Spaghetti Puttanesca

10 Friday Jan 2025

Posted by Bob and Robin in 5 Hour Duck, Buy Idaho, Buy Local, Capers, Classic Cuisines, Food Italian, Herbs and Spices, Merlot, Pasta, Prep Work, Recipes - BBQ, What's For Dinner?

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anchovy, black olives, capers, dinner, food, pasta, puttanesca, recipe, recipes, spaghetti

This is really a good version of spaghetti, full of flavor. I have made it before, several times, but I have no idea where the recipe is. Can’t even find it on my computer. I came across this one which is very similar to the one I have made. Fun to make, it only takes about 20 minutes as long as you have all the ingredients prepped. Have a go with it and have fun making it. A classic Italian dish.

Spaghetti Puttanesca
(Spaghetti With Capers, Olives, and Anchovies)
Source: adapted from Serious Eats
Bob and Robin Young, Boise, ID
The Captain’s Shack           10 January 2025
PDF: CS-Spaghetti-Puttanesca.pdf
Note: Pasta that packs an aromatic punch, thanks to garlic, anchovies, capers, and olives. Go light on the additional salt. The anchovy, cspers and olives have plenty.
Prep: 15 mins       Cook: 20 mins      Total: 20 mins
Serves: 3 to 4

Ingredients:
6 T (90ml) Extra-Virgin Olive Oil, divided
4 med Garlic Cloves, thinly sliced or finely chopped by hand
4 to 6 Anchovy Fillets, finely chopped (1 1/2 to 2 tablespoons)
Large pinch Aleppo Pepper
¼ c Capers, drained and chopped (about 2 ounces; 60g)
¼ c chopped Pitted Black Olives (about 2 ounces; 60g)
1 c (225g) Whole Peeled Tomatoes, preferably San Marzano, roughly broken up by hand, about half a 14-ounce can
One 5-ounce (140g) can Oil-Packed Tuna (optional)
Celtic Sea Salt
8 ounces (225g) Dried Spaghetti
Small handful minced Fresh Parsley Leaves
1 oz (30g) finely grated Pecorino Romano or Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, plus more for serving
¼ t freshly ground Tellicherry Black Pepper
Directions:
In a medium skillet, combine 4 tablespoons (60ml) oil, garlic, anchovies, and red pepper flakes. Cook over medium heat until garlic is very lightly golden, about 5 minutes. Adjust heat as necessary to keep it gently sizzling. Add capers and olives and stir to combine.
Add tomatoes, stir to combine, and bring to a bare simmer. If using, stir in canned tuna, flaking it gently with a fork. Remove from heat.
Meanwhile, in a 12-inch skillet, 12-inch sauté pan, or large saucepan of lightly salted boiling water, cook spaghetti until just shy of al dente, about 2 minutes less than package directions.
Using tongs, transfer pasta to sauce. Alternatively, drain pasta through a colander, reserving 1 cup of the cooking water. Add drained pasta to sauce.
Add a few tablespoons of pasta water to sauce and set over medium-high heat to bring pasta and sauce to a vigorous simmer. Cook, stirring and shaking the pan and adding more pasta water as necessary to keep sauce loose, until pasta is perfectly al dent olive oil, parsley, and cheese. Season with salt and pepper. Serve immediately with more grated cheese at the table. Serve with a good red wine, like merlot.

Brussels Sprouts – A Different Presentation

09 Thursday Jan 2025

Posted by Bob and Robin in Brussels Sprouts, Caesar Salad, What's For Dinner?

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brussels sprouts, Brussels Sprouts, Caesar, Caesar Salad, dinner, food, recipes, vegetarian

Now I know what you are thinking – at least some of you. Yuk! But know, there are several ways you can counteract the sulfur in them. This is but one way. The recipe for this comes from Jamie Oliver and is Brussels Sprouts Caesar – Style. It’s a salad and some of the sprouts are seared, which tends to reduce the offensive flavor and odor. The recipe has anchovies in it; please use them. Here we go.

