MAKING (UP) DINNER

Sometimes when company’s coming for dinner I know just what I want to make. Sometimes I’ve found a new recipe, or sometimes I’ve just bought something fresh in the market. Sometimes it’s something I’ve had a craving for, or something special I know my guests will like. And then there are the times when inspiration deserts me. Such was the case last week when our friends Cristine and Franco were coming for lunch.

Strangely, I’d had no problem at all deciding what to fix when Brad and Palma came to dinner on Wednesday. They’d asked me to cook light, and I wanted things to be simple so that I wouldn’t have to be fussing with the food. I decided to make Bow Tie Pasta with Sundried Tomatoes, with the chicken breast.

¼ to ½ cup pesto
4 oz sun-dried tomatoes
2 Tbsp olive oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
8 oz fresh mushrooms, sliced
½ tsp salt
½ tsp cayenne pepper (or more to taste)
12 oz bow tie pasta

OPTIONAL: 1 chicken breast 12-16 oz, cut into bite-sized pieces

In a small bowl, blanch the tomatoes for 30 seconds in boiling water, then drain well and slice into small pieces. If using tomatoes in oil, drain and slice the tomatoes, reserving the oil to use for sautéing the chicken breast and/or garlic.

If using chicken, sauté in hot oil in a large skillet, then remove and set aside.

Sauté the garlic in the olive oil. Simmer for one minute, being careful not to brown the garlic. Stir in the mushrooms and sauté til tender. Add the pesto, salt, cayenne and sun dried tomatoes. Add the cooked chicken breast. Reduce heat to low and let the mixture simmer.

Cook the pasta as directed and drain well, reserving a little of the pasta water to bind everything together. Toss the pasta in the skillet if possible, or mix all ingredients in a large bowl.

Garnish with red pepper or Parmesan cheese. 4-6 servings.

For dessert I made yet another batch of brownies…..this was the fourth recipe I’ve made in recent weeks still searching for the one that makes the perfect brownie. This most recent recipe, found on the internet, sounded promising because of this explanation: “Cocoa brownies have the softest center and chewiest candy-like top "crust" of all because all of the fat in the recipe (except for a small amount of cocoa butter in the cocoa) is butter, and all of the sugar is granulated sugar rather than the finely milled sugar used in chocolate.”

That sounded just was I was looking for, and although these brownies were super rich, intensely chocolate and nice and gooey, the result still wasn’t what I was hoping for, so the search continues. In case you want to try it for yourself, here’s the recipe:

Best Cocoa Brownies

10 tablespoons (1 1/4 sticks) unsalted butter
1 1/4 cups sugar
3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons cocoa powder (natural or Dutch-process)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 cold large eggs
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2/3 cup walnut or pecan pieces (optional)

Position a rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat the oven to 325°F.

Line the bottom and sides of an 8” square baking pan with parchment paper, leaving an overhang on two opposite sides.

Combine the butter, sugar, cocoa, and salt in a medium glass bowl and microwave in increments of 30 seconds, stirring frequently until the butter is melted and all the ingredients are well blended. Set aside briefly until the mixture is only warm, not hot.

Stir in the vanilla with a wooden spoon. Add the eggs one at a time, stirring vigorously after each one. When the batter looks thick, shiny, and well blended, add the flour and stir until you cannot see it any longer, then beat vigorously for 40 strokes with the wooden spoon or a rubber spatula. Stir in the nuts, if using. Spread evenly in the lined pan.

Bake until a toothpick plunged into the center emerges slightly moist with batter, 20 to 25 minutes. Let cool completely on a rack. Lift up the ends of the parchment and transfer the brownies to a cutting board. Makes 16 large or 25 smaller brownies.

I’d serve these with fresh strawberries and whipped cream, or maybe some vanilla ice cream.

On Thursday morning it was time to start thinking about what I’d fix for Saturday’s lunch with Franco and Cristine. Hmmmmmm…. Cristine doesn’t eat meat, but Franco does, so I had to plan for that, but with the markets full of fresh summer vegetables, I didn’t think it would be a problem. I thought about making a nice (cold) pasta salad, but with broccoli nowhere to be found in mid-July, I decided against that idea. Art suggested panzanella, and although the idea sounded wonderful, I couldn’t figure out what to fix to go with it.

