I'm back!  In the time since my last post, we added to the family and are adjusting to life with Baby G.  What a wild ride!  

Y'all, I have had this recipe in the stack for almost seven years.  It was way past time to try this one out, and now that I did, I know I'll be going back again and again.  This baked ziti is easy, quick, and tasty, and has a big bonus: the leftovers stay moist and well sauced, which as you may know, is a hazard with baked pasta dishes.  Both Drew and I really enjoyed this.  Drew even said it may be the best he's had, which is saying a lot, because he used to live in Upstate New York, where there's a lot of Italian influence.

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This one may seem a little strange at the outset, but don't write it off just yet.  I decided to try it just because the picture was so pretty.  

Before you skip over this post or write off spaghetti squash entirely, let me assure you that this recipe was made with spaghetti squash in mind, and it is not a substitute for anything here.

It kind of irks me a little bit when people try to sub in healthier alternatives for classic foods.  Black beans will never be beef, and spaghetti squash will never be spaghetti.  I do, however, love a good black bean burger, and spaghetti squash, when cooked to display its own merits, is good.  I think the key to enjoying these foods is to use them for what they are, and not think you're going to get a perfect substitute for a food you'd rather be eating.



This recipe, found on Pinterest, is a really good vegetarian main dish.  There are a lot of flavors going on, and it doesn't use a lot of oil, so it's lower in fat and really packed with nutrition.  I used stage cooking to bring everything together fairly quickly the night I made it.  What does that mean?  Well, I cooked the chickpeas ahead of time in a slow cooker.  I roasted the squash that morning, when I was getting ready for work, shredded it, and refrigerated it for use later that night.  I toasted the pine nuts in a pan (watch them!) that morning while making breakfast.  IF I had been smart, I would have also de-stemmed and washed the kale ahead of time.  This breaks up the cooking process so that it's not T minus 2 hours until dinner.

Spaghetti Squash With Kale and Chickpeas
slightly altered from Love and Lemons Blog

feeds 2 with a little left over, in my experience

1 smaller spaghetti squash
1-2 tablespoons olive oil
1 shallot, sliced thinly
3 cloves garlic, minced
pinch of chile flakes
1 cup chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 bunch of chopped kale leaves
1/2 lemon, juiced
¼ cup chopped sun dried tomatoes (or capers or olives)
¼ cup toasted pine nuts
Salt & pepper
Optional: a bit of freshly grated parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Slice your squash in half lengthwise. Scoop out the seeds and pulp from the middle. Place the squash on a baking sheet, cut side up. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast for about 1 hour or until the flesh is tender and you can scrape noodle-like strands with a fork. (If your squash is difficult to cut, roast it whole for the first 20 minutes until it softens a bit, then cut and continue).  Remove squash from the oven, let it cool slightly and use a fork to scrape the squash into strands. (set aside).

In a large skillet over medium heat, add enough olive oil to lightly coat the pan, then add the shallot, garlic, chile flakes, salt and pepper.  Once the shallot starts to soften, add the chickpeas and cook for a few minutes until they turn lightly golden brown.  Add the kale leaves, lemon juice, and then give everything in the pan a good stir.

Once the kale is partially wilted, add the squash strands, a little grated cheese, sun dried tomatoes, and more salt and pepper, to taste. Toss to incorporate. Remove from heat and top with toasted pine nuts and extra grated cheese.

Notes

• If your kale is not wilting quickly, make sure your heat is above medium (somewhere between medium and medium high works best for me), and also add in a tablespoon or so of water at a time.  The steam the water creates as it hits the pan really helps me to wilt and soften the kale.
• We still had some oven dried tomatoes in the fridge, so we used those.  So good!  If you use fully dried tomatoes, you may want to reconstitute them in some heated water or other liquid before adding them to the pan.

Whether or not you're superstitious (I'm not), the New Year's Dinner is a fun tradition.  I look forward to it every year.  Last year I decided to make Ree Drummond's Hoppin' John as a sort of spin on my family's classic meal.  

