White Pork Ragu

 

from “Smitten Kitchen Keepers: new classics for your forever files” by Deb Perelman

serves 4-6

2 Tablespoons oil
1 small onion, finely chopped
1/2 cup finely chopped carrot
1 small bulb fennel, chopped 
4 garlic cloves, minced
Kosher salt, freshly ground black pepper, and red pepper flakes
1 pound ground pork

1 Parmesan rind 

1/4 cup dry white wine
1 cup chicken broth
1/2 cup milk
1 bay leaf
Pasta water, as needed
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/2 pound dry fettuccine, or 1 pound fresh
Lots of cracked black pepper & grated Parmesan, to serve

Build the sauce:

Heat a medium-to-large heavy pot or Dutch oven (4-5 quarts) over medium-high heat. Add 2 tablespoons oil, and once it is warm, add the onion, carrot, and fennel and season well with salt and black pepper and/or pepper flakes, to taste. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes, until the vegetables are lightly browned all over. Don’t worry if anything sticks. Add the pork and garlic, season it generously with salt and pepper, and cook, breaking it up with your spoon, it until it has browned, about 8-10 minutes. Add the wine and scrape up any stuck bits; cook until the wine disappears (1-2 minutes). Add the broth, milk, and bay leaf, and bring to a simmer; then reduce the heat to the lowest simmer, leaving the lid off. Congratulations, you’ve now reached the “walk away” portion of the recipe.

Cook the ragu:

Here’s how the next 1 to 1.5 hours will go:Check in on the sauce from time to time, adding more water if needed to keep it loose, but not enough to submerge the meat (which would boil, not braise–shudder). Taste it from time to time, and add more seasoning if needed. The sauce is done with the meat tastes tender, butter, and rich; this takes 60 to 90 minutes. There’s little harm in going a little longer (up to 2 hours) if real life is more interesting. Do a final taste for seasoning, and cook any remaining liquid down to a saucy puddle. Remove from heat; discard the bay leaf and either discard or chop up Parmesan rind & add back to sauce.  Add the cream, and stir to combine.

To finish:

Cook your pasta 1-2 minutes shy of done in well-salted water. Before you drain it, ladle a cup of the pasta water int a glass by the stove. Drain the pasta, and add it directly to the ragu, along with a quarter to a half of the reserved water. Cook the pasta and sauce together until the pasta is as as done as you like it, adding more pasta water if needed to keep it moving. Serve in wide bowls, finished with Parmesan and pepper. 

Spring Pasta Primavera/Carbonara

 Loosely based off this recipe, but with some Boyd tweaks

https://www.feastingathome.com/spring-orecchiette-pasta-with-burrata/

• 16 oz shaped pasta (shells, twists, etc)
• 2 cups peas (fresh or frozen)
• 
  
• 1 bunch asparagus, chopped into bite sized pieces 
• 4 links sausage of choice-we like precooked chicken sausage 
• 1 onion- diced
• 4 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
• 12 oz mushrooms, quartered 
• cracked pepper
• 2 Eggs, whisked
• 1 1/2 cups grated parmesan, divided
• Zest & juice from 1 lemon
• 1 cup pasta water, reserved 
• 1/2  cup fresh chopped herbs- mint, basil, dill, or Italian Parsley or a blend.

