Tag Archives: pasta

Cooking, Food, Kids

Creamy Spaghetti Carbonara from Scratch

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My foolproof creamy Spaghetti Carbonara from scratch.

I had started out thinking this would be another “She’s Killing Me” story; it certainly qualified but this pasta dish turned out so well that it’ll just be another cooking story.  Well, not completely.

But it’s my creamy Spaghetti Carbonara.

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The kids were in Japan for over three weeks and landed at LAX at night on August 17th.  In short, the ex insisted on picking them up and keeping them for a few days.  But she decided it would behoove her to bring them to my house so she changed the schedule at 3 pm the next day.  They were dropped off at my house at 5:30 pm.  Of course, she had selfish reasons and yes, they were in la-la land from jet lag.  They slept for the most part for the first couple of days.

Seriously, I had mentioned to the kids they should have some kids over since school begins August 31st.  Jack just wanted to stay home but my Little Cake Boss Brooke…  That’s a whole ‘nuther story.

All week, between snoozes, she was asking if I would take her and her friends shopping.

“Sure but DON’T make it last minute, OK?” said I.

Just like the previous two times…  Wednesday, no plans.  Thursday, no plans.  Friday, no plans…  Then Saturday, at 3:30 pm, she says, “Can ‘J’ come over?”

I never learn.  “Sure,” I hesitatingly replied.

“…Can sheeee… eat with us,” she cunningly asked.  Never mind I had gone to the supermarket already for just the three of us.

“Oookay” I replied even more hesitatingly.

Then the whammy: “…Can sheeeeeeeee… sleepover?”

Arrrgghhh.

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So I decided to make Spaghetti Carbonara – for the first time.  I thought her friend J would give some feedback if I asked her.  So I went to Cook’s Illustrated… and the pasta dish turned out excellent if I say so myself.

The ingredients are simple and I had them in the fridge already – except for the Pecorino.  Yes, because of my Little Cake Boss, I had to make another run to the supermarket just for the cheese.  Well, actually two since the first place didn’t carry it:

  • 8 slices bacon, cut into 1/2-inch pieces (They’re easier to slice up if you freeze them for a bit.)
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 3 garlic cloves, minced
  • 2 1/2 ounces Pecorino Romano, grated (1 1/4 cups)
  • 3 large eggs plus 1 large yolk
  • 1 teaspoon pepper
  • 1 pound spaghetti
  • 1 teaspoon salt

Putting it all together was a snap; their instructions are:

1. Bring bacon and water to simmer in 10-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat; cook until water evaporates and bacon begins to sizzle, about 8 minutes. Reduce heat to medium-low and continue to cook until fat renders and bacon browns, 5 to 8 minutes longer.

Doing it in the above manner allows the bacon to remain chewy for the carbonara and not crisp up:

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With the water added to the bacon.
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Water’s nearly evaporated, right around eight minutes. A snap!
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Near the end of the cooking cycle. The bacon turned out as advertised! Chewy yet done and substantial.

2. Add garlic and cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Strain bacon mixture through fine-mesh strainer set in bowl.  Set aside bacon mixture.  Measure out 1 tablespoon fat and place in medium bowl.  Whisk Pecorino, eggs and yolk, and pepper into fat until combined.

3. Meanwhile, bring 2 quarts water to boil in Dutch oven. (You use less water than normal for this dish to insure the water you will add to the sauce is real starchy.)  Set colander in large bowl.  Add spaghetti and salt to pot; cook, stirring frequently, until al dente.  Drain spaghetti in colander set in bowl, reserving cooking water.  Pour 1 cup cooking water into liquid measuring cup and discard remainder. Return spaghetti to now-empty bowl.

4. Slowly whisk ½ cup reserved cooking water into Pecorino mixture. Gradually pour Pecorino mixture over spaghetti, tossing to coat. Add bacon mixture and toss to combine. Let spaghetti rest, tossing frequently, until sauce has thickened slightly and coats spaghetti, 2 to 4 minutes, adjusting consistency with remaining reserved cooking water if needed. Serve immediately.

Voila!

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Spaghetti Carbonara, creamy and full of flavor – and not heavy!

Most of all, happy faces!

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The Little (and cunning) Little Cake Boss and her classmate friend “J”.

So give this easy and delicious dish a shot.

