Presto Pasta Nights #202 Roundup!

Welcome to Presto Pasta Nights!!!

 I want to thank everyone who submitted their lovely dishes for this week's roundup. Each and every one of them had me drooling and making notes on my grocery list!
 So, let's not waste any time getting down to the goodies!

Claire of Chez Cayenne submitted Masala Rice Noodles and Vegetables. Just looks at those gorgeous noodles!

Marie at Life in the Slow Lane at Squirrel Head Manor brings us Julie's Noodle Casserole which she describes as DE-lish-ous! and I couldn't agree more!

Our next offering is from Katerina from Culinary Flavors out of Athens, Greece made a lovely Creamy Pasta with Broccoli, comfort food at its finest!

I worked on my own submission last weekend with Pappardelle with Wild Boar Ragu.

Michelle at Ms. Enplace had me at "shrimp" with her Linguine with Shrimp and Lemon Oil. Yum!

I was very intrigued by Kankana's dish over at Sunshine & Smile. Her Bruschetta with Spinach Pasta Topping had me drooling! Can't wait to try this at home!

Kirsten of From Kirsten's Kitchen to Yours came up with this lovely Fusilli with Romanesco. Romanesco is something I have never tried before, but I'll be sure to be on the lookout for it now!

Next up is Claudia, of Honey From Rock, with her Cold Hiyashi Soba Salad with Tempura. The name alone is making my mouth water!

We have a newcomer to Presto Pasta Nights this week! Anne, from Anne's Kitchen, brings us a Quick and Creamy Tuna Farfalle.

Krista over at The Beet Reporter made some tasty-looking Thai Fried Noodles.

And finally, our very own Ruth of Once Upon a Feast put together this gorgeous Four Taste Pasta with Shrimp.  

I had a great time reading each and every mouth watering post. Thank you all for your participation this week and don't forget that next week is the big Fourth Birthday Bash for Presto Pasta Nights and will be hosted by Ruth, herself, over at Once Upon a Feast. Send your entries for next week's roundup to ruth (at) 4everykitchen (dot) com by March 3rd! I hope to see some extra special dishes over there next Friday!

I am special....and so are these potatoes

I know what you’re thinking. “What makes YOU think you’re special?” Well, let me elaborate.

See, I got home from work last night to find three, count ‘em THREE, packages waiting for me. Naturally the hubs gave me the “what in the hell did you order NOW” look. (please, like I didn’t learn a long time ago to have my purchases shipped to my office) Fortunately for me, I didn’t order ANYTHING!

Package number one was actually a birthday gift for Little Man from his Auntie Anne. I stashed that one in a secret place.

Package number two was the cookbook that was part of the blog giveaway I won over at Krista’s Kitchen from Maple Leaf Farms. Said cookbook also came with a very nice hand-written note congratulating me on winning.

Package number three was....well... a mystery. It was return addressed to a woman in Canada. A woman whose name I didn’t recognize. And the customs form affixed to the box was marked as “gift”.

Hmmm...interesting, no?

Well, to make this all clear, I need to give you a little history.

Back in January, I participated in a bloggy cookie swap. In this swap, you are assigned a partner and you send each other cookies. Well, long story-short, I got no cookies. Which is okay, you know, because my thighs are really screaming for “one more cookie, please” right now. But the point of the story is that I never heard back from my partner. Emailing the swap organizer one day, the subject came up and I told her about it. That it was fine, but thought she should know.

Well, she was aghast.

And apparently she told a friend about it.

Who was equally aghast.

The friend requested my mailing address from Steph (the swap organizer) and promptly proceeded to mail me....cookies! And, since she’s a crafter like me, she also crocheted me a lovely hat! Just because.

Is that not awesome? Knowing all of that, can you deny that I am, indeed, special? I didn’t think so.

I was truly touched by both the thoughtful gift and the handwritten note that accompanied it. There is just nothing better than a completely random act of kindness. You should all consider trying it sometime. I may be planning one of my own as we speak....

In any case, thanks bunches to Jeanne and Steph for brightening a day otherwise rife with sinus infection and work frustration.

Give them both some love, would you? You can find Steph at http://stephchows.blogspot.com/

And Jeanne at her blog: http://centurycrafts.blogspot.com

Since I was feeling extra special after opening my packages, I added something a little extra special to dinner for the hubs last night. I had planned to make Osso Bucco (except with beef), but feeling under the weather as I was, I wasn’t exactly highly motivated. After my little air mail mood booster, I was inspired. At Walmart earlier in the day, I spied a rare bag of lovely little fingerling potatoes, the likes of which are rarely seen in these parts. Naturally, they were whisked into my cart with reckless abandon.

