Avocado Pasta

So in an attempt to have a healthier diet, I have decided to start eating vegan about 80% of the time. I'm sure you all remember that I was a vegetarian (sometimes pescitarian) for over eight years, so cutting out meat is easy. Cutting out dairy and eggs is a little harder, but I don't eat much of those anyway! The remaining 20% of my diet will remain normal and will be saved for restaurant reviews and baking. I know that vegan baking is possible and is quite popular, and I might try my hand at it a few times, but for the time being I will leave my baking alone. After all, butter is pretty great :).
Right now, I am trying to use up all of the ingredients in my pantry before I move home for the summer (in one month exactly!). I stocked up my pantry very well at the beginning of the semester and am now finding myself with various odds and ends: half a box of spaghetti, a ton of white rice, some soba noodles, and lots of oils and vinegars. I also have about half a dozen frozen avocados in my freezer because my wonderful Grandparents sent me a whole box from California! You can see where this is going.
I found this amazing avocado pasta recipe from Damn Delicious. I was skeptical to try it at first but once I did, I was hooked. It's so easy! All you do is cook the pasta, blend the avocado with some lemon juice, olive oil, basil, and garlic, and then toss it all together with some vegetables. How simple is that?

I didn't even thaw the avocado halves all the way, although my blender was not happy about that. I had to add some warm water to loosen it up a little bit but the end result was still amazing.
You can change up the vegetables if you want, but I followed the original recipe and added cherry tomatoes and frozen yellow corn.

Avocado Pasta

Serves 2

Ingredients:

6 oz. Thin Spaghetti

1 ripe avocado (halved, peeled, and seeded)

1 T lemon juice

1 garlic clove

1/4 cup fresh basil

Salt and pepper to taste

2T + 2t olive oil

1/2 cup cherry tomatoes (quartered)

1/4 cup frozen yellow corn

Instructions:

1. Cook the spaghetti in salted water according to the package instructions. Drain well and set aside.
2. Combine the avocado, lemon juice, garlic, basil, and salt and pepper in a blender or food processor and pulse until more or less pureed. With the motor running, drizzle in the olive oil and process until smooth. If needed, add a few tablespoons of hot water.
3. Toss the pasta, avocado puree, tomatoes, and corn together in a large bowl.
4. Eat.

Source: Damn Delicious

Amanda and Meggie's Spaghetti and Smoked Mozzarella Meatballs

My cousin, Meggie, and her boyfriend, Nick, are visiting from Michigan! And because we are all poor college students, we decided to make dinner instead of going out and spending a fortune (even though Boston has some pretty great restaurants). Before she arrived, we decided on spaghetti and meatballs. And the day before she got here, Meggie texted me and suggested that we stuff the meatballs with smoked mozzarella. This changed the whole game.
We have already had a crazy food day. We got breakfast at one of my favorite coffeehouses (Pavement, here on campus), and then we got burgers at the famous Mr. Bartley's Gourmet Burgers in Harvard Square. Now, I'm not a big fan of burgers, but today, I had the Snoop Dog burger, which was amazing.
You would think that we would all be done with eating large meals, but after an afternoon of napping, studying, and guitar playing, we got to make our (much anticipated) spaghetti and meatballs. It began as a challenge, with the three of us trying to cook together in my tiny dorm kitchen on my tiny stove with my tiny pots and pans. But the end result was better than anything I could have imagined: the meatballs were browned on the bottom, which made them a little crispy. The cheese inside them was melted and gooey and smokey. And the sauce was full of flavor from the meatballs.

So do yourself a favor and make this dish: you won't be sorry. And if you have extra time, make Hudg-Bread with the leftover cheese. If you're lucky enough, you'll have enough extra meatballs and garlic bread to make a delicious meatball sandwich for lunch the next day.

