Like I said when I started this blog, we will pass along to you, only recipes that we think are above and beyond others. We cook many more recipes than this blog would suggest, but only the strong survive!
So, with that in mind, here is a recipe courtesy of Giada De Laurentis and prepared by Sandy.
What a wonderful job Sandy did!
And how proud we are of our fruitful herb garden!
Enjoy!

12 ounces penne pasta
1 (8.5 ounce) jar sun-dried tomatoes packed in olive oil
2 garlic cloves
salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 cup (packed) fresh basil leaves
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan

Cook the pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 8 minutes. Drain, reserving 1 cup of the cooking liquid.
Meanwhile, blend the sun-dried tomatoes and their oil, garlic, salt and pepper, to taste, and basil in a food processor and blend until the tomatoes are finely chopped. Transfer the tomato mixture to a large bowl. Stir in the Parmesan.
Add the pasta to the pesto and toss to coat, adding enough reserved cooking liquid to moisten. Season the pasta, to taste, with salt and pepper and serve.

Serve this dish as a hearty, satisfying main course. Serves 4

1 15 ounce can cannellini beans with their liquid
3/4 pound chorizo, halved lengthwise and sliced crosswise 1/4 inch thick
3 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
1 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar
1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved
1/4 medium red onion, thinly sliced
1 cup coarsely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
salt and ground black pepper to taste

1. In a small saucepan, heat the beans in their liquid. In a large skillet, cook the chorizo over high heat until it is lightly browned, cooked through and most of the fat is rendered.
2. In a medium serving bowl, whisk the oil and vinegar. Stir in the tomatoes, onion and parsley. Drain the beans and chorizo and add them to the prepared bowl. Season with salt and pepper and toss. Serve warm.

I know there are many claims towards a barbecue sauce being the best you’ll ever taste…..but you have to believe me when I say this is the best barbecue sauce you’re ever going to taste! This amount of sauce is good for one side of baby back ribs. We sometimes double the recipe and put half of it in the fridge for later use. This sauce works well on ribs, chicken or steak. Enjoy!

Law School Sauce

1 cup vinegar
4 cloves of garlic
1 Tbsp. olive oil
2 1/2 Tbsp. Worcestershire
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup catsup
1 Tsp. dry mustard
1 Tbsp. salt
dash paprika
dash Tabasco sauce

1. Put vinegar into saucepan and add all other ingredients. Bring to a slow boil, reduce heat and simmer for 45 minutes. Cool.
2. Cut sides of ribs into 4-5 rib sections and wrap, meaty side down, in foil that has been sprayed with Pam. Crimp top and sides of foil to seal so that juices don’t run out.
3. Put ribs on grill with setting on medium to low, close the grill lid, and let cook for about 20 minutes.
4. Remove foil packets to a large bowl and open carefully. Place ribs, with rib side down, on grill with low heat. Baste with law school sauce, dabbing it on the ribs. Sauce will appear thin, but thicken as it cooks onto the ribs.
5. Slice rib sections into single ribs; drizzle any remaining sauce over cut ribs and serve.

Serve with: Ice cold beer!

We went to an extraordinary vegan dinner last night so I sliced up potatoes on the mandolin, boiled them for a few minutes and threw them in the wok with some extra virgin olive oil. I then topped them with Onions For Saor from The Harry’s Bar Cookbook. These onions can be served on other vegetables or fish. I could have fried the potatoes a little longer, making them crispier and more golden, but all in all it’s a lovely combination.
They were great with my eggs over easy this morning!

Onions For Saor

1/4 cup olive oil (60ml)
2 medium onions, thinly sliced
3 bay leaves
3 Tbsp. red wine vinegar

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onions and the bay leaves and saute’, stirring frequently, until the onions are soft and have just begun to turn golden, 15-20 minutes. Add the vinegar, stir to combine well, and remove the pan from the heat.

On the post below you’ll see this same photograph. And in the post I told you about the wonderfully refreshing fruit salsa given to me by our friend Debra. This salsa was matched perfectly to our spicy carnitas, but you can also eat it by itself.
I saw Debra yesterday and she gave me her recipe for the salsa and I just thought it would be a good idea to pass it along to all of you out there who saw the post and wondered how to make this colorful summertime dish. Enjoy!

1 ripe mango, peeled and diced
12 ripe strawberries, diced
1/2 Vidalia onion, chopped
1/4 cup chopped, fresh basil
juice from 1/2 lemon
kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Combine all in a small bowl and refrigerate.

This carnitas recipe comes from our friend Kitty. She cooked it up for a group of us one night, and the flavor blew us away.
We served our dish with a homemade fruit salsa, given to me today by our friend Debra. Great job Debra…now we can rave about your fruit salsa in addition to your incredibly moving and timeless photographs!
In the fruit salsa are strawberries, mango, mint and onions. The onions taste as if they were marinated in something and we aren’t sure what it is, but whatever it is….it works! The fruit salsa couldn’t have come at a better time. It was perfect with the carnitas.
Enjoy!

Carnitas

3 Lbs. pork shoulder (Boston Butt)
juice of one orange
1/2 cup milk
1 bay leaf
3 cloves garlic
1 onion
2 cups chicken stock
generous lard, bacon fat, or oil (we used olive oil, not much)
oregano, to taste
thyme, to taste
Chicago seasoning or something smoky (we used smoky paprika)
Frank’s Red Hot Sauce, to taste (use more than you think you would)

Cut pork into 2 x 2 squares and brown in fat. Add onion and garlic and brown slightly. Add stock, orange juice, milk, bay leaf, oregano, thyme, salt and pepper, and water to barely almost cover. Cover and cook at 350 F. for 3.5 – 5 hours (check after 2.5).
Remove when liquid level is low and meat is falling apart. Shred meat and toss with generous helping of Frank’s Red Hot sauce. Serve with soft tortillas, salsa (fresh tomato, onion, lime and cilantro), sliced avocado and sour cream.