Happy 2018! And with the new year came the cold and snow. And no, I am not complaining because I like the snow. Last night we got 16 inches of the stuff and today we are in the deep freeze. You know that that means? Comfort food! Last night I made this lovely stew: Red-wine braised Boneless Beef Short Ribs, with Root Veggies. Some of the ribs were so big that they could have been mistaken for mini-pot roasts. Super tender and flavorful! Nom nom nom!
Here is a little bit of an odd-ball recipe for you: Rigatoni Pie. OK, in this case, it is actually Paccheri Pie, because that is the kind of pasta that I used, but most people would use rigatoni. Any tubular pasta will do though. I had found the paccheri a while back at Eataly, so figured that I could use them with this.
So what is a pasta pie? Essentially, a lasagna with the noddles standing upright. All the ingredients are the same. I just think this turns out to be a bit of a fun presentation. And perfect comfort food as well.
Brown Butter Pumpkin Oatmeal Cinnamon Chip Jumbles … it’s quite a mouthful to say, actually. But I promise that they are harvest-y and sweet and possibly even nutritious. Sure there is butter and sugar, but the oatmeal and pumpkin puree outbalance the other stuff, right? I’ll just keep saying that and eventually I’ll convince myself. 🙂
Cauliflower is really underrated, in my opinion. A lot of people think it is bland or flavorless. The white color doesn’t exactly do it any favors either. But you can really use it as anything from a base to a soup to “rice” to in this case, a “steak”. It’s really hearty, flavorful with the nutty brown butter and can truly be used as a substitute for a real steak. I’d serve this to a vegetarian friend, wouldn’t you?
Today’s Soup of the Day: Creamy Sweet Potato Curry Bisque. I feel like I’m in a restaurant whenever someone says “Soup of the Day”. 🙂
It’s actually gotten cooler here in greater Boston, which is nice for mid-October. It’s been too warm for soup until now, but it’s supposed to be the start of Soup Season, right? At any rate, cool enough to make this sweet potato bisque. It’s a variation on my Roasted Butternut Curry Soup, which is one of my favorites. Worked just as well with sweet potatoes. The best part: it freezes really well, so double the recipe and you’ll have a freezer full to last you a while!