Broccoli with Penne, Basil, & Ricotta

Found this on the net, and love it!  * DAT does not love this!*
The chickpeas are my addition.  Main caveat is you need a large pot.  A 12" saute pan is perfect - note you only need to clean up chopping board, pot, and one measuring cup.  

1 12-ounce box

whole wheat or whole grain penne pasta

16 ounces

fresh broccoli florets

4

large garlic cloves, peeled and slivered

2 tablespoons

olive oil

4

green onions (green tops included), thinly sliced

15 ounces

part-skim ricotta cheese

1/2 cup

chopped fresh basil

1/2 cup                        Chickpeas

-

Juice and zest of 1 lemon

-

Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

-

Shredded Parmesan cheese and toasted almonds or pine nuts for garnish (optional)

DIRECTIONS

Bring a large pot of salted water  - ideally a 12" covered pan - to a boil.

Add the penne and cook according to package directions.

Add the broccoli florets and sliced garlic when there are 3 to 4 minutes left to the pasta cooking time.

When the pasta is done, remove ½ cup of the pasta water from the pot and then drain the pasta and broccoli.

Return the drained pasta and broccoli to the pot.

Drizzle with the olive oil and toss in the green onions.

Stir in the ricotta cheese, chickpeas, lemon juice and zest and season with the salt and pepper.

Add 1/2 cup of the pasta water and stir until the ricotta is creamy.

Toss in the basil, taste for seasonings and add more salt and pepper, if needed. Garnish each serving with some of the parmesan and toasted almonds or pine nuts, if desired.  Good hot, but also nice cool, as a pasta salad.

MAKES

4-6 servings

Strawberry Fruit Smoothie Soup

Northeast Strawberry Season is really quick, but this year - for the first since I've been paying attention - there are lots of berries. They don't last very long but are sweet and juicy. The main labor is hulling them. Just take a sharp paring knife and dig in to pull out the minimum of fruit - the discard will be conical.  Your Grandma Bunny will be standing on your shoulder to make sure you don't waste any berry!!
Aunt Sally has a super easy elegant strawberry dessert. Take two pints of strawberries and hull. Take about 1/4 of the berries and put them in the blender with sugar (to taste, about a ¼ c. or so) and some mint and/or any seasoning you like, added lightly. Blend. Take a really beautiful glass bowl and put in the second pint of strawberries. If they're large, slice in half. Pour the blended mixture over the whole berries and chill. With a little garnish, it is a beautiful presentation, especially if you have nice dessert size bowls.

Here's a quick strawberry smoothie, which when poured in bowls is a great soup. Since the ingredients can be chilled in advance and you don't cook it, it's good if there isn't a lot of time before you serve it.

2 pints strawberries, hulled. If they're gigunda, cut into smaller sections.
2 cups plain yogurt - you can use low fat, it's still really good!
3/4 cup orange juice
1/2 cup sugar
1/8 teaspoon ground cardamom
mint to garnish

In a blender, combine the strawberries, yogurt, orange juice, sugar, and cardamom. Puree until well mixed. Chill and serve. You can just put the blender right in the refridge to chill.

Grandma Fritzie's Pumpkin Pie

My mom made the best pumpkin pie - it was moist and dense and smooth, mmmmmm.  Once I served it when Sharon Strassfeld was over and she was totally horrified, it seemed so Goyish to her. Parve pumpkin pie is ridiculous.  Forget it. I have made Mom's recipe a few times and it's never as good as hers was - maybe it's the crust, the oven, the pan, or just the memory.  But I pass it along.

One 9" unbaked pie shell (she originally made hers from scratch, but in time switched to pie crust sticks that you rolled out.)  Brides really worked at making good pie crusts - it was a mark of achievement. You could also skip the shell and just make it as a custard.

1 c. flour
1/2 t. salt
1/3 c. shortening like Crisco (this is a really old recipe!)
2 to 3 T water.
Mix and roll out flat into a large circle.  A flexible cutting board would be good for this.  Slip into the pie pan.  Flute the edges.  
Mom would take the left over pieces of pastry and sprinkle them with cinnamon and sugar and bake them.  What a treat!  Kind of like kichel.

Pie Filling:
1 can pumpkin* (what size?)
1 can evaporated milk* (what size?)
    *Libby's online "Famous Pumpkin Recipe" says a 12 oz can of evaporated milk and a 15 oz can of  pumpkin)
½ t. salt
2 eggs
1 T. sugar
⅔ brown sugar
1¼ t. cinnamon
½ t. ginger
½ t. nutmeg
¼ t. cloves

Mix all ingredients.  Pour into shell.  Bake at 450° for 15 minutes and 350° for 40-45 minutes.  The pie will be baked through solid and not jiggly.  Let cool.  Good at room temperature, and also good chilled.