Recipe of the Week; SUMMER PASTA SALAD

Man, is it hot this week! Record breaking temperatures! Just typing this I feel overexerted! (Not really, I'm sitting in the comfort of my air-conditioned office.)

The very LAST thing I want to do in this weather is cook. In fact, I don't really even want to eat. But I've got two boys (a little one, and a large one) who need their nourishment, so my trick is to just make something simple, and a lot of it- that way it will last through the week.

One of my favorite summer salads is my Mom's variation of an anti-pasto. I've been eating this at family reunions and summer holiday picnics since the seventies. I started to make it for my husband, and he absolutely LOVES it, although to please his carnivore-ish palate I go a little heavy on the meat.

It's a busy salad- lots of chopping is involved, but this will make a HUGE bowl full, which means if you make it on Monday it should last until Friday. And it really does get better the longer it sits. You could certainly halve the recipe to make a smaller amount, but when I make it- believe me, I'm lucky if it lasts five days. It's so full of stuff, it can be a meal in itself. It's a great alternative to potato or macaroni salad along side something you've grilled up.

INGREDIENTS

1 pound pasta, I prefer the tri-colored spirals but small shells, corkscrew, penne or farfalle will do. Cook to al dente in boiling, salted water and drain well.

CHEESES

I use the block cheese you pick up at the dairy isle of the supermarket, and it varies as to what cheese I use depending on what's available. You can use any variety of the following. (note that Brick cheese isn't available in many areas, as it seems to be widely used in Western PA. However, Monterrey Jack is very similar in texture and taste, so it's a good alternative.)

Pick four and use about 4 oz. (half of a block) of each. As a general rule, I like to use at least to yellow and two white. Cut into half-inch cubes.

Medium or Sharp Cheddar
Provolone
Monterrey Jack
Mozzarella
Colby
Colby-Jack Blend
Brick
New York Cheddar

MEAT

Salami, preferably hard or Genoa
Ham, ordinary inexpensive cooked ham works just fine. Stay away from "sweet" versions, such as honey-glazed or Virginia.
Sliced pepperoni, or sandwich pepperoni if available
Summer sausage (optional)

There are three specific meats I use in this salad. I never stray from these. For my ham and salami, I go to the deli counter and asked for at least four slices of each. I have them cut it into thick slices, about a half-inch, that way I can just cube them up for the salad.

You can use the sliced pepperoni, just slice the rounds in half and separate them well, they tend to stick to themselves. If sandwich pepperoni is available at the deli counter, get about 4-5 thick slices of it as well. I've also used stick pepperoni that I've cut into cubes.

If I have summer sausage on hand, I'll toss some of that it in as well, but it's not necessary.

VEGETABLES

1 large tomato, or a couple smaller ones, medium dice, or- 1 pint of halved grapes tomatoes is perfect
1 large bell pepper, any color, small dice
1 small jar green olives, halved
1 large onion, small dice
1 head of broccoli, optional

Mom always uses broccoli. I can do without it and usually do not put it in my salad.

DRESSING

1 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup cider vinegar
salt and pepper, to taste
1 tablespoon dried Italian herb blend

To assemble the salad, lightly toss the pasta, meats, cheeses and vegetables in a large bowl. (I actually have to use two bowls, it's just easier for mixing.) In a separate smaller bowl or large measuring cup, mix all the ingredients for the dressing until well combined. You may need to add more or less vinegar to suit your tastes. These measurements are a guideline only, really. It just depends on your preferences. You may even need to make more dressing, again it depends on your tastes and the type of noodle you use. The best way to gage this is simply by tasting as you go.

It's best to let this sit for a few hours before you eat it, in order for the dressing to absorb into all the ingredients. Again, as it sits it will get more flavorful. Keep refrigerated.

Bonus Holiday Recipe; SLAP-YOUR-MOMMA-GOOD MACARONI AND CHEESE

Because tomorrow is the day where we concentrate on food, I'm going to post a bonus recipe and tell you the history behind it.

I've mentioned this dish in a previous recipe, and I've also mentioned in my last post that I'm pretty much a stickler for the Thanksgiving staples. You may not think that macaroni and cheese is Thanksgiving-ish in anyway, but let me tell you that in my husband's family it most certainly is. Not only does his Thanksgiving menu offer the typical turkey and such, growing up his holidays have always been flavored with a lot of soul and southern comfort. Food, that is- not the drink. The drink comes out later on in the day when the domino case is busted out.

After we first got married, we were living in Phoenix for our first several Thanksgivings, and his family was a good four hours away in northern NM. His sisters Tammy and Von, along with their kids and eventually a grandkid or two would drive down the day before, and stay usually until Sunday. Since it was the only time throughout the year that we really got to see them, we threw a feast that lasted for days... At any given Thanksgiving we had no less than 10 to 12 people staying at our house. Who needs a hotel when we have sleeping bags?? As and added bonus, they could swim while dinner was being cooked!

