SPAGHETTI WITH TOMATO SAUCE

 

Italians say pasta al pomodoro ( spaghetti /pasta/ with tomato sauce) is the best dish ever. It is a comfort food. I agree, I do. It is simple, not time consuming, yet one of the best dishes in Italy. Every bite gives you a balanced flavor and freshness which according to my opinion any kind of meal should have.

I am trying to teach my daughter what a good and healthy food is, in the process create a positive memory through food which I believe is incredibly powerful. Almost for every bodies comfort food is the one they are used to eat as a child. A food which has good memories with family, relatives and friends. A food that they would have any time of the day.

My favorite comfort food (as silly as it may sound) is a simple fresh home made bread with a flavorful tea. Now this might seem silly, like I said, but the memory that I have with it is incredibly amazing. I can still smell the fresh bread, the warmth of our house my mother’s lovely smile, my father, my sisters and my brothers all around enjoying our silly tea and bread. So I am trying to teach my daughter the value that a comfort food might have in a family.

The spaghetti sauce is hearty, with just the right thickness to top any kind of pasta. It’s not too acidic thanks to the sugar and a medley of herbs and is loaded with flavor. I like to garnish my plate with a bit of shaved Parmesan cheese, a sprinkle of chopped parsley and a few torn leaves of fresh basil. If you feel like it a dash of red pepper flakes on top of your pasta will give you a nice kick.

Ingredients

• 500 grams of dry spaghetti
• 1 red onion chopped finely
• 2 teaspoon chilly pepper flakes/ chilly powder
• 200 grams peeled tomatoes cut in to small pieces
• 300 gram tomato sauce
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1 fresh garlic finely chopped
• Freshly chopped parsley
• 3 basil leaves chopped and some more for decoration
• Good quality olive oil
• Pinch of salt
• Fresh grated cheese

Procedure

1. Salted boiling water for the pasta
2. Cook the onion with a little bit of oil until soft and transparent. It would take about 5-7 minutes
3. When the onion is cooked add the chilly pepper flakes/ chilly powder and mix well, If it tends to burn add a little bit of hot water, cook for another 5-7 minutes
4. Then add the peeled tomatoes and the tomato sauce. Cook over medium heat for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally
5. Cook the spaghetti al dente ( when it still has a bite to it)
6. Add the sugar, the garlic and the chopped basil leaves, stir well and leave to cook for another 3 minutes
7. Drain the pasta, add it directly to the delicious sauce ( a little bit of pasta water would make it even succulent) and mix together.
8. Still on the heat, put in some grated cheese mix again about a minute
9. Take out on your plate sprinkle some more cheese, basil leaves on top and a drizzle of olive oil. ENJOY

FRESH HOME MADE BREAD

Me and my daughter have made fresh bread at home for the first time. She has this cooking class she takes in school, so she has already baked bread. But at home it is the very first time and it’s her idea.

I am very happy with the result, and I would like to try with other kinds of flours. This could be my future project.

This is a basic white bread that bakes up deliciously golden brown. I enjoy the aroma of freshly baked homemade bread in my kitchen.

Ingredients

• 15 grams compressed yeast
• A little bit of warm water
• 300 grams water at room temperature
• 20 grams olive oil
• 10 grams white sugar
• 10 grams salt
• 800 grams ( 6 cups )of white flour 00 ( some for dusting )
•  A hand full of sesame seeds

Procedure

1. Prepare a big bowl
2. In another small bowl dissolve the yeast in a little bit of warm water and set aside
3. Mix the room temperature water with the rest of the ingredients,except the flour, in the big bowl that you have prepared earlier and mix well
4. Add a small amount of the flour at a time and mix using a hand mixer or an electric mixer
5. After putting in half of the flour incorporate also the dissolve yeast and continue adding the flour in small amounts until you finish it
6. Now incorporate with your hands, if the dough is sticking add a little bit of flour
7. Now take it out of the bowl.Put it on your work table and work on the dough until it is smooth and homogeneous about 10 minutes
8. Put the dough in the previous bowl coated with oil, cover with a damp cloth and put it where there is no draft for about two hours
9. After two hours, deflate the dough, form it on to your preferred shape/ size on your baking tray, sprinkle some of the sesame seeds over, cover it with a damp cloth and let it rest again for an hour.
10. Heat the oven to 200 degree Celsius 395 degree Fahrenheit
11. When the dough run its course bake it in a preheated oven for 35-40 minutes or until you knock the bottom of the bread with your hand and hear a hollow sound.
12. Let it cool down and ENJOY it how ever you desire.

 

COLD PASTA SALAD

Here in Trento, at times the temperature is as high as 35-38 degree Celsius ( 95-100 degree Fahrenheit ). It is so so so hot, when a return home from work around 3:30 PM, I would like to eat some thing light, tasty, easy to prepare and nutritional as well.

