Simple pasta dishes

[Wilfrid1]

What a useful bunch you are, from time to time. I have just edited eighteen recipes out of this thread to keep for future reference. There are more, but some I have listed as variants. It's a fine resource - thanks.

[wingding]

One that I made today;You need some of those smoked salmon 'ends'[or beginnings]that you get cheap at a place like Russ & Daughters,some meyer lemon 'confit'[made by slicing whole unpeeled lemons very thin,and layering with sprinklings of sugar and salt for a few days[,some fusilli,good ev olive oil,salt and cracked pepper.After cooking the pasta,place the cut up bits of salmon in a colander,pour the hot pasta and water over and through...mix it up,toss with olive oil,chopped lemon confit,cracked pepper and sea salt....olives and capers and some fennel fronds could be a good addition as well.Enjoy with a nice Tocai from Friuli...

[Rail Paul]

I have just edited eighteen recipes out of this thread to keep for future reference. There are more, but some I have listed as variants. It's a fine resource - thanks.

 

Members have discussed a repository for recipes from time to time, this is something that future admins may wish to consider. Or, perhaps ask the members to recommend their favorites for a "Hall of Fame" in its own forum.

[Lost Virtue]

Walnuts? If they are not impeccably fresh, lightly toast them in a skillet, then proceed...

 

Get out your mortar and pestle. Grind together a couple garlic cloves, coarse salt, a handful of walnuts, and really good EVOO to make a paste. Thin it a bit with more EVOO once it is smooth.

 

Prepare ahead one egg scrambled mixed with a little water. Have a chunk of Reggiano handy with a grater or microplane.

 

I like to use linguini or fettucini. Have a skillet ready next to the pasta pot with a couple tablespoons of EVOO in it warmed up. Drain the pasta, reserving some cooking liquid, and add the pasta to the skillet and a fresh drizzle of EVOO. Add the walnut paste and enough pasta water to create a slight amount of sauce. Keep the pasta on medium-low heat and stir in the egg so that it blends with the sauce and begins to thicken. If the sauce stops being runny, add more pasta liquid or water. Grind some black pepper and grate in Reggiano to taste. If necessary, adjust salt at this point. Finish with a sprinkle of minced parsley.

[ampletuna]

I love a good, quick pasta recipe.

 

garlic and chopped red chilli fried in olive oil. add a drained tin of plum toms, some capers and sardines. add to linguine.

 

fry up some pancetta. remove and keep warm. add breadcrumbs to bacon fat and cook until crisp. add both to spaghetti with some parsley.

 

fry 4 chopped anchovies, garlic and chopped stalk of broccoli until tender. cook the florets in the same pan as pasta. drain and add garlic mixture.

[FaustianBargain]

tagliatelle tossed with beurre d'escargot or simply thyme butter + pile of escargots bourguignons on top.

 

why not?

[Wilfrid1]

I made fettucini with gorgonzola sauce and roasted walnuts last night. Found the sauce at Di Palo's - essentially a thick and dense mixture of the cheese and a little cream. I was warned to heat it very slowly - I did, and it gradually turned to liquid, but I did have to help it out with a little milk (cream would have been ideal) to get it thin enough to use as a pasta sauce. The flavor was great - very concentrated.

[Suzanne F]

We needed a light dinner last night after a large lunch at Blaue Gans and tasting umpteen wines at Vintage New York. Having bought a small head of Savoy cabbage because of the Coleslaw thread , but not yet having actually made any coleslaw , I still had this head of cabbage. So I sliced about 1/3 of it into thin shreds which I sauteed with pancetta cubes and the whites of 3 scallions. Added some creme fraiche and regular heavy cream (just a little, this was supposed to be light ). Tossed with linguine, sliced scallion green, minced parsley, lots of black pepper, and some Parmesan.

[lovelynugget]

Making a gorgonzola sauce from some gorgonzola cremificato that was on sale at Murray's. Any suggestions for a good complementary herb to go with it? Mint? Sage?

 

I'm serving to company or else I would trial-and-error.

[tanabutler]

Do you have access to fresh herbs? That would make a difference.

 

Meanwhile, this looks good.

[lovelynugget]

Definitely fresh herbs. At first I thought the mint might lighten and contrast with the cream and cheese, but it might be too weird a combination.

 

Your attached recipe sounds fab but very rich. I will try it another time. I have some great bacon in the freezer, but this time I'm serving to vegetarians.

[tanabutler]

I think I'd go in a fresher/lighter direction than rosemary and sage, such as parsley, thyme or oregano. Sage can be quite heavy, if you know what I mean, and its heaviness could compete with the cheese. And you could easily leave the bacon out of that recipe. That's gilding the lily: gorgonzola is already so rich.

 

Sorry not to be of more help. I hope it goes well!

[voyager]

Oh, yes.  Breadcrumbs.  Breadcrumbs sauteed in olive oil until they are crisp are a delicious alternative to cheese for sprinkling.

Breadcrumbs are the traditional binding material in many Italian pasta sauces. e.g., saute a few prawns with a little chopped garlic; splash in some white wine and let it reduce to almost nothing. Add a little oil, toss in some breadcrumbs and let them get golden, and finish by adding enough of the pasta cooking water to make a sauce. The breadcrumbs will give it body. Parsley, capers, etc are not out of place here.

[Suzanne F]

Today at Teresa's (a Polish place), Paul ordered Lazanka, which was fettucine with sliced mushrooms, julienne ham, and sauerkraut. Kind of close to what I made last night, but not close enough to make a difference. It was delicious, even more so after he mixed in some of Aunt Bette's plain kasha.

[Ron Johnson]

Sauteed mushrooms and julienned westphalian ham, added cream, grated reggiano and some peas, reduced. Tossed with fettucine and S&P. More reggiano grated on top.