Spring Green Pasta

Last Year's Post: Citizen Public House Chopped Salad
Two Years Ago:   Lentil Salad with Bacon and Walnuts

Pasta Primavera is a great classic spring dish filled with bright vegetables.  The standard version often has a cream-based sauce which seems counter to the light, fresh feeling of the dish - a fragrant basil pesto seems better suited to the spring spirit.  I decided not to call this Pesto Pasta Primavera, however, because that level of alliteration seemed pretty annoying.

The good news is that you can make this dish before spring vegetables are actually available locally, using fresh produce from the store.  Then you can make it again using produce from the local farmer's market in a month or two.  I like the fact that it's vegetarian, but you could certainly add some cooked chicken or turkey if you want.  It's a fast, easy and healthy dish to get you in the mood for spring - you just do a fast vegetable saute while the pasta is cooking.

About the pesto: feel free to make your favorite recipe or buy some at the store.  A friend of mine introduced me to Costco's pesto sauce, which is excellent but like everything else at Costco comes in a large jar.  I divided it up between smaller containers and froze most of it - pesto keeps very well as long as it's thawed in the refrigerator and not the microwave.  Be sure to go light on the pesto at first while you toss everything together because you want it to be a fairly light coating on the pasta.  You can always add more if you want.

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Spring Green Pasta

Serves 4

8 ounces sugar snap peas

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 leek, white and light green parts only, chopped

1 small zucchini, diced

½ cup frozen peas

1 bunch thin asparagus spears, stalks diced, tips left whole

1 pound linguini pasta

½ cup prepared pesto

½ cup grated Parmesan cheese

Freshly ground black pepper

Fill a large pot with water and bring to a boil.  Drop the sugar snap peas in the water for 15 seconds, then remove with a mesh strainer and immediately place in a bowl of ice water.  (Do not discard the boiling water.)  When the sugar snaps are completely cool, drain and pat dry, then cut into thin pieces on the diagonal.

Cook the pasta in the boiling water according to package directions, then drain.

While the pasta cooks, add the olive oil to a large skillet over medium heat.  Add the leek and sauté for a minute or two, then add the zucchini, peas, and diced asparagus stalks.  Sauté for 2-3 more minutes, stirring frequently, until the vegetables are crisp-tender.  Add the asparagus tips and sauté for one more minute. Remove the skillet from the heat.  Add the drained pasta, sugar snaps, and sautéed vegetables back to the pasta pot and toss, adding some of the pesto at a time, until the pasta is coated to your liking (it should be lightly coated).

Serve in shallow bowls topped with Parmesan and coarse black pepper.

Baked Italian Sandwiches

 Last Year's Post: Pinchos Morunos

Two Years Ago:   Seafood Cobb Salad

School has started, which means everyone's schedule has gone crazy again.  Football games, after-school activities and other commitments make it really difficult to sit down as a family to eat dinner.  I'm posting these hot sandwiches because they're a great make-ahead solution for a busy workday or a hungry teenager that comes home in the evening.  Everything is assembled in advance - all you have to do is throw however many sandwiches you want into the oven.  I think you could even put the foil-wrapped frozen sandwiches in a slow cooker and turn it on for a few hours while you're gone to a game, or heat the sandwiches before leaving home and throw them in an insulated bag to take to a chilly outdoor game to eat hot - they're really versatile. Although this combination is totally delicious (if I do say so myself), after you make them one time you'll start thinking up your own combinations, tailoring the meats, spice levels and other elements to your family's tastes.

The recipe as written makes 5 sandwiches, but I would strongly suggest doubling it (or making two varieties) to keep in your freezer.  They're very easy to assemble.  The only key is to get rolls that aren't overly squishy (such as hamburger buns) - you want the outer crust to be a little more sturdy so it holds its shape when you pull out the insides.  Hard rolls, ciabatta rolls, or other round-ish sturdy rolls are perfect.  If you could find round pretzel buns they'd be really good also.  Heating the sandwiches in the oven does several things:  it melts the cheeses into gooey goodness, it causes the pesto to permeate the bread and other ingredients with fragrance and flavor, it uniformly heats all the ingredients as opposed to just the outside, and it causes the exterior of the roll to because slightly crisp without becoming really crunchy.  Although I like paninis and grilled sandwiches as much as the next person, this treatment is slightly different and just as good.

