Genesis of a Great Hurricane Pasta

We got back from our trip to Montreal & Toronto (more about that in the next post), just in time to prepare for a visit from Hurricane Irene. Even though we knew we wouldn't be getting the brunt of the storm, we did anticipate high winds. So...

Bathtub filled with water, and on to prepare some dishes that could be eaten cold if the power did go out. I boiled some eggs - great on their own or added to the double portion of tuna salad. Then I grilled some boneless chicken breasts (on my new Cuisinart GR-4N 5-in-1 Griddler, thanks to the Fairy Hobmother) using some classic BBQ spices from Epices de Cru. I also boiled up a box of penne, because cold pasta salads are always in order.

Fortunately for us, Irene gave us a wide berth and no power outages at our place. But since I am hosting this week's Presto Pasta Night Roundup, I thought I'd whip up something special with some of those goodies and more...

That's the Hurricane Pasta at top and after zapping the penne to heat it up but not cook it any more... here's what I added...

• cooked BBQ chicken, diced
• handful of fresh chives & oregano from my daughter Joanna's garden, chopped
• last of the Pesto di Prezzemolo
• last of the No Cook Tomato Sauce
• sprinkled with grated Parmesan

I love it when nature lends a hand to creativity! If you have a pasta dish you'd like to share with the rest of us for Presto Pasta Nights, just write about it, mention Presto Pasta Nights and send me your link to ruth (at) 4everykitchen (dot) com by Thursday night and I'll add it to Friday's roundup.

Vacationing

Just a short post... we're eating our way through Montreal & Toronto. Don't you love our "snack" from the Jean Talon Market not far from Sharron's home in Montreal.

So this is just a reminder that even though I haven't made pasta this week, I'm sure many of you have. Don't forget to share with Honeybunch of The Life & Loves of Grumpy's Honeybunch, who is our lovely host and you can send all your pasta entries to grumpyshoneybunch (at) yahoo (dot) com and cc ruth (at) 4everykitchen (dot) com by tonight and check back there for the roundup tomorrow.

Catching up on Great Eats

I apologize for the lack of writing, but it's summer and life is busy. Or at least, I'm busy being lazy. It's not that I haven't been cooking... I have. I just haven't been sharing, so here's a recap of some very tasty dishes.

The dinner above was definitely the highlight of the week - Grilled Butterflied Lamb with Anchovies, Rosemary & Garlic, tweaked from Food & Drink, Summer 2011 issue, which couldn't have tasted as good without lamb from Bill of Wood 'n Hart Farm (see what happens when you get there late in the morning... almost empty case of lamb goodness)anchovies from The Italian Market and fresh rosemary right from my window sill. The Best Garlicky Rice Ever... and I'm not kidding, is an old standby that I've somehow never shared with you until now. You will thank me! To get in a healthy portion of veggies I whipped up a Simple Swiss Chard & Mushroom Stir Fry ... we loved it.

It was an interesting dinner, because we were looking after little boys so their parents could go out on a date. Not being sure if they'd eat any of that I made a couple of pasta options from a previous pizza meal my Honey and I enjoyed.

As for that meal...since I couldn't decide on ONE option, I made two variations of an old awesome recipe Shrimp & Onions over Pesto and Chorizo, Mushroom & Onion over No Cook Tomato Sauce, using fire roasted tomatoes . I made my own California style pizza dough

Back to the boys, my daughter has told me more than once that they DO eat more than just chicken fingers, so I wanted to give them a number of options. I was too busy to take pictures, but I did toss some pasta with the tomato sauce and another batch of pasta was tossed with ricotta & Parmesan with a touch of milk to make it creamy, not to mention the cold pizza (which my Honey enjoyed). With all that at the table, guess what their choice was for dinner? You guessed it... chicken fingers. They did taste everything, but apparently, nothing compared to chicken fingers zapped in a microwave by Grandma.

Presto Pasta Night #227 Seriously Delicious

Jennifer of For Such a Time as This is a first time Presto Pasta Night host this week and will be posting it shortly. Please keep checking back for the sheer deliciousness of it. I've been peeking at entries all week and I want them all! Thanks everybody for each and every one of them!

