Shrimp Scampi Pasta

Butter. I love butter. When I was growing up I refused to put the stuff on toast and opted for "I Can't Believe It's Not Butter!" Spread. I'm ashamed at who I was.

Butter sizzles in ours skillet when Matt makes one of his morning omlettes stuffed with shiitakes and Gruyere. I love fresh bread dipped in olive oil and herbs. But butter on warmed bread? I swoon. My mom taught me to always, always use all butter when making cookies and sweets, and I've never deviated. Sometimes I whip honey and butter in our mixer for a sweet heavenly spread, or gooey, rich brownies with loads of butter? Forget the Crohn's, and give me another.

Which is why my making a pasta dish (oh god, there's another one that makes me weak in the knees) with a buttery white wine sauce was pure kismet...My father's birthday was this week, and we celebrated at our place with food....and more food. My family loves food. We can put away a lot of food. My mom works with food. My dad just ordered a case load of organic, grass-fed, free-range buffalo meat from the Home Shopping Network. Need I say more?

We had this dish, with oven-roasted asparagus, a big salad, baguettes, and a rich chocolate cake to top it all off. And yes, with lick-my-fork-good chocolate buttercream frosting.

I love making pasta for company. It's one big pot of ease. Since it was also a special occasion, I threw in loads of pink shrimp, sauteed in the skillet with oil and garlic. And some peppers, tomatoes, spinach, and oh, did I mention the butter? The meal was good, but I tweaked the leftovers today to make it even better by adding more veggies. And yes, a tad more butter. I just can't help myself.


Shrimp Scampi Pasta

• 2 lbs. raw, deveined large - extra large shrimp
• 1 lb pasta (something thin, either angel hair or thin spaghetti)
• 4 cloves garlic
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 2 large red peppers (sweet)
• 1 pint grape tomatoes, halved
• 1 15 oz. can diced tomatoes, drained
• 1 bunch (about 5) chopped scallions
• 2/3 cup white wine
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp pepper
• 5 Tb. butter (BUTTER!)
• 1 large bag fresh spinach (about 10 oz., give or take)
• 1/2 cup shredded Parm or Romano, plus more for garnish
• 1/2 cup - 2/3 cup fresh chopped Italian flat-leaf parsley
• lemon, for zesting

Heat water for pasta. Add salt.

Heat a few Tb. of oil in the skillet with 2 cloves pressed garlic. Saute shrimp (in batches, if necessary) on each side, flipping once, until pink and cooked through. Set aside. Now julienne the peppers and saute for 10 minutes in the remaining oil and garlic (add more garlic to your taste), until tender. Set aside with shrimp.

Now add the additional garlic to the skillet, with wine, salt and pepper and cook on high for a minute. Now add the butter and stir until it's melted. Add the pre-cooked peppers and shrimp, and the fresh spinach and coat with the butter and wine broth until the spinach wilts a bit - about a minute.

Add the mixture to cooked pasta. Now add the diced and halved grape tomatoes, cheese, scallions, and parsley. Toss. Zest a lemon onto the pasta. Serve with additional cheese, parsley, and zest.

The spread. I deleted the unflattering photo of me, but these guys weren't so lucky.

Make this with two pounds shrimp. You won't be sorry.

The perfect ending to a good meal! Wegman's "Ultimate Chocolate Cake". Yeah, we have a history.

I think I'm onto something...

This is my lovely husband. Isn't he cute?

Four years ago during the winter Olympics, my mom said, "Doesn't Matt look like Bode Miller?" By Bode Miller, she meant the delicious American skier.

I've been thinking about Bode lately (no, no, not like that)...but he did just win the Bronze today. And I thought, my god, he does sort of look like Matt...or maybe I just have a thing for Bode.

This is Bode. He's cute, no? In an all-American sorta Matt-y way?

They both sort of have these slanty eyes. And sheepish smile. And I mean that in the most complimentary way.

So, yeah, I think my husband looks like Olympic skier Bode Miller. And that's not too bad in my book.

Digging Out

After the storm, the sun was bright.

My two furs (the dog and the human); looking very stoic.

We shoveled...by hand. Snow blowers be damned! And YES, I did help.

The reason I do what I do..... (not really).

The downed large branch, in the glistening light of day. Suddenly, it's not so irksome.

Matt, at the end of the drive, conquering the dreaded mound the snow plow leaves behind. (Would you believe I did the rest? No? Well, I did.)

