from my kitchen to yours

something to cook for dinner tonight

inspired by my last post, i thought it could be nice to share a recipe of my own. consider it my way of inviting you over for dinner (don’t worry, no chicken involved).

this is a meal to make at the end of the week when what remains in your fridge is an eclectic mixture of produce whose invitation to meals prior seemed to have gotten mysteriously lost in the mail.

let me set the scene for you.

imagine the child of an aglio e olio that ran away from home because they became fed up with the rules that govern traditional italian cooking. off on a journey to find themselves, you never know what you’re going to get on your plate.

— that’s the best way to describe this dish.

you’ll see what i mean.

ingredients:

1. olive oil

2. salt

3. garlic (a shallot or onion works as well)

4. pasta (any noodle of choice, particularly the untouched box in the back of your pantry)

   • bread also works

5. whatever produce you already have

6. whatever spices you already have

7. wine (optional, but strongly recommended)

method:

1. pour yourself a glass of wine. swirl it around your glass, take a sip, and smile — you’ve made it to the end of the day, celebrate that

2. if using pasta, place a pot with salted (like the sea) water over heat (12/10 flame)

3. get out a pan or something of that sort and put it over heat (7/10 flame)

4. pour a glug or two of olive oil into your pan until the bottom surface area is thinly covered

5. as the oil heats, chop up your garlic/onion/shallot as you please (i like bigger chunks, but i won’t yuck your yum)

6. toss them into the pan and salt immediately

7. let the bits sparkle in the oil, and shimmy them around the pan

   • now’s the time to invite some anchovies to the party (2-5, if available to you) — an optional but strongly recommended step

8. when water for pasta reaches a rolling boil, let uncooked pasta loose and into give it all a good whirl

   • set a timer (a mental one works too) and aim to cook the pasta for ~three minutes under the recommendation on the packet

9. take another sip of wine (required)

10. as you and your alliums ripen, remove produce or whatever else you fancy from respective locations and prepare in desired manner (chop vegetables, remove olive pits, open tins of mackerel etc)

    • less starchy vegetables work best in this scenario, but i have been known to extend an invitation to some leftover roasted cauliflower

11. toss items into pan and allow them to mingle alongside some spices that tickle your fancy

    • lemon zest is an unsung hero at this step

12. splash a bit of wine into the pan for good measure

13. at this point, your pasta should be done - strain reserve a cup of pasta water

    • if using bread, now is a good time to pop that into the toaster

    • also a good time to fry an egg if that’s in your cards

14. toss pasta (if using) into pan with a swig of pasta water and allow everything to tango for a minute

    • a little grated parm never hurt

    • if using, remove bread from toaster and rub with a clove of garlic (looks like nothing, but trust the process)

15. when your neighbour comes knocking at your door begging to know what that heavenly aroma belongs to, you know you are done

16. assemble your meal on whatever eating apparatus you fancy (plate, bowl, straight out of the pan — i won’t tell)

17. sprinkle a little extra something on top of your dish (sprig of parsley, lemon zest, flakey salt… mmm)

18. pour yourself another glass of wine (maybe one for your neighbour if that’s in your cards)

19. take a deep breath & thank yourself for the delicious meal you prepared

20. enjoy!

now that wasn’t too bad, no?

some inspiration if you fancy:

ripening alliums

anchovy-spinach-garlic variation. served alongside leftover papaya salad

trader joes kale gnocci variation

i don’t know what happened here

sungold tomato-olive-anchovy (sense a pattern?) variation

roasted eggplant-prosciutto-olive-egg-garlicybread(not pictured)-variation

i think you get the gist of it.