Sausage Pasta and Boating

I made this yummy sausage pasta this past Sunday and let me say how thankful I am for leftovers.  Because…I am absolutely home sick today and who wants soup when you can have this? Also, I have nobody to bring me soup.  But that’s neither here nor there.

Even though January is wrapping up with me sniffling on the couch texting everyone in my phone book letting them know how miserable I am (sympathy can be healing) I have to say this has been an amazing month.  If this is any indication of what the rest of 2013 is going to be like than I am super looking forward to it.  See some pictures from a recent day of boating below.

Okay, back to this pasta.

This dish is unique because it has breadcrumbs in it.  When I first came upon this recipe I debated leaving the breadcrumbs out because a) I have never seen anything like that and b) it seemed like unnecessary extra steps just for the sake of crumbs.

But alas I tried it and I feel like a whole new world of pasta has been opened up to me.  The breadcrumbs in this dish were lemony so they added an extra flavor profile in addition to a much welcomed crunch. The light crunch was the perfect accompaniment to the hearty flavor of the sausage and onions.  If I have ever made a truly balanced dish…this is it.  Expect me to post more pastas with breadcrumbs in the future. Also, try this recipe.  You’ll be glad you did!

Sausage and Spinach Pasta

1 lb pasta

1 lb Italian sausage (I used spicy pork sausage, use sweet if you don’t like spicy)

1 bag or container of spinach

½  C grated parmigiano reggiano

½ onion, diced

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 lemon, cut in half

1 tablespoon olive oil

Crushed red pepper

Bread Crumbs:

½ C dry breadcrumbs, unseasoned

1 tablespoon butter

½ of the cut lemon

First things first, put your pasta water on.  Water takes forever to boil.

Begin by melting the butter in a sauce pan.  Once the butter begins to melt add the bread crumbs and the juice of half a lemon.  Let the breadcrumbs crisp up and begin to brown.  Once they look crunchy transfer to a bowl and set aside.

In the same pan add the sausage (casing removed) and onions.  Saute until the sausage is no longer pink and the onions are soft. Then transfer to a bowl and set aside.

Using the same saucepan add the minced garlic.  If you find the pan is really dry add some olive oil.  Add the spinach immediately after the garlic and season with salt and crushed red pepper.  Let the garlic soften and saute the spinach until wilted. Once the spinach begins to wilt squeeze add the juice of half a lemon.

While the spinach is cooking add the pasta to the boiling (salted!) water.  Cook the pasta until al dente, usually 10-12 minutes.

Once the spinach and pasta is ready combine them along with the sausage and onion mixture in your serving bowl.  Add the cheese, mix to combine and let the cheese get melty.  Finally, finish by sprinkling the bread crumbs on top.  I put about half on top then kept the rest on the side for when the top part of the pasta is served.  Also, if you plan on having left overs, the crumbs get soggy in the fridge you’ll want to keep some separate.

Enjoy, xx

I-Miss-NY-Cookies

Last week I got back from my Christmas NY trip and per usual I am very NY-sick.  What’s making it a little easier  to ease back into California is the crazy cold spell we are experiencing here in Newport. Weather in the 40s and 50s!! Clearly after being in NY that is not that cold, but for Newport it really is and my heat-less apartment is not doing much to help.  As I type this I am wearing two sweatshirts, socks and slippers AND have a blanket over me. Dramatic? Yes. Necessary? Also, yes. I’ve even brought my rabbits inside because they are West Coast Bunnies and I don’t think they are used to this windy cold-ness.

Here is P snuggled in the pillows staying warm.

Rather than photo document my trip like I did last summer I am going to babble about one thing: Italian bakeries. I was in total tourist mode (for the sake of this blog) while out getting Christmas dessert with my family, taking pictures of every pastry case.  Don’t get me wrong, there are plenty of lovely bakeries here in California but not a single Italian one and Italian desserts are completely unique.  In fact, I think my baking hobby stemmed from wanted to eat things unavailable to buy, like Rainbow Cookies, Black and White cookies, etc.
How delicious do those cannolis look? Notice the Napoleons above, those are my favorite.And then the end-all (am I right, Danielle?!) the cookies.

Speaking of cookies…I had the extreme pleasure of baking my Grandma’s famed Christmas cookies with her this year.  Cooking with my Grandma was a very enlightening experience. Every year growing up my Grandma would make these butter cookies in different shapes and colors.  My sibling and I would fight over the reindeer shaped cookies (which my Grandma finally told me are actually dog shaped- bummer) and even go so far as to sneak into the cookie tin before dessert to get as many “reindeers” as we could.  The secret to Grammy’s cookies, besides being made with love, is the use of a cookie press.  Grammy got her cookie press waaaaaay back in the day and paid a whooping $1 for it.  Not kidding…Tres vintage, tres cool.  So vintage, in fact, that my Grandma had me make this entire recipe with a spoon and my hands, no beater or mixers.  Maybe that’s the secret to their deliciousness…

I Miss NY Italian Walnut Cookies

1 Cup Unsalted Butter, softened

3/4 Cup Powdered Sugar

1 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract

1 Cup Ground Walnuts (I used my blender for this)

2 Cups All-Purpose Flour

Powdered Sugar for Topping

Beat together butter and sugar until fluffy (I did this with a spoon a la’ Grandma Garafola) then add vanilla and ground walnuts.

Add the flour until combined.

Cover and refrigerate for about an hour.

Pre-heat oven to 325. Then, break off roughly table size pieces of dough and form into a crescent.  This is easiest to do by forming the dough into a little football in between your palms then turning the edges in.Bake in the upper middle part of the oven for 13-15 min or until edges just begin to brown. When you remove the cookies don’t be tempted to eat one hot from the oven.  It will not be very sweet.  This is probably the only cookie that is best when it’s finished – and covered in sugar.

Cool completely then (very) gently roll in powdered sugar.  Enjoy!