Tag Archives: tomatoes

Pasta with Peas and Pancetta

1 T salt
1 small carrot
1 stalk celery
3 T olive oil
6 oz chopped pancetta
6 cloves garlic, sliced thickly
¼ c chopped fresh basil
2 T chopped fresh Italian parsley
¼ t red pepper flakes
12 oz canned Italian style tomatoes, drained, peeled, and chopped, juice reserved
1 c white wine
½ t salt
¼ t pepper
1 c peas
1 lb penne pasta
6 T freshly grated romano cheese

Bring a large pot of water with the salt to a boil over high heat. Make a mirepoix with the carrot, celery, and onion by finely chopping or gently whirling them in a food processor until just blended. In a large sauté pan, heat the olive oil over medium heat and add the pancetta; sauté until it starts to brown, 2-3 minutes.  Add the prepared mirepoix, garlic, basil, parsley, and red pepper flakes and sauté until tender, 3-4 minutes.

Stir in the tomatoes and cook until their water has evaporated, 7 minutes or so. Deglaze the pan with wine and continue cooking to reduce liquid by half. Add the reserved tomato juice, the ½ t salt, and ¼ t pepper and bring to a boil. Simmer until thickened to a sauce-like consistency, 10-12 minutes. Stir in the peas and cook until tender, 3-5 minutes.

Cook the pasta in the boiling salted water according to package directions. Drain and return to pot. Pour the sauce over the pasta and simmer over a low heat, stirring constantly until the pasta is well coated, about three minutes. Turn the pasta out onto a warmed serving dish and sprinkle with the cheese. Serve immediately.

Chicken Pandora

1/2 c red wine vinegar
1/2 c olive oil, plus 1 T
1/2 c fresh oregano
1 head fresh garlic, peeled and pureed
salt and pepper
3 bay leaves
1 c black olives, halved
5 lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts, halved
3/4 c brown sugar
1 c red wine
8 shallots
1 T butter
1 c sun-dried tomatoes, halved
1 can artichoke hearts, drained

In a 9×13 baking dish, mis the vinegar, 1/2 c olive oil, oregano, garlic, salt, pepper, bay leaves, and olives. Add the chicken breasts and marinate, covered with foil, in the refrigerator overnight. The next day, sprinkle the brown sugar and red wine over the top and bake, covered, for one hour in a 350 oven.

Cool. Remove the chicken breasts and cut into bite-sized chunks and return to the baking dish.

In a frying pan, saute the shallots in butter and remaining 1T of olive oil over med-high heat. Add the sun-dried tomatoes and the artichoke hearts. Pour this mixture over the chicken and reheat in a 350 oven for 15-20 minutes. Discard the bay leaves. Serve with saffron rice (Carolina brand is great), a green salad, and a good bottle of red wine.

Cold Corn Dip

1 can mexicali, drained
1 can rotel, drained
1 c mayonnaise
8 oz sour cream
2 c cheddar cheese, shredded

Mix and chill. Great dip for Fritos, veggies, etc.

Penne with Vodka and Tomato Cream Sauce

1 T butter
1 T olive oil
1 small onion, chopped
1 20 oz can plum tomatoes, drained, seeded, and chopped
1 cup whipping cream
¼ c vodka
¼ t dried crushed red pepper
1 pound penne pasta
Freshly grated parmesan cheese
Minced fresh chives

Melt butter with oil in heavy large saucepan over medium heat. Add onin and sauté until translucent, about eight minutes. Add tomatoes and cook until almost no liquod remains in pan, stirring frequently, about 25 minutes. Add cream, vodka, and red pepper, and boil until thickened to sauce consistency, about two minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Cook pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water until just tender, but firm to bite, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking. Drain well. Transfer to a large bowl. Bring sauce to simmer. Pour over pasta and toss well. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese and chives, and serve.

Notes: (From Shannon) This one was originally from Bon Appetit, and has been a regular in the houses of Tom and Rita, Allan and Linda, and Michael and me. I prefer to use tomato puree so it’s saucier, ignoring the part about cooking “until almost no liquid remains”…but here’s the recipe as it appeared in the magazine.

Nicaraguan Gallo Pinto

¼ lb black beans, dry
2 T vegetable oil
1 onion
1 green pepper
1 c white rice
2 Roma tomatoes

Soak dry beans for as long as possible (overnight’s the best). Boil for 1-1.5 hours without adding water. Set aside. Dice onion and green pepper and brown in oil for 1-2 minutes. Add rice and brown/toast one minute. Add diced tomatoes and two fingers of water. Simmer until rice is done. Add beans with a little of their “soup”. Mix with rice over heat for one minute. Serves two. !Buen provecho!