I have picked the cabbage, the cheery tomatoes and the basil from my own garden, I feel really good saying that. I have to thank my dear husband, Fitsum, for all the hard work. This rainbow colored past salad is fresh and easy to prepare, like I said. The pasta has to be cooked and cooled before hand, so you can cook it way before preparing your salad. Every other ingredient, with and exception of the bacon, can be prepared and refrigerated before hand. So basically it will be a 10 minutes preparation after wards.

I have used a little bit more of sun dried tomatoes, because I like them so much. They give a lot of flavor for any kind of dish I prepare, for example BUCATINI WITH PEELED TOMATOES AND OLIVES is mouth watering.

I didn’t use salt because the olives, the tuna and the sun dried tomatoes are kind of salty. Plus the pasta is already cooked in salted water, so it is going to be pretty tasty with out salt. And again it is better to avoid salt if possible.

Ingredients

• Quarter of a small cabbage
• 50 grams( 1/2 cup ) cooked whole pasta
• A hand full of cherry tomatoes
• 1 carrot
• A hand full of peas
• 50 grams( 1/4 cup) canned tuna
• 50 grams (1 cup) sun dried tomatoes
• 2 basil leaves
• 2 teaspoon of olives
• 2 teaspoon of olive oil
• Three thinly sliced bacon

Procedure

1. Great the cabbage with mandolin, cut the cherry tomatoes in half,  peel the carrot very thinly using a potato peeler.
2. Cut the sun dried tomatoes in to small pieces.
3. Drain the tuna oil
4. Mix all the ingredients, except the bacon, in a bowl and mix well.
5. Heat a grill / a pan cook the bacon, with out any oil, until crisp
6. Break the cooked bacon in to small pieces and spread over the pasta salad
7. Add oil toss every ingredient together, sprinkle the chopped basil and ENJOY.

BUTTER COOKIES WITH RED CURRANT JELLY

Another recipe with the RED CURRANT JELLY. This butter cookies are so delicious and easy to make. They are good to go for any occasion get together, birthdays, Christmas….. you name it. Specially if you have already prepared the jelly before hand. It would actually be fun to do with kids.

A little observation or inquiry is all you need to customize these for someone specific. Find out what they prefer and go with it. You can use a variety of flavors if they are for a group. Just make sure it is not a big group because these are small-batch cookies. Two dozen do not go far. Then again, you could double the batch.

Using a tart jam will cut the sweetness more. Butter is the ruling flavor of the cookie aside from the jam. The texture is reminiscent of shortbread but not quite as dense.

Each time someone tries one of my recipes and comes back to let me know how much they enjoyed it totally makes my day. So try this sweetness and let me know. Thanks.

 

Ingredients

• 500 grams (3 cups) white flour + some more flour for dusting
• 200 grams( 7/8 cups) cold and chopped butter
• 200 grams( 1 cup) icing sugar
• 1 whole egg and 2 egg yolk
• Lemon zest of 1 lemon
• 1/2 teaspoon  baking powder
• 1 package of vanilla powder or 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• pinch of salt

Procedure

1. Preheat oven to 150 c / 302 F.
2. Spray a tin with oil or line with baking/parchment paper. This is done.
3. Mix the butter and the sugar in a big bowl until homogeneous
4. Beat the eggs with the vanilla, lemon zest, pinch of salt and baking powder.
5. Add them in the bowl with the butter and mix
6. Now add the flour, a bit at a time and mix well until it is a dough.
7. Then roll in a film and put in the fridge for 30 minutes.
8. After 30 minutes roll out the dough 1/2 inch thickens, using a cookie cutter cut the dough to a desired shape
9. Cook for 15 – 20 minutes. When you take out the cookies, they should be soft, they will harden in time.
10. When they are completely cool, spread the RED CURRANT JELLY on half of the cookie and put the other half on top. Make them stick together. ENJOY.

RED CURRANT JELLY

Like I said another recipe with fruit. These red currants came from my garden and I didn’t know what to do with them, because they are a lot and kind of tarty to be eaten by them selves. So I just sprinkle  some sugar on them and eat them. Then I thought why won’t I make a jam, and  I did.

Currants naturally possess a perfect combination of pectin and acidity, which ensures a good jell without the need to add commercial pectin. The result is a delicious jelly with a color as brilliant as that of the fruit.

They are actually filled with vitamins, minerals and antioxidants that are key to looking youthful, feeling great and keeping healthy and nourished.

They are sweet yet immensely tart berries, with similar flavor to blackberries. Compared to other berries, red currants are not that popular as they are too tart to eat by themselves. However, they are not to be tossed aside, they do contain several health benefits and are rich in antioxidants, as most berries are. Their beautiful appearance and striking color make them popular decorative pieces and garnishing items in different cuisines.

Red currants are often made into jams, as well as being used in various desserts, drinks and also in alternative medicine.

