Rustic Apple Crostata

Earlier this week I had gone out to dinner with several friends and by time dessert came around I was the only one too full to order one. Our server brought the desserts ordered with extra spoons and forks, just in case, anyone wanted to have just a taste. (Always the sign of a very observant server.) And ever since taking a bite of the hot apple crisp topped with cinnamon ice cream (my mouth said no dessert, but my eyes said yes when it came to the table). Ever since I have been craving the taste of a warm apple concoction of some sort. Having immersed myself in Italian cookbooks as of late, my thoughts immediately went to thinking I would make a Rustic Apple Crostata. I had some leftover streusel from the Blueberry Muffin Cake I didn't want to go to waste and thought it might go perfectly on top.

So what is not to love about a tart dough having butter and cream cheese as two of its' ingredients? Alison Pray and Tara Smith share their recipe for a Rustic Tart Dough in their most recent cookbook "Standard Baking Company Pastries". This is a dough they use for their hand formed galettes (otherwise known as Rustic Tarts). It is a dough recipe I have been wanting to make for awhile now but I just needed an incentive to make it. As much as I bake, I have genuinely avoided, with a few exceptions, making desserts and pastries requiring a homemade dough. But finally, I had a reason to work on overcoming my 'dough making aversion' habit. Just one bite of a friend's apple dessert was enough to push me into the dough making arena. Who knows a whole new world of pastry making opportunities could be in my future.

With the dough decision made, I had to figure out what the filling would be or more specifically what apple I would use. Some crostatas are made with McIntosh or Macoun apples, however, for me there is nothing better than a crisp or tart made with Granny Smith apples. I love their crispness, their tartness. Next to Honey Crisp apples, Granny Smith apples are the only other apple I eat. So with the crostata filling decision made, all I needed to do was to begin the process of making the dough. "Breathe" I told myself, you can do this!

What I love about this dough recipe is that the butter and cream cheese need to be chilled. Which means there is no planning ahead to have either of them come to room temperature. I used an 'American-made" unsalted butter as that is what I had in the refrigerator. Next time I make this crostata I will try using one of the European unsalted butters as they are little more flavorful in pastry dough (due to their higher fat content). 

And I can already tell you there will be a next time as this dough comes together so nicely. If you too have been suffering from the curable malady known as dough making aversion, this is a dough that will make you wonder why you suffered for so long. And this a dough that gets easier as you can use either a pastry cutter or your finger tips (i.e., no food processor).  I used my finger tips as I wanted to get a feel for the dough (both literally and figuratively). Once the flour, salt and baking powder are whisked together you blend in the butter first. You are looking to get a consistency of pea sized chunks. The cream cheese is then blended in (again I used my fingers) and the texture changes to a coarse meal. At this point you add the cold water and use a fork or your fingers to gently toss the ingredients together.

When the dough comes together, you carefully form the dough into a loose ball and flatten to a disc. After wrapping the dough into plastic wrap, you chill in the refrigerator for at least an hour (I waited three hours) or overnight.

On lightly floured surface you roll out the dough to a diameter of approximately 11 inches. This will give you a tart dough about 1/8 inch thick. It rolls out beautifully. I mean really beautifully. Placing the dough on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, it is wrapped in plastic wrap and chilled for at least an hour before you bake it.

For the crostata filling you will need 1.5 pounds of apples. These Granny Smith apples were on the large size so I only needed three of them. If you are using medium sized apples, you will need four.

The apples are peeled, cored and then cut into half inch slices. The easiest way to get half inch apple slices is to first quarter the apples and then cut each quarter into three slices. 

The apples are tossed with a mixture of flour, sugar, Kosher salt, Saigon cinnamon, and ground allspice. To give the baked dough a little more color and a surface for some sprinkled sugar to adhere to it, a egg wash using one egg and a pinch of salt is make.

Once the apples are completed coated, remove the dough from the refrigerator and pile apples up leaving a 3 inch border around the edge. 

