Recipe: Pork Loin Marsala

As I was preparing this dish last night and transcribing the final version of the recipe, I came to a surprising realization: In my house, we go through a lot of alcohol just for cooking purposes.

For instance, this recipe calls for 3 cups of Marsala wine. That is quite a bit of wine (but worth it!), and we tend to keep two big bottles handy. We also keep big bottles of Port wine for a couple of pork recipes we cook frequently. Then of course there's Penne à la vodka which doesn't earn a name like that for nothing! In fact it's the ONLY reason we keep vodka in the house.

This list goes on and on. Bailey's Irish Cream for French toast, Chinese wine for Chinese sauces. Two kinds of sake for teriyaki and tonkatsu sauce. Cognac for steak diane, as well as regular and cherry brandies for a variety of flambés. Portuguese cachaca for Azorean chourico bombeiro and surely more that doesn't readily come to mind. That's just the specialty stuff. I couldn't even calculate how many bottles of white or red wine we go through a year for marinades, deglazing and sauce building!

I wonder what chefs did during prohibition?

This is a great recipe. For the best results you'll want to use fresh pork and pay careful attention to how you build your sauce. The objective is too create a nice silky sauce that clings to the pasta. If it seems watery, simmer on!

Pork Loin Marsala

4 Pork loin cutlets (cut 3/4 to 1" thick)
1/2 cup of flour plus 2 TBS
1/4 cup olive oil
3 TBS sweet butter
8 oz. Portobello mushrooms chopped coarse
3 cups Marsala wine
1 8 oz. can of tomato sauce
2 medium tomatoes diced (the redder, the riper, the better)
1 lb. dried pasta (your favorite)
Salt and pepper to taste.

Start the water for your choice of pasta. While you are preparing the pork cutlets and sauce, time your pasta to be ready just as your sauce is finishing.

Season the pork cutlets with salt and pepper, dredge/dust the cutlets heavily in flour and set aside.

In a large dutch oven set on medium-high to high heat add the olive oil and butter. When the butter melts sauté the mushrooms until they are half-cooked. Remove the mushrooms from the pan with a slotted spoon. Be sure to save the butter, oil and mushrooms behind in the pan. It's okay to add more olive oil if necessary.

Sear all the cutlets at once in the reserved oil and butter mix. Don't worry about browning them, you just want a good sear on both sides of all the cutlets to lock in the juices and keep the pork moist and tender.

Once the cutlets are seared, add two cups of the Marsala wine and tomato sauce to them (don't mix). Bring to a simmer and then lower the heat until the mix is barely bubbling. Cover the pan and braise the cutlets for 20 minutes. FOR OPTIMUM TENDERNESS, BE SURE THE MIX DOESN'T BREAK INTO A SIMMER! You'll have to readjust the heat a few minutes after you cover the pan. Do not lift the lid more than absolutely necessary.

After the 20 minutes is up carefully remove the cutlets and set them aside in a covered bowl to keep them warm.

Add the chopped tomatoes to the Marsala mix and raise the heat to cook down the tomatoes and thicken slightly. Stir frequently. Lower the heat if necessary.

Whisk the 2 TBS of flour into the remaining 1 cup of Marsala wine. Add that mix to the Marsala mix stirring constantly as the sauce thickens.

Once the sauce thickens, reintroduce the mushrooms to the mix. Stir well, letting the mushrooms reheat and cook a little (about 3 minutes).

Taste the sauce and adjust for seasoning.

Reintroduce the pork cutlets. Gently stir in to coat with sauce and warm (about 1 minute).

Plate pasta, top with a pork cutlet and a generous amount of the Marsala mix over the cutlet and pasta.

Recipe: It-Doesn't-Necessarily-Have-To-Be-Sunday, Sunday Gravy

There's no bones about it, I found my cooking passion by making my own Italian food at home. It's not a recent thing either. It started when I was a teenager when I would "dress up" jarred sauces (often with chourcio - NATURALLY!), and it continued right on into my very first "from scratch" dinner recipes and it still goes on today.

I may cook all kinds of authentic world food for my family these days, but there's no world food I feel more comfortable preparing than Italian. It's one of the world cuisines I'm quite comfortable improvising with. Give me anything, as long as you include a few basic Italian ingredients, and I'm going to feel safe cooking something good for you. My cook's confidence is in Italian and to a lesser degree, Thai and Native American cuisine.