And don't forget that next week, Honeybunch of The Life & Loves of Grumpy's Honeybunch, will be our host and you can send all your pasta entries to grumpyshoneybunch (at) yahoo (dot) com and cc ruth (at) 4everykitchen (dot) com by Thursday, August 25. Now go and enjoy the weekend and may pasta be a fun part of it!

Olivado & Romance

I've written about Olivado's wonderful avocado zest oil (just to mention one of their awesome oils) BEFORE. I love them drizzled over the freshest straight from the farm or garden salad greens and I even saw an amazing recipe on their site using their Macadamia Nut Oil to make chocolate fudge.

Now I see they have a fantastic looking contest for a Romantic Getaway at the Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel. Even if you don't win the weekend away, you'll be in heaven. I don't normally post about contests, but I guess I'm still in an upbeat mood, thanks to the Fairy Hobmother. Who knows...

A Visit from the Fairy Hobmother

Before I say "thank you" and it will be a HUGE thank you to the Fairy Hobmother, I need to say an equally big SORRY! for not really believing. Perhaps it's because I personally have "been" the Tooth Fairy more times than I care to count. Perhaps because, although I don't celebrate Christmas, I have many friends who have dressed up as Santa, brought gifts down a nonexistent chimney and eaten many a cookie, all to bring some magic to a child the next morning. So I've come to the conclusion... there IS no real fairy!

Perhaps I've become cynical because of all those emails and phone calls telling me that "I'm already a winner", which in the best case scenario, they add me to a list and I'm bombarded with other equally nonexistent "prizes"... I use the term loosely. In fact, I've never won anything and no one has ever followed through with a promised gift.

But I love Joanne of Eats Well With Others and trust her, so when she said that she got a new food processor just by mentioning that in another friend's comment section, I (sheepishly) left a comment saying that my poor Griddler was gasping for breath. I didn't really expect anything. In fact, I didn't even mention it to my Honey... who is the real skeptic in the family. After all, it was just in a comment on a friend's blog, and I really didn't think anything would come of it.

To my surprise, the Fairy Hobmother contacted me. Still being cynical, I thought I'd wait until my nonexistent "gift" arrived before writing about it. To my immense surprise, within days I received my brand new Cuisinart GR-4N 5-in-1 Griddler! So if you leave a comment about what appliance or item you most wish you had for your kitchen or home and why you need it, who knows, you may be receiving a visit from the Fairy Hobmother yourself in the near future!

Here are a few favorite recipes I'll be whipping up... (none of the old photos are worth sharing, but I'll be adding new ones soon enough.

Grilled Thai Chicken Satay with Peanut Sauce (no worries of the satays falling through the grill grates)

Grilled Haloumi on Rosemary Foccacia toasts (anything slathered on grilled foccacia basted with a little olive oil and a rub of garlic is amazing)

Grilled Tomato, Goat Cheese & Pesto Sandwiches (or any other "middle" you choose for your grilled cheese)

By the way, my younger daughter, who is a lot more open, asked for my gasping old Griddler and it's on the way to her too. I'm not quite as awesome as the Fairy Hobmother, but I still have my moments.

Pesto Pesto & More Pesto

This week's been wonderful, but crazy. My daughter Sharron was in for a visit and I spent all my time with family... no time to write. I promise to fix that and have recipes for next week's Presto Pasta Night Roundup , but I didn't want anyone to miss the chance to share a dish of their own with this week's host Simona of Briciole You can still write a post, mention and link to Presto Pasta Night and Briciole and email your link to simosite (at) mac(dot) com and cc ruth (at) 4everykitchen (dot) com by midnight tonight.

As for me, next week I'll be sharing some new pesto recipes that I adapted from Saveur Magazine, #140. I've even included their versions to get you drooling. Farfalle with Pesto di Prezzemolo... a wonderful pesto of parsley, capers, anchovies and garlic. Our new best friend!
and Elicoidali Lunghi with Pesto Calabrese & Fennel Sausages (would have been perfect without the sausages, which took it over the top and not in a good way). Not to mention the entire article on Pestos

See you all at the roundup tomorrow.