After mounding all of the apples, you will bring up the sides of the dough, folding (or pleating) over the apples. Brush the sides of the dough with the egg wash and sprinkle with sugar.

The streusel topping is optional but I thought it would add to the rusticness of the tart. I used one cup of the streusel topping I had made for Blueberry Muffin Cake.

In a preheated 425 degree oven you bake the tart for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes you reduce the oven temperature to 375 degrees, rotate the tart and bake for additional 35 minutes (or until the pastry is a dark golden brown and the folds of the dough no longer have a translucent appearance). My baking time was 33 minutes. You remove the baked crostata from the oven and place onto a wire rack to cool slightly. After 10 minutes you can transfer to a platter and serve warm with or without ice cream or whipped cream. It is delicious all on its' own, but I would suggest serving it with either vanilla or cinnamon ice cream. The tart is equally delicious at room temperature, making it a perfect dessert to bring to a picnic or gathering.

Recipe
Rustic Apple Crostata (adaptations from the Standard Baking Company "Pastries" cookbook and Ina Garten's "Parties"cookbook)

Ingredients
Crostata Dough
1 cup plus 1 teaspoon all-purpose flour (I use King Arthur Flour)
1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt
1/8 teaspoon baking powder
6 Tablespoons unsalted butter, cubed and chilled
1/3 cup cream cheese, cubed and chilled
1 Tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon ice cold water

Apple Mixture
1.5 pounds of a tart baking apple, peeled, cored and cut into 1/2 inch slices (recommend Granny Smith apples)
1/4 cup all purpose flour
1/4 cup sugar (plus additional for sprinkling on egg washed tart dough)
1/4 teaspoon Kosher salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon (recommend Saigon cinnamon)

Egg Wash
1 large egg

1-2 teaspoons heavy cream, half and half or water
pinch of Kosher salt

Streusel Topping
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar1/2 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup pecans, toasted

6 Tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into 1" cubes

Directions
For Dough
1. In large bowl, whisk together the flour, Kosher salt and baking powder. Blend in butter using a pastry cutter or your fingertips getting the butter reduced to the consistency of pea-sized chunks.
2. Add the cream cheese, blending with either a pastry cutter or your finger tips getting the dough reduced to the consistency of coarse meal.
3. Add water. Using a fork or your fingertips, gently toss until most of the dry ingredients are moistened. Note: It will still look a little crumbly.
4. Pour dough mixture out onto a board forming into a loose ball and gently flattening it to a disc. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least one hour or overnight.
5. After dough has chilled, roll out to an 11 inch circle on a floured surface. Place on a parchment paper lined baking sheet, cover with plastic wrap and chill for at least one hour or until ready to assemble the crostata.

Crostata Filling
1. In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, cinnamon, all-spice and salt. Toss apples into mixture and mix until all apples are evenly coated.
2. On the chilled tart dough, pile the apples leaving a 3 inch border.
3. Gently fold the dough border over the apples, pleating it to make a circle.
4. Brush egg wash over the dough. Sprinkle with sugar.
5. Top apple mixture with 1 cup of streusel mixture.

Baking
1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees (F). Bake crostata for 10 minutes. 
2. Reduce oven temperature to 375 degrees, rotate tart and continue baking for up to 35 minutes or until pastry is a dark golden brown and the folds of the dough no longer have a translucent appearance.  
3. Remove from oven and place on a wire rack. Allow to rest for at least 10 minutes before cutting if serving warm. 
4. Optional: Serve with vanilla or cinnamon ice cream.

There have been some spectacular evening summer skies here lately. I am not sure if or how the ocean changes the colors of the sky, but I don't think I have seen more incredible colors in the skies as of late or from my memories of midwest skies. From pinks to purples to blues to oranges, the skies look like works of art done by Impressionist artists who have painstakingly captured and layered the various hues of color. 