I put those babies to good use last night. Want to make your honey feel extra special? Make these for him the next time YOU see fingerling potatoes hiding in the produce section.

Scrub your potatoes (about a pound or so) and toss them with olive oil. Scatter them on a baking sheet and season with salt and pepper. Roast them whole at 400 degrees for about 40 minutes, or until tender. Serve them up with a shower of freshly grated parmesan.

This worked out perfectly last night. I started the potatoes after I had the meat in the oven, they roasted at the same temperature and came out at the same time.

So, last night, we both got to feel a little extra special. Look out for those Random Acts of Kindness....you might be next!

DON'T FORGET!!!! You only have until midnight tonight to submit a dish to Presto Pasta Nights #202 this week!

To enter, email your entries to: bethanneleach (at) gmail (dot) com and cc to ruth (at) 4everykitchen (dot) com & include:

~Your name & the name of your blog
~The name of your dish & the permalink to your post
~Attach a photo or I will pull one from your post to include in the roundup
~in your email, use the subject line: PPN #202 submission

Pappardelle with Wild Boar Ragu

When my husband accepted an invitation to go Boar Hunting in Alabama not long ago, I told him, “You better bring some back for me to cook.” As is typical, he gave me that look. You know, the one that makes you wonder if you accidentally waxed an entire eyebrow off or something. But I persisted. “Dammit, Matt, if you’re going leave us here for a week so you can go hunt Wild Boar, you’re going to bring some back for me so I can cook it and post it on my blog.”

Well, as that left no room for discussion, he arrived home with a cooler containing the iced down haunches of a Wild Boar, as requested.

Sadly, those little piggies have been lounging in my freezer ever since. You know, a boar leg is a pretty sizable hunk of meat, which not only takes a lengthy cooking time, but also a lengthy DEFROSTING time.

Being that we live in the country and are a family of hunters, we have a significant amount of freezer space. But, well, my freezers are getting full. And those boar legs are taking up more than their fair share. It became clear that one of them had to go.

I declared that we would be dining on wild boar this past weekend, and the hubs looked at me not with that “look”, but with a mixture of mild surprise and curiosity. I really think he didn’t expect me to ever get around to cooking it. But when I ran across short ribs at the local grocery last week and had a hard time finding a home for them in the aforementioned freezer, well, it was time.

Taking inspiration from The Silver Spoon, in my opinion the end-all and be-all of Italian cookbooks, I started with a soffritto, sautéing carrots, onion, and celery until tender. Then I added some seasonings (a little garlic and red pepper) and deglazed the pan with a hearty helping of red wine. I opted to slow cook the leg, instead of braising it in the oven, so I seasoned it with salt and pepper, and fitted it carefully into my slow cooker. I finished by pouring the soffritto/wine mixture into the cooker and added about four cups of beef stock (another way to free up space in my freezer).

I then let it cook away the afternoon, and when I couldn’t stand the smell anymore (yes, my nose kept leading me back to the kitchen), I rescued the leg from its cooking juices and picked the meat off the bone. Which was no small task. The boar leg is chock full of cartilage, tendons and other fatty bits scattered throughout the meat. While this was going on, I poured the cooking liquids off into a saucepan and turned the heat on high, letting the liquids reduce down by about half.

When the hubs finally got home last night, I put on a pot of water for the pasta (I just love pappardelle, don’t you?) and while it was cooking, I swirled a couple of tablespoons of butter into the sauce to make it just a little silky. A quick shave of fresh parmesan on top, and this was a meal fit for a hunter, for sure. Matt was standing over the counter slurping the noodles out of their saucy bath, and I just stood there, smiling.

One thing I might have done differently, next time I think I will roast it in the oven instead (and there will be a next time, since I still have three legs in the freezer) to get that lovely caramelized color that you can never quite get from a slow cooker. Other than that, I call this meal a roaring success. The flavor of boar meat is a subtle mid-ground between beef and pork. Not gamey, as you might expect, but rich and flavorful.

This is my submission for Presto Pasta Nights #202, which I am hosting this week, and I am also linking it up to the Italian Fest going on this week over at Seaside Simplicity



Don't forget to get me your Presto Pasta Night submissions by midnight on Thursday, and work something good up for the Presto Pasta NIghts fourth birthday bash, hosted by Ruth at Once Upon a Feast next week!

Presto Pasta Nights #202

I am very pleased to announce that I will be hosting Presto Pasta Nights #202 this coming week and I cordially invite all of you to participate!

