Tasty on a Budget: Fun with Pasta (Beet Greens Carbonara, Penne with Parmesan Sauce)

Alright, let's be honest. I may have talked last post about my desire to get away from pasta sometimes--and not without good reason--but all a week without it did is sharpen my desire to have it again. And in any event, the cause of  Pasta Monotony lies not so much with pasta, but with that red menace, jarred tomato sauce. It can be a lifesaver of course--it's a quick easy way to make 50 cents worth of pasta and 50 cents worth of vegetables and/or meat taste pretty good, and so long as the other stuff you toss in is tasty enough and you don't do it too often, there's no reason for it not be a pantry staple. But I've found, at least for myself, that if I try to eat pasta and red sauce too often,  especially for multiple days in a row the flavor quickly becomes oppressively same-y and dull.  (Homemade red sauce is, of course, an entirely different and far more wondrous beast, but it's anything but quick and easy). Pesto, especially when it's homemade, is significantly less prone to this, but I've even got sick of it too sometimes. But these are by no means the only two things you can do with a pot of pasta, and there are multiple other fun approaches that you can take that can produce seriously exciting dinners with no less speed and hardly any more expense.

Gazpacho: A Fresh Take On An Old Favorite

Fresh Tomato Gazpacho

Ah, it's that time of year again: ripe tomatoes hang heavy on backyard vines; they stack up temptingly at farmers' markets and produce stands, and we all want to eat as many as we can before summer's bounty yields to the inexorable approach of frost.

Fresh-picked tomatoes are a wondrous thing–no need for elaborate preparations or fancy condiments, just a sprinkle of salt and they're ready to go, raw and unadulterated, like the fruits they are. But sometimes we want to do more...or folks simply have so many tomatoes on hand that something new is needed. Hence an old-time vegetarian favorite, gazpacho, is welcomed back to our late-summer tables.

This year, gazpacho at my house is different, reimagined and refined. It uses whole, fresh tomatoes: no peeling, seeding, or juicing required. I've swapped out red for green peppers–liking the sweet, rich flavor of the red–and subbed in long, English hothouse cucumber for its more watery and seedier American cousin. While this isn't an authentic Spanish recipe by any means, I've moved back toward gazpacho's Andalusian roots, reintroducing bread to give it body, and making this a mild, or only very slightly spicy, incarnation of the classic soup.

It has been said that there are as many versions of gazpacho as there are cooks, each as individual as a fingerprint. That being true, I'm sure you'll never make this one exactly (or even approximately) as I do. But it's an idea, possibly an inspiration. Think it over as you gaze upon your end-of-summer tomato harvest, and maybe it will get your ripening creative juices flowing.

Gazpacho: A Fresh Take On An Old Favorite

Anne Milton

September, 2012

2 pounds very ripe tomatoes, cored and cut in chunks
1/2 loaf French or other coarse- textured white bread, crust removed, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1 small bunch cilantro, washed and stems removed
1 or 2 large garlic cloves, peeled and cut in half
1 large red bell pepper, seeded, cut in 1/4" dice
1 English cucumber, peeled, seeded and cut in 1/4" dice
1/2 medium red onion, minced
2 Tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 Tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 teaspoon coarse sea salt
3/8 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon mild paprika
1 pinch cayenne pepper (or more to taste)
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
1/2 cup sour cream, mixed with
1/2 cup slightly drained plain yogurt

1. In food processor, blend whole chopped tomatoes and their juices, bread, half the cilantro and all the garlic until completely pulverized. (You may have to work in batches, depending on your processor's capacity.)
2. Add half the pepper, half the cucumber, and half the onion, and blend in a couple of short bursts just until new veggies are finely chopped.
3. Stir in remaining vegetables, vinegar, oil, seasonings and lemon juice. Taste and adjust the seasoning if necessary. If the soup is not tart enough, you may add more vinegar and/or lemon juice. If it lacks sweetnes from the tomatoes, add a tiny bit of sugar.
4. Chill at least 2 hours and up to 1 day. Serve cold, topping each serving with a generous spoonful of the sour cream mixture.

