Posted by Nick Kindelsperger, April 25, 2008 at 4:30 PM
I had to find something to do with my delicious leftover feta. While I wasn’t exactly worried about it going bad, I was afraid that I would attack the whole package with a fork without coming up for air. That’s not an appealing image.
Since I needed a little refinement, I searched all around my favorite sites for some kind direction. I still wanted the cheese to play a central role and didn’t want to spend much more money. This Cook's Illustrated salad felt perfect.
So, I had the fantastic feta, some plump grapes, and I even sprung for a new bottle of raspberry vinegar to properly dress the salad—but it was the small teaspoon of minced rosemary that really made the salad for me. The earthy notes of that herb provided the beautiful contrast to the fruity dressing. Instead of being cloying, the rosemary gave the whole salad balance. I'm always astounded by simple additions that focus a dish.
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Posted by Adam Kuban, April 16, 2008 at 1:45 PM
It's been only within the last year or so that I've acquired a taste for beets. I used to hate the earthy flavor and slightly gritty texture, which reminded me of eating dirt. But my girlfriend loves them, and after many dinners out with beet salads and beet dishes as an appetizer, I've come to savor them in all their variations. So when I found this straightforward Beet Soup with Feta, I knew I wanted to highlight it as one of the Cook the Book recipes this week. The book it's adapted from, The River Cottage Cookbook, by Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall, gives instructions for serving it hot but also mentions that it's good chilled as well, especially if you grate some raw beet on top as a garnish.
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Posted by Ed Levine, March 31, 2008 at 8:30 AM
I know we linked to both the "cheese on seafood pasta" story itself and the back story in our New York Times round-up yesterday, but I think many more serious eaters are going to want to weigh in on this subject, so I figured it deserves its own post.
The story's author, Robert Trachtenberg, tries to find out the origins of why so many Italian chefs both here and in Italy consider it culinary heresy to put grated cheese on seafood pasta. He uncovers many theories, but not the definitive answer.
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Posted by SaraBir, September 12, 2006 at 1:19 PM
My friend Bryan asked me for suggestions for utilizing the abundant crop of tomatoes in his backyard (he lives in California, where tomatoes lazily ripen into the early fall). I told him to can them, but not everyone has the energy or equipment to do that. In the meantime, you can always eat lots of fresh tomatoes. It’s your last summer fling.
This pasta dish came about from my last visit to my parents’ house. They had corn on the cob, beautiful beefsteak tomatoes, and fresh basil in dire need of use, so I threw them all together for a simple but flavorful pasta dish. Juicy tomatoes help make the sauce for the pasta, so don’t use plum tomatoes for this. If you don’t have fresh corn, use frozen, which is often superior to out-of-season fresh corn.
Ingredients
(Serves 4)
1/2 pound uncooked pasta (spaghetti, linguine, or fettuccini)
3 to 4 large, ripe tomatoes, cored (the more tomatoes the better)
2 to 3 cups fresh or frozen corn kernels (thawed if frozen)
2 cloves garlic, very thinly sliced crosswise
3 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 bunch (three cups loosely packed) basil, thinly sliced
4 to 6 ounces feta cheese, crumbled
Procedure
1. Put a large pot of salted water on to boil and cook the pasta according to package directions.
2. Meanwhile, chop the tomatoes. Place in a large bowl and set aside.
Toast the corn in a heavy, dry medium skillet over medium-high, stirring occasionally, heat until you see charred spots on the corn, 2 to 3 minutes. Add toasted corn to tomatoes.
3. In a small skillet, heat the garlic and olive oil over low heat, stirring occasionally, until the garlic is a light golden-brown (do not allow to burn). Pour over corn-tomato mixture. Stir in the basil and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
4. When the pasta is al dente, drain it quickly, allowing some of the cooking water to cling. Add pasta to tomato-corn mixture, toss with the feta cheese, and season to taste with more salt and pepper.
Note: You can substitute Parmesan cheese for the feta, if you wish.
