Romanesco Pasta with Sweet Corn

Romanesco Pasta

I love the look of this interesting vegetable. Romanesco is bright green, beautiful, almost jeweled looking. While this broccoli has only been available in US markets for a few years, Romanesco broccoli was first documented in Italy (as broccolo romanesco) in the sixteenth century.

This is a simple recipe for an incredible pasta dish. You can use any pasta, I used some penne this time. You could also use cauliflower or tightly formed broccoli for this dish.

If you are not lucky enough to live in a place like Hawaii where we get fresh sweet corn all year, you can use good quality frozen corn for this. 

Ingredients:

1 head of Romanesco

2 heads of garlic with the tops sliced off

Olive oil (you will need about 4-5 tablespoons for roasting and 2 for sautéing.

2 small red onions or shallots sliced thinly

2 ears of fresh corn cut from the cob

½ cup heavy cream (optional)

¼ cup VSOP Cognac (optional)

Crushed red pepper, coarse black pepper and salt to taste

½ # thick pasta cooked  al dente (reserve ¼ cup of pasta water)

Preheat oven to 350. Use a silpat pad or parchment paper to line a large baking sheet.

Cut up the Romanesco florets in large chunks and toss in olive oil with a little salt and pepper, then pour on to the baking sheet. Add the two garlic heads and drizzle with olive oil.

Bake for 30-45 minutes until the garlic is soft and the Romanesco is starting to caramelize.  Set aside.

 Put the pasta water on to boil.

In a large skillet add remaining olive oil, corn and onions with a pinch of salt. Stir and heat till the onions start to get soft. Squeeze the roasted garlic into the center of the pan, stir well and then add the Romanesco. Stir and add the cream if using. Cook for a minute till cream starts to thicken. Add the cognac & simmer for 1-2 minutes.

Using a slotted spoon or spider, add the pasta to the pan and stir. If needed, you can add a little pasta water to the pan.

Serve with freshly grated parmesan and crushed red pepper.   

Chinese New Year in Hilo

  

 Yesterday, Hilo had it's Annual Chinese New Year Festival. Here are some pictures from the event. you can see more from past events here: Chinese Film Fest and here: Chinese New Year 2009 And click the following link if you want to learn about Portuguese Bean Soup, which is interestingly the hit of every Chinese New Year Festival in Hilo!

Portuguese Bean Soup!

 

Puppets!

Shave Ice Ice Baby!

Firecrackers ready to go off...

Best Garlic Bread EVER!

The Best Garlic Bread Ever

This is a simple recipe for the best garlic bread you will ever put between your lips.  It is easy to make and will keep away the vampires!  You will need a large baguette; I prefer to get a kind of chewy one, not one that is soft and puffy.

In a sauce pan mix together the following:

• ½ pound of butter (I use clarified butter that I make ahead)
• 20 garlic cloves that have been finely minced
• A tablespoon of dried parsley (fresh is fine too, but you should double it if using fresh)
• ¼ cup olive oil
• 2 tablespoons of freshly ground coarse black pepper
• 1 tablespoon crushed red pepper flakes
• 1-2 tablespoons Lawry’s Garlic Salt
  

Simmer for about 20-30 minutes on low, stirring occasionally. You want to incorporate the flavors as well as cook the garlic a bit. Raw garlic has a bite to it.

Once you have cooked it all down, then use a pastry brush to put it on a baguette cut in half lengthwise.  Make sure you get plenty of the chunky bits of garlic and parsley well distributed.

Bake @ 350 for 15 minutes and then put under the broiler for just a minute to brown. Add lemon zest from one lemon to the top of the bread and prepare to devour!