May 23rd, 2010
Last fall, Juan sent me an email that his 10,000th day birthday is May 21, 2010 and mine is December 28, 2011… I love randomness and celebrating quirky days (we did celebrate Valentine’s on Flag Day last year) so I put the dates on my calendar…
of course, as the date got closer I did not know what to do… luckily, I was in town but Juan had been saying how he was sick of sweets (yes, he’s odd) so no cupcakes… He loves my quiches though so I made little breakfast “cupcake” quiches. I couldn’t find the cupcake holders anywhere…hence the improvisation but they tasted good and Juan loved them…
but that was just the beginning of my plan (can you tell I’ve had a lot of time on my hands since school ended?)… while Juan was at work, I hung this awesome half-homemade banner… and I made dinner…
Now, I would have made this dinner regardless of any special occasion. I have this very elaborate idea for a dinner party but it involves some techniques that I have not mastered… such as handrolling pasta…
My first pasta attempt was not very successful (hence, it never made it up here) but this time I used this pasta recipe and was very pleased with the results. I couldn’t find the rolling pin (it isn’t my kitchen and sometimes it is hard to find things!) so instead I used a SIGG. It worked great and, of course, I promptly found the rolling pin after I finished.
I let the pasta dry for about an hour and put it in the fridge until dinner time. I served it with Sun-dried Tomatoes Pesto with Slow Roasted Tomatoes. I added some more garlic to the pesto and a few of the slow roasted tomatoes. It was really good… Juan said the best part was the pasta…
So, yes, it was a very successful 10,000th day birthday celebration… plus, I feel more comfortable with my pasta technique… next, mastering Carolina BBQ…
Filed under Eggs, Flour, Garlic, Pasta, Thyme, Tomato Sauce, Tomatos | Comments (3)
March 17th, 2010
cooking with Juan makes me happy… well, Juan makes me happy… there is just some special about making dinner together… sharing something I enjoy with him… plus, he is always agrees to cut the onions for me… I think I’m gonna keep him… we recently came up with this creation… it was delicious…
Ginny and Juan’s Pasta
1 onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1 tblsp. olive oil
1 can chopped tomatoes
about 1 1/2 cup chopped sausage (Alpine Sausage from Gene’s Sausage Shop)
garlic salt, pepper and italian seasoning to taste
In a saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Saute the onions and garlic. Add the tomatoes and heat through. Add the sausage and season to taste. Throw over some pasta and top with cheese.
Filed under Garlic, Goat Cheese, Italian Seasoning, Onions, Parmesan, Pasta, Tomato Sauce, Tomatos | Comments (3)
December 23rd, 2009
Post exams… as I was sitting around brain dead (well, I’m still quite brain dead but recovering)… I started cooking… so get excited… many yummy posts to come… this recipe is my go to feed an army meal… it is easy, delicious, and versatile… Sometimes I add the shrimp… this time I kept things simple and halved the recipe, which was still enough for four people with leftovers. I served it with some bread and salad.
Linguine with Feta- Tomato Sauce
(adapted from here)
* 1 pound assorted mushrooms, sliced
* 2 pounds tomatoes
* 4 teaspoons dried basil
* 4 teaspoons dried parsley
* 3 garlic cloves, minced
* 1/4 teaspoon dried crushed red pepper (optional)
* 1/2 pound feta cheese, crumbled
* 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
* 1 pound linguine
In a frying pan, sprayed with Pam, sauté mushrooms until tender, about 8 minutes. Add tomatoes, basil, parsley, garlic, and red pepper, if desired; stir until heated through. Mix in both cheeses.
Meanwhile, cook linguine in large pot of boiling salted water until tender but still firm to bite. Drain. Return to pot. Add 1 tablespoon oil; toss to coat. Add mushroom-tomato mixture to pasta; toss to coat. Season with salt and pepper. Transfer linguine to large bowl.
Filed under Basil, Bread, Garlic, Mushroom, Parmesan, Pasta, Shrimp, Tomato Sauce, Tomatos | Comment (1)