If these blazing colors were not enough to take in, rainbows can be regularly seen here after an afternoon or early evening quick rain storm. Recently when my childhood best friend was visiting we were out in the yard as she was creating a video of the property I live on as well as the farm next door. As we were outside we experienced a light, quick rainstorm lasting only about five minutes. I said we need to look for the rainbow. She looked at me as if I had lost my mind. But like with most great friends, she followed me as I went from the back to the front of the house. And much to her surprise and delight (and my personal satisfaction and redemption) was a beautiful rainbow. Certainly a rainbow wasn't planned image in the video she was taking back home to share with family and friends. If she posts this video to YouTube someday her rendition of "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" is quite interesting.

Sometimes our friends tell us things that we don't believe, don't want to believe, don't hear, selectively don't hear, or change what we hear. Yet we always know when someone is or is not really listening to us by what they say or how they respond. I have been more than a thousand miles away from my family and friends for the past two years and for those that really listen to me, the distance or my time away has not mattered. Sometimes listening is all the validation we need to know that someone genuinely cares about us. And when two people listen to each other, both become more strengthened as individuals and in the friendship. Do you know who strengthens you?

Zucchini and Asparagus Crudi

On days when the humidity is high I try to avoid turning on the oven or the stove. There is no central air-conditioning in this 81 year old farm house, just two window air-conditioning units, one upstairs and one downstairs. So it goes without saying (but I will say it anyway) that whenever I add 'heat' to the farm house the air-conditioner's efficiency is even further compromised. Surprisingly, I am getting used to not turning on the 'air' unless I am having company, the humidity is really intolerable or I am getting a more restless sleep than usual. But as acclimated to the heat I am getting, there are limits to how much heat I can or want to endure.

So when my neighbor brought over some freshly picked zucchini from her garden I first considered grilling it on the gas grill I just had to have (such things one buys after experiencing a blizzard with three days of no heat and no power).The thought of grilling on a hot day was not something I wanted to do. And the idea of making a zucchini cake or bread meant heating up the house. Not wanting the zucchini to go to waste, I remembered a recipe I hadn't made in awhile. It was a salad made of fresh, raw zucchini and asparagus and called a crudi. Crudi or crudo literally means 'raw' and is a way of preparing both fish and vegetables using a high end extra-virgin olive oil and some citrus. When Giada DeLaurentiis made this recipe awhile back, I wasn't sure if I would like the taste of raw zucchini and raw asparagus (unless there was a creamy Caesar dressing to dip it into). But the thinly sliced vegetables tossed with extra-virgin olive oil, freshly squeezed lemon juice, some salt and pepper were absolutely delicious, refreshing, and a great change of pace from a salad using lettuce as its' base. Certainly so much healthier as well.

All I needed to make the crudi was the asparagus. Fortunately there are two amazing seasonal markets in town selling some great locally grown produce. Unfortunately, I did not just buy some asparagus but walked away with a bouquet of some irresistible Dahlias, a baguette, some garlic, and some tomatoes. I have a tendency to get distracted in these markets. There were a few more things that looked appealing but one needs a reason to go back, right?

The too thin or too thick asparagus does not work in this recipe. It needs to be a somewhere 'in the middle of thickness' asparagus as it needs to be cut thinly on the diagonal. In the making of this crudi I have never done a quick (as in 2 to 3 minutes) blanching on the asparagus before. You could if you wanted, but you really do not have to, you really don't want to.

A vegetable peeler and a knife are the only tools you need for this recipe. The zucchini is trimmed at the ends and then with a vegetable peeler you make long, thin strips. Because the skin of the zucchini is not removed the strips of the zucchini look like ribbons of white with green edges. So this dish is not just delicious, it is beautiful.

Once you have prepared the vegetables, the dressing is assembled. Using the best extra-virgin olive you can find (my favorite is Frankies 457) or the best tasting extra-virgin olive oil of your choice, is critical in this dressing. You want it to be light, yet rich in flavor. Freshly squeezed lemon juice, some Kosher salt and some freshly ground black pepper are all mixed in with the extra-virgin olive oil. These four ingredients create an incredibly flavorful dressing for the asparagus and zucchini.

