Spaghetti on the Cheap

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...Our neighborhood was buried in dense fog today. The children made the best of it by playing Marco-Polo until boredom reigned them in. I decided quite early in the day to stay in, secure in the knowledge that the world would not end if I missed a meeting or two. Besides, I had the perfect excuse. I couldn't see my driveway. I won't bore you with the minutia of my day, save to say the pantry is clean and the aroma of the bread baking in my kitchen was a perfect counterpoint to that of the madrone our neighbors use to fire their wood stoves. I did puzzle a bit about dinner. I wanted something substantial, but didn't want another soup or stew. I decided that pasta with a huge salad and warm bread on the side would make a perfect meal.  I had a jar of tomato sauce in the freezer and thick spaghetti in the pantry, so dinner fell quickly into place. The sauce I had frozen would could be warmed and afford us another delicious meal. I had originally planned to use the sauce as part of our SNAP challenge, but I discovered that as the elements came together, it was simply too expensive to be included in our weekly plan. I figured the sauce and pasta came to $4 a serving, which by most standards is a bargain, but it was way over the SNAP meal allocation. I found this recipe last summer in Food and Wine magazine and literally clipped it, because it reminded me of some of the sauces I had as a child. The recipe uses five ingredients to make a sauce that sticks to the ribs as well as the pasta. There are a couple of things I'd like you to notice about the recipe. It uses lots of olive oil and a quarter pound of garlic. The oil and garlic simmer together before they are added to the tomato sauce and the bite of the garlic is reduced to a mellow nibble in the process. Do not cut back on either ingredient. The recipe also uses a small quantity of mushrooms to make a reduced broth. I cheated a bit here and used a mushroom powder to create the cup of broth needed for the sauce. If the recipe is followed precisely, it takes two hours to get this pasta to the table. If you cheat, as I did, 30 minutes can be shaved off your prep time. While most of the sauces we use these days come together in a quicker fashion, I know those of you who are looking for an old-fashioned tomato sauce will love this one. It is not figure friendly, but it is delicious. The recipe makes enough sauce for 2 pounds of pasta, so you'll probably want to freeze half of the sauce you make. I really hope you'll give this recipe a try. I know that those of you who do, will not be disappointed. Here's how this inexpensive dish is made.

Spaghetti on the Cheap...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite courtesy of Food and Wine magazine

Ingredients:
4 ounces white button mushrooms, thinly sliced
3/4 cup peeled garlic cloves (4 ounces, from about 4 heads)
2/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 (28-ounce) cans peeled Italian tomatoes with their juices
Salt
Freshly ground pepper
1 pound spaghetti
1/4 cup torn basil leaves
Freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, for serving

Directions:
1) In a saucepan, bring the mushrooms and 3 cups of water to a boil. Simmer over moderate heat until the broth is reduced to 1 cup, 1 hour. Strain and discard the mushrooms.
2) Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, bring the garlic and olive oil to a boil. Simmer over moderately low heat, stirring, until the garlic is very tender and golden, about 30 minutes.
3) In a large enameled cast-iron casserole or Dutch oven, bring the tomatoes and the garlic and oil to a boil. Add the mushroom broth and, using an immersion blender, puree the sauce until smooth. Bring the sauce back to a boil, then simmer over moderately low heat until thickened, about 1 hour. Season the sauce with salt and pepper.
4) Cook the spaghetti in a large pot of salted boiling water until al dente. Drain the spaghetti and return to the pot. Add 2 cups of the sauce and cook, tossing, for 1 minute. Transfer the spaghetti to bowls, top with the basil and serve with grated cheese. Yield: 4 to 6 servings.

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Chicken Spaghetti

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...This casserole is the lazy cooks answer to Chicken Tetrazzini. As you glance through the recipe, you'll see just how easy this is to make. A deli rotisserie chicken is the main source of protein in this entree, but additional amounts of it come from the dairy products that are used to make a quick and fail-proof version of bechamel. The bechamel, or white sauce, is quickly made with an instant or quick-blending flour and it is used to replace the condensed soups that are used in most versions of this recipe. This dish can be drier than I like, so to prevent that, I add a can of low-sodiun broth to the final mix of ingredients. It works well. This casserole is not at all fancy but it is delicious and can be made hours in advance of serving. It can also be frozen. We'll be on the water for the most of the day today and it's really nice to know that all that's left to do for dinner is to pop this in the oven. I'll serve it with a huge platter of tomatoes and a bowl of tossed greens. If I'm feeling energetic I might even whip up a loaf of garlic bread. If you've never had chicken spaghetti, I hope you'll give it a try. It's a family friendly casserole and, if you get the seasonings right, it is delicious. Here's the recipe I use.

