Succulent Squash Pasta Toss

I must once again thank my friend Leni for the influx of magazines. Recently BAMBI came home with 4 or 5 different magazines, and then proceeded to methodically start looking through them for recipes she wanted me to make for her. I am not sure how many she has earmarked for me, but I am sure that it will take me quite a few weeks to get through everything. I don't think I can manage a new recipe every day, and I also still need to produce meals that my kids will eat. Today's dinner recipe came from the July issue of "Cooking Light" magazine.

This Basil Squash and Tomato pasta toss was bright, full of flavor, and easy to make. I was even able to convince my oldest son to help me with some of the prep work on the dish, though I think the big attraction to that was him being allowed to hold one of my sharp knives. I will say that he did a reasonable job cutting up my summer squash for me, and stayed very safe while holding my 6" utility knife. I WAS hoping that by enlisting his help with the cutting of the ingredients I would be able to get him to taste the finished dish. While he did eat most of it, he still stayed well away from pretty much anything that was not pasta.

The thing that really made this dish good - for me - was the parmesan cheese. I normally think of parmesan cheese in something really heavy, like on a big pile of pasta with red sauce, in an alfredo with shrimp, or - perhaps my personal favorite - melted in a mushroom risotto. The thing about all of these dishes is that they are really heavy, wintry dishes. I was expecting a dish with as much parmesan as was called for to be a lot heaver than this was. The sauce was fresh and airy, the cheese added the right amount of umami to the dish, and the rest of the ingredients were light as a feather mixed in with the pasta. I will say that I used a whole box (12 ounces) of rotini pasta - rather than the 8oz that was called for in the recipe, so I used a little bit more cooking liquid and a little bit more parmesan than was in the recipe, but it all worked out well in the end.

Basil squash and tomato pasta toss paired very nicely with a shandy. 

So this was tonight's dinner - keep an eye out for more magazine-inspired dinner menus in the weeks to come. I am sure this meal will not be the last one from this latest batch of magazines. Where do you get your inspiration for new dinners? Blogs? Websites? Email newsletters from recipe sites? Let me know how you find new meals in the comments below or on Facebook!

Carnitas!

Today's meal was carnitas - which is a slow-cooked pork - served with a salsa verde cruda and homemade tortillas. 

I found the carnitas recipe in a gifted Better Homes and Gardens magazine, as well as the recipe for the salsa. The carnitas were tender and pulled apart very easily, and came out full of great flavor. They needed a little splash of color, so I added just a few minced red bell peppers on top to make them look super pretty. The recipe made plenty for all of us here, plus plenty for leftovers the next day - Yum!

Carnitas Recipe

The tortillas were easy to make and easier to eat. Fluffy, warm off the skillet, and fresher than any other tortillas I have ever had. Without space to keep a tortilla press, I used a glass pie plate to press my tortillas on a cutting board between two layers of parchment paper. They came out a little smaller than I had expected, but that may have been due to a small edge around the bottom of the plate that kept me from pressing out any further. I will have to perhaps try rolling out some with a rolling pin or maybe some other flat pan next time. Stay tuned!

My wife found that the tortillas didn't even need the carnitas - just a little salsa verde cruda!
This salsa was simple to make and just a perfect condiment to the meal. Tomatillos, avocado, garlic and a jalapeño pepper blended together make this salsa cool but with just the right amount of kick.

Thanks for reading and see you again soon!