I thought y’all might appreciate what became of those luscious tomatoes from Stony last week.
Sorry, I don’t do measurements unless it’s baking. Baking is
chemistry. Stove-top is art. That’s my theory. Bearing that in mind,
everything here is subject to taste. Add, subtract, substitute, knock
yourself out. I’ve always found recipes to be great reading, and
excellent suggestions to kick start your meal preparation. Except for
baking. You have to be really careful how you play with recipes when
you’re baking. Wet-to-dry ratios, gluten development, leavening agents,
sugars, this has none of that required attention to detail. This is
all about flavors and textures and making your kitchen smell so good you
can’t wait to dig in.
For my version… much of which was dependent upon the contents of my refrigerator…
Butter
Roasted garlic
Portobello mushrooms
Vidalia onion
Stony Caldwell’s san marzano tomatoes*, chopped
Fresh basil, chiffonade (fancy way to say slice into ribbons)
Dried oregano and tarragon
Salt and pepper to taste
Angel hair pasta, cooked al dente (or to death, if that’s your preference)
Parmesan cheese to garnish
Melt butter in a cast iron skillet on medium heat. Mash the roasted
garlic, and incorporate into the butter as best you can. (I love the
stuff, live alone, and didn’t have plans to go out, so I used four
cloves. Color me happy.) Add chopped mushrooms and stir until they
start to lose a bit of their moisture, then add onions and saute until
the onions are translucent. Add tomatoes, cover, and let simmer,
stirring occasionally. Go ahead and bring your water to a boil, for the
pasta. Salt the water. It doesn’t make your pasta cook differently,
no matter what anybody tells you. It does, however, make it taste
good. Add the pasta – it won’t be long, now! Stir that tomato sauce.
It’s time to add the herbs. Cook it down, stirring now and then to keep
it from sticking, while the pasta cooks. When the noodles are nearly
done, scoop up some of the water and add it to the sauce. It’ll go all
creamy on you – that’s the magic of pasta water. Who knew?!
Drain your pasta, twirl a big ladle full and put it in your bowl, top
with sauce and a healthy sprinkling of cheese, pour your wine and
voila. Dinner fit for a queen.
*For the curious who noted the other tomato on the earlier post, the Mr
Stripy went straight into a tomato sandwich when I got home. Seriously,
people. Not like there was another choice. Sourdough bread. Duke’s
mayo. Salt and pepper. We’re done here.
Click.
