The best little pasta dish in Texas, great possibilities, and you can add your own favorites to it

The best little pasta dish in Texas, great possibilities, and you can add your own favorites to it
By: Shelley Pogue

Article ID: 941918
Article Submitted: January 22, 2008
Category: Food and Drink :: Pasta Dishes
Article Word Count: 929

Basil pesto is one of the easiest types of sauces to make. There is very little preparation for this sauce and it packs a ton of flavor. There are several different types of basil that you can get at your local market. There is cinnamon basil, Thai basil, lemon basil and Genovese basil just to name a few. Genovese is considered to be one of the best to make pesto the old Italian way, and if it is available it is the one to use. Basil has many medicinal uses as well, but this recipe is for a great flavor addition on your favorite type of pasta. This dish should take less than 30 minutes from start to finish.

You will need to come up with a grocery list, so you can get all of the ingredients in hand, to make this great dish.

Items list for the Basil Pesto: 2 cups fresh basil leaves, 4 cloves garlic, crushed , 3/4 - 1 cup of pine nuts, 3/4 cup Parmesan cheese shredded, 3/4 Romano cheese shredded, 1 cup of good quality olive oil, pinch of salt and black pepper, T/T. You will also need one pound of your favorite pasta, penne pasta, farfalle pasta (bow tie) or fettuccine if you wish. 1/4 cup of heavy cream optional.

1. I start my water at this point to get ahead of the game, and I use a generous amount of salt in the water for the pasta. Depending on the pasta you use it would be best to follow the directions on the box. Just make sure you add salt the water, it is important.

2. Get out your food processor or blender at this point. Add your washed basil, garlic and pine nuts at this time and blend.

3. While blending you need to start incorporating the olive oil at this point, in a slow but steady stream.

4. Stop the food processor and add cheese, salt and pepper. Blend again and then taste for seasonings. Add more salt an pepper if it is needed. I remember while attending Culinary school, I was asked by one of my chef instructors: Did you forgot your salt extractor today? You can always add more of any ingredient, but you can not take it out!

5. Remove all of the pesto from the food processor, and hold until you are finished. I will put it into a container that I can keep in the refrigerator, so I will have it for a week or two. And that way you are not continually transferring to many bowls to clean.

6. I would add my pasta to the boiling water at this point and prep the rest of my ingredients at this point. If I were going to add a salad with this dish I would get if made at this point. It will not take long to wash your lettuce and get ingredients ready for dinner with your family.

7. I like to add artichokes, bacon and sun-dried tomatoes to this dish just to give it some flare. I also take some extra pine nuts, and roast them to add them to the finished dish as well. To roast your pine nuts you can do it in a over or over a stove top burner. You just have to watch them to make sure they do not get too much color. They will taste very bitter, or burned if this happens. You can add any ingredient to your pasta dish that you prefer. I am sure some Kalamata black olives would be tasty on this dish as well. This is what makes it your dish, every ones taste buds are a little different. If you are wanting to have a special dinner for loved ones or guests. You can offer them a wide variety of ingredients to add to there own dish in the center of the table. It will make them feel very special, and offer them the ingredients to make it their own dish.

8. The pasta is probably ready to be drained at this point. Do not wash the pasta, and return it to the same pan. I would start to add in some of the pesto starting with 2-3 tablespoons and turn the pasta with tongs if you have them to mix in the pesto. Continue until the desired amount of pesto is on the pasta. Add salt and pepper to taste and then serve.

9. If you are not concerned about the fat content: Then go from step 7 to step 9 In a separate bowl add a couple of tablespoons of the pasta water to the the 1/4 cup of heavy cream to the, add the 2 Tbsp of pesto and mix. Drain the pasta, but do not rinse. Put the pasta back into the same pan and pour the cream pesto mixture into the pot and turn with a wooden spoon of tongs. Make sure there is a good covering of the mixture on the desired pasta. You can also add more cheese at this point if you so desire.

10. Set the table and get ready to dig in. After I put the portion on to my plate I would then add my artichokes, bacon, sun-dried tomatoes, and pine nuts. Or you can put yours on a nice serving platter in the middle of the table with a piece of basil garnish and everyone can serve themselves.

I hope that you enjoy this dish. Making a basil pesto sauce is very easy and it taste great. I hope that you will find those ingredients that you really love and incorporate them into this dish to call it you own.

Chef Shelley Pogue, a Cum Laude, Le Cordon Blue graduate and research and development chef for Vertical Sales and Marketing, San Ramon, CA.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Shelley_Pogue
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Clam Linguini With Penne Pasta Recipe

This is a recipe that is good for any occasion, lent or any other holiday. It is very easy to make and if you are good at multi-tasking then you can have it ready in about 30 minutes and on the table ready to eat.

You will need to pick up some items at your local grocery and you are ready to make this meal.

Ingredient list:

Snows canned clams enough for 15 ounces which should be about 5 cans.

Clam juice about 26 ounces, you will have quite a bit from the canned clams but buy a bottle or two of the juice to have on hand.

Butter 2.5 ounces of unsalted butter

Olive oil 2-3 ounces

1 Teaspoon of chili flakes

1 Teaspoon of tarragon

1 - 2 Teaspoon of Garlic powder, make sure not to use garlic salt. You could use fresh garlic just make sure to use the olive oil to sweat it out a bit to get it to bloom before adding it in.

Corn starch about a half an ounce of it mixed with cold water to thicken the Linguini Sauce

Better than bouillon Clam Base, it is made by Superior Products and it is a Great product! You must have this to make this dish. If you cannot find this base if you are able to find another type of base you can substitute it just as long as it is a fish/mollusk base.

2 ounces of Heavy Cream to add just before serving

First you will get your salted water on the stove on high heat, getting it ready to add your pasta after it reaches a rolling boil.

