We arrived in New York yesterday after a less than stellar experience with Spirit Airlines. The hour wait to check in, the $10 service charge per checked bag, the announcement that only water would be served en route, all seemed like trivial annoyances when the pilot announced over the intercom that he would have to shut down the airport if the less than happy, taller than average man in the rear of the plane continued to refuse to take his seat. One final warning from the diminutive stewardess and miraculously he sat. We took flight but trust me the skies don't seem nearly so friendly when you're aware that there's a disgruntled passenger on board even before the wheels leave the tarmac.
At any rate, on to cooking. I had done my homework in Florida and had placed my order with Fresh Direct. One of the best things about living in New York (note, I said living, not visiting) is the service Fresh Direct offers. I can sit in my living room, peruse their web site which includes nutrition tips and recipes, put together an order, pick a delivery time and be guaranteed fresh, nicely packaged groceries delivered right outside my kitchen door. And so this morning, 5 boxes arrived shortly after 8:AM. In the colder months I rely upon Fresh Direct for practically all of our grocery shopping but in the warmer months I supplement my order with produce from the corner fruit stands and the farmer's market in Union Square.
After a full day of running errands we arrived home around 4:30, planning on a nice home-cooked meal of pork tenderloin. Unfortunately about 4:45 that plan fell through when I walked into a chair in our living room pushing my little toe about half way into my foot. This is one of my favorite pieces of furniture but one into which both of us routinely walk. It has beautifully carved claw feet which we have now decided to paint bright orange. Anyway, after about 3 hours of lying on the couch with a bag of ice encasing my foot two things became dramatically clear ~ lack of appetite is not a symptom of a broken toe and the home-cooked meal I was planning was now definitely out of the question. Since walking anywhere was also out of the question that left only two options: ordering in (something Mike hates to do) or whipping up some pasta (Mike's favorite dish) ~ hence Broken Toe Pasta. Using only dry herbs as I had not yet gotten to the corner stand, this recipe is loosely based on a pasta dish we fell in love with on our recent trip to Italy. Its simple, filling, and with a couple glasses of cabernet guaranteed to make broken toes feel better.
Ingredients:
2 Gerhard chicken sausages with sweet basil or pine nuts (or any other sausage)
1/2 pound angel hair pasta
2 tbs olive oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 pint grape tomatoes
1/4 cup half and half
2 tbs butter
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
1/2 tsp dried oregano
10 turns of the pepper mill
1. Cook pasta according to directions on box.
2. Rinse tomatoes and slice in half.
3. Heat olive oil in frying pan and saute garlic for one minute. Add tomatoes.
4. Slice sausages into large chunks and add to pan.
5. Continue to cook for about 5 minutes until sausage is heated through.
6. Add remaining ingredients, stir, and serve over pasta.
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