Yield: serves 4-6 as an accompaniment to a meal

This is terrific made with heirloom tomatoes. Garnish with thin cucumber slices and a sprig of cilantro, if desired.

Sundried Tomato Naan Pizza

6-8 oz sundried tomatoes
6 cloves garlic, crushed (or more to taste)
1 1/2 Tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Package of 4 garlic naan*
1 half pint basil pesto
8 oz plain goat cheese
3 oz pine nuts
Red pepper flakes (optional)
 

Pasta with Tuna, Garlic and Lemon

Some recipes are so simple, they almost seem to disappear right off the page. When I first came across this one, some two years ago, I wasn't impressed. Huh, I thought, pasta, canned tuna, garlic, a little lemon: sounds kind of nice, but what's so special about that? When I finally got around to trying it, though, I realized that—as is so often the case—freshness and care in choosing ingredients make all the difference. Using freshly-crushed garlic simmered in quality olive oil, fresh lemon and parsley, premium tuna, and finishing with fluffy Parmesan you grate yourself, this simple recipe really sings.

 Pasta with Tuna, Garlic and Lemon

This is my take on a recipe by Adam Reid,

which originally appeared in the
Boston Globe Magazine, September 26, 2010

1/4 cup plus 1 Tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
6 cloves garlic, crushed
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes (more or less to taste)
2 cans water-packed solid white tuna*, undrained
2 teaspoons zest and 1/4 cup juice from 1 or 2 lemons
salt and fresh-ground pepper to taste
1 pound short and stubby or tubular pasta: shells are fun, but ziti or elbow macaroni also work fine
1/2 cup chopped flat-leaf Italian parsley
freshly shredded Parmesan cheese

Smoked Salmon Sandwiches With Everything On 'Em

I just tried out this new sandwich recipe, and I have to tell you, although it's simple, it is amazingly good. The combo of smoked salmon and everything that's good with it—lemon, dill, capers, red onion, honey mustard, etc.—rather than being over-the-top, is luscious, if I do say so.

 

Smoked Salmon Sandwiches With Everything On 'Em

Anne Milton

April, 2012

4 ounces tub-style cream cheese, room temperature
1/2 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
1-2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon chopped fresh dill, or 1/4 teaspoon dried
2 teaspoons minced red onion
2 teaspoons small capers
1 Tablespoon coarse-grained mustard
1 teaspoon honey
4 medium slices pumpernickel bread
3 ounces smoked salmon
1 small pickling cucumber, peeled, seeded and sliced 1/4" thick
a few thin slices red onion
4 slices tomato (optional)

Quick Old-Fashioned Oatmeal and Other Breakfast Tricks

I love oatmeal for breakfast: not the quick-cooking kind, which I find bland and textureless, and certainly not "instant oatmeal" which has all the texture and appeal of wallpaper paste. No, it's the old-fashioned, slightly chewy, whole rolled oats that I love. So did my grandfather Milton, who was, for his time, a real health nut. (I think I get my crunchy-granola, whole-food tendencies from him.) I still remember Grandpa slaving over the steaming pot, stirring and stirring as he babied his creation to completion. Quite a production, right? Well, as a rule, my mornings are way too busy for all that, so I was delighted to come across this simple technique–more a tip than a recipe, really–in Sally Fallon's quirky and fascinating book, Nourishing Traditions. The big ‘secret’ here is that you soak the oats overnight before you cook them. Sounds idiotically simple, but in fact, it magically cuts the cooking time to an ultra-manageable few minutes, and delivers delicious, creamy oatmeal with plenty of texture. Enjoy with brown sugar, raisins, flax seed, or whatever you like to use in your oatmeal.

Quick Old-Fashioned Oats

Anne Milton, inspired by:

Sally Fallon

Nourishing Traditions

1 cup old-fashioned unprocessed rolled oats

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

2 cups filtered water

1 Tablespoon flax seed (optional)

1 Tablespoon sunflower seed (optional)

Milk, soy milk or hemp milk

Brown sugar, dates, raisins or other dried fruit, chopped apples, strawberries, etc. (optional)

Matzo Ball Soup

This recipe comes from my grandmother, Ruth Milton. She claimed to have found it on the Manischewitz Matzo Meal box, but it was her light touch with the batter, not to mention her nuanced skill at schmaltz- (rendered chicken fat) and soup-making that lifted it above the ordinary. We had it on all holidays and many other special occasions, and nobody tired of it, ever. I'll never forget when I was twenty, and she sat me down and taught be how to make it: I was so proud to have this wonderful tradition passed on to me! Well now, in her honor and for Passover, I'm going to teach you to make it, too. Please enjoy, and pass the recipe on to others if you can.