Which makes it kind of weird that I didn't have a proper, personal "Sunday Gravy" recipe after all these years. Anyone familiar with Italian cooking or gangster films (real ones not that Hip-Hop nonsense) knows what Sunday Gravy is. For those of you who don't know, allow me to direct you to Italian cookbooks and gangster films to find out. I'm not in a typing mood today.

Anyway, I never found a Sunday Gravy recipe that I really liked all that much. Everyone who is Italian or knows Italians or who cooks Italian is always going to crow about their Sunday Gravy or their friend's Sunday Gravy or their mom's Sunday Gravy or their aunt's or grandmother's Sunday Gravy and how it is the best in the world.

Well, as with most food, they are all right of course. The food you like best is the best in the world - to you! So up until a few days ago, I never had a Sunday Gravy that I could crow to the world about being the best. Then I flipped through the September 2009 issue of Esquire Magazine and I got an inkling.

The picture is what captured my imagination. I saw the photo of all that rich, glistening sauce with all those chunks of meat and well, it got my attention. I sought out the recipe on the following page. There, courtesy of Peter McAndrews (hey! He married an Italian!) I found the recipe and some important words that convinced me to try the recipe. Words like "spare ribs", "bones" and "hours".

That recipe was the basis for my own recipe below. I've made enough significant changes to the original recipe to confidently call this one all mine. (I'm not in the habit of changing recipes just to call them my own. If that were true, you'd see Giada De Laurentiis's Rosemary Roast Pork with Port Wine and Fig sauce in here under a different name! Search recipe out folks because it is FLAWLESS and delicious!).

Anyway, I made changes to suit my taste and preference. The most notable, was starting the whole thing with a onion-hefty mirepoix. Yeah, that's a French word in a classic Italian recipe, but trust me it helps make one hell of a good sauce. I also changed the kinds and amounts of tomatoes, added more garlic and tomato paste, as well as the addition of a pork tenderloin and a little GOOD QUALITY balsamic vinegar. Finally, the fact that your chucking in the World's Best Meatballs doesn't hurt either!

Without further adieu allow me to introduce my NEW, old-family recipe for Sunday Gravy:

It-Doesn't-Necessarily-Have-To-Be-Sunday, Sunday Gravy

1/2 cup olive oil
3 lbs. country-style or southern-style spare ribs
3 lbs. sweet Italian sausage
2 lbs. World's Best Meatballs
1-2 lb. pork tenderloin
3 lbs. large beef bones
4 cups chopped onions
2 cups chopped carrots
2 cups chopped celery
10 cloves garlic chopped
3 6 oz. cans of tomato paste
3 28 oz. cans of whole tomatoes (lightly crush the tomatoes with your hands)
3 28 oz. cans of ground tomatoes
3 large bay leaves
1 TBS turbinado or light brown sugar
1 TBS GOOD QUALITY balsamic vinegar (the syrupy type)
Sea salt to taste

Take a LARGE stock pot. A large one. A BIG stock pot. I mean BIG, like a 14 quart stock pot. Pour in the 1/2 cup of olive oil and coat the bottom and the sides of that stock pot really well. Place the stock pot on medium high heat. When the oil comes up to temperature and is hot and shimmering (not smoking), brown and remove all your meat in this order: spare ribs, Italian sausage, meatballs and tenderloin. Place the browned meat in a covered pan or dish and set aside.

If you need more olive oil at this point feel free to add it. Let it come to temperature and then brown your beef bones on all sides.

When the beef bones are browned, add your onions, carrots and celery and continue to saute until tender and starting to brown slightly. If the oil begins to smoke, lower your heat. You want the onions, carrots and celery to sauté evenly.

Add the chopped garlic and sauté along with the bones, onions, carrots and garlic for about 2-3 minutes. Be sure not to burn the garlic or it will turn bitter!

Add the tomato paste and mix it in well so that it coats the mix and bones. Continue to sauté until the tomato paste darkens. Again, be careful not to burn the mix.

