Mark Bittman's Quick and Easy Recipes From the New York Times - Mark Bittman [112]
2. Add the potatoes to the boiling water and stir; then add the pasta and cook as usual, stirring frequently, about 10 minutes in all. When the pasta is about half done—the strands will bend but will not yet be tender—add the beans.
3. When the pasta is done, the potatoes and beans should be tender. Drain the pasta and vegetables, toss with the pesto and more salt or olive oil if you like, and serve.
PASTA WITH WALNUTS
MAKES 4 TO 6 SERVINGS
TIME: 20 MINUTES
YOU MIGHT THINK of this as winter pesto, with a higher percentage of walnuts and the always-available parsley filling in for summer’s basil—though if you can find good basil, by all means use it.
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 cup walnut or pecan halves
½ cup loosely packed fresh parsley or basil leaves, washed
1 garlic clove, peeled
½ cup extra virgin olive oil
1 pound linguine, spaghetti, or other long pasta
1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil and salt it. Meanwhile, combine the nuts, parsley, and garlic in a small food processor (or use a mortar and pestle) and turn the machine on. With the machine running, add the oil gradually, using just enough so that the mixture forms a creamy paste. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
2. Cook the pasta, stirring occasionally, until it is tender but not mushy. When it is ready, drain it—reserve some of the cooking water—and toss with the sauce; if the mixture appears too thick, thin with a little of the pasta-cooking water or more olive oil. Serve.
SPAGHETTI WITH FRESH TOMATO SAUCE
MAKES 4 TO 6 SERVINGS
TIME: 20 MINUTES
THE DISH HAS a thick creaminess that you can never duplicate with canned tomatoes, no matter how good they are. So the season when you can make it—when there are good, ripe tomatoes in the market—is fairly short; where I live, just two or at the most three months a year.
There is an ideal instant for serving this sauce: When the tomatoes soften and all of their juices are in the skillet, the sauce suddenly begins to thicken. At that moment, it is at its peak; another minute or two later, many of the juices will have evaporated and, although the essence of the sauce is equally intense, it won’t coat the pasta as well. If this happens, just add a little fresh olive oil or butter to the finished dish.
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
3 tablespoons butter or olive oil
1½ to 2 pounds fresh tomatoes (preferably plum), cored and roughly chopped
1 pound spaghetti, linguine, or other long pasta
½ cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil and salt it. Put the butter or oil in an 8- or 10-inch skillet over medium heat. When the butter melts or the oil is hot, add the tomatoes and turn the heat to high.
2. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the tomatoes begin to juice up, then turn the heat to low and cook, stirring occasionally, until the sauce thickens.
3. Cook the pasta until it is tender but firm. Drain and toss with the tomatoes and cheese. Season with salt and pepper to taste, toss again, and serve immediately.
VARIATIONS
• Add about 1 teaspoon minced garlic to the butter or oil, just before the tomatoes. Garnish with minced fresh parsley instead of Parmigiano-Reggiano.
• Add about 1 tablespoon minced shallot to the butter or oil. Cook the tomatoes with a couple of branches of basil, remove them before serving, and stir about ½ cup or more roughly chopped basil leaves into the pasta.
• Toss the pasta with about 1 cup cubed (½ inch or less) mozzarella, preferably fresh.
• Add hot red pepper flakes to taste along with the tomatoes.
PREPARING FRESH TOMATOES
FRESH TOMATOES SHOULD always be cored before being used (remove a cone-shaped wedge from the stem end). Peeling is optional—if you object to little bits of skin in your sauce, it’s worth the effort. Just drop the tomatoes into boiling