ARF/5-A-Day #25

Now I know how to get your attention … just give away some free Pampered Chef stuff! Thanks to all who responded yesterday – The Husband will be tickled pink to know that everyone knows his background so well! ;) I did find one other thing in my starter pack up to put for grabs … first person in the comments section to tell me what my favorite type of pasta is gets a Pampered Chef garlic press. Have at it! Tomorrow, we’ll talk Tupperware.

Now onto our ARF/5-A-Day events. Inspired by Julie’s recent interview with Sara Moulton, I decided to head for my copy of Sara Moulton Cooks at Home to find a quick recipe for tonight (just a quick note – if you’re interested in this cookbook, Amazon has used copies for under $2!). With a carton of very-ripe tomatoes to use up, her recipe for Penne with Slow-Roasted Cherry Tomatoes and Goat Cheese was a perfect choice. Only thing I did differently was to cut the tomato-roasting time down from 2 hours to one. The dish was very simple to make, perfect for a weeknight meal and deeeeelish! Will definitely make this one again, and it was even more perfect since it made use of ingredients I already had on hand.

Without further ado, onto your round-up.

Until tomorrow…

A year ago today… mmmm, one of The Husband’s favorite desserts.

Stacey from Just Braise is back from a recent whirlwind adventure and starts us off with a two-fer, Macerated Strawberries and Blueberry-Jalapeno Mojitos:

The Chocolate Lady from New York keeps it simple with cool, crisp, raw kohlrabi:

Ramya from Cascading Flavours serves up a new twist on rice, gooseberry style:

Manpasand – From My Kitchen to Yours contributes our first ever banana blossom recipe:

I already have plans for Urban Drivel’s Couscouse with Artichoke Hearts, Shrimp and Scallops – does that ever look good!

Kalyn sent in her own original recipe for Sauteed Spinach with Parmesan and Pine Nuts – I’m a sucker for sauteed spinach:

And lastly, Meeta from What’s for Lunch, Honey? sends us off with a delicious Strawberry Jam:

Penne with Slow-Roasted Cherry Tomatoes and Goat Cheese
This dish is best eaten right away. You can make all the parts — except for the pasta — way ahead of time and just throw it together at the last minute. (The slow-roasted tomatoes are also great in other roles — as part of an antipasto in the summertime, as an omelet filling, or as a topping on grilled bread.)
2 pounds red and yellow cherry tomatoes
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 teaspoons kosher salt
6 ounces fresh goat cheese
1 pound penne
1 cup loosely packed fresh basil leaves, torn into pieces
Additional kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Preheat the oven to 250°F and line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper. Halve each tomato and place cut side up in one flat layer on the baking sheets. Drizzle the tomatoes with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil and sprinkle on the salt. Roast until the tomatoes are dried around the edges but still moist, about 2 hours.
Crumble the goat cheese into large chunks and refrigerate until ready to serve the pasta.

Cook the pasta in salted boiling water according to the package directions. Remove 1 cup of the cooking liquid and reserve. Drain the pasta well and return to the pot. Add the tomatoes, goat cheese, basil, reserved cooking liquid, and remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil. Toss well and season with salt and pepper. Serve warm.

Makes 4 to 6 servings.