Earlier in the week Armando had brought us more zucchini, so I definitely wanted to use those while they were fresh. The last time we ate at Angelino and Peppa’s we’d had a lasagna that we thought was made with pesto because the filling was green, When we asked what it was we were surprised to learn that it was zucchini. A few days later I saw a cooking show where they were making something similar, and they put unpeeled zucchini into a food processor. Okay, why not? Surely I could make up something that would be acceptable....

I started with two nice-sized zucchini. Sorry I didn’t weigh them but these were about 8-10 inches long. I cut off the stem, chopped them into chunks and put them into the food processor for a quick spin. Although I didn’t do it at the time, I would recommend placing the zucchini into a colander to drain for a while, or maybe just give the processed pulp a good squeeze to remove some of the excess moisture.

Next I made some fresh pasta using 3 eggs, about 300 grams of flour and a pinch of salt. Once all the ingredients were mixed and I was satisfied with the consistency, I kneaded the dough gently for a few minutes, then passed the pasta through the pasta machine at the #1 setting until it was smooth. I continued on with each successive setting, stopping at setting #8. I then placed the sheets of pasta on a dishtowel to dry briefly.

Now for the assembly. I had my grated zucchini, some grated Parmesan cheese, and a heaping cupful of pesto to add some additional flavor. I cut the pasta sheets to fit the pan then cooked the briefly…less than a minute probably, and coated them with oil to keep them from sticking. I think next time I’ll try just using the pasta uncooked and see how it works.

I took a 9 X 13 pan, oiled the bottom, then placed a thin layer of the zucchini on the bottom as well. I put down a layer of pasta, some zucchini, pesto, then Parmesan. Lightly salt and pepper each layer. I continued until all the pasta had been used, ending with a layer of pasta sprinkled with some more Parmesan.

I then took about ½ cup of milk and mixed it with about ½ cup of vegetable stock. I poured this mixture into the side of the pan until the liquid was almost to the top layer. I then baked it at 350º for 30-40 minutes.

The result? A light, delicate lasagna, fresh, delicious and best of all, another way to use up some of that zucchini!

Because I still had more zucchini, I decided to fix some of it and some eggplant like they do at our favorite pizzeria, Nestor’s, in Marsciano. First I sautéed 2-3 cloves of garlic, minced, in a few tablespoons olive oil. I then added about two cups of tomato sauce, some salt and pepper, a pinch of pepperoncini, some fresh basil, chopped. You could of course use oregano instead of basil, add minced onions, whatever you’d like. I let this mixture simmer for quite a while so that it would reduce slightly to a thick pulp.

I took the eggplants and zucchini and sliced them lengthwise into slices about ¼” thick. I grilled them in the oven first, then laid them out on an oiled baking sheet and spread the tomato paste over each slice. I topped everything with breadcrumbs and a drizzle of olive oil, then baked them for about 25 minutes.

For dessert I decided to make a treat for Art. Since July is his birthday month, and since key lime pie is his favorite, I decided to use some of the key lime juice I’d brought back from the states. Instead of making a pie I made key lime squares, which can also be made as lemon squares. Here’s that recipe:

Lemon (or Lime) Nut Bars

1/2 cup butter, softened
1/3 cup powdered sugar
2 tsp. vanilla
1-3/4 cups flour, divided
1/3 cup Pecans, chopped
8 oz Cream Cheese, softened
2 cups granulated sugar
3 eggs
1/2 cup lemon (or lime) juice
1 Tbsp. grated lemon (or lime) peel
1 Tbsp. powdered sugar

PREHEAT oven to 350°F. Line 13x9-inch baking pan with foil; spray with cooking spray. Mix butter, powdered sugar and vanilla in large bowl. Gradually stir in 1-1/2 cups of the flour and pecans. Press dough firmly onto bottom of prepared pan. Bake 15 min.

BEAT cream cheese and granulated sugar in medium bowl with electric mixer on high speed until well blended. Add remaining 1/4 cup flour and eggs; beat until blended.

STIR in lemon juice and peel. Pour over baked crust in pan. Bake 30 min. or until set. Remove from oven; cool completely. Sprinkle with 1 Tbsp. powdered sugar; cut into 32 bars.

I’m happy to report that our meal was a success! Franco and Cristine seemed to enjoy the lasagna, the vegetables and the dessert, and even I had to admit that my great experiment was a success. Sorry, no pictures! I’m still planning to make some panzanella this week. It’s supposed to get hotter, and panzanella is always such a refreshing meal.

posted by Barbara @ 7/15/2007 04:46:00 PM