Matzo Ball Soup

1/4 cup rendered chicken fat*

4 eggs, beaten to blend

1 cup matzo meal

2 teaspoons salt

1/4 cup chicken broth or water

1 large pot simple chicken soup (click here to see recipe)

1/4 cup finely chopped parsley or dill

Anne's Simple Chicken Soup

Anne's Simple Chicken Soup

2 or more carcasses from roasted chickens, or  3/4 lb. raw chicken necks and backs

1 whole chicken, 4-6 lbs.

1 bay leaf

4 peppercorns

1 teaspoon salt

2 medium onions, 1 quartered, 1 thinly sliced

1 carrot, peeled and sliced

1 small turnip, peeled and thinly sliced

In Praise of Grilled Cheese Sandwiches

This post is dedicated to my wonderful doctor, James M. Cleary, M.D., PhD. (who probably has far too little time to make grilled cheese sandwiches for his kids.)

There are at least two kinds of homemade sandwiches commonly referred to as grilled cheese.  One (the kind I grew up with) involves melting cheese over bread in the broiler or toaster-oven.  I think of this now as a toasted cheese sandwich; they are wonderful, but we won't be discussing them here at all.  The second kind is the diner classic: two slices of bread, cheese in the middle, fried in a pan or on a griddle until the bread is brown on the outside and the cheese goo-ily melted within.  There's a kind of magic, or alchemy to this—at least for a watching child—since you can't see the cheese melt.  You have to trust that the browning outside corresponds to the melting inside, and that the sandwich will (if you have your heat set right) turn into something more than the sum of its parts.  It's a valuable lesson in the power of the unknowable.

To Make a Basic Grilled Cheese Sandwich

Things you will need:
Frying pan of correct size for the number of sandwiches you wish to make (pan should have a cover)
Butter
Bread: twice as many slices as the number of sandwiches desired
Cheese: usually a mild, medium-hard cheese like American, Swiss, Monterey Jack, etc., 1-2 oz. per sandwich, thinly sliced

To prepare the sandwiches:

Colin's Tomato Jam

Colin’s Tomato Jam

Colin got up early the morning after Thanksgiving, and astonished me by making a wholly irresistible tomato jam.  I'm not normally a big fan of pepper jelly, apricot salsa, or any of the other sweet-hot offerings you see around these days.  But this one 's different: it has plenty of tartness from both lime and tomatoes, and the seasonings nicely balance out the sweetness and the tomatoes' cooked-down richness.  I think this would be fine on omelets and frittatas, and simply great with savory soufflés.

Colin Killick
(via Mark Bittman, NY Times)
November, 2010

1 1/2 lbs good ripe tomatoes (Roma are best) cored and coarsely chopped
1 cup sugar
2 Tablespoons freshly-squeezed lime juice
1 Tablespoon fresh grated or minced ginger
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
1 teaspoon salt
1 jalapeño or other pepper, stemmed, seeded and minced, or red pepper flakes or cayenne to taste

Anne's Grandmother's Russian Borscht

 My family borscht recipe ran in the Boston Globe today: handy, since this lets me reprint both the story and recipe here for you. 

One Cook's Best Dish

Adding to the family tradition

Her borscht is her own take on grandmother’s

“I’ve fiddled around with it,’’ says Anne Milton of her recipe for borscht, which she prepares about once a month in season. “As a teen, I went to visit my grandmother in St. Louis. I wanted to learn her recipes — she had the key.’’ (Michele Mcdonald for The Boston Globe)

By Jane Dornbusch Globe Correspondent / February 23, 2011

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CAMBRIDGE — Anne Milton’s borscht traveled a circuitous route to her cozy kitchen: it began in the present-day Ukrainian city of Odessa, went to Sedalia, Mo., then St. Louis, and, finally, to Cambridge. Along the way, it changed a bit, but it remains essentially the meaty, sweet-and-sour, beet-and-cabbage soup that warmed many a Russian winter.