Presto Pasta Nights is the brainchild of Ruth over at Once Upon a Feast, and obviously it has been a very successful one, as it has now been FOUR YEARS that we have all been cooking, enjoying, and posting our lovely pasta dishes for all the blogosphere to drool over.

If you have never participated before, it is very simple. All you have to do is make a pasta dish, post it during the week of the roundup, and then email me at bethanneleach (at) gmail (dot) com and cc Ruth at ruth (at) 4everykitchen (dot) com by Midnight on Thursday. The roundup will be posted next Friday, February 25th, right here at The Seventh Level of Boredom.

Some of the rules for participating in this event:

• Cook a dish that includes PASTA.

• Blog about it with a link back to THIS post and to PRESTO PASTA NIGHTS. Use of logo is optional.

• Email your entries to: bethanneleach (at) gmail (dot) com and cc to ruth (at) 4everykitchen (dot) com & include:

          ~Your name & the name of your blog

          ~The name of your dish & the permalink to your post

          ~Attach a photo or I will pull one from your post to include in the roundup

          ~in your email, use the subject line: PPN #202 submission

If you have any questions at all, please email me and I'll be happy to answer them for you!

And last, but not least, don’t worry if you can’t decide which recipe to make – NEXT week is the big Fourth Birthday Bash over at Presto Pasta Nights and the special roundup will be hosted by Ruth at her own blog, Once Upon a Feast. We are hoping that next week’s roundup will be extra special (and BIG!) so please join us next week as well.

Now, you have your mission.....get cooking!

Old Man Winter – get the heck out!!!

Yessir....the weather around here is a-changin’..... and I love it! I am not a winter person to begin with, and I tried very hard this winter to NOT complain about the cold and the snow. Every time the ground would get covered in white, I’d say, “It could be worse. At least we’re not having ice storms like back in ’06. I’ll take this ANY day over THAT.”

And every time I said it, I meant it a little bit less.

And then... we DID get an ice storm. Granted, we dodged a bullet and managed to keep our power on for the duration. But the ensuing snow, the ridiculous amounts of ice that just WOULD. NOT. MELT. And the cumulative total of nine, count ‘em, NINE snow days, was just more than this sunshine girl could handle.

I’m done. I’ve had enough.

And so, this weekend I joyously welcomed the first decent weather we’ve seen in months. I felt the first stirrings of spring fever. I recognized the subtle itch that always precedes the urge to start my spring cleaning. And. I fired up the grill.

In my world, there are two sure signs of spring. One being the first day I leave the house without socks. The other being the fiery baptism of a choice cut of meat out on the deck.

Well, I haven’t been brave enough to bare my tootsies as of yet, but as far as the grill goes.... let the flames begin!

And what was the inaugural dish this season, you ask? Root Beer Glazed Pork Chops.

As you may have noticed in a couple of recent posts here at The Seventh Level of Boredom, I have mentioned that there is a new store in my small town. A new store I have become quite enamored with. Let’s just call it a ‘shopping crush’. See, when you grow up with absolutely anything you could desire to shop for at your fingertips, and then move to a small town that has....well....WALMART, you gladly welcome any and all bright new opportunities that arrive on the scene. The Market on the Square is particularly near and dear to my heart because they only sell items made in Illinois, supporting the “shop local” movement; there are many crafty and foodie items, both of which hold a special place in my heart, being the crafty foodie that I am; oh, and of course, the fact that they sell wine. And very nice wine, at that. We’ll talk about that another day. Promise.

The lovely folks over at Market on the Square recently enthused over a recipe I posted here and then shared on their Facebook page, featuring an ingredient I purchased at their little shop. You know me... a little praise goes a long way. That and I’m just a food-junkie and I can’t help myself.

So I’m doing it again!

As a matter of fact, you might be seeing various new posts referring to the Market on the Square and their wares. I have designs on a recipe involving the “Dreamcatcher”, a fantastic little port-style wine from the Piasa winery. But I digress.

Today we’re talking about root beer. Its not just for drinking, you know. My favorite new store stocks a line of craft sodas made by Goose Island, including Chicago Style Root Beer, Ginger Soda, and Orange Cream Soda. I was first drawn in by the Ginger Soda, but when I went to the register to buy a bottle, the proprietor started to tell me how people have been raving about the Root Beer, becoming addicted and frequenting the store with the sole purpose of picking up another four-pack.

Well, you don’t have to threaten ME with a good time! You know I love me some Root Beer!

