Ricotta Gnocchi with Roasted Tomato

It’s time for tomatoes! An August tomato is like a lover you’ve been waiting for all season to embrace you at last with a kiss as ripe as summer.

Take advantage of the bounty this month when tomatoes are at their ready-to-burst best. This recipe calls for plum tomatoes but I think you should seek out farmer’s markets for huge heirlooms in all their infinite shapes and glorious colors. Then roast them for a summer-sweet sauce to pour over your golden brown, plump and pillowy gnocchi. Use fresh ricotta, if available!

As a part of my summer rotation for years now, I love this dish from my head to-ma-toes.

 

Ricotta Gnocchi with Roasted Tomato

From epicurious.com
Makes 4 (main course) servings

Ingredients
2 lb plum tomatoes, trimmed and halved lengthwise
1/2 stick (1/4 cup) unsalted butter
3 large eggs
1 (15-oz) container ricotta
1 cup all-purpose flour

Preparation
Roast tomatoes:
Preheat oven to 400°F.

Put tomatoes, cut sides up, in 1 layer in a 13- by 9-inch baking dish. Dot with 2 tablespoons butter and season well with salt and pepper. Roast in middle of oven until skins are wrinkled and beginning to brown, about 45 minutes. Cool in baking dish.

Make gnocchi while tomatoes roast:
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.

Beat together eggs and ricotta in a large bowl with an electric mixer until blended. Stir in flour, 1 teaspoon kosher salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper until combined. (Batter will be soft.)

Use 2 teaspoons (flatware, not measuring spoons) to form gnocchi: Scoop up a rounded teaspoon of batter, then use second spoon to scoop mixture off spoon and into boiling water. Make 9 more gnocchi.

Simmer briskly until gnocchi are just firm in center and cooked through, about 5 minutes. Transfer with a slotted spoon to a platter and cool, covered with damp paper towel. Continue making gnocchi in batches of 10.

Make sauce and sauté gnocchi:
When tomatoes are cool enough to handle, peel and seed them over roasting pan. Slice tomato flesh lengthwise 1/4 inch thick and put in a medium saucepan. Scrape skins, seeds, and any juices from roasting pan into a fine sieve set over saucepan with tomatoes and press on solids in sieve to extract juices. Discard skins and seeds.

Stir 1/4 cup water into tomatoes and bring to a low simmer over low heat. While tomatoes are coming to a simmer, melt remaining 2 tablespoons butter in a 12-inch nonstick skillet over moderate heat, then cook gnocchi, turning gently, until heated through, 4 to 5 minutes.

Season gnocchi with salt and pepper and serve with warm tomatoes.

Cheese Fondue in a Pumpkin & Other Delights

Gourmet magazine was most regrettably retired back in 2008. I however, fortunately, was not. For it was there, in the final November 2008 issue (I have another gruesomely sentimental copy still wrapped in the plastic, cuddling next to my beloved Gourmet 70's back issue stash) that I culled together this year's Thanksgiving menu (links provided here by yours truly). And what a wonderful, Dickensian feast in merrie olde England it seemed, once all laid out on the table! Most of it was made the day before (at least in parts), and other delights subtly assembled while the turkey that Baby prepared sat to consider its satsuma tangerine-and-herb-stuffed cavity, at rest. Summoning motes of clarity, I set the table two days before.

Cunning coriander and rosemary goat cheese marbles skewered with parsley leaves were a cozy nibble...

before the great pumpkin fondue arrived, filled with layers of mixed Emmental and gruyere cheeses, a light bechamel, and sturdy slices of miche country bread. We swooned and supped laudably and audibly too over the instantly comforting innards, ladled out into our bowls, with spooned crescents of pumpkin pulled from within for (very) good measure. This was very simple to prepare, except for the careful business of slicing off the stubborn tops. Short of procuring a reciprocating saw, the only thing I might suggest is taking hold of your strongest, most resilient knife (probably a well-sharpened butcher's knife) as I did and nimbly hacking away at the beast with a few deliberate whacks. Although this particular recipe was on the Thanksgiving roster, it will serve you and your guests well anytime through the winter months and act as a wonderful gift for Christmas, tableside. Consider my chicken pot pie in a pumpkin as well, always a favorite!

