Whole-wheat pasta dinner salad

Fresh vegetables and whole grains, with the nutrients and fiber that they provide, are rightfully promoted as central to a healthful diet.  Combine whole wheat pasta with baby spinach and you’ve got a real winner.

This quick, easy, dinner salad is delicious, nutritious, and simple to prepare.   No excuses!

The recipe provides a large, wholesome dinner for four.  It may easily be halved.

Ingredients, salad:

¾ pound whole wheat pasta – rotini, fusilli,  or other small shapes

½ cup coarsely chopped walnuts

6 oz. crumbled feta cheese

¼ large red onion, chopped (approx. ½ cup)

½ sweet red pepper, chopped

2 plum tomatoes, chopped

6 oz. package fresh baby spinach, rinsed and spun dry

Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Ingredients, dressing:

3 Tbs. EVOO

3 Tbs. red wine vinegar

1 tsp. Dijon mustard

Method:

Cook the pasta according to package directions  Drain, rinse under cold water, place in a large bowl with other salad ingredients.

Prepare dressing, whisk ingredients until well mixed, pour over salad and toss thoroughly.

This salad serves four hungry adults – may easily be halved.

Buon appetito! 

Easy Fried Rice

We often think that haute cuisine (literally, high food) is the way to go.  But such recipes can be complicated, time consuming, and expensive.  What about those times when we just want a simple, quick, and inexpensive meal?  That would be basse cuisine (low food), as the peasants would cook.  Don’t underestimate the wisdom of peasant cooking.  They know how to get maximum nutrition from whatever ingredients happen to be available.

Fried rice is not a recipe but a notion.  It is a way to utilize whatever leftovers may be in your fridge.  This is just one simple example.  Try to grasp the concept and experiment widely. It is extremely important to understand that you can vary ingredients, proportions, and spices extensively to create a broad range of nutritious and tasty dishes.

One recent night, after a late meeting, I stopped on the way home and grabbed some take-out Chinese – stir-fried broccoli and rice.  After eating a bit of both, it went into the fridge. Several days later, interested in a hearty breakfast, I concocted the following. 

Ingredients

2 Tbs. olive oil
Pinch turmeric
Hot red pepper flakes to taste
Freshly ground black pepper
¼ onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
1-2 cups cooked rice
1 cup chopped, cooked broccoli
2 eggs

Method

In a large skillet, heat the oil with the spices.  Add the onion and sauté until reduced.  Add garlic for a moment or two but do not brown.

Place rice in skillet, stir and smash until incorporated into the sofrito, then cover and cook a few moments until moisturized.
 

Uncover, add broccoli, stir well, and heat through.

Break two eggs into the skillet, stir and mix well, and cook until just done, eggs still moist (do not overcook the eggs).

Serve with a little soy sauce and eat with chopsticks.

Yum.

Sicilian Peppery Chickpea Soup with Tomatoes

For those who like a thick, satisfying soup, here’s a very easy one.  It has no meat but is very hearty and satisfying.  Garbanzo beans (chick peas) are a good source of fiber and protein.  The tomatoes add a healthy dose of lycopene, anti-oxidants, and just taste good.

You may replace the chicken broth with water or vegetable broth for dedicated vegetarians with no loss of flavor.

Enjoy!

Sicilian Peppery Chickpea Soup with Tomatoes

(Minestra di Ceci alla Siciliana)

Ingredients

2 medium onions chopped

¼ tsp. red pepper flakes

¼ cup olive oil (EVOO)

3-4 cloves garlic, chopped

28 oz can chopped or diced tomatoes with liquid

1/2 tsp fresh finely chopped rosemary or 1/4 tsp dried crushed

2 cans 15.5 oz Chickpeas, drained

1 14.5 oz can chicken broth

½ cup water

salt and pepper to taste

Method

In a large soup pot, heat oil to medium, add onions, red pepper, and sauté, stirring frequently.  Cook onions until golden and reduced, 5-8 minutes.

Add garlic, cook and stir for an additional minute.

Add tomatoes with their liquid, and rosemary.  Cook tomato-onion mixture uncovered, stirring frequently, until a good part of the liquid evaporates and mixture thickens (about 10-15 minutes).

Note:  if anything, cook onions and then tomato-onion mixture even longer than you’d normally think.  The key to this soup is to thicken and reduce the base.  You are cooking over medium heat, hence need to stir frequently to avoid sticking or scorching.

Pour in the chickpeas, chicken broth, and water.   Bring to boil, stirring.  Reduce to slow, steady, simmer, cover, and cook 20 minutes.  Add a little additional water if too thick.

Add salt and pepper to taste.

Buon appetito!

Pasta in Tomatoey Broccoli Sauce

Broccoli sauce prior to mashing

Broccoli is the vegetable that everyone loves to hate.  When cooked badly, it has both an unpleasant texture and taste.  No wonder former President George H. W. Bush doesn’t like the stuff.  But broccoli has a lot to recommend it.  A member of the cabbage family, it is packed with nutrients, being high in vitamin C, dietary fiber, and anti-cancer properties.  And much more importantly, when properly prepared, it can be quite tasty!