Someone will love it!
And by the way, they were up until 4 am.  Let me ask you moms: Why do you even call it a sleepover??!
America, Cooking, Kids

Italian Sausage Pasta with Spinach

39 Comments

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My Italian Sausage Pasta with spinach.

So a number of months ago, my kids asked of me the unthinkable – again: “Papa, can you make something different?”

Jiminy Crickets.  How can 12 and 13 year old kids want something different, especially when one likes cheese only pizza and the other only pepperoni?  Trying to make something BOTH will like?  Why couldn’t they be satisfied with my culinary masterpieces (LOL) like:

  • Fettucine Alfredo with Prosciutto
  • Shepherd’s Pie
  • Spaghetti al Limone
  • Gyoza (potstickers)
  • Ma-bo Dofu (Szechuan Tofu)
  • Ham with Homemade Honey Glaze and Scalloped Potatoes
  • Enchiladas
  • CPK’s Pesto Creme Penne Pasta
  • Croquettes (コロッケ)
  • Chicken Katsu
  • Beef Teriyaki with Homemade Teriyaki Sauce
  • Spaghetti and Homemade Meatballs
  • Wilted Spinach Salad
  • Grilled Chicken with Lemon and Chive Pan Sauce
  • Burritos
  • Etc?

Let’s not even address breakfast, like my buttermilk pancakes or waffles from scratch even on school days.  Well, I didn’t milk the cow nor grew the wheat that makes the (King Arthur) flour.  I need to be honest about that.

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So I went to my trusted source.  No, not Cook’s Illustrated.  This time, my oldest daughter Robyn, who’s become quite an accomplished cook herself (She got that from me.).

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My oldest daughter’s prime rib. Yum!

I forgot from which site the recipe came from, but as soon as I said to my kids, “Robyn has a new recipe for pasta,” they said OK!

That’s the magic word, you know.  “Robyn”.  It’s never my saying I’ll make something new.

But this recipe (with a couple of modifications) is ideal for a dutch oven… and it’s easy!

  • 3/4 pound pasta
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 pound mild or spicy Italian sausage
  • 1 onion, chopped
  • 4 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 (14.5 ounce) can Swanson chicken broth
  • Fresh basil chiffonade (to your liking but I use about two stalks of fresh leaves)
  • 1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes
  • 1/2 bag fresh spinach
  • 1/2 cup grated Parmesan Reggiano cheese

Cooking:

  1. Heat a skillet (or Dutch oven)
  2. Add olive oil
  3. Brown onion until transparent
  4. Add Italian sausage.  Crumble and cook until pink is almost gone
  5. Add garlic and stir until fragrant, about 30 seconds
  6. Add broth, basil and tomatoes with liquid
  7. Cook over medium heat for 5 minutes to slightly reduce. Add chopped spinach and fresh basil
  8. Cover skillet and simmer on reduced heat until spinach is tender.

In meantime, aggressively boil your pasta (I like to use Penne or Ziti) until al dente.  Drain.

Add pasta to skillet and mix together. Sprinkle with cheese and serve immediately.

Done!

And you know what?  The kids liked it…because it was Robyn’s recipe.

Cooking, Family, Kids

Homemade Meatballs and Spaghetti Sauce

36 Comments

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I wanted to take a better picture but this was all the spaghetti that was left after we ate.

You must all be wondering.

What is a third generation Japanese-American doing trying to make Italian meatballs?

It’s as if you saw John Wayne behind the sushi counter asking if you want yellow tail or halibut.

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Well, the schedule has my kids staying this week for Spring Break…and they are bored.  They are so bored, they again asked, “What are we having for dinner tonight?  The same stuff, Papa?”

Egads.

Made them my killer (but now boring) Fettucine Alfredo with prosciutto and green peas Monday night and beef stroganoff yesterday night (with Jack removing every last mushroom from his plate).

From scratch.  None of this sauce out of a bottle or Hamburger Helper stuff.

So….  My son Jack seems to like meatballs for some reason.  He gets it at Subway and at this Italian restaurant in Belmont Shores.  The last time he did, I told him I’d make it.

So I did.

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Just wanted to throw in a random photo… but that pot does have the basil I keep growing for cooking use. When it’s growing good, I use it as a backdrop for my macro pics. BTW, its a picture of a picture of a picture…of chalk. 🙂

I had heard many horror stories about making meatballs.

They were hard like golf balls.

They were just round hamburgers.