Add the hand crushed whole tomatoes with their juice, the ground tomatoes, the bay leaves, sugar and the balsamic vinegar. Stir all together until it is well blended. Bring it slowly to a lively simmer. Special note: When you are cooking a quantity of sauce like this, it is always wiser to bring it up to temperature SLOWLY to avoid burning the sauce in the bottom of the stock pot.

When the sauce reaches a lively simmer and is an even, slightly thick mix, add your spare ribs and pork tenderloin. Reduce to a medium simmer and allow to continue like this for one hour stirring occasionally.

At the end of the first hour, add the Italian sausage and allow to simmer for another hour. Always be sure the simmer is low to medium to avoid any burning. Stir occasionally.

At the end of the second hour, add the meatballs and continue simmering for another hour. Stir occasionally.

At the end of that hour, you will notice a layer of red oil forming at the top of the sauce. If you're health conscious you can skim off some of this with a ladle. It won't reduce the fat all that much, but it'll give you a false sense of responsibility that will get you past the guilt of eating all this pork and beef fat goodness.

Season with the sea salt to your preference. Stir sauce well.

Remove from heat. Remove all the meat and bones to a separate serving platter and serve the sauce over your favorite pasta perhaps with a sprinkle of your favorite cheese (as long as your favorites are parmesan-reggiano or pecorino romano).

This sauce kicks ass and is the World's Best Sunday Gravy - TO ME, FINALLY!

Recipe: Linguini with Chourico and Red Pepper Sauce

It's no secret that I am a fan of the spicy portuguese sausage known as "chourico". Why I am a fan of chourico is no mystery either, it's because chourico is a ubiquitous ingredient in the cuisine of my hometown of Fall River, Massachusetts (where the word chourico is pronounced something like: "SURE-dEESE"). Fall River has a large Azorean Portuguese community and that means we have great Portuguese food. From what I hear, Portuguese people on the island of Saint Michael now consider Fall River the tenth Azorean island. I like that.

So, like I said, chourico is a ubiquitous ingredient in our local cuisine. It is in sandwiches, pies, paired with seafood, a pizza topping, a breakfast side, it is served as an appetizer, a main, it can be used with or in a variety of things. It has even penetrated the most American of feasts: Thanksgiving, where our local variety of turkey stuffing has a good deal of chourico in it. Hell, one of my friends even eats it dipped in chocolate. I prefer to cook mine in a flaming bath of Portuguese moonshine.

That's why, I can't even consider a collection of personal Italian recipes that doesn't include one that uses chourico. This is probably the oldest of the chourico sauce recipes I have. I've been preparing something like this since around 1980. In those days the recipe was basically a marinara with ground chourico in it. I've refined it now and I also add some sweet and crunchy red pepper that works great against the spicy chourico.

If you don't have chourico where you live, I've included a link below where you can get some of the best. Don't be afraid to try a different kind of spicy sausage with this dish. Italian, Cajun or Brazilian sausage will work fine, and while I haven't tried it with Mexican or Spanish chorizo, I'm sure that would work as well.

Linguini with Chourico and Red Pepper Sauce

2 TBS olive oil
3 large links (about 1.5 lbs.) of chourico cut into 1/4" slices
1 large leek (white part only) chopped (substitute onions if you like)
4 cloves of garlic (chopped)
2 bay leaves
2 28 oz. can of crushed tomatoes
1 8 oz. can tomato sauce
1-2 TBS dried basil
1 healthy pinch of dried oregano
2 cups of chicken stock
Salt and pepper to taste
1 large red pepper (cut into matchstick sized pieces)
Parmesan-Reggiano cheese (grated)

While you are preparing the sauce as outlined below, cook your linguini the normal way.

Place a large pan or dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the olive oil to the pan.

When the oil begins to shimmer, add the leeks, bay leaves and chourico and sauté stirring regularly until the leeks get translucent and the chourcio begins to cook and brown a little.

Add the garlic and continue to cook stirring frequently for 1 to 2 minutes. DO NOT BURN THE GARLIC!

Raise the heat to high and deglaze the pan by adding the two cups of chicken broth to the mix. Stir well and be sure to scrape up and hard bits from the pan.

