pasta and sauce play dress-up, but not in the awkward-kid-in-heels way

This is an old recipe from my days cooking for one person in Vienna. It was inspired by all of the fresh produce I saw walking home every day. More importantly, it was inspired by the vendor selling fresh, hand-crafted pastas, many of them stuffed with mushrooms or cheeses. Delicious. If you have a fresh pasta vendor near to you, count yourself blessed. For those who do not, I will relay this recipe with its most frequently used pasta- dry penne. Still wonderful.

When making this dish, don't hesitate to substitute or add vegetables. Use this as an inspiration and make it your own!

Naschmarkt Pasta with Vegetable Sauce and Mozzarella

1 Tbsp. olive oil
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 yellow onion, thinly sliced
1 red pepper, thinly sliced
1 yellow pepper, thinly sliced
1 sm. zucchini, coined
12 oz. tomato sauce (marinara works well)
1/2 box penne, prepared al dente and drained
2 Tbsp. dried basil, plus some for garnish
1/2 ball buffalo mozzarella, or softest mozzarella available in your market

1. In medium pan, heat olive oil and garlic. Add onion, red and yellow peppers, and zucchini. Toss over medium-high heat to sautee, about four minutes.
2. In large pot, pour tomato sauce. Mix in 2 Tbsp. dried basil. Stir over medium-low heat until steaming slightly.
3. Once cooked, add vegetables to sauce pot. Stir thoroughly, coating all vegetables with sauce.
4. Add cooked pasta to pot, stir thoroughly.
5. Separate into two bowls. Place several spoonfuls of mozzarella (or slices, depending on consistency of the cheese) into each bowl. Garnish with extra dried basil.

Serves two hungry mouths.

Oooh yum. I want to make this again. If only I could get my husband to eat zucchini...

It's getting colder

To me, fall means soups! I admit that I make soups year-round; I will eat hot soup on the hottest day of the summer, if it strikes my fancy. I love soup! But I think that the general population might not agree with this type of behavior, and so I'll try to keep my soup blogs within cooler seasons.

The following is my recipe for vegetable soup. I normally add beef to this, however, the base recipe is completely vegetarian. Omit the beef and you're set.

Deliciously Basic Veggie Soup

8 c. water
4 cubes vegetable bullion (or suggested amt. in powder form, for 8c. water)
1/2 c. yellow onion, diced
1 Tbsp. minced garlic
2 Tbsp. margarine OR olive oil
4 medium red potatoes, cleaned and cut into 1-inch cubes
2 large carrots, peeled and coined
1/2 lb. fresh green beans, cleaned and snapped
1 lb. lean beef, cubed (optional)
1 Tbsp. chives
1 Tbsp. parsley
1 tsp. pepper

1. Heat water, add bullion, stir until dissolved. Set aside.
2. In large pot, heat butter or olive oil. Add onions and garlic, stir frequently until onions become slightly translucent and soft.
3. If using beef, brown beef cubes in medium skillet. Set aside.
4. Slowly pour vegetable bullion into the large pot. Stir. Add potatoes, carrots, and green beans. Bring to a slow boil.
5. Maintain soup at a slow boil for about 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, add beef cubes, stir.
6. Continue medium heat until vegetables are cooked through, usually about 15 or 20 minutes total time.
7. Add chives, parsley, and pepper. Stir well.
8. Remove from heat, allow to sit in pot for about 5 minutes.

Serve warm, with homemade bread if possible!

This version of the recipe will serve four people. When adjusting, the main things to consider are the amount of broth (I use exactly half when only two are eating), and the number of vegetables. Use more or less of any vegetable, to your liking.

I can prepare salmon!

Yes, I have been cooking. No, I don't put time aside in my day to blog, even when I have a new find that I want to share. For this reason, there will be a really fabulous recipe using bocconcini coming very soon, but you'll have to wait because I first want to share last night's success!

We purchased a new grill on labor day. The hand-down from my parents was thoughtful and helpful for a while, but after a year in the ever-changing climate of central Maryland, the thing is on its last legs. The new grill is amazing, and we got an amazing deal when we purchased it. (As if I'd buy something that wasn't an amazing deal. Psh!)

In an effort to make the purchase worth our while, I've been planning lots of grilled meals. When I chose the following recipe for salmon (which I, of course, have tweaked) I didn't look closely enough to realize that it was supposed to be prepared on the grill. Thank goodness that all worked out easily!

Now, I love seafood, and I love fish of many varieties. However, I've always avoided cooking with fish because it can spoil if not used immediately, and because it smells awful until it's done cooking. I finally decided that I can live the rest of my life NOT cooking fish, and missing out on a very healthy meal option, or I can just suck it up and try. The (very helpful) seafood counter attendant at our grocery store suggested a wild atlantic salmon, which happened to be on sale. Wild salmon has a very different color than farm-fed salmon. Think pale-pink versus, well, salmon.

Okay, you're getting tired of reading all of this. I'll cut to the cooking bit. Here's a VERY EASY recipe for grilled wild salmon. Even if you've never cooked fresh raw fish before, you can do this and not mess up. I promise.

Grilled Lemon-Basil Salmon

2 salmon fillets (fresh, uncooked)
1 Tbsp. margarine, melted
1 Tbsp. lemon juice
2 Tbsp. minced fresh basil, divided

1. Place salmon fillets, skin down, on a piece of heavy-duty (or doubled) tinfoil. Pull sides of tinfoil up to create a boat-like shape around salmon.
2. Mix melted margarine and lemon juice together. Add half of minced fresh basil to mixture, pour over salmon fillets.
3. Wrap tinfoil securely around salmon. Place on grill (400*F) for 12 minutes, flipping occasionally.
4. Cooking is finished when salmon flakes easily with fork. Garnish with the rest of the minced basil. Add salt or pepper to taste.


My meal plan: Grilled Lemon-Basil Salmon, Green Beans with Dill, and Grilled Potatoes

By the way, if anyone has a really great turkey burger recipe, I'd love to try it out.