Cacio e Pepe
Have you heard of this pasta? It’s all the craze during quarantine. It’s basically what I make my kids all the time, but with garlic and pepper added. Something about that pepper, though, really takes this dish to the next level. The more you eat it, the more you want it.
We actually watched Ree Drummond (The Pioneer Woman) make this on the Food Network last week! My husband couldn’t stop salivating afterwards and he was determined to make this for lunch the following day.
My daughter has an aversion to pepper or anything that looks remotely like pepper. I put poppy seeds (which taste like nothing) in one of her favourite salads and she struggled to get every bite down because of it! So, he made the kids’ pasta without pepper and then added some to his dish. He gave me a bite and I really didn’t understand why this pasta was so popular. Until I made it myself….
I love my husband, but he missed many marks when making this dish. First, he didn’t reserve enough pasta water. Second, he didn’t make the sauce with butter (he used olive oil – which is fine, but you know….not as flavourful). Third, he didn’t add enough Parmesan cheese. Finally, he added the pepper on top of his pasta, rather than cooking it into the sauce and pasta. Man, no wonder his pasta sucked….errr, I mean, wasn’t great. The kids loved it, though!
Today, I decided to make it for lunch as my husband and the kids were outside gardening all morning. Everyone was happy and both my daughter and my husband went back for seconds!!
Adding the pasta water to this dish is SO VERY IMPORTANT!!!! You need the starch from that water to help bring this sauce together. Otherwise, the flavours won’t cling to the pasta and the dish will taste bland. Also, it’s really important that you grate lots of cheese beforehand. Don’t just grate the cheese over the pasta. You’ll likely not add enough doing it that way. Of course, if you buy pre-grated, then you don’t have to worry! 🙂
Enjoy!
Cacio e Pepe
Ingredients
- 1 pound spaghetti
- 6 tablespoons butter
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- freshly ground black pepper Add as much as you would like, but consider adding more to this dish than you would normally add to a 'regular' dish.
- 1 1/2 cups parmesan cheese I grated about 2 cups. You can never have too much cheese!
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of water to boil. Add a generous amount of salt before adding the pasta to the pot. Cook until the pasta is al dente, or still has a little bite. Reserve 2 cups of the pasta water.
- Do NOT rinse the pasta!
- Melt 3 tablespoons of the butter in your skillet over medium heat. When the butter is melted, add the garlic and 1 1/2 cups of the pasta water and bring to a simmer. It will seem like a lot of water, but don't worry.
- Grind in a generous amount of pepper.
- Add the pasta and remaining 3 tablespoons butter to the skillet. Stir to combine.
- Add the Parmesan a handful at a time, tossing the pasta with each addition and adding more pepper if desired. Remove from the heat and continue to toss the pasta until well coated, thinning with the extra pasta water if needed.
Notes
Crazy Easy Quick Bread
I haven’t made a post in a while because I updated my website! It’s kind of exciting. 🙂 Now, I need to work on my picture taking abilities. Yikes!
I made this bread the first time I introduced my daughter to salmon, so that she would have something on her plate that I knew she’d like, in case her salmon experience was a catastrophe! This bread really is true to its name. It’s crazy easy!! And, it’s also yummy. Two super important factors when cooking a weeknight meal!
The secret ingredient in this bread is beer! Any ol’ bottle of beer will do, except maybe Guinness. But, hey, if you’re so inclined, give it a go! 🙂 Beer has yeast in it. A perfect pairing for bread making. Another really important ingredient in this bread is self-rising flour. Don’t substitute for another flour, as self-rising flour has salt and baking powder already in it, which is why we don’t need to add any of that stuff into this recipe! This bread is a bit dense. It’s definitely not for sandwich making. But, along side a meal, it’s perfect!!
Enjoy!
Crazy Easy Quick Bread
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 cups self-rising flour
- 3 tablespoons sugar
- 1 can or bottle of beer
- 1 heaping tablespoon of chopped fresh rosemary
- 3/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
- butter for greasing the pan
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 F. Generously grease your bread pan with butter. Place all of your ingredients (minus the butter) into one bowl and stir until combined. Transfer to your greased loaf pan. Bake for 45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the loaf comes out clean. Remove loaf from the pan and let cool slightly before slicing.
Notes
Slow Cooker (Spaghetti and) Meatballs
We are on a bit of a meatball craze these days. My daughter loves them, so that makes it especially motivating. I have already posted a recipe for The Mighty Meatball, but I like to use those meatballs for everything but the traditional ‘spaghetti and meatball’; although, you could very easily use those that way too! I actually got this recipe off of a page that I liked on Facebook, called Tasty. It’s an ingenious site, with quick viewings of complete recipes. I liked the slow cooker option to this recipe, since, if I can, I like to prepare more than one meal on a Sunday, and this recipe allows for that!
The first time I made this, I followed the recipe exactly. Originally, it calls for hot Italian sausage and and square of mozzarella inside the meatball. Personally, I didn’t notice the cheese at all, and my daughter really did notice the heat from the hot sausage. So, the second time I made it, I eliminated both, and it was a hit! It can’t get much easier than this guys. Try this recipe!