We paused with a smartly civilized watercress salad with smoked sable (a.k.a. black cod, found at our local bagel place) and beets, diced and stacked like a terrine on top of the green watercress sprigs. The beets marinated overnight in a tart shallot and fresh grapefruit juice (my idea, instead of lemon juice) vinaigrette.

The traditional pork pie course made its way...

highly suited for sopping up with our gravy (see turkey recipe below). I made the pork pies a week ahead of time and froze them--as I suggest you do too--and thawed them out the night before our dinner, back into the oven for about 30 minutes at 350 degrees.

Behold our Tom! Quite carved obviously, having been injected with white wine, and melted black truffle butter (a mixture of purchased black truffle paste with butter), the recipe road map here! Tinker with it as you will. More about tending to old Tom is found here, during our trip to Turks and Caicos a few years ago.

Amiable sides were comprised of our compote, with red pearl onions, quince (I used quince paste!) and fresh cranberries...

Also added to our festive mix was a trio featuring mashed potatoes and roasted root vegetables (thanks super duper delivery service Fresh Direct!) and a stunningly seductive, silken parsnip puree with sauteed Brussels sprouts that I made myself.

Gourmet suggests an apple granita as a palate cleansing kick-off to dessert but we found a time-saving, luscious Italian pear sorbetti instead, and certainly any brightly tart fruit sorbet will tingle the taste buds to the same effect.

Desserts were unapologetically store-bought pumpkin and pecan pies (courtesy again of Fresh Direct). Our merry band politely nibbled only, as we had naturally become as stuffed as our turkeys, and quite without apology as well at that! I urge you to try all of these terrific recipes over the upcoming months, whatever the occasion--and do enjoy!

Spring Fling!

My brilliant cousin gave me a beautiful vintage table cloth with bouquets of muted pink and teal flowers against a bordered pale blue and white background. When she saw it at a flea market it struck her because she remembered from a recent visit that we had set of hand-embroidered floral napkins that would match perfectly. She also paired this with a set of blue candlesticks to wrap up the whole thing, suggesting it would be an idyllic spring table setting. But who can wait? I hastened to set up a somewhat wintry table with the promise of spring just bursting through and launched my Spring Fling!

Behold this woodland creature who stopped by!

An issue of Gourmet magazine set the stage for this one, from January of 2008. The fabulous menu for eight is quite extensive and looked absolutely exhausting and impossible to execute without staff! I just cut down on the outrageously overwrought menu and corners as well to make it as simple as I could. I prepped the sugared blackberries days before, planned my table, braised the pork in advance and had the pots and pans I would need at the ready the day of the party. Don't forget to chill lots of white wine! Biscuits were courtesy of Pillsbury.

Champagne punch was served first before we moved to the dining table for my Night and Day Souffle and hot biscuits with butter and honey. Pork hash accompanied sumptuous shrimp and grits, followed by a respite of winter lettuces with warm bacon dressing. Ambrosia, sugared blackberries and biscuits ensued with a bread pudding of sorts until we were all appropriately flung!

THURSDAY:
Sugared Blackberries
This was so nice--do take the three days to macerate your berries though, and take them out of the refrigerator to tend to them once a day by briefly stirring.

FRIDAY:
Made Braised-Pork Hash
Adding homemade vanilla extract at the end was my own invention, otherwise I would have tossed in a split vanilla bean at the start, had I not thought to do so too late. It was a great idea--and if only fortitude had won over timidity, I would have added more.

SATURDAY:
Double-checked my lists and chopped/sliced/diced whatever I could.
Made "Bread Pudding" with cubes of a Betty Crocker orange cake, added in Jell-o banana pudding, later to be drizzled with chocolate sauce and topped with fresh strawberries.

SUNDAY: Spring Fling!
Champagne Punch
This was so good. Can be chilled up to 3 hours before serving; Champagne bubbles in at the end.

