Pasta with Slow Roasted Tomatoes (2 ways)

I keep buying large amounts of cherry tomatoes and then forgetting about them until it's almost too late. To use up a bunch at once before they go bad, I've been slow roasting them by lining a baking tray with tin foil, halving the tomatoes, giving them a quick mix with olive oil and baking them at 250 for about 3 hours. I've been trying not to use the oven since it's been so hot, but I LOVE tomatoes after they've been slow roasted and it's way better than letting any tomatoes go to waste. Remember to keep the oil - it's good.

I can definitely go for some plain slow roasted tomatoes, but I wanted to share a couple pasta recipe ideas that make good use of them.

Gnocchi au Gorgonzola 

(aka one of my all-time favorite things to make since high school... not healthy)

1 package gnocchi, cooked

1/2 cup Gorgonzola (or blue cheese), cut up or crumbled

1/4 cup butter

1/4 cup heavy cream or half & half

a lot of slow roasted tomatoes (in their olive oil if possible)

1 tbsp chives, chopped

In a small saucepan over medium low heat, combine the cheese and butter and heat until the butter melts, stirring to help melt the cheese. Add the cream and stir to combine. Don't let it bubble too much. Mix with the gnocchi, tomatoes and top with chives.

Nice & Simple Pasta - Garlic, Basil & Tomatoes

2 servings angel hair pasta, cooked 

(pictured is fresh angel hair pasta from Ohio City Pasta, bought at the Squirrel Hill Farmer's Market)

2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

3-4 cloves garlic, minced

6-7+ leaves fresh garlic, chopped

1 tsp red pepper flakes

lots of slow roasted tomatoes

In a large pan, heat up the oil over medium low heat. Add the garlic, basil and hot pepper flakes and cook until the garlic is toasted a little. Add in the pasta and mix. Serve with slow roasted tomatoes. 

Fresh Summer Salsa

We visited relatives that have a pool AND their own Wheaten terrier, so we had a pretty nice summer afternoon hanging out in the pool and watching the crazy dog cousins run a million laps around the water. Twilly is totally wiped out now and will probably nap for the rest of the day.

I decided to make my favorite summer recipe (or maybe #2 fav behind tomato pie?) for a post-pool snack. I usually make this all the time when I have a successful tomato growing summer, but my tomatoes were only in pots this year and got all dried out before producing many tomatoes. Good thing there are plenty of farmer's markets around with beautiful heirloom tomatoes.

1-2 nice tomatoes, chopped
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 lime, juiced
2 mild or hot peppers, finely chopped (I used 1 banana pepper and 1 jalapeno from the farmer's market)
kernels from 1 or 2 ears of corn (uncooked)
1 handful cilantro, chopped
salt & pepper

Once everything is chopped up, combine it all in a bowl and mix well. Add salt and pepper to taste and add more lime as needed. Sometimes I add garlic if I feel like it needs something else. And you can always add chopped fruit (peach, mango, watermelon, blueberries, grapes...) or avocado. It will keep for a few days in the fridge.

Gazpacho

Nothing says summer to me like a bowl of cold gazpacho. Right now, the tomatoes are all coming in from the garden! Finally! I feel like I've been waiting for tomato season all year. Anyways, all the ingredients are available right now. I went to the farmer's market with my sister and Rex and we loaded up on so many fruits and vegetables. We made a vegan stone fruit cobbler for dessert which I sadly forgot to photograph! For a lot of people, this gazpacho is hit or miss. It's pretty acidic but I love it as is! You can cut the acidity by using canned tomatoes but you would miss the point of gazpacho entirely. Just saying.

3 large ripe heirloom tomatoes, quartered

1 cucumber, peeled and sliced

1½ green peppers, seeded

1 large onion, peeled and quartered

2 Tbs. olive oil

2 Tbs. apple cider vinegar

3 cloves garlic

Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Diced green peppers for garnish

 

Throw everything in the blender for as long as you like. I like my soup super smooth. Then place in the refrigerator for a couple of hours to chill. Taste and season it according to your tastes. Garnish with fresh globe basil and lemon thyme. Serve with warm bread.