Closeup of the beans, with the bell peppers.  So good- we may have spooned it over quinoa.

Since the cauliflower stands up well to heat, it still retains a nice bite to it that sort of mimics the texture of meat.  Not that you will fool your tastebuds, but it's a nice texture and flavor.  I really believe the secret to vegetarian or vegan dishes, though, is not to sub in a vegetable for meat and expect the same result.  You will 100% of the time be disappointed if you're expecting the flavor of chicken, shrimp, or beef, and you're eating cauliflower or beans or whatever.  The secret is instead to prepare the vegetable in such a way that it is the star and not a stand-in.  This dish does a really good job of doing just that.  The cauliflower has a good amount of fiber, so it's filling, and when paired with a grain, such as quinoa or rice, it's a good meal in and of itself.

Being a stir fry, this is a quick and easy to prepare dish, so you can have this meal in about 15 minutes, not counting the time it takes you to cook your grain.

Spicy Stir-Fried Cauliflower
from the Pioneer Woman

serves 2

1 head cauliflower, cut into bite-sized florets
2 tsp. vegetable oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 Tb. soy sauce
1 lime, juiced (or about 1-2 Tb Rice Vinegar)
2-3 green onions, sliced thin
1 Tb. Sriracha or hot sauce

Heat a large, heavy skillet over medium-high to high heat. Add the oil, then the cauliflower and garlic. Stir the cauliflower around the pan, allowing it to get very brown in some areas. Cook for 3 minutes, then turn heat to low. Add soy sauce, squeeze in the juice of the lime, and add most of the sliced green onion, reserving the rest for serving. Stir and allow to cook for 1 minute, then squeeze the hot sauce over the cauliflower. Stir until the hot sauce has been incorporated. Add a little more hot sauce if you want a deeper color and flavor.
Serve hot in a bowl. Sprinkle extra sliced green onions on top, and serve with a lime wedge.

For a more filling meal, serve with 1 cup quinoa or rice.

• If you're a sort of regular reader, you've probably read before about how I'll choose foods I can cook in stages, and this dish is another good example of breaking up the prep over different days or times of day.  I roasted the squash the night before and stuck it in the fridge.  The next day, I picked up with the rest of the prep and served it.  It turned what would have been about an hour or so prep into two sets of 30 minutes or so each.
• You don't want the squash super, super soft (though tender) after roasting, because you want to make sure the skins or shells hold up.
• The original recipe called for ricotta cheese.  When I went shopping, the store was out of ricotta, so I took a cue from my favorite lasagna recipe and used cottage cheese.  It worked well, but I wonder if the ricotta would yield a slightly smoother and maybe creamier end result.

Prep your farro:  follow package directions to cook farro.  Let cool.  Also may be done ahead of time.

• I always like to give credit where it's due.  This recipe was inspired by a Smitten Kitchen recipe.
• Farro is a grain, and it is sold in several places.  I found my bag at Trader Joe's.  If you can't find farro, you can substitute barley, quinoa, and even rice or some other grain.  

What CI does is skip the breading and frying steps, thereby saving time and calories.  The whole thing is made in the span of something like an hour and can be broken up into stages.  Funny thing?  And don't slap me for this one, but you don't even miss the breading.  Seriously.  See, the breading usually becomes a little soggy during the baking process, so the crunch is a bit lost.  If you did miss it, then you could probably sprinkle the tops of each roll with regular or panko breadcrumbs before baking and still get a similar effect.

If you have a lot of eggplant, or just love eggplant recipes, try this one.  It's a keeper!

