fullygoldy (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
fullygoldy) wrote2012-02-25 07:11 pm
fullygoldy) wrote2012-02-25 07:11 pm
Tonight's Menu
I was feeling inspired to cook, probably because this week I've been going through the old foodie magazines, pulling the keeper recipes. Today I found an old keeper that I'd forgotten all about: Fusilli Alla Crazy Bastard! (Food & Wine, Jan 2009) The whole family had enjoyed this in the past, several times, with improv variations, but it had been so long that I'd totally forgotten about it (other than I can never say "fusilli" without following it up with "you crazy bastard" anymore).
So, the dish is the creation of Andy Nusser, Mario Batali's head chef at multiple locations. Andy and Mario have adopted "Fusilli, you crazy bastard" as the punch line to every joke :)
I made half the usual recipe, since it was just the two of us: toasted walnuts or pine nuts, roasted cherry tomatoes, sauted sliced garlic, beet greens, red pepper, chevre and parmesan create a "sauce" for the pasta. I used whole wheat penne, since that's what I had, and forgot the nuts. I had spinach instead of beet greens, and with B's lactose issue, I just used the soy cream cheese instead. I think a bit of lemon juice would have helped add the goaty tang, but I forgot to try it. I wanted a bit more protein, so I sliced up some hard salami into ribbons and fried them up until crispy to toss in - a nod to bacon, but more in keeping with the italian inspiration.
For the side, I made a wilted asparagus salad with a orange-tarragon-leek vinaigrette. This was adapted from a Vegetarian Times recipe. Half a leek, thinly sliced and sauteed in olive oil until limp, and half a pound of super thin asparagus (if it was regular sized, I would have shaved it with a vegetable peeler) tossed in the pan and heated until bright green, but still super crisp, with about a tablespoon of chopped fresh tarragon. I squeezed the juice from half a blood orange into the pan and splashed it with some tarragon vinegar (white balsamic would have been great as well), some freshly ground black pepper on top, and it was done.
DH made us some lovely lemon martinis and we were set. It was lovely, and relatively quick to pull together (30-40 min). Imma use the rest of the asparagus for an Asparagus-Mushroom Bread Pudding tomorrow or Monday.
So, the dish is the creation of Andy Nusser, Mario Batali's head chef at multiple locations. Andy and Mario have adopted "Fusilli, you crazy bastard" as the punch line to every joke :)
I made half the usual recipe, since it was just the two of us: toasted walnuts or pine nuts, roasted cherry tomatoes, sauted sliced garlic, beet greens, red pepper, chevre and parmesan create a "sauce" for the pasta. I used whole wheat penne, since that's what I had, and forgot the nuts. I had spinach instead of beet greens, and with B's lactose issue, I just used the soy cream cheese instead. I think a bit of lemon juice would have helped add the goaty tang, but I forgot to try it. I wanted a bit more protein, so I sliced up some hard salami into ribbons and fried them up until crispy to toss in - a nod to bacon, but more in keeping with the italian inspiration.
For the side, I made a wilted asparagus salad with a orange-tarragon-leek vinaigrette. This was adapted from a Vegetarian Times recipe. Half a leek, thinly sliced and sauteed in olive oil until limp, and half a pound of super thin asparagus (if it was regular sized, I would have shaved it with a vegetable peeler) tossed in the pan and heated until bright green, but still super crisp, with about a tablespoon of chopped fresh tarragon. I squeezed the juice from half a blood orange into the pan and splashed it with some tarragon vinegar (white balsamic would have been great as well), some freshly ground black pepper on top, and it was done.
DH made us some lovely lemon martinis and we were set. It was lovely, and relatively quick to pull together (30-40 min). Imma use the rest of the asparagus for an Asparagus-Mushroom Bread Pudding tomorrow or Monday.