 

Frittata with Pasta and Cherry Tomatoes

I haven't made this dish since undergrad but it's a quick and easy one. Mainly, it's perfect for summer. I wanted to make a quiche but didn't have butter to make a crust. Anyways, it was a hit with my family (mostly Kelly and Nick) because of the large amounts of cheese I used to make it.

We just spent the past weekend with my cousin Kara and her family (twins + two year old + doggie!). We celebrated my uncle's birthday and helped watch the babies. Mostly we had snuggles with babies and watched Thomas the train engine. It was a blast! Rex was mostly terrified of their dog, Gaia. Probably because she's so refined and he is completely nuts.

Ingredients:
3 1/2 cups cooked pasta (rotini or macaroni)
5 eggs
1/2 cup whole milk
1 bunch swiss chard, stems removed
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
1 1/2 cups mozzarella cheese, shredded
1/4 cup parmesan, shredded
herbed goat cheese, for topping
1 tsp dried italian herbs
salt and pepper

Grease a 9 inch round pie pan. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Slice the swiss chard finely and cook in a saucepan over medium heat until wilted. Drain excess water.
In a large mixing bowl, whisk the eggs and milk together. Add the italian herbs. Then add in the pasta and cooked swiss chard. Stir to incorporate. Then mix in the mozzarella and season with salt and pepper. Pour mixture into prepared pan.
Top with cherry tomatoes, cut side up. Then sprinkle parmesan and goat cheeses all over the surface. The frittata is done when it is almost firm in the center and the top is golden brown, about 30-40 minutes. If the cheese is browning too quickly, just cover with aluminum foil.
We ate this with fresh gazpacho on the side! Yay summer!

Super Easy Pasta with Avocado Sauce

Hi all.  I finished my first week of work!  I FINALLY got a nanny job.  As part of a nanny share, I'm responsible for taking care of 2 tiny babies (one 3 month old and one 7 month old) and the 7 month old's big sister after kindergarten.  I'm starting out with just the 3 month old for a couple weeks as her mom returns from maternity leave and will transition to having all babies in a couple weeks!  It's so nice to finally be working.  As Michelle knows, too much free time is not my friend.  Speaking of Michelle:

Puppy Selfie

Sleepy Pup

I've been cooking a lot lately and need to catch up on blogging recipes.  Honestly, my favorite thing I've made in a long time was Sesame Peanut Noodles with Beets!  So good.  I had been craving peanut sauce for a while and finally purchased farmers' market beets and was gifted honey, paving the way for this deliciously one point sauce.  


So I guess since this blog requires more than just puppy pictures and updates on my life, let's talk about Pasta with Avocado Sauce. This was a pinterest find, as many of my recipes are lately.  I really didn't alter it from what Damn Delicious came up with.  This was fast and easy, and unlike most my recipes, I didn't have to chop vegetables forever.  It made a bunch, but I have a feeling the avocado will make it brown.  Let me know if you think of any ways to improve or add on!

Avocado with Pasta Sauce

Adapted from Damn Delicious

Spiced Tomato Soup

I know I've posted this recipe already, but I've made it so many times with so many variations that I feel it deserves a repost. This version is for people that don't like the addition of coconut cream. It is originally from 101 Cookbooks and one of my go-to recipes when cooking while traveling. There are minimal ingredients and the soup can be adapted to just about anyone's tastes. I just made this for our friends that recently had a baby girl, and they were very happy for some hearty soup. Who wouldn't be?
This picture was taken in Portland. I ate this soup for lunch with my leftover carnitas burrito smothered in green hot sauce. Such good food in that city.

4 tbsp ghee or coconut oil
2 medium yellow onions, roughly chopped
lots of garlic cloves
1 heaping tbsp curry powder
1 heaping tsp coriander
1 1/2 tsp cumin
1 tsp turmeric
1/2 tsp hot pepper flakes (for even more spice)
2-28 ounce cans Muir Glen fire roasted, whole tomatoes

Toppings:
plain Greek yogurt infused with herbs
fresh herbs (thyme, rosemary, oregano, basil, etc.)
olive oil
farro or brown rice
paneer

Saute the onions over medium heat in the coconut oil for 10 minutes. Add the garlic and spices. Saute for another 2-3 minutes until really fragrant. Add the canned tomatoes plus 6 cups of water. Bring to a boil and simmer for 20 minutes. Blend with an immersion blender.