There are many pasta and broccoli recipes, but this one is different and results in a very savory dish of pasta in a thick, tomatoey, broccoli sauce.  The spices are a suggestion only – feel free to substitute your own favorites.

First we’re going to cook the broccoli, and then the pasta, in the same water. That way the vegetable nutrients aren’t  completely tossed down the drain.  In addition, a cup of this water will be added to the sauce.

The broccoli, after cooking in the pasta pot, will be transferred to a deep skillet and cooked in olive oil, thoroughly mashed down, then combined with tomato paste and the cup of reserved water to form a thick sauce.

Finally, the pasta is cooked in the pasta pot (same water as the broccoli) until not quite done, drained through a colander, then combined in the broccoli sauce and cooked to completion. 

Ingredients

1 pound broccoli, cut up (florets cut and stems thinly sliced)

4 tbs. EVOO

Pinch of turmeric

¼ tsp. red hot pepper flakes

Fresh grated black pepper to taste

1 cup of water (reserved from pot)

1 can 6 oz. tomato paste

3 cloves garlic thinly sliced

3/4 pounds (about 3/4 box) small pasta (ziti, penne, etc.)

Fresh grated cheese (Parmigiano Reggiano preferred)

Method

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.  Add broccoli and cook 10-15 minutes until all parts are tender (particularly the stem chunks). 

Meanwhile, heat oil in a large, deep skillet (or Dutch oven).  Add spices (turmeric, hot pepper flakes, black pepper).

When broccoli is tender, remove pot from heat, then use a slotted spoon or strainer to move the broccoli to the skillet.  Reserve a cup of the broccoli water.

Cook the broccoli in the skillet over medium-high heat, stirring and mashing until hot and well cooked into a thick sauce.  Add the can of tomato paste and cup of reserved water – mix and stir well.  Stir in garlic slices a few moments before adding the pasta. Add water as necessary if sauce is too thick.

Meanwhile, bring the vegetable water back to a boil and cook the pasta until al dente (not quite done).  Drain pasta and add it to the broccoli sauce.  Stir well to coat, then cover and continue cooking until pasta is done.

Salt to taste.

Serve with a topping of fresh grated hard cheese and a nice glass of Chianti.  Enjoy!

SHORTCUT - you may replace the tomato paste and cup of water with 2 cups of prepared tomato sauce.  My favorite is Classico Traditional Tomato & Basil.

Whole wheat ziti in tomatoey broccoli sauce.

Sicilian frutti di mare

Sicilians are blessed with intense sunshine, rich soil, blue skies, and the limitless Mediterranean.  It’s not a surprise, then, that tomatoes, herbs, pasta, and sea foods are often combined into a delicious yet affordable feast.  Tomatoes, garlic, hot red peppers, and parsley are endemic to every backyard garden.  The central highlands ripple with waves of windblown, durum  wheat, resulting in fresh pasta treasured for its hearty flavor and nutrition.   And the fishing ports of Sicily, representing one quarter of the entire Italian fleet, bring in daily bounties of shrimp, sardines, anchovies, mollusks, tuna, squid, and many other varieties of sea fish.  It is a veritable seafood heaven.

This recipe is fairly straightforward using commonly available ingredients.  While not completely faithful to the indigenous Sicilian version, it is damned close.  Certainly, experiment with the bounty of any fresh seafood that is available in your area. 

I prefer using whole canned plum tomatoes (especially in winter, better than greenhouse “fresh”).  But if you’re in a big hurry, use chef’s cut or crushed tomatoes and save some preparation time.

This recipe is designed to serve two, with second helpings, and leftovers, and may be easily doubled. 

Date warning - note that the garlic is added near the end to boost the fresh garlic taste. 

Ingredients

3-4 Tbs. EVOO

¼ tsp. hot red pepper flakes (or more, or less, to taste)

Fresh ground black pepper

Pinch ground turmeric

4 anchovy strips, chopped fine

½ sweet red pepper, seeded, chopped

½ yellow onion, chopped

28oz. can whole plum tomatoes with juice

12 littleneck clams, shells soaked,  scrubbed, and rinsed several times

12 bay scallops, rinsed

12 medium shrimp, peeled and rinsed

10 oz. whole wheat pasta (spaghetti or linguine to your preference)

4 cloves of garlic, peeled and chopped fine

3-4 Tbs. fresh Italian parsley, rinsed and chopped
Freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese

Preparation

Heat the olive oil to medium in a large, deep skillet or Dutch oven.  Add the hot red pepper flakes, black pepper, turmeric, and anchovies, then stir in onions and sweet red peppers and sauté until reduced and browned.  Continue to stir, blending in the anchovies.  Do not burn the onions. Reduce the heat a bit if necessary.

In the meantime, pour the tomatoes and their juices into a large bowl.  With freshly washed hands and no jewelry, reach into the bowl and eviscerate the stem end of each tomato, removing the bitter stem and any residual skin.  When all tomatoes have been plucked, crush them thoroughly between your fingers, then add tomatoes and their juices to the skillet.  Play like it’s kindergarten.