What to do, what to do, what to do...... well, it didn’t take me long to come up with an idea.

My mind quickly drifted to the butterflied pork chops I couldn’t resist picking up at the store over the weekend. When the weather started turning back to gorgeous, it all came together. Root Beer glazed pork chops, anyone? How about some nice grilled zucchini and yellow squash to go with it? I’ll even throw in a foil pack of potatoes for the hubs, just because I’m feeling generous. Nice weather does that to me.

After work last night, I hustled us home and got to work. First, of course, there was getting the grill set up. I brought a fresh bottle of propane home with me and hooked it up (yes, I know, I should grill with charcoal. I just don’t have time for that on an average night). While the grill was heating up, I reduced the sauce and got the veggies ready.

And what happened? See for yourself! Just look at this gorgeous platter.

The meat was tender and flavorful, and the glaze gave the meat a sweet and tangy taste. I make a similar dish with some of my Hot Apple Pie liqueur, and I think we love them both!

If you love the Goose Island Root Beer (or any root beer!) give this one a try when you get YOUR grill going this season!

OOOPS! I forgot to include the recipe!

Root Beer Glazed Pork Chops
1 bottle Goose Island Root Beer
1 cup beef broth
1 tsp Sriracha (or more if you like spicy!)
1/3 cup brown sugar

Mix all the ingredients in a sauce pan and cook over medium high heat until reduced by about half, or until the mixture coats the back of a spoon, but no longer.

Season your pork chops with salt and pepper and grill until cooked basting with the root beer sauce until you get a nice glaze.

***NOTES*** I had a hard time keeping my grill hot enough in the cool temps on my deck, so I didn't get a nice char on my chops, but you bet i will next time!

Linguine with Olives and Breadcrumbs

After my weekend of “whining” and dinning my Valentine (otherwise known as Little Man), I was looking for a nice, simple supper to fix last night. Just such a dish came to me, care of Giada de Laurentiis and her Spaghetti with Olives and Breadcrumbs. Spaghetti? Olives, you say? Two of my favorite things! And it doesn’t hurt that I still have a couple of tubs of wonderful mixed olives from The Hill in St Louis lingering around in my fridge. Other than the fresh parsley, which I was fresh out of, this was a perfect meal straight from the pantry for me.


I call that... DESTINY.

Spaghetti with Olives and Bread Crumbs
1 pound spaghetti (I used linguine)
3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2/3 cup seasoned dried bread crumbs
1/4 teaspoon sea salt, plus more for seasoning
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more for seasoning
3/4 cup pitted and roughly chopped black olives (recommended: kalamata)
3/4 cup pitted and roughly chopped large green olives (recommended: Bella Di Cerignola)
1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan
1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender but still firm to the bite, about 8 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a large saute pan, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the bread crumbs and 1/4 teaspoon each of the sea salt and pepper. Stirring constantly, cook the breadcrumbs until golden brown, about 2 minutes.

Drain the pasta, reserving 1 cup of the pasta water. Stir the pasta into the bread crumb mixture. Remove the pan from the heat and add the black and green olives. Add the Parmesan cheese and 3 tablespoons of the parsley. Season the pasta with salt and pepper, to taste. Gently toss to coat, adding reserved pasta water, if needed, to loosen the pasta. Transfer to a large serving bowl and garnish with the remaining parsley.

I love the briny flavor the olives bring to this dish, and the fact that it wasn’t loaded down with a heavy tomato sauce. Don’t get me wrong, I adore a good marinara or Bolognese, but with the weather ever-so-slightly turning to spring, I was in the mood for something a little lighter. Even though I would be the only one at my house to eat this, I went ahead and made the full amount and I will be enjoying it for a couple of my lunches at work this week. Next time I think I may add a little lemon juice or zest, some capers and little grape tomatoes!

This is my submission for this week’s I Heart Cooking Clubs theme, “Using Your Noodle”, and to Ruth over at Presto Pasta Nights, being hosted by Pia of Cook Healthy this week.

Hearts from the Heart

I had a hot date this weekend.

With a younger man.

He’s loving, and attentive.

He’s also my son.

Yep, for Valentine’s Day this year, I celebrated with my Little Man. We had planned to have Ty’s best buddy over for a sleepover, but there was a last minute change of plans when the “Braydens” (Ty’s buddy and his parents) woke up under the weather on Saturday.

In spite of the change, Ty and I had ourselves a sweet night out, starting with a matinee of Gnomeo and Juliet, and ending with a quiet supper at home, made up mostly of chocolate.