Allow the chicken stock to reduce. When it does, add the two cans of ground tomatoes, the tomato sauce, the basil and the oregano and bring the sauce to a boil. Lower the heat to a low simmer and cook like this for 20 to 30 minutes.

Taste the sauce and add salt and pepper to taste.

2-3 minutes before you are ready to serve the sauce, add the red pepper and stir in well. DO NOT OVERCOOK THE RED PEPPER. You want it to remain a little crunchy.

Serve the sauce over your linguini with a generous sprinkle of parmesan-reggiano cheese.

Recipe: Linguini with Chourico and Red Pepper Sauce from Chop Onions, Boil Water - World Food at Home by Henry Krauzyk http://www.choponionsboilwater.com

Recipe: Rosemary-Fennel Sauce

I first prepared Rosemary-Fennel Sauce at a time when I was experimenting a lot with mirepoix. This sauce has since become a popular addition to my home cooking efforts because it is a versatile addition or starter for a variety of Italian dishes. I recently posted one of those dishes, you can find it here.

I prepare this sauce in a variety of ways. For instance, I'll create a thicker version for roasting with meats. To do that, I'll half the amount of crushed tomatoes. If it is being paired with something and needs a little more support, I will increase some, or all of the amounts of fennel seed, rosemary or red pepper flakes as necessary. It's not rocket science so don't be afraid to adjust this sauce to your needs.

As it is presented below it is the perfect accompaniment for cheese tortellini or any other pasta you may want to try it with. I'm not going to get all arty and poetic here and go into great detail regarding the texture and flavor contrast and balances, but they are in there. Give this sauce a shot, I think you'll really like it. Get a little daring with it and you'll soon be making your own mirepoix-based sauces. Do that enough and you'll never buy another jar or can of that prepared gloop in the market!

IMPORTANT NOTE: You'll need to boil down your own balsamic vinegar until it forms a thicker syrup, or you can drop a chunk of money on the expensive vintage stuff. If you want to make your own, just buy two bottles of the inexpensive stuff and simmer it down until you have less than one bottle left. The resulting syrup retains the balsamic flavor but is thicker, sweeter and far less "vinegary" than what you started with. Take a taste of that stuff and you'll understand why Italians put balsamic vinegar on strawberries and ice cream. DO NOT USE THE THIN, INEXPENSIVE BALSAMIC VINEGAR IN THIS RECIPE!

Rosemary-Fennel Sauce

2-3 TBS olive oil
1-1/2 cups celery (finely chopped)
1 1/2 cups carrots (finely chopped)
4 cups onion (finely chopped)
2 tsp fennel seeds (crushed)
2 pinches red pepper flakes
1 tsp dried rosemary (coarsely ground)
6 cloves garlic (sliced thin)
1-1/2 cups dry white wine
28 oz. can crushed tomatoes
2 cups (16 ozs.) tomato sauce
4 TBS tom paste
Salt and pepper to taste
2 TBS balsamic vinegar


Place a large sauce pan or dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the olive oil When the olive oil begins to shimmer, add the onions, carrots, celery, fennel, red pepper flakes and rosemary. Sauté until the the carrots and celery soften and the onions begin to brown.

Add the sliced garlic and stir in for 1-2 minutes. Be careful not to burn the garlic.

Add the wine and deglaze the pan. Allow the wine to reduce to form a thick sauce.

Add the crushed tomatoes, tomato sauce, tomato paste, salt, black pepper and the balsamic vinegar. Bring the sauce to a low simmer and continue cooking. You want the sauce a little thick, not too thick, not too loose. Check for seasoning and adjust as necessary.

Serve over cooked tortellini or any other pasta.
Recipe: Rosemary-Fennel Sauce from Chop Onions, Boil Water - World Food at Home by Henry Krauzyk http://www.choponionsboilwater.com

Recipe: Dad's Coney Island Hot Dog Sauce

So this Zen guy goes up to a hot dog vendor and he says, "Hey, make me one with everything!" Come on, laugh! It's funny! I suppose you are one of the unbelievers and you doubt the "Be here now" Zen aspects of the hot dog? Many people can link certain foods they enjoy back to certain moments in their life. None do this as much for me as the hot dog.