Brussels Sprouts Caesar-Style

Source: Jamie Oliver
Prep: about 25 min Total: 25 min 9 January 2025

Ingredients:
50g (1 ¾ oz) Parmesan cheese, plus extra to serve
1 Lemon
3 T Greek-style yoghurt
1 sm handful soft herbs, such as basil, flat-leaf parsley, dill
½ t Worcestershire sauce
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
3 Anchovies in oil (optional)
500g (1.1 lbs) Brussels Sprouts
2 thick slices of Stale Bread
1 clove of Garlic
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Directions:
Finely grate most of the Parmesan into a blender with the zest of half the lemon. Squeeze in the juice of the whole lemon, then add the yoghurt, herbs, Worcestershire sauce, 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil and the anchovies (if using). Blitz (pulse) until smooth, then pour into a large serving dish.

Trim and halve half of the sprouts through the root. Place in a large dry frying pan, cut-side down, and char until brown and blistered. Finely slice the remaining sprouts then pile on top of the sauce. Tip the charred Brussels over the top and put the empty pan back on the heat.

Slice the bread into 1cm chunks, tip into the pan and toast. Make a well in the center, peel and grate the garlic into the pan, and then drizzle with olive oil. Give the pan a shake.

Grate over the remaining Parmesan, shake the pan, add another drizzle of extra virgin olive oil, then return to the heat, until the cheese is melted.

Tip the crunchy cheesy croutons onto the salad and then give everything a really good toss until it’s coated in the lovely dressing. Speed peel over shavings of Parmesan and serve.

Old Recipe – Creamed Eggs on Toast

05 Saturday Oct 2024

Posted by Bob and Robin in 5-Stars, Buy Local, Captain's Shack, Eggs, Housemade Sauces, Idaho Eggs, Photos By: Bob Young, Recipe By: Bob Young, Sauces, Sourdough, Sourdough Bread, Spices, Spinach, What's For Dinner?

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breakfast, dinner, food, hard cooked eggs, nutmeg, recipe, recipes, thyme, white sauce

Here isw an old family recipe, and others I would guess, that my Mother made on a regular basis. I believe that she got the recipe from her mother. Nothing was written down, but it was good and still is, It is an easy recipe; quick and fast. All it takes is hard cooked eggs, whole milk, roux and fresh grated nutmeg, salt and pepper. I do hope you try it as written or with your own versions. ie, try adding chopped spinach or corn to the white sauce.

Creamed Eggs on Toast

Ingredients: 1 T unsalted Butter, 1 T All Purpose Flour, 1 c whole Milk, 4 Hard Cooked Eggs, chopped – 1 Yolk reserved, 1 t fresh grated Nutmeg, Salt and Pepper to taste, 6 slices Bread toasted, Thyme

Directions: Add butter to a medium pan and melt, but do not brown. Add the flour and mix well. Add the milk, chopped eggs, fresh grated nutmeg, salt and pepper and mix well. If the sauce gets to thick, add a little milk. Serve on the toast. Grate the egg yolk over each serving along with a pinch of the thyme. Serves about 3.

Note: When you add the eggs to the white sauce, you can also add chopped spinach or corn or anything you like. Great on toasted sourdough toast or toasted English Muffins.

Chicken Tagine and Mushrooms with Moroccan Green Olives Revisited

28 Sunday Jul 2013

Posted by Bob and Robin in Acme Bakery, Captain's Shack, Cooking Styles, Ethnic Foods, Food Photos, Herbs and Spices, Main Dish, Moroccan Food, Moroccan Spices, Photos By: Bob Young, Recipes, Slow Cooking, Sourdough Bread, Special Dinners, Special Information, Spices of Morocco, Tagine, Tagine of Chicken, What's For Dinner?

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chicken tagine, cloves garlic, dinner, food, vegetarian

Yup! Here it is. We tweaked it a little. Added some carrots and green beans. But that is all. The recipe was adjusted a little too, from the original, but only a little more turmeric and ginger. See what you think.
To the left, is the plated tagine. As you can see, we served it on a bed of lemon infused rice. Probably not traditional, but it added another dimension. We really liked it this way. Overall – We would grade it probably a 4 out of 5. But I think with the additional turmeric, it will be better, possible that 5 out of 5 elusive rating. Also, there is a lot of garlic in here, but it seems to be hidden. Just some of our comments. Try it and see what you think and please let us know. Just remember if you use Spanish olives, rinse them well to remove the vinegar. The preserved lemon may also need to be rinsed. There is a lot of salt in both of these ingredients. Left-Click any of these photos to see enlarged. Cheers.

