Pappardelle with Zucchini and Chicken Pie

Yes, that leftover pasta from Pappardelle with Zucchini and Chicken on Friday night has been transformed into a pasta pie. It is the only logical thing to do with leftover pasta.

The recipe for the Pasta Pie is from Chef Silvio's book, Cooking With Chef Silvio: Stores and Authentic Recipes from Campania.

Ingredients
3 large eggs, lightly beaten
2/3 cup Pecorino Romano cheese
1/3 cup heavy cream
1 tbsp. fresh chopped parsley
1 tbsp. olive oil
Salt and fresh ground pepper
12 oz cooked spaghetti, cold
2 tbsp butter

Method
In a bowl, beat the eggs, grated cheese, cream, parsley, salt and pepper until well combined. Stir in the spaghetti, then set aside. Place the butter in a deep pie tin and melt the butter in a 425 degree oven, and spread over the pan bottom. Pour the spaghetti mixture into the buttered pan and spread evenly. Bake at 425 degrees for 8 to 10 minutes, or until it is firm and golden.

Grilled Cheese with Roasted Peppers, Prosciuotto, Arugula and Provolone

Grilled Cheese with Roasted Peppers, Prosciutto, Arugula and Provolone! Wow, that's a mouthful. I made Roasted Peppers this weekend. The recipe is from Chef Silvio. The red peppers were on sale. Whenever I see red peppers on sale I think of my Dad. He could not resist them... Neither can I.

Peperonata Roasted Peppers, from Cooking with Chef Silvio

Ingredients-
6 large yellow and/or red peppers
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
4 large garlic cloves, cut into slivers
20 pitted Calamata olives
2 heaping teaspoons capers
1/2 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
6 tablespoons fresh bread crumbs

Method-
Cook peppers on a grill or bake on a sheet pan at 450˚, turning frequently, until charred all around. Place them in a closed brown bag and let rest for 1/2 hour. Take peppers out, remove stems and seeds and peel. Cut into 1-inch strips and place in a bowl. Add oil, garlic, olive, capers, half of the parsley, and salt and pepper to taste, and give a good mix. Place in a shallow baking pan, sprinkle with bread crumbs, and bake at 400˚ for 10 minutes, or until the top turns light brown and a bit crusty. Using a metal spatula, transfer them to a serving dish and sprinkle with the rest of the parsley.
This dish can be served hot, warm, or at room temperature and is excellent as a contorno, side dish with sandwiches or as a salad or appetizer.

Baked Macaroni with Vodka Sauce

 

If you have read this blog for a while, you know I have strong opinions about Baked Macaroni. My Mother's was the best. My blog, my opinion. That was until tonight.

 

A couple of weeks ago I made Vodka Sauce. I had enough leftover to make a dish of Baked Macaroni. The Baked Macaroni was prepared on the Sunday after the Saturday night meal and popped in the freezer. We had it for dinner tonight. It was amazing. The sauce was so velvety. Chris said it was delicious and the best Baked Macaroni I had made... Ever!

It was like a flashback to the original meal. That meal was special because of the day on which it was made. But damn, I will always make that Vodka Sauce recipe so I have enough left over to make a Baked Macaroni!

Pasta with Vodka Sauce & Remembering Mom

 

8 years ago this morning I got that call from my brother-in-law telling me that my mom had passed away. She had been sick for so long. I had the chance to say good bye so often but still I wish I had visited her one last time before she left us. Not long after she passed it occurred to me that the perfect way to remember her each year on the anniversary of her passing would be to do something she enjoyed doing. Shopping. Yes my mom loved to shop. And she always said as long as you have dinner ready for your husband there was no reason why you should not spend the day shopping. Okay that is what is burned in my head. That and her telling me that you can never have too many shoes! Gosh my mom was so cool!
Today my sister and I went shopping. And we went to mass. It was a day my mom would have approved of. And of course I bought shoes!
Now about dinner. The recipe is from Chef Silvio.

Chef Silvio’s Farfalle with Vodka Sauce

Ingredients -
1 pound farfalle (bow-tie pasta)
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
3 large shallots, peeled and finely diced
1 teaspoon garlic, chopped
1 stick butter, cut into slices
6 large ripe plum tomatoes, cut into small cubes
3-4 tops fresh basil, coarsely cut
Salt and pepper to taste
6 ounces vodka
2 cups heavy cream
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese, divided
1 cup marinara sauce
Pinch fresh parsley, finely chopped

Method -
Prepare pasta according to directions on package and set aside.
Heat olive oil in a large skillet. Add shallots and garlic and lightly saute. Add butter stirring over medium heat until butter is melted and bubbly, then add tomatoes, basil, salt and pepper. Stir and keep cooking until tomatoes are soft, and then mix in the vodka. Add heavy cream and ½ cup of Parmesan cheese and marinara sauce. Stir to almost a boil and then remove from heat before reaching a full boil. Put pasta in a large bowl and pour sauce over it, lightly mixing it together. Top with remaining cheese and parsley.
Chef Silvio suggests serving family style with the bowl of pasta on the table, a loaf of crusty Italian bread with some small dishes of extra-virgin olive oil for dipping. Buon Appetito! Serves 4-6.

And I made as an extra dish, Burrata Bruschetta with Broccoli Rabe. We had this at Becco a couple of months ago and it was so good and quite easy to make. I boiled the rabe for about a minute and then sauteed it in olive oil and seasoned it with salt, pepper and crushed red pepper. I toasted some Italian bread and topped the bread with the broccoli rabe. Some burrata cheese on top with some olive oil and under the broiler for about 5 minutes, checking it often. The flavors just melt together. Delicious.

Happy Birthday to Me!

What a night! We went to hear Chef Silvio speak at the Guilford Library about the Compania region of Italy and the food of the region. Very interesting stuff.
We had dinner at Friend's and Company. I had Chicken "Italiano" which consisted of Chicken Breast, Broccoli Rabe, Sausage, Navy Beans and Penne Pasta. Wow it was very good. Chris had Southwest Pasta. That consisted of Chicken, red peppers, fresh smoked mozzarella in a barbecue tequila cream sauce. It was tossed with penne pasta. Another delicious dinner!

Spaghetti Pie with Pecorino Cheese, Prosciutto and Zucchini

 

For Christmas I received Cooking with Chef Silvio. We have eaten at his restaurant in Madison a few times and each time the food was wonderful. This recipe was amazing. We cleaned the plate! The only change I made was to add sauteed zucchini. I wish I had some leftovers for lunch...

Ingredients
3 large eggs, lightly beaten
2/3 cup pecorino romano cheese
1/3 cup heavy cream
1 tbsp. fresh chopped parsley
1 zucchini, sliced
1 tbsp. olive oil
Salt and fresh ground pepper
12 oz cooked spaghetti, cold
2 tbsp butter
5 oz. goat cheese, sliced 1/4 " thick
3 oz prosciutto, cut into strips

In a bowl, beat the eggs, grated cheese, cream, parsley, salt and pepper until well combined. Stir in the spaghetti, then set aside. Saute the zucchini in pan in olive oil. Place the butter in a deep pie tin and melt the butter in a 425 degree oven, and spread over the pan bottom. Pour half of the spaghetti mixture into the buttered pan and spread evenly, then top evenly with the sliced cheese and zucchini and prosciutto. Pour the rest of the spaghetti mixture over the top. bake at 425 degrees for 8 to 20 minutes,or until it is firm and golden. We served it hot with a jar  of Chef Silvio's Sunday Sauce.