Once tossed together the salad is plated on a platter and shavings of Pecorino Romano cheese are added. The sharpness of the cheese is a perfect compliment to the salad. 

This salad is best served after it has been tossed with dressing. Because the Zucchini and Asparagus Crudi does not take long to prepare you might consider making it all summer long. Especially if you or your neighbors are growing zucchini (and this could be a year for a bumper crop of zucchini).

Recipe 
Zucchini and Asparagus Crudi (slightly adapted from a recipe created by Giada DeLaurentiis)

Ingredients
2 medium sized zucchini (ends trimmed)
1 bunch of asparagus (ends trimmed) - semi-thick asparagus works best
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil (highly recommend Frankies 457)
2 Tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice (from one small lemon)
1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 ounce of shaved Pecorino Romano cheese

Directions
1. Using a vegetable peeler, slice long strips of zucchini.
2. Cut the asparagus thinly, on a diagonal 
3. Combine the sliced zucchini and asparagus in a bowl and set aside.
4. Whisk together the extra-virgin olive oil, lemon juice, Kosher salt and pepper. Pour over vegetable and toss.
5. Transfer mixture to a platter. Add shavings of Pecorino Romano cheese over the top. Serve immediately.

I have shared before there were mostly canned vegetables served at the dinner table of my youth. Asparagus was one of those vegetables. It wasn't until I was out of college that I tasted what perfectly cooked asparagus actually tasted like. And it was not the mushy canned asparagus served at our dinner table. I remember the first time I made fresh asparagus at a dinner for my husband's family. My mother-in-law actually liked it. Unbeknownst to me she asked my husband how I made it. He shared that I had brought water to a boil and submerged the asparagus for approximately 12 to 14 minutes. When he shared this with me, I said the asparagus wasn't cooked that long, just somewhere between 6 to 8 minutes. This comment was immediately followed by 'you need to call her and tell her you gave her the wrong information'. To that he said 'my mom has been cooking asparagus for up to 20 minutes for the last 30 years (replicating the texture of canned asparagus is my guess), so you don't take someone who has been cooking it for 20 minutes to somewhere between 6 and 8 minutes the first time as its' too much of a change for them.' And my response started something like 'but....'. But then I saw the wisdom in those words, the wisdom that not everyone can make such drastic changes in their cooking (or in their lives) too quickly. Sometimes they need to do it gradually.

We all fall somewhere along the continuum of loving/embracing or disliking/avoiding change in our personal and professional lives. Where we fall can be influenced by context, our prior experiences and/or ability to be open to possibility. When faced with change our energies can be directed to sabotaging it or figuring how to make it make it work. We may never know where the change that lies before us will take us or how it could affect our lives unless we 'take that leap of faith'. 

Blueberry Muffin Cake with Streusel Crumb Top

The weather here yesterday went from sunny, to cloudy, to rainy, and back to sunny again. It was as if Mother Nature could not make up her mind as to what she wanted to do (so nice to have a kindred spirit as this is how I felt yesterday as well). But once the sun came out, I thought about heading to the beach. but then thought about picking some blueberries at the blueberry farm down the road from where I live. In the end I decided to do both (no surprise there). First the blueberry picking, then the beach. I would use the time at the beach to read and think about what I wanted to do with the blueberries.

If you have not picked blueberries before or felt connected to an inner Laura Ingalls Wilder (hint: Little House on the Prairie), you are missing out on this fun little experience. Picking blueberries could not be easier. All you do is put a little bucket around your waist, walk through the aisles of blueberry bushes and pick the ripest, most beautiful blueberries you can find. And oh yes, you get to test a few as you pick them (a little nourishment for the work you are doing, the incentive to keep going). In less than an hour I was able to pick two pounds of blueberries. That was the easy part. What I would do with these blueberries that I had handpicked was a tad more difficult as there were so many choices.

