Tonight's meal...
It dawns on me I've not written of cooking in this blog - a terrible thing given how much I enjoy it. Allow me to remedy that by introducing tonight's supper. Nothing fancy, sorry. Just some simple pasta.
The spaghetti - start a gallon of water that contains a quarter cup of salt boiling. Add spaghetti based on how much the folk around you will eat. I'm a pig - I cook a quarterpound (quarter of a 'standard package') of noodles just for me. Oh - and for a general purpose 'string' noodle I use angel hair. I also cook the noodle just past al dente - I like it a touch softer. It doesn't absorb as much topping, but it also doesn't stick to my teeth needing later scraping. Oh - and given the dish I'm making, I break the noodles up into roughly thirds.
The topping - I was tired today, so I used this simple mix. A total of a quarter cup of fat, half butter and half olive oil. Mix to a loose paste and then microwave for a minute to get it just boiling. Add a finely minced garlic clove - no, I'm fond of strong flavors so for me that's TWO finely minced garlic cloves - to the oil, stir, and put back in the microwave for 30 seconds.
When the noodles are done, drain and put back in the pot. Pour in the oil, and toss to coat thoroughly. I grate in a bit of parmesan and toss again. Plate, and finish with a few grinds of black pepper.
For a side, I've got a medium cucumber in the refrigerator. A quick peeling, and then I quartered, seeded, and sliced into ~1/2 inch bites. A sprinkle with a bit of salt and some balsamic vinegar lite (you know, the cheap stuff that claims to be balsamic but isn't really), and it nicely balances the oil and starch of the main dish.
Not much work, not much fuss, and not much mess to clean up when I was done.
The spaghetti - start a gallon of water that contains a quarter cup of salt boiling. Add spaghetti based on how much the folk around you will eat. I'm a pig - I cook a quarterpound (quarter of a 'standard package') of noodles just for me. Oh - and for a general purpose 'string' noodle I use angel hair. I also cook the noodle just past al dente - I like it a touch softer. It doesn't absorb as much topping, but it also doesn't stick to my teeth needing later scraping. Oh - and given the dish I'm making, I break the noodles up into roughly thirds.
The topping - I was tired today, so I used this simple mix. A total of a quarter cup of fat, half butter and half olive oil. Mix to a loose paste and then microwave for a minute to get it just boiling. Add a finely minced garlic clove - no, I'm fond of strong flavors so for me that's TWO finely minced garlic cloves - to the oil, stir, and put back in the microwave for 30 seconds.
When the noodles are done, drain and put back in the pot. Pour in the oil, and toss to coat thoroughly. I grate in a bit of parmesan and toss again. Plate, and finish with a few grinds of black pepper.
For a side, I've got a medium cucumber in the refrigerator. A quick peeling, and then I quartered, seeded, and sliced into ~1/2 inch bites. A sprinkle with a bit of salt and some balsamic vinegar lite (you know, the cheap stuff that claims to be balsamic but isn't really), and it nicely balances the oil and starch of the main dish.
Not much work, not much fuss, and not much mess to clean up when I was done.
posted by Kirk at 8:53 PM
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