“I’ve fiddled around with it,’’ admits Milton, preparing a batch of borscht on a gleaming 1950s Caloric stove that’s been in place since her great-aunt installed it in this 1892 Victorian. Milton uses agave nectar in place of sugar, and adds chopped fresh dill just before serving — touches her paternal grandmother, a Russian Jew whose family lived in Odessa and emigrated to Missouri in the early 1900s, wouldn’t have recognized.

Anne’s Ukrainian Borscht with Meat

Anne’s Ukrainian Borscht with Meat

 Anne Milton
February, 2010

In the interest of full disclosure, I'm not Ukranian—not one bit.  

My father's Russian Jewish family came over here bringing a recipe for meaty 'winter' borscht—a deep maroon, sweet-and-sour stew thick with prunes, tomatoes and cabbage—it's delicious, and maybe I'll post the recipe someday.  When I joined Boston Organics a couple years ago, I began getting relatively exotic things like celery root and parsnips along with my beets in the wintertime.  I originally found Ukranian Borscht described in a book called Cooking in the Litchfield Hills—a find-raiser for the Pratt Nature Center in New Milford, CT—so I don't know who provided the recipe.  Because the Pratt Center recipe contained many different root veggies, I started fiddling with it, adapting it to my taste and to the contents of my Boston Organics box.  Eventually, a new variant was born.  The borscht unquestionably shares DNA with the original recipe, but I have to call it mine as well, since the proportions, much of the method, and all the notes are my own.  If any actual Ukranians would like to weigh in on this subject, I'd be intrigued to hear from them!

1 1/2 to 2 lbs. beef flank steak or short ribs
, untrimmed (total meat weight excluding bone about 1 lb.)
1 1/2 quarts water

1 teaspoon coarse sea salt
1 medium carrot, scraped

1 medium celery root, peeled, 1/4 cut out for broth, remaining cut in 1/2-inch cubes

1 whole small onion, peeled, stuck with 2 cloves

4 whole allspice berries, roughly crushed
1-2 medium-large, or 3-4 small red or golden beets, without tops (don't use more, or it will overwhelm the soup.)
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1/2 tablespoon tomato paste

2 large garlic cloves, crushed
1/2 tablespoon butter

1 large onion, coarsely chopped

1 medium parsnip, peeled, cut into 1/2-inch cubes

1 medium rutabaga or 2 purple-top turnips, cut in 1/2-inch cubes
1 cup chopped cabbage (optional; use more or less to taste)


1 small potato—unpeeled, if you prefer—cut in 1/2-inch cubes (optional: use depending on quantity of other vegetables)
1/2 tablespoon lemon juice, or to taste
1/2 teaspoon crumbled dried dill, or 1-2 teaspoons fresh, minced
1 teaspoon crushed dried parsley, or 2-3 teaspoons fresh, minced

3/4-1 cup sour cream or drained yogurt


Butternut Squash-Flax Seed Muffins

Butternut Squash-Flax Seed Muffins

 Anne Milton: January, 2011

Here's a muffin recipe I just made for the first time: a variation on my usual Fannie Farmer-style whole wheat ones.  These squash muffins are moist and yummy, and savory rather than sweet.  They’d be fine for breakfast or tea, but I found they also worked well in place of bread with a hearty-soup-and-salad meal.  And they help me use up the surplus of cooked winter squash that's filling up my freezer!

Sour Cream Streusel Coffee Cake

Sour Cream Streusel Coffee Cake

*

I just brought this old-fashioned sour cream coffeecake to a Chanukah party, and was so flattered to be asked for the recipe. It's one I've happily used for many years: light and moist, with a delicious melted cinnamon-sugar layer in the middle. The recipe is virtually universal—you'll find variants of it all over the place, claimed by several different ethnic traditions. (That means it must be good, right?)

