Quarantine Cooking

Recently there seems to have been a resurgence of 90s style email chains. But the only kind of chain email I would ever participate in would have to be food related. The text of one I received recently states the recipe you need to send to person in "spot #2" should be "something quick, easy and without rare ingredients.  Actually, the best one is the one you know in your head and can type right now or something you made this week." So naturally I took that advice as my central tenant and typed out the one dinner recipe I know from heart. It was something my mom cooked often when I was little, usually for times when another family came over for dinner and she needed to make something that would please both kids and adults. I remember calling my mom and asking for the recipe when I was a newly-wed and wanted to make it to serve to my cousins and their wives. (I made a double batch and there were no leftovers.) I've made it countless times since for my family. It is comforting, delicious, super easy, and super adaptable. 

The second recipe in my response email to the quarantine cooking exchange is one I've only just discovered. It comes via one of my favorite comfort-food bloggers of all time, Deb Pearlman at Smitten Kitchen, and she got it from Goop. It was a night when I didn't have much except rice and a few stray veggies in the frig, and I didn't expect much. But wow was I surprised! The sauce is beyond amazing. It turned a lack-luster, what-the-heck-can-we-eat night into one of the best meals of the month. 

So here are the two recipes I sent for the quarantine cooking exchange. I hope you and your families can enjoy them as well. Stay safe. Eat well. 

Bowties with Sausage and Cream

This is my go-to for a quick yet filling meal for the whole family. If you have picky eaters who don’t like spice you can omit the red chili pepper. If you don’t have heavy cream - don’t fret! It will taste good without it, but add in a little extra butter and/or a few teaspoons of sugar to taste. If you don’t have sweet italian sausage, any un-cooked sausage will work, and pre-cooked sausage could work in a pinch but you’d have to heat it up separately and add it in at the end. It’s easiest to use the kind of sausage meat that isn’t in actual sausage form, so that you don’t have to slit the sausages from their casings.

Pasta, any kind will work but bowties work best

1 lb sweet Italian sausage, uncooked (casings removed) 

1 28-oz jar crushed or whole tomatoes (if using whole, drain then chop)

¼ tsp red chili flakes (optional)

1 garlic clove, crushed or finely chopped (optional)

½ cup heavy whipping cream (or more if you want a creamier sauce)

Chopped parsley (optional)

Grated parmesan (optional)

Bring a large pot of water to boil and cook the pasta according to the package instructions.

While the pasta is cooking, make the sauce. Add a lug of oilive oil to a large saucepan over medium-high heat, and cook the sausage meat until lightly browned and cooked through, using a wooden spoon to break up the meat into little bits as it cooks. Add the garlic and red chili flakes and cook for 30 seconds, or until the garlic is fragrant. Add the tomatoes and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer gently for 10 minutes. Stir in the heavy cream and cook for an additional minute, or until heated through. Toss with the pasta and serve topped with the chopped parsley and parmesan.

Miso Sesame Dressing for Grain & Veggie Bowls
from: Smitten Kitchen

Roast any vegetables you have on hand, and layer them on top of greens and/or grains and top with this AMAZING sauce. Literally, SO GOOD. If you aren’t the kind of person who has white miso in their fridge at all times, well, now is a good time to become one, if only for this particular sauce! Trust me, you'll want to make it all the time.

1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger

1 small garlic clove, minced or pressed

2 tablespoons white miso

2 tablespoons tahini (other nut butters can work in a pinch)

1 tablespoon honey

1/4 cup rice vinegar

2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil

2 tablespoons olive oil

Put all ingredients in a blender or food processor and blitz till smooth. Throw sauce on top of your roast veg & green & grain bowl!