Night and Day Souffle
I couldn't be bothered with the timing of the creamed eggs with spinach and country ham found here. It looks really wonderful, just too much. My Night and Day Souffle is much easier. For this version, I just beat 8 eggs together with heavy cream, chopped bacon and chives, salt and pepper and a little grated Parmesan on top. It goes into a 350-degree oven for 40 minutes or so and DONE. Serve it quickly though while it is puffed up and strutting; soon it naturally does collapse. Put up a side of Pillsbury biscuits with honey and butter.

Lowcountry Breakfast Shrimp
Prep your onions (just slice them and ignore the worry-work of a fine dice), garlic and scallions the night before. Cook them in butter ahead of time and add in the shrimp later, just before serving. Dredge half of the shrimp in flour and work in to create a nice creaminess that won't overcook the shrimp. Threads of thyme are a recommended (by me) addition.

Creamy Stone-Ground Grits
Use instant grits instead of all the folderol and add heavy cream, milk and butter to your liking. Enough already.

Braised-Pork Hash
This is not difficult at all. The braising just takes a lot of time so just move on to other things like laundry while the meat simmers down and falls off the bone.

Winter Lettuces with Warm Sweet-and-Sharp Dressing
Again, couldn't deal with all of this--oy, boiling vinegar, reducing? Ugh. I adapted my go-to Shallot and Champagne Vinaigrette courtesy of Michael Lomonaco, found here. And I made it the day before in the food processor and kept it in the refrigerator instead of huffing and puffing over an oven. I subbed cider vinegar for Champagne vinegar; brown sugar for regular sugar; 1/4 cup melted bacon grease with 1/2 cup olive oil instead of just 3/4 cup olive oil to create an entirely new, hassle-free dressing. Crumbled bacon was thrown in over the salad and a little extra bacon grease (warmed from the microwave) too. Jaws dropped.

Ambrosia
So easy and delicious--from jars of Del Monte supremed white and pink grapefruit and oranges, no apologies! I wasn't about to supreme 8 navel oranges. The only thing that takes any time is the chilling of this dessert in the fridge. And no, I did not roast a whole coconut in the oven and hack it apart. A bag of shredded coconut is quite serviceable. Please.

Sugared Blackberries
Served with a pillar of more biscuits, cold this round.

Our Orange Cake and Banana "Bread Pudding" is seen below.

Do you know how to spring fling?

Soundtrack: Lawrence Welk, Champagne Time; Art Van Damme Quintet, Manhattan Time; Stephan Grappelli, Shades of Django; Bossa n' Madonna; Combo; Fleetwood Mac and Annie Lennox lingered on

Sage's Sweet Sixteen

We try to do what we can, and at best, inspire. When my sweet cousin turned 16, (my, children grow up so quickly, don't they?) she came into town for a visit with her mother and Baby and I threw a party for her all weekend, whisking her about all over the city.

What to do but have a Croquet Lawn Party upon their arrival, even though we don't have a lawn or a croquet set! I had been itching to make recipes culled from a Gourmet magazine issue all the way back from 1994 but never really had the proper moment. So here it was for our celebration: A few pitchers of Southside vodka cocktails with mint were served, but I didn't squeeze my own limes or make simple syrup--adding Simply Limeade did the time-saving trick! We made a dried sour cherry and cream cheese spread with pecans and bought a jar of salmon rillettes (sort of a salmon pate) for starters. Chicken salad tea sandwiches (recipe below) were absolutely fabulous with crushed smoked almonds. Cheddar chutney tea sandwiches and minted radish tea sandwiches with lemon mayonnaise further fed our small crowd.

To celebrate the sweet event, we set a Peppridge Farm lemon cake afire with blueberries, edible flowers and sparklers, as you do. Cheers, girl!

