Pho Bo and Gazpacho

It is a well known fact that muscles atrophy without regular exercise. The rate of deterioration of one's ingenuity and inspiration in the kitchen after a lapse of regular practice is a much less featured subject.

It is a slippery slope that anyone can find themselves sliding down. It starts with a successful meal, continues with satisfying leftovers, and, oh wait, it stops there. You are lured out of the kitchen. When you come back you can't remember what you ever did there in the first place. That is, if you are like me. And I'm hopeful that you are.

Rest assured, there has been no cooking going on behind your back. I think I would feel a bit better if there had been. No, it has just been the craziness of life and the stark reality that I do not live on the frontier in the early 19th century. Instead I live really close to the most delicious bowl of Pho Bo -Vietnamese beef noodle soup.

Fortunately, Gazpacho doesn't cast judgment. It doesn't ask you where you have been or turn out poorly because you haven't cooked in a while. Its simple flavors speak for themselves and make your first meal back at home a happy one.

And that is where I pick back up. Oh, and you'll need a food processor.

Barefoot Contessa's Gazpacho

2 cucumbers, halved and seeded, but not peeled
3 red bell peppers, cored and seeded
8 plum tomatoes
2 red onions
6 garlic cloves, minced
46 oz. tomato juice (6 cups)
1/2 cup white wine vinegar
1/2 cup olive oil
1 tablespoon kosher salt
1 1/2 freshly ground black pepper

Roughly chop the cucumbers, bell peppers, tomatoes, and red onions into 1-inch cubes. Put each vegetable separately into a food processor fitted with a steel blade and pulse until it is coarsely chopped. Don't overprocess.

After each vegetable is processed, combine them in a large bowl.



Then, add the garlic, tomato juice, vinegar, olive oil, salt, and pepper. Mix well and chill before serving. The longer gazpacho sits, the more the flavors develop.



Fortunately I had guests to feed, so I made a loaf of french bread to go with it. For dessert: lemon sorbet and gingersnaps!

Anchovies Not Optional

So I'm back from a brief travel hiatus, where I cooked nothing and ate quite a bit.

The object of our first meal back at home was to open the jar of pitted Kalamata olives I picked up a Trader Joe's. The commitment to making this happen was strong enough that I turned to the index in Everday Food's new compilation cookbook, Fresh Flavor Fast, and searched under the letter "O" for olive . Bingo. Spaghetti Puttanesca.

If you are short on time and motivation this is a fast, flavorful dish, as advertised. Read that and then read this: The anchovies are not optional. The recipe says they are, and I guess if you are really really opposed to using them, do what you have to do. But, I don't think the sauce would have been nearly as good without them in it. Plus, the stigma on anchovies has been waning over the past few years anyway.



Spaghetti Puttanesca

Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
1 pound spaghetti
1 tablespoon olive oil (I used a tad more)
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 teaspoon, crushed red pepper flakes
6 anchovy fillets (Ours were packed in olive oil and we simply drained them.)
1 can (28 oz.) of whole peeled tomatoes in juice, or crushed tomatoes
2 tablespoons capers, drained and rinsed
1/2 cup kalamata olives, pitted and chopped

1. Bring a pot of water to a boil; add a generous amount of salt. Cook pasta until al dente according to packaged instructions. Drain pasta; return to pot.

2. Meanwhile, heat oil in a large skillet over medium. Add garlic, red-pepper flakes and anchovies, mashing them with a wooden spoon. Cook stirring until fragrant but not turning brown, about 2 minutes. Break up tomatoes and add them to the pan along with their juice. Stirn in capers and olives. Bring to a boil; reduce heat to a simmer. Cook until tomatoes are softened and sauce is thickened; stirring occasionally, 5-10 minutes.

3. Add sauce to pot, and toss with pasta to combine; season with salt and pepper. Reheat over medium-low if necessary before serving.