Weeknight Bolognaise

Sometimes you just need to make yourself a big bowl of pasta. This recipe goes together in under an hour and really hits the spot when you're in need of a quick, hearty pasta dish. Recipe Link

All the critical ingredients for cooking a pasta dish: fresh basil, grated parmesan, minced garlic...and a cold beer.

This was our first chance to use our new All-Clad skillet, a wedding gift from Julia's aunt Kathy. 

Now that the long LA winter is finally over, we find ourselves cooking in natural sunlight. Our photographer is pleased.

Our meerkat knows a few tricks and has a staring problem.

Obligatory palm tree picture for our east coast readers.

Spinach Pesto Pappardelle with Corn, Beans, & Riccota

As weekends slow down following a busy summer, we're taking the opportunity to get ourselves back into the kitchen, whether we're just cooking for ourselves or hosting a dinner party. We don't often eat pasta these days, but certainly still enjoy it! Julia selected a spinach pesto pappardelle from our favorite pasta recipe book which required us to make pesto from scratch for the first time. Although blanching the spinach and basil was quite tedious, the outcome of our hard work was very tasty.

Once the pasta has been cooked with the corn and haricot verts, you mix in the pesto and some ricotta cheese with salt and pepper. For a bit of bite and acidity, the pasta is topped off with a mixture of diced tomatoes, olive oil, and white wine vinegar. The end result is a flavorful, summery pasta that is ideal for serving guests since much of the prep work can be done ahead of time.

Here's a copy of the recipe:
Spinach Pesto Pappardelle

Mushroom Bolognese

In honor of Mother's Day, we decided to make a very motherly dish...spaghetti.Well, kind of. We made a Mushroom Bolognese which is slightly better than spaghetti.

Although Bolognese sauces can typically be on the unhealthy side, this mushroom bolognese from Cookinglight.com was a bit lighter, using ground pork instead of beef, and replacing a large amount of the meat with mushrooms. The recipe also called for whole wheat pasta instead of regular, which made for a very hearty dish.

Also unlike many bolognese recipes, this sauce didn't take forever to cook, only requiring to simmer in the pot for about 30 minutes or so. Few ingredients, quick prep time, and tasty but healthy makes this dinner a winner! ;)

Recipe from Cooking Light:
http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/mushroom-bolognese-10000002012774/

topped with parsley and cheese = heaven