Chicken Spaghetti...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite

Ingredients:

One-Step White Sauce

4 tablespoons butter
1 cup finely chopped onion
1/2 cup finely chopped red bell pepper
1/2 cup chopped green bell pepper
1 teaspoon minced garlic
3 cups cold milk
1/4 cup quick-mixing flour
1 teaspoon seasoned salt
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon dried tarragon or thyme leaves
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese

Casserole Mixture

12 to 16-oz. dry spaghetti snapped in half
3 to 4 cups cubed cooked chicken from a deli rotisserie chicken
3 cups shredded sharp Cheddar cheese, divided use
1 (14.5-oz.) can reduced sodium chicken broth

Directions:
1) Preheat oven to 400 degree F. Lightly spray a large heat-proof casserole dish with cooking spray. Set aside. Bring 4 to 6-quarts of water to a rolling boil.
2) To make white sauce: Melt butter in a large saucepan set over medium heat. Add onions and bell peppers and saute until softened, about 3 to 5 minutes. Add garlic and saute until fragrant, about 30 seconds longer. Add milk and whisk in flour, stirring until smooth. Stir in salt and black and cayenne pepper. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly, over medium heat. Boil and stir for 1 minute longer. Remove from heat and stir in lemon juice, tarragon and Parmesan cheese. Adjust seasoning to taste.
2) To make casserole mixture: Cook pasta in boiling salted water according to package instructions. Drain pasta and place in a large bowl. Add white sauce and 2 cups of cheddar cheese, tossing to combine. Finally, add chicken and canned broth. Stir well to combine. Turn contents into prepared casserole dish. Sprinkle top with reserved cheddar cheese. Bake for about 30 minutes, or until heated through and bubbly. Yield: 8 servings.

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Spaghetti and Meatballs

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...This might seem an unlikely choice for a summer meal, but after a day on the water or hiking in the woods, a meal like this really hits the spot. Our older grandsons, who suffer from what we who love them call hollow leg syndrome, consume an amazing amount of food and a meal like this really helps keep their hunger at bay. This recipe is a scaled back version of one developed by Cook's Illustrated and if you have not yet tried this recipe, I hope you soon will. These are some of the best meatballs I've ever tasted and the sauce is wonderfully flavorful and robust without being heavy. Don't let the length of the ingredient list mislead you into thinking this is a difficult recipe to prepare. It most decidedly is not. The various elements of this dish can be tackled separately and put together for a final simmer just before serving. All the ingredients used here can be found in any grocery store and none of them are exotic. I suspect the use of gelatin may be puzzling to some of you, but the editors at Cook's Illustrated explain that it is used to keep the meatballs soft and tender. While I don't understand the chemistry of this, I can tell you that it works. As with all of the vacation recipes I'm featuring this month, the quantities used here can be doubled or tripled if you have a gang to feed. I do hope you'll try this version of spaghetti and meatballs. It really is delicious and I know you will enjoy it. Here's the recipe.

Spaghetti And Meatballs...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite adapted from Cook's Illustrated

Ingredients:

Meatballs

3/4 cup panko bread crumbs
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 large eggs, lightly beaten
12-oz. 85 percent lean ground beef
4-oz. ground pork
2 ounces thinly sliced prosciutto, chopped fine
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley leaves
1 medium garlic clove, minced or pressed through garlic press
1/2 teaspoon powdered gelatin dissolved in 1 tablespoon cold water
Salt and ground black pepper

Sauce

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 cups grated onion (I used the grating blade on my food processor)
2 medium garlic cloves, minced or pressed through garlic press
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
2 cups tomato juice (bottled)
1 (28-ounce) cans crushed tomatoes
2 tablespoons dry white wine
Salt and ground black pepper
12 to 16-oz. spaghetti
3 tablespoons minced fresh basil leaves
1 tablespoons minced fresh parsley leaves
Granulated sugar
Grated Parmesan cheese, for serving