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees: place sausage & asparagus on greased baking sheet. Bake for 15 minutes then remove from oven & slice sausage
2. Cook the Pasta: while oven is preheating, bring a large pot with 4 quarts water and 2 tablespoons salt to a boil. When water comes to a boil, add pasta and cook to al dente, about 7 minutes ( or see directions on package). During the last minute of cooking the pasta, add the peas to the boiling pasta, turn the heat up to high and quickly blanch for one minute. Drain the pasta and veggies (reserving 1 cups hot pasta water). Do not rinse. Return to the pot, turn heat off.
3. While the pasta is cooking, saute the mushrooms: In a skillet, heat 1 tablespoon oil over medium heat. Sauté the onion until tender and fragrant, 3-4 minutes. Add the mushrooms and garlic, and saute until golden and tender 7-8 minutes.  Add a pinch of  salt and pepper. Set pan aside.
4. Whisk two eggs in a small bowl, set aside.
5. Temper the Eggs. Once the pasta is drained and back in the pot,  gradually whisk in 3 tablespoons of the reserved hot pasta water, one tablespoon at a time into the eggs, to temper the eggs (to warm them up gently- so they don’t curdle). Then add lemon zest & juice. Stir well.
6. COMBINE: Pour tempered eggs mixture over the pasta and with a big wood spoon, gently stir to coat the pasta. Stir in 1 cup Parmesan cheese. Stir in the mushrooms mixture, sausage & asparagus, half of the fresh the herbs, cracked pepper,  adding more hot pasta water as needed to loosen the pasta,  and make it a  “saucy”.  You don’t want this dry. I usually add a cup. 
7. Season. Taste and adjust salt and pepper to your liking.
8. Plate & sprinkle with remaining herbs and Parmesan cheese

California Pizza

 Inspired by a Farellis pizza we like, but tweaked 

One Pizza dough

Top with: 

Pesto

Shredded mozzarella 

Chopped sun-dried tomatoes

Sprinkle of red pepper flakes

Sliced red onion

Feta cheese

Cashews 

Bake at 450 x 18 minutes 

Ravioli w Vodka sauce & Arugula Salad

• For pasta & sauce: 
• 3 tablespoon Butter
• 1 tablespoon Olive Oil
• 3 cloves Garlic minced
• ⅓ cup Tomato Paste
• 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes (or to your spice preference)
• 1 shot Vodka
• ¾ cup Heavy Cream
• 1 teaspoon Sugar
• 1 cup Parmesan grated and divided
• 2 boxes fresh ravioli (we like Costco chicken & mozzarella ravioli)
• 2 balls Fresh Burrata

For salad:

Lemon Dressing

• 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 5 Tbs fresh lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon honey
• ½ teaspoon kosher salt
• ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Salad

• 4 cups arugula
• ¼ cup Parmesan cheese

INSTRUCTIONS

Whisk/emulsify dressing ingredients. Combine dressing, arugula, and Parmesan 

 

• Boil a pot of water to cook ravioli.
• Meanwhile, melt butter and olive oil in a large sauce pan over medium heat then add garlic. Cook down for a few minutes, stirring often, until the garlic is soft and fragrant but not browned.
• Add tomato paste and chili flakes to the pan and continue stirring until everything is incorporated and the tomato paste has darkened slightly; about 3-4 minutes.
• Now add the vodka and stir vigorously for another 2-3 minutes until the pan has been completely deglazed and the sauce has come together.
  • Turn the heat to medium-low and add heavy cream and stir until incorporated. Let it simmer on low for 3 minutes then add sugar and a pinch of salt followed by ½ cup of grated parmesan cheese and continue stirring until it’s melted. Turn the heat to low and simmer.
  • At this point, the ravioli water should be boiling. Add the ravioli to the boiling water and cook for 2 minutes or until it starts to float and puff up just slightly.
  • Drain ravioli, reserving 1/2 cup of pasta water. Add pasta water as needed until the sauce becomes smooth and creamy! If it still looks dry, add more of the reserved pasta water, little by little, over medium-low heat until the sauce looks silky and smooth.
    Add ravioli and stir to combine. Top with remaining Parmesan cheese and arugula salad (either on top of pasta or as a side)

Keith & Gracie’s Thai Tea

 13 tea bags Thai tea (ChaTraMue from World Market is our favorite

8 cups boiling water

1 can sweetened condensed milk

3/4 cup 2% milk

Pinch of salt

In a large mixing bowl, steep tea bags in boiling water for 10 minutes. Discard tea bags. Whisk sweetened milk, milk, & salt into tea. Serve warm or iced (or with a couple of shots of rum if you’re Keith)