Amanda and Meggie's Spaghetti and Smoked Mozzarella Meatballs

Ingredients:

2 T olive oil

1 lb. ground beef (we used 92% fat free)

1 cup parmesan (ground) plus extra for sprinkling

1/2 cup fresh parsley (chopped) plus extra for sprinkling

1/4 cup bread crumbs

1 egg

1 large onion

3 garlic cloves

2 28 oz cans crushed San Marzano tomatoes

1 lb. spaghetti

3 oz. smoked mozzarella (cubed)

Salt and pepper

Instructions:

1. Cook the pasta according to the box instructions (salt the water!!!), then drain and set aside.
2. Put the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat.
3. Put the ground beef in a bowl. Add the parmesan, parsley, bread crumbs, egg, and some salt and pepper. Then mix with your hands until thoroughly combined.
4. Using a 1 inch cookie scoop, make meatballs, and push one cube of smoked mozzarella into the center of each ball. Make sure the cheese is completely covered by the meat.
5. Raise the heat for the skillet to medium high and drop the meatballs into the oil, doing your best to keep them from touching. Let the meatballs cook, without disturbing them, for 5-6 minutes, or until lightly browned on the bottom.
6. While the meatballs are browning, dice up the onion and mince the garlic cloves. When the meatballs are done, scatter the onion and garlic around the meatballs. 
7. When the meatballs are nicely browned on the bottom and the onion and garlic are softening, pour the crushed tomatoes over them and season with salt and pepper. Adjust the heat so that the mixture bubbles slowly, but steadily, and then cover the skillet and let cook for 8 minutes, or until the meatballs are no longer pink in the middle. Remove the lid and turn up the heat so that the sauce boils and thickens a bit. If you need to stir, do so carefully.
8. When the sauce is done to your liking, toss some of the sauce with the drained pasta in a bowl. Divide the pasta between four plates and top with the remaining sauce and the meatballs. Sprinkle with the extra parmesan and parsley.
9. Eat.

Adapted from the New York Times

Gnocchi

Last night for dinner, I wanted to make gnocchi. Gnocchi are italian potato dumplings, and when serving you treat them like pasta and serve them with sauce. I'd had gnocchi in restaurants and it was delicious, and the kind you can buy premade at the store just isn't the same. However, I soon found that making gnocchi is a long and tedious process. I spent 5 hours making dinner last night. In the end it was delicious, but it was quite the process.

I made a marinara sauce from scratch to go on top, because I didn't feel like getting creative and thinking of something else. But the gnocchi are very versatile and could go with a ton of other sauces.

One thing I would like to point out: the recipe originally said it would serve two, so I doubled it to make enough for the family. The doubled recipe made enough to feed an army, and trying to mash 6 potatoes at a time proved to be a challenge. The original recipe is plenty to feed four, so in my photos, there is twice as much as necessary.

First you take some potatoes and wash them off and poke them all over with a fork.

Then bake them until they are soft. This is where the recipe failed me. It said bake them for 45 minutes, which was definitely not enough. Once I peeled them and tried to mash them, it became apparent that the potatoes were not nearly soft enough, so I had to try and steam them some more in the microwave until they were cooked enough. But anyway, once they are soft, take them out and peel them.

This was also a difficult process. The potatoes were extremely hot and I burned my fingers while trying to peel them. I had to have my dad help me out. When they are peeled, mash them up like you would if you were making mashed potatoes.

Then add an egg yolk and some salt. When that is mixed in, add some flour and mash it all together.

 The final dough should look like this:

Now take handfuls of the dough and roll them out into a rope on a floured surface. Then, cut them into 1-inch pieces.

Now boil the gnocchi in batches. Put around a dozen or so into boiling water, and when they float to the top, cook them two minutes more.

Take them out with a slotted spoon and set aside.

Now sautee them in a skillet with some butter until they are brown.

They kind of fell apart in this step, as you can see, because my pan is no longer effectively nonstick and they got a little stuck, but if you work hard enough, you can get them brown. Then take them out and serve them with some sauce :)

Yummy! They were so good. So much better than the pre-made ones at the store. They are soft and they melt in your mouth.

The marinara sauce will be a separate post because this one is getting to be a bit long. In the future, when I make these again, I will bake the potatoes in advance and make SURE they are soft. I might also boil them. I froze the extra gnocchi, so when I want to prepare them, I will just boil and then sautee them. Much easier than the ordeal I had to go through today.

