Fresh Tomato Pasta
I really enjoy making fresh pasta. I often use vegetables and herbs in homemade pasta for added flavor. I decided to make a fresh tomato pasta today, using, well, a fresh tomato or two. You could use tomato juice in this recipe, but since I had fresh tomatoes, I just used fresh tomato. I also use tomato powder in this recipe sometimes. I make tomato powder out of the skins of the tomatoes I canned. I put them in the dehydrator and powder them up once dried.
I put a medium sized tomato in the blender and pureed it until smooth. I left the skin on and the seeds in. I didn’t have quite enough liquid, so I added a couple cherry tomatoes and blended again.
The pasta might look a little pale to you. I assure you, it was made with tomatoes. The pasta fades a little when cooked. I also used an orange tomato, so it was never going to be a bright red color. The flavor, however is quite nice. Subtle, but definitely tomato. Here is the recipe.
Fresh Tomato Pasta
2 c. flour
1 t. salt
½ -2/3 c. tomato juice- I just pureed a fresh tomato in the blender, seeds, skin and all. You might need a little more.
Fresh minced herbs, like chives, basil, parsley, rosemary, optional
Place flour and salt in bowl and stir to blend. Start adding the tomato juice, stirring to form a firm dough. Knead until smooth and cover dough, allowing to rest at least 20 minutes. I like to mix the dough in a food processor. Just mixes faster. You can also mix in a stand mixer using the dough hook.
Once dough is rested, roll out to desired thickness and cut into noodles or use as the base for ravioli. Fresh pasta cooks in just a couple of minutes. Watch carefully.
Serves 3-4.
Tortellini and Ham Salad
Main dish salads are always a favorite of mine when the weather gets warmer. Sometimes I just don’t feel like eating hot food. I made this salad with mushroom tortellini and some leftover ham. It might sound odd to eat tortellini cold, but we eat cold pasta salad all the time. Why not? I really liked it. The mushrooms flavor worked great with the smoky ham. I served mine on a bed of fresh spinach- which made the dish even better.
Tortellini and Ham Salad
¼ c. olive oil
¼ c. red wine vinegar
1 t. fresh rosemary
1 clove garlic, minced
1 t. sugar, optional
1/2 t. red pepper flakes
12 oz. mushroom or cheese tortellini, cooked
1½ c. diced ham
1 red pepper, seeded and diced
1 c. sautéed, sliced mushrooms, cooled, optional
4 green onions, chopped
Parmesan cheese, optional
Combine first 6 ingredients in large bowl and whisk to blend well. Add next 5 ingredients and toss to coat. Add salt and pepper to taste. Chill at least 30 minutes before serving. Serve with Parmesan cheese on the side. Serves 4.
Homemade Pasta
Homemade pasta is so much fun to make and the flavor is worth the extra effort. I taught a pasta making class last night. Everyone had a great time. We made several different veggie based pastas, including spinach, carrot and beet. The recipe is pretty simple. Cooked veggies and flour.
We combined the ingredients in a food processor, then let the dough rest before rolling. Once you are ready to roll out your pasta, the shape is up to you. You can hand roll the pasta, and cut into noodles. We used pasta makers to roll the dough, and then a cutting attachment for the angel hair pasta and linguine. Some dough was also used to make cheese stuffed ravioli, or combined with other pasta dough for more of a rainbow pasta.
We also had some egg based pasta dough.
Directions for mixing the dough is all the same- combine ingredients in a food processor and mix until dough forms into a ball. Allow to rest, covered, for 20 minutes, before rolling.
To cook fresh pasta, noodles are cooked in boiling, salted water for 1-2 minutes. Ravioli are cooked in boiling water for 3-5 minutes.
Mixed veggie pasta, ready to be cut
Spinach angel hair
Carrot and Spinach Ravioli
Parsley Linguine
Carrot Pasta
1 c. flour
1/3 c. cooked carrots
1-2 T. water, if needed
Beet Pasta
1 c. flour
1/3 c. cooked beets
1-2 T. water, if needed
Spinach Pasta
2 c. flour
1 10 oz. package frozen spinach, thawed, drained, reserving some of the liquid
Mix this dough as for other pastas, but don’t be too quick to add reserved liquid. While processing, you’ll get water out of the spinach. May require more kneading and rolling than other pasta dough. Be patient, it’s worth the work.
Parsley Pasta
1 c. flour
3 t. chopped fresh parsley
1 egg
1 T. oil, (optional)
2-4 T. water, if needed
Basic Pasta Dough
1 c. flour
1 egg
1 T. olive oil
1 T. water, if needed
Four Cheese Ravioli Filling
3 c. shredded mozzarella cheese
15 oz. whole milk ricotta cheese
8 oz. cream cheese
5 oz. shredded Parmesan cheese
Combine all ingredients and mix well. Chill until ready to use. This will fill dozens and dozens of ravioli. Extra filling can be frozen and used another time.
