WEEKEND OF LASAGNA MAKING OR HOW TO MAKE LASAGNA

A friend from the Club brought some farm fresh eggs for me to buy. Lovely yolks-big! Fresh egg noodle!  So I decided to make some pans of lasagna for the girls. Ended up with two large pans and made fettuccine with the rest of the home made egg noodle for Barb. Lasagna is so labour intensive, I always say I won't do that again. Plain homemade spaghetti with ragu sauce is my favourite. One of my earlier posts gives all the instructions for a homemade lasagna. Visit it for details.
March 8, 2012- Lasagna alla Granpa Adolfo.

2017 A YEAR TO CELEBRATE GOOD EATING

Eating is not reserved for one year. A new beginning brings good eating.

Some meals can be simple. A quick pasta for a week night.

Farfelle pasta
Italian sausage
Broccoli

Cook the sausage in pieces frying in a pan. Cook enough bow pasta for two. Boil the broccoli.
Once all is cooked add some butter or cream sauce to the pasta- your choice.Then add the chopped broccoli and sausage.We like a little hot pepper to zest it up! Some parmigiana cheese finishes off the dish.
A tasty one dish meal.

Pasta is like this dish. Just take your favourite kind and add any ingredients you like!

GRANPA ENJOYS DINNER OUT AT VIVO

One of several franchise locations, Barb and I went to the newly opened restaurant at Bathurst and Carville in Richmond Hill. VIVO-pizza+pasta!
The daughter and son-in-law of one of my first cousins are the owners.
Barb and I had the Insalata Caprese as an Antipasti.

Fior di latte cheese, basil and sun dried tomato pesto with extra virgin olive oil.
Barb ordered the Calamari and Gamberetti Fritti- crispy fried calamari and shrimps served with lemon-garlic aioli and balsamic vinegar.

I had the Scaloppine alla Parmigiana- Breaded veal scaloppini with tomato sauce, Fior di latte cheese served with spaghetti Pomodoro. Barb did not get a picture as I ate too fast!
                                               Barb had a cappuccino after the meal.

VIVOand I had my espresso- no dolci!

Andrea explained the concept. Orders are taken at the front either for take-out or you can order, find a seat and the food will be taken when ready to your table.

Casual location- my style and good tasty food. A good dinner for the cook. Sometimes the cook needs to taste something new. I sure will recommend VIVO to family and friends.
#VIVO
#vivo#pizza#pasta#richmondhill#familyfun#espressocoffee#fish#closetohome

FRESH GNOCCHI FOR A SUMMER FEAST

Finding some ricotta cheese in the fridge, I decided to make enough gnocchi for 3 families.A cooler kitchen allows the pasta to be firm. Putting it in the freezer to keep it fresh for dinner later, a simmering ragu-meat sauce will complement the dish.  Although only the end of August, this cold weather dish is always a favourite with my family.

With just a salad it is a great meal. Or it can be a side dish for a full dinner. I often make it with potatoes but heh today cleaning out the fridge netted the family this hearty pasta treat!

CHRISTMAS EVE SEAFOOD PASTA

A  Christmas Eve Seafood dinner would not be complete without a pasta dish. The dish I make is a simple clam sauce.

Buy tins of clams to make this dish easy.

Using my basic tomato sauce- saute the onions and garlic in some olive oil, add a can or two of plum tomatoes, simmering until mixed then drain the water from the clams before adding to the tomato sauce.

If you want, you can use a seafood medley as used for the appetizer.

Let the seafood sauce simmer for about an hour.

Make your own linguine or fettucine if desired or buy fresh pasta from the store or simply use the packaged kind. A long wide pasta works best with this sauce.

Cook the desired pasta, drain and add the sauce on a nice serving platter.

This can be dish #2 for the Seven Fish/Seafood dishes of Christmas Eve.

Last Christmas Eve- 2011, I made two kinds of pasta since there was a mixed crowd. The one in the foreground had a meatball sauce while the one in the background had the clam sauce. I actually used fresh clams for that night. Some people ate both pastas.
Last night- December 15, 2012, I made a seafood sauce using clams, shrimps and scallops again with the simple tomato sauce on fresh fettucine.
Added note- a good cook will improvise with the crowd being served. A seafood sauce can include whatever combination you like.