Here's the recipe:

Gnocchi

Ingredients:

3 russet potatoes

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 egg yolk

3/4 cup flour

Butter

Instructions:

1. Wash the potatoes and poke them all over with a fork. Bake them until soft at 400 degrees F.
2. While the potatoes are still hot, cut them in half and squeeze the insides into a bowl, discarding the skins. Alternatively, peel them with a knife. Then mash the potatoes with a potato masher or a fork.
3. Add the egg yolk and salt to the bowl and stir them in. Then mix in the flour. I used my hands to do this, because it also kneads the dough a bit.
4. Take a handful of the dough and roll it into a 1/2-inch-thick rope on a floured surface. Cut the rope into 1-inch pieces. Repeat with the remaining dough.
5. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add a dozen or so gnocchi, and cook for 2 minutes after they float to the surface. Remove with a slotted spoon, and repeat with the remaining gnocchi.
6. Place a few T of butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the gnocchi (as many as will fit in a single layer in your pan) and cook, stirring occasionally, for 12-15 minutes, or until lightly browned on two sides. Repeat with the remaining gnocchi.
7. Serve with sauce. Eat.

Source: College Vegetarian Cooking

Fettuccine with Asparagus and Lemon

So a few years ago, my mom bought me this book: Teens Cook Baking. It was written by two sisters, and it is full of tons of delicious recipes. I loved it so much that my mom got me another book by the same authors: College Vegetarian Cooking. It is fantastic. It's got tons of recipes that are delicious, but made with cheap and easy-to-get ingredients: perfect for the broke college student. When I go to college next year, this is definitely coming with me. A few weeks ago, I made recipes from this book for dinner for a week straight, and they were all delicious. The best part was that even my carnivore brother and dad liked everything I made (and only supplemented the meals with meat a few times!).
One of the recipes that I discovered during that week was this one: fettuccine with asparagus and lemon. It's super easy and only has a few ingredients, but it's really yummy. It's a bit like fettuccine alfredo, but much lighter and healthier. You can prepare the sauce during the time it takes to cook the pasta, so it's great when you don't have a lot of time to cook.

Basically, you boil a big pot of salted water for your pasta. Follow the directions on the box and drain when the pasta is al dente.

Meanwhile, wash and prep your asparagus, then cut it into 1" pieces and boil in a saucepan with 1/2" of water until it is barely tender, then drain it and set aside.

Grate 1 T of the lemon peel, and squeeze 2 T of juice from the lemon.

Whisk together the egg and milk in a large sauce pan. Cook over medium until very warm, but do not let it boil.

Remove from heat and stir in the Parmesan cheese, apsaragus, and lemon zest and juice. 

Add the fettuccine and toss until completely coated. Make sure to drain the noodles and asparagus extremely well, so that the sauce doesn't get watered down too much. Season with salt and pepper and top with more Parmesan and then serve. 

The leftovers are great cold. I brought some to school for lunch and it was great :). 

Here's the recipe:

Fettuccine with Asparagus and Lemon

Ingredients:

1 lb. uncooked fettuccine

1 lb. asparagus

1 lemon

1 egg

1 cup milk

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese (plus extra for sprinkling)

Salt and pepper

Instructions:

1. Cook the fettuccine according to package instructions. Drain and set aside.
2. Meanwhile, break the tough ends off the asparagus and discard (see veggie broth). Cut the asparagus into 1 inch pieces. Place in a saucepan with about 1/2 inch of water, and bring to a boil. Cover and cook over medium-low heat for 3-4 minutes, or until barely tender. Drain and set aside.
3. Finely grate 1 T of the lemon peel. Squeeze 2 T of the juice from the lemon.
4. Whisk together the egg and milk in a large saucepan. Cook over medium heat for 4-5 minutes, or until very warm. Do not let it boil.
5. Remove from the heat, add the Parmesan cheese, asparagus, lemon zest, and lemon juice, and stir until combined. Add the fettuccine and toss until completely coated (make sure asparagus and fettuccine are well drained, so the sauce does not get watered down).
6. Season with salt and pepper and top with more Parmesan cheese.
7. Eat.

Source: College Vegetarian Cooking

Peanutty Sesame Noodles

Hi guys!
So I'd like to start out my post by saying this: I HATE PEANUT BUTTER. I have never liked it. I don't like the texture, the flavor, the smell, anything. I don't like Nutella because of the texture as well, which many think is a crime against humanity. However, Nutella is good baked into things, especially cookies (you aren't getting that recipe today, though!). Anyway, back to peanut butter, the only recipe I like it in is this one: Peanutty Sesame Noodles.

I got the recipe from my mom's Trader Joe's Cookbook. It's super easy and delicious. Luckily, if you don't live near a Trader Joe's, the only ingredient that I get from there is this:

Trader Joe's Soyaki Sauce. It's got sesame seeds in it, which is nice, and I use it on plenty of other things. It's very good. However, you could probably find a replacement at your local supermarket. The rest of the ingredients are basic, and you can get them at Safeway or whatever.

