<p>For summer, I love this. Quick, easy, cheap, quintessentially Itallian, 6 ingredients. What’s not to love? Serve with bread and salad.</p>
<p>Little Thimbles Sciue Sciue</p>
<p>2 c. Ditalini pasta, or other small tube shaped pasta
1/4 c. olive oil (I use less, about 2 T.)
2 tsp. minced garlic
5 Roma tomatoes (about 1 lb), chopped
8 oz cold fresh mozzarella, drained, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
8 lg fresh basil leaves, coarsely chopped</p>
<p>Bring a large saucepan of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring often, about 8 minutes. Drain.</p>
<p>Meanwhile, in a large heavy skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the garlic and sauté until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the tomatoes and about 1/4 tsp. salt, and sauté just until heated through, about 2 minutes. Add the cooked pasta. Remove the skillet from the heat. Add the cheese and basil, and toss to coat. Serve immediately.</p>
<p>I often make a thrown-together sauce and mix it with pasta. The latest is 2 cans of good tuna (I get Wild Planet from Amazon), frozen peas, goat cheese, a little parmesan, a jar of tomato sauce (TJ or 365 organic marinara). Heat while pasta is cooking, then combine. I usually use brown rice pasta from TJ - hard to find it in other stores.</p>
<p>One of my go-to quick dinner in a bowl recipes, which is great for those of us who must limit carbs but want an Italian fix:</p>
<p>Kale “Stew”</p>
<p>Olive oil
About 2 tsp of crushed red pepper flakes
About 2 tsp of fennel seed
1 or 2 bay leaves
3+ large cloves of garlic, peeled and minced
One large or 2 med onions, chopped
1 pkg ground turkey (16-20 oz)
1 big can RedPack crushed tomatoes
I big bunch of kale, roughly chopped, or one bag of chopped kale
Optional: 1/2 cup red wine, water, more tomatoes
Salt and fresh pepper to taste
Grated romano to taste</p>
<p>Add oil to large broad pan with a lid. (Big enough to force kale in before it shrinks.) Over med/hi heat, add pepper, fennel, bay leaves, then add onion and saute until softened. Add garlic and cook until translucent and slightly gold, adjusting heat as required. Add turkey, break up, leaving some small chunks, and stir, cook until it had just lost the pink. Add can of tomatoes, stir. (If you are using wine, add it now.) Bring to a simmer, lower heat to maintain, cover, and let cook for about 15 minutes. Remove lid, add half the kale, stir up somewhat. Add the rest of the kale. Cover tightly, and simmer until kale has wilted somewhat. Check the liquid, and decide if you need to add a little water. Stir, cover, and cook until kale is done but still nicely chewy. Serve in bowls with grated cheese. </p>
<p>One of our favs is tofu, black shiitake mushrooms and Chinese sausage steamed. It’s pretty easy–get heatproof bowl that fits in large pot with steamer, cut chicken breast, thighs or other into bite size pieces and put in bowl. Soak shiitake mushrooms, clean and squeeze out excess water. Quarter or slice and add add to bowl. Slice a few Chinese sausages thinly and add to bowl. Add your favorite teriyaki sauce and a bit of grated ginger. Mix all ingredients. Press ingredients against inside of bowl, making an even layer. Add 2-3" cubes of tofu. Steam dish about 20-30 minutes until chicken and sausage are cooked. </p>