Pasta, Sausage, Cream Sauce Thingie

So my guys were gone this weekend, leaving me with some blessed, much-needed, uninterrupted writing time. It's always different when I'm cooking for one and, rather than running out to pick something up, I tend to work with what I have on hand.

For some reason, I've been craving this pasta, sausage, cream sauce dish. I call it that, because I don't know of any other name for it. I just know that it has pasta, sausage and cream sauce. Kind of an Italian dish. Or at least that's the way I recalled it.

I knew what I wanted to have in the dish, but I wasn't sure about the sauce. So, in my infinite wisdom, I went to the Food Network and did a search for--you guessed it--pasta, sausage, cream sauce. And it worked!

Turned out I wasn't that clueless, because all the sauce consisted of was cream and Parmesan. 

I was ready to roll.

First, I had to cook my pasta.

I used Penne, but you can use whatever type of pasta you prefer. Simply cook according to package directions for al dente.

Did you notice their was something missing from the ingredients? 

Yes, this Texas girl has to have some meat.

In this case, sweet Italian turkey sausage. I cooked up two links, let them cool a bit, then sliced.

And since I was going for an Italian flare, I decided I would add some of my homemade pesto, too. You can find that recipe here. 

Okay, so I melted a couple tablespoons of butter in a skillet, then added some diced onion and bell pepper. Stir that around for a few minutes.

Then throw in some garlic and you've got what's known in Cajun world as the holy trinity of cooking.

You know, even if you're not a cook, you could toss this trio on your stove for a bit and everyone would think you're cooking a feast. It smells that good.

Next, I added some sliced mushrooms and let those cook down a bit. 

Oh, and don't forget to add a sprinkle or two of salt and, maybe, the tiniest shake of crushed red pepper flakes to bring things to life.

Stir in your sausage slices.

Add a nice spoonful of pesto.

Give that a stir before adding about a half a cup of cream.

And approximately 1/4 to 1/3 cup of finely grated Parmesan. 

Mix everything together until the sauce begins to thicken, then add your cooked pasta.

Stir again.

And it's time to eat.

This dish may look a little on the bland side, but it is chock full of flavor. (Next time I might add red bell pepper instead of green, just for the color)

Not only did this dish satisfy my craving, I made extra so I'd have enough for lunch the next day.

Good writing time, good food... What more could this mama ask for?

Okay, maybe a longer weekend. :D

If you're used to cooking for others, how do you tend to eat/cook when you're alone?

If cooking for one is your norm, what are some of your favorite dishes?

Mindy Obenhaus lives in Texas with her husband and kids. She's passionate about touching readers with Biblical truths in an entertaining, and sometimes adventurous, manner.

When she’s not writing, she enjoys cooking and spending time with her grandchildren. Learn more at www.MindyObenhaus.com.

Basil Pesto - Revisiting a Fave

Well, our early spring and lots of rain here in north Texas has meant that my basil plants are beyond thriving. So as I prepare to make another batch of basil pesto, I thought I'd revisit my original post from 2012.

* * *

Mindy here, and my basil plant has been growing like crazy. So I asked myself, "What are you going to do with all that basil?" I mean, I can't eat bruschetta every day.

Or can I?

Hmm....

No, I can't. Too much bread.

So I'm at the grocery the other day, reaching for a jar of pesto when it hit me. I could make my own pesto.

I came home and harvested a good bunch of the leaves. I needed 2 "packed" cups. I soaked them in water for a few minutes to kill anything that might have decided to take up residence on the plant. Flash flood. They never knew what hit them.

Then I strained and rinsed a couple more times before throwing them into my salad spinner to eek out all the water. This worked wonderfully, I might add.

Now for the rest of the ingredients.

• 2 cloves of garlic
• 1/4 cup pine nuts (love these things)
• 2/3 cup extra virgin olive oil, divided
• salt and pepper

Combine the basil, garlic, and pine nuts in a food processor. Doesn't this look pretty?

Pulse until coarsely chopped.

Add 1/2 cup of the oil and process until fully incorporated and smooth. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

I wish you could smell this.

Now if I were using this right away, I'd add the rest of the oil and 1/2 cup of freshly grated parmesean cheese. But since this is for later, I'll put it into an air-tight container, drizzle the remaining oil over the top and put it in the freezer. It'll keep for up to three months. Great for those quickie meals. When I'm ready to use it, I simply thaw, stir in the freshly grated cheese, and toss with some warm pasta. Maybe top with some chicken breast or shrimp, tomatoes, a few capers....

Easy peasy.

And good for you, too.

* * *

I do love being able to pick things from my backyard, however, I tend to be a bit of a fair-weathered gardener. Translation, I hate weeding in the heat. Of course, living in the burbs, there isn't a lot of room for a real garden. I used to think that, once we moved to the ranch, I'd resurrect my FIL's garden and grow all that neat stuff like Ruthy shares, but I don't know. I mean, it's not like living rural is suddenly going to turn me into a master gardener. It's one of those things you need to have a passion for. Although, I am passionate about food.

I guess we'll just have to wait and see what happens.

So how does your garden grow? What's your favorite herb/vegetable?