Second you will get your sauce ready to fire it up. Open the can of clams and drain the clams, but save the juice. You will want to rinse the clams to remove any dirt left in them. If you have cheesecloth or a coffee filter/strainer you will want to run the clam juice through it to remove any excess dirt from the juice. You will add all of your ingredients except the clams into the large sauce pan. You will want to have a whisk handy and make sure that the starch and the base are dissolved.

** If you are choosing to use fresh garlic instead of garlic powder use the olive oil in the sauce pan and over low heat add the garlic until you start smelling the rich garlic flavor. Do not burn it or it will be bitter, and make a poor sauce. You will then do as stated above.

Once you have all in the pan you are ready to start heating the sauce. you will want to add your pasta to the boiling water at this point and keep an eye on it because the sauce and pasta should be ready about the same time. Start the sauce on a medium to medium high heat. You will want to keep stirring the sauce until it gets close to a nice simmer but below boiling. The starch should start to thicken the sauce and you will turn off the heat when it does thicken. You should check your pasta at this point it should be very close to being ready. When ready drain your pasta and add to a large serving dish and add the sauce over the pasta. And serve. You could garnish with fresh parsley, and make a nice bread or dinner roll with some garlic butter. Enjoy.

Chef Shelley Pogue, a Cum Laude, Le Cordon Blue graduate and Executive Research and Development Chef, for Vertical Sales and Marketing, San Ramon, CA.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Shelley_Pogue

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Pasta with Sun-Dried Tomato and Walnut Pesto and Feta Cheese Recipe

This recipe is really different, and a very easy pasta dish to make. It has some really powerful flavor combinations with the walnuts, sun dried tomatoes, the fresh basil, parmesan cheese, and the feta cheese. It will go really well with a nice salad, with a home made vinaigrette, and some garlic bread. You can always add some very good Italian style olives, if you want to add that flavor profile to this dish. I hope that you enjoy this recipe, it is easy, and it tastes delicious.

Ingredients you will need:


1 (9-ounce) package of linguine

3/4 cup oil-packed sun dried tomatoes halves, drained

2 Tablespoons of canola oil, or olive oil

1/4 cup loosely packed basil leaves

2 tablespoons walnuts

2 tablespoons pre-shredded fresh Parmesan cheese

1 tablespoon bottled minced garlic

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

1/2 cup (2 ounces) crumbled feta cheese

Preparation:



Cook pasta according to the package directions, Make sure you salt your water well, as it will flavor your pasta, and you will not require as much salt in the end product.


Drain pasta through a colander over a bowl, reserving 1 cup cooking liquid.


Do not rinse your pasta, and return the pasta to the pan.


While pasta cooks, place your canola, or olive oil, sun dried tomatoes, fresh basil, walnuts, parmesan cheese, garlic in a food processor; process until finely chopped.


Combine tomato mixture and about half of the reserved 1/2 cup cooking liquid stirring with a whisk. You may need to add about 1/2 cup of warm tap water if the reserve liquid is too salty.


Add to pasta; toss well to coat. Sprinkle with feta

Chef Shelley Pogue, a Cum Laude, Le Cordon Blue graduate and Executive Research and Development Chef, for Vertical Sales and Marketing, San Ramon, CA.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Shelley_Pogue

Pasta Puttanesca, Lady of the night pasta, Chef Shelley Pogue's version, great dish as a main course

This is a great dish, and it has many great and different flavors. It was originally made for the working women in Italy. It was supposedly very easy to make if you were in a time crunch, and the ingredients were not expensive. The women did not have much time to eat and not very much money to spend on food. I assume that the carb values also came in handy. This sauce should take maybe 20-30 minutes, so if you want a fast and easy meal this is one to try. It is not for the faint pallet. You must like bold flavors in order to want to try this dish.

Ingredients list: 1 pound of dried pasta, 2 cans of Italian tomatoes, 1/4 cup of a good olive oil, 1 tsp of oregano preferably fresh, 2-4 garlic cloves minced, 1/2 cup of black olives, Nicoise, 1/4 c of capers, 4-6 anchovy fillets that have been washed and chopped,1/2 cup of Italian parsley for garnish, salt and pepper to taste, be careful on the salt levels you will get plenty from the capers, anchovies and olives.

1. Boil your pasta according to the instructions on the box. If you know how to make fresh pasta then of course that would be the best choice. There are some stores that have a good fresh pasta source so try them out if you like.

2. while your pasta is on the stove cooking you will start preparation on the Lady of the night sauce or Puttanesca sauce. Open the canned tomatoes and drain well, and then give them a rough chop. This is to be a rustic sauce and dish.

3. Add olive oil to the pan over med to low heat and add your tomatoes. Raise the heat to a nice simmer or med-high to a high heat. Just be careful not to burn the tomatoes. You will then add garlic, oregano,, olives, anchovies, capers. Add one at a time and sir until you get them all incorporated into the sauce. Reduce the heat and let simmer and reduce the contents of the sauce by half or until it is at the desired thickness. ***Reduce by half= if you have 1 cup of liquid over heat if you reduce it over the heat you are taking the contents down to 1/2 a cup.

4. Drain your pasta, but do not rinse. Add to your serving dish or bowl and pour sauce over it and garnish with the parsley.

This is a great dish! I like to eat this dish with a good Merlot and some nice garlic bread. It is a very tasty and flavorful dish. It will open your taste buds like never before. This is an easy dish to prepare, and you should probably look up some history on the dish to

Chef Shelley Pogue, a Cum Laude, Le Cordon Blue graduate and research and development chef for Vertical Sales and Marketing, San Ramon, CA.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Chef_Shelley_R._Pogue
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