Eggplant Involtini
adapted from Cooks Illustrated, July/August 2014

serves 4

2 medium eggplants, each approximately1 ½ half lbs.
6 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup ricotta cheese (recommended NOT skim ricotta)
¾ cup Pecorino Romano cheese (or Parmesan/Parmigiano Reggiano/Asiago)
½ cup bread crumbs
½ + ¼ cup fresh basil, chopped – divided
1 tablespoon lemon juice, freshly squeezed
Kosher Salt and Pepper
1 (28 ounces) can of diced tomatoes
3 cloves of garlic, minced
¼ teaspoon oregano
Pinch of red pepper flakes
1/4- 1/2 c grated mozzarella cheese

Pre-heat your oven to 375 F Degrees and prepare 2 baking sheets with parchment paper, lightly sprayed or oiled.
Peel the eggplants. Cut them lengthwise ½ inch thick slices. Trim the rounded ends so that they will lay flat.  Place the eggplant on the baking sheets in an even, single layer.

Brush the eggplant slices on each tray with olive oil and season with ½ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon pepper. Flip each slice and do the same thing for the other side.

Place both sheets in the oven and bake for 30-35 minutes, or until they are tender and lightly browned. To ensure even baking, switch and rotate sheets half way through the baking process.

In the mean time, make the filling. Place 1 cup of ricotta cheese , ½ cup bread crumbs, ½ cup grated Pecorino Romano cheese, ¼ cup chopped fresh basil, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, and ½ teaspoon salt. Stir until they are all combined. Set aside.

To make the tomato sauce, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large ovenproof skillet. Add the garlic, ½ teaspoon salt, oregano, and a pinch of red pepper flakes. Stir them with a wooden spatula and cook for 30 seconds. Stir in the tomatoes and cook in medium low heat, until it thickens. Cover and set aside.

When eggplants are baked, let them cool for 5 minutes. Do not turn the oven off. Heat the broiler.

With the widest side of the eggplant slices facing you, evenly distribute the ricotta mixture onto each slice. Starting from the widest end, gently roll each piece and place it, seam side down, in the pan with the tomato sauce.

Bring it to a simmer over medium heat. Allow it to cook for 5 minutes.  Place the skillet in the oven and broil for 5 minutes for the eggplants to be browned and the cheese to cook thoroughly.  If you want, halfway through the broil, top with about 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese.
To finish it up, sprinkle it with ¼ cup of grated Pecorino Romano and 2 tablespoons of chopped fresh parsley or basil.

Notes

• This is the recipe that allowed me to have leftover ricotta mixture for these bruschetta.  Any leftover filling works great as a spread for crostini/bruschetta or likely in another pasta dish. 
• I did not love the tomato sauce I made for this (followed the recipe).  It wasn't bad, but it just didn't taste...completed.  You can of course use jarred sauce.  Less kitchen cred, but more of a time saver and sure bet.
• If you want to make this in stages/ do some make ahead, you can make the ricotta mixture and bake off the eggplant ahead of time.  If you do that, you will want to let the ricotta soften a bit before you try to spread it over the eggplant by taking it out of the fridge about 15-30 minutes before you plan to spread it on the eggplant.  
• The original recipe didn't call for it, but I did grate some mozzarella over the top and put it in with about 3 minutes to go in the broil.

Chopping celery is easy:  Start by slicing the stalks lengthwise in half, thirds or quarters (depending on the size of the stalk).  Then chop into smaller bits.

So you make this chickpea salad, which can be enjoyed on a bed of greens, with pita chips or Pretzel Thins, and probably even stuffed into a celery stalk.  This particular blogger made it into a sandwich, and I decided to make mine into a wrap.  There are several possibilities which allow for just a little variety stretched out into several meals.

Chickpea Salad
adapted from the Simple Veganista

1 2/3 cups (1 can) chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1/2 cup celery, diced
1/2 cup carrots, shredded
1/4 cup onion, diced small
1/4 cup or so hummus
1 - 2 tablespoons mustard (stone ground or dijon)
Sea salt & cracked pepper, to taste
Dash of garlic powder
Juice of 1 lemon, optional

Drain and rinse your chickpeas, place in medium size bowl and roughly mash with a fork, potato masher or pastry blender. Add the remaining ingredients and stir to combine. Add more hummus if you like it creamier and taste for seasoning.

Store leftovers in an air-tight container in the fridge for up to a week.