Thoughts for Buffets cookbook, ca. 1958
Amended by Anne (with thanks to Laurie LeMaster Stern)

Cheaper and Better Turkey Sandwiches...a Success Story

Cheaper and Better Turkey Sandwiches

...a Success Story

I have to give a big round of applause to my friend Tamara, because recently, she made a great leap forward for all lunch-eating-kind.  This is exactly the kind of cooking busy people (and aren't we all?) can do to make life so much better for themselves.  As Tamara writes on her facebook page:

"Several years ago, someone mentioned to me that you can save money on lunches by cooking your own turkey to put in sandwiches. Since we are trying to eat better and save money, and I got sticker shock the last time I bought high quality deli meat, I thought I would try it. It came out great - I think this will become a regular thing. Even though the time from start to finish was a few hours, it doesn't require that much babysitting during the process, so you can do it while you are accomplishing other important things around the house, like catching up on Grey's Anatomy.

Sweet Potato Drop Biscuits

Sweet Potato Drop Biscuits

 These biscuits are light, rich, moist and slightly spicy. The sweet potato flavor is pronounced but not overpowering. They're wonderful for breakfast, but since they aren't sweet, they work well as a side dish for lunch or dinner, too.

Anne Milton
December, 2008

 
1 1/2 cups unbleached white flour
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. fresh-ground nutmeg (click to source whole nutmeg and microplane spice grater)
1/4-1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper (click to source cayenne) optional
6 Tbsp. unsalted butter, cut in 1/4" pieces and chilled in freezer
1 cup cooked, mashed sweet potato*
1/2 cup plain yogurt or buttermilk
1 Tbsp. light brown sugar or agave nectar (click to source agave nectar)

Brown Sugar Shortcake with Grilled Fruit and Lime-Scented Goat’s Milk “Crème Fraîche”

Brown Sugar Shortcake with Grilled Fruit and Lime-Scented Goat’s Milk “Crème Fraîche”

Anne Milton
August, 2010

For Shortcakes:
2 cups flour
1/2 cup loosely-packed brown sugar
4 teaspoons baking powder
Generous 1/4 teaspoon salt
6 Tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 1/4” dice and chilled in freezer
1 1/2 cups heavy cream, thoroughly chilled
1 Tablespoon light brown or raw cane sugar (for sprinkling)

Quinoa Tabouli

Quinoa Tabouli

Based on an original tabouli recipe from David Killick
Adapted with quinoa by Anne and Colin
September, 2010

1 cup raw quinoa, (click here for online sources) rinsed and drained
1/2 teaspoon salt, plus more to taste
1 medium red or white onion, chopped
1/2 bunch flat-leaf parsley, leaves chopped
1 small bunch fresh mint leaves, finely chopped
1 small mild green pepper, seeded and chopped
1 large English cucumber, peeled, seeded and chopped
1 or 2 medium tomatoes, chopped (optional)
3 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed (or more to taste)
juice of 3 lemons (or more to taste)
1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice (or to taste)
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin (or to taste)
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper, or more to taste (optional)

Fennel and Radicchio Citrus Slaw with Pine Nuts

Fennel and Radicchio Citrus Slaw with Pine Nuts

Anne Milton
September, 2010

1/2 medium red onion, sliced in thin rings
juice of 1 lemon
2 clementines, or 1 small tangerine, zested
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
1 shallot, minced
2 heads radicchio, shaved thin with very sharp knife
2 bulbs fennel, trimmed and sliced thin
1 cup parsley leaves, chopped
feathery fronds from fennel, chopped
1/4 cup pine nuts (click here to find online)

Spiced Lamb Meatballs

Spiced Lamb Meatballs

Colin Killick
September, 2010

1 lb ground lamb
½ white onion, finely minced
½ bell pepper, finely minced
1 clove garlic, crushed
approximately ¼ bunch cilantro leaves, chopped
1-2 jalapenos, finely minced or 1 jalapeno and 1 chipotle pepper (optional)
2 sun-dried tomatoes, softened in boiling water and finely minced (optional)
2 tsp ground cumin (or more if you really love cumin)
splash Maggi seasoning (click here to buy) or Worcestershire sauce*
splash balsamic vinegar
salt to taste
dash black pepper
dash white pepper