Tortellini with Pumpkin Alfredo Sauce

I love pumpkin. (See links below.) I love that in the fall you can find a pumpkin version of almost everything (especially at Trader Joe's). This Food Network recipe is a fun and easy twist on a classic. It's only subtly pumpkin-y. The original recipe calls for cheese tortellini, but I think a butternut squash or other type would be great as well.

Related recipes:
Milnot Pumpkin Pie
Pumpkin Spice Layer Cake with Caramel Cream Cheese Frosting
Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies
Pumpkin Whoopie Pies with White Chocolate Mascarpone Filling
Molasses Cookie and Pumpkin Ice Cream Sandwiches
(GF) Pumpkin Cheesecake

Tortellini with Pumpkin Alfredo Sauce

~Print Recipe~

•  Kosher salt
• 2 9-oz packages of cheese (or other flavor) tortellini
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
• 1 small shallot, finely chopped
• 1/2 cup pure pumpkin
• Pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
• 1 1/2 cups heavy cream
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese, plus more for topping
• Freshly ground pepper
• Chopped fresh parsley, for topping (optional)

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the tortellini and cook according to package directions. Reserve 1/2 cup cooking water, then drain the pasta.
2. In the meantime, heat the butter in a skillet over medium high heat. Add the shallot and cook, stirring, until slightly soft (about 2 minutes). Add the pumpkin and nutmeg and cook, stirring 1 minute. Stir in the cream and bring to a low boil.
3. Reduce the heat to medium low; simmer, stirring, until slightly thickened (about 5 minutes). Stir in the cheese and cook until thick, about 1 minute more. Season with salt and pepper to taste. (I found myself adding quite a bit.)
4. Add the tortellini to the skillet and toss with the sauce, adding some of the reserved cooking water to loosen, if needed. Divide among bowls and top with more cheese and  parsley. 

Serves 4

Kale Pesto

Oh Kale, you eluded me for so long, and I think we have finally come to terms. You are not quite in the 'love' category like your siblings brussels sprouts, broccoli and cabbage, but no longer in the hate category. Now we are going to introduce you to our son, and make him love you from the start.

What's in it
1/2 C kale, rinsed and chopped
1/4 C basil, rinsed
1/2 C walnuts
1 clove garlic
salt
1/2 C grated parmesan cheese
1/2 C olive oil

How it's made
Boil a pot of water, and add kale to cook for 2 minutes. Meanwhile prepare an ice water bath, and submerge cooked kale in water bath to stop the cooking. Drain and squeeze out any excess water.

In a food processor, chop garlic. Then add kale, basil, walnuts and cheese. Pulse until combined and well pureed. Gradually add olive oil while food processor is running. Combine well, and add more olive oil if necessary. Store in airtight container in fridge (add a thin layer of oil to the top to preserve color) or freeze.

Enjoy on pasta, pizza, quinoa burgers, chicken sandwiches...

Easy Garbanzo and Sausage Stew

     It may be warm and sunny where you are, but it is--surprise-- cold and rainy here in Portland. A hearty stew still sounded good a few nights ago.

     I had garbanzo beans and I wanted to use them. I searched, I googled, and most of the recipes I found called for lemon. Well, I didn't have a lemon and I didn't feel like going out into  the cold, rainy dusk to get some. So I kept on searching.

     What I ended up finding is the inspiration for this stew. It reminds me quite a bit of gumbo, with chickpeas instead of rice. It has the roux, it has the sausage. It is delicious. Velvety, hot and savory. If you are in the Pacific Northwest, you might give this a try soon. If you happen to be in a very strange heatwave (like a lot of the country), maybe save this recipe for next fall or winter. You will be glad you did.

Garbanzo and Sausage Stew

~Print Recipe~

• 1 tablespoon, plus 1/4 cup olive oil
• 2 links andouille sausage, chopped
• 1 whole white onion, chopped
• 1 orange, yellow or red bell pepper, chopped
• 5 garlic cloves, minced or pressed
• 1/2 cup flour
• 1 can (14.5 ounces) diced, fire roasted tomatoes
• 4 cups low sodium chicken broth
• 2 teaspoons dried basil, or to taste
• 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning. or to taste,
• 2 teaspoons crushed red pepper flakes, or to taste
• salt and pepper to taste
• 2 cans of garbanzo beans
• 1/2 cup orzo, or other pasta
• 2 cups baby spinach, torn