Chickpea Salad Wrap
1 tortilla shell, your choice of flavor and size (I used 12 inch sun dried tomato)
1/2 avocado, mashed
A couple big spoonfuls chickpea salad
Spinach leaves or other lettuce
Diced tomatoes

On a tortilla shell, layer the spinach or other greens, avocado, the chickpea salad, and the tomatoes.  Wrap like you would a burrito- fold up one or two opposite "ends" of the circle and then fold the other ends/flaps over it the folded parts/sides and the filling.

I found the original recipe for today's post on Pinterest and fell for its visual appeal.  I am a sucker for well photographed food.  The colors and textures just burst off the screen and demanded to be made, and finally I got around to making it.

Instead of making the recipe as is, I adapted it to suit mine and Drew's tastes, and I wanted to simplify it.  We both really enjoyed it, but if you want it to be a light meal rather than a side, I would encourage you to make double the amount, which would feed 2-3 people, or serve it with pita toasts or something.

This comes together quickly and easily, and if you use canned chickpeas or ones you prepared earlier in the week, there's no cooking, which translates into keeping your house cool enough to live in without turning your power bill into an all consuming monster.

Chickpea and Tomato Salad
adapted from greenlitebites.com

feeds 1 very generously (with leftovers) or 2 as a hearty side- or as I said in the post, serve with pita to make a light meal

1 can chickpeas (1 2/3 cups), drained and rinsed
1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
1/4 cup basil leaves, cut into a chiffonade
2 Tb. olive oil
1 Tb. lemon juice
Salt and Pepper, to taste

In a medium to large bowl, combine the olive oil, lemon juice, salt, and pepper with a whisk or fork.  Add all other ingredients and stir to mix and coat with the dressing.  Allow to sit for about 10 minutes prior to serving.

Decided to use the grill pan instead of the grill- just for convenience reasons

Salt and pepper
3/4 pound short pasta, such as campanelle
1 3/4 cups corn kernels (from 2 ears)
1 cup ricotta
1/4 cup grated Parmesan, plus more for serving
3 medium zucchini
1/2 cup fresh basil leaves, torn, plus more for serving
2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill

Prepare zucchini:  using a sharp knife or mandolin, slice the zucchini lengthwise into long, thin slices.  Grill on outdoor grill or grill pan over med-high heat, lightly oiling the zucchini and sprinkling with salt and pepper prior to grilling.  Flip when the bottom side has nice grill marks.  Remove from heat when zucchini are softened and both sides are lightly charred.  Set aside to cool, and then chop into 1/2 inch pieces.

In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook pasta 3 minutes less than package instructions; add corn and cook until tender, 3 minutes. Reserve 1 cup pasta water, then drain.

In a large bowl, whisk together 1/2 cup pasta water, ricotta, and Parmesan. Add pasta mixture, zucchini, basil, and dill and toss to combine. Add more pasta water if necessary to create a light sauce that coats pasta. Season with salt and pepper and top with more basil and Parmesan.

Notes

• I used a mixture of cellentani and rigatoni pastas to use up what I had in my pantry.  Any shorter pasta will do.  
• I had fresh basil from my garden and didn't use dill at all.  
• I had some boiled corn left over from another meal, so instead of boiling it, I just sliced it off the cob and used it that way.  You could also use frozen corn.

Tortilla Española
from Bon Appetit

Serves 8 (we had about 5 servings)

1 tablespoon plus 2 cups olive oil
1 medium yellow onion, thinly sliced
Kosher salt
2 medium waxy potatoes (about ¾ lb.), peeled, cut into ¾” pieces
8 large eggs

Heat 1 Tbsp. oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion, season with salt, and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened and dark brown, 35–40 minutes. Let cool slightly.

Meanwhile, heat potatoes and remaining 2 cups oil in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat until oil around potatoes begins to bubble; reduce heat to medium and cook until potatoes are tender but have not taken on any color, 10–12 minutes. Drain potatoes, reserving oil. Season potatoes with salt and let cool slightly.