End of Summer Tomato Pie

I pulled up my cherry tomato plant, and this pie used up the last garden tomatoes! I really really love tomato pie - made the way my family makes it, covered in a mayo-cheese mixture in a buttery pie crust, it is probably one of the least healthy and most delicious way to enjoy tomatoes. 

END OF SUMMER TOMATO PIE

1 pie dough (I used the same pie dough that I used for the butternut squash galette because it's amazing but any savory dough will be good)

1/2 onion, sliced 

1 tsp butter

pinch salt

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 heaping cup cherry tomatoes, halved

1/2 cup mayonnaise

1 cup mozzarella, grated

pinch cayenne & salt & pepper

2 tbsp parmesan, grated

fresh herbs - I used sage this time but basil is traditional

Mussels in Fresh Tomato Sauce

The inspiration from this recipe came from a restaurant near our house, Park Bruge. They have delicious Belgian beers and best of all, mussels and french fries. Tiffany and my mom hacked at the bay marshes to get these mussels so they tasted extra delicious.

You will need:

1 large heirloom tomato, chopped roughly
1 medium white onion, sliced into thin strips
4 cloves garlic, diced
1 jalapeno, sliced thinly
1 tsp chopped fresh rosemary
1 tsp fresh thyme leaves
1/2 tsp fennel seeds
1 heaping cup steamed mussels

Cook the onions over medium heat until softened, about 10 minutes. Add the garlic and the jalapeno cook for about 1 minute. Add the tomatoes and cook just until it breaks down, just a couple of minutes. Add the herbs and plenty of pepper. Finally, add the mussels and cook just until warmed up. Serve with some crusty bread and garnish with extra herbs.

Heirloom Cherry Tomato Pie

Heirloom tomatoes have been bred naturally for generations to taste amazing. Each one has a specific origin and (usually) a cute name. I used a mixture of black cherry and sungold tomatoes as well as a few grape tomatoes that I acquired at the farmer's market (the ones we're growing aren't quite ripe yet). I found this recipe in the most recent issue of Better Homes and Gardens (so domestic, I know). The double crust recipe is from the Encyclopedia of Baking. I barely got a picture before the pie was demolished!

Crust:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/3 cup unsalted butter
1 tsp salt
4 tbsp ice water

Filling:
4 cups cherry tomatoes
1 bunch fresh basil
1 bunch green onions
2 tbsp olive oil
4 ounces goat cheese
1/4 cup mayonaise
1 heaping tbsp dijon mustard
1 egg yolk
2/3 cup mozzarella cheese

For the crust: Mix the flour and the salt together. Cube the cold butter. Then in a food processor, process until the mixture resembles large, coarse crumbs. Then use a fork to stir in one tablespoon of water at a time until the dough just barely comes together. The less water you use, the better your crust will be. Form the dough into a ball, wrap with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 1 hour.
Meanwhile, make assemble the pie filling. Roughly chop the basil. Saute the green onions until slightly brown. Slice half of the tomatoes in half and mix the the whole cherry tomatoes. Mix in the green onions in and then toss with olive oil, half of the basil, salt, and pepper. Set aside. In another bowl, mix the goat cheese, mozzarella, mayonaise, mustard, and egg yolk together.
Roll out the dough (it will be thick since it is a double crust recipe) and place into pie pan. Prick with a fork all over the crust, cover loosely with foil, and bake in the oven for 10 minutes at 400 degrees. Then remove the foil and bake for 5 minutes more. Take the pie out of the oven and turn down the temperature of the oven to 375 degrees. Spread the creamy filling over the bottom of the crust and then top with the tomato mixture, pressing the tomatoes into the cheese. Bake for about 35-40 minutes until the tomatoes are slightly browned and the crust is a nice golden brown. Check on the pie about halfway and if the crust is getting too dark, cover with aluminum foil. Let the pie rest for about 15 minutes to half an hour depending on how much patience you have! Garnish with the rest of the fresh basil.