Don't be afraid to pack the sandwiches tightly because they'll shrink down a little as the cheese melts. You just don't want them over-stuffed so the tops don't fit and they leak as they're heated.

While we were eating these last night The Lawyer told me how good they were. I remarked that I would definitely have one for dinner when he's gone next week.  His reply?  "Don't eat them all".  Enough said.

printable recipe

Baked Italian Sandwiches

Makes 5 sandwiches

3 ounces (about ½ cup) pitted Kalamata olives, chopped

1/3 cup chopped red onion

4-5 sun-dried tomatoes, chopped

6 ounces shredded mozzarella

1 cloves garlic, minced

5 round sandwich rolls, ciabatta rolls, or hard rolls

3-4 ounces pesto

5 slices provolone cheese

5 ounces thinly sliced salami (about 30 slices)

½ shredded Parmesan

Combine the first five ingredients (olives through garlic) in a medium bowl and set aside.

Cut the top third off each roll and pull out most of the soft interior bread from both the tops and bottoms, being careful not to break through the crust.  Softly press the interior of the rolls and tops to create as much space as possible.

Brush the interior of the rolls and tops with a light layer of pesto, then layer ingredients in the following order:  one slice of provolone, 5-6 slices of salami, the shredded mozzarella mixture, and the Parmesan.  Gently press down on the top of the ingredients so the sandwiches will fit together tightly.  Replace the lid on each and press together.  Wrap each sandwich tightly in foil.

At this point, the sandwiches may be frozen for up to several months.

To bake, preheat the oven to 350d.  Do not remove the foil before baking.  If frozen, bake the sandwiches for 45 minutes.  If not frozen, bake the sandwiches for 25 minutes.  Unwrap and serve.

Sausage Sliders with Broccoli Rabe Pesto

Last Year's Post: Jewels of Spring

Broccoli rabe is very trendy with chefs right now, as are pretzel rolls.  I won't get started regarding what I think about the originality (or lack thereof) of some of the new young chefs, but it's a safe bet that any hot new restaurant you walk into will have at least three things - pork belly something-or-other, big bad microbrews, and house-made charcuterie in some form.  I think it's the pork belly and charcuterie (prepared meat products like sausage) that have in turn caused the popularity of broccoli rabe because they go so well together - the bitter greens balance and cut through the fattiness/spiciness of the pork or sausage.  And they all go together with those big hoppy microbrews.

Anyway, I've seen enough versions of that particular trend that I decided to create my own version using spicy Italian turkey sausage, provolone, broccoli rabe pesto and mini pretzel rolls. The broccoli rabe pesto is a fairly unique rendition of the vegetable created by The Publican,  one of the aforementioned hot new restaurants in Chicago.  And why sliders rather than full-sized sandwiches?  The rational answer would be that these are all really big flavors so putting them in smaller packages makes sense.  The real answer is because sliders are really hot right now also, so I decided to go all in with my trip to Trendyland.

Here's a quick intro to broccoli rabe:  also called rapini or broccoli raab, it consists of spiky leaves and small heads of florets that look somewhat like broccoli.   Wikipedia describes the flavor as "nutty, bitter and pungent". (In my opinion that might be a little overly dramatic. It's slightly bitter with a taste similar to kale or spinach.) In Italian cooking it's often sauteed with garlic and a few crushed red peppers to serve along pork ribs or sausage (do I detect a theme here?). 

For the pesto, the broccoli raab is briefly cooked in hot water to set the bright green color, then shocked and drained, chopped, and cooked low and slow with a little olive oil, garlic and crushed red pepper flakes until  soft.  The final step is to coarsely puree to a pesto consistency.