I remember a rainy night of fishing in Newport, Rhode Island as a young child with my dad and grandfather. It was fruitless but it was capped with a late night stop at the King Phillip Diner in Fall River, MA. Several dogs with the works, a coffee milk and not one, but two pieces of blueberry pie. I also remember my dad returning from bowling on Friday nights with a dozen for my sisters, my mom and myself to share. These would be the first of my late night hot dogs. Later on however late night hot dogs usually came/come after copious amounts alcohol!

Then there's the one I had outside in the cool air after a night of dancing in a hot night club in Ponta Delgada, Azores. It had all manner of toppings including tiny french fries! Wait, then there are the ones I have had at that shrine to Americana, Fenway Park while watching the Boston Red Sox win the world series! (Remember when that was just a dream? GO SOX!). Sure, I can't remember every hot dog I have had, but why can I remember so many?

I was introduced to the local variety Coney Island hot dog by my dad. It was long enough ago where I can't remember it (peculiar), but I'm sure it was because him and my mom were arguing, because that's how I got to see Planet of the Apes (which by the way, ended up with us getting hot dogs at Nick's Coney Island in Fall River, Massachusetts. I think I also got a fish at a pet store that day, fight on parents, fight on!).

Anyway, my dad is a kickass cook and he makes one helluva good hot dog sauce. Unfortunately, he does it a little differently each time and never writes much of it down, but this is his basic recipe. I always make a surplus and freeze servings in zip lock bags.

Says Pop, "Don't be afraid to use more onions or cumin."

Says I, "Don't be afraid to write it all down old man!"

Dad's Coney Island Hot Dog Sauce

1-1/4 lbs of lean ground beef
2 cups of water
2 shakes of ketchup
2 shakes of Worcestershire sauce
2/3 cup of onion (minced)
2 tsp paprika
2 tsp ground cumin
3/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp celery salt
1/2 tsp allspice
1/2 tsp prepared mustard
3 tsp of chili powder

Place the hamburger in a heavy skillet. Add water and remaining ingredients.

Stir mixture as you bring it to a boil.

Reduce heat to a simmer and maintain simmer for 45 minutes stirring occasionally.

If sauce becomes too dry, add a little water.

The finished consistency should be like thickish chili.

Add a cooked hot dog to a steamed bun, add mustard, coney island sauce, chopped onions and a sprinkle of celery salt.

Dad's Coney Island Hot Dog Sauce by Henry Krauzyk from Chop Onions, Boil Water

Recipe: Churrasco Argentino

I've had beef dishes in a lot of different places, some of those places like Chicago, are famous for their beef. They were all pretty good, but the best piece of beef I've had to date was at an Argentine restaurant called "El Gaucho" in Aruba's capital of Oranjastadt. I was so impressed the first time I went, I have been back several times since. If I had a friend with a private jet, I'd be back more often.

There are two components which make this dish so good. The first is the use of Argentine Beef. For the uninitiated I'll offer the following as a crash course in just what that means: Argentine beef has less cholesterol and fat than American beef, in fact it more closely approximates the fat, cholesterol and calorie profile of venison rather than beef. It's no mystery as to why, the reasons are obvious and simple: Argentine cattle feed on a diet of protein-rich grasses as opposed to the grain feed given to American cattle. This makes Argentine beef lower in fat with more protein than its American counterpart.

Experts also say that the surprising tenderness of Argentine beef comes from the stress-free environment that the cows are reared in. This environment offers fresh and clean air and water and the cattle are allowed a free range to roam. They feed on living plants such as alfalfa and clover year round which helps the beef develop it's distinct, richer flavor. Finally, and I think more importantly Argentine cattle are not fed the antibiotics and steroids that are given to American cattle. While all of this makes for a smaller animal, it makes up for its lack of size by producing a wholesome, all-natural and superior beef.

The second reason this dish is so good is the addition of the traditional Argentine chimichurri sauce. Of course there are many variations of this popular sauce, but I think I have nailed the El Gaucho version with surprising accuracy. Now to the American mind set, a parsley-based sauce on beef may seem odd. Especially when you consider the amount of parsley used. At least I thought it was odd, but it has made a believer of me and an increasing circle of friends who try this recipe. If you love beef, I encourage you to try this dish. It is hands down, my meal of choice when the opportunity arises to cook something extravagant for myself.