Chicken Salad Tea Sandwiches with Smoked Almonds
Adapted from Gourmet Magazine
Ingredients
3 cups chicken broth
2 whole boneless chicken breasts with skin (about 1 1/2 pounds), halved
1 cup mayonnaise
1/3 cup minced shallot
1 teaspoon minced fresh tarragon leaves
24 very thin slices Pepperidge Farm bread
1/2 cup finely chopped smoked almonds (about 2 ounces)

Method
In a deep 12-inch skillet bring broth to a boil and add chicken breasts in one layer. Reduce heat and poach chicken at a bare simmer, turning once, 7 minutes. Remove skillet from heat and cool chicken in cooking liquid 20 minutes. Discard skin and shred chicken fine.
In a bowl stir together chicken, 1/2 cup of mayonnaise, shallot, tarragon, and salt and pepper to taste.
Make 12 sandwiches with chicken salad and bread, pressing together gently. With a 2-inch round cutter cut 2 rounds from each sandwich. Put almonds on a small plate and spread edges of rounds with remaining 1/2 cup mayonnaise to coat well. Roll edges in almonds.

Sandwiches may be made 2 hours ahead, wrapped in plastic wrap, and chilled.

Makes 24 tea sandwiches.

Goin' Coconuts

Although Cousin Jane now lives in Key West, she still remains a wonderfully staunch New Englander, as a woman of a certain age with a stylish sense that evokes more retiring movie queens of another era. What a comforting joy it was to see her after so many years and to stay at her cozy bungalow (with a pool off of the lanai!) when Baby and I went to visit. If you read my previous post, you know that we were hanging with some other dames, other golden girls such as my dear mother, and two cousins that I hadn't seen for some time. Baby and I decided to take them to Pepe's for brunch one morning as it seemed to be one of Jane's favorite places to visit and no wonder--they treat her like the Queen of England and the rest of us as her ample court! What looks like a modest shack on the outside is actually teeming with guests inside who fill the wooden booths and spill past the sturdy bar onto the sun-dappled, charmingly ragtag garden patio that feels nautical in tone, almost like a galley kitchen but with lattice-work, curious chirping blackbirds, and bursting deep pink bougainvillea. With a whiff of scandal, a Bloody Mary or two and perhaps a Mimosa, we sat enjoying each others company as much as traditional Eggs Benedict, a ham, cheese and onion stuffed omelet and waffles topped with fruit.

Jane introduced us to Charlie who has long made all the desserts at Pepe's. She sat down with us and told us all about the pies that she makes at home a few miles away and delivers back to the restaurant. Here she is about to make the brief trek and fill that pie pan (one of many for the day)!

We had to try the Coconut Cream Pie that everyone clamors for, and with good reason. Charlie shared the recipe below and I've also included the recipe for Pepe's Coconut Bread that was featured in Gourmet magazine so you can really go coconuts.

Thank you, dear Jane for sharing Pepe's with us!

Coconut Cream Pie

Filling:
6 egg yolks
2 tsp. coconut extract
1 cup sugar
6 heaping tbs. cornstarch
6 cups half & half
2 cups flaked and sweetened coconut

Crust:
Two prepared graham cracker crusts

Method:
Mix together the eggs and the coconut extract and set aside. In heavy saucepan combine sugar, cornstarch and Half & Half. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. When mixture is bubbling, add one cup of the milk to the eggs to warm the egg mixture. Return all the egg mixture into the milk and continue cooking. Stir with a whisk constantly until well combined and mixture is bubbling again. Remove from heat and stir in coconut. Cool to room temperature and turn into 2 graham cracker pie crusts. Chill. Serve topped with whipped cream.

Makes 2 pies, 12 servings, 6 per pie.

And while we're at it, why not try...

Pepe's Coconut Bread
Featured in Gourmet magazine
Makes: 1 loaf Serve toasted or warm, freezes well
Ingredients
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup white sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp. coconut extract
1 cup fancy shred coconut
1 cup sour cream
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. baking powder

Directions
Cream together butter and sugar. Beat in eggs and extract, then the sour cream. Add the coconut. Fold in the flour, baking powder and soda. Turn into lightly greased loaf pan and bake at 350 degrees for about 45 minutes or until done. Makes 1 loaf-10 slices

Suggested Substitutions: omit coconut extract and coconut. Use maple extract and walnuts for Maple Walnut bread. Use lemon extract and 1 tbsp. poppy seeds for Lemon Poppy Seed bread. Use vanilla extract and any fruit such as peaches, pears, cranberries, etc for other changes.

