Fusilli with Walnuts and Garlic Sauce - Blue Monday

Oregon Coast

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...When a chef with the stature of Mario Batali embraces a trend you know it has become mainstream. Last week he announced his decision to observe Meatless Monday in all of his 14 restaurants. He plans to have at least two meatless entrees on his menus every Monday. You can read more about his decision here. I am also embracing the trend and will try to prepare a meatless meal each week. That may be easier said than done. Like many of you, I am married to a committed carnivore who will not easily adapt to the notion. We are going to try anyway. I've started to round up recipes that are new and interesting, but meatless. Good recipes will go a long way to make the transition painless. So will ear plugs. The first of the recipes is an old one I've resurrected from Patricia Wells' book, Trattoria. It's easy to make, uses a handful of readily available ingredients and is absolutely delicious if it is served hot. Garlic lovers should be cautious and use no more than is called for in the recipe. Excess garlic will overpower the subtle flavor of the walnuts and the dish will lose it clean flavor. Experience is a great teacher. The recipe also calls for heavy cream. You can substitute a lower fat alternative, but go no further back than whole milk. If you serve this as an entree, you'll also want to serve a large salad and a crusty peasant bread. I went with an arugula and orange salad that nicely balanced the creamy walnut sauce that dressed the pasta. Here's the recipe for a simple but tasty meatless pasta.

Fusilli with Walnut and Garlic Sauce...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite, courtesy of Patrica Well Wells

Ingredients:
2 large cloves garlic, minced
Kosher salt
1 cup toasted walnut halves
1 cup heavy cream
12-ounces dried fusilli
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
Coarsely cracked black pepper to taste

Directions:
1) Place garlic, a pinch of salt and walnuts in bowl of a food processor. Process until nuts are coarsely ground. Add cream and process to form a fairly smooth sauce with flecks of walnuts in it. Add salt and pepper to taste.
2) Bring 6 quarts of water to a rolling boil. Add 3 tablespoons of salt and fusilli. Cook until pasta is tender but firm to the bite.
3) While pasta cooks, heat sauce in a microwave or stovetop until warm.
4) Drain pasta. Transfer to a serving bowl and toss to combine. Add cheese and again toss to combine. Add salt ans pepper to taste. Serve Immediately. Yield: 4 -5 servings.

You might also enjoy these recipes:
Pasta Puttanesca - One Perfect Bite
Straw and Hay - One Perfect Bite
Capellini Capricciosi - One Perfect Bite

This post is being linked to:
Smiling Sally - Blue Monday

Meatless Monday at My Sweet and Savory

Wild Rice, Celery and Walnut Salad - Outdoor Wednesday

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...Last summer I had the opportunity to tour a local farm where wild rice is grown. While the Willamette Valley is beautiful, heavy clay soil restricts what can be grown here. Fortunately, the damp clay of the valley floor is perfect for growing grasses and wild rice is, as you know, a water-grass. Years ago a grain specialist at Oregon State University, tossed a handful of wild rice seeds into a pond behind his home to see if they would grow in this climate. A year later he had wild rice in his yard and published an article about it. As a result of the article, some far-thinking farmers planted a water-grass crop and the state's wild rice industry was born. At the moment our wild rice is still under water. In late April or early May, sprouts emerge from the water and rest on its surface. It looks a bit like seaweed at this point. Come June, the rice goes through a growth spurt and begins to stand erect. It will grow until it's about 6 feet tall and set flowers sometime in July. When the flowers set seed, the fields in which the rice grows are drained and the crop is mechanically harvested. Combined rice is allowed to ferment before it's de-hulled, dried, sorted and packaged for sale to locavores. Now the only problem is what to do with it. Unfortunately, there are not a lot of recipes for wild rice available to us. I found the recipe for this salad in the New York Times. I've modified it over and over again and have finally come up with something I really like. This recipe can also be used for brown rice, should you prefer it. The salad should be served at room temperature. Here's the recipe.

Wild Rice, Celery and Walnut Salad...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite, inspired by Martha Rose Shulman and the New York Times

Ingredients:
4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1 cup wild rice, rinsed
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup broken and toasted walnut pieces or 1 cup candied walnuts
1-1/4 cups thinly sliced celery
1/2 cup chopped Italian parsley
Salad Dressing
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 teaspoon granulated sugar
1/4 cup walnut oil
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons low-fat yogurt

Directions:
1) Bring chicken broth to a boil in a large saucepan. Add salt and wild rice. Simmer, covered, for 40 minutes, or until rice is tender and splayed. Drain. Toss with walnuts, celery and parsley.
2) To make salad dressing, place lemon juice, garlic,salt, pepper, sugar, walnut oil, olive oil and yogurt in a jar with a lid. Shake until combined. Pour over wild rice mixture and toss to mix. Adjust seasonings to taste. Yield: 6 servings.

You might also enjoy these recipes:
Bulgur Salad with Pomegranate Dressing
Warm Asian Rice Salad
Asian Bean Sprout Salad

This is being linked to:
Outdoor Wednesday - A Southern Daydreamer