Lemon Pasta With Artichoke Hearts, Tuna, Sundried Tomatoes And A Cream Pesto Sauce

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I know that by now you must be thinking that this has turned into a gardening blog instead of the food blog you originally subscribed to.  The truth is that since I had back surgery last August, my interest in food has all but evaporated.  I have lost almost 20 lbs and I am delighted to meet up with my old size 10 clothes.  These days, I eat to sustain.  It's all about calories folks, and eating less is a sure bet to weight loss.  Don't over think it.  Listen to your stomach and eat when it tells you.  Just a little will keep it content.  I am not hungry until mid afternoon when I have a small snack.  I eat a normal dinner, including a sweet, if I feel like it,  and that's it until the next day.  The only exercise I do is in the garden or going up and down the stairs that separate us from Madame Mere's apartment.

Yesterday I got inspired... at Homegoods, of all places.  It was a jar of sun dried tomatoes that made me want pasta.  They often have wonderful artisanal pasta made in Italy and I always stock up when a new shipment comes in.  The one that got my attention was the lemon linguine.  I thought it would go well with the sun dried tomatoes and....tuna! I also remembered the jar of artichoke hearts in the pantry that I had noticed was getting near expiration.  Voila, a new dish was born!  From there it was just a matter of tweaking with herbs.  Very soon I was going to be enjoying a dish and memories of the South of France.

By the time I got home I was starving and ready for an evening of creativity.  My daughter had just made a Costco run and there on the counter was a jar of what would make this dish sing, basil pesto.  And crunch, Parmesan Crisps! No matter she had forgotten the napkins which was the reason she had gone there in the first place!

I encourage you to make the recipe as is.  Don't substitute for the Sherry with white wine.  It needs the sweetness and body only Sherry can add.  If you can't get lemon pasta easily, don't sweat it.  Add a TB finely shredded lemon peel or chopped lemon balm.

I only used half the package of pasta and it was enough for four people.  I tend to like more "goodies" and less pasta and these are the right proportions.  If you make the whole package, double up on the rest of the ingredients.

This would be a great ladies lunch in Summer or Spring or a quick dinner any time of the week.  Put your feet up, enjoy the garden and imagine you are in the South of France!

Lemon Pasta With Artichoke Hearts, Tuna and Sun Dried Tomatoes In a Cream Pesto Sauce

Serves 4

Ingredients:

2 TB butter
1/4 cup olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 large shallot chopped
1/2 cup Dry Sherry
2 TB basil pesto
8 oz. heavy cream

1/2 lb Lemon pasta, linguine or fettuccine, cooked al dente*
1 can artichoke hearts
1 can tuna, packed in oil and drained
4 or 5 sliced sun dried tomatoes

Salt and pepper to taste ( I added a few flakes of Aleppo pepper)

Parmesan cheese, shredded
Parmesan Whisps

Chopped basil or parsley for decoration (optional)


Directions:

Pre warm the oven to 350 degrees.

Cook the pasta as per package directions. Leave a little al dente. Drain and save some of the cooking water.

Saute the garlic and shallot in the oil and butter until translucent.

Add the Sherry and reduce to half.

Add the basil pesto.  You can use homemade or ready made.  Stir

Add the cream and let it simmer for a bit until it thickens.

Add the artichoke hearts, roughly chopped, the tuna and the sliced sun dried tomatoes.

Add the cooked pasta and stir until the noodles are fully coated.  If you find it is too thick (you won't) add a little of the pasta water.

Place in a casserole dish, sprinkle some shredded Parmesan cheese and top with crunched Parmesan Whisps.   Cook covered for 20 minutes.  Uncover and cook for another 5 or until it browns.  Don't let the pasta dry up!

Add chopped parsley or basil on top before serving (optional).  I was too hungry!

* you can use plain pasta but add about 1 TB finely shredded lemon peel.

