A Favorite Pasta Recipe!

I'm always on the lookout for fast, tasty and healthful meals. This one-dish pasta is a favorite. It comes from Williams-Sonoma Kitchen Library "Pasta Sauces", 1994. I love the combination of salty, sweet and spicey flavors combined with one of the "wonder foods" -- leafy greens. Swiss chard is a great vegetable! It has lots of nutrients, is imprecise in its cooking time and holds fairly well in the refrigerator. I hope you enjoy it!

Pasta with Chard & Raisins
Serves 2

1/2 lb. Swiss chard, leaves and stems chopped coarsely
4 oz. dry Farfalle (bow tie) pasta
1/4 c. raisins
1/2 c. parmesan cheese, shredded
4 oz. chicken/turkey sausage or 2 links of chicken/turkey pre-cooked sausage
1 T. olive oil
salt & pepper to taste

Bring a large pot of water to boil. Add chard, pasta and raisins. Cook 9 minutes or to al dente.

Meanwhile, crumble or slice sausage into small pieces. Saute over medium high heat until cooked through and brown.

When pasta is cooked, drain. Let dry for a minute then place in a large serving bowl. Add olive oil, salt and pepper. Toss. Add cooked sausage and parmesan cheese and toss again. Sprinkle a little more parmesan cheese over the top and serve.

You can substitute other meat or even toasted chopped walnuts for the sausage. Left over chicken works. You may want to add additional seasoning when tossing all together such as pressed garlic or hot pepper flakes. You can substitute spinach for the chard, but don't add the spinach until the final two minutes of cooking.

I'm "Blogging"!

I've had in the back of my mind the formation of a book about cooking, eating and dining, food, nutrition, kitchen and food safety, the culture of food, etc. Every day we devote time to nourishing the body. That time deserves a higher daily priority than what most of US society gives it. My idea is to demonstrate that preparing nutritious and attractive meals is easy and quick.

I learned to cook by watching my mother and grandmother. They both grew up on farms, grew much of what they ate, wasted nothing, were efficient in the kitchen and put some very tasty food on the table! My college degree is in home economics. All my life I have recognized the link between nutrition and health. In mid-life, I was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. My knowledge of nutrition and healthy eating has been of immense help to me in managing my diabetes.

I love to eat! But there is much more to my love affair with food than just eating. And as a co-worker of my husband observed upon seeing his home-made lunch "You don't eat. You dine!" I love the rituals based around food, the social connections made through dining, the satisfaction of preparing and sharing tasty food for family and friends and celebrating with each bite the miracle of growth from a tiny seed into an edible fruit or vegetable.

I was sharing my book idea with a friend and she said "Why not blog?" And, why not, indeed! So I'm going to take a stab at it. I hope you enjoy my postings and learn something. And I want your feedback! I'd like to know your reactions to what I've written, what worked for you and what didn't, recipies you liked or had dfficulty with, topics you would like to read about, and anything on your mind as it relates to food and eating. So, I've joined the 21st century and I'm blogging!