Directions:
1) To make meatballs: Place a wire racks in 1 foil-lined rimmed baking sheet. Adjust one oven rack to middle position and preheat oven to 450 degrees.Combine bread crumbs and buttermilk in large bowl and let sit, mashing occasionally with fork, until a smooth paste forms, about 10 minutes.Add eggs, beef, pork, prosciutto, Parmesan, parsley, garlic, gelatin mixture, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper to bread crumb mixture. Gently mix everything with your hands until thoroughly combined. Spray wire rack with nonstick cooking spray (or rub with olive oil). Form meatballs using about 1/4 cup of meat mixture per meatball, and space the meatballs out on the rack as you form them. You should end up with 10 to 12 meatballs. Roast until browned, about 30 minutes, rotating tray from front to back halfway through.

2) To make the sauce: While meatballs roast, heat olive oil in a large Dutch oven or other pot over medium heat until shimmering. Add onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened and golden around edges, 6 to 8 minutes.Add garlic, red pepper flakes, and oregano, and cook, stirring frequently, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in tomato juice, crushed tomatoes, wine, 1/2 teaspoons salt, and pepper to taste. Increase heat to medium-high, and bring to a simmer. Reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer until slightly thickened, about 15 minutes.

3) To complete: Remove meatballs from oven, and lower oven temperature to 300 degrees. Add meatballs to sauce, cover pot, and place in oven. Cook until meatballs are firm and sauce has thickened, about 1 hour.

4) Shortly before serving: Cook pasta according to package directions in boiling salted water. Drain pasta and return to cooking pot. Stir basil and parsley into sauce and adjust seasoning with sugar, salt and pepper to taste. Add a 1/2 cup of sauce to pasta and toss until lightly coated. Serve pasta from a serving bowl. Pass meatballs and remaining sauce at table with a separate bowl of Parmesan cheese. Yield: 4 to 5 servings.

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Three Years Ago Today: Chocolate Soup

50 Women Game-Changers in Food - #4 Martha Stewart - Spaghetti 101

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...When I first saw Gourmet's list of the most influential women in food, I was genuinely surprised to see that Martha Stewart ranked higher than some of the other women on the list. I thought about it for a while, and, once I put my personal prejudice aside, I had to conclude that the choice and positioning of her name was probably right on the mark. While she may not be a great cook or writer, and never sparked a movement within the culinary world, the communication empire she built redefined the role of middle-class homemakers and the importance of food and entertaining in their lives. Her definition of the good life included wonderful food served in beautiful surroundings by a creative hostess who knew how to cook and entertain in a gracious and elegant manner. She was able to sell that vision to middle-class America and her empire was born. She created menus and recipes and then sold the dishes and linens on which they could be served. She was a workhorse and a powerhouse who strove for excellence in everything she did and, in doing that, changed the standard by which American homemakers judged themselves.

Picking a recipe that represents the work of this singular woman was not an easy task. There are thousands of them and not all the recipes that bear her name are actually her creations. I wanted to feature one that she considered to be the best of its kind. About 10 years ago, Martha did a series of shows that she called Cooking 101. In these shows she developed a series of recipes that she used to teach basic cooking techniques or highlight favorite family foods. This recipe comes from that series of programs, and, at that time, it had the distinction of being her most popular recipe. If you try this you'll see why. It is very easy to make. The dish has a spare elegance and it really is outstanding when it's made with San Marzano tomatoes and imported pasta. The recipe serves three people, but it can easily be doubled and you can have it on the table in 30 minutes. This is peasant food at its best. Here's how its made.

Martha Stewart's Spaghetti 101...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite courtesy of Martha Stewart

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons + 1/4 teaspoon salt
1 28-ounce can Italian plum tomatoes, drained
8 ounces thin, best-quality spaghetti
4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
4 cloves garlic, cut into 1/8-inch-thick pieces
1/4 teaspoon crushed red-pepper flakes
1/4 cup fresh basil or parsley leaves, loosely packed and torn
Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, optional