About the red pepper flakes - the original recipe called for an entire teaspoon, but the pesto is paired with prosciutto in the original recipe which is a mild, sweet meat. I cut the red pepper in half since I was using spicy sausage.  We were happy with the results - I would call the sliders spicy but not overly so.  Depending on your spice tolerance you may want to start with an even smaller amount of red pepper because you can always add more later.  And about the spicy sausage - you could of course use mild Italian turkey sausage or your favorite variety of pork sausage instead.

The rest of the recipe is really easy - just shape and cook the sausage patties, melt some cheese on top, and assemble.

You can think of the sliders as appetizers, dinner, or party food but don't call them that because it would reveal that you are several iterations behind the trendy curve.  They are now called "Small Plates" when served 2 or 3 at a time and "Plates for Sharing" when served in larger quantities.  (Clearly I've been hanging out in a few too many trendy restaurants lately.)

The Lawyer and I really enjoyed the sliders and yes, they were particularly good with a beer. Apparently the chefs know what they're doing.

Here's how to complete your own personal trip to Trendyville:
1.Have one or both arms tattooed from shoulder to wrist.
2.Assuming you don't already have one, build a nice large rooftop patio on your house complete with speakers and a large flat screen showing old cartoons with the sound turned off.
3.Make a trip to the store to buy several types of hoppy local microbrews with whimsical names, preferably angry ones.
4.Make your sliders.
5.Invite your hippest friends over.  They will see you in a whole new light.  Guaranteed.

printable recipe

Sausage Sliders with Broccoli Rabe Pesto

Makes 10 sliders, approximately 2 ounces each

Note:  Depending on your preference for spiciness, you may want to start with the lower amount of red pepper flakes especially if you are using spicy sausage.

 1 lb broccoli rabe, about one bunch

6 garlic cloves, smashed

¼ cup olive oil

¼ - ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes (see note)

½ cup finely grated Pecorino Romano cheese

2 teaspoons honey

19.75 ounce package hot or sweet Italian turkey sausage links, casings removed

10 slices provolone cheese, cut to fit your slider buns

10 slider buns (white, wheat or pretzel)

For broccoli rabe pesto:  Cook broccoli rabe in a large pot of boiling water until bright green, about 30 seconds; drain and transfer to a bowl of ice water to stop the cooking process.  Drain again and pat with a clean towel to dry.  Cut into 1” pieces.

In the same large pot, combine the oil, garlic, red pepper flakes and broccoli rabe.  Cover and cook over low heat, stirring often, until the broccoli rabe is very soft, about 40-50 minutes.  Transfer to a food processor and pulse to a rough pesto consistency.  Let cool slightly, then mix in Pecorino and honey.  (Pesto can be made up to 3 days ahead, covered and chilled.)

For sliders:  Form the sausage into 10 small patties.  Cook either on a grill or in a frying pan with a small amount of olive oil until browned and fully cooked through, 3-4 minutes per side.  During the last seconds of cooking time put a piece of cheese on each patty to melt.  While the patties are cooking, spread some broccoli rabe pesto on both sides of the buns.  Assemble buns with sausage patties.

Grilled Cheese with Pesto, Spinach and Avocado

I love sandwiches of all types, and they seem especially suited to summer for some reason.  Maybe because they're easy and don't require long hours in a hot kitchen.  I particularly like unusual sandwiches like this adult version of the classic grilled cheese that has pesto, mozarella, goat cheese, spinach and avocado.  The combination of creamy avocado and melty cheese with the savory pesto and crisp toasted bread is really excellent.  Even the lemon juice used to keep the avocado from browning adds to the overall flavor.

Sandwiches are also a great excuse to eat potato chips, which some of you know I am addicted to.  I have to have a discussion with myself every time I go near a bag of kettle chips to prevent myself from eating the entire thing.  I told that to The Lawyer last night (when we had these sandwiches with chips) and his reply was "you have a lot of discussions with yourself, don't you?"  I'm not sure what that meant, but it's true so I really couldn't take offense.  The advantage of having a discussion with yourself is that you always make sense and you always come to agreement in the end.