Slow Cooker (Spaghetti and) Meatballs
Ingredients
- 1 lb lean ground beef
- 1 lb sweet Italian sausage
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 2 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- 1 cup bread crumbs plain or seasoned
- 1/4 cup parmesan cheese
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 cup whole milk
- 1/2 cup parsley
- Jarred Marinara Sauce good quality*
Instructions
- In a bowl, blend all the ingredients together, except for the marinara sauce.
- Form into golf sized (or smaller) balls.
- Place a layer of meatballs on the bottom of your slow cooker, and drizzle with some of the marinara sauce.
- Place another layer of meatballs.
- Drizzle more marinara sauce.
- Repeat until all meatballs are in the slow cooker.
- Set slow cooker to high for 2 and a half hours.
- Enjoy!
Notes
Mexican Chili
I made this dish for a Halloween pot luck at work last week. It was a hit! It wasn’t too labor intensive and the sides to serve with it are pretty much a must! They round this chili out nicely.
Now imagine this chili with tortilla chips crushed over top. My picture taking is a work in progress…
Here’s what you need to do:
Mexican Chili
4 lbs ground beef
1 medium onion, finely diced
4 garlic cloves, minced (I used only 3 because they were large)
2 8oz cans of tomato sauce
4 tablespoons chili powder
2 teaspoons ground cumin
2 teaspoons ground oregano (I only had dried and it worked just fine)
2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 cup masa harina (corn flour, found in the Mexican or International section of your grocery store)
2 19 oz cans red kidney beans, drained and rinced
2 19 oz cans pinto beans, drained and rinced
Toppings:
Shredded cheese
Tortilla Chips
Lime wedges
In a dutch oven, or heavy bottomed pot, over medium heat, add olive oil and cook onions until translucent. Add ground beef and garlic and cook until the meat has browned. Pour in the tomato sauce, chili powder, cumin, oregano, salt, and cayenne. Stir well and reduce heat to simmer for 1 hour.
Drain the beans and rince well. Set aside. Measure the masa harina into a bowl and add 1 cup of water. Stir to combine. Add the corn flour mixture into the chili and allow it to simmer for about 10 minutes. At this point, add water, 1/2 cup at a time, if you find your chili is too thick. Add in your beans and warm through.
To serve, plate the chili and squeeze a lime wedge over the chili. Top with cheese and crushed tortilla chips.
Enjoy!
(Source: Adapted from Simple, Perfect Chili)
Cheesy Sausage Pasta
On such a rainy, cool June day, something warm and comforting seemed, not only appropriate, but necessary!! This is the coldest June I can ever remember! I wish my running were better, because it is definitely a good month for that!! But, running, at least for me, was not happening today. With the forecast calling for ‘buckets of rain’, our basic plan for the day was staying in, keeping cozy, and watching movies!! We did manage to get to the St. Lawrence Market this morning, before the rain started.
The St. Lawrence Market is one of our favorite places to go on a Saturday morning. There are farmers markets in different areas of the city every day in Toronto, but none as big as the St. Lawrence Farmers Market on Saturdays. Our typical Saturday there involves a breakfast sandwich, smoothie and wandering around buying local fruit, veg and meat.
Today, among other things, we bought local sausage from the Tanjo Family Farm, located in Millbank, Ontario. When we were following the Whole 30 program, and were craving sausages, we couldn’t find ANY without added sugar! Until we happened upon the Tanjo Family Farm. They don’t add any sugar to their sausages. They even had the ingredients listed for us to make sure. They were the best tasting sausages EVER! Needless to say, we like these guys. They tend to sell out of their product, so we had get there early to make sure we could get some. Today, we got 6 Italian sausages and a 3 pound pork shoulder! I’m excited about the pork shoulder, and have a recipe in mind! I’ll share that later. 🙂
With all the rain today, going outside to grill sausages just wasn’t going to happen. As I was thinking of what to make for a late lunch, I realized I had everything to make a yummy, warming, pasta! The sausage would work perfectly!! If you have any on hand, feel free to add in some arugula or spinach. Would be a great addition!!!
Here’s what to do:
Cheesy Sausage Pasta
3 Italian sausages, casings removed
1 large shallot, diced
500 ml marinara sauce
1 whole Buffalo mozzarella, cubed
1/4 cup parmesan cheese
Olive oil
Salt & pepper to taste
Shelled pasta (or whatever pasta ya got!)
Boil pasta in salted water until al dente. Set aside. Saute shallots in olive oil, add sausage and about 1/2 teaspoon of salt and some pepper. Stir occasionally, until sausage is cooked through. Add marinara sauce and allow the sauce and the sausage to get to know each other for a bit. Just before adding the pasta, add the mozzarella cheese. It will melt pretty quick! Add pasta, parmesan cheese and season with salt and pepper, if needed.
Enjoy this ooey, gooey goodness!
(Source: Boss Of The Apple Sauce)
Recent Comments