So anyway, first you boil a large pot of salted water and cook some thin spaghetti according to your package instructions. Next you whisk together the peanut butter, the soyaki sauce, and some sesame oil.

When that's nice and smooth, whisk in some water. It should look like this:

Next, shred some carrots and slice a cucumber. I used my food processor for this. It's very handy. I love my food processor.

Finally, chop up a few green onions and crush some roasted peanuts (not shown because I forgot to buy them). When the pasta is done, drain it, and put it back into the pot. Mix it with the sauce and the vegetables, and top it with the green onions and peanuts.

I like to top it with some sesame seeds, but you could do whatever you want. The recipe suggests adding tofu or chicken to make a complete meal, but I like it just fine the way it is. It's great for lunch the next day, as well :).

Here's the recipe (I like to double it):

Easy Peanutty Noodles

Ingredients:

8 oz. spaghetti noodles

1/4 cup Trader Joe's soyaki

1/4 cup creamy peanut butter

2 tsp sesame oil

1/4 cup water

1 cup shredded carrot

1/2 cup sliced cucumber

2 green onions (chopped)

1/4 cup roasted peanuts (crushed)

Instructions:

1. Cook noodles according to package directions. Drain.
2. Whisk Soyaki, peanut butter, and sesame oil until blended.
3. Add water and mix well.
4. Pour sauce over noodles and toss until noodles are evenly coated. Add carrots and cucumber. Toss gently.
5. Top with green onions and crushed peanuts.
6. Eat.

Source: Cooking With All Things Trader Joe's

Baked Macaroni and Cheese

Everyone I've met loves macaroni and cheese. In fact, I'm sure 99% of the population loves macaroni and cheese, and the remaining 1% are vegans or lactose intolerant. And, to be honest, I do love the Kraft macaroni and cheese that is in the shapes of cartoon characters (in fact, that's the only way I'll eat it), but this is only appropriate at certain times. Make it when you're babysitting, or when it's finals week, or when you can't afford to eat anything else, but do not make it at any other time.
My recipe is SO much better. It barely deserves to share the same name as Kraft mac & cheese. It's made with the stovetop AND the oven. First, you make your sauce and mix it with some pasta, and then you toast breadcrumbs and put them on top. Finally, you bake it in a casserole pan until it's all brown and bubbly :).

I could eat this all day. And, if you have any, the leftovers are great for lunch :). And apparently fried mac and cheese, although I've never had that. Maybe I'll try it out one day. The above photo is from the most recent time I made this, when I used cheddar cheese and parmesan and penne pasta. Below, I used white cheddar, jack and cream cheese and elbow pasta.

Anyway, here's my recipe:

Amanda’s Awesome Macaroni and Cheese

Ingredients:

1 pound shaped pasta

Handful kosher salt

½ stick butter

¼ cup flour

2 ½ cups milk/cream (or a mix)

Teaspoon mustard powder (optional)

Teaspoon garlic powder (optional)

1 egg yolk

Lots of cheese (whatever kind you want)

Breadcrumbs

Tablespoon butter

Instructions:

1. Boil water for your pasta. Throw in the kosher salt (it should taste like seawater).
2. Cook your pasta for 1 minute less than the time it says on the box. Drain and put aside.
3. Meanwhile, melt butter in a pot over medium heat.
4. Add the flour and cook for a few minutes until it is no longer raw.
5. Whisk in the milk and cream and let it become thick.
6. Stir in spices if using.
7. Beat the egg yolk in a bowl and then add some of the sauce. Stir immediately. When combined, add the mixture to the rest of the sauce and whisk immediately until combined (this is called tempering the egg yolk).
8. Now you add cheese! Add handfuls and handfuls of cheese. However much you want. Seriously. Just taste your sauce to decide when to stop. Save a handful of cheese to add at the end.
9. Now mix in the cooked pasta. Stir until all of the pasta is covered. Put this into a large casserole pan.
10. Toast the breadcrumbs in a pan over medium heat.
11. When the breadcrumbs are turning golden, add the tablespoon butter and stir until combined.
12. Sprinkle the breadcrumbs over the pasta, followed by the final handful of cheese.
13. Bake in a 375 degree oven for 20-25 minutes.
14. Eat.