Carmela, so glad they enjoyed it. I have definitely switched around pasta, made it with ziti, whatever is close at hand and close to penne! It's my go-to recipe when I'm entertaining and the guests expect something Italian.

I don't know if you saw it, but I posted the link to the risotto recipe you requested. It's one page back.

We had friends drop in unexpectedly with some wine and cheese. We usually don't cook on Fridays (actually, pretty much never lol), so we ordered a few pizzas, but they wouldn't stay. We have an entire pie left over if anyone wants some!

Yes, Babe...I saw you posted the risotto recipe again for me. Thanks so much! That is something my husband will love!! I'm going to make that very soon.

Five Felonies, thanks for all your help, too. The only issue i have is my husband is one of those well done meat kinda guys. He won't touch meat unless it's very well done. I can't tell you the fights we've had in restaurants b/c he tells them the way he wants it, but very few chefs agree to do it. He's actually grabbed my arm and pulled me out of restaurants so frustrated over this. So whatever meat I make in peppercorn, has to be very well done..no blood whatsoever.

Thanks again, guys.

leave some on the back porch for any stray cats, or dicknose!

Carmela, even though I'm the opposite (I like my meat rare), I share his frustration. Too often I've had dinners ruined when the meat is overcooked and I've had to send it back and fight with the waiter and manager.

good thing you told me that! what a shame! if he needs his meat cooked well done then i would switch the fillet mignon with a bone in ribeye as that has alot more fat than a fillet and should hold up better being cooked to hell follow the recipe the same, you will just need to cook the steak longer. also, after the steak is cooked through in the sauce, i would remove it from the bone(doesn't have to be a bone-in ribeye, but it will lead to a better final product) and slice it before topping with the sauce and plating. this way, you can be sure its cooked enough for his liking! one tip though is you have to let the steak rest once it is done cooking. in other words, don't slice right into it as soon as it's done cooking, wait at least 5 minutes. this will lead to a more juicy steak, even more important when cooking it well-done. all joking aside, this recipe will still turn out great, the sauce will really pick it up!

Absolutely. As a matter of fact, that goes for things like chicken and (my weakness) a nice holiday turkey. A good rule of thumb is to always let it rest for a bit. The juices will set slightly and remain in the meat (or bird).

Signor V.

PB, Yer killin' me.

Decided to get a little ambitious tonight and make something I haven't had in quite awhile: a nice, traditional beef stew. Did all the shopping earlier today, then spent about an hour carefully preparing all the ingredients. Cooked it for a few hours, and now I'm set for the next couple of days.

The Good: Absolutely delicious. I followed a recipe I first worked out back in 2005.

The Bad: I was so eager to dig in, I scalded my tongue and the roof of my mouth. Whoever first said, "Eat it while it's hot" should be skinned alive.

The Ugly: My waistline. I refuse to go anywhere near the bathroom scale.

Signor V.

Enjoy that stew for the next few days, SV. I find that beef stew is always better the second day.

You reminded me that this past Friday our local Knights of Columbus club had a Half-way to St. Patrick's Day celebration, and for a ten dollar donation you got a shamrock wristband that entitled you to all the homemade Guinness beef stew and corned beef and cabbage you could eat while being entertained by an Irish band, and draining cold bottles of Guinness with the Bobby Sands Division of the Ancient Order of Hibernians.

I managed to stagger to my car just before 8 to watch Notre Dame at home.

last night we had our daughter at the local university for a visit so we were late home, which meant Chinese takeaway. Chicken in spicy Peking sauce with boiled rice, Chicken fried rice smothered in hot curry sauce and loads of chips

A poor choice of words in a thread about what you had for dinner. You and Mrs. Yogi must have been REALLY hungry.

We pulled a load of cherry tomatoes from the yard yesterday. I mean, like hundreds.

My wife tossed them with olive oil, layed them out on a sheet pan and roasted them for about a half hour until the skins just started to burst.