Somehow I was nominated to make the macaroni and cheese. It seemed like a strange thing to me at first, but I just went with the flow and found a recipe I thought everyone would enjoy. It happened to be from a cookbook I had by Patti LaBelle. Her recipe was originally titled "Over-the-Rainbow Macaroni and Cheese".

So I gathered the ingredients, and added a little more cheese than the recipe called for. This recipe is really more cheese than macaroni, but that's okay!

When the mac-and-cheese was pulled from the oven my sister-in-law Von was the appointed taste tester, to which she took her first bite and said- "This macaroni and cheese is sooooo good it makes me want to slap my Momma!"

From that Thanksgiving forward, I have been faithfully making this dish, meanwhile thanking everyone for NOT slapping their Momma while indulging.

So- if you're ever looking for the best (slapping optional) recipe for macaroni and cheese, look no further, my friends!

INGREDIENTS

1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 1/2 pounds elbow macaroni
10 tablespoons plus 3 tablespoons butter
3/4 cup shredded Muenster cheese
3/4 cup shredded New York Cheddar cheese
3/4 cup shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
3/4 cup shredded Monetary Jack

3/4 cup shredded Colby cheese
3 cups half-and-half
2 cups Velveeta , cut into small cubes
3 large eggs , lightly beaten
1/4 teaspoon seasoned salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly butter a deep. large casserole dish. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the oil, then the elbow macaroni, and cook until the macaroni is just tender, about 7 minutes. Do not overcook. Drain well. Return to the cooking pot.In a small saucepan, melt 10 tablespoons of the butter. Stir into the macaroni.

In a large bowl, gently toss the shredded cheeses to blend by hand.

To the macaroni, add the half-and-half, 3/4 of the shredded cheese blend, the cubed Velveeta, and the eggs. Season with salt and pepper. Transfer to the buttered casserole. Sprinkle with the remaining 1/3 of shredded cheese and dot with the remaining butter. Bake until it's bubbling around the edges, about 35 minutes. Serve hot.

Recipe of the Week; BIRTHDAY PENNE

I had the most scrumptious penne dish for my birthday this past June. It didn't come from any restaurant, and it wasn't made especially for me by my husband (who is an excellent cook, by the way!) because as usual he was working well into the evening.

Craving something a little more exciting than an every day weeknight meal, I left work early and stopped by the supermarket for inspiration. Just browsing the isles is all it takes to for me to come up with an idea. I decided pasta was in order, penne in particular as it's my favorite. This is what I literally threw together, and it worked out deliciously! It made a ton of food, so much that I ended up freezing half of it. Of course, you could always just cut the recipe in half. Also, it is important to note that the butter and olive oil measurements are only suggestions. You could go lighter or heavier, depending on your preference.

INGREDIENTS

1/4 cup olive oil

1/2 cup butter

1 medium onion, diced

3 cloves of garlic, minced

1 lb. box penne

1 lb. frozen precooked shrimp

1 lb. Polish sausage, sliced into rings about 1/4-inch thick

1 bag frozen vegetables (the bag I chose included snap peas, broccoli, mixed peppers, mushrooms, asparagus, carrots and cauliflower)

1 can chicken stock

1 lemon, for juice OR about 2 teaspoons lemon concentrate (less or more, according to your preference)

shredded Parmesan chesse

handful fresh parsley or cilantro, chopped

salt, pepper, garlic powder and dried oregano to taste

Place frozen in shrimp in large bowl of cold water to thaw. It only takes a few minutes. Drain in colander and set aside.

Bring large pot of salted water to a boil, add penne and cook to al dente. Drain and set aside, reserving at least 1 cup of the hot water.

While penne is boiling, melt butter and olive oil over medium heat in a large skillet. (You will be adding everything to this pan, so make sure it's a big one!)

Add sliced sausage, onion and garlic, saute for a few minutes. Add frozen vegetables, 3/4 can of the chicken stock, the juice of the lemon, salt, pepper, oregano and garlic powder. Put a lid on skillet to allow vegetables to thaw. After the vegetables are thawed, add drained penne and shrimp.* You can add more butter or olive oil, additional stock, or some of the reserved pasta water to get the consistency in the sauce that you prefer, if it's too dry or not flavorful enough for your preference. It's important to TASTE the penne while it's in the skillet, before and after you've added your seasonings and additional liquids! Mix well, put the lid back on and allow to heat through.

Once everything is at an equal temperature, sprinkle with chopped parsley or cilantro and a large handful or so of grated Parmesan.

We ate this with some homemade garlic toast, and forewent a salad because the penne already had a ton of veggies mixed in!

*I pulled the shrimp tails off before adding them to the skillet, but you don't have to.

Even if it's not your birthday or someone else's, this is great "anytime" sort-of recipe. And it's ready in about a half and hour or so.