Some people get bored; others get creative. Being all alone yesterday on Thanksgiving Day in Venice Beach, California and all the shops were closed, I had no other option but to go to a nearby grocery store to buy and make my own dinner.
I first biked to Whole Foods (one mile away) to get some fresh ingredients, but I found it closed. Then I thought I'd eat out, but every single place in the area was closed too. So I thought I would call Ralphs before heading there. And yep, it was open.
"Hi, thank God you're open. I'm really hungry and everything is closed." I must have sounded so desperate.
"We're open, come on right down," the man answered me.
So after biking that one mile back to where the house and\ closed shops are, I biked in the opposite direction for another 2.2 miles to Ralphs. All the ready food and the sandwiches area were already shut by the time I went at 8 pm. I got the pasta, some spices, and the pre-cooked mussels for a change. And then another 2.2 miles back home.
Once in the kitchen, I put some Albert King/Stevie Ray Vaughan, poured me a glass of rosé, and made the pasta as I always do.
As you can see from the borders of the plate in the featured photo, some of this tasty food has already been devoured. The first thing I did when the dish was ready to be eaten. Then, it was so good that I thought why not share it with you and went to get the camera to take this photo.
OK, so what's in this dish, you may be wondering?
Well, I took a simple vegetarian/vegan recipe for onion and garlic pasta — which I love by itself — and added some random ingredients for it to end up as a real yummy final outcome.
Now let’s start by the initial Ingredients of the onion and garlic pasta:
- 1 pound (450 gm) any kind of pasta
- 1/2 cup (1 cup = 16 tblsp, so 1/2 cup = 8 tblsp) olive oil
- 2 to 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/4 cup (4 tblsp) finely chopped onions (white or red, both were tasty)
- 1 tblsp salt
- Pepper to taste
- 1/2 cup (8 tblsp) toasted bread crumbs
And the Preparation:
- Prepare the pasta according to the package directions.
- Heat the oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Add the garlic and onion and sautee until soft, about 5 minutes. Season with the salt and pepper.
- Drain the pasta, reserving 1/3 cup (6 tblsp) of the cooking water. Pour the cooking water into the oil and garlic mixture and cook over low heat for one minute.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the pasta and garlic sauce. Toss, then sprinkle on bread crumbs and serve.
The above is what I have made many times and it was one dish I enjoyed. A few times I added shrimps/prawns, other time was calamari. There is also another one with calamari and tomato sauce, shown in Cooking My Catch, Finally ― Pasta with Calamari [With Video and Recipe]. All equally tasty.
THEN, as a new creation and because I’m not afraid of trying new things, I added 1/4 cup of water, two green onions, and the precooked muscle meat to the onion and garlic mixture on Low-Heat. After ten minutes of gentle stirring, I added everything to the portion of pasta [in a larger pan] and sprinkled very little:
Arugula
Lettuce
Baby spinach
Feta cheese
Dried cranberries
Walnuts
Balsamic vinegar
1/3 cup of rosé wine
1 tsp of Dijon mustard
I stirred it all for another 5-7 minutes, still on Low-Heat. Then I ate like a king... Albert King.
When I was about to take my first bite, three girls came into the house, visiting us. Though I couldn’t do anything but to offer them some and to keep eating. It really was yummy and the novelty made it all worthwhile. I hope you enjoy it too.
ALSO VIEW:
New Kreation: Veggie Pasta
New Kreation: Sliced Baked Potatoes with Herbs
Cooking My Catch, Finally ― Pasta with Calamari [With Video and Recipe]
Arugula: The Healthy Ancient Aphrodisiac
The Difference Between Mandarin, Tangerine, and Clementine
How I Dropped Two Waist Sizes in a Few Months
Kicking That Sweet Habit: Why and How to Drop Sugar
What’s the Story with Blue Balls (and Blue Vulva)?
The Intertwining of Music and Sexuality ― A Djembefola’s Tale
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