So I went to my trusted cooking bible: Cook’s Illustrated.

Their recipes are the Triple T’s: tasty, tried and true and only (old) male buffoons like me can mess them up.  I’ve proven that.

But it turns out their secret ingredient was… buttermilk.  Crazy.  But it worked out wonderfully.  And you used only the egg yolk; using the whole egg does something to the texture, Cook’s Illustrated said.

The ingredients for the meatballs were:

  • 3/4 pound ground chuck (85/15 ground beef can be substituted)
  • 1/4 pound ground pork
  • 1/4 cup buttermilk
  • Two slices white bread (with the crusts cut off) cut into small cubes
  • 1/4 cup grated Parmesan Reggiano (my preference)
  • One minced garlic clove
  • Two tbsp minced parsley (I used the broad leaf Italian parsley to make up for my being Japanese-American)
  • One egg yolk
  • 3/4 tsp table salt
  • Pepper to taste

The ingredients for the spaghetti sauce were:

  • 28 oz can crushed tomatoes
  • One minced garlic
  • Olive oil
  • Salt, pepper
  • 2 tbsp minced basil
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My rolled meatballs. In hindsight, they should have been a bit bigger… and if you’re wondering what the cardboard egg carton is for, it’s a great (disposable) way to drain your fried foods.

For the meatballs:

  1. Soak the bread in the buttermilk for 10 minutes, crushing the bread occasionally to break it down.  Do not drain.
  2. Combine all the meatball ingredients in large bowl.  (I slice through the mixture using a fork to bring it all together rather than using my hand to mix it.  Keeps the mixture loose.)
  3. Form meatballs (without compressing) about 1-1/2 inches in diameter, rolling mixture in hands.  Set aside.  Complete for remaining mixture.
  4. Heat 1/4″ vegetable oil in 10″ skillet.  (I don’t recommend non-stick.)
  5. Carefully drop meatballs one by one into oil; they should sizzle.  If your skillet is big enough, you may be able to do them in one batch.
  6. Adjusting the flame, keep them sizzling while making sure ALL sides are browned.  Perhaps ten minutes. (I made the mistake of having the heat too high and the meatballs too small.)
  7. Drain.

For the spaghetti sauce:

  1. Drain the oil from the skillet.  Return to range.  Pat away most of the oil BUT leave all the yummy crusty stuff on the bottom.
  2. Heat then pour in about a couple tablespoons olive oil and garlic.  Scrape up all the crusties on the bottom as best you can. Do not burn garlic; no more than 30 seconds.
  3. Carefully pour in the crushed tomatoes.  Continue to scrape up remaining crusties then bring to boil.
  4. Turn down heat then simmer for about ten minutes, stirring occasionally.
  5. Add basil and meatballs then simmer for five more minutes.
  6. Adjust seasoning.

They suggested reserving a 1/4 cup of the pasta water.  After draining the al dente spaghetti¹ and returning it to the pot, add back the pasta water and a couple of ladles of the sauce.

Coat then portion out your spaghetti from the still warm pot onto dishes.  Pour a bit more sauce onto pasta, top with three meatballs.  Your kiddies can add Parmesan Reggiano to their liking.

Bon Appetit!

(No, I am not Julia Child.  You are sadly mistaken.)

Note 1: Use ample water; I use more than a gallon for a pound of pasta.  Also add one tablespoon salt immediately before adding pasta.  Stir to make sure they don’t stick together then cover to bring back to boil as soon as you can.  Uncover then rigorously boil for recommended time for al dente.

Cooking, Kids

CPK’s Pesto Creme Penne Pasta

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Waited too long to take a picture – the kids were hungry.

For many months now, my two littlest ones have been asking me “to make” California Pizza Kitchen’s (CPK) Pesto Creme Penne Pasta.

Although I’ve seen my Little Cake Boss eat it a couple of times, I never really looked at it; besides, the dimly lit interior rivals that of the Pirates of the Caribbean ride at Disneyland.  So the first time I made it, it was not what they expected; it was just plain ol’ pesto…but they ate it.  They always eat what I make…when they like it.

For my Little Cake Boss’ 12th birthday earlier this month, I took her friends to CPK.  This time, I looked at it real good and had a sample.  Well, let me tell you – “Pesto” should not have been the first word in this dish’s culinary description. 🙂

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The redness fades quickly… but why the city requires mulch for cactus and succulents is beyond reason. My back and knees wondered why, too.