She's usually not so stern in real life. She doesn't like her photo taken.

Yep; she's a bit irked.

Whiteout

Look, it's hard to get a clear shot in blizzard conditions. Plus, my dog model wasn't cooperating at all.

This is the shot I used for my updated winter banner, above. This is our backyard, with a tree about to come down. I heard some creaking, so I made like a bandit and got the heck outta there. Note: It's hard to run in two-plus feet of snow.

Oh, lookie here. This is a 40-foot "branch" that came down in the back. This is when I started shrieking and told Matt and Penny to get out of our rinky dink sun room for protection: it was like a blitzkrieg of falling trees!

View from my bedroom window. It looks more elegant from above. (When you go to street level you see all the branches are drooping haphazardly to the ground. It's all very disconcerting and pathetic.)

These are the first branches that fell. They fell on our roof, but that's okay. "You can take our shingles, but you can't take our freedom!"

I thought I'd leave you with this glamorous self-portrait. I need some mascara and a shower, but gosh darnit, I was going to brave this storm and take ridiculous, unflattering photos! You can thank me later.

Rustic Potato Leek Soup

Well, it's officially a snow apocalypse. Total whiteout conditions, feet and feet of snow (from weekend's snow storm), and a 40 foot "branch" just fell in the backyard. That's when I screeched, "Get out of the sun room, get into the main house, now, now NOW!" to Matt and Penny, as they looked in awe at the fallen tree. That was the second branch to fall, and like a clucking mother hen I was heralding everyone to something a bit more structurally sound.

Anyway, it seems quite rational that now is about the time to post a soup recipe. During this past weekend's snowstorm we made bread and soup in between shoveling and watching a bit too much television. This soup takes 30 minutes to prepare, from soup to nuts (HA HA HA), you don't need much on hand, and it's perfect with a big ol' hunk of bread.

Rustic Potato and Leek Soup

adapted from the cookbook Love Soup

• 3-4 large leeks, white and light green parts
  
• 2-3 cloves garlic, pressed (This was not in the original recipe, but I think everything is better with garlic.)
  
• 2 lbs Yukon Gold potatoes
  
• 1 Tb. olive oil
  
• 1 Tb. butter
  
• 1 1/2 tsp. salt, plus more to taste (I used a lot of salt.)
  
• 3 cups veggie broth
  
• 3 Tbs. chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley (Due to semi-poor planning, I used dried.)
  
• 1 tsp. fresh thyme (I used dried, and about 2 tsps)
  
• freshly ground black pepper
  
• 2 tsp fresh lemon juice, plus more to taste
  
• 3 Tbs. heavy cream (I used a bit more, and used half and half.)

Trim the leeks and wash well. Dice: you should have about 3 cups. Scrub potatoes and cut into 1/2 inch pieces.

Heat the oil and butter in a skillet and add the leeks and garlic and a pinch of salt. Cook over medium, stirring often, until they are soft and just beginning to color, about 8 minutes.

Combine the leeks/garlic and potatoes in a large soup pot with 3 cups water, a tsp of salt, and the veggie broth. Simmer, covered, for about 15 minutes, or until tender. Using a potato masher, mash to your desired consistency. Add the parsley and thyme, some black pepper, and the lemon juice. Taste and correct seasonings with more salt if needed. Stir in the cream and serve with more fresh parsley or chopped chives.

Leeks are sexy and sinewy.

I'm gonna add cheese next time. I love myself some cheeeeese.

Sniffle

I have no interest in the Super Bowel (that was a typo, but in light of this blog's subject matter, it's staying!), but Matt bet fifteen bucks on the Saints - and I'm cheap - so I'm glued to the t.v.

Did anyone else just see this Google ad? I'm still tearing up. They have a ton of these Search Story ads. I'm very behind the times, here. I feel woefully old. But they're fabulous...why didn't anyone think of this ad campaign sooner? They have a fantastic narrative...okay, I have to cool it...I'm feeling very Don Draper-esque, at the moment.

(On a semi-related note, is the Super Bowl theme this year that Arcade Fire song? Has football gone... cool?)

Snow day French bread

Everyone was asking everyone what they were going to do during the big snowstorm. Like several others, I decided we (er...Matt) were going to bake. And I'd make the soup, and it would be a picture-perfect day, and we'd cuddle by the fire with our big bowls, and it would be oh-so-romantic. Well, the bread and soup got made, the fire is expensive to light (it's fake, and uses a lot of gas), and we were watching a Dexter marathon so grisly television shows featuring serial killers isn't really a mood inducer. Oh well....the meal was still fabulous.