I had seen a recipe for Blueberry Muffin Cake in the August/September issue of Fine Cooking and thought maybe this is what I would do with some of the blueberries. But I thought the recipe was missing something. That something would be a streusel topping. I mean really, a blueberry muffin without a streusel topping? Is that not like toast with butter, bagels without cream cheese, or oatmeal without a little brown sugar? Yes, yes and yes. I remembered that Matt Lewis and Renato Poliafito had a great recipe for a streusel topping that they made to go along with one of their coffee cake recipes in their Baked cookbook. So the decision was made. At least two cups of the handpicked blueberries would go into a Blueberry Muffin Cake with Streusel Crumb Top. I could hardly for the morning so I could bake and fill the house the the aroma of baked goodness.

While this is a recipe using butter, sugar, eggs, and nuts (always the making of something divinely delicious), the most important ingredient is the blueberries. Ripe, beautiful blueberries. Particularly ones harvested in the summer.

The recipe for the streusel topping was enough for one 9x13 cake or two 9 inch cakes. Rather than cutting the recipe in half I decided that I would use half for this recipe and half for another. Maybe I would even make two Blueberry Muffin Cakes with Streusel Crumb Top. Toasted pecans, flour, butter, dark brown sugar and a little salt are the only ingredients in the streusel.

The flour, dark brown sugar and salt are added to a food processor and mixed until just combined. Next the toasted pecans are added and processed until they are ground into the mixture. Lastly. the cold unsalted butter is added and pulsed until the mixture resembles coarse sand. Transferred to a bowl, covered and placed in the refrigerator the mixture will remain chilled while you assemble the cake.

I absolutely love recipes that don't require the use of a mixer, especially if I am baking in the early morning hours. This is one of those recipes mixed by hand in a bowl. The dry ingredients are sifted into a large bowl and set aside. The wet ingredients are whisked together and added to the dry ingredients until just incorporated. It is important to not over mix this batter.

Once the batter comes together the two cups of blueberries are added and folded in with a spatula. The mixture is then scraped into a 9" springform pan that has been lined with parchment paper. 

The batter is topped with half of the streusel mixture and placed into a 350 degree preheated oven. The recipe called for a baking time of 45 to 55 minutes, however, I found that it needed the 55 minutes (although I checked it for doneness at 45 minutes). During the last ten minutes of baking I placed a sheet of aluminum foil over the top so the streusel topping did not go beyond the color of brown I wanted it to have. The cake is done when a tester inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. For years I did not use a cake tester and instead used a toothpick. While a toothpick can work, I now prefer the use of a cake tester as it is more accurate and does not leave 'large' holes in the top of a cake.

When finished baking, the Blueberry Muffin Cake with Streusel Crumb Top should be left to cool for 10 to 15 minutes before you unmold and serve it. The hardest part of this recipe is waiting as the aroma of the brown sugar and blueberries is intoxicating. On a large round platter or a cake stand, this cake is beautiful to look at. It is not just its' external beauty that makes this cake special, it is its' inner beauty. One taste of this Blueberry Muffin Cake with Streusel Crumb Top and, well let's just say it has an addictive quality to it. And that's not just because it was made with handpicked blueberries!

