So begins my foray into a month of vegetarianism. This move is based on a desire to gain a sense of awareness over what I'm doing with my body. Also, I've eliminated processed sugar and artificial sweeteners, as well as alcohol. I'm not sure what's going to be the toughest: the meat, the sugar, or the booze. But it's only a month, and I've done at least the vegetarian aspect of this before. (Way back in college. Everyone experiments in college, right? I rebelled by giving up meat. I can't really think of anything more transgressive in Texas than that.)
I had some nice, acidic heirloom tomatoes from the farmer's market that I bought last Thursday and needed to use. I was going to make a sort of panzanella salad, but I changed my mind when I found Trader Joe's Garlic Basil Linguine. The tomatoes were a little on the soft side, so I roasted them before tossing with the other ingredients. The higher acidity of the tomatoes allowed for a great concentration of flavors without them becoming too sweet from roasting. I'm not big on the super-sweet, sundried tomato flavor. Next time I make this, I might throw in a bit of lemon juice and zest at the end, but it worked well without it. All in all, I was very pleased with this pasta attempt and will certainly make it again.
Ingredients:
4 or 5 medium tomatoes (I used a mix of three medium heirloom and 2 Roma's)
1 package Trader Joe's Garlic Basil Linguine
4 cloves of garlic
1 small onion (I used 1 small onion and a shallot I had left-over)
4 green onions
6 or 7 small mozzarella balls
Olive oil
Salt and pepper
Grated parmesan cheese to taste
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. While heating, slice four or so medium tomatoes into about 1/4 inch rounds. The pieces that were smaller than this didn't hold up so well in the pasta, I found. Place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Drizzle with olive oil; salt and pepper generously. Cook on the middle rack for about 40-45 minutes. They should be pretty shriveled by this point. If you've cut them thinner than 1/4 inch, check at around 30 minutes for doneness.
When the tomatoes have been cooking for about thirty minutes or so, bring salted pasta water to boil according to the directions on the package, and cook the noodles to your desired doneness.
Heat a couple of tablespoons oil over medium to medium-high heat. Slice the green onions, white part and green and set aside. Mince the medium onion and garlic; add it to the hot oil. Cook for about five minutes, being very careful not to burn the garlic. Burned garlic is gross. Trust me.
Toss your roasted tomatoes in with the garlic and onions. Drain and add your fully-cooked pasta; combine all ingredients well. Slice the mozzarella balls in half, and throw them and the green onions, setting a few aside for garnish, in with your pasta. I added about a 1/4 of a cup of the pasta cooking water to help loosen the noodles. The heat from the pasta and the pan should very gently melt the mozzarella.
Garnish with a bit of fresh grated parmesan and sliced green onions.
I had some nice, acidic heirloom tomatoes from the farmer's market that I bought last Thursday and needed to use. I was going to make a sort of panzanella salad, but I changed my mind when I found Trader Joe's Garlic Basil Linguine. The tomatoes were a little on the soft side, so I roasted them before tossing with the other ingredients. The higher acidity of the tomatoes allowed for a great concentration of flavors without them becoming too sweet from roasting. I'm not big on the super-sweet, sundried tomato flavor. Next time I make this, I might throw in a bit of lemon juice and zest at the end, but it worked well without it. All in all, I was very pleased with this pasta attempt and will certainly make it again.
Ingredients:
4 or 5 medium tomatoes (I used a mix of three medium heirloom and 2 Roma's)
1 package Trader Joe's Garlic Basil Linguine
4 cloves of garlic
1 small onion (I used 1 small onion and a shallot I had left-over)
4 green onions
6 or 7 small mozzarella balls
Olive oil
Salt and pepper
Grated parmesan cheese to taste
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. While heating, slice four or so medium tomatoes into about 1/4 inch rounds. The pieces that were smaller than this didn't hold up so well in the pasta, I found. Place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Drizzle with olive oil; salt and pepper generously. Cook on the middle rack for about 40-45 minutes. They should be pretty shriveled by this point. If you've cut them thinner than 1/4 inch, check at around 30 minutes for doneness.
When the tomatoes have been cooking for about thirty minutes or so, bring salted pasta water to boil according to the directions on the package, and cook the noodles to your desired doneness.
Heat a couple of tablespoons oil over medium to medium-high heat. Slice the green onions, white part and green and set aside. Mince the medium onion and garlic; add it to the hot oil. Cook for about five minutes, being very careful not to burn the garlic. Burned garlic is gross. Trust me.
Toss your roasted tomatoes in with the garlic and onions. Drain and add your fully-cooked pasta; combine all ingredients well. Slice the mozzarella balls in half, and throw them and the green onions, setting a few aside for garnish, in with your pasta. I added about a 1/4 of a cup of the pasta cooking water to help loosen the noodles. The heat from the pasta and the pan should very gently melt the mozzarella.
Garnish with a bit of fresh grated parmesan and sliced green onions.
1 comment:
I wouldn't have thought of adding the green onions- I don't associate those with italian, but great idea.
I enthusiastically endorse roasting the garlic with the tomatoes. It's practically why cast iron pans were invented.
I'll try this!
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