Here's Matt's French bread, which isn't his at all, but found on All Recipes. You know when you go to a good restaurant and they give you fresh bread, warmed, with butter or dipping oil? This is it...but better. It's crunchy and flaky and soft and chewy. I think I'm in love.


French Bread

• 6 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 1/2 (.25 ounce) packages active dry yeast
• 1 1/2 tsps. salt
• 2 cups warm water
  
• 1 Tb. cornmeal
• 1 egg white
• 1 Tb. water
  

1. In a large bowl, combine 2 cups flour, yeast and salt. Stir in 2 cups warm water, and beat until well blended using a stand mixer with a dough hook attachment. Using a wooden spoon, stir in as much of the remaining flour as you can.
2. On a lightly floured surface, knead in enough flour to make a stiff dough that is smooth and elastic. Knead for about 8 to 10 minutes total. Shape into a ball. Place dough in a greased bowl, and turn once. Cover, and let rise in a warm place until doubled.
3. Punch dough down, and divide in half. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface. Cover, and let rest for 10 minutes. Roll each half into large rectangle. Roll up, starting from a long side. Moisten edge with water and seal. Taper ends.
4. Grease a large baking sheet. Sprinkle with cornmeal. Place loaves, seam side down, on the prepared baking sheet. Lightly beat the egg white with 1 tablespoon of water, and brush on. Cover with a damp cloth. Let rise until nearly doubled, 35 to 40 minutes.
5. With a very sharp knife, make 3 or 4 diagonal cuts about 1/4 inch deep across top of each loaf. Bake in a preheated 375 degrees F (190 degrees C) oven for 20 minutes. Brush again with egg white mixture. Bake for an additional 15 to 20 minutes, or until bread tests done. If necessary, cover loosely with foil to prevent over browning. Remove from baking sheet, and cool on a wire rack.

Chilly outside, and....chilly inside (it's a wonder this dough had even risen).

Due to spatial constraints, we made one long loaf and a few shorties.

En garde, doggie!!!

Q: Can two people consume all this bread in one snowy weekend?
A: Do you really have to ask?

A wintery mix

On Friday night when Matt was going out to pick up our Chinese take-out, he mentioned he was also going to get "some necessities" for the storm. The Chinese place is right next to a grocery store, so I just assumed....I dunno....chocolate milk, or something. Or his favorite cereal. But no. He drove another couple miles to the beer distributor. Here's his "necessity". But of course...

Philadelphia got 28.5 inches. We live in the suburbs and got perhaps 20. You say potato, I say pa-taut-o...tomato, ta-maut-o.

When I was shoveling, Matt was doing this.

And a bit of that. (He has big nostrils.)

Here's Penny the dog, supervising the shoveling effort (without much success)...but doesn't she look so stern?

YAAAWWNNN

No one really talks about the general fatigue that accompanies Crohn’s. Now, granted, I am lazy (incredibly so, at times, as my laundry has sat on my floor for 2.5 weeks now), but ever since college I’ve felt more tired than usual. This was before I was diagnosed with Crohn’s and simply thought I have a very sensitive stomach. In the following years my symptoms worsened and could no longer be ignored, and I was diagnosed about a year after I graduated from college. But in school I recall going to my mother’s doctor – who I never had a particular fondness for (okay, my sister and I think she’s a witch) – and explaining I’d been feeling terribly sluggish and she essentially said it was in my head and to lose some weight. Lovely.

And it’s difficult to understand a disease that isn’t visible, and may even be controlled and in remission. I look fine, and recently I feel fine, but I’m often just, simply put, very tired. And I’m not talking about the exhaustion that comes along during a flare and you’re flat wiped out (but that too). I’m talking every day, excuse-me-while-I-yawn, a-good-3.5 hour-nap-in-bed-would-be-nice, how-am-I-going-to-get-through-the-workday tired.

This past week I’ve been wiped out. I come home, put on pajamas, and lay (lie? I never got that one right). I’m stressed, and thus, utterly exhausted. This blog post is not well-written: I cannot even muster the energy to pop in a witty quip! So it goes without saying I am completely excited that we’re having a big snow storm tonight. My bed is fitted with flannel sheets, I have silly glossy magazines galore, bad t.v. to catch up on, and I have all the fixin’s for potato and leek soup and homemade bread. I also just enrolled in a course to prep me for a professional certification and have 200 pages to read on labor laws and risk management this weekend. Sigh. I’m hoping the warm bread and the flannel sheets make up for it.