Combine eggs, onion, potatoes, and ¼ cup reserved potato cooking oil in a large bowl and gently beat with a fork.

Heat 3 Tbsp. reserved potato cooking oil in a 10” nonstick skillet over medium heat (reserve remaining oil for another use). Add egg mixture and cook, lifting at edge and tilting skillet to let uncooked egg run underneath, until bottom and edge of tortilla are set but center is still wet.

Set a large plate on top of skillet. Swiftly invert tortilla onto plate, then slide back into skillet, cooked side up. Cook until center is just set, about 2 minutes longer. Cut into wedges.

I have the perfect warm-weather dish for you today.  I first came across this recipe in an old issue of Bon Appetit, and I have been making it a few years now.  It's an ideal spring/summer dish.  The lemon gives it a bright, almost sunny taste, while the herbs also keep it bright, interesting, and a little earthy.  The chickpeas give you good texture, flavor, protein, and fiber, which leaves you with a meal that will fill you even on hungry days but won't make you feel like you just ate half a buffalo.

What I am telling you about is by no means revolutionary, but it is my husband's favorite thing to grill, and maybe one of our favorite warm weather meals.  You can use any combination of vegetables you like, and they can be eaten as a side dish or a main course, served with bread or potatoes.  Just know that you won't have many leftovers!

This dish is a variation of this recipe, which I got out of the January 2011 issue of Everyday Food.  I played with the ingredients and spices even further and came up with this tasty spin.  Even my husband, who does not like mushrooms, likes this dish.  Aside from seeing them, you do not taste a mushroom-y taste.  This "lasagna" is, however, satisfying.  It's warming.  You'll be a little embarrassed to realize you've eaten 1/4 of the pan, by yourself, in one meal.  Oops.

Smoky Black Bean Mexican Lasagna
serves 4

2 Tb vegetable oil
1/2 medium onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1- 15 oz can black beans or 1 1/2 c prepared black beans, drained and rinsed
3/4 lb button or cremini mushrooms, rinsed and quartered
10 oz spinach (if frozen, thawed and excess liquid squeezed)
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
1/4 tsp. smoked paprika
1/2 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp cumin
1- 16 oz jar salsa
4 oz cheese, grated (I suggest monterrey jack but use chedder, pepper jack, or any combo)
5 medium sized flour tortillas, halved
Salt and pepper, to taste

Preheat your oven to 400 F.

In a large sauce pan, heat the vegetable oil over medium to med-high heat.  Add the onions and garlic and saute until they begin to soften and start to become translucent, about 3-5 minutes.  Add the mushrooms and the spinach if using fresh and continue to cook the mixture another 5-10 minutes, until the vegetables are cooked and softened.  If the spinach is cooked, just add in with black beans.  Add in the black beans and warm through.  Add in spices and stir for a minute or so.  Add about 1/2 cup water and cook, stirring occasionally until liquid is reduced to just coating the vegetables, for about 5-10 minutes.

Assemble your lasagna:  spoon out half the bean mixture into the bottom of an 8x11 inch rectangular casserole dish (can be done with a 9x13).  Pour over 1/3 of the salsa (about 2/3 cup) and 1/3 cheese.  Top with 3 tortilla halves, covering the mixture.  Repeat this layer, and sprinkle on the remainder of the salsa and cheese.  Bake in preheat oven for 10-15 minutes or until cheese is melted and bubbly.  Remove from oven and allow to sit a couple minutes before cutting.  Serve with avocado, small salad, rice, chips and salsa- whatever floats your Mexican- inspired boat!

Notes

• If you're not quite convinced about the meatless thing, just add in 1 lb any ground meat in place of the mushrooms.
• You may need more cheese.  It depends on how cheese-loving you are.
• I used jarred salsa here, and suplemented it with the PW's restaurant style salsa.

This post will actually be a two-parter, since I will first share with you the primary recipe and a recipe for homemade amaretti cookies.