Birthday Pineapple Upside-Down Cake

I have often made Pineapple Upside-Down Cake to celebrate my friend Carl's birthday. I don't know exactly how it started some years ago, I guess just because pineapples are symbols for hospitality and friendship--and perhaps because of my penchant for maraschino cherries (Yes! Add them to your topping!). But there I've been, arriving at his parties, with the cake still warm in my treasured flame-colored Le Creuset cast iron skillet, having lugged it all from home. The pan works very well in making this particular dessert and the guests certainly seem to like it, given all the "oohs" and "ahs" exclaimed with its unveiling.

Happy Birthday, dear Carl!

Pineapple Upside-Down Cake

Adapted from Gourmet magazine
yield: Serves 8
active time: 30 min
total time: 1 1/4 hr

"This cake, thought to have first appeared in the 1920s, has had such names as pineapple glacé and pineapple skillet cake."

Ingredients

For topping:
1/2 medium pineapple, peeled, quartered lengthwise, and cored
3/4 stick unsalted butter
3/4 cup packed light brown sugar

For batter:
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 to 3 teaspoons ground cardamom
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 stick unsalted butter, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 tablespoon dark rum
1/2 cup unsweetened pineapple juice
2 tablespoons dark rum for sprinkling over cake Special equipment:
a well-seasoned 10-inch cast-iron skillet

Preparation
Preheat oven to 350°F.
Make topping: Cut pineapple crosswise into 3/8-inch-thick pieces. Melt butter in skillet. Add brown sugar and simmer over moderate heat, stirring, 4 minutes. Remove from heat. Arrange pineapple on top of sugar mixture in concentric circles, overlapping pieces slightly.

Make batter: Sift together flour, cardamom, baking powder, and salt. Beat butter in a large bowl with an electric mixer until light and fluffy, then gradually beat in granulated sugar. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in vanilla and rum. Add half of flour mixture and beat on low speed just until blended. Beat in pineapple juice, then add remaining flour mixture, beating just until blended. (Batter may appear slightly curdled.)

Spoon batter over pineapple topping and spread evenly. Bake cake in middle of oven until golden and a tester comes out clean, about 45 minutes. Let cake stand in skillet 5 minutes. Invert a plate over skillet and invert cake onto plate (keeping plate and skillet firmly pressed together). Replace any pineapple stuck to bottom of skillet. Sprinkle rum over cake and cool on plate on a rack.

Serve cake just warm or at room temperature.

Cooks' notes: •Some of the food editors found 3 teaspoons of cardamom to be too much, but others loved the intense flavor.•Cake may be made 1 day ahead and chilled, covered. Bring to room temperature before serving.

Design For Dining

As Baby and I had invited a few friends from the design biz (two interior designers, a lighting designer and an event director for an interior design magazine) over for dinner, I set out to design a menu, having already designed a perfect salon comprised of guests with shared interests.

The new Gourmet magazine arrived and in it I found the Garden Party article which reaps the bounty of August's best. I didn't make all of the line-up (nor was any of it presented in a garden, as I don't have one) and took some shortcuts here and improvised there, but it's a great menu and I think ultimately, it all came together very well. My goal is to always spend as much time with my guests and as little time in the kitchen (Baby is even teaching me to use pots and pans more economically) and here, Gourmet's recipes are also very helpful in offering what to prepare beforehand in the Cook's Notes.

To begin with, Melon Coolers were far more interesting with a few splashes of prosecco instead of seltzer or club soda. Reggie absolutely swooned! I have long loved serving salted radishes and butter as an appetizer, the leafy greens still attached, colorfully spread out on a serving platter or a wooden cutting board. BNO went for the elegant, elongated, pink-tinged French Market radishes, less strident than the rounder, bright red variety. Alongside, the anchovy butter was delicious, and frankly I can't wait to make again and slather it on a lobster.