Power Pesto Obstacle Course

I love my farmer's market. I visit friends who retired and inherited family land. They turned it into an organic farm. Other vendors sell flowers my black thumb can't grow, grass-fed beef, eggs and shrimp from the coast. Half the time I don't know what I'm getting til I get there. My ingredients determine the recipes for the week ahead. Every week is an adventure but I didn't expect the adventure to turn into an obstacle course.

This week's Farmer's Market haul.

At the top of my list of how to use this week's haul was pesto. I love it. Not only is it full of flavor but it is so versatile. A dab makes a plain sandwich into a gourmet lunch, squash noodles more than a paleo substitute for egg noodles, and ramps up any sort of salad dressing.

My ingredients

Obstacle #1: I bought some basil this week but realized I didn't have enough for all the on-line pesto recipes I was reading. What to do? What to do? Hmmmm, I had leftover power greens from last week. And sure enough, I found plenty of recipes featuring power greens like kale, chard and spinach. So I threw a couple of those in for good measure AFTER I made sure to remove the bitter stems.

Obstacle #2: Pesto traditionally is made with pine nuts and healthier versions are made with walnuts. And this girl who is allergic to everything is also allergic to the omega packed walnuts. ManO is not a nut person. Again, what to do? Parmesan cheese is an ingredient already so I added some more to make it a bit thicker.  I added more flavorful olive oil. If you aren' t allergic to certain nuts like I am but don't want the nut texture, you can use a tablespoon of nut flavored oils. They are all over the marketplace now.

Obstacle #3: ManO is not a garlic fan and pesto without garlic is my nightmare. So I just added one clove. Sniff. I really want to protect ManO's immune system with a bunch but he doesn't believe me for some reason. And he was around to make sure I didn't sneak in more than he could stand.   

Obstacle #4: I forgot to buy some meat for dinner. In reality, it was more "forgot." I'm really trying to reduce our meat, especially red meat, consumption. But I remembered turkey spaghetti sauce in the fridge.

Obstacle #5:  I also "forgot" to buy spaghetti.  Poor ManO, now he doesn't even get gluten-free rice pasta. I go for veggies as the base of the sauce. YAY! I grabbed my Farmer's Market golden zucchini and made "noodles."  Just slice any kind of squash with a veggie peeler, lay on paper towels to drain, and saute for a few minutes. I added a dollop ( a very technical cooking term, ya know) and stirred. Perfection.

      
Well, I made it through the obstacle course and this is what we had for dinner:

Power Pesto (Nutless version)

2 cups basil with stems removed
1 cup power greens (or spinach) with stems removed
1 clove (or more) minced garlic
1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
1 teaspoon (or to taste) sea salt
1/2+ cup olive oil
1 tablespoon flavored oil (optional)   

1) Place garlic in food processor and mince or mince beforehand.
2) Add salt.
3) Add greens and mince fine.
4) Add Parmesan. Do not mince yet.
5) Put on processor lid and pour oil (including flavored oil if used) slowly through opening while processing.
6) Check consistency and add more cheese or oil if necessary.
7) Put in container, cover and refrigerate.

Bonus tip: You can apparently freeze pesto by covering small containers of it with olive oil. I am such a fresh fan but may try this idea. If you are overwhelmed by basil this summer, I can totally see putting some pesto up to remind you of summer in the cold, dark winter.

Are you a pesto fan? Have you tried to make alternate types of pesto? What is your best necessity-is- the-mother-of-invention substitution when it comes to recipes? Have you every tried to make a meal and find yourself running an obstacle course?

 

More Fun with Basil

Mindy here, and my basil plant has been growing like crazy. So I asked myself, "What are you going to do with all that basil?" I mean, I can't eat bruschetta every day.

Or can I?

Hmm....

No, I can't. Too much bread.

So I'm at the grocery the other day, reaching for a jar of pesto when it hit me. I could make my own pesto.

I came home and harvested a good bunch of the leaves. I needed two "packed" cups. I soaked them in water for a few minutes to kill anything that might have decided to take up residence on the plant. Flash flood. They never knew what hit them.

Then I strained and rinsed a couple more times before throwing them into my salad spinner to eek out all the water. This worked wonderfully, I might add.

Now for the rest of the ingredients.

• 2 cloves of garlic
• 1/4 cup pine nuts (love these things)
• 2/3 cup extra virgin olive oil, divided
• salt and pepper

Combine the basil, garlic, and pine nuts in a food processor. Doesn't this look pretty?

Pulse until coarsely chopped.

Add 1/2 cup of the oil and process until fully incorporated and smooth. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

I wish you could smell this.

Now if I were using this right away, I'd add the rest of the oil and 1/2 cup of freshly grated parmesean cheese. But since this is for later, I put it into an air-tight container, drizzle the remaining oil over the top and put it in the freezer. It'll keep for up to three months. Great for those quickie meals. When I'm ready to use it, I simply thaw, stir in the freshly grated cheese, and toss with some warm pasta. Maybe top with some chicken breast or shrimp, tomatoes, a few capers....

Easy peasy.

And good for you, too.

Don't you just love summer and all the fresh fruits and veggies? I especially like when I can pick it right from my backyard. Which is limited, but farmer's markets are the next best thing.

What's your favorite way to use fresh basil?