Garlic

Good day class, today we have a continuation of my celebration to pasta with fresh ingredients. I'm looking at a blank document, but my mind is full of fresh ideas and a cleaned-out fridge filled with few ingredients.  So let me begin by saying that many need to realize that fresh pasta is one of the best ways to enjoy a meal and the freshest pasta I've ever had was made by my college girlfriend's mother.  Mary Scarpino's mother made...

Hummus 3 tablespoons tahini 1 tablespoon sesame, olive or canola oil 1/2 lemon, juiced 1/2 cup water (or a bit less for a stiffer texture) 1 large garlic clove, mashed 1 15-ounce can chickpeas Salt and pepper, to taste Slowly add water to tahini, oil, garlic and lemon juice. Combine sauce, chickpeas, and salt and pepper in a blender. Blend to desired consistency. Serve as a dip with raw vegetables or chips, as a spread on crackers, or stuffed into warmed pita bread halves with grated carrots, shredded lettuce or fresh alfalfa sprouts.

Start to finish: 12 minutes 5 cups la nueva ropa vieja (3 cups broth and 2 cups meat/vegetable mixture), defrosted if frozen; recipe below 2 cups water 1 can (14 1/2 ounces) diced tomatoes seasoned with onions and garlic (see Cook's note) 1 can (15 ounces) black beans 1 1/2 cups frozen yellow corn kernels Juice from 1/2 lime 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce 1 teaspoon sugar 1/2 teaspoon onion powder 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder 1/4 teaspoon black pepper 6 tablespoons crushed baked tortilla chips, or more to taste Optional toppings: shredded Mexican-blend cheese or cheddar, reduced-fat sour cream, avocado chunks Cook's note: Any type of seasoned, diced tomatoes that contain garlic can be used.

Mediterranean Seafood Soup 2 16-ounce cans crushed or diced tomatoes (Neumann uses whatever's on sale. A recent batch included one can of tomatoes seasoned with basil, garlic and oregano, as well as another with roasted garlic. 10 ounces frozen chopped spinach 1-pound bag frozen shellfish medley - shrimp, mussels, baby clams, squid rings and tentacles 8 ounces pasta (Neumann says he prefers large shells since it's seafood.) 4 bay leaves 2 teaspoons basil, dried 2 teaspoons garlic powder 1 small onion, chopped 1 quart water, approximately Salt and pepper to taste Empty tomatoes in crockpot.

Traditionally, Caesar salad is made with a coddled egg so it is a lot more complicated than throwing lettuce into a bowl. The flavors are bright and delicate and blend together when you follow these quick and easy steps. Once you taste the fresh salad, I am certain you will forgo the bottle dressing or dry dressing mix when you have the time to prepare this delicious salad. To accent the salad add grilled shrimp, chicken or sliced flank steak to the top and grate on a little more fresh Parmesan or Romano cheese.

The third in the lineup of mother sauces is tomato sauce, which is a generic term for any sauce that is based mainly on tomatoes. Tomato sauce can either be raw or cooked, from a few minutes to several hours. You can use olive oil or rendered bacon fat to create a delicious sauce. Classic variations called for pork or veal bones, and the rest were made from tomatoes and a few additional vegetables. Some of the sauces are pureed to remove the chunky consistency, giving the finished sauce a nice smooth texture, while the remainder is left chunky.

katec@herald-mail.com Spring is here. What's for dinner? How about something quick and light - pasta and homemade marinara sauce? Sound good? If your answer is "yes," read on. If you don't know what marinara sauce is, read on. The word marinara comes from the Italian word for sailor - marinaro, says Phil Torre, who created The Italian Chef Web site at www.italianchef.com. "In Naples it was the sauce they made for the sailors when they returned from the sea," he explains.

ASHBURN, Va. (AP) - Mark Wilson can cook, an unusual attribute for a rookie living an NFL bachelor's life far from home. Just don't expect him to go heavy on the garlic. "I've kind of cut back on the garlic," the Washington Redskins tackle said. "I got sick of garlic after working in it for four years. " Until this week, the most notable thing about Wilson was his high school job as a garlic harvester for four years in rural northern California. The fifth-round draft from California-Berkeley has not played a down all season, so all anyone could ask him about were those formative days in the wet fields of Shasta County.

Getting inside Washington Spy is as unique as the atmosphere and food that awaits beyond its doors. The restaurant faces Antietam Street, a few steps from the back door of the Washington County Free Library. But there isn't a front door. To find the entrance, you have to walk or drive down an alley to the back of the building. The Washington Spy, under new ownership since May, is in what was once the Greyhound Bus Terminal. The flavor and feel of the bus station is still there in the white cement block and stucco walls.

Dear Lynne: We love anchovies and are hunting down new ways of using them. Any thoughts? -- Howie and Doug Dear Howie and Doug: Let me count the ways. Anchovies marry with any form of acid, from vinegars to lemon and lime, which also mutes their impact. Garlic, onion and flavorful fats such as butter and olive oil all work brilliantly with anchovies. They are loaded with umami (the so-called fifth taste), an element in certain foods that lifts the flavors of everything it's blended with.