Recipe 
BlueberryMuffin Cake with Streusel Crumb Top (adapted recipes from Fine Cooking (August/September 2013) and Baked: New Frontiers in Baking)

Ingredients
Streusel (makes enough for two Blueberry Muffin Cakes)
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup pecans, toasted
6 Tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into 1" cubes

Batter
4 Tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/4 cups sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon Kosher salt
1/2 cup whole milk
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups fresh blueberries

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 9" springform pan with parchment paper.
2. For streusel topping: 
a. Put the flour, sugar and salt in a food processor and pulsed until mixed. 
b. Add pecans and pulse until pecans are finely chopped. 
c. Add butter and process until combined. Mixture will look like coarse sand. 
d. Cover with plastic wrap and place in refrigerator.
3. For batter
a. Sift flour, sugar, baking powder and salt nto large bowl.
b. In smaller bowl whisk the eggs, milk, butter and vanilla.
c. Stir in the wet ingredients to the flour mixture until just incorporated.
d. Fold in berries.
e. Scrape batter into prepared pan, spreading evenly.
f. Top with half of the streusel mixture. Keep the other half of the streusel recipe chilled in the refrigerator and reserve for another use.
g. Bake for approximately 45 to 55 minutes (I baked mine for 55 minutes) or until a tester inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. Note: During the last 10 minutes of baking cover loosely with aluminum foil if top appears if it is getting too brown.
h. Cool on rack for 10 to 15 minutes. Transfer cake to a serving platter. Enjoy warm or at room temperature.

When you walk the aisles of a blueberry farm you find bushes with berries in all stages of ripeness. It is a bush that holds back on its' bounty, releasing its' fruit a little a time. While blueberry picking would go much faster if the berries on the tree were ripe all at the same time, it feels more satisfying to find the ripest berries on the bushes a few at a time. Sort of like the same way it feels to slowly discover the plot of a story or the gifts of a friend. The excitement of the anticipation combined with the energy in the discovery are things than can make your heart race with joy.  And without the investment of time, you might miss out on something or someone important.

And just as the ripeness of the berries change on a blueberry bush, so do we (change that is). Judging something or someone on a first experience or past experience can mean that we don't believe things or people can change. Sometimes that belief can lead us to missing out to an experience or perhaps even a life changing moment. I am one who believes we all grow and evolve. Sometimes we get stuck along the way, but eventually life changes us or we change ourselves. There are parts of me that are the same as when I was 16 years old, but there are other parts of me that are so different from the teenager I once was or even the adult I was several years ago. Quite possibly like a blueberry bush we too release our gifts slowly over time. And those that stay in our lives are the ones to see and experience these changes and quite possibly are rewarded with joy and energy for their investment of time in us. And what about those who see as only as we once were or don't remain in our lives? Well, maybe they either got stuck along the way or maybe they were not destined to be part of our journey.

Penne Pasta with Fresh Tomato Sauce & Goat Cheese

As much as I enjoy eating out at great restaurants, there is nothing more relaxing, more satisfying than having a great dinner at home, particularly in the summer when cocktails or dessert can be served on the porch and dinner served inside at the table. I love being able to move around through the courses of a meal. More often than not, the simpler the meal, the better it is. After spending a day at the beach with a friend who was visiting, I really hadn't planned ahead as to what we would have for dinner, but had a few ideas. However, Penne pasta with fresh tomato sauce and goat cheese was not on my list of options.

I knew we could could pick up and steam some fresh lobsters (the benefit of living in a town with a lobster market) and serve with some grilled native corn. Lobster and corn is always a great simple summer meal (I have become spoiled living near the ocean.) But instead, my friend suggested we get some tomatoes from the farm stand, make a tomato sauce, serve it over pasta and top it with goat cheese and basil. Lobster or pasta, which one to choose? We went with the past and it turned out to be the perfect meal to end a perfect day at the beach. I made the pasta and salad and she made the sauce.

From the beach we went to the farm stand and picked up a pint of grape tomatoes, a small red onion and a head of garlic. That was all we needed as there was basil in the garden, goat cheese in the refrigerator, and pasta in the cabinet at home. And yes, there was more than enough wine to go with the meal as well as some leftover blueberry crisp.

There is nothing better than cooking with and eating fruits and vegetables in the season in which they are locally grown. Especially tomatoes. I cannot eat a 'fresh' tomato after September or before the beginning of July as tomatoes in the 'off season' are tasteless. So essentially there are only three months of the year where tomatoes are cooking and eating worthy. With possibly the exception of grape tomatoes as they seem to have a sweetness about them year round.