Red Spike Succulent

Well, in between the birthday and the pasta, there was:

  1. Changing out my green lawn to a drought-tolerant yard (above),
  2. Trying to write a novel while investigating new facts about my Uncle Suetaro’s death in the Philippines in 1945,
  3. A paranoid aunt freaking out (big time) about a new cell phone she asked for,
  4. Big Bear Lake, and,
  5. A really messed up oil change at Walmart (which they promptly took care of),

but I dared to try this dish again.

I did start out with my pesto but for this attempt, I just cut down the amounts and used my Cuisinart Mini Coffee Grinder to process it.

The base was a variant of my Alfredo sauce:

  • Some olive oil
  • One garlic clove, pressed
  • Maybe a 1/4 to a 1/3 stick butter
  • About 2/3rds cup heavy cream

And

  • Maybe two BIG tablespoons of the pesto
  • Maybe a third to a half cup (?) of sun dried tomatoes
  • Half cup of shredded Parmesan Reggiano
  • Salt, pepper
  • Penne, al dente

Heated small sauce pan, dribbled in some olive oil then quickly warmed through the pressed garlic.  After maybe ten seconds (don’t want to burn the garlic), tossed in the butter until it melted, then added the cream.  Brought it up to good simmer (don’t boil), stirring often.  Lowered heat and continued on low simmer for ten minutes, stirring frequently.

Threw in the sun dried tomatoes and after a couple of minutes, added the pesto, Parmesan cheese, salt/pepper to taste, then poured it over the penne in a stainless steel bowl.  Mixed it up then sprinkled the plated pasta with more Parmesan.

Did the kids eat it?

Yes.

Did they think it was like CPK’s?

Nope.  They thought it was better.

Well, actually, as their provider of food, shelter and flu shots, I encouraged them to think that.

Cooking, Family, Food, Kids, Uncategorized

Spaghetti al Limone

16 Comments

IMG_7741Pasta al dente.

Man, who wouldn’t be salivating just reading those three little words.

Well, my kids did…not.

“Pasta?  Again, Papa?  Can we have something different…please?”

Kinda tough to hear when you’re a single dad pretending to be a miracle chef…

I’m sorry.  Cook, not chef.

And to find something that they both like?  Ha!

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To please my mollycoddled rug rats, I scoured my bible: “Cook’s Illustrated”.  In addition to the tried and true recipes of my bud and chef Cathy Thomas, Cook’s Illustrated is my go-to play book.  I think the Denver Broncos could have used one last weekend…a playbook, that is.

By sheer fortune, Cook’s Illustrated had what sounded to be a delectable pasta dish…  Spaghetti al limone.  And it sounded pretty light and (relatively) healthy to boot and it was a huge change from my man-kitchen pasta repertoire.  As an example, my from-scratch Alfredo sauce would make Fat Albert REAL happy.  It is laden with luscious butter, cream and Parmigiano-Reggiano.  The only healthy thing in it is the garlic and a dash of nutmeg.  But man, its to die for!  Oops.

So I gave Spaghetti al limone a shot…and the kids loved it!  Both of them.  Ye-haw!  Of course, garlic bread was a required accompaniment, making their smiles even bigger.

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In my attempt here, I should have used a bit more of the basil leaves; it surely would have added a bit more color and brightness.

For those interested, the ingredients are:

  • Salt
  • 1 pound spaghetti
  • 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil, plus more for serving
  • 1 medium shallot, minced (about 3 tablespoons)
  • 1/4 cup heavy cream
  • 1-1/2 cups reserved pasta cooking water
  • 2 teaspoons finely grated zest and 1/4 cup juice from 3 lemons
  • 1 ounce finely grated Parmesan cheese (about 1/2 cup), plus more for serving
  • Ground black pepper
  • 2 tablespoons shredded fresh basil leaves

(Note: For the lemon zest, I like the zester made by Microplane.  And be sure to use ONLY the yellow part of the peel and avoid the pith.)

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So whether or not you have kids to appease, engorge yourself on this pasta dish.  It’s a great cure if you’re feeling down.  Your palate will love it.

Yes.  It was that good.

And a US Marine blogger intimated that my food pictures he saw were “dated”…  meaning “Do I still cook”?

Well, he don’t get any.

That’ll teach him. 🙂