Two Pea Pasta With Ricotta & Tarragon

coarse salt and ground pepper
12oz gemelli or other short pasta
12oz sugar snap peas, stem ends removed (and, if necessary, strings)
1 pkg (10oz) frozen peas
2 Tbs butter
2 Tbs chopped fresh tarragon, plus more for garnish (optional)
1 cup part-skim ricotta cheese

1) In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook pasta 3 minutes less than al dente. Add snap peas; cook 2 minutes, add peas, and cook 1 minute more. Reserve 1/2 cup pasta water; drain pasta and vegetables, and return to pot.
2) Toss pasta and vegetables with butter, tarragon, and ricotta, adding a little reserved pasta water as needed to create a thin sauce that coats pasta; season with salt and pepper.
3) Divide pasta among four serving bowls, and garnish with tarragon, if desired. Serve immediately.

Review: This dish was mostly peas, and light on the pasta. My bag of peas were 12oz and I didn’t want to toss 2oz of peas back in the freezer. I also used 15oz of ricotta, since there was so much food. It made a lot of food and was filling. However, I’ve decided I really don’t like tarragon. It makes things taste sweet and perfumey. This dish was too sweet and I wasn’t a big fan. Mike liked it, however, and I believe most people will.

Lasagna Primavera

1/4 cup olive oil, plus more for foil
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2 garlic cloves, minced
6 cups whole milk
2 pkgs (10oz each) frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
1 pkg (10oz) frozen peas
1/2 lb carrots (4 to 5), halved lengthwise and thinly sliced
Coarse salt and ground pepper
1 container (15oz) part-skim ricotta
1 large egg
1 pkg (9oz) no-boil lasagna noodles (12 to 16 noodles)
1 lb part-skim mozzarella, shredded
1 cup grated Parmesan

1) Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a large saucepan, heat oil over medium; add flour and garlic. Cook, stirring constantly, 2 to 3 minutes (do not let flour mixture darken); whisk in milk. Bring to a boil; reduce to a simmer, and cook, whisking occasionally, until thickened, 3 to 5 minutes. Add spinach, peas, and carrots; season with salt and pepper. Set sauce aside.
2) In a medium bowl, combine ricotta, egg, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and teaspoon pepper.
3) In the bottom of a 9-by-13-inch baking dish, spread a thin layer of vegetable sauce. Layer noodles, half the remaining vegetable sauce, another noodles, half the ricotta mixture, half the mozzarella, and half the Parmesan; repeat.
4) Cover dish with lightly oiled aluminum foil, and place on a large rimmed baking sheet. Bake 45 minutes, uncover, and bake until bubbling and browned, about 20 minutes more. Let cool 10 to 15 minutes before serving.

Review: I hate frozen spinach, so I used the big package of baby spinach that’s found at Costco. I think we buy one of those every week! I think it may have been too much, as my deep lasagna pan was filled to the top. Which meant it bubbled over something fierce the entire time it cooked. Oh, the house stunk from the smell of burning primavera sauce. Gross. The lasagna was super yummy and rich, which made up for the smell. And we were able to freeze some portions for lunches on the rare days when we don’t have leftovers. Ah, now off to scrub the oven. Thank goodness I discovered the awesomeness of Bon Ami today. :)

Updates

There will be few blog posts this week, as I’m revisiting old favorites. Yum!

Also, I had a busy day planting my garden. Hopefully I’ll have more success this year, as I learned from last year’s mistakes, and I started the garden earlier in the season. So what am I growing?

Ozark Beauty Strawberries (leftover from last year, I should have fruit this year!)
Black Beauty Zucchini (an heirloom)
Golden Squash Zucchini
Red Bell Pepper (thank goodness, these are $2-3 a piece at the grocery store!)
German Johnson Tomatoes (an heirloom & it's pink)
Sweet Basil
Gerbera Daisy (leftover from last year, thanks Kim!)
Janik Morning Glories (my nieces’ gift just keeps on giving) =)

And, of course, I still need to start a container of cat grass and I have lots of catnip growing in the bathroom. Also, my garden is still organic and in containers. It’s an interesting garden, but it’s a fun way to help out the grocery bill.

