morsels & sauces

Oh, Andalusia.  How I would very much like to visit you.  You boast medieval Islamic palaces and sun-soaked beaches, bull fights and flamenco guitar, donkey sanctuaries and operas based off of your Sevillian barbers. Birthplace of Pablo Picasso, homeland of Federico García Lorca , you have given the world great art.  Originator of jamón serrano and jamón ibérico , Andalusia, you know how to feed your people.  And most importantly, perhaps, you have given the world gazpacho. That "liquid salad" that is perfect for a hot summer day, perfect for using up all of the bounty of the garden or the CSA box, gazpacho is light, filled with potassium, and depending on your levels of hot sauce, breaks a sweat on the brow.  Perfect for cooling off in a breeze. Andalusia, you prompt us to pull out the perfectly ripe tomatoes, or even those that are just on their way to turning.  You encourage a liberal hand with the cucumber.  You say...

Adapted from Cookbook #21:  Jacques Pepin's Simple and Healthy Cooking Recipe:  Pasta Primavera Spring. That's about all I have to say about this recipe.  It just screams spring. And we're nearing the end of spring, so it's high time I made this recipe.  This is the kind of recipe that makes me want to renew my CSA box. Pasta primavera, so the story goes, was "invented" in New York City in the 70s at Le Cirque .  Word spread, and by the 80s everyone was making it, including the husband in his World Foods class in high school.  No joke.  Nowadays, gone are the cream and butter sauce base of the 70s and in their stead come a lightened version of broth and olive oil. This recipe comes from Jacques Pepin, after those halcyon days of heavy French cooking.  A bit of healthy living certainly led to this fine little cookbook.    I would argue that most of the recipes in this book are more weeknight cooking than weekend ent...