding in some saffron and a bit of tomato paste at the last minute, to give it a gorgeous pink hue. It was insanely good, and definitely a cut above our standard weekly fare. I think I may have to treat us to a pound of crabmeat come December to make these for New Year’s Eve dinner. A special dinner, indeed!

Crab Ravioli with Saffron Cream Sauce

1 batch homemade pasta dough
1 pound lump crab meat
1 cup (8 oz) ricotta cheese
1/2 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, shredded
3 scallions, chopped
salt and pepper
Italian parsley, chopped, for garnish

For the sauce:
4 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup chicken stock
1 cup heavy cream
pinch of saffron (5 or 6 threads)
1 Tbsp flour
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, shredded
2 tsp tomato paste

On floured surface or using a pasta roller, roll dough out to make a thin sheet (about 1/16″ thick). Gently press ravioli stamp or edge of a glass into the pasta dough to make outlines. Fill each ravoli with about 1 tablespoon of filling. Roll out another sheet of pasta, and place on top of the other sheet, pressing down around the filling. Cut the ravoli using a stamp or glass – pressing on edges to make sure they are sealed well. Place on jelly roll pan lined with wax or parchment paper.

For the sauce, melt butter in large saucepan. Add the flour, and whisk for a couple minutes to form a light roux. Slowly add in the chicken stock, and heavy cream – whisking constantly until thickened. Add the saffron, and reduce heat to low, stirring occasionally for 10 minutes. Add the Parmesan cheese, and tomato paste – stir to combine. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Bring 4 quarts of salted water to a boil. When boiling, drop ravioli in and cook for about 4 minutes. Reserve 1/2 cup pasta water in the event the simmering sauce is too thick.

Drain pasta and gently toss with the sauce. Sprinkle with chopped parsley and serve.