last splash
pasta failure, pasta success, and carrot cake opinions
Hello again and happy autumnal equinox! It’s this Saturday, but I think a lot of us have already begun switching from summer mode to fall mode. I’ve had to close some of the windows in the house in the evenings, and I’m already doing that thing where I look outside at the darkness and go, “it’s only 8pm?!” I haven’t made my first soup of the season yet, but the rainy weather earlier in the week had me thinking about it, and I know it’s coming soon.
The garden is almost done, for the season and forever, since this will have been our last summer in this house. I’m trying not to be too heartbroken about it. I’ll be pulling potatoes and carrots probably this weekend or next, and I’m hoping the brussels sprouts and remaining squash might hold until thanksgiving. Personally, I’m thankful that this year that I don’t have a dozen spaghetti squash— easily the worst squash— to try to figure out how to use.
On Friday, Liang messaged me to see what I was up to, and Jeff and I were making pizza as we usually do, so she joined us. We also had an open bottle of red wine to share. The pizzas were the same as last week: olives, salami, and tomatoes on one, and kale, chorizo, and artichoke hearts on the other. It’s been awhile since we had anyone over to share pizza with, and it’s nice to do! They sit on the other side of the counter and drink and talk to us while Jeff & I make the food in the kitchen, and then we all eat and try to decide which of the two pizzas we like better. It seemed the salami was marginally more popular this time.
In every attempt to make cacio e pepe at home, I have failed. It’s so few ingredients, and yet I cannot seem to make it work. Instead of a creamy sauce, I end up with something watery and separated with intermittent gummy blobs of congealed pecorino, little talismans of my disappointment. Everything seems fine up until I add the noodles to the cheese mixture, but I’m not sure what’s going wrong specifically in that step. And I knew I would be hurting myself by attempting a method that describes itself as ‘foolproof’, when I would, inevitably, prove myself able to still mess it up… but the human spirit is persistent. We’d grilled the last zucchini to toss into this, and while the sauce did not turn out any different than other times I’d tried to make it, it still tasted good, at least. Alicia recommended Mark Bittman’s method to me, which I’ll try it next time.
I did make one successful pasta this week, cappelletti in a quick brown butter & garlic sauce with sumac, tomato paste, herbs, lemon, and yogurt. It’s a Mediterranean-inspired recipe from the book Milk Street: Tuesday Nights and I love how quickly I can throw it together for how delicious it is. I won’t say it’s all because of the butter, but it’s not not because of the butter. I also like to add cherry tomatoes to this for texture and colour (we still have a few left from the garden), but it’s a great pantry recipe as it is. The herbs— mint, parsley, and oregano— add freshness and depth to the rich, tart sauce, and the recipe says not to use tomato paste from a tube for this, but I’ve never had a problem doing so if I just reduce the amount slightly. This is definitely one where I find myself picking leftovers out of the bowl with my fingers while cleaning up, because it’s just so satisfying.
Jeff got a good deal on sweet peppers at the produce store, and made a batch of roasted pepper relish. This isn’t a canning recipe— it’s easy (especially if you’re using jarred peppers that are already roasted for you) and it’ll last awhile in the fridge thanks to the vinegar and sugar. I used to make this pretty regularly, and now Jeff mostly does it because he’s the one who likes it so much. But it is very good on burgers and egg sandwiches, and it always impresses people at a barbecue to say “oh, yes, this is our homemade relish”.
Steph came over on Sunday, and I made a big batch of baba ghanouj; I’d already grilled eggplants for it the previous day when we grilled the zucchini and peppers. Steph loves eggplant so I knew she’d be into it. The recipe linked above says it’s “similar” to baba ghanouj, but as far as I can tell the only real difference is in the additional toppings (I love the mint), and the fact that baba ghanouj sometimes uses yogurt to make it creamier. I usually just blend in a couple of tablespoons of olive oil. I’d intended to make this part of a larger mezze, with olives and cheese and salad, but instead we just ate a ridiculous amount of taftoon with the dip while watching Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country, and that was just as good.
I made a half recipe of this vegan carrot cake, because I had some carrots I needed to use up and I’ve just been craving carrot cake for a few weeks and finally got around to making it. The cake turned out great as a single layer in a 7” pan, though I found it needed a few more minutes than the baking time specified in the recipe. In the batter I used half raisins and half pecans, because I didn’t have a lot of walnuts, and because raisins are nice. I have never understood why raisins in baked goods are so much like pineapple on pizza, in that the people who like it simply eat it and enjoy it while minding their business, and the people who don’t like it will often act as if crimes are being committed by those who do. So please remember this is a raisin-positive newsletter, and if you hate raisins in baked goods, you are welcome to do so by just quietly choosing not to eat them.
With icing, unless I’m making Swiss buttercream or something else that needs whipped egg whites or aquafaba, I generally make it in the food processor so that I don’t have to sift the lumps out of the icing sugar. Just pulse it a few times before adding the other ingredients, and it usually all comes together pretty easily. If it’s too thick, add more liquid; too thin, add a little more icing sugar (or cornstarch if you’re worried about making it too sweet). A half batch of the one in the recipe worked really well in the mini food processor; spreadable and thick. Some vegan icings get a little melty at room temperature since certain margarines aren’t as stable outside of the fridge, but this one is holding up nicely!
I made dal makhani in the instant pot, something I’ve done a few times before and really liked. This recipe is quite good, though I use a lot more ghee and a little more turmeric, and add two whole dried kashmiri chilies instead of using the chili powder. Usually I’ll use chopped fresh tomatoes or tomato purée here, but I didn’t have enough, so I chopped up one tomato for a little texture and used a couple tablespoons of tomato paste instead. It came out so rich and lovely, and maybe that’s not only down to the tomato paste, but I will probably still use some next time I make it. Since we don’t often have cream in the house, I used some of the coconut yogurt Jeff makes, and that balanced everything perfectly.
Media:
I finally finished the last of the three To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before movies, which are really cute if you like teen movies or romcoms, as well as being a feast for the eyes. Throughout the series, the central character Lara Jean is shown baking for various reasons: to share with someone she cares about, to comfort someone who is upset, to comfort herself in times of emotional turmoil. I enjoyed this 2020 interview with Jenny Han, the author of the novel, where she discusses how a lot of her own feelings about food show up in the book. How food relates to being a child or grandchild of immigrants, how it exists as a form of care and love— it’s definitely a love language for me— and how sometimes that love is in caring for yourself. In giving yourself a task to focus on when you need space to think, knowing you’re creating something at the same time.
Thanks for reading— if you enjoyed this newsletter, please share it with someone new! I like providing this to you for free, but it does still involve time and effort, so donations I can use towards cookbooks or future treats (or moving costs 😓) are much appreciated. And hey— babe, are you ok?
Try the Kenji Lopez-Alt Cacio e Pepe method: https://www.seriouseats.com/spaghetti-cacio-e-pepe-recipe
It's worked for me many many times. Downside is you dirty two pans. There is butter in it, which i guess isn't "authentic", but makes the sauce come together much more easily. That article also includes tips on fixing broken sauces - I've learned a lot about sauces from following that recipe.