The shortcakes for the Chive Shortcakes with Smoky Corn and Okra Stew didn't happen. I very unapologetically used scrumptious Pillsbury Grands and sprinkled fresh chopped chives on top instead. Having browned the corn in a skillet (the cobs, corn silk, and a smoked turkey leg stewed separately first before being removed) and combined all with simmered okra and onions, it was very good. And despite our own designs, some things are a happy accident--I didn't know Southern has a penchant for okra, having grown up in Virginia.

I didn't make the Cool Jade Soup or the Pickled Baby Squash made with maple syrup, preferably dark amber, but since I just happened to have some on hand, I thought to pull out a single element (the syrup) used in the Squash recipe as a wonderful drizzle for the Stew, as sweet and smoky are amiable companions. So yes, the syrup made it to the table but I forgot to tell anybody to try it.

Ace loved the Baked Tomatoes with Hazelnut Bread Crumbs--a gorgeous display, easily prepared, and can be made ahead of time, as it certainly holds its heat for a while. But I would toast the hazelnuts only a short time before you need them as they can become soggy. Farmers Market Salad with Aged Gouda and Roasted Portabellas went over very well and the unique flavor of the cheese, simply dressed and mixed with the mushrooms and an assortment of spicy greens was a welcome addition to the table.

A whole sheet cake for the Yogurt Cake with Currant Raspberry Sauce seemed a touch taxing, so I purchased a striking Sorbetto di Lampone, raspberry sorbet, from Buon Italia in the Chelsea Market instead, topped with a chiffonade of basil. Having swallowed oceans of delicious Sancerre wine, we still had designs for a little after-dinner drink (or two), so we finished off with some cherry brandy, St. Germain elderflower liqueur and shared a bar of Swiss chocolate filled with the shameless pear liqueur otherwise known as Poire William.

Soundtrack: Bossa Brava, Tropicale!, Bebel Gilberto, Tanto Tempo; The Girl From Ipanema, The Antonio Carlos Jobim Songbook, Sergio Mendes and Brazil '66, Foursider; The Mike Flowers Pops, a groovy place

Spaghetti alla Carbonara

Buon Giorno! When Baby and I went to Italy last summer, apart from sipping Negronis and visiting various ruins, we also ordered a carbonara pasta in the three cities we visited: Venice, Florence, and Rome. Although the classic dish arrived on our plates in different variations, our hands-down favorite was at the Taverna de Romana, on the via della Madonna in Rome. Not only was it dirt cheap, it stayed the closest to tradition and didn’t incorporate an overly creamy sauce, mimicking an alfredo as so many places tend to do here in the states.

We had traveled with Baby’s sister-in-law and wily nephew, whom I shall affectionately refer to here as Mama Bear and Baby Bear (Baby’s brother, Papa Bear, doesn’t like to leave the country). They live in Los Angeles but just came to New York to check out a few colleges, as Baby Bear enters into his freshman year this fall. Children grow up so quickly, don’t they?

So they were coming for dinner and we decided to make an Italian dinner as a reunion of sorts. We knew we wanted to make carbonara of course and Baby had a recipe from his McCall’s Cooking School binders that are comprised of recipes he’d received monthly in the mail back in the 70’s. I thought of pizza too, as a starter, but didn’t want to be cliché nor did I want something so heavy to impede upon the carbonara. I’m not really too interested in making my own dough, and as we had a tube of Pillsbury pizza dough in the fridge that I wanted to use, I stuck with my idea and began to construct a pizza plan, lightening it up with a lot of vegetables. Instead of a tomato sauce, I chopped an onion, the white parts of two leeks, and two garlic cloves and sautéed the lot in olive oil. When it had all wilted, I deglazed with balsamic vinaigrette, threw in a few grinds of salt and pepper and made a quick jam by adding a few tablespoons of honey. When the mix had cooled, I spread it on the pizza dough. After salting and draining shavings of zucchini and yellow squash (either a mandoline or a vegetable peeler will work) in a colander for 30 minutes, I dressed the pizza. The topping was grated Gruyere cheese; the whole thing went in to a 425 degree oven for 17 minutes, as the Pillsbury package dictates, perhaps a little longer to thoroughly roast the vegetables with a nice color. It was gorgeous all around.