1.  Heat oil over medium-high heat. Add sausage and brown. Remove sausage, draining any oil back into the pot. Set aside.
2. Add remaining 1/4 cup of oil. Turn heat to medium. Add onions and bell pepper to oil and cook until onion is translucent. Add minced garlic and cook a couple of minutes more.
3. Reduce heat to medium-low. Sprinkle flour all over and stir until the mixture becomes paste-like and a light golden brown. Gradually add the tomatoes, stirring to combine. Add the chicken stock and stir. Turn heat up to medium, bringing the stew to a simmer. Cook, stirring frequently, until the mixture is thick and smooth.
4. Stir in the basil, Italian seasoning, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper. Stir in sausage. Cook over low heat for an hour or two, until the flavors have a chance to combine. Add garbanzo beans and stir. 
5. About 10 minutes before you plan to eat, return stew to a simmer and stir in orzo. 5 minutes before eating, add torn spinach leaves. Adjust seasonings, stir well and enjoy!

Serves 4-6

Orecchiette with Sausage and Roasted Peppers

Ok, here's another one adapted from the Great Food Fast book from Everyday Food. Apparently they really do have a lot of good recipes, although this actually asks you to roast your own peppers---not something I would consider particularly fast. (And when I say fast, I'm thinking along the lines of black bean tacos--open a can of beans, heat some tortillas, add cheese and salsa....)

Anyway, I'd never actually roasted my own bell peppers, so this was a fun experiment. It is incredibly easy (if not exactly quick) and I would recommend it to anyone. Roasted peppers have such a wonderful flavor! I feel like they would be a good addition to just about anything. AND it just sounds fancy. I think you will impress people (or at least people who've not roasted their own peppers before).

The onions and ricotta are my own additions. I made a pasta recipe that called for ricotta cheese recently, so I had it in the fridge. I've been adding it to all of my pasta dishes now, and it's such an easy (and low calorie) way to make any sauce creamy! And, as far as I'm concerned, creamy is almost always better than not creamy. Give it a try---be creative!

Also, orecchiette (or-reh-key-EH-tay) is my new favorite pasta. (The shape! They way they hold the sauce!) I've been hoarding recipes that call for it. I didn't see them available at my local supermarket, but I found some (organic and really expensive) at Whole Foods.

Orecchiette with Sausage and Roasted Peppers
~PRINT RECIPE~

• 2 medium red bell peppers, four flat sides sliced off core, ribs and seeds discarded
• 2 medium yellow bell peppers, prepped the same way
• Course sat and fresh ground pepper
• 1 pound orecchiette (as you can see in my picture, I actually ran out this time and subbed some other small pasta)
• 3 teaspoons olive oil
• 1 onion, chopped (about 2 cups)
• 1 pound Italian sweet sausage, removed from casings
• 1 tablespoon butter, cut into small pieces
• 1/2 cup low-fat (or reg.) ricotta cheese
  
• 1/3 cup Parmesan cheese

1. Heat the broiler. Place the peppers, skin side up, on a foil-lined baking sheet. Broil 4 inches from heat until charred--about 18 to 20 minutes. Transfer to a large bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Steam for 2 to 3 minutes. Reserve the juices in the bowl. Using a paper towel, rub off skins. (I just used my fingers to pull the skins off.) Thinly slice the peppers crosswise into 1/4-inch strips. Return to bowl and set aside.
2. Meanwhile, heat 2 teaspoons oil in a large skillet. Saute onions, stirring occasionally, until they begin to caramelize.
   
3. At the same time, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook pasta until al dente, according to the package instructions. Reserve a 1/2 cup of the pasta water then drain pasta.
   
4. Add the sausage and remaining oil to the skillet with the onions. Cook over medium heat, breaking sausage up with a spoon, until browned--7 to 10 minutes. Add the roasted peppers and cook until heated through.
5. Transfer the sausage mixture to a large bowl. Add the pasta, butter, reserved pasta water, ricotta and Parmesan. Season with salt and pepper. Toss to combine. Top with grated Parmesan and serve immediately.
   

Fettucine with Crispy Garlic, Sage and Sausage

Whenever I see a recipe I want, I cut it out and paste it in a notebook. I started doing this years ago and now I've nearly filled it up. It's not organized in any way, but I've memorized the order of the recipes from flipping through them so many times. When I need to make something, I scan through all of the recipes until I find a few that sound good. Usually I need someone else to help me make the final decision.

This is a recipe I clipped from Bon Appetit awhile ago that kept catching my eye. The first couple of times I saw it, I ended up making something else, but this one wouldn't let me go until I made it. It was rich and delicious--and a welcome departure from our default tomato sauce pasta.

