New Recipe

Yesterday I refreshed, and complicated, a recipe I used to make regularly years ago. It was vegetarian but I knew my husband would not be happy without a little meat so in the interest of home unity I added some.

Pasta with Chicken, Broccoli, Goat Cheese and Pignoli

Pasta (I used linguini yesterday)

1 bunch broccoli, florets in bite-sized pieces, blanched three minutes, shocked in an ice water bath and thoroughly drained

1 chicken breast, pounded out and sliced into thin strips against the grain, bite-sized

4 oz. good goat cheese, kept cold for crumbling in at the last moment

handful of pine nuts, carefully toasted in a dry skillet and cooled

Put on the pasta water. In a large skillet with a little olive oil, saute the chicken with a bit of salt and pepper and remove. Saute the broccoli (s & p) and add the chicken. Add a bit of the pasta water (or stock), drain pasta and add. Stir. Crumble in the goat cheese, season to taste and add the pine nuts last.

The goat cheese melts a bit and makes a salty, tangy sauce and the pine nuts give a nice crunch (my husband didn’t like them). You might want to add a pinch of red pepper flakes to the broccoli for some zing.

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This “summer” has been unseasonably cool but I would rather that than 100 degrees in the shade. I read yesterday that the NYC food show’s wares include a tea popsicle in different flavors, all for under 50 calories and without refined sugar.

In the old South, I’ve read that before refrigeration only the rich had ice. Only the rich had sugar. So who would entertain on the front porch with iced tea with sugar? You betcha. It became a tradition that endures today.

As a Northerner, sweet tea, which is molecularly different than tea with sugar or sweetener added to cold tea, is too much for me. I’ve accidentally ordered it in a couple of Southern restaurants. I don’t boil my tea and prefer my own herbal “sun tea” which is actually refrigerator tea without any sugar at all. That’s what my husband drinks at home. Back at his Southern home, he’ll sweeten his mother’s tea and they use more ice than any people I know! Yes, they are rich with love and understanding for the boy who married that Yankee and lives up north.

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I swear I bought Parmigiano Reggiano the other day at the store but can’t find it anywhere. The other day I was making my husband his favorite spaghetti and meatballs (all homemade except for the durum wheat pasta) and I asked him to pick up more cheese for me. He put the cheesemonger on the phone, who told me about a fantastic Parmesan that comes from Wisconsin and won several “best US cheese” awards so that was my choice. I have yet to taste it but will do so and research the company and let you know next time.

Hope your summer is going well and that you’re planning a festive 4th. My husband’s idea of July 4th is to ask me the night of July 2 whether I want to have a “big party” for the occasion. Two days in advance of an event that most people I know, ok old married folks, spend with their families with fireworks and sparklers and grilling. That means I plan the menu, shop, prep, cook, serve and clean up. My answer in one word, NO.

We’ve seen the best fireworks in the USA, the latest next door to Chevy’s Freedom Over Texas extravaganza. Pyro Paula runs those fireworks and our dog Zoe keeps in touch with her from time to time. I also love the fireworks back home sitting by a small lake watching the local fire company launch a small show.

Zoe, Jim and I will watch them from up high, probably leaning off the balcony if the pollen (him) and mosquitos (me) aren’t too much. We’ll have a simple dinner, perhaps my “Celebration Cole Slaw” and brats. The butcher let me know there’s a special sale coming up. It sure helps to know your butchers and cheese experts. Happy Independence Day! Dee

p.s. I created the Celebration Cole Slaw because our young nephew wouldn’t eat anything but one or two chicken nuggets. I just used red cabbage, grated carrots, a bit of scallion or chives (not too much for a kid) and a favorite dressing. Plus celery seed, of course. He loved it. I also made my mother’s baked beans, but I think the colors (nearly red, white and blue) attracted him to the slaw. D