Pasta with Eggplant Tomato Sauce

Long Trail cooking class

This is full of piles of vegetables, and tastes and smells earthy and hearty.

1 lb. large or medium pasta
3 cloves garlic
1 1/2 onions
3 stalks celery
2 carrots
1 large eggplant
2 T, plus more, olive oil
1 28-oz. can whole peeled tomatoes in puree (or diced tomatoes)
3 T tomato paste
1/4 bunch parsley
1/2 t dried basil
1 t dried thyme
1 bay leaf

Heat water for pasta. Peel and chop vegetables (carrot coin-sized, eggplant in 1/2-in. cubes). Heat oil in pan over moderate heat. Add onions and garlic and saute 5 minutes. Add celery and carrots; saute another 5 minutes. Add eggplant (you will almost certainly need more oil now or as eggplant cooks, as it soaks up a lot). Saute 5 - 10 minutes, until browned and softened. Add tomato, squashing with the back of a wooden spoon. Add a little puree. Bring to a boil. Add parsley, basil, thyme, bay leaf, and s & p. Reduce heat to simmering. Stir in tomato paste thoroughly. Simmer, partly covered, 40 minutes or more. Cook and drain pasta. Serve sauce over pasta.

Pasta with Basil-Onion Cream Sauce

Mom

The first time my mom dreamed this up was when I was fiddling with making pasta with my Kitchen Aid attachment and I wanted something good to have with it for dinner. So it was absolutely delicious when we ate it with homemade pasta and fresh summer basil on the screened porch. But, we now make it all the time, all through the winter, using generous shakes of dried basil when I don't have fresh, and with the different sweetnesses of the onion and the basil, it is my favorite cream sauce. Amounts are approximate.

1 small bunch fresh basil
3 cloves garlic
1 medium sweet onion
2 T butter
3 T flour
3 C milk (we use skim and it's great)
1/3 C grated parmesan
s & p

Blend basic, garlic, and onion in food processor until fine.

Melt butter in large saucepan. Add basil mixture and sweat over low heat (don't let it sizzle), about 8 minutes (or more, until onions no longer crunch when you taste a bite). Stir in flour, a little at a time, then slowly add milk.

Heat until it thickens a bit (don't overboil). Add s & p and parmesan and heat long enough to melt. Serve over hot pasta (we often need more s & p after we combine it with pasta).

Peanut Butter-Snap Pea Pasta

This recipe is a potluck specialty from my mother-in-law. It is equally good cold as it is hot. We eat it as a one-dish meal in the summer. Make sure to use red bell peppers to make a pretty dish with the nutty pasta sauce and the green snap peas. (When we took these pictures, we didn't have quite enough snap peas, so I supplemented with our abundant green beans and it was great-- so I'd say any fresh, crisp green vegetables would work, depending on the season you're making it!)  

The original recipe called for half as much of everything-- half a pound of pasta, half a pound of snap peas, etc. But as I've mentioned previously, my family of four can no longer make a full meal out of less than a pound of pasta, so I've adjusted the amounts here for a family meal. For us it was perfect, and left some for lunch the next day, but you may want to halve this if serving it as a side dish or for fewer people or smaller appetites. 

One other quick note: I've discovered minced ginger that comes in a jar/tube and it's great and I really recommend keeping it on hand for great flavor in all sorts of ethnic and other dishes. In the fridge, it lasts a reasonable length of time, and we have fresh(ish) ginger always available for recipes, without having to either buy ginger root (which we honestly can't always find) or make due with some amount of dried ground ginger instead. Woohoo!

Peanut Butter-Snap Pea Pasta 

from Anne

1 lb. medium-sized pasta 

1 lb. snap peas (or green beans, halved) 

1 medium red bell pepper, sliced 

2/3 C light soy sauce 

1/2 C peanut oil 

1/4 C sesame oil 

6 T chunky peanut butter 

1/4 C minced fresh ginger 

dash of pepper 

Cook pasta and drain; combine with peas and peppers. 

Whisk remaining ingredients together; pour over pasta just before serving.

Macaroni and Cheese

Mom

This is definitely our favorite meal, with or without cooked peas, when we can't think of anything else to make. Amounts are (very) approximate.

2 T butter
1/4 C flour
milk
1 C sharp cheddar cheese, grated
1/3 C Velveeta, cubed (or all cheddar, but Velveeta does add a real creaminess to it)
squirt of mustard
dash of worchestershire sauce
1 lb. pasta (medium shells are best)
s & p

Turn large pot of water on to boil to cook pasta.

Melt butter in large saucepan. Gradually stir in flour. Whisk in milk until hot, thick, and bubbly. Turn down heat. Add cheeses; stir until melted. Add mustard, worchestershire, salt and pepper. (We always need more salt and pepper after we mix the cheese sauce with the pasta, no matter how much we add at this stage.) Drain cooked pasta. Stir sauce into pasta and serve.

Wild Rice, Apple, and Dried-Cranberry Stuffing

Epicurious

I think I've convinced even some hard-to-convince family that this is better than Stove Top. We have it at every Thanksgiving and at every Apple Weekend.