While it was a lovely evening, we did miss out on the “little boy” time we’d been looking forward to. See, Ty’s conniving momma (yep, that’d be me) had a sweet little Valentine’s projects all lined up and ready to go for the boys to do together on Sunday morning. Instead, Ty and I rolled up our sleeves and got chatty.

Yep, I said chatty.

We made conversation hearts. This is an idea that my sister gave me last year, but I didn’t get the supplies ready to make them in time for Valentine’s Day then, so I set my mind on 2011!

These little treats are so easy to make at home. The one thing to remember if you want to make these is that they require an extensive drying time of about 24 hours before you can write on them. I bought a package of food markers and we were ready to go! Don’t be intimidated by the long instructions, these are really as basic as making up a simple dough, coloring it, rolling it out and cutting it like sugar cookies. Try and find a heart shaped cookie cutter that is no bigger than an inch in diameter. I got mine at Hobby Lobby for about 30 cents, and the Gourmet Writer food markers by Americolor for about $8.

Conversation Hearts

• 1 packet (1/4 oz, or 2 tsp) unflavored gelatin

• 1/2 cup water

• 2 tsp light corn syrup

• 2 lbs powdered sugar, plus additional for dusting

• Assorted flavoring extracts of your choice (we used peppermint)

• Assorted food colors of your choice

• Heart-shaped cutters

• Food coloring markers

Preparation:

1. Place the corn syrup, gelatin, and water in a small microwave-safe bowl. Stir until the gelatin is well-distributed. Microwave the mixture for 30 seconds, so the gelatin dissolves, and stir well.

2. Pour the gelatin mixture into the bowl of a large stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Alternately, if you are using a hand mixer, pour the gelatin mixture into a large bowl. Add 1 cup of powdered sugar and turn the mixer to low, mixing until the sugar is incorporated.

3. Once the sugar is mixed in, add another cup of sugar, again mixing on low until it liquefies. Continue to add the remaining powdered sugar, one cup at a time, pausing in between additions to allow the sugar to mix in, until the full two pounds of powdered sugar is added. Periodically, stop the mixer and scrape down the bottom and sides of the bowl. The candy will progress from a thin, watery liquid to a very stiff dough.

4. Once all of the sugar is incorporated, dust a work surface (counter or large cutting board) with powdered sugar and scrape the candy out onto the work surface. The candy will be very sticky and stiff. Generously dust the top of the ball of candy with powdered sugar, and begin to knead the candy like bread dough: fold the ball of dough over onto itself, then use the heel of your hand to push it down. Give the candy a quarter-turn, and repeat the process, dusting it with more powdered sugar as often as necessary to prevent it from sticking to the board or your hands. Knead until the candy is satiny and not sticky.

5.Decide how many colors/flavors of conversation hearts you want to make, and divide the candy dough into that many portions. To flavor and color the candy, take one of the balls and flatten it into a palm-sized disc. Add a few drops of food coloring and flavoring extract to the center of the disc, and fold it over on itself. (It is a good idea to wear disposable plastic gloves during this step to keep your hands free of colors and odors.) Knead the dough ball, just as you did before, until the color is evenly dispersed throughout the candy, and all streaks have disappeared. Repeat this process with remaining candy balls and colors/flavors, until all of your candy is colored and flavored.

6. Dust your work surface and a rolling pin with powdered sugar, and roll out one of the candy balls to your desired thickness. Small store-bought conversation hearts tend to be fairly thick, generally over 1/4” thick. I find that this thickness works well for small hearts (under 1”), but it makes larger heart sizes very substantial and a little overwhelming. However, the thickness is entirely a matter of personal preference and does not affect the taste of the final candy.

7. Use heart-shaped cutters to cut hearts out of the rolled candy, and transfer the hearts to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Smaller hearts are more realistic, but larger hearts are easier to write messages on. Once you have cut out your hearts, you can re-roll the scraps to get more shapes out of the candy. Repeat with remaining candy balls.

8. Allow your hearts to air-dry for at least 24 hours before you write on them. This step is VERY important, because the extra moisture in the hearts will cause the ink to run if you do not let them dry properly.

When I was done cutting out the hearts, I rolled all my scrap dough together and made swirly hearts!

9. After the hearts have dried for a day, use the food writing markers to write messages or draw designs on the hearts. Store your conversation hearts in an airtight container at room temperature.

Ty and I had fun writing messages to his favorite loves!

These were super easy to put together. I did all the prep work and had them ready to decorate the next day. It was tons of fun and made sweet little Valentines treats for Ty's favorite people.