More pictures from last night
Pasta with Spinach and Bacon
Pasta with Spinach and Bacon
The addition of bacon gives this dish a lovely, smoky flavor. That is one of the nice things about bacon. Even a small amount adds a lot of flavor to food. In this recipe a simple pasta dish with tomatoes and spinach is changed completely by the addition of the bacon. It could be considered a side dish, but can be a main dish as well. Start to finish this one takes about 20 minutes to make.
Pasta with Spinach and Bacon
1 (12 ounce) package pasta
2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
6 slices bacon, chopped
2 tablespoons minced garlic
1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes
1 bunch fresh spinach, rinsed and torn into bite-size pieces
Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add the pasta, and cook until tender, 8 to 10 minutes. Meanwhile, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Place bacon in the skillet, and cook until browned and crisp. Add garlic, and cook for about 1 minute. Stir in the tomatoes, and cook until heated through.
Place the spinach into a colander, and drain the hot pasta over it so it is wilted. Transfer to a large serving bowl, and toss with the remaining olive oil, and the bacon and tomato mixture. Serves 4.
Warm Pasta Salad
Warm Pasta Salad
I love to make this salad when I have really good tomatoes. It is one of my favorite ways to enjoy fresh tomatoes. The base of the salad is a mixture of tomatoes, mushrooms, onion and some seasonings which are allowed to blend together in the fridge overnight. When you are ready to have your salad toss the cold tomato mixture with fresh cooked hot pasta. The pasta tomato mixture is served right then, warm and fragrant. I often sprinkle some Parmesan cheese on the top, or serve on the side. I do sometimes serve the salad cold.
Warm Pasta Salad
1 lb. Plum tomatoes, chopped
1 medium sweet onion, chopped
4oz. Fresh mushrooms, sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
¼ c. fresh parsley, chopped
1 T. dried basil 1 T. capers, optional
1 t. dried oregano
½ c. olive oil
¼ c. red wine vinegar
3 T. balsamic vinegar
Dash of hot red pepper flakes
Salt to taste
1 lb. Uncooked pasta
Combine all ingredients, except pasta and chill overnight. Cook pasta, drain and toss with tomato mixture. Mixture should be served right away . Serves 6.
Vegetable and Pasta Skillet Dinner
Vegetable and Pasta Skillet Dinner
If you are trying to get your family to eat more vegetables this is a great way to do it. Lots of veggies with pasta, this is a simple dish that can be a side dish or a vegetarian main dish.
Vegetable and Pasta Skillet Dinner
1 (16 ounce) package whole wheat rotini pasta, cooked
2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons sugar
3 T. oil
3 cups chopped broccoli
1 cup chopped carrots
1 cup chopped red bell pepper
2 cups chopped fresh mushrooms, use whatever mushrooms you can find
1 cup shelled edamame (green soybeans) I use organic
3/4 cup cashews
In a small bowl, mix the 2 tablespoons sesame oil, soy sauce, vinegar, and sugar. Heat the 3 tablespoons of oil in a skillet over medium heat. Stir in the broccoli, carrots, pepper, mushrooms, shelled edamame, and cashews. Sauté 5 minutes. Mix in the sesame oil sauce. Cover skillet, and cook 5 minutes longer or until vegetables are tender but crisp. Serve over the cooked pasta or toss the pasta right in the skillet and heat through. Serves 4-6.
Chicken with Pasta
Chicken with Pasta
Simple can be so good. When I am pressed for time I often go to skillet meals. Something I can make quickly with plenty of flavor and not too much clean up afterwards. This chicken and pasta dish is one of my favorites. Great when I have company for dinner and I need a nice dinner- pronto.
Chicken with Pasta
8 ounces dry penne pasta
1 tablespoon cornstarch
2 c. chicken broth
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon garlic, minced
4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves – cut into cubes
1 onion, sliced
1 red bell pepper, seeded and thinly sliced
1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes- I had home-canned tomatoes
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried basil
1/4 cup medium-dry white wine
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add the penne pasta and cook until al dente, 8 to 10 minutes. Drain, and reserve pasta Whisk the cornstarch and chicken broth together in a bowl until smooth. Set aside until needed.
Heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the garlic and chicken; stir and cook until the chicken is no longer pink and juices run clear, about 10 minutes. Stir in the onion, and pepper; cook until tender, about 5 minutes. Stir in the chicken broth mixture, oregano, basil, and wine, if desired. Stir in the cooked pasta, and simmer over medium heat until thoroughly heated through, about 5 minutes. Serve garnished with Parmesan cheese. Serves 4-5.