1 C wild rice
1 t salt
1/2 lb. crusty white bread, cut into 1/2-in. cubes; about 6 C
1/2 C unsalted butter, plus 2 T, melted
2 C diced onion
2 C diced celery
2 C diced apple
1/4 C finely-chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1 1/2 t dried sage
1/2 t dried marjoram
1/4 t dried thyme
1/2 t black pepper
1 C dried cranberries
1 C chicken broth

Cook rice according to package directions. Spread out in a baking pan to cool completely.

Preheat oven to 350. Spread bread cubes in shallow baking pan and bake in upper third of oven until dry, about 20 minutes.

Melt 1/2 C butter in large nonstick skillet over moderate heat, then cook onion and celery, stirring, until softened, about 8 minutes. Add apple and cook, stirring, until crisp-tender, about 5 minutes. Stir in herbs, pepper, and salt and cook, stirring, 2 minutes. Transfer to a large bowl and toss with rice, bread, and cranberries.

Increase oven temperature to 450 and grease a 13 x 9 casserole dish. Spread stuffing evenly in dish and drizzle with chicken broth and melted butter. Bake, covered tightly with foil, in upper third of oven until heated through, about 20 minutes. Remove foil and bake until top is browned, 10 to 15 minutes more.

Cheese Enchiladas with Green Sauce

Epicurious

These meatless enchiladas are full of some of my favorite flavors-- cilantro, green onions, cheddar cheese, cumin. 

Sauce
1/2 of 10-oz. package frozen chopped spinach
1 T butter
1 T flour
1 C whipping cream
1 C milk
6 T chopped fresh cilantro
3 green onions, minced
1/2 of 4-oz. can diced green chilies, drained
1 3/4 t ground cumin
1 1/2 t ground coriander
1/4 t dried crushed red pepper

Enchiladas1/2 C vegetable oil
12 6-in. corn tortillas
3 C grated mild cheddar cheese (we of course use Hunter's, not mild)
1 1/2 C grated monterey jack cheese
1/2 C finely chopped onion
1 T chopped fresh cilantro

1/2 C sour cream

For sauce:
Cook spinach according to package. Drain well. Set aside.

Melt butter in heavy medium skillet over medium heat. Add flour and stir 2 minutes; do not brown. Gradually whisk in whipping cream and milk. Simmer until thickened, about 5 minutes. Stir in spinach, cilantro, green onion, chilies, cumin, coriander, and red pepper. Puree in batches in food processor until almost smooth. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside.

For enchiladas:
Heat oil in heavy small skillet over medium-high heat. Using tongs, briefly dip each tortilla in oil to soften, about 15 seconds per side. Transfer to paper towels and drain.

Combine cheese in large bowl; set aside 1 1/2 C for topping. Combine onion and cilantro in a small bowl. Place 1/4 C cheese mixture and 2 t onion mixture in center of each tortilla. Roll up tortillas, and place seam side down in large glass baking dish.

Preheat over to 375. Stir sour cream into sauce; pour over enchiladas. Sprinkle with reserved 1 1/2 C cheese. Bake until cheese melts and enchiladas are heated through, about 25 minutes.

Sheperd's Pie / Cottage Pie

Andrew Jones, cookingforengineers.com

This is my favorite sheperd's pie. Once when my family was coming over for dinner, not being sure how my dad would feel about lamb, I made two versions using this exact recipe, one with lamb and one with ground beef. The one with beef had SO much less flavor, so I learned the lamb really does make a difference.

1 1/2 lbs. russet potatoes
3 T unsalted butter
s & p
3 T vegetable oil
1 medium onion
1 medium carrot
1 medium celery stalk
1 lb. ground lamb
1 T flour
1 t dried rosemary
1 t dried thyme
1 pinch ground nutmeg
1 C beef broth
paprika

Chop potatoes. Put them in a pot of boiling water, reduce heat, and simmer until fully tender.

Reserve 1/2 C potato water, then drain potatoes. Mash potatoes with 1 T butter, reserved water, and salt and pepper. Set potatoes aside.

Preheat oven to 400. Dice carrot, celery, and onion. Heat oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add vegetables. Reduce heat to medium-low and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 15 minutes.

Increase heat to medium-high and add ground meat. Break meat apart while cooking until no longer pink, about 5 minutes. Spoon off excess fat.

Add 1 T flour to mixture. Mix and cook for a couple minutes while stirring. Add beef broth, thyme, rosemary, and nutmeg. Cook while stirring until liquid has thickened, about 5 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste as it thickens.

Pour meat into casserole dish. Cover meat with mashed potatoes. Cut 2 T butter into small pieces and sprinkle over the top of the potatoes. Cover generously with paprika. Cook for about 30 minutes, until potatoes have golden brown crust. Allow to rest about 10 minutes before serving.

Grilled Red Potatoes with Cheddar

Inspired by a Martha Stewart recipe that calls for blue cheese, but I like them with cheddar. These are great with steak.

small red potatoes
grated cheddar cheese
olive oil
s & p

Cover potatoes with cold water in a pot; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer until tender, about 15 minutes. Drain and let cool slightly.

Slive potatoes in half. Brush both sides with oil, and season both sides generously with salt and pepper. Broil potatoes, flat side down, then turn once and broil a few more minutes, until lightly browned. Remove from oven, sprinkle with grated cheese, and serve.