House Spouse

I printed up my final paper Tuesday night around 6 p.m. and immediately began thinking about how I would make a key lime pie that evening. This pie had been on my mind for about a week. So, after a trip to the pub for a celebratory beer and burger, I embarked on my first key lime pie-making adventure. Slightly buzzed, totally enthralled with my temporary freedom from using vocabulary that involves Latin and Greek phrases. (Although my dreams that night were riddled with theological problems.)

The recipe is from the May 2003 Gourmet (there’s a printable version of it on Epicurious, so I am going to refrain from reprinting the recipe). I made some fresh whipped cream using a teaspoon of sugar, a 1/4 teaspoon of vanilla and 8 ounces of heavy whipping cream. It’s definitely worth serving the pie with a fresh bowl of this because the mellow, fluffy mouthfuls of cream nicely offset the tart custard.

Candying the limes is fun, too. Just slice up a lime into very thin slices and coat with sugar. Set the slices on a plate and in to the fridge overnight. Right before serving, cut halfway through the lime and twist to garnish.

A couple of weekends ago, I sat lazily watching the Saturday food and cooking programs aired on our local public television station. Christina Cooks (how I hate her wagging, scolding finger!), Mexico: One Plate at a Time, Every Day Food, Check Please, etc. It was during this indulgence that I caught the episode of America’s Test Kitchen in which they make Penne alla Vodka. Despite Christopher Kimball’s usual snootiness (he’s really an ass, don’t you think?), he was convinced into enjoying the vodka sauce prepared on the show.

Since you can’t get the recipes from the show online without paying a subscription price, I decided to wing it and go from memory when I prepared it a couple of nights ago. Here’s my interpretation.

Penne Alla Vodka
Adapted from America’s Test Kitchen
Ingredients
1-2 T olive oil
1 small can tomato paste
1 med onion
2 cloves garlic
1/3 c high quality vodka
1 15 oz can diced tomatoes*
1/2 c heavy cream
about 12 leaves fresh basil, chopped
salt, pepper
1 lb penne

*I purchased box of 8 or 10 cans of Del Monte organic diced tomatoes at Costco and flew through it. I don’t want to advocate for such a big name brand, but these tomatoes were quite good.

Directions:
Begin by heating salted water for the pasta. I’ve recently started heavily salting my pasta water which has resulted in me wanting to eat a lot more pasta.

In a large, 12-inch skillet or sauté pan, heat the olive oil and add the onions. Once the onions begin to soften, about 5-6 minutes, add the garlic and the tomato paste. Work the tomato paste into the onions. This is what is going to give the sauce a sweetness. When that’s all combined and going, add the can of (undrained) diced tomatoes and the vodka. Stir to combine and allow that to simmer for about 4 to 5 minutes, allowing the alcohol to cook off and the sauce to thicken.

About this time, the water should be coming to a boil. Add your pasta and stir. You should pay careful attention to the pasta while it’s cooking because you’ll want to take it off the heat and drain it just before it reaches al dente.

Back to the sauce though… Slowly stir in the half cup of cream and add the basil. Stir and taste, adding salt and pepper to taste. Turn the heat off and tend to the pasta.

Once the pasta is done, return it to the pot and add the sauce. Stir and combine everything together. The sauce will be somewhat absorbed into the pasta (which is why it needs to be cooked just this side of al dente). Top with some freshly grated cheese and enjoy.

In the picture I’ve posted, the sauce is a little less creamy than what should result from this recipe. I had used 1/2 cup of cream for a dessert the previous day and was saving the remaining 1/2 cup for the vodka sauce. Well, that morning, Andrew saw the cream and though, “Mmm…real cream in my coffee,” not realizing my intention. However, the sauce was still delicious, so if you’re watching your calorie intake it’s fine to use a little less cream.

You may have noticed, that is if you don’t just read this blog in your feed reader, that the design has changed. That’s a temporary thing. See, there were some things lost when we installed a new version of WordPress and I simply don’t have the time to fix them.

There’s been a lot happening in the M-G household. Somethings wonderful, some not so. Our car is broken. Really really broken this time. So broken that we’ve all but decided to sell it this summer (fixed, of course), move to the neighborhood where my school is located and sign up for a shared car service. The worst thing about this is that we were so excited to be getting a very decent tax refund this year, but you can guess where the entire check is going.

Now that the bad news (and really, it’s more of inconvenience news) has been shared, here are the good things that have been happening.

What a mess of cilantro we have!

And little miss mint has decided to emerge, too!

Last weekend there was panzanella, made with the most delicious asparagus and carrot ribbons. Perhaps it was a pedestrian panzenella as I made it with commercial whole wheat sandwich bread, but I use what I have and there was no use in purchasing a $5 artisinal loaf when I already had a half a loaf of sliced bread begging to be used. I’ve also whipped up some carrot salads for lunch a few times and have been utterly convinced that in the case of these root vegetables, organic really is best.

I promise that these recipes will come soon, but for now there is bread pudding. Delicious, sinful, will-give-your-head-a-buzz bread pudding:

Despite my not being a dessert person, I want it all the time these days. (No, it’s not what you’re thinking. I’m quite sure of that.) And where do I turn when I need decadent and rich, but down home and simple recipes? The Pioneer Woman. Since she has the recipe on her blog, I’m taking the lazy route and telling you to just click here. Two things though: One, I could not (could not!) bring my self to use as much sugar as she called for in her pudding recipe. I halved it. It was still delicious. Two, I used half as much butter in the whiskey sauce, which made for a much stronger whiskey flavor. Again, still delicious. It’s your call. Here’s another view though, from above:

Note: Do not eat this for breakfast on a day that you will be running. That run will fail. Trust me.
Another note: You may be asking yourself, “Isn’t she on Weight Watchers?” To which I will respond, portion size. It’s all about portion size. (And having a salad for dinner on nights when a dessert is in order.)