Notes: This is the Nicaraguan staple dish. It’s best with real Central American black beans cooked over a wood fire, real Nicaraguan creama (sour cream), and a stack of hot, soft, corn tortillas. But if you can’t do that, it’s also great fried in a substantial amount of oil! It’s sclerotic or nutritious, depending on how you look at it: the tomato is my addition, the Vitamin C in the tomato will help your body make the most of the iron in the beans. Hey, it kept me alive for 2.5 years! Pronounced: GUY-yo PEEN-toe

Bruschetta

1 loaf italian bread, a non-sour, soft bread with few holes so that it will hold the topping.
6 Roma tomatoes
3 ounces kalamata olives, pitted, preferably from the deli
1 package fresh basil
4 cloves garlic
4 ounces feta cheese, from the deli
extra virgin olive oil

Dice tomatoes. Dice olives. Dice basil leaves. Dice garlic. Mix all. Crumble in feta cheese. Coat lightly in olive oil. Add minced garlic to taste.

Slice bread rather thickly. Paint both sides of the slice with olive oil and broil in oven or brown in pan on top of the stove, so that outside is toasted and crunchy and the inside is soft. Serve bread and topping separately. For the most scrumptious combo, pile toasts high with topping. Serves about 4-5, depending on how much you love this stuff!

Notes: Thanks to Pat (our food-fantastic friend of the family), I am famous among my family for this dish, which even non-tomato-eating Ellen likes! It took burning a few of my mom’s brand new pans (and some other things around the kitchen) for Pat to teach it to me and to get the crostini toasted just right, but it’s almost better than anything I ever ate in Italy! An anytime great appetizer.

Pronounced: bru-SKAY-tah. Warning: Can be messy to eat, and hands smell of garlic and olives for days after preparation, but very worth it.

Deli Bean and Pasta Salad

1 t salt
½ t sugar
¼ t black pepper
2 ½ T red wine vinegar
1 T lemon juice
2 t Worcestershire sauce
1 ½ t Dijon mustard
1 large shallot, peeled and quartered
2 cloves garlic, peeled and mashed
¼ c extra virgin olive oil
¼ c salad oil
1 T parsley, chopped fine
1 T chopped fresh basil, or ½ t dry
16 oz kidney beans, canned, rinsed and drained
16 oz garbanzo beans, canned, rinsed and drained
½ pound pasta
2 cans olives, sliced and drained
3 large roma tomatoes, diced
2/3 c carrot, diced
2/3 c red onion, diced

Combine ingredients through shallot in a measuring cup. Turn on food processor, drop shallots and garlic on. Pour in vinegar mixture, then add the oils slowly. Add the parsley and basil. When well mixed, stop machine. In a large bowl, toss rinsed and drained beans with the dressing and let marinate for at least a few hours. Cook pasta in a large volume of salted water for three to four minutes. When tender, drain well. Toss with the beans and dressing. Stir in half the olives, half the tomatoes, half the red onion, and half the carrots. Place the salad in a serving bowl and garnish with remaining vegetables.

Lima Bean Soup

1 pound dried lima beans, picked over
3 or 4 chicken bouillon cubes
1 ham hock
8 oz chopped ham
2 cans chopped tomatoes in juice
1 onion
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 T olive oil
Water to cover

Chop the onion fine and sautee it in olive oil until soft. Add garlic and cook another minute or two. Put in a pot with the lima beans. Cover the beans with water, add the bouillon cubes and ham hock. Simmer until the beans are mushy, making sure that the liquid doesn’t boil away. Remove ham hock, flake off any meat, and add meat to the pot. Add chopped ham, the tomatoes, and salt and pepper to taste. Let cool slightly, then puree about half the soup in the blender. Add it back to the pot and mix well to combine the textures. Add a little water if it seems too thick. Serve hot. Keeps several days in the fridge and can be frozen.

Vegetarian variation: Use veggie bouillon instead of chicken. You can either omit the ham/ham hock, or substitute cubed smoked tofu for it. Either way, add a dash of liquid smoke and/or some smoked pimento.

Spaghetti Sauce Special

2 T oil
1 large onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 lb lean ground beef
¾ c green pepper, diced
1 T parsley
½ lb mushrooms
28 oz can crushed Italian tomatoes
8 oz tomato sauce
6 oz tomato paste
½ t pepper
1/8 t cayenne
½ t allspice (do not omit)
½ t oregano
1 t basil
¼ t fennel seed
1 t sugar
1 ½ c shredded cabbage
¼ t crushed chili pepper

Heat oil. Sautee onion and garlic one to two minutes in heavy kettle. Add meat and brown. Add mushrooms and green pepper and cook for two minutes, stirring constantly. Stir in remaining ingredients, cover and cook over low heat for 4+ hours, stirring occasionally. Serve over spaghetti.

Notes: From the Patriot Ledger, 6.24.91. This can also be cooked in a crockpot for four hours instead of on the stove.

Squash/Cheese Soup

Simmer 1 ¾ to 2 lbs summer squash, chopped or sliced, in 2 quarts vegetable/chicken stock for 10 minutes. Saute 1 medium onion, sliced thin, in 2 T butter and add this to stock. Also add one small (8 oz) can sweet corn, 1 t basil, salt, and 2 cloves garlic. Stir in 1 lb grated jack cheese. Serve with cold, fresh chopped tomatoes.