Chermoula – Marinade. See recipe below.

Ready for the oven.

Adding the mushrooms and the preserved lemon. See recipe below.

The completed chicken tagine.

Here is the adjusted recipe. Thank you Roni Spilios-Kinane for the recipe. Enjoy. This could be used as a basic taagine recipe. Try it, for instance, with lamb shanks.

Chicken Tagine with Mushrooms and Moroccan Green Olives

Source: Roni Spilios-Kinane, Morocco
Oven Temp: 325°F
Cooking Time: 2+ hour
Serves: 3
Note: It really is good! It is my Moroccan Mother-in-Law’s recipe..

Ingredients:
1 lemon cut into wedges
Kosher Salt
¾ c Olive Oil
1 T White Pepper
5 cloves Garlic, chopped
1 preserved lemon, sliced
1½ t ground Ginger
2 t Turmeric
2 T Parsley, chopped
2 T Cilantro, chopped
5 Chicken Thighs, or any chicken parts you want to use
3 med Red Onion
Moroccan Green Olives
Mushrooms

Directions:
First you make your chermoula (marinade) olive oil, salt, white pepper, garlic (to your liking) 3-5 cloves, cilantro, parsley, ground ginger, and turmeric. Mix that all together.

Place your cleaned (with lemon wedges and salt) chicken and let it absorb the chermoula as you massage it into and under the skin (some people use smin (ghee, clarified butter) I sometimes do)

Chop finely about 3 medium onions (or more if you have a lot of chicken pieces or a large chicken) let the onions sweat a bit and then add your chermoula drenched chicken and pour any remaining chermoula over the top. Place the tagine cover.

After about 30 minutes, add some preserved lemon slices and the mushrooms.
When you have about 10 minutes left to cook, add the green olives and let all the flavors incorporate.

You CAN!
a) remove the chicken from the tagine and place it in the oven to get crispy if you like!
b) and/or
c) stuff your chicken with a stuffing of chopped mushrooms, cilantro, parley and vermicelli! This is absolutely delicious!

Tilapia and Garlic Asparagus For Dinner

19 Friday Jul 2013

Posted by Bob and Robin in Asparagus, Captain's Shack, Main Dish, Photos By: Bob Young, Seafood, Tilapia, What's For Dinner?, Wine and Food

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canoe ridge, dinner, lime zest, recipes

Tilapia. A very mild white fish must be cooked slowly and completely. But not to the point of drying out. Take your time. The tilapia here was cooked about 3 minutes on each side over moderate heat. The fish was cooked in a butter/olive oil/lemon bath. Then the liquid was finished off with whole milk – I didn’t have any cream – a small amount of corn starch and lime zest. Whisk constantly until thickened – about 2 minutes. pour over the fish as pictured here.
The asparagus is steamed in a garlic butter mixture over low heat. Serve on the plate with the tilapia. A glass, or two, of 2011 Canoe Ridge The Expedition Chardonnay goes very well with this dinner. Cheers and enjoy!

Corn Pie Tonight

16 Tuesday Jul 2013

Posted by Bob and Robin in Captain's Shack, Comfort Food, Corn Pie, Food Photos, Green Tomatoes, Heirloom Tomatoes, Herbs, Party Time, Photos By: Bob Young, Scallops, Seafood, Syrah, What's For Dinner?, Wine and Food, Zebra Tomatoes

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Comfort Food, corn cakes, corn fritter, dinner, food, sawtooth

It may have been National Corn Fritter Day, but we decided on a family favorite - Corn Pie. Here was our menu: Corn Pie Scallop Cakes Sliced Red, Yellow and Zebra Tomatoes with Basil and Oregano Shreds 2009 Sawtooth Petite Sirah This was a YUM dinner! Comfort food.

It may have been National Corn Fritter Day, it really was, but we decided on a family favorite – Corn Pie. Here was our menu:

Corn Pie

Scallop Cakes

Sliced Red, Yellow and Zebra Tomatoes
with
fresh basil and oregano shreds

2009 Sawtooth Petite Sirah

This was a YUM dinner! Comfort food. Left-Click to see the photo enlarged. The recipe for the Corn Pie is in the recipe file above. Enjoy!

