Sole in Parchment

Now that spring is here in the U.S., summer is not far away, and of course, that means swimsuit weather. If you’ve gained a few too many pounds during the Covid pandemic, here’s a recipe that will help trim some of that expanding waistline. Not only does it taste delicious, it’s a snap to prepare ahead of time, making it an ideal dinner for company. Just pop it in the oven while you sit down for drinks and a chat, and in 15 minutes, you’re ready to eat.  Start by cutting out pieces of parchment paper in the shape of a heart — a large heart. Slice the vegetables into julienne strips, and toss with some olive oil, salt, pepper and herbs. In this case, I used leeks, zucchini, carrots, red pepper and cherry tomatoes cut in half, tossed in olive oil, with salt, pepper and minced parsley. But use whatever floats your boat. Just make sure you slice everything into uniform strips. Season the fish with salt and white pepper, then dab some butter on top. Layer a couple of slices of lemon over the buttered fish, then scatter some herbs on top. I used more parsley plus some fresh thyme.

Seal the packets by crimping all along the sides, starting with a fold at one end and continuing all the way around. Here’s what they should look like after they’re completely crimped. Place in a 400 degree oven for 15 minutes if you’re cooking thin pieces of sole, like mine were.

They come out of the oven a slight beige color.

Serve directly on each person’s plate, with some rice on the side. Entertaining and eating a healthy meal was never so easy!

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Sole in Parchment

Author: Ciao Chow Linda

printable recipe here

Ingredients

• filet of sole or flounder – 2 pieces or about 6 ounces per person
• vegetables, julienned (carrots, red or green peppers, zucchini, leeks, etc. – whatever you like)
• olive oil to mix with the vegetables
• salt, pepper
• parsley, thyme
• butter
• lemon slices

Instructions

1. Julienne the vegetables thinly and mix with the olive oil, salt, pepperr and parsley in a bowl.
2. Place a portion of the vegetables in the parchment paper and put fish on top.
3. Season both sides of the fish with salt and pepper and top with a dab or two of butter, then with a couple of lemon slices.
4. Crimp edges of the parchment paper, starting at one end and going around to the other end.
5. Finish crimping and bake at 400 degrees for approximately 15 minutes, depending on thickness of fish.

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Paglia e Fieno with Prosciutto, Peas and Parmigiano Cheese

Paglia e fieno literally translates to straw and hay in Italian, and it’s not hard to find these “nests” of green and yellow pasta already made in specialty stores or good supermarkets where I live. However, like most things, homemade is best, so if you have the time and inclination, make your own pasta. I made a big batch of both regular egg fettucine and spinach fettuccine on