All photos Lindaraxa

Lunch With Madame Mere...Mediterranean Tuna Salad On Roasted Red Peppers

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This weekend MM and I were on our own.  My daughter flew up north to visit friends and I got to take care of Mother, Madison, Lily and Coco.  Just us girls, by ourselves, with Lindaraxa to feed us.

Yesterday was a race against the clock to fertilize the azaleas and fumigate the roses before the storms came in the late afternoon.  It was unusually hot and humid and, by noon, after a final sweep of the garage,  I was ready for bed.  But there was lunch to prepare for my mother has no help during the weekend and she does look forward to her meals.  Usually my daughter pitches in, but this time I was flying solo.

I am telling you all this so you can appreciate how easy this recipe was to put together.  I had all the ingredients on hand, including half a big jar of Italian roasted red peppers.  I placed the salad on a plate  in the freezer and a French rose in a bucket full of ice while I went upstairs to take a shower. By the time we sat down it was so cold MM asked when I had made it.

What makes this salad different and Mediterranean are not only the roasted red peppers, but the addition of capers and scallions to an everyday tuna salad.  It may become the standard in this house when tomatoes are not available or out of season.

This recipe feeds four, which means we get to enjoy it for lunch again today!

Mediterranean Tuna Salad On Roasted Red Peppers
Serves 4

Ingredients

1 can white tuna, oil or water packed, drained
4 TB mayonnaise
2 celery stalks, peeled and finely chopped
4 hard boiled eggs
2 TB finely sliced scallions
1 to 2 TB drained capers
Black pepper to taste
Salt if needed

2 canned roasted red peppers, cut in half
Fresh parsley, chopped

Directions

Boil the eggs for 15 minutes and chill in an ice bath.  In a bowl, mix the tuna, mayonnaise, celery, scallions and capers.  Add the black pepper and one boiled egg, chopped. Taste for salt.  You will find that you don't need any.

In a plate, open one red pepper half, add some tuna salad.  Sprinkle with parsley on top, if using, and decorate each plate with the rest of the eggs, sliced.

Upgrading the Oldies...Tuna and Pasta Gratin With Mushrooms and Crushed Potato Chips

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...just kidding, this is just a great recipe for an old fashioned tuna noodle casserole very popular in the 1960's and now upgraded.

If you were a kid in the 60's, the chances of getting Campbell's Tuna Noodle Casserole at least twice a month on Fridays were pretty high.  By the time my generation got married, the odds were not as high, but still there.  Just ask my kids, they remember it well.  How could you as a Mother deprive your children of something that was such a part of American culture and American cooking.  Not me!

It seems that every other recipe that came out in those days was based on one type or another of Campbell's condensed soups.  The three popular ones were of course, Cream of Mushroom, Cream of Celery and Cream of Asparagus.  You always approached the soup aisle of the grocery store with some trepidation hoping that the shelves were not empty of just the soup you needed to show off your newest casserole recipe.  Those were the days, just a can of soup to make your day.

 Nowadays, food recipes seem to have more elegant names and unusual ingredients.  If we don't feel we are knocking ourselves out, it can't be any good. Can you imagine if I just posted a recipe for Tuna Noodle Casserole like Campbell's did in the 60's?  My hit average would go down the charts!

Since every generation deserves to be known for the food it craves and the food it eats,  here is my upgrade of an old favorite for the new millenium. I must say, though, that given the choice, my daughter refused to let go of potato chips in favor of Panko.  Some things never change, and shouldn't.

Serves 4

Ingredients:

6 scallions, finely sliced
1 small box white mushrooms, (go shiitake if you want fancy)
2 TB. unsalted butter
1/2 cup white wine
1/2 package of Barilla Elbow Macaroni (Mueller's is so-o-o 1960's)
1 small can of whole red pimientos (1960's), or 1 roasted red pepper (2000's)
1 best 6 oz. canned tuna in olive oil
1 cup grated real Parmigiano Reggiano  or Gruyere Cheese
1 cup frozen petit peas
Crushed Potato Chips (1960's)  or Panko (2000's)
Dash of Paprika
Salt (1960;s) or Sea Salt (pink is so in right now) and Pepper to taste.

