pasta w. a crunch. [egg fettuccine w. brown butter, fried sage & toasted hazelnuts]

I came across this recipe on Epicurious and was instantly sold. How can you say no to fried sage? I tweaked the recipe a bit, adding toasted hazelnuts cooked in brown butter. I remembered how well the hazelnuts and sage worked together in the homemade butternut squash ravioli I made (here), and thought they’d offer a nice contrast in textures.

The pasta turned out flavorful and delicious, with just the right amount of bite from the sage leaves. Adding toasted hazelnuts topped off the dish, as they provided an extra dimension of flavor. I gobbled up the leftovers pretty fast.

Hope everyone has a wonderful Memorial Day weekend! I’ll be spending the long weekend at home with family, then in Palm Springs with some good friends. My boss decided to give us a half day at work today, so I’ll get an early start on the weekend–kicking it off tonight at Glee Live with my mom for her birthday. I’m sure I’ll gush all about the show at a later date. :)

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fresh & easy. [lemon cream whole grain penne pasta w. chicken & sautéed asparagus]

Last week, I cooked my first homemade meal in the new apartment. I attempted to work with the ingredients already in the fridge, but had to run to the store to buy a few items. I already had whole grain penne, so I based my meal off of this item.

I wanted to make a somewhat healthy pasta, since I would be working with whole grain noodles. I bought fresh asparagus and planned to steam it; however, we have yet to buy a saucepan that our steamer can fit in. So, I went with plan B and instead sautéed the asparagus in olive oil, lemon and pepper.

Not having the correct sized saucepan was a blessing because the slightly browned asparagus infused with lemon gave the pasta that extra pop of flavor it needed. This recipe makes enough pasta for days and heats up well. I can vouch for that, as I’ve brought it to work for the past two days!

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fettuccine fiend. [zucchini, squash & parmesan fettuccine]

Italian food is one of my many weaknesses. All of the pasta, bread, cheese….carbs—there’s really not much to complain about.

My mom and I made this Ellie Krieger recipe for zucchini ribbon pasta—a healthier alternative to fettuccine alfredo or pasta with marinara sauce. We made a few alterations to the recipe, and the pasta turned out absolutely delicious with an abundance of flavor. I ate this dish for dinner and even packed it for lunch the very next day.

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