OK, now for some twists. While you can find Argentine beef on occasion (and even if you couldn't you can now, because of that wonderful thing called the Internet), I have made this dish more frequently with American beef to excellent effect.

The sauce is a no brainer, make it a day ahead of time so the flavors infuse and half the battle is over. Pay special attention to the beef cooking instructions to really nail this dish. Serve it with a potato side dish and some roasted sweet corn on the cob. Try it once by yourself to get a feel for cooking it and then spring it on your friends at a holiday or dinner party. It is sure to please.

Churrasco Argentino

1 beef tenderloin (dressed and cut into 2" to 2-1/2" slices)*
1 large bunch of flat parsley
2-1/2 cloves of garlic (finely chopped)
3/4 cup of extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup of white vinegar
1 pinch hot Thai pepper flakes
Coarse cracked black pepper
Kosher or sea salt

To prepare the chimichurri sauce:

Remove parsley leaves from stems, discard stems and set leaves aside. You should have enough leaves to equal two cups, moderately packed in a measuring cup.

Place parsley, garlic, pepper flakes and vinegar in a food processor, or use a large mortar and pestle.

While adding olive oil, chop contents in the food processor until parsley pieces are about 1/4" in diameter. Add remaining olive oil.

Set aside in a covered bowl for 2-4 hours before using. Store unused portion in the refrigerator for up to 3 weeks.

To prepare the beef:

Preheat the oven to 350°F

Set a cast iron frying pan on high heat.

Add a little oil. When oil is hot, take each steak and sprinkle on all sides with coarse cracked black pepper and kosher salt. Place each steak in the cast iron frying pan and sear on all sides.

Transfer seared steaks to large cast iron dutch oven and cook in oven to desired doneness (I use a remote meat thermometer).

Serve with chimichurri sauce spread on top of the steak.

*A full tenderloin will yield about 8 steaks. Plan accordingly or eat like a fiend like I do when I do this dish.

Churrasco Argentino by Henry Krauzyk, from Chop Onions, Boil Water

Review: Bufalo Chipotle Hot Sauce

I can always remember where I was in my life when I've tried some important foods. Chimichurri was in Oranjestadt, Aruba. Manapua was in Honolulu, Hawaii. Boeuf Wellington was in Providence, Rhode Island. Oh man, the charbroiled hot dogs they sell on the street in Ponta Delgada, Azores are something else! The list goes on and on, but you get the picture and you can probably relate

The first time I ever had Bufalo Chipotle Hot Sauce was in the Cancun Airport in the Yucatan as I was leaving Mexico after another great vacation in Playa del Carmen. I was walking around looking for a cold beer and I walked into a small hot sauce shop. The guy behind the counter asked me if I wanted to try any and I chose a serrano-based hot sauce and the Bufalo Chipotle Hot Sauce I bought a couple of bottles of the Bufalo Chipotle Hot Sauce on the spot and I've never looked back.

When I ran out of my initial purchase, I quickly found a new supplier and I've used the stuff religiously ever since. I guess you could call it my favorite hot sauce. It is thick, rich and the smokey chipotle flavor just makes anything you put on it a taste sensation. It's not one of those set-your-butt-ablaze hot sauces that all the low-browed chest pounders love to brag they use. It has just the right amount of heat to make it a food experience rather than a dare.

I've tried other chipotle flavored hot sauces just for comparison and they just don't match up. The others are always too watery, too vinegary, or too something that just falls short of the Bufalo brand. I'm sticking with this stuff.

Recipe-wise I use it on and in a number of foods. My favorite thing to put it on are my wife's cheese burgers (recipe forthcoming). Now, those burgers are among my favorite foods anyway, but when she shakes some Bufalo Chipotle Hot Sauce on them... BANG! I am into yum yum outer space!

Bufalo's homepage here.

Nutritional information here.

I rate this stuff 4 out of 4 stars.

Recipe: Rigatoni Pomodoro

There are a lot of reasons to love New England in Autumn. There are the brilliant colors, the warm days and the brisk nights and the smell of the air. Sunlight even takes on a warmer and more yellow character and the sunsets are works of art. It's my favorite season, my best kisses have always been in Autumn, it's a "thing" I guess.

