Hey dear friends,

Currently, I've got myself locked in my bedroom, trying to collect a quiet moment to write out this recipe for you. I'm sitting on the bed, because my desk is in the other room, being used for endless school zooms. All I can think about are those two huge piles of laundry glaring at me begging to be folded. “I respond, I'll get to you later”. I'm officially losing it, as I've just chatted with the laundry.

You aren't here for my complaints though, I hope you're here because you're wondering what to cook for the week ahead. What have you been cooking anyhow?

This week, I've been testing recipes like crazy, another apple galette because I'm trying to come up with the perfect one. A beef stew, inspired part by Jamie Oliver part Ina Garten. A turkey chili, BLT'S that aren't really BLT'S and GF fried zucchini. But what I enjoyed the most was experimenting with Pasta Alle Vongole recipe.

Pasta Alle Vongole, is pasta with clams or vermicelli as the Italians would say. This dish has minimal ingredients, with clams, parsley, white wine and all the garlic, it doesn't take much to make it sing. Typically eaten in the summer, (although it's now officially fall), I'm making this anyway. Breaking the rules a bit because it's still very much summer here in Arizona. It also feels like it's the perfect transition dish into fall as well.

Thanks for stopping by, recipe below

xo Nicole

PASTA ALLE VONGOLE | PASTA WITH CLAMS

INGREDIENTS:

2 lbs little neck clams, rinsed + soaked in filtered water for 1-2 hours
1 white onion diced, save the ends
4 cloves of garlic, smashed in peel
1 bunch parsley divided, chop before dish finishes
1 bottle dry white wine (TJ's cheap pinot grigio works great)
Evoo as needed
1 pat of good quality butter
1 small red chili diced
2 6.5oz canned clams, such as bar harbor brand, drained ( save the juice for another dish)
1lb dried pasta (I used jovial brand spaghetti)
crushed red pepper flakes
salt and fresh ground pepper to taste
Good hunk of Parmigiano reggiano + Pecorino Cheeses
lemon as needed

DIRECTIONS :

Put a large deep pan on medium heat. Add a tablespoon of olive oil, onion ends, garlic, enough wine to coat the entire bottom of the pan, your whole fresh clams, and a few sprigs of parsley. Turn up the heat, cover the pan, and steam the clams for 2-4 min. Check them, as they pop open, remove them from the shell, and place in a bowl. Continue until all the clams open. If they are having a hard time opening, put them in the middle of the pan, and coax them along.

Save your cooking liquid in a separate bowl. Add your canned clams to the fresh ones, pour some cooking liquid over them.

Bring a seasoned pot of water to boil, and cook your pasta according to the directions.

( tip: your water should taste like the sea. + if you're using gluten free pasta, rinse with cold water and sprinkle with evoo when it's finished cooking, before tossing back in the pot)

Give your pan a quick rinse. Take your garlic out of the cooking liquid, and unpeel thinly slice. Add evoo to the pan, with a pat of butter, cook with the chili until fragrant. Sauteé the onions, and add some of the cooking liquid to the pot. Cook until the onions are translucent. Taste, and season with salt and pepper. If you want more spice add red pepper flakes. Chop your parsley, and taste the pasta. When it's almost finished, add your clams back in, with more white wine and your liquid. Taste again and lower the heat. When your pasta finishes, add it to the pan, grate a heap of both cheeses on top of the pasta, chopped parsley and evoo as needed. If it needs more acid add a splash or two of white wine or lemon. With tongs mix it all together scraping bottom as needed.

(TIP : taste, to know if your dish needs more fat, from the butter or evoo or acid which will come from the wine.) Salt + pepper as needed. Serve hot, with sourdough on the side to scoop up all the bits from the bottom.

Hello Friends,

I’m tattling on myself to you that, we’ve had domino's pizza night one to many times these last 6 weeks. I know no big deal, BUT when it comes to home cooked meals I pride myself on them. I’m still learning the art of FOOD is FOOD, and enjoy that vs lets beat ourselves up for eating take out. Also, when you have sports that fill up six days of our week, sometimes take out is the “easiest” thing.

This year, I made a little promise to myself that I would get better at meal prep during these sports seasons. My weakness is I’m not a huge fan of the insta pot, or sitting there on a Sunday chopping all the veg for the week, or obsessively planning a meal list. Instead, I like to stock my cabinets and fridge with items I know I can whip up quickly. For instance, having a hardy sourdough bread on hand, fresh veggies, canned beans, tomatoes and even a pre-canned tomato sauce. Another thing I love is big batch cooking, which would be doubling or even tripling a recipe, that I can freeze or we eat later in the week.

I’m still learning this whole kids in sports “juggle”, so we’ve got those “not so perfect” meal weeks in there and that's okay too!

When nights get late and I don’t order takeout, we’ll have “snack dinner” which includes, some sort of hummus and veg. Avocado toast, maybe even through a fried egg on top for good measure. It's simple and easy when you get home at 7:30 at night, feel me?

Now, let's make some toast.

Cheers friends,

Nicole

Yet Another “AVOCADO TOAST” with radish, cilantro, lime and garlic (if you dare) RECIPE**

Ingredients :

1 loaf of your favorite bread
4 ripe enough avocados
1 bunch of cilantro
2 limes
1 bunch baby radish
1 bunch of watermelon radish
1 tablespoon MCT OIL
Good quality Extra Virgin Olive oil for toast ( as needed)
Kosher Salt
Crushed red Pepper flakes
Pepper

Other items you’ll need: Large bowl to mash avocados, fork, toaster or oven.

DIRECTIONS:

With a chef knife slice your avocado in half, stab the middle of the pit of the avocado with your knife and slowly twist the pit, it should come right out. With a spoon, spoon out both sides of the avocado into your bowl. Repeat this step with all of your avocados. Slice and squeeze 1 half of lime into your bowl. Add the MCT oil. Mix around a bit. Roughly chop your cilantro, excluding the stems, add about 2 tablespoons to your bowl. Set aside rest in case you’d like it.
Thinly slice your garlic clove. Add to the bowl. Then with your fork mash your avocado mixture, add the salt and pepper to taste. This is the part where you can get creative, if you like more lime add it, or cilantro, even the garlic. Just be sure to taste before adding each ingredient.
Prepare your radish, clean and remove the leaves. Which if you’d like to keep them wash and chop them to add to your toast later. Thinly slice both the red radish and watermelon.
Make your toast. I like to heat the oven to 400 degrees and put all the toast on a large sheet pan, or you can toast using a toaster.
When toast finishes, spread an even amount of olive oil all over the toasts. Then a good helping of your avocado mixture. Top with radish and a pinch of salt, and sprinkle of EVOO if desired.
Enjoy.