Presto Pasta Night #225 Short But Sublime

I do hope you're all enjoying your summer... or winter for those of you Down Under... I know I am... enjoying summer, that is. Lots of picnics at beaches... when it's not raining, which also happens a lot around here. And like many of you, I've been out enjoying rather than in and writing. All that to say, that this week's Presto Pasta Night roundup is shorter than usual. But stick around, because the ones that did join in the fun have shared some really tasty treats.

First in HoneyB from The Life & Loves of Grumpy's Honeybee is the perfect picinic pasta salad... Buffalo Chicken Pasta Salad. Beach day, anyone?
Juli of Pictures of All My Princesses, made up for the limited guests at this week's party by sending in two great dishes. I love this Breakfast Pasta using up the leftover mac 'n cheese. Nothing like a hearty breakfast to start off a fun day in the sun... or endure a rainy day, for that matter.

And check out the cutest rainbow farfalle in this Stuffed Chicken & Proscuitto Rolls with Pasta. Can't help but put a smile on your face.

Tandy of Lavender & Lime is actually in the dead of winter, but the Sun God came out and gave her a taste of summer. Lucky for us! She made this glorious Broad Bean & Gravelax Pasta.

Nupur of UK Rasoi... Day to Day Recipes, is a first time PPNer - welcome! She even took time to make this Perfect Peanut Pasta while in the throes of moving! I can't wait to see what she'll be cooking up once she's in her new kitchen with all her ingredients unpacked.

Graziana of Herbe in Cucina shares a very posh dish of Spaghetti with Lumpfish Caviar & Chives and has me drooling. It's almost too pretty to eat. I did say ALMOST...

And last but not least... it was seriously delicious... my very beach friendly Pasta Salad... which is not really a recipe, but a tossing together of things that can withstand a day in the hot sun.
Next week Simona of Briciole will be our hostess with the mostest. Send your entries to simosite (at) mac(dot) com and cc ruth (at) 4everykitchen (dot) com by Thursday, August 11. Then come back for the roundup on Friday.

YIKES It's Thursday - Almost time for Presto Pasta Night

Where on earth did the week go?!!! It's already Thursday and I'm hosting this week's Presto Pasta Night Roundup. I was wondering why I haven't received many entries. I know it's summer vacation time and everyone is busy having fun. But the fact is, I haven't written a post since LAST weekend!

I've made pasta a couple of times this week, and last weekend without having a chance to write about it myself. We had a fantastic outing at Hubbard's Beach just a short thirty minute drive from home, with our daughter, son-in-law and the two little boys, not to mention some of their friends. It was a glorious day... and my sunburn is still recovering.

Thanks to Kraft and their entertainment package, we enjoyed a lovely spread on the red blanket, and used the thermal lined bag to carry lunch which was then served in the cute bowls they sent as well. Unfortunately, we were having too good a time to take any photos worth sharing. Even this one of the pasta salad doesn't quite meet up to my standards ....

...for photography, that is. The recipe is simple... not really a recipe, exactly, just lots of ingredients that won't spoil in the heat. And let's see if I remember them... red peppers, zucchini, garlic scape pesto (I'll have to write that one up one of these days too), sun dried tomatoes - in oil, oil cured black olives, pinch of red chili flakes, good canned tuna, a little olive oil and a splash of lemon juice plus about 1/4 cup Dragon's Breath Blue Cheese. All that tossed with some extra rotini I made a few nights before.

Now.... even though I do understand that summer is here and the living is easy... doesn't anyone have a pasta recipe to send me by midnight so I can add it to the roundup? Just write, link to Presto Pasta Nights and Once Upon a Feast and send the email to ruth (at) 4everykitchen (dot) com. Don't forget to check back for the roundup right here tomorrow.

As for this weekend... if you're like me, you don't have any idea of what's on tap. So what will you have handy in your fridge or pantry to help you out? My younger daughter is coming in tonight for a short visit. My Herb & Garlic Spatchcock Chicken is in the fridge along with separate bags of roasted beets (separate so the light ones won't bleed red) and roasted Japanese turnips. Pasta, salad, frittata... all good little black dress options.