• 3/4 pound egg fettuccine (we couldn't find egg fettucine, so we used another egg pasta)
  
• 2 tablespoons butter, divided
• 1/4 cup olive oil (less would be fine)
  
• 8 garlic cloves, peeled, thinly sliced (Definitely consider using way more if you like garlic)
  
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh sage
• 1 pound sweet Italian turkey sausages, casings removed (we substituted cooked spicy Italian sausage and it was delicious)
  
• 1/4 teaspoon dried crushed red pepper (optional)
• 1 cup (approx. 3 ounces) grated Asiago cheese (maybe more)

1. Boil your pasta in a large pot of lightly salted water according to manufacturer's instructions.
2. Meanwhile, melt 1 tablespoon butter with oil in a large, heavy skillet over medium heat. Add garlic slices and saute until they've achieved desired crispy golden deliciousness (about 45 seconds to a minute). Using a slotted spoon, remove garlic and set aside.
3. Increase heat to medium high. Add the sage and stir until beginning to crisp-around 10 seconds (although a little longer/crispier would be good, too). Add sausage and saute until browned/crispy in spots.
4. Drain pasta and add to the skillet with sage and sausage. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon of butter. Sprinkle with crushed red peppers and season to taste with salt and pepper. Toss the pasta to mix all ingredients.
5. Serve topped with crispy garlic and grated asiago cheese. (We actually mixed some of the cheese into the pasta while it was still in the skillet, so it melted in. Tasty!)
   

Giada's Pasta with Shrimp and Herbed Cream Sauce

Maybe the thing I love the most about going to the gym is the fact that on each elliptical trainer there is an individual TV screen that allows me to watch cable television. (I don't have a TV, so it's sort of a big deal.) The only thing that is exciting about that is, of course, The Food Network. I'm in love with a number of their shows. I also hate a few of them, including Paula Deen's ridiculously gross and fattening show (whatever it's called), and Semi-Homemade Cooking with Sandra Lee. (I find her "tablescapes" particularly annoying.

I do enjoy a good Iron Chef episode, a little Rachel Ray from time to time and even The Ace of Cakes. Recently, I've been paying more attention to The Barefoot Contessa (Ina Garten) and some show with a guy named Guy. But, the show that really captures my attention is Everyday Italian with Giada De Laurentiis. Or maybe it's the cleavage that gets my attention, I don't know.

On Monday, I saw an episode of Giada at Home in which she made a shrimp pasta with an herbed cream sauce. I wanted to make it. So, I did. I liked it and so I am posting it here. I halved her recipe (which fed two people generously) and cut a few corners...

• 1/2 pound penne pasta (I use whole wheat, because why not?)
  
• 1/8 cup olive oil
• 1/2 pound medium, peeled, and deveined shrimp (I used pre-cooked from the butcher counter at Safeway-- only $3.50 at $6.99 a pound)
  
• 2 cloves garlic, minced (I keep Trader Joe's in my fridge, because I don't have time for chopping garlic)
  
• 1/4 teaspoon salt (I didn't really measure)
  
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper (Again, to taste. Why measure?)
  
• 1 /2 (15-ounce) can whole tomatoes, drained, roughly chopped
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil leaves (In the summer I'd have fresh, but I just added a little dried basil this time)
  
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley (99 cents at Safeway)
  
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (to taste)
  
• 1/2 cup white wine
• 1/6 cup clam juice
• 3/8 cup heavy whipping cream
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan

1. Boil your pasta until it's al dente, then drain and set aside. I did this concurrently with the rest of the cooking.
2. Heat a large skillet with the olive oil on medium-high. Add the shrimp, garlic, salt and pepper. Giada says to cook the shrimp for about 3 minutes until they are pink and done, but mine were pre-cooked, so I just pan fried them for a quick second until they were coated with garlic.
3. With a slotted spoon, fish out the shrimp and set aside.
4. Add the tomatoes, basil, parsley and red pepper flakes to your hot pan. (I put a little dried oregano, too.) Cook for 2 minutes, stiring constantly. Throw in your wine, clam juice and the heavy cream. Let the mixture boil, then turn down to a medium-low simmer. Cook 7-8 minutes, until the sauce thickens up nicely.
5. Add your cooked pasta to the pan. Then add the grated parmesan cheese. Though she didn't do it in this recipe, Giada says that adding the pasta then the cheese allows the cheese to melt/stick to the pasta, which then helps the sauce stick to the pasta. I think that's a good idea, so I used that method in this recipe, even though she didn't.
   
6. Add the shrimp to the pan and stir to coat. You may want to add more salt and pepper to taste.
7. Sprinkle with more grated parmesan cheese and serve immediately!