Vodka Sauce

I've stopped ordering pasta with vodka sauce because this recipe is just amazing. Not the most healthy, so I don't make it that often, and I have no desire to make this into something healthy since it's the fat that makes this oh so good. Trust me, you will never need to eat out for penne a la vodka again. Recently, after my vacation along the New England coastline, I added lobster meat at the end along with the liquid that comes out when you take the lobster apart. We bought 7 lobsters (prices are as cheap as $3.99 in MA) in a matter of 3 days after that vacation, while eating lobster on vacation. You could also add some bacon or pancetta as well. This recipe was kosher until then (it came out of a kosher cookbook but slightly modified)...

Penne A La Vodka

1 package pasta (16oz)

1 small onion minced

3 large cloves garlic minced

crushed red pepper flakes (whatever amount you'd personally like)

1/2 cup vodka

1 (28oz) can tomatoes, crushed and undrained. I like San Marzano tomatoes (not a brand, but a type)

1 cup heavy whipping cream

1 cup greated parmesean cheese

Pepper

Salt

2 Tbsp olive oil

1. Heat olive oil in saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion, garlic, and red pepper flakes, sauté 3 min.

2. Stir in vodka; simmer 5 min (be careful not to spill outside as this will set everything on fire. How I know you ask...)

3. Add tomatoes; simmer 15 min, stirring occasionally, or until liquid evaporates. This is also a good time to start the pasta. Cook according to package directions.

4. Stir in cream and simmer for 10 min, stirring frequently

5. Add Parmesean cheese, mixing well.

6. Season with pepper and salt to taste. Normally, you don't have to add much salt due to the saltiness of the parmesean.

7. Pour sauce over pasta and toss

8. Be sure to have plenty of bread on hand for the leftover sauce that will be on your plate!

Stuffed Peppers, et al.

This was the result of one of those what am I going to make for dinner moments when you look in your fridge and realize that you only have some odd ingredients on hand. The red pepper is stuffed with an asian cellophane noodle mixture. In China, these clear noodles are traditionally made with mung bean, while in Korea, their noodles are made with sweet potato starch. I must say that I like the sweet potato kind better, but whatever kind you have in your pantry (or likely not actually) will work. My family cut down on eating these types of noodles after one manufacturer had used a lead-based ingredient to improve the transparency of these noodles when they were mixing it with corn starch to cut down on costs. I hope that all of that has since resolved. This turned out to be quite a tasty and pretty dinner. Unfortunately, I didn't measure anything while I was cooking, but I have faith in all of you.

Stuffed Peppers (makes 4-6):

Beef cut into small pieces, maybe 0.5 lbs total, since I remember that there was not a large quantity on hand.

Cellophane noodles, it was one small package spread up into 2 parts, with each portion about the size of a fist

3 Carrots, julienned but short

1 medium onion, chopped

Ponzu soy sauce (it is citrus based)

Regular soy sauce

Pepper

Sesame oil (no more than 1 tbsp)

~2 tbsp corn starch

red wine (I would've preferred Shaoxing cooking wine, which is rice wine based)

1 scallion, chopped

Cooking oil

1. Mix the beef with the corn starch until coated and add enough wine until it is coated and moist, but by no means runny. Set aside while prepping everything else.

2. Into a pot of boiling water, add the cellophane noodles and take off heat and let sit.

3. In a sauté pan with hot cooking oil, sautee the beef until almost done, then take out and set aside. Then sauté the onion and carrots until soft. Add back the beef and stir in the cellophane noodles. I cut up the cellophane noodles into small lengths to make the stuffing part easier.

4. Season to taste with the soy sauces, pepper, and sesame oil.

5. Add in scallions.

6.For the peppers, first cut off tops and remove seeds and white ribs carefully. Roast the peppers upside down for 15 min at 350 deg F and then stuff them with the noodle mixture. Put them right-side up with tops on and roast until peppers are slightly brown (~20min), and can put the oven on a short burst of broil for a good color on top.

Grilled Sweet Potato

Sweet potato, as many as you'd like, cut into 1/2" slices

Olive oil

Salt

Pepper

Hot Hungarian paprika

Sweet Hungarian paprika

1. Heat grill on high and then put on low heat

2. Toss the sweet potato slices until coated with olive oil.

3. Sprinkle with paprikas and salt and pepper

3. Grill for 6 min each side.

Sugar Snap Peas

This vegetable only needs a light steam and end up quite tender, delicious, and of course, naturally sweet on their own. No seasoning needed in my opinion.