Directions:
1) In a tall stockpot, bring 3 quarts of water and 2 tablespoons salt to a boil.
2) Use a food mill or potato ricer to crush tomatoes. Reserve juice from breakdown of tomatoes.
3) Drop spaghetti into boiling water; stir. Cook until al dente, about 11 minutes, or according to package instructions.
4) Place a 12-inch saute pan over medium heat; add oil. Add garlic to pan. Cook, stirring occasionally, until garlic is lightly golden, about 30 seconds. Add red-pepper flakes and remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt. Cook until garlic is medium golden, about 1 minute.
5) Increase heat to high. Tilting pan at an angle, add tomatoes and their juices. Cook, swirling pan occasionally, until tomatoes begin to thicken, 5 to 6 minutes.
6) Drain pasta in a colander, reserving 1 cup liquid in case sauce gets too dry. Add pasta to sauce in saute pan; cook until sauce begins to cling to pasta, 3 to 4 minutes. Stir in basil; cook 30 seconds more. Divide among bowls, and sprinkle with cheese, if desired. Yield:2 to 4 servings.

Additional recipes and tributes to Martha Stewart can be found on these excellent blogs.

Val - More Than Burnt Toast
Joanne - Eats Well With Others
Taryn - Have Kitchen Will Feed
Susan - The Spice Garden
Claudia - A Seasonal Cook in Turkey
Heather - girlichef
Miranda - Mangoes and Chutney
Jeanette - Healthy Living
April - Abby Sweets

Everyone is welcome to participate. If you'd like to join us next Friday when we salute M.F.K. Fisher let me know via email.

Spaghetti Frittata

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...Our nest had been empty for about two weeks when I learned the wisdom of cooking no more than could be eaten in one sitting. That included some of our favorite pasta dishes. I hate waste and am not fond of reheated noodles, so you can imagine the bemusement on the face of the Silver Fox when I started to make a frittata with deliberately left-over spaghetti. A recipe, found in Eating Well Magazine, convinced me to try a spaghetti frittata, but I wanted to adapt and expand it to include ingredients that are also used in spaghetti carbonara. The recipe was touted as a money saver because it minimized waste by using food that might otherwise be thrown away. Apparently, a family of four trashes nearly $600 of food every year. Before I go any further, let me say this is a nice recipe and it produces an unusual dish that might please those with bored palates. There's not a thing wrong with it. If you have half a pound of cooked spaghetti lying around, it's a good way to use it up. I was drawn to the recipe out of curiosity and my curiosity is now satisfied. I probably will not make this again, but if I did, I'd make some changes. I'd use capellini rather than spaghetti and I'd pour the egg mixture over still warm pasta. The theory being the custard would better coat the pasta when it is warm. As with all stovetop frittatas, there is that awful moment of truth when it must be turned. Prayer and/or swearing help. A better solution would be to bake rather than fry it. Here's the recipe.

Spaghetti Frittata...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite inspired by Eating Well Magazine

Ingredients:
8 ounces spaghetti, (or 4 cups cooked spaghetti)
1 teaspoon olive oil
4 strips uncooked bacon, diced
1-1/2 cups chopped onion
1 teaspoon minced garlic
2 large eggs
2 large egg whites
1/2 cup skim milk
1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1 tomato, diced (optional)

Directions:
1) Cook spaghetti in a large pot of boiling salted water until tender but firm. Drain and refresh with cold water.
2) Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add bacon and cook until browned. Add onions and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden, 10 to 12 minutes. Add garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Transfer mixture to a small bowl and let cool slightly. Wipe out pan.
3) Whisk together eggs, egg whites and milk in a large bowl. Stir in the onions, Parmesan, parsley, basil, salt and pepper. Add spaghetti.
4) Spray pan really well with nonstick cooking spray and place over medium heat. Pour in egg mixture and distribute evenly in pan. Cook until underside is golden, moving pan around on burner to ensure even cooking, about 6 minutes. Invert a large platter over skillet, grasp platter and skillet with oven mitts and carefully turn over. Lift off skillet and spray it again with nonstick cooking spray. Slide frittata back into the skillet and cook until bottom is golden. Slide frittata onto a platter. Garnish with tomatoes, if using. Yield: 6 servings.

You might also enjoy these recipes:
Frittata with Zucchini Sun-Dried Tomatoes and Sausage - Kalyn's Kitchen
Ratatouille Frittata - Stacey Snacks
Chicken and Orzo Frittata - Cookbook Confessions
Potato Frittata - The Comfort of Cooking
Green Eggs and Ham Frittata - The Pink Apron
Penne Frittata - The Parsley Thief
Frittata with Spring Herbs and Leeks - One Perfect Bite
Smoked Salmon Frittata - One Perfect Bite