Turmeric Pasta

An interesting recipe – turmeric pasta – from Sue Li in the New York Times. I think of turmeric as a typically Indian ingredient but it really works with pasta. I made a couple of changes to her recipe replacing butter with olive oil and heavy cream with ricotta. You can do it either way.

Ingredients:

• 1 lb. small pasta
• Olive oil for frying
• 1 small onion, thinly sliced
• 2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
• 1 ½ tsps. Turmeric
• 1 cup ricotta
• 1 cup Parmesan cheese
• 4 tbsp. chopped parsley

Start a pot of salted water to cook the pasta. Drain the pasta when done, reserving 2 cups of the pasta water.

Saute the onion and garlic in oil in a pot. When the onion is soft add the turmeric and stir it into the onions for about 30 seconds. Slowly whisk in the ricotta and bring to a simmer. Stir in the Parmesan and add enough of the pasta water (you may not need all of it) to thin to a sauce consistency. Add the cooked pasta and parsley, blend and serve with additional cheese.

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Red Pesto Pasta

This is adapted from a recipe in Bon Appétit.

Ingredients:

• 6 anchovies

• 3 smashed garlic cloves

• ¾ cup olive oil

• ½ cup raw walnuts

• 1 – 6 oz. can tomato paste

• ½ red bell pepper, sliced *

• 3 oz. Parmigiana cheese

• 2 oz. fresh lemon juice

• ½ tsp. salt

• 2 tbsps. butter, cut into pieces

• 1 lb. small pasta (ziti, penne, gemelli, etc.)

* If you like it spicy use red serranoes instead of a bell pepper.

Put a pot of salted water on the stove for the pasta. By the time the water boils and the pasta is cooked, the sauce will be ready.

Cook the anchovies, garlic, and walnuts in the oil until the garlic starts to color. Add the tomato paste and the sliced pepper and simmer for 10 minutes.

Let the mixture cool for a few minutes and scrape it into a food processor or blender. Add the cheese, lemon juice, and salt. Blend until smooth and pour the mixture into a heated serving bowl and add the butter.

When it’s done, add the pasta and ½ cup of the pasta cooking water to the bowl, more water if the sauce is too dry. Serve Red Pesto Pasta with Parmigiana cheese.

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Pasta Primavera

I’m pretty sure that Pasta Primavera is something that was made up in an Italian restaurant in America. My mother used to make pasta with various vegetables (broccoli, cauliflower, squash) as a type of minestra. Usually she used only one vegetable but if she felt like it, she’d use a variety of what was available. She never included cream and cheese was only added at the table. My mother called it ‘Pasta with Vegetables.’ I’ll call it ‘primavera’ – that means Spring.

Start a pot of salted boiling water that you’ll eventually use for the pasta. Boil the vegetables 1 or 2 at a time until almost tender and remove them to a bowl.

When the vegetables are done add some more salt to the boiling water and begin cooking the pasta. After cooking  the vegetables in that water it’s now like vegetable stock. While the pasta cooks in one pot, in a second pot sauté the garlic in the oil. Add some salt, black and red pepper and the parsley.

Add the cooked vegetables and toss to coat with the garlic, parsley and oil on low heat. When the pasta is almost done add it to the vegetables, mix and add 1 & 1/2 cups of pasta water and mix well. Place in a serving bowl, drizzle with some olive oil and serve with grated Parmigiana cheese on the side.

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