sprinklefingers

lately i’ve been spending some time meeting with purveyors of delicious foods. part of the fun of creating a new menu for work is that i have been able to explore various tasty treats - with the hopes of using them to concoct new baked goods. one of my favorite test foods of late? smoked cheese. 

now, don’t get me wrong, we eat a lot of smoked cheese at home - i love it with grits and a poached egg - but there’s something different about someone just showing up at your workplace with an enormous slab of mozzarella that they have custom-smoked for you. i honestly never knew that working with someone who owns a smokehouse could be so delicious. 

now, more details on my smokehouse relationship are coming soon (and really, the question is at this point: what CAN’T go in the smokehouse?) - but for the moment, i have a recipe to share:

whole wheat noodles with roasted vegetable sauce and smoked mozzarella

you can get your own smoked mozzarella at any good specialty foods store. can’t find it? mozzarella that hasn’t been smoked will make a fine substitute. 

you need:

• 4 medium squash - perhaps 2 zucchini and 2 yellow squash, cut into chunky half moons
• 2 pints of cherry (or other small variety) tomatoes, left whole
• 2 large cloves garlic, smashed and peeled
• salt 
• pepper
• italian seasoning or other dried herbs
• olive oil
• balsamic vinegar
• 12 oz whole wheat spaghetti noodles
• reserved pasta cooking water
• 8 oz smoked mozzarella, grated or shaved
• good handful parmesean-reggiano cheese, freshly grated

make the sauce:

1. preheat the oven to 425.
2. combine the squash, tomatoes, garlic, a hefty pinch of salt & pepper, a dash or two of dried herbs and a few good glugs of olive oil in a bowl. swish around to completely coat the vegetables in the olive oil. 
3. turn the vegetables out onto a sheet tray and slide into the oven. roast for 20-25 minutes or until the tomatoes have burst, everything is soft and the liquids from the vegetables are starting to make their own ‘sauce.’
4. meanwhile, cook the noodles in salted water. follow the package instructions, but before draining the noodles, reserve about 1 cup of the water. 
5. add the drained noodles back to the pot you cooked them in. to the noodles add the roasted vegetables and whatever ‘sauce’ they’ve created, a glug or two more of olive oil, and a few splashes of balsamic vinegar. stir
6. next, add the cheeses to the pot with the noodles and vegetables. splash in about 1/4 cup of the pasta water and stir. if the cheeses and vegetables still look a bit thick, stir in a bit more of the pasta water until it is a bit thinner.
7. taste your pasta - add salt & pepper or a bit more vinegar if you wish.
8. to serve: place a mound of noodles in a dish and top with the roasted vegetables that you fish out of the mixture. the noodles will be coated with the ‘sauce’ you’ve created out of the roasted vegetables and the melty cheeses combined with the pasta water. top each mound of pasta with shaved parm or shaved smoked mozzarella. i also like mine with another good splash of balsamic, but that’s just me. 

here’s to people who do awesome things with food!

hopefully you’re not tired of soup - because i have to say, i’m so soupy right now it’s not even funny.

in fact, i’m so soupy that this week, on ladies night, i served soup and cornbread instead of my usual nachos and champagne. what the what? exactly.

one of my favorite soup varieties is split pea. thick and hearty. especially delicious with lots of meat. and a giant slice of cornbread on the side. yum.

and because i’ve been busy lately i’ve been turning more and more to my slow cooker for help in getting dinner on the table before bedtime. split peas + slow cooker = soup perfection.

slow cooker split pea soup
serves 8

you need:

• 6-8 qt slow cooker
• 2 lb bulk italian pork sausage - mild or sweet or a mixture of both
• 4 carrots, chopped
• 3 stalks celery, chopped
• 1 medium onion, chopped fine
• 1 t thyme
• 1/2 t salt
• 1/2 t pepper
• 10 cups chicken stock
• 2 1/2 cups split peas, rinsed & picked over

to make the soup:

1. in a pan large enough to hold the sausage and vegetables, cook the sausage over medium heat until nearly cooked through.
2. add the carrot, celery and onion and cook until the onion is soft.
3. add the thyme, salt and pepper and cook for a few more minutes until thyme is fragrant.
4. remove the sausage mixture from the heat and pour it into your slow cooker. add the stock and split peas and stir to combine.
5. set the slow cooker to low and cook for 8 hours (or overnight.)
6. remove the lid of the slow cooker and stir the soup. the peas should be completely cooked, stir to evenly distribute them.
7. if the soup is thinner than you’d like, switch the slow cooker to high and cook a bit longer WITHOUT THE LID until it reaches your desired thickness.

this soup freezes like a dream and is just the thing to tuck away for a rain, cold day. simply scoop it into freezer containers, lable and freeze. defrost overnight in the fridge and reheat to serve.