Stir Fried Noodles and Veggies

I pretty much default to making garlic ginger noodles whenever I make "Chinese" food for dinner, but since Natty doesn't really eat them, I thought I'd try a different sauce. I combined a few recipes I found and came up with this one. Natty still didn't eat them... Maybe he just doesn't like rice noodles? 


I'm pretty lost with any style of Asian cooking. What are your favorite sauces/dishes that I should try?


Stir Fried Noodles and Veggies
2 tblsp peanut oil

1 small head broccoli, cut into bite size chunks

1 bunch thin asparagus, cut into bite size chunks

1/4 cup soy sauce

2 tblsp fish sauce

1 tblsp sugar

3 cloves garlic, minced

pinch crushed red pepper

2 tblsp rice wine vinegar
1/3 package thick rice noodles, soaked
1 handful cilantro, roughly chopped
Heat peanut oil in wok over high heat. Add veggies and cook for about 2 minutes. Mix all ingredients except noodles and cilantro in a small bowl. Add sauce to veggies and stir to coat. Add noodles and toss again to coat. Add cilantro and serve.

Fresh Pasta with Bacon Tomato Sauce

This weekend's adventure was fresh pasta! Here's what I learned:
1) Don't make fresh pasta the same day you are making two different kinds of dinner rolls and cinnamon rolls, trying to clean the house for brunch the next day, and trying to pay attention to an infant and a toddler.
2) The pasta machine is a total PIA - unless you get the dough rolled out to the correct width. If the pasta isn't cutting correctly, it's probably not the right width. I'll be trying to cut by hand next time to see if I prefer that method.
3) Pasta dough comes together wicked fast. While cutting the first batch of pasta, I realized I didn't have enough for dinner for five people. I put together a second batch in just a few minutes. 
4) Cleaning your kitchen floor before making pasta is really pointless.


Fresh Pasta
2 cups AP flour
1 tsp salt
3 eggs
hot water if necessary (which it was at first, but I think I might have left out an egg)
Put the flour in a bowl. Make a well in the middle (make it bigger than you think because three eggs are going in there - I blew that the first time) and add the salt. Then crack an egg in the well and beat it in. Do that with the next two eggs too. When it comes together, remove it from the bowl and knead it for a minute. You can roll it out and cut it now or you can store it in the fridge for a while.


Bacon Tomato Sauce
6 slices bacon, chopped
1/4 red onion, sliced thinly
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 28 oz can crushed tomatoes (I actually used diced because I could only get preseasoned tomatoes)
1 1/2 tblsp fresh basil
1 1/2 tblsp fresh oregano
pinch crushed red pepper
salt and pepper
1 cup peas
Cook the chopped bacon and onion over medium high heat until lightly browned, but not crispy. Add remaining ingredients and simmer for 15 minutes. Add peas and cook for a few minutes, just until the peas are warmed through.

Gnocchi

Another score for Mark Bittman! This gnocchi was much lighter than I've ever had in restaurants and, for that, I was very thankful since I could score some seconds and not feel horrible afterwards. Since I used Bitman's recipe, I'm not posting here. I made a simple garlic and olive oil sauce to go with it.


Garlic and Oil Sauce
1 cup olive oil
3 tblsp garlic, minced
1 tblsp fresh oregano, chopped
1 tblsp fresh basil, chopped
1 cup chopped tomato
salt
red pepper
Saute all ingredients together until the garlic is lightly browned.

Pitas

I decided to try something different and make pitas instead of a loaf of bread. Since I just used Bittman's recipe from How to Cook Everything, I'm not posting the recipe, but I wanted to share the picture since they turned out nicely. Pitas are crazy easy to make, so you should give it a go if you like pocket sandwiches!

Tomato Frittata or Something

So, I thought I'd make something different for my friend's baby shower. I settled on Julia Child's Tomato Quiche because I had a bunch of frozen tomatoes ready to go and I was all about not going to the store. Then life got in the way and I didn't have time to make the crust. So, I had to change up a few things and made a frittata or maybe a gratin or something.... Whatever it's called, it ended up being a gorgeous red color and it had a wonderful, rich taste.


Tomato Frittata
1/4 cup minced onions
olive oil
2 lbs. fresh or frozen chopped tomatoes
1 clove minced garlic
2 tblsp basil
salt and pepper
5 eggs
1 tblsp anchovy paste
3 tblsp tomato paste
1 tsp paprika
1/4 tsp cayenne
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella and parmesan cheeses
Sweat onions in 2 tblsp olive oil. Add tomatoes, garlic, basil, and salt and pepper. Cover and cook on low heat for five minutes. Remove lid and cook on high until all liquid is evaporated. Remove from heat and let cool slightly. Beat eggs, anchovy paste, tomato paste, paprika, cayenne and salt and pepper together. Mix cooled tomato mixture into eggs. Transfer to a 9" pie plate and top with shredded cheeses. Cook at 375 until eggs are set and cheeses are lightly browned.