Pasta variation tips

[dc2123]

Hey guys so I'm kind of just cleaning out my fridge before I go shopping today and was thinking about making some sort of pasta dish and throwing in artichoke hearts zucchini and summer squash.

Could you guys help me think of a light sauce to make.

 

[Andy M.]

A butter and white wine sauce might be good. Toss in some shrimp too.

 

[dc2123]

Probably gonna do chicken my dads allergic to shrimp. But, what's the difference between white wine and cooking wine and why would you want to choose one over the other?

 

[Dawgluver]

Choose a wine you would drink. Cooking wine is nasty, with added salt. It's not fit for anything, especially cooking.

 

[dc2123]

What would be a good way to spice up olive oil if I just wanted to make that the sauce

 

[Andy M.]

Never use cooking wine. Buy an inexpensive white or red wine and use that. If you are not wine drinkers, buy a small bottle of dry vermouth and use that. It will last for a long time.

Cooking wine if awful wine with things added to make it undrinkable (salt, etc). If it's undrinkable, it shouldn't be used in food.

 

[Dawgluver]

Any of these might work: Butter, pepper flakes, capers, a few chopped olives, toasted nuts, onions or shallots, garlic. Oh, forgot about the parmesan.

 

[Hoot]

Cooking wine (as sold in many stores) should be outlawed.
Good rule of thumb is to never cook with a wine you wouldn't want to drink.
As for olive oil, you can use any variety of fresh or dried herbs, minced garlic, chili flakes (cayenne for example,) or any other spices you have on hand to mix with olive oil for use in a sauce.

 

[GotGarlic]

Save a little of the pasta water to use to thicken the sauce, and add some grated Parmesan cheese.

 

[Hank H]

I'd do kind of a pasta primavera. You probably need to saute the summer squash first because the other veggies will cook more quickly. Maybe toss in some diced tomatoes at the end and some herbs. Serve with grated cheese, pepper, and oil.

 

[Zereh]

What would be a good way to spice up olive oil if I just wanted to make that the sauce

Finely mince some garlic and let it soak in olive oil for an hour or so, it's amazingly good stuff. I just make sure there's enough oil to cover the garlic so it's pretty potent but adding more oil obviously mellows the flavor.

Can easily make lemon infused olive oil too. I never make much, but generally use about a scant cup of olive oil and the zest of one lemon. Orange works just as well if you're feeling froggy. I use a micro-plane zester so I don't get any of the pith but can just peel the yellow part off with a sharp knife if you don't have one. Put it in a pan over medium-low heat until it gets thoroughly warmed through. Don't let it bubble, keep the heat lower than a simmer. It takes about 15 minutes from start to finish. Let it cool. It's good in just about everything.

 

[Cooking Goddess]

.... I use a micro-plane zester...

In my kitchen there are two kinds of tools: necessary (paring knife, cutting board) and fun (zester, Butter Bell). My microplane zesters have moved from "fun" to "necessary" based on the amount of times I reach for one. LOVE 'em!