Archives
Raisin Zucchini Ribbon Fusili
tagliatelle with winter greens pesto, sautéed olives, and creminis
vegetable lasagna with kale, beluga lentils & carrot
Maitake Fettuccine in Cream Sauce
Summer Pasta-less Salad
Since the weather outside has been too hot for even this heat junkie to handle — with temperatures reaching close to 100 °F — I’ve been avoiding my oven and stove-top and instead looking to water-packed raw fruits and veggies to get me through these sweltering days of summer.
This light summer salad is reminiscent of the pasta salad I used to enjoy as a wee one… except I left out the heavy pasta and replaced it with my fave go-to summer staple: zucchini “noodles”. If you don’t have a spiralizer, a vegetable peeler works great too.
Super Easy Pasta Bolognese
Being that it is now freezing and gloomy outside in my part of the world, I have had quite a hankering for pasta Bolognese. I always think of it as the perfect food to warm me up on a not so cozy evening.
I tried to make it using tempeh just last week. And well, it didn’t exactly hit the spot. So, off I went to purchase some textured vegetable protein. I never buy this stuff on a normal trip to the market- but for this dish, I am very glad that I did. It makes a great (although very tomato-y) Bolognese sauce in mere minutes.
Mmmm… thank you Bologna.
Pumpkin Alfredo
Out of my crazy cat lady-like obsession with pumpkin (and, who am I kidding? all things orange) during the Autumn months, came this gem of a simple dinner. This pasta/pumpkin combo may not sound too appealing for some folks , but each and every person I served this stuff to absolutely loved it.
Pumpkin. Alfredo.
It is utterly delicious.
Walnut Sage Fettuccine
This is a delicious pasta recipe that takes very little time to prepare. Walnuts and sage dominate the flavor of the creamy sauce, and walnut pieces provide some texture; turning a few simple ingredients into a hearty meal.
Walnut Sage Fettuccine
Ingredients:
- 1 cup walnuts chopped finely, plus 1 cup coarsely crushed walnuts
- 12 oz silken tofu, extra firm
- 1 cube vegetable bouillon
- 2 tbsp olive oil plus extra for drizzling onto pasta
- 1/3 cup almond milk
- 1 tsp sea salt
- 2 tbsp chopped fresh sage leaves
- 1 package fettuccine noodles, gluten free or regular
Directions:
Cook pasta according to package directions.
In food processor, combine 1 cup finely chopped walnuts, 12 oz silken tofu, 1 cube vegetable bouillon, 2 tbsp olive oil, 1/3 cup almond milk, sea salt, and sage leaves. Puree until smooth. Sauce will appear liquidy.
Drain pasta, (if using gluten-free pasta, rinse with cold water) and while still in colander, drizzle with extra olive oil and sprinkle with salt. Toss pasta with sauce and half of the amount of the larger crushed walnuts. Place into serving dishes and top with the remaining crushed walnuts.
Serve hot.
White Pasta with Fiddleheads
Guess what?
I made a culinary discovery in my very own backyard!
Let me preface this by saying that we had just moved into a new place in December, and we weren’t sure what to expect from our new patch of land. Since spring first sprung, we have been delightfully watching new baby plants pop up everywhere. And, about two or three weeks ago, we noticed that we had tiny fern babies sprouting up all over the place. While I immediately admired them for their curly adorableness, I never once thought to eat them. What kind of food blogger am I? Shameful…
But yesterday, for some reason, I had an epiphany: those little curly baby ferns sure did look a lot like the one’s on Vegan Yum Yum’s site last year about this time- and they also look very similar to the one’s we saw at Whole Foods last weekend. Hmmm….
A quick Google search (not recommended unless you are totally familiar with wild edibles and/or have a reliable guide) told me that my backyard was full of exactly those gourmet treats: a delicacy referred to as Fiddlehead Ferns. Cool!
It also told me that we were just catching the very end of Fiddlehead season. Damn.
Fiddleheads are the teeny fronds of young ferns before they have unfurled. There are a few varieties, but in our case, we have Ostrich Ferns. They are best enjoyed when just two inches tall. I recommend reading Ms. Yum Yum’s very well written explanation if you are curious about them. Our fern sprouts were a tad bigger than desired, although there were still a few stragglers scattered about. Score!
Despite our late harvest this year, I am excited to know that come this time next year… we will have Fiddleheads a plenty.
Depending on where you live, you may still be able to catch some Fiddleheads in your neck of the woods (literally) or at your local Whole Foods or similar store. If not, top this creamy pasta with your favorite sauteed veggie and get prepared for next year’s forage!
And, if you do decide to go out and hunt for your own Fiddleheads, use common sense and some caution… there are definitely some not so yummy look-a-likes out there. Just warning you…