Ready. Set. Go. Mangia : Sunday dinner is served

Today I spent time vegging out, reminiscing and blogging. That did not exonerate me cooking up a quick meal for the fan club and a couple of guests.  After blogging about Calabria (see this post - My Calabria ) , I wanted to stick with something Italian. On the other hand , I also wanted to use some of the fresh produce that I had picked up yesterday in Chinatown.  So I ended up making a Italian pasta dish , and a fusion vegetable dish. I few more appetizers were also included, but they did not involve any real cooking so I won't reflect them here.

Started this dinner one at about :5:40 PM, dinner was served just before 6:44 PM - including the sexy photo shoot. Ready , Set , Go . Mangia !




Orecchiette con Aspargi e Ricotta
 
Orecchiette with Asparagus and Ricotta

This is one of those dishes where the name of the dish says everything. You've seen this format of pasta before, Its is usually hand made, and resembles, as the name indicates "little ears". This is a famous pasta. It' has even got its own Wikipedia Entry : Orecchiette (in english) (in Italian)

Sautee some fresh asparagus  cut into one inch piece in some EVOO , along with some  garlic, grape tomatoes and small Italian sweet green pepper (cubanelle).

Cook your orecchiette pasta, until al dente. As you cook the pasta, reserve about 1 cup of starch water from the simmering pasta.

Once the asparagus is tender , toss in 1 cup of starch water and about 1 1/2 cups of whole milk ricotta cheese. Cook 1-2 minutes more so that the liquids are mostly evaporated. Add a good dose of grated Romano cheese to your pan. Adjust seasoning as the ricotta will reduce the saltiness of the dish.  Toss the pasta with the aspargus sauce. Sprinkle with some good EVOO to add extra flavor and serve piping hot.


Chinese Eggplant in Cilantro and Garlic Sauce 

Chinese Eggplant in Light Cilantro and Garlic Sauce
Served with a La Crema Chardonnay . Hit the spot for the extended fan club and yours truly.

Salute !

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