Cabin Crafted

Tag: pasta

  • First Meetings

    Early this morning, Son #2 arrived with his family.  The eight year old boy cousins haven’t seen each other in several years and the 3 year old girl cousins had never met each other or the boy cousin.

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    The girls hit it off immediately this morning.  They are about 5 months apart in age.  The boys have been running and playing chess with each other all day.

    While this has been ongoing, I decided to learn to make Ricotta cheese. . .

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    A gallon of milk first made into mozzarella and a second gallon into about 4 to 5 cups of Ricotta.  Two balls of pasta dough made and a pound of sausage cooked and a fresh homemade lasagna assembled.

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    Son rolling out the noodles.

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    A baking and a salad and we will have dinner for 9 tonight with two new lessons learned, Ricotta and Pasta.  Three products I will no longer buy.  In a day or two, daughter and I will make homemade tortillas.  I used to make them when Mountaingdad and I were newlyweds but with kids I switched to commercial ones.  Daughter bought an 8″ cast iron tortilla press so we will make our own.

    The dogs don’t know what to make of all the activity and want to be in the middle of all of the play.  The girls escaped. . .

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    It seems safer inside the dogs cage than out.

  • Another food day

    Today was a rainy day.  It started with frozen rain and a slick walk to the chicken coop to let them out, but then the rain set in.  Rainy days are comfort food days and as I had put away tomatoes in the freezer last summer and fall, after blanching, peeling and crushing them, I decided it would be a good day for a big pot of pasta sauce.  There are onions in the house, carrots in the fridge, celery that I had chopped and frozen, lots of garlic from last summer’s garden and the herb and spice supply well stocked.  I don’t use jarred sauce, well not commercial jarred sauce.  Instead, when I make sauce, I make plenty, jar up the extra in wide mouth pint jars and then either can or freeze it for a quick meal on another day.  My sauce takes many hours of simmering, but is so worth the effort.

    Our use of the post holiday discount that we got from the local grocery had resupplied the dry pasta supply as well, so homemade sauce and angel hair was the meal of the evening.

    Pasta Sauce

    2 medium onions chopped

    1 head of garlic peeled and minced

    4 stalks of celery chopped

    2 carrots, diced

    12 cups of crushed tomatoes

    1-2 Tbs dried oregano

    1-2 Tbs dried basil

    1 Tbs fennel seed

    1/2 tsp crushed red pepper

    2 tsp salt (if tomatoes are unsalted)

    EVOO to coat the bottom of a heavy pot

    Saute the onions, celery and carrots until the onions are translucent.  Add the garlic and stir for a minute or two until the garlic is fragrant.  Add the tomatoes, herbs, fennel and salt, bring to a low boil and reduce to a low simmer for several hours, stirring occasionally to keep from sticking.  As the sauce thickens, break up the tomatoes and adjust seasoning to taste.

    At this point, precooked Italian sausage links or crumbled sausage can be added if desired.  Hubby likes it with meat, I am just as happy with it as it.

    Serve over the pasta of your choice and top with shredded Parmesan or Romano cheese and more crushed red pepper if you want more spice. 20130908_143737

    This comfort meal provided a great meal for 2 plus 5 pint jars of sauce for the freezer for an easy meal on another night.