I made this recipe a few years ago for the first time and again this year, earlier this winter.  I currently have at least 2-3 meals' worth of tortellini in the freezer, and have already enjoyed them 1-2 times.  This is the recipe that keeps on giving.



There are a few steps involved in this recipe, and it is time intensive, but if you like butternut squash, and the idea of making your own tortellini intrigues and excites you rather than makes you roll your eyes and wonder whoever would want to make their own pasta when it's so readily available in stores, then try this recipe.  It's delicious.  It's so good, even my non-pasta loving husband looks forward it it.  It's also a recipe that will make you feel like you have kitchen cred.  Go on, invite some friends over.  Tell them you made the pasta.  I'd be impressed.  Feel free to invite me over if you make this.  I'll eat it and swoon.



Another note on the steps- they can be broken up over a period of days, which makes for decently quick work each day.

I am posting the recipe below as you can find it on Food Network's website, and at the bottom, in the notes section, I posted my slight variations.



Butternut Squash Tortellini 
from Giada de Laurentiis
4-6 servings

Tortellini:

1 butternut squash, approximately 2 pounds, cubed (about 3 cups)
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus 2 tablespoons
1 1/2 teaspoon herbs de Provence
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more to taste
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more to taste
2 large shallots, chopped (about 1/2 cup)
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1 cup whole milk ricotta cheese
4 small amaretti cookies, crushed (about 1/3 cup)
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 package small wonton wrappers

Brown Butter Sauce:

3/4 cup butter (1 1/2 sticks)
2 tablespoons torn fresh sage leaves
1/2 cup toasted walnuts, chopped
1/2 cup dried cranberries, or chopped dried cherries, or mixture of both
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more to taste
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more to taste
1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese


To make the tortellini, preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. On a foil-lined baking sheet toss together the butternut squash, 2 tablespoons of olive oil, herbs de Provence, salt, and pepper. Bake in the oven until soft and golden, about 25 minutes. Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a small saute pan over medium heat. Cook the shallots and garlic until lightly golden, about 3 minutes.

In a food processor, combine the butternut squash mixture, the shallot mixture, and the ricotta cheese and pulse a few times to blend. Add the crushed amaretti cookies, the nutmeg, and sprinkle with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Pulse until smooth. The tortellini filling can be made one day ahead.

To make the tortellini, lay out 6 wonton skins, keeping the remaining skins inside the package or under a very lightly dampened paper towel. Place 1 tablespoon of squash mixture in the middle of each skin. Dip a pastry brush in a little water and wet the edges of the skin. Gently fold the square wrapper into a triangle, making sure the edges are securely closed and there are no air pockets inside. Dampen the two bottom corners of the longest side of the triangle and gently bring them together, pressing lightly to secure. Place the formed tortellini on a baking sheet and cover with plastic wrap. Before laying out another 6 wonton sheets, be careful to dry the work surface. This will help keep tortellini from sticking to the baking sheet. Continue until all the butternut squash mixture is used. There should be approximately 36 tortellini. (The tortellini can be formed, frozen on the baking sheet, transferred to a tightly sealed plastic bag or container and stored for up to six months. To cook, simply toss the frozen ravioli into the salted boiling water and cook for 4 minutes.)

To make the sauce and serve, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Meanwhile, melt the butter in a large, heavy skillet over medium heat.

Add the sage, walnuts and cranberries and let cook until the butter starts to brown, about 3 minutes. Turn the heat off and season with salt, and pepper.

Stir to combine. Then, gently place the tortellini in the boiling water and gently stir. When they begin to float they are done, about 3 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, gently spoon the tortellini onto a serving platter, Top with the brown butter sauce, sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and serve.



