Baby Steps

I decided yesterday that I've had enough of all the sitting around acting like I'm incapable of making dinner, dessert, whatever and that it's time for me to start cooking (and baking) again.

But then the question is where to start.  Skills atrophy, you know.  So I started with something to bake.  In fact, I started with something that I've baked a few times in the past and always had success with (because it's so freaking easy), but to change it up a bit.  I don't enjoy eating it as much as making other people eat it, but Paula Deen's Pumpkin Butter Gooey Cake is always a hit.  I've always made it for the holidays, but they've all passed, so I decided to take Paula's advice and try one of the options.

So I made Peanut Butter Gooey Cake.  You switch out the yellow cake mix for chocolate cake, then switch out the pumpkin for peanut butter.  It doesn't tell you to leave out the nutmeg or cinnamon, so I kept those in, but I think it would be good with just the cinnamon.

It was very fluffy when it first came out of the oven. 

And fell like a failed souffle the moment it cooled

The slices I cut for us were way too big...

But we ate them all anyway.

I'm getting ahead of myself.  We did, actually, eat dinner first.

For the cooking end, I decided to avoid cookbooks for the restart and ask my mom for a recipe instead.  I wanted a good tomato sauce for pasta, but it wasn't until we got started talking about the variety of sauces that I realized how much I miss a good puttanesca (I still crave the one they serve at Bucatini in Santa Barbara...I don't even know if that place is there anymore).  My mom looked inspired and, of course, she had just the recipe in mind.

And so, I began.  The pinch bowls here show everything you need to make a good puttanesca:  garlic, anchovy paste, capers, olives, whole tomatoes, olive oil and some basil (the basil is optional).

I sauteed the garlic and anchovy paste, then added the tomatoes by squeezing them through my fingers into the pan. 

When your mother tells you to make sure that the pan isn't too hot, mind her.  Otherwise you get a very hot backsplash of tomato and oil.  It hurts.

Then I let the whole thing simmer for 15 minutes.

Next I added the capers, stirred and let that simmer for another five minutes, which gave Meg time to inhale their goodness.

Then I added the olives and capers till they were just heated.

Finally I tossed in fettucine rigate (cooked al dente) and let the whole mess spend some quality time together in the pan. 

Meg told me she didn't like hers at all, but it mysteriously vanished before I could get through even half of mine.

Then Jenn came home and put my cat in a sling like a baby.

Thanks to Meg for doing the dishes and snuggling with the other cat.

 

Mom's Puttanesca Sauce (with notes from me)

olive oil

2-3 garlic cloves, minced

1 tsp anchovy paste

1 lg or 2 sm cans whole tomatoes

a bunch of pitted kalamata olives and/or green olives - whole or sliced

1-2 Tbsp well-rinsed capers (or more if you you like them)

Heat a 12 inch saute pan on medium.  When hot, add 2-3 Tbsp of olive oil.  Quickly add the garlic and cook until fragant (20-30 seconds), then add anchovy paste and smash around for a minute or two.  Make sure the temperature isn't too high.  Add the tomatoes by crushing them ,one at a time, in your hand as you add them to the pan (you will not need the leftover juice in the can, squeezing the tomatoes will provide juice enough).  Simmer slowly for about 20 minutes.  Add the olives/capers, and cook for a few minutes until heated through.  The sauce should be thick and chunky.  Salt and pepper to taste.

Possible additions:

Toasted pine nuts

Golden raisins soaked in warm water for 15 minutes

Basil chiffonade (put in at the end, just before serving, or it will wilt away the greenness)