Anyway, this sandwich is really simple to make and can be either grilled like a conventional grilled cheese, or toasted up in a panini press. You can use any type of bread that's your favorite, but I've found a multigrain bread works well.  Depending on how ambitious you are, you can make pesto from scratch (especially if you have basil in your garden) or just buy a container at the store.   Serve the sandwiches with some fresh corn or tomatoes or cucumbers from the farmers market and you have a great summer meal.  Notice I didn't say potato chips.  It was a conscious effort.

* * click here for a printable recipe * *

Grilled Cheese Sandwich with Pesto, Spinach and Avocado
Serves 4

8 slices of bread (white or whole grain)
1 container refrigerated pesto (or homemade)
8 thin slices mozzarella
4 handfuls baby spinach
1 avocado
Juice of half a lemon
3 oz log goat cheese, crumbled
Olive oil


Cut the avocado in half and remove the pit. With a small knife score each avocado half lengthwise into slices and use a large spoon to scoop around the skin to remove all the slices at once. Place in a small bowl and carefully toss with the lemon juice to prevent browning.

Thinly spread pesto on each piece of bread (go easy, pesto has a strong flavor). On half the bread slices, layer one piece of mozzarella, several avocado slices, a little crumbled goat cheese, spinach, and a second slice of mozzarella. Top with a second slice of bread and press together gently.

Heat one tablespoon of olive oil in a frying pan over medium heat. Add one sandwich (or two if your pan is big enough) and fry until golden brown, then flip and cook until the second side is brown. You may want to cover the pan briefly while the sandwich is cooking to ensure all the cheese melts and the sandwich is hot throughout. Alternately, heat a Panini press and grill until the sandwich has nice grill marks and is nicely browned.

Serve immediately.

Pesto Pasta with Edamame, Spinach and Almonds

Edamame is a relatively new favorite of mine.  Since it's a really healthy food I was looking for new ways to eat more and came across a recipe that pairs it with pasta.  I was even more intrigued when I realized the recipe has only six ingredients (not counting salt and pepper) and that three of them are superfoods.  Amazing!  Almonds and spinach are well-known superfoods, but you may not know that edamame (soybeans) are high in calcium, soy, protein and fiber while low in calories.  The high protein content is one of the reasons this recipe is very satisfying and filling even though it's vegetarian.  How can I count the number of good things about this recipe?  It's healthy, fast, delicious, beautiful, vegetarian (or not), light, versatile, unusual, elegant and easy. 

It also taught me a new technique for preparing almonds - not chopped, not sliced, not slivered - but cracked.  The resulting coarse pieces vary in size and shape and have a nice crunchy texture that greatly adds to the overall dish.  The recipe actually called for crushed almonds but I really didn't know how to crush them so I made up my own technique which I think more closely resembles cracked rather than crushed.  Basically take a whammer (meat mallet or other heavy object) and lightly hit one almond at a time.  If you try to hit a bunch at the same time they end up all over the kitchen.  Trust me.

I used the opportunity to go to the farmer's market and found some wonderful krinkly-leaf  spinach that also added to the overall crunchiness of the dish because it's thicker than baby spinach and therefore didn't wilt.  I'm usually a fan of baby spinach but for this dish I liked the texture of the slightly thicker spinach.  Your call either way.

The versatility comes in with regard to temperature - you can serve this pasta warm, room temperature, or cold which makes it great for get-togethers, picnics or weeknights.  Just note that if you choose to refrigerate it, add a little olive oil to moisten before serving.  The other way it's versatile is that it's vegetarian but you could easily add some chicken (or any leftover meat) if you have people who Really Want Meat.

* * click here for a printable recipe * *

Pesto Pasta with Edamame, Spinach and Almonds
Serves 4 to 6

8 ounces spaghetti
2/3 cup pesto
8 ounces spinach
2 cups frozen edamame, prepared according to directions
Juice from 2 lemons plus additional fresh lemon wedges for serving
¾ cup whole almonds
Salt and pepper

Coarsely crack the almonds by placing on a cutting board and using a meat mallet (or other heavy tool) to lightly pound one almond at a time until it cracks into several pieces. (Trying to crack more than one at a time results in almonds all over your kitchen.) Lightly toast in a dry skillet or oven until fragrant and set aside.