Notes

• I have found I have to use about 1 teaspoon or so of filling in the wonton wrappers.  This means I end up using about a pack and a half of wrappers, and get around 60 tortellini.  Any more filled, and they end up squirting out of the edges.
• Since I often make only a fraction of the tortellini at any given time, I just eyeball the sauce ingredients.  I have never used the dried fruit.  Instead, I use the butter, nuts, Parmesan, salt, pepper, and sage leaves.
• As an alternative to walnuts, hazelnuts are great.  That's what I have been using.  I am sure pecans or almonds would be good here too.
• Because my small town doesn't have amaretti cookies, I used a recipe I found off Martha Stewart's website, which will be shared later in the week.  

I don't know where this recipe comes from, but my mom has made it since I was a kid, and I have loved it since then.  It's cheap, easy, and quick, but the biggest reason to make this is that it is so good.  In keeping with the January theme and idea of healthier, lighter eating, this fits the bill.  Drew and I both agree that few dinners are better.  We usually make it with cornbread and some type of greens, whether it be collards or turnip greens or even sauteed spinach.  It'd also be good with roasted potatoes.

Not too long ago I discovered Brit + Co, which highlighted a recipe for slow roasted tomatoes, which is an at-home method for making "sun dried" tomatoes.  If you like sun dried tomatoes, these are a great recipe for you.  The slow roasted tomatoes have the intensity and complexity of flavor that sun dried tomatoes have but have a softer texture, which can be nice.  They're also a good way of using up or preserving tomatoes you have lying around that might otherwise go bad.  I made the recipe as is:



Slow Roasted Tomatoes
from Smitten Kitchen

Cherry, grape or small Roma tomatoes
Whole gloves of garlic, unpeeled
Olive oil
Herbs such as thyme or rosemary (optional)

Preheat oven to 225°F. Halve each cherry or grape tomato crosswise, or Roma tomato lengthwise and arrange on a parchment-lined baking sheet along with the cloves of garlic. Drizzle with olive oil, just enough to make the tomatoes glisten. Sprinkle herbs on, if you are using them, and salt and pepper, though go easily on these because the finished product will be so flavorful you’ll need very little to help it along.

Bake the tomatoes in the oven for about three hours. You want the tomatoes to be shriveled and dry, but with a little juice left inside–this could take more or less time depending on the size of your tomatoes.

Either use them right away or let them cool, cover them with some extra olive oil and keep them in the fridge for the best summer condiment, ever. And for snacking.

* I don't know how many tomatoes I started out with, but I ended up with 1- 8 oz jar.  I filled the jar with the tomatoes, surrounded them with olive oil, and stored them in my fridge.
The only problem with making a recipe that isn't necessarily a dish in itself is that you then have to put some thought and effort into what else you're going to make with them.  I mean, you could eat these by themselves, and they might make a good accompaniment on a meat and cheese tray or something, but I wanted to use them as a star in a dish.  It took me forever to get around to making something.  I used half the tomatoes to make Drew and me a pasta dish.  It was a good choice.  A really good choice.  We both said we would eat and want this again, and Drew's heart doesn't leap at the thought of pastas like mine does.

I made a variation on spaghetti aglio e olio (spaghetti with garlic and oil), and used the slow roasted tomatoes it it.

The more I look at some of my pictures, the more I realize I am a terrible photographer.  Don't let that deter you from making this tasty and simple dish!

Spaghetti Aglio e Olio with Slow Roasted Tomatoes
feeds 2

4 oz. long pasta, such as spaghetti or fettuccine (or a mix, if you're like me and have a little of both)
1/2 jar (4 oz) slow roasted tomatoes and oil
6-10 cloves garlic, depending on your own love of it
1-2 Tb olive oil
Grated/shredded Parmigiano Reggiano cheese

Boil noodles until al dente in a large pot of salted water.  Drain pasta, reserving 1/2 cup pasta water.  Slice your garlic cloves into slices and your oven roasted tomatoes into strips.  In a large, shallow pan, pour the oil from the tomatoes into the pan and add additional olive oil to coat the bottom.  Heat over medium to medium low and add garlic.  Saute on low, being careful not to brown the garlic.  Add the tomatoes just to heat.

Toss in the pasta and reserved pasta water if needed to coat the noodles.  Add cheese.  Serve and eat with a green salad.