Cucumber, Radish & Watercress Sandwiches With Truffled Goat Cheese

9oz soft fresh goat cheese
1/2 cup chopped watercress
1 tsp truffle oil
12 very thin slices white bread
1 bunch radishes, very thinly sliced
1/2 English cucumber, peeled, thinly sliced

1) Blend goat cheese, watercress, and truffle oil in processor until just combined. Season with salt and pepper. Place bread slices on work surface. Spread each with goat cheese mixture, dividing equally. Set aside 24 radish slices for garnish. Top 6 bread slices with cucumber slices, then remaining radish slices. Sprinkle with pepper. Top with remaining bread slices, cheese side down. (Can be made 2 hours ahead. Wrap individually in paper towels; chill.)
2) Trim sandwich crusts. Cut each sandwich into 4 squares. Transfer to platter. Top each with 1 radish slice and serve.

Review: I made this a little differently. Instead of actually making sandwiches, I sliced up a baguette and topped it with the cheese mixture, then cucumber, then radish. They were a big hit at my tea party today. :)

Chickpea & Feta Salad

2 Tbs lemon juice
1 Tbs olive oil
1/2 cup minced leek (white part only) or red onion
2 cups baby spinach leaves
2 cups cooked chickpeas, or 1 15-oz can, rinsed and drained
2 medium carrots, grated
1/2 red bell pepper, finely diced
1/4 cup toasted sunflower seeds
2 heads romaine lettuce, cut into 1/2 inch thick ribbons
1 15oz can diced tomatoes, drained, optional
1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese
Balsamic vinegar, for drizzling

1) Whisk together lemon juice and oil in bowl. Stir in leek, and season with salt and pepper, if desired. Set aside.
2) Roll 7 or 8 spinach leaves into tight cylinder, then slice into thin strips. Repeat with remaining spinach leaves.
3) Combine spinach, chickpeas, carrots, bell pepper and sunflower seeds in large bowl. Stir in leek mixture, and toss to coat. Season with salt and pepper, if desired.
4) Divide romaine among 8 plates, top with chickpea salad and arrange tomatoes around salad, if using. Garnish each serving with 1 Tbs feta, and drizzle with balsamic vinegar.

Review: I tweaked this recipe. I left out the lemon juice, but substituted Balsamic vinegar. That was yummy and didn’t have the acidic feel that lemon juice has. I also left out all the greens, so that I could store the salad in the fridge. The recommendations said to eat the salad the day it’s made, or the spinach would wilt and get soggy. Well, I like having leftovers, so I had one container for the “salad” and poured it over baby spinach and mixed greens right before eating. Yum, and I have leftovers!

Spring Pea-sto With Penne

salt
1 lb penne pasta
1 pkg frozen peas, defrosted
1/4 cup lightly toasted pine nuts
1 cup packed basil leaves
6 to 8 sprigs fresh tarragon, leaves stripped
1/2 cup grated Parmigiano, plus more for serving
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
freshly ground black pepper

1) Bring a large pot of water up to a boil then season water with salt and cook penne to al dente. Heads up: you will need to reserve 1 or 2 ladles of starchy cooking water, 1/2 to 3/4 cup, before draining the pasta.
2) Place 1/2 of the peas in the bottom of a large serving dish. Place the rest of the peas in a food processor with the pine nuts, basil, tarragon leaves, cheese and olive oil. Add a little salt and pepper, then process the pesto into rough paste, adjust seasonings.
3) Pour starchy water over peas in bowl then add pesto. Pour hot, drained pasta over the pesto and toss vigorously to coat and combine. Adjust seasoning and serve, passing extra cheese at the table.

Review: I never have time to defrost my frozen veggies. So, after I toasted the pine nuts, I tossed the peas into the warm skillet and they defrosted pretty quickly! This was so yummy, I couldn’t believe it. It had the traditional pesto taste, but the added sweetness of the peas was a welcome addition. I’ll definitely make this again!

Fettuccine With Lima Beans, Peas & Leeks

12oz fettuccine
1 10oz package frozen lima beans
1 cup frozen peas
2 Tbs olive oil
2 leeks (white and light green parts), cut into half-moons
kosher salt and black pepper
3/4 cup heavy cream
2 Tbs chopped fresh tarragon
1/4 cup grated pecorino or Parmesan

1) Cook the pasta according to the package directions, adding the beans and peas during the last two minutes of cooking. Drain.
2) Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the leeks and season with 1/2 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until tender (but not brown), 8 to 10 minutes. Add the cream and cook until slightly thickened, 3 to 4 minutes.
3) Add the pasta and tarragon to the skillet and toss to combine. Sprinkle with the cheese before serving.

Review: This wasn’t anything spectacular, but it was yummy and filling. I’ve been using leeks more often, but I hate cleaning them. There’s always dirt between the layers and it’s just a pain to make sure every last bit of dirt is gone. Yuck.