Bechamel:

4 TBs. butter, unsalted
4 TBS flour
2 Cups milk
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Preheat Oven to 350 degrees.

Cook the elbow macaroni according to package directions until al dente.  About 14 minutes.  You can add the frozen peas the last 6 minutes (I forgot them altogether!).  Rinse in cold water and strain in a colander.

In a skillet, melt the 2 TB of butter and sautee the mushrooms and scallions until slightly golden.  Add the wine and reduce to 2 TB. Set aside.

Prepare two cups of bechamel sauce:  Melt the butter, add the flour, cook on low for a couple of minutes.  Add the hot milk and stir with a whisk until sauce thickens and starts to come to a boil.  If the sauce is too thick add some wine (or some vodka from your drink)

Slice the pimentos or red peppers and add them to the sauce.  Drain the tuna and also add it to the sauce together with the mushrooms and scallions.  Add the pasta and peas (you might not want to add all  the pasta at once, so add half and continue adding until you get the ratio you like.  Stir everything together.

Add salt and pepper to taste and a dash of paprika just to pick it up a bit.

Add 1/2 cup of Parmesan, stir and invert everything into a casserole.  Sprinkle the other half of the cheese on top and about 1 cup crushed potato chips or Panko.  Sprinkle a dash of Paprika on top.

Place casserole in the upper half of your preheated oven and check after 25 minutes.  It should be bubbling and brown on top.  Wait 10 minutes before you serve (okay, five)

Do you have a favorite Campbell soup to cook with?

Recipes and Photos Lindaraxa

Let's Do Lunch In Cap Ferrat...Pasta Provencal

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Right about this time of the year I start thinking about light pastas,  fresh tomatoes,  anchovies and capers, and so many other things typical of the South of France;  but more than anything, I start thinking of tuna.  No, not tuna as in sushi, just plain tuna as in tuna fish.   I also switch my cocktails to French dry roses and start wearing espadrilles and striped t-shirts.  It must be time to move to the Riviera...physically or otherwise.

Cap Ferrat

La Leopolda, Cap Ferrat

If you are part of the well healed LWL (Ladies Who Lunch) you will be readying your home in Cap d"Antibes or Cap Ferrat  (Marbella and Ibiza are okay too),  drawing up your guest list and thinking of some menus for practically every day of the week.  The season, which goes from July to the end of August, is just around the corner.  Better stock up on Campari and plenty of dry Rose.

Restaurant Eden Roc, Hotel Du Cap, Cap D'Antibes

If you are not part of that upper echelon, you will be readying your house in the Hamptons, Newport or Maine, maybe in Litchfield County or somewhere along the Hudson Valley.  Everyone else will be hiding in their closet come the weekend.  No matter where you are, there better be water around and if there isn't, don't bother even mentioning you have a summer house even if it is a country house.  Case in point, now that our house is not directly on the lake, our weekend visitors have gone down by 90%!

Pastas in the Riviera are very popular in the summertime; but it's more about the main ingredient than the pasta itself.  A popular combination is pasta with tuna, anchovies, olives, tomatoes and olive oil.  As long as everything is in season, you can add or subtract anything you wish. Subtract the tuna or the anchovies and you have a good pasta, but not a great pasta.

To complement your lunch, don't forget a fresh tomato salad, some of those thin Italian breadsticks and a bottle of French rose from Provence. A lemon sorbet would be perfect for dessert.  Then espresso and a well deserved nap!

I guarantee you will like this pasta, but only if you have it by the water, any water....turn on the sprinklers if everything fails.

Something like this would do 

It's been awhile since I've visited any of those summer resorts but I still have the memories and the palate to try to reproduce some menus at home.  Just close your eyes, smell the roses,  listen to the birds and you could be anywhere! For the Pasta Provencal recipe click below.