If baby spinach is used, not further chopping or tearing is needed. If using regular spinach, tear the larger leaves into two or more bite-sized pieces.

Cook spaghetti according to package directions, then drain. In a large bowl, stir together the spaghetti and pesto until thoroughly combined, then add the spinach, edamame, and juice of two lemons and toss well.

Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve garnished with cracked almonds and lemon wedges for squeezing at the table.

May be served warm, room temperature or cold. If the pasta has been refrigerated, toss with a small amount of olive oil to moisten before serving.

Spring Risotto

Risotto is a classic Italian comfort food consisting of creamy rice and Parmesan cheese. This recipe freshens up the classic for spring with the addition of peas, asparagus, smoked turkey (or ham), mozzarella, and pesto. It's a main dish entree that makes a complete meal when served with a salad.

For some reason I was always mildly intimidated by the thought of making risotto - I guess the process seemed somewhat mysterious and complicated. Turns out if you can use a spoon to stir you can make risotto. Even my friend John, who's been known to oven-roast tomatoes into charcoal briquettes, could handle this one.  (John says he put them in the oven, then forgot about them and went out with his buddies for the afternoon.  Lucky he didn't burn the house down.)

John's "oven-roasted" tomatoes

The only trick to making risotto is that you need to use arborio rice because it has a higher starch content than most rice varieties. The starch combines with hot broth as you stir to create the creamy sauce that's the hallmark of risotto.

My tip of the day is how to clean leeks.  Leeks are large, mild-flavored members of the onion family that are excellent at trapping dirt as they grow. I learned a great technique a few years ago regarding how to ensure you get them absolutely clean.  The trick is to slice them up first, then throw them into a strainer and lower the strainer into a large bowl of cold water.  Agitate the water with your hand to remove the dirt, then lift the strainer of clean leeks out of the bowl of water and drain.  Presto!  Clean leeks.  Much easier than trying to rinse them before cutting or trying to fish all the little pieces out of the water individually.

leeks in strainer in bowl of cold water

rinsed and drained

I think one of the reasons this recipe reminds me so much of spring is because of the wonderful green colors - from light to dark - of the leeks, asparagus, peas and pesto.  I hope you enjoy it!

* * click here for a printable recipe version * *

Risotto with Peas, Asparagus and Pesto
Serves 4

Kosher salt
3 leeks (white and light green parts only)
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 cup Arborio rice
½ cup dry white wine (optional)
2 cups fresh or frozen asparagus spears cut into 1” pieces
1 cup frozen peas, thawed
¾ cup diced smoked turkey or ham
½ cup pesto
1 cup diced fresh mozzarella
½ cup grated parmesan
pepper


Slice each leek lengthwise and then crosswise into thin slices. Rinse in cold water and drain. To make the broth, bring 6 cups of water and 1 teaspoon of salt to a simmer in a large pot over medium heat. Add the leeks and cook for 3 to 4 minutes; remove with a slotted sp[oon to a bowl. Adjust the heat to keep the broth at a gentle simmer.

Meanwhile, heat one tablespoon of butter in a wide saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the rice and cook, stirring, for one minute. Add the wine and cook, stirring, until almost evaporated, about one more minute. Add two cups of the hot leek broth to the rice and cook, stirring frequently, until almost absorbed, about 6 minutes. Adjust the heat to keep the risotto at a simmer during this process. Add one more cup of broth and cook, stirring, for three more minutes. Add the asparagus to the pot and stir for an additional two minutes, then add the leeks, peas, and one more cup of broth. Cook, stirring, until almost absorbed, about 5-6 minutes. Taste the rice to see if it’s al dente.

Stir in the turkey and remaining one tablespoon of butter. Remove from the heat and stir in the pesto, mozzarella, and parmesan. Taste and season with salt and pepper.