Pasta is incomparable for infinite presentations

For years I have praised the versatile charms of pasta: In its many forms — from rice-like orzo, through small-to-large shells, wheels, bowties, macaroni, twists and stretched-out noodles, spaghetti, fettuccini, linguine and angel hair — it shines in multitudes of dishes. Soups, salads, hot offerings galore and even desserts have been created from this amazing gift to the culinary arts and I have a pantry full of it in nearly all of its dried beneficence.

Though I tend to prefer hot pasta with an Alfredo sauce — or even tossed with white wine and heavy cream — I do relish it presented in a simple olive oil-based dish such as today’s illustration.

This particular recipe came to be a favorite of mine because of the unique treatment of the sun-dried tomatoes. I wasn’t crazy about them because they are generally served in large pieces — to me, sharp and too tangy-bitter for my taste. Then I found this amazing offering, tried it and found a treasure!

Penne w/Sun-Dried Tomatoes, Asparagus and Chopped Nuts*

3 ounce jar/pkg. sun-dried tomatoes

2 cups water

1 pound penne (or other tubular pasta)

1 pound fresh asparagus, tough ends snapped off, bases peeled if necessary, cut diagonally into 2-3-inch lengths

2 Tbs. olive oil

*1/3 cup pine nuts or chopped walnuts, as desired

2 shallots, minced OR 4-5 green onions, finely chopped w/green tops

3 cloves garlic, minced or pressed

1/4 cup slivered fresh basil

1 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Basil sprigs

Pepper

In a 2-3-quart pan, combine dun-dried tomatoes and the 2 cups water. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce heat to simmer uncovered until liquid is reduced to 3/4 to 1 cup and tomatoes are soft. With a slotted spoon remove tomatoes to a shallow contained and chop finely. Return them to cooking liquid and set aside.

While tomatoes cook, fill a large saucepan with water and bring to a boil over high heat. Add pasta and cook uncovered for 5 minutes; add asparagus pieces and cook with pasta, uncovered, until asparagus is barely tender when pierced and pasta is al dente (5-7 minutes longer). Drain well and keep hot.

Preheat a 3-5-quart sauté pan over medium heat until rim of pan is hot to the touch. Add oil and wait for about 1 minute. Add nuts of choice, shallots or scallions, and garlic. Cook, stirring until onions/garlic are translucent (about 4 minutes), then add pasta, asparagus, tomato/water mixture and slivered basil.

Stir pasta mixture until just hot, then mix in grated cheese; season with pepper. Serve from pan or pour out onto a large platter. Garnish with basil sprigs and shaved curls of Parmesan if desired. Accompany with a basket of hot garlic bread. Serves 6 sensationally.

Tip: To make Parmesan curls, bring cheese slab to room temperature; Peel slowly along edges with a vegetable peeler.

One probably wouldn’t think that a recipe for Mac n’ Cheese would be necessary. But making it properly is an art and worthy of the time — as in this super-classic.

Macaroni and Cheese

(For 6-8 people)

8 tablespoons real butter

6 tablespoons flour

½ teaspoon cayenne

Salt, fresh ground pepper to taste

3 ¾ cups hot whole milk

4 cups grated Cheddar (from a block of fine cheddar, NOT pre-grated in a bag)

1 pound short macaroni, cooked

½ cup heavy cream, room temperature

½ cup fresh bread crumbs (scraped from center of coarse loaf with fork tines)*

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Melt 6 tablespoons of the butter in a medium saucepan over medium- low heat. Add flour and cook, stirring constantly with a gravy coil or small whisk, 3-4 minutes or until sauce is smooth; (flour must foam as it cooks so make sure heat is just right). Meanwhile, heat milk in a separate pan over med. heat (don’t allow it to scorch). When flour mixture is smooth, whisk in hot milk, ½ cup at a time, and cook, whisking constantly until sauce thickens. Reduce heat to low and stir in 2 cups of the grated cheese; continue to cook, stirring until cheese melts, about 2 minutes more.

Combine pasta and sauce in a large bowl and season to taste with salt. Sprinkle ½ cup of the remaining cheese over the bottom of a buttered 8x11-Inch baking dish. Put 1/3 of the pasta in the dish, top with ½ cup of the cheese, then repeat, layering pasta and cheese, ending with cheese, making 3 layers in all. Pour cream over all. Melt remaining butter in a skillet over medium-low heat; add bread crumbs. Coat with the melted butter then sprinkle evenly over prepared casserole. Bake until crust is golden, about 30 minutes. Allow to rest for 15 minutes before serving.

* I often crush croutons into crumbs with my rolling pin for an easier-to-handle topping.

I’m re-printing my own recipe here, because I truly think it’s good (I know, I’m shameless). It doesn’t include amounts of ingredients, because that depends on the number of diners. Figure on 4-5 mushrooms and scallop halves and 3-4 artichoke bottoms per person and take it from there. Enjoy!

Coquilles Valle

Med/small whole button mushrooms, wiped clean, stemmed if necessary

Large wild-caught Sea Scallops, cut in half

Artichoke bottoms (NOT marinated)

1 cup of good quality Alfredo sauce (Newman’s Own, etc.)

½ cup half-and-half or light cream

1 cup grated cheese (Parmesan, Romano or a mix)

2 finely chopped green onions w/tops included (or tablespoon of chopped chives)

½ roasted red bell pepper*, sliced into ribbons, cut in half

Salt, pepper to taste

Set oven at 350 degrees. Combine Alfredo sauce, cream, grated cheese, onion/chives, roasted pepper ribbons and salt. Butter a casserole dish and pour in a small amount of sauce to cover bottom. Arrange scallops, mushrooms and ‘choke hearts alternately, in layers if necessary. Sprinkle lightly with nutmeg. Pour remaining cream sauce over all and bake for 30 minutes or until tender and sauce is bubbly and beginning to brown. Serve with a green salad and warm garlic toasts.

* I buy these in a jar already prepared and ready to slice.

Tip: I’ve also made this dish using sautéed (wild-caught) prawns — you could also combine them with the scallops. For a unique taste treat, stir a tablespoon of crumbled Gorgonzola into the cream sauce topping. Enjoy!

Valle Novak writes the Country Chef and Weekend Gardener columns for the Daily Bee. She can be reached at bcdailybee@bonnercountydailybee.com or by phone at 208-265-4688.