K Kruger
TVWBB 1-Star Olympian
...there was little food in the kitchen.
Got in yesterday afternoon and with just 24 hours till I leave, I decided to see what was in the freezer. (About 10 miles from the ranch as I made my last turn: a pick-up passed me, the bed full of just picked sweet corn. South Florida in January!)
I found some chopped pork from a butt cook I did a while back, in a vac bag. In the cheese drawer, several ends from various cheeses--extra sharp white cheddar, mozz, Parrano, and a wedge of imported Parm. Also in the freezer, a vac bag of spinach I'd blanched or salt-bled. On the window sill, some arugula and parsley. In the cupboard, some penne from TJ's.
So, a little dinner: penne 'mac' and cheese with barbecued pork, spinach, and minced herbs folded in; Parm-breadcrumb topping. Not great pics but,
A little while ago, being a pasta and egg lover, brunch--reheated a hunk of last nights dinner, topped with a smear of herbed soft cheese and a poached egg, with plenty of black pepper and Aleppo--
I made the penne and cheese with a simple Béchamel to which I added the cheeses and allowed them to melt. The sauce was seasoned with salt and white pepper, plus granulated garlic and onion, and a little freshly grated nutmeg.
The spinach I thawed, squeezed very well then chopped, then mixed into it the arugula and parsley which I plucked from the window and minced finely.
The pork I nuked in bag, just to warm a bit, slit the bag, then dumped in onto a plate I'd covered with a couple thicknesses of paper towel, so as to absorb excess moisture from the bag so that the finished dish would be tighter.
I browned the breadcrumbs in an evoo-butter mix on the stove.
I cooked the pasta, drained it, then returned it to the pot and stirred in the sauce. I covered the pot and let it sit over very low heat, stirring occasionally, so that the pasta wouls absorb some sauce. Then I folded in the pork and dumped the mix into a pan. I gently folded the spinach-herb mix into the pasta while it was in the pan. (I didn't do this earlier because I didn't want the sauce to turn green.) I grated some Parm and mixed it into the breadcrumbs, topped the pasta with this, then slid into a 400 oven and baked till the top was nicely browned, about 12-15 min, rested 5, then cut.
I used a 1/2 pound of dried pasta, made a 2-cup Béchamel and added, dunno, 7-8 ounces of grated cheeses, mabe 1/2 c of breadcrumbs plus another 2 T of Parm for the topping. Spinach would be the equivalent of about 3/4 of a 10-ounce box, around 7 ounces or so. All just fit into an 8x8 pan.
So, another use for Q'd pork.
Got in yesterday afternoon and with just 24 hours till I leave, I decided to see what was in the freezer. (About 10 miles from the ranch as I made my last turn: a pick-up passed me, the bed full of just picked sweet corn. South Florida in January!)
I found some chopped pork from a butt cook I did a while back, in a vac bag. In the cheese drawer, several ends from various cheeses--extra sharp white cheddar, mozz, Parrano, and a wedge of imported Parm. Also in the freezer, a vac bag of spinach I'd blanched or salt-bled. On the window sill, some arugula and parsley. In the cupboard, some penne from TJ's.
So, a little dinner: penne 'mac' and cheese with barbecued pork, spinach, and minced herbs folded in; Parm-breadcrumb topping. Not great pics but,
A little while ago, being a pasta and egg lover, brunch--reheated a hunk of last nights dinner, topped with a smear of herbed soft cheese and a poached egg, with plenty of black pepper and Aleppo--
I made the penne and cheese with a simple Béchamel to which I added the cheeses and allowed them to melt. The sauce was seasoned with salt and white pepper, plus granulated garlic and onion, and a little freshly grated nutmeg.
The spinach I thawed, squeezed very well then chopped, then mixed into it the arugula and parsley which I plucked from the window and minced finely.
The pork I nuked in bag, just to warm a bit, slit the bag, then dumped in onto a plate I'd covered with a couple thicknesses of paper towel, so as to absorb excess moisture from the bag so that the finished dish would be tighter.
I browned the breadcrumbs in an evoo-butter mix on the stove.
I cooked the pasta, drained it, then returned it to the pot and stirred in the sauce. I covered the pot and let it sit over very low heat, stirring occasionally, so that the pasta wouls absorb some sauce. Then I folded in the pork and dumped the mix into a pan. I gently folded the spinach-herb mix into the pasta while it was in the pan. (I didn't do this earlier because I didn't want the sauce to turn green.) I grated some Parm and mixed it into the breadcrumbs, topped the pasta with this, then slid into a 400 oven and baked till the top was nicely browned, about 12-15 min, rested 5, then cut.
I used a 1/2 pound of dried pasta, made a 2-cup Béchamel and added, dunno, 7-8 ounces of grated cheeses, mabe 1/2 c of breadcrumbs plus another 2 T of Parm for the topping. Spinach would be the equivalent of about 3/4 of a 10-ounce box, around 7 ounces or so. All just fit into an 8x8 pan.
So, another use for Q'd pork.
