Serves 4 as a main dish
500 g box penne pasta, or similar
1 head of cauliflower, cut into small florets
6 garlic cloves, slivered
1/4 cup olive oil
2 shallots, minced
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes, optional
5oz baby spinach leaves
parmesan cheese, grated
Combine cauliflower and shallots with 4 Tbsp olive oil in a large bowl. Transfer to baking sheet. Roast in a 400F oven for about 30 mins until tender, stirring occasionally.
In the meantime, cook pasta in a large pot of well-salted water (should taste like the ocean) until al dente. When done, drain pasta but reserve about 1 cup of the cooking water.
In the meantime, combine 1/4 cup olive oil and garlic in a small saucepan. Cook on low-medium heat until garlic is browned but not burnt. When done, add red pepper flakes.
Combine pasta with cauliflower, add garlic oil, and baby spinach. Add reserved cooking liquid, 1/4 cup at a time, if too dry. Serve with grated parmesan cheese.
Mary's Pasta with Bocconcini, Basil, and Tomatoes
Serves 6
2 - 14oz cans diced tomatoes
3 garlic cloves, sliced thinly
3 Tbsp olive oil
4 latte di fiore bocconcini, quartered
Basil leaves
Any short pasta 500 to 700gIn medium saucepan, saute garlic in olive oil until the colour of the garlic turns blond. Add tomatoes and simmer on low heat for 30 mins. In a bowl large enough to hold pasta, add bocconcini and torn basil leaves. Add cooked tomatoes to bocconcini and basil mixture. Drain pasta and add to sauce. Season with salt and pepper. Sprinkle with parmigiano cheese if desired.
Richard's Chap Chae Noodles (Korean Noodles)
Serves 8
2 + 1 cloves garlic, minced
2 + 1 tsp ginger, minced
2 + 1 tsp chili garlic sauce
1/4 cup teriyaki sauce
1 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp pepper
400g pkg of Korean sweet potato noodles, can be found in Asian markets
1-1/4lbs ribeye beef, thinly sliced
.625lb mangetout (snow peas), trimmed
large head broccoli, cut into bite size florets
1 sweet red pepper, julienned
1 sweet yellow pepper, julienned
4 medium carrots, julienned
1/4 cup chicken stock
4 Tbsp canola oil
soy sauce to taste
gomasio (sesame seed, seaweed, sea salt mixture), can be found in most health food stores
fresh coriander, optional
Combine 3 Tb sesame oil, 2 cloves minced garlic, 2 tsp ginger, 2 tsp chili garlic sauce, teriyaki sauce, sugar and pepper in a small bowl. Pour over beef and let marinate in the fridge for several hours or overnight.
Cook noodles in a large pot of boiling water until translucent and tender, about 6 mins. Rinse in cold water and let drain. Set aside.
In a large fry pan or wok, heat 2 Tbsp canola oil over high heat until it just begins to smoke. Add 1 minced garlic clove and 1 tsp ginger until golden, approximately 1 min. Add carrots and broccoli and stir for 5 mins. Then add peppers and mangetout and stir until colour is bright and vegetables are coated with oil, about 2 mins more. Then add chicken stock and cover. Let steam until tender, about 3-5 mins. Remove from heat. Transfer to a bowl and set aside.
Drain most of marinade from beef but some marinade is fine. Add 2 Tbsp canola oil to pan and heat over high heat until it just begins to smoke. Add marinated beef. Stir until cooked, about 5-10 mins.
Season noodles with 1 tsp chili paste and 2 Tbsp sesame oil and soy sauce to taste. Arrange on a large platter. If vegetables have cooled off you can add them back to the pan with the beef to warm up. Spoon vegetables and beef over noodles. Garnish with gomasio and fresh coriander, as desired.
Proscuitto Pasta (adapted from a recipe in Bon Appetit 1987)
Serves 6
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
3 sweet peppers - one each red, yellow, orange, cut into 1" square pieces
6 green onions, sliced thinly
300g sliced proscuitto, cut into 1" strips
1/2 cup Italian parsley, chopped
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 Tb dried basil
2 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp freshly ground pepper
1 cup chicken stock
6 Tb lemon juice
2 tsp sugar
salt to taste
750g spaghettini
parmigiano reggiano
Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add peppers, green onions, and proscuitto. Cook, stirring often, until peppers begin to soften, about 5 minutes. Add parsley, garlic, basil, oregano, and pepper. Stir for 1 minute. Add chicken stock, lemon juice, and sugar. Simmer over medium low heat until peppers are soft and liquid is slightly reduced, about 7 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
In the meantime, cook spaghettini in a large pot of heavily salted water (it should taste like the ocean) until al dente. Drain pasta. Transfer to large serving bowl. Top with pepper proscuitto mixture. Garnish with additional parsley if desired. Serve with parmigiano reggiano and freshly ground pepper.
Beef Barley Soup
Click here for Beef Barley Soup recipe
Pasta with Roasted Tomatoes, Grilled Asparagus, Sausage, and Pine Nuts
(Made by Geoff in honour of Maureen's Birthday)
Serves 6
All quantities are extremely approximated (It IS a MAN supplying the recipe, you know. At some points, I had to translate mime into words).
1 small container grape tomatoes
1 small bunch asparagus
5 Italian sausages
1/2 cup pine nuts, toasted
1/4 cup sun-dried tomato pesto
1/4 cup fresh basil, chopped
500 g linguine
extra virgin olive oil
parmesan cheese
1/4 cup parsley, chopped
Combine grape tomatoes with just enough olive oil to coat. Season with salt and pepper. Roast tomatoes on a baking sheet at 425F until blackened and the liquid has evaporated (about 30 mins). Set aside.
Brush asparagus with olive oil. Grill until tender. Set aside.
Cook sausage over medium high heat until cooked through. Slice thinly.
Cook linguine in large pot of boiling salted water until al dente. Drain and reserve some of the cooking liquid.
Combine roasted tomatoes, grilled asparagus, pine nuts, sausage, sun-dried tomato pesto, and basil with the linguine. Add cooking liquid if too dry. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Garnish with parsley.
Pasta with Roasted Tomatoes and Almond Pesto
Click here for Pasta with Roasted Tomatoes and Almond Pesto recipe.
Green Shawarma Salmon
Click here to go to Green Shawarma Salmon recipe.This recipe is easily doubled or even tripled making it an easy and delicious dish for a large group of people.
Moroccan Chicken with Eggplant, Tomatoes, and Almonds
Click here for the Moroccan Chicken recipe.
Linguine with Uncooked Tomato, Arugula, and Olive Sauce