The tomato sauce may be simple, but the flavors are anything but. The garlic and onions are sautéd in extra-virgin olive oil before chopped grape tomatoes are added and cooked until they have somewhat caramelized. 

The longer you cook the tomatoes the deeper the flavor of the sauce. At a minimum the sauce should be cooked for twenty minutes. I cooked the sauce on medium heat at the beginning and reduced it to medium low with the pan covered. Every few minutes I stirred the sauce making sure that the heat was cooking and not scorching the tomatoes. 

While the sauce is cooking, the penne pasta should be cooked until al dente as once drained the pasta is finished cooking in the sauce. (I used about a half pound of penne pasta for this recipe.) Before draining the pasta, reserve some of the pasta water as you can use it to make your sauce just a little creamier. 

Fresh basil and goat cheese are added layers of flavor to this pasta dish. Basil cut chiffonade style (thin long strips) makes for a great presentation. The dish takes about two ounces of goat cheese that has been crumbled. 

This is a meal that comes together in less than an hour. It is beyond flavorful, satisfying and delicious. So if you have had a long day and have unexpected (or expected) guests, this is a dish that looks and tastes like you have cooked all day.

Recipe

Penne Pasta with Fresh Tomato Sauce and Goat Cheese 

Ingredients

1 pint of grape tomatoes, chopped

3 - 4 cloves of garlic, minced (I used 4 cloves)

1/4 cup red onion, minced

4 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt

1/2 pound of penne pasta

2 to 3 ounces of goat cheese, crumbled 

Basil leaves, cut chiffonade style

Directions

1. Heat 4 Tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil in a deep sauté pan (a non-stick pan works well if you have one). Add the garlic and sauté for about one minute. Add the minced onion and cook until the onion is softened and slightly translucent.

2. Add the chopped grape tomatoes and 1/2 teaspoon of salt. Cook on medium to medium low heat, stirring often. Once the tomatoes have softened, cover the pan and stir frequently. Cooking time is at least 20 minutes.

3. While the sauce is cooking, make the pasta and cook until al dente. Drain, reserving some of the pasta water.

4. When sauce is finished, add the al dente pasta and continue cooking for 2 to 3 minutes or until the pasta has been completely coated by the sauce. Add more salt to taste.

5. Pour pasta onto serving platter and top with basil and goat cheese.

6. Enjoy hot or at room temperature.

The house I live in sits back from the road so its the back door everyone comes in. I call this little entry way a vestibule as I haven't come up with a name for it yet. I wanted the space to be welcoming so I filled it with treasures I have collected at the beach and at antique shops and shows. I seem to be good at filling spaces. When I moved in this little vestibule was yellow and black. I could not see myself or anyone else walking into those colors everyday so it was the first space I repainted. (My apologies to those of you who love color on your walls, who love the color yellow.) And it was no surprise that I painted the walls white. Painting the door blue was a bit of a color stretch for me, but in living in such close proximity to the ocean it was a door destined to be blue, a door that, if it could speak, said it wanted to be blue. (Yes, I am someone who believes that houses have a way of telling you what color they want to be and what kinds of furnishings they want to have. No, I am not crazy, just call me a house-whisperer.)

From fresh eggs, to bouquets of flowers, to homemade jams, to vegetables from a garden, my little vestibule has been a place where surprises sometimes await my arrival. It's funny how such simple gestures of kindness and generosity have brought such great joy.  I will miss this house and my neighbors someday as in such a short period of time they have given me so many tangible and intangible gifts. As much as I might try, I am not sure I could ever repay their kindnesses. Somedays I wonder how I got so lucky to find this little farmhouse and be surrounded by such amazingly thoughtful and giving neighbors. I have always believed that people come into your life for a reason even if we don't know what that reason might be at the time. But now I also believe that some people come into your life when you need them most.