Chorizo & Feta Pasta
Weekday evenings in the hungry hounds household can be a bit of a slapdash operation. Take tonight for example. After hosting an overnight guest for a 6:30am pre-work breakfast, a long day at work, and errands on the way home, we approached the stove with voracious appetites and waning energy. Chorizo and Feta Pasta is beautiful dish for this situation, it takes 8 minutes to prepare, and hits the spot with the delicious combination of spicy chorizo and briny feta. We happened to have some of Paul's delicious homemade chorizo on hand, but you can easily use store-bought. The feta and chorizo not only provide big flavor, but also simplify the dish by eliminating the need for sauce or additional seasonings.
Yield: 4 dinner portions
Ingredients:
- 1 pound fresh pasta (we used a rigatoni fontana), cooked and drained
- 1 pound chorizo (or other spicy sausage), broken into small pieces
- 1 small onion, finely chopped
- 1/3 pound feta cheese, roughly crumbled (we used a local Boltonfeta)
- 1/2 cup cherry tomatoes, roughly sliced
- 2 tablespoons roughly chopped fresh parsley
Steps:
- Cook the pasta according to the directions. You want it al dente, chewy without any crunchiness. Drain the pasta and set aside.
- Add chorizo and onion to a large non-stick skillet over high heat. Cook stirring frequently until sausage and onion are well browned, about 6 minutes.
- Add the cherry tomatoes, and cook for an additional minute until heated through.
- Remove the pan from the heat and add the feta, parsley, and drained pasta to the skillet. Stir to combine the ingredients. Serve immediately.
Marinated Feta with Rosemary & Juniper
This past weekend we had our first outdoor dinner party of the season and I had an edible centerpiece in mind while concocting this marinated feta with rosemary and juniper. This dish captures the soft light and open skies of an evening in early spring. Marinated feta is a fresh take on a cheese course that delivers a surprising burst of lemon and woodsy flavor to salty cubes of feta. We served marinated feta as an accompaniment to Paul's grilled Greek chicken and vegetables. The leftover feta, which grows more flavorful as it sits, can be added to grain dishes, mixed into omelets, pureed into dips or stuffed into veggies. The olive oil and herb mixture made a tasty addition to a salad vinaigrette, and would be delicious on pasta or used to sop up with crusty bread.
Tomato, Feta, and Garden Herb Toasts
With the first tomatoes and herbs of the season coming in, it is time to celebrate summer! Nothing highlights fresh-from-the-vine juicy tomatoes and backyard herbs like like Tomato, Feta, and Garden Herb Toasts. Brushed in olive oil, the bread is grilled for a warm smokey base. Basil and feta tossed tomatoes provide a vibrant topping to the an herbed creme fraiche spread. Tomato, Feta, and Garden Herb Toasts taste like summer, and are quick and easy to put together. We used a goat cheese feta from our CSA, an exquisite local find! This dish works beautifully as both an appetizer or a main.
Summer Corn Sauté with Herbs
It’s labor day, and we are devouring corn and tomatoes in these beautiful late summer days like they're going out of style. Truthfully, I have a bit of an obsession with sweet corn, and have been known to personally eat 6 cobs in a meal. It’s officially September now, and as the season changes, so too does our cooking. Instead of boiling or grilling our corn, we are firing up my Grandmother's trusty skillet for our delicious and simple Summer Corn Sauté with Herbs, a dish that will have you coming back for seconds. The sweetness of fresh corn is highlighted by the rich and nutty background of butter, onions, cumin, and garlic, garnished with heaps of herbs and tomatoes. I have learned my lesson making this dish over the years, just go ahead and double it the first time, it’s the best way to avoid complaints!
Tomato & Almond Pesto, Pesto Alla Trapanese
Tomato and Almond Pesto, pesto alla Trapanese, is from the Trapani province in Northwest Sicily. Almonds are native to Sicily, and so in this offbeat, rosy-hued pesto, almonds replace pine nuts and cherry tomatoes add color and tartness to the mix. We love this pesto for its mellow, complex and fruity flavor and have been making it for years, unfortunately, some ‘technical issues’ have gotten in the way of publishing it on the blog.
There was the time I forgot to attach the lid to the food processor and the pesto ended up streaking the ceiling. In my next attempt, I managed to actually make the pesto, but then took a whole bunch of yummy looking pictures without a card in the camera. Determined to make and photograph it my third attempt, I got mid-way through the recipe before realizing that I didn’t have parmesan, so I substituted a mysterious fridge cheese and created a monster of a dish with a vomitus appearance and nasty bitter flavor. At this point I gave up until, in an attempt to escape afternoon house projects this weekend, I volunteered to make lunch, and commenced my final attempt to make and photograph tomato and almond pesto for our blog. I had forgotten how good and easy it really is! Some take home reflections: secure lids on all kitchen devices; don’t bother photographing your food, just eat it; stick with parmesan cheese; and ditch plain-Jane basil pesto and make it’s funkier Sicilian cousin with almonds and tomatoes. As we move into fall, and warm pasta dishes begin to sound cozy, try whipping up another of our easy weeknight pasta recipes: Chorizo & Feta Pasta.
Turkey Feta Burgers with Yogurt Curry Sauce
On a holiday weekend famous for feasting and barbecues, we wanted to share one of our favorite burgers. These healthy Turkey Feta Burgers with Yogurt Curry Sauce are quick to make, light on fat, and big on flavor. If you are feeling adventurous, you can also substitute the turkey in this recipe for another lean meat like lamb, buffalo, or venison. To top these burgers, we ditch the usual lettuce, and opt instead for the crips fresh accompaniments of cucumber, tomato, and homemade pickled red onions.