 

Ingredients

• 1,200 grams ( approximately 8 cups)of  red currants washed and stemmed
• 400 grams ( 2 cups)  white sugar
• 1 lemons

Procedure

1. sterilize a jar/s of your preferred size ( I reuse three jars of honey) by placing them in a large sauce pan, completely covered with water. Bring to a boil over high heat. Once the water reaches a full rolling boil, begin timing and boil the jars for 15 minutes.
   ( useful tip: Do not boil the canning lids as this can harm their adhesive rings. Instead, add them to the hot water after you turn off the heat when the jars have finished boiling.
2. Place the washed currants in a non-reactive pot (no cast iron unless it is enameled, and no aluminum). Cook, stirring constantly, over medium-low heat until the red currant have released all of their juice, about 10 – 15 minutes.
3. Take them off the heat, using a swift drain the juice
4. Boil the juice again for 10 minutes with the sugar at last add the lemon juice and stir very well
5. Pour the hot, liquid jelly into the sterilized jars leaving 1/4 to 1/2-inch head space. Screw on canning lids. And immerse in a boiling water for 5 minutes.
6. Reverse the jars up side down, this will help to close in air tight. After an hour reverse back the jars and let them cool over night. ENJOY your home made jelly.

One Lovely Blog Award

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOwwwwwwwaw. I am honored again another blogger award. It is a really pleasure to be nominated for ONE LOVELY BLOG AWARD by one of my favorite and amazing blogger, http://www.blogtasticfood.com. It is an award by it self to know that my blog deserves a ONE LOVELY BLOG AWARD. This will definitely make me work harder and getting better in what I do. It is also a great opportunity to meet new foodies, know new recipes and enjoy life. Thank you so much Nicolas for nominating me.

Check out his blog:

http://www.blogtasticfood.com/

 

posted by myspicypasta on July 03/2017

The rules for the nominees are simple:

1. Each nominee must thank the person who nominated them and link their blog in their post.
2. They must include the rules and add the blog award badge as an image.
3. Must add 7 facts about themselves.
4. Nominate 15 people to do the award.

So, the first two rules are already done.

3. Seven facts about myself

• I have learned how to cook 3 months before I got married, ironic right.
• I really miss my family and friends back in Ethiopia.
• I do yoga and love it
• Every day, I walk to go to where I work ( I have about 10 minutes) and I listen to motivational speech
• I love animals, I try to see National Geography as much as possible. One of my favorite animal is Anaconda
• I used to be an English teacher
• In the future I would like to study Cognitive Psychology

4. Nominate 15 people to do the award

As a token of my gratitude I nominate you first

• http://blogtasticfood.com/
• https://afoodiehousewife.wordpress.com/
• http://cookingwithoutlimits.wordpress.com/
• http://leebakers.com/
• http://psychologistmimi.wordpress.com/
• http://www.mrs-twinkle.com/
• http://awakenandbreathe.wordpress.com/
• https://chefmimiblog.com/

Sorry this is all I have got. Thank you again and again for your support and amazing blog Nicolas. Congratulations for all the nominees and good luck.

RUSTIC CHERRY TART

I am falling in love with Summer fruit pies, that means you are going to see a lot more of them this summer. This tart is special for me because I know exactly where the cherries came from,my neighbor’s back yard. when You know where your ingredients come from it just makes your food taste a lot more better.

After you make the tart dough, the rest of the recipe is a very easy and fast. Combine the cherries with some sugar and a bit of cornstarch and the filling is complete. These are free form tarts, meaning that the dough is rolled into a circle, the filling placed in the center and the edges of dough folded and pleated around the edged for a rustic look.

 

Ingredients

For the chocolate tart

• 150grams(2/3 cup) butter
• 150grams(3/4 cups) white sugar
• 1 egg
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 250grams(2 cups) white flour
• 25grams( 1/4 cup) cacao powder
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• pinch of salt

For the filling

• 1 and 1/2teaspoon cornstarch
• 150ml (2/3 cup) cold water
• 60grams (1/3 cup) sugar
• 500grams( 3 cups) halved and pitted cherries
• 1 and 1/2 teaspoon lemon juice

Garnish

• Icing sugar

procedure

For the tart

1. Preheat oven to 150c/302F.
2. Spray a 20cm/8″ round tin with oil or line with baking/parchment paper.
3. Mix the butter and the sugar in a big bowl until homogeneous
4. Beat the egg with the vanilla,  baking powder and pinch of salt.
5. Add them in the bowl with the butter and mix
6. Now add the flour and the cocoa powder sifting, a bit at a time and mix well till it is a dough.
7. Then roll in a film and put in the fridge for 30 minutes.
8. In the mean time lets make the filling.

For the filling

1. Dissolve the corn starch in the cold water and add the sugar, mix well
2. Then in a medium pan over low heat add the above ingredients and bring to a boil.
3. Add cherries, mixing gently boil again until cherries are slightly softened.
4. Remove the filling add the lemon juice mix well and let cool.

Now

1. When the dough run its course, roll it out on the counter with a little bit of flour 1/2 an inch thick.
2. Put it in the tin make sure the boards are higher and irregular. pour in the cheery filling then fold back the border over the filling
3. Cook  the tart in preheat oven for an hour, let cool for 30minutes, dust icing sugar and ENJOY