Another reason I love Autumn in New England is the native harvest. Sweet corn, squash, acorns, potatoes and a host of other great things. Then there are the tomatoes. My dad keeps a sizable garden and grows a wide variety of vegetables, come Autumn, I get lots and lots of tomatoes and trust me, I have a use for every single one. Below, you'll find my newest Italian recipe that not only uses tomatoes, but show cases them wonderfully. Use extra-red, very ripe tomatoes and this humble pasta dish will transcend its humble ingredients. I've had it twice in the last few days and my wife and kids aren't complaining one bit!

Rigatoni Pomodoro

1 lb. fresh rigatoni
2-3 Tbs Olive oil
1/2 onion (chopped)
4-5 fresh extra-red, very ripe tomatoes (cut into pieces about 1/4"-1/2" square)
1 clove garlic (chopped)
4 Tbs tomato paste
1/2 tsp dried basil
1/2 tsp black pepper
3/4 tsp sea salt
Parmesan-Reggiano cheese
Chopped basil for garnish

Divide the chopped tomatoes into 4 equal parts.

Set water to boil for pasta.

Set a sauce pan over medium heat, add the olive oil. When it begins to shimmer, add the onions and sauté until translucent.

Add the first part of the tomatoes, basil, black pepper and allow to cook and reduce.

When first portion of tomatoes cook down and are reduced and beginning to thicken, add second part. Stir occasionally. Adjust heat as needed.

When second part of tomatoes cook down and are reduced and beginning to thicken, add third part of tomatoes, tomato paste, garlic and salt. Lower heat and allow to reduce slowly, stirring occasionally.

You are looking for a very thick and rich sauce.

By now pasta water should be boiling cook the rigatoni just short of your desired doneness.

Drain the rigatoni and add it and the last part of the chopped tomatoes to the thickened pomodoro sauce. Toss well until the pasta is well coated. Allow to sit for about 5 minutes and serve sprinkled with freshly grated Parmesan-Reggiano. Garnish with a little chopped basil.

Recipe: Thai Pumpkin Curry

My wife, like many people, used to hate curry. She hated all Indian foods actually. To someone like me and the billions of other curry lovers out there, that is simply hard to believe. The range of curries are too wide with too many regional influences and nuances for anyone to say "I hate curry".

I think the real reason someone may not like curry is because they've had one that they didn't like and judge all the others based on that decision. I think that probably goes with entire cuisines. How can anyone dislike an entire cuisine? How can you reject all Indian, Thai or Japanese food based on small samplings? That's like not liking a hot dog and because of it ignoring all other American dishes! Keep daring yourself to try things.

The dish below was the transitional one for my wife. With it, she went from curry hater, to Thai curry lover. Shortly afterward she became an Indian curry lover as well, and then an Indian and Thai food lover.

It's been inspiring to watch and sure makes dining out and cooking at home a great deal more interesting!

Thai Pumpkin Curry

2 cans of coconut milk
1.5 to 2 lbs. of London Broil or similar beef cubed (or pork or chicken)
3 TBS yellow curry paste
2 TBS fish sauce
1 TBS palm sugar (or similar sugar)
4 TBS tamarind juice
6 green cardamom pods
1 stick of cinnamon
3 cups of sugar pumpkin (cubed)
1.5 cups of potato (cubed)
3/4 cup carrots (cubed)
1 onion (frenched)
1/2 cup of roasted peanuts
Juice of half a lime
Chopped cilantro and Thai basil

Place a large pan over high heat. Pour in all the coconut milk and bring to a boil. Add the meat and lower to a simmer. For beef, simmer for 30-40 minutes. For chicken or pork simmer for 10 to 15 minutes.

Add the curry paste and stir until it dissolves into the coconut milk and meat mixture. Simmer for 5 minutes.

Stir in the fish sauce, sugar, tamarind juice, cardamom pods, cinnamon stick, pumpkin, potatoes, carrots and onions. Continue simmering for 15 to 20 minutes or until the vegetables are tender.

Add the roasted peanuts to the curry and mix well. Continue to simmer for 5 minutes.

Add the lime juice and chopped cilantro/basil. Reserve some as a garnish.

Serve hot in bowls accompanied with sticky or jasmine rice.