Readjust heat to medium and cook this mixture down, stirring frequently.  You may want to place a screen atop the pot to keep splatters to a minimum.  A cover placed askew to allow air circulation but catch splatters also works.

In a separate large pot, bring salted pasta water to a rapid boil.  Midway, add the scrubbed clams to the sauce and cover -- they may need to cook up to 20 minutes to fully open.  (Note - you are adding the clams to the sauce, not the pasta water.  This is a timing direction).

Add pasta to the boiling water and cook just short of package directions (about 7 minutes).  It will be finished cooking in the sauce.

With 6 minutes to go, add the scallops and chopped garlic to the sauce, stir well, and cover.  Then, with 3 minutes to go, add the shrimp, stir, and cover.

When pasta is done al dente, reserve ½ cup of pasta water and drain the pasta through a colander.  Keep an eye on the sauce, make sure that the clams have opened and that the shrimp turned pink.  If not, let them cook, covered, several more minutes until they have opened.  Remove and discard any clams that do not open.

Add the drained pasta and ½ cup pasta water to the sauce, toss well, top with fresh chopped parsley, and serve immediately topped with a few grinds of Parmigiano Reggiano.

A robust red wine such as the Sicilian classic, Nero D’Avola, is wonderful with this dish.  Fresh, hot, peasant bread and a simple green salad finish off the perfect meal.

Buon appetitio!

Portuguese Kale Soup (Caldo Verde)

Caldo verde (green soup) is a traditional Portuguese soup based on olive oil, potatoes and kale.  The many variations may contain onions, beans, chorizo (sausage) and other ingredients, but this recipe is the simple version that you might imagine fishermen and farmers enjoying to economically sustain their labors.  It is unexpected that the base is water rather than stock, but the resulting soup is thick and satisfying. 

Proper preparation requires some time to cook down the potatoes, creating a surprisingly creamy broth.  But rest assured, while the total time can approach two hours, active preparation time is 30 minutes or less.

The key to this dish is to slice the potatoes thinly so that they cook thoroughly and break down more quickly.  In addition, the green vegetable (most commonly kale, but could also be collard greens or cabbage) must be sliced very thin.  The easiest way to accomplish this is to roll up several kale leaves tightly like a cigar, then slice thinly crosswise from top to bottom.  You may include the tender portion of the stems, but discard the tougher lower portions.  Total cooking time is gauged to ensure that the stem portions are completely cooked and tender. 

Finally, olive oil is a major taste ingredient so a fruity, delicious extra virgin variety is highly desirable.

When served, it is customary to dip thick slices of fresh, whole grain bread into the soup, leaving the remaining broth a scrumptious, thick mixture of kale, olive oil, and potatoes. 

This is a very satisfying dish that can serve as a hearty appetizer or a light meal.  It is traditionally accompanied by a robust red wine.

2 ½ lbs. potatoes (3-4 medium), peeled and sliced thin

1 cup extra virgin olive oil

6 cups water

4 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped

1 tsp. fresh chopped rosemary (or ½ tsp. dry)

¼ tsp. cayenne pepper

freshly ground black pepper

1 tsp. salt (or more to taste)

1 lb. (one bunch) of kale, washed and sliced thin, tough stems discarded

Put potato slices, oil, and water into a large soup pot, bring to boil. Stir to avoid sticking. Reduce heat to low boil, add garlic, rosemary, cayenne, black pepper, and salt. Cook, stirring frequently with a wire whisk to break up potatoes, about 30-45 minutes. Liquid will become thick as potatoes dissolve.

Prepare kale. Wash and drain. Stack several leaves at a time, rolling into a tight “cigar”, then slice thinly from top down to where stems become tough. Discard tough stems. Place kale into soup, stir, cover, and continue cooking until stem portions are tender.

Serve with fresh green salad, hard crust bread, and a robust, dry red wine.  Enjoy! 

Easy homemade hummus

Hummus is a Mediterranean staple, a dip made from mashed, cooked chickpeas (garbanzo beans), olive oil, garlic, lemon juice, and spices.  Extremely versatile, hummus may be consumed as a dip with toasted pita chips, used as the base of a salad wrap, or simply licked from your fingers. 

Classic hummus also includes tahini, a sesame paste.  You may certainly add that to this recipe, but it is fine without as well.  And instead of cooking the garbanzo beans from scratch, let's just use a can for quick preparation.

Hummus is rich in protein and dietary fiber, easy to prepare, and is tasty to boot.  A hard proposition to beat!

It is so easy to make that you may never buy it again.  Be adventurous with different spices.

Ingredients:

1 can 15 oz. garbanzo beans (chick peas), drained
2-3 tbs. extra virgin olive oil
juice of one lemon, squeezed
1 tsp. fresh ground cumin
2 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
Spices to taste (turmeric, hot red pepper, etc.)

Method:

Place drained garbanzo beans in your favorite food processor or blender.  Add all other ingredients.  Blend until pureed and well mixed.

That's it!

Note:  My favorite implement for this purpose is the Girmi TR30.  A small, powerful food processor, the Girmi perfectly contains and blends the ingredients for this dish, and is very easy to clean up.