Homemade Pasta. Yum!

14 Friday Jun 2013

Posted by Bob and Robin in Captain's Shack, Classic Sauces, Eggs, Herbs and Spices, Homemade Pasta, Locavore, Main Dish, Pasta, Photos By: Bob Young, Recipe by: Robin and Bob Young, Salad, Seafood, Talapia, Vegetables, What's For Dinner?, Wine and Food

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dinner, homemade pasta, talapia

Robin said that she wanted to make pasta sometime this week. So we bought the supplies, 2 dozen eggs and semolina flour. Combine that with talapia and look at our dinner tonight.

Lemon and Thyme Baked Talapia
Homemade Pasta with Fresh Peas
in
browned butter infused with fried fresh sage
Fresh Green Salad
2011 Dusted Valley (WA) Pinot Gris

A really yummy dinner! Left-Click the photo to see it enlarged and then grab a fork. Sorry, but there is no “Smell-A-Vision”. And please VOTE above. Thanks! Goot Essen.

Comfort Food Dinner

06 Thursday Jun 2013

Posted by Bob and Robin in Apple, Cabbage, Captain's Shack, Carrots, Comfort Food, Main Dish, Mustard, Party Time, Photos By: Bob Young, Recipe by: Robin and Bob Young, Salad, Traditional Food, What's For Dinner?, Wine and Food

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c mayonnaise, cabbage, Canoe Ridge Winery, corn on the cob, dijon mustard, dinner

Oh yes! Push the season! Fried Chicken, Corn on the Cob and our own Slaw. It was a yummy dinner, even if the slaw had apples in it. Not high on my Enjoyed That Salad list when it has apples in it! But this one was good. I’ll make it again. Must have been the dressing. 1 c Mayonnaise, 4 T Dijon mustard and 1 T Celery Seed. Blend all together and pour on the slaw. Mix, chill and eat. Slaw is 1/2 head medium Red Cabbage, 1/2 Head medium Regular Cabbage, 4 or 5 Carrots and 1 Pink Lady Apple. Run through the grater on the blender. Mix with dressing. That’s it. Quick and easy! Serve with a 2011 Canoe Ridge Expedition Chardonnay and you are set for a relaxing, start of the summer meal. Grab a fork and Left-Click to see this dinner enlarged. Cheers and please VOTE above. Thanks!

Morel Mushrooms in Dry Sherry and Leek Fondue For Dinner Tonight!

20 Monday May 2013

Posted by Bob and Robin in Captain's Shack, Classic Sauces, Food, Food Prep, Local Farmers Markets, Local Harvests, Local Markets, Main Dish, Morels, Mushrooms, Photos By: Bob Young, Recipes, Special Dinners, What's For Dinner?

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dinner, food, morel mushrooms, tbs dijon mustard

Wow! Poached Morel Mushrooms. Awesome dinner and then add some of the super Acme Bakery Baguette and some sherry, and ………………………………..
Here is the recipe. Enjoy! The mushrooms were fresh from the Boise Farmers Market. Left-Click the photo, grab a fork and enjoy.

Morel Mushrooms in Dry Sherry and Leek Fondue

Adapted from Chef Jon Mortimer, Boise, Idaho

Ingredients:
3 c Morel Mushrooms
1 c dry Sherry (1/2 Amontillado and 1/2 Dry Fino)
1 c Heavy Cream
3 T Dijon mustard
½ c sliced Leek (white part only, rinsed well)
1 T Canola Oil
½ t ground Black Pepper
Kosher salt to taste

Directions:
Carefully pick through the mushrooms, inspect them, brush any sand or grit off with a soft brush, remove any long stems with a pairing knife. In a thick bottomed non-reactive saucepan heat the oil and blanch the leeks, stirring frequently and cooking till soft (about 2 minutes).

Strain off any excess oil and return the leeks to the pan and the pan back to the heat. Add the sherry and allow to come to a boil. Reduce the heat and whisk in the cream and Dijon mustard.

Allow to reduce by ½ at a simmer. Add the morels and poach them in the liquid for 2 minutes or just until they begin to soften. Spoon the mushrooms and the sauce into bowls. Serve with crusty bread, like Acme Bakery Baguette (pictured below), Boise, Idaho.