Now here’s the weird part about the tomato flan and in order to explain it properly I have to go back a few years. Baby and his old pal, Boho Gal, went to Florence in 2000 and discovered the marvelous Cibreo restaurant where they served tomato flan, instead of butter to go with table bread. Back in New York, they happened upon Pepolino just below Canal Street and remarked on the tomato flan that they also served. The waiter overheard the conversation and immediately told them that he and one of the managers had come from Cibreo to open Pepolino! When Baby and I went to Florence last summer, he was anxious to revisit Cibreo, where we had a most incredible meal, where yes, they still served the tomato flan. When we told our friends over dinner at Cibreo about the Pepolino story, the owner overheard us and fled to our table to impart her story of how she had gone to New York to help her coworker friend open Pepolino. Extraordinary! The capper comes with this dinner for Baby’s family, when I was looking through a collection of clippings I had amassed years ago (probably around 2000), trying to find something to make and found—a recipe from the New York Times, the recipe for Pepolino’s tomato flan that I had completely forgotten about and had never made. It’s just delicious and impossibly easy. I want to serve it all the time, as Cibreo does, to be slathered on country bread instead of butter.

I tore up green and red leaf lettuces and tossed them with olive oil and salt to serve with the carbonara, which came out great, but I didn’t follow the McCall’s recipe entirely. The recipe is sort of faulty anyhow and I don’t think that making the pasta first, as is suggested, is wise. You have to heat it up again and rinsing the pasta with hot water only strips it of its starch and the eggy dressing doesn’t cling to it as well. I also used pancetta instead of bacon and a blend of shredded cheeses (parmesan, asiago, Romano) instead of just parmesan. I meant to temper the eggs with some of the pasta water but draining a steaming vat of pasta is so immediate and intense, it’s often easy for me to forget to reserve a cup of the liquid. The cheese coagulated too, the McCall’s recipe suggests adding it too soon: it really should only be added in at the very end.

Gourmet magazine came through again, just in time, this month offering a rustic Ricotta and Polenta Pie, which was a perfect way to end the meal. It wasn’t difficult (I used prepared dough here too), we just had to soak apricots and tart cherries in a dry white wine the night before assembling the pie.

And as the glasses of Gavi flowed and the Peroni was poured, Baby Bear and I rocked out to Van Halen and AC/DC into the night and we didn’t even need an air guitar as I had just given Baby a ukulele in honor of our anniversary.

Soundtrack: Lou Reed, Transformer; Tom Waits, The Heart of Saturday Night; Neil Young, After the Gold Rush; Van Halen; AC/DC, Back in Black.

P.S. We were so taken by the tomato flan that we considered its possible variations; we wanted to make a flan out of everything the next day. First up was asparagus, with roasted shallots and a blend of lemon and olive oils, but the flan fell flat, as we were remiss in our exclusion of something acidic, like a little red wine vinegar. Up next is winter squash that we look forward to make with orange, rosemary, and roasted garlic. Below is the original recipe for tomato flan adapted from Pepolino that I had clipped from the New York Times.

Tomato Flan

1 8-ounce can Del Monte or other tomato sauce
12 large basil leaves
2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil, plus extra for garnish
4 teaspoons unflavored gelatin (about 1 1/3 envelopes)
Salt and fresh black pepper to taste
Vegetable oil
12 slices country bread

In a blender or food processor, combine tomato sauce, 6 leaves basil, garlic, ¼ cup olive oil, gelatin and salt and pepper to taste. Blend at high speed for 2 minutes.
Lightly oil 6 small cappuccino or other cups. Divide tomato mixture among cups. Refrigerate 20 minutes.
To serve, dip bottom of each cup in hot water to loosen flan. Unmold onto 6 plates. Garnish with a basil leaf and a drop of olive oil. Place 2 slices bread on each plate.
Yield: 6 servings.