Have a terrific weekend, all. Snuggle with someone you love and have a cup of hot tea. Also, some delicious recipes are coming.

Fancy shrooms

I think Penny (yes, the dog) and I have seasonal depression. First off, Penny has gained 4.6 pounds since her last vet visit. Heck, I gain 4.6 pounds in a weekend, but for a dog that’s a lot. As I was sitting on the couch eating pizza and cookies last week (not fabricated), I said, “Penny, we’re going to go on a diet!” Starting tomorrow, of course. (And yes, I had four bowls of EVIL ice cream this weekend, and yes, there are two days in a weekend…it’s sad, isn’t it?) So much for that.

I get up and it’s dark. I am in an office with fluorescent lighting for nine hours. I leave the office and it’s dark. It’s always dark. I do not like the austerity of winter. The cold barrenness. Because it’s dark – and cold – Penny has not been getting enough walks. She has not seen her dog boyfriend, Max, for months. It’s a travesty, really (cough, cough). In the past few weeks she doesn’t even come up sleep in the same room with us. (She has always, always slept in her dog bed in our bedroom.) She stays downstairs now and looks at us with little interest when we go up to bed. Matt said it’s simply warmer downstairs and she prefers that dog bed. I say she’s leaving the nest and she doesn’t need her mother anymore. She’s also very bitter with her lack of walks, and by golly, that dog can hold a grudge. (Once I dropped Penny off to get her teeth cleaned. When we picked her up at the end of the day she greeted Matt warmly and didn’t – for the rest of the evening – even acknowledge my presence because I was the one who dropped her off. Even Matt recounts this with glee.)

So to bring some cheer in the household (for the humans – forget the dog) I wanted to make a cold-weather comfort dish. Actually, because Matt often gets home before me, he made it. With boys you just have to be very specific and deliberate. Include where everything is located (Matt cannot find anything). You can’t just say “tomato paste.” You have to say, “The tomato paste is located on the third shelf in the pantry on the left. It is in a tiny can.” Yep, there you go...you got it!

(Below is a recipe totally borrowed from Smitten Kitchen. It's warm and beefy...without the beef! I swear you won't miss it. Serves 4.)

Mushroom Bourguignon

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 tablespoons butter, softened
• 2 pounds portobello or cremini mushrooms, in 1/4-inch slices
• 1/2 carrot, finely diced
• 1 small yellow onion, finely diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 cup full-bodied red wine
• 2 cups beef or vegetable broth
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves (1/2 teaspoon dried)
• 1 1/2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1 cup pearl onions, peeled (thawed if frozen)
• Egg noodles, for serving
• Sour cream and chopped chives or parsley, for garnish (optional)

Heat the one tablespoon of the olive oil and one tablespoon of butter in a medium Dutch oven or heavy sauce pan over high heat. Sear the mushrooms until they begin to darken, but not yet release any liquid — about three or four minutes. Remove them from pan.

Lower the flame to medium and add the second tablespoon of olive oil. Toss the carrots, onions, thyme, a few good pinches of salt and a several grinds of black pepper into the pan and cook for 10, stirring occasionally, until the onions are lightly browned. Add the garlic and cook for just one more minute.

Add the wine to the pot, scraping any stuck bits off the bottom, then turn the heat all the way up and reduce it by half. Stir in the tomato paste and the broth. Add back the mushrooms with any juices that have collected and once the liquid has boiled, reduce the temperature so it simmers for 20 minutes, or until mushrooms are very tender. Add the pearl onions and simmer for five minutes more.

Combine remaining butter and the flour with a fork until combined; stir it into the stew. Lower the heat and simmer for 10 more minutes. If the sauce is too thin, boil it down to reduce to the right consistency. Season to taste.

To serve, spoon the stew over a bowl of egg noodles, dollop with sour cream (optional) and sprinkle with chives or parsley.

This is how I found Matt when I came home: cooking in his winter coat.

So I put him in something a little more appropriate. (And by "appropriate" I mean frilly.) I also turned up the heat.

I bought this wine for one reason, and one reason only: The GOAT.

The fungus is among us (above AND below!).