TMT - Penne with Spinach and Ricotta

My first Thirty Minute Thursday post!  I decided to join the group yesterday.  Today I looked in the refrigerator and didn't see much.  I have been stuck at home for most of the week because of construction and the larder was quite bare.  There was some frozen spinach in the freezer, so I looked up spinach in the index of Giuliano's Hazan's Thirty Minute Pasta and found Penne with Spinach and Ricotta.  I had some ricotta left over from the cannelloni I recently made for Cooking Italy - bingo!

A simple recipe - saute diced onion in a little butter, added chopped spinach and cook about 5 minutes.  Add the ricotta, a little heavy cream, some nutmeg and S&P.  Add spinach sauce to cooked penne, toss with a little parmigiana cheese and enjoy!

Okay, that's how it's supposed to go.  I added about twice as much spinach as called for, well, just because we like spinach!  As you can see in my photo, no penne, so I had to make do with rotelli pasta.  I must also confess, I did not have heavy cream.  So as a workable substitute, I made a quick little bechamel, with a pat of butter, a tbs. of flour and 1/2 c. non-fat milk.  We never missed the cream and probably won the cholesterol toss up between the pat of butter and the heavy cream. 

There you have it, a wonderful meal in about 30 minutes.  My husband and I both enjoyed this - he even suggested adding some pignoli nuts next time - great idea!

Cooking Italy! Chicken Fricassee with Porcini Mushrooms, White Wine and Tomatoes

This was a simple dish to make, with few ingredients, but delicious results.  The recipe called for a whole chicken, cut into quarters; I used breast quarters instead.  The dried porcini mushrooms were not inexpensive, but the sauce and taste were fabulous, so you get what you pay for.  Simple roasted potatoes and a green salad went well with this earthy dish.  We all enjoyed this meal, even my son who is not a fan of mushrooms.

Below is an adaptation of the recipe, found on p. 332 of Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking.  I would advise getting the book, as I give only bare basics!  All you need are:
chicken, cut in quarters
S&P
1/2 c. dry white wine
1 oz. dried porcini mushrooms
1/4 c. canned imported Italian plum tomatoes, coarsely chopped, with juice
1 tbs. butter

1. Soak the mushrooms in 2 c. tepid water for 30 minutes.  Reserve the water, remove the mushrooms, rinse them well and chop coarsely.  Filter the reserved water through a strainer lined with a paper towel.
2. Saute the chicken pieces on both sides until browned.  Add S&P and the wine and scrape the pan.
3. Add the mushrooms, filtered water and tomatoes.  Cook for about 50 minutes, turning the pieces occasionally, until chicken is tender. 
4. Remove the chicken to a platter, reduce the sauce if necessary, then swirl in the butter and pour over chicken. 

Buon appetito!

Cooking Italy! - A Farm Wife's Fresh Pear Tart

I am enjoying a small slice of Pear Tart for breakfast, as I write.  And why not?  It is mostly fruit, held together with a bit of tart dough.  With so little dough, the wonderful taste of pear really shines through.  Although the tart dough I am used to tends to be crisper and more tender than this recipe, I think it would have been too brittle to hold all the pears slices together.  Although the recipe calls for 2 pounds of pears, I used about 1 - 1/2 pounds - more than that and I don't think there would have been enough batter to hold it all together.

The recipe called for studding the tart with about a dozen cloves - I used eight, but would probably use more next time.  We like cloves!  I would also add some cinnamon to the batter, or perhaps sprinkle some on top, next time I make this.  Being of Greek descent, these are both spices that come very naturally to me.

For an adaptation of Hazan's recipe please visit my friend Sue's post.  She is a yoga instructor in Christchurch, New Zealand and has recently been through a horrific earthquake that will take them years to recover from.  I continue to send prayers and good karma their way.