Even before I've learned how to do things properly, and certainly before I've learned to follow a recipe, I've been experimenting with cooking techniques and flavors. Fada approves, so what I'm doing can't be too bad.
Actually, I DID follow a recipe two weeks ago, for my family's homemade hot mustard; but it didn't turn out perfect, so that will have to be another post down the line when I've figured it out and tweaked it a bit.
Anyway, mostly, I've been playing with recipes I knew once and forgot, or with recipes I know and don't have the resources or time to produce properly (i.e. my recent attempt at no-ricotta, two-cheese spaghetti-sauce and spinach lasagna because there was no ricotta in Egypt, but I did have a freezer full of spinach I bought the day before the revolution began 'just in case'). Tonight, I had a whole chicken, some tomatoes, some basil, some mushrooms and one potato - it's all in the oven with some olive oil now, though god knows how it's going to taste!
One recipe I did try to follow years ago was a vegetarian linguine with asparagus and butter sauce - topped with toasted goat cheese.
I could not get the goat cheese to toast, even after following the advice of a professional chef. Also, I am not vegetarian, so I tried it with chicken.
The chicken destroyed the butter sauce, and goat cheese was not available in Egypt for a long time, so I abandoned the recipe.
Recently, I've been able to get goat cheese again. Asparagus and the cheese lingered on the shelves in Egypt (at the same time) just long enough for me to start playing with the recipe again.
After two months of making the dish once a week - I think I got it perfect (well, perfect enough for me anyway) and it is now (drum roll please...)
Spicy Shrimp and Asparagus Pasta in Goat Cheese sauce.
and it is sooooooo good!
Here's what I do:
1) place a few tablespoons olive oil in a non-non-stick skillet, add spring onions, diced onion, and chopped garlic (about 2 - 3 tablespoons of the oniony bits) and fry up. Add asparagus sliced into chunks and saute.
2) In a separate pan with some oil, cook shrimp with rosemary and crushed red pepper (as hot as you like)
3) In a pot, cook pasta. I like pasta shells, they hold the goat cheese well.
4) Add 2 tablespoons of butter to asparagus and onion mix to make a sauce.
5) drain pasta and put back in pot. Pour over butter + asparagus mixture. Throw in Shrimp.
AND NOW - Crumble about 3 - 4 tablespoons goat cheese in as you stir so it clings to every shrimp, shell, and bit of asparagus.
DONE! Voila! A delicious, easy, artery-clogging meal!
I hope you enjoy my butter-goat cheese experiment :)
xo heba