Then she made a pasta dish with them (she used mezzi rigatoni). It was a simple aglio e olio (olive oil and sliced garlic), tossed with the roasted tomatoes and a handful of torn basil (also from the garden), then finished with a handful of parmigiano and another drizzle of olive oil.

The best!

last night i made braised pork chops. i got some nice thick t-one chops and seasoned heavily with salt and pepper, then seared them. i then added them to a glass baking dish and added some sliced garlic to the pan that i seared them in. i cooked that until golden and then deglazed with a touch of white wine and topped the chops with it. i opened up a fresh jar of cherry peppers and added around 1/4 cup of the liquid to the chops as well.

i wrapped it up in foil and cooked it at 250 for about 3 1/2 hours. i removed them from the oven, and turned it up to 375. i chopped a few of the cherry peppers up and topped the chops with them and then threw them back in the oven uncovered for around 20 minutes. they had a little bite from the peppers and the vinegar in the juice and were so tender that i only used a fork!

Awful English indeed SC....i would not eat Jennifer anyways, she is way too sour....

We've all got nasty colds, so we had a simple dinner of chicken broth, a bit of minced onion, a dash of tomato sauce, spinach and red beans. Oh, it was so delicious! Some nice fresh rolls from the bakery were perfect to dip in the broth, too!

All of that, all separated on a plate? Hmmm... doesn't sound that delish

It's like a soup, wise ass!

I couldn't decide what to make for dinner last night. Rummaging through the freezer, I found some veal cutlets. I knew it wasn't enough for the whole family, so I had frozen them to add to more next time I went shopping. That was a month or two ago, and I had forgotten all about them. It was just me and my husband last night, so I defrosted them. I dipped them in an egg wash, then in mixture of flour, corn starch and a lemon pepper spice. I sauteed them in olive oil, butter, lemon and white wine. They were lovely. I made some mixed vegetables and a Knorr pasta mix that was spinach and plain noodles in a light cheese sauce.

Angel Hair Pasta with pork neckbones for me tonight if I feel like having a late dinner. If I don't , I'll just pick up something to go from a local place.

With the cooler weather, we decided on roast beef, mashed potatoes, green beans and brown gravy. Yum.

SB, you are positively inspiring me.

Will try to make same within the week!

Signor V.

umm sounds so tasty!

None for the back door, sorry. The daughter's boyfriend ate all the leftovers.

Sometimes I do feel like a stray cat; speaking of leftovers

Just got home from a late shift, wife is out for dinner with her pals, so my daughter made me some lovely spicy pasta with warm olive bread!!

Very tasty

Sorry, but... what's so effing funny about that comment? Please clarify that for me.....

"I'm a stray cat"

HOLY CRAP!! I found a new favorite place! It was my nephew's birthday, so 4 of us went to one of his favorite places: 10th Avenue Burrito in Belmar, NJ (about 25 mins north of me; it's since moved to 8th Ave) that was featured on Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives (see video below). OMG, it was awesome!

There was a special of .50 wings, so we got 3 dozen (!) Adobo Wings (as shown being made in the video). Then I got the Shredded Pork Mole burrito (entree is shown in video) and it was HUGE! For $8! (plus $2 for the ridiculous Chipotle Cream Sauce).



I will be back every-other week I think!

Made comfort food tonight. Pot roast, egg noodles and carrots. A friend dropped off some apples after she went apple picking, so I made a pie with a caramel red wine reduction. It was so good, I had two slices.

spaghetti with garlic, oil and brocolli. heavy on the garlic, also added a little of the pasta water to help stretch the sauce. (thanks Lidia Bastianich) topped with freshly grated cheese, and added a new twist this time, toasted bread crumbs. amazing, as the bread crumbs add a nice texture on top and when you dig into the pasta they also help absorb all of that good oil! served with some homemade grilled texas toast. for the toast i simply season some nice thick bread with salt, pepper and olive oil. grill and when the bread is nice and crusty, rub with a clove of fresh garlic. the crusty bread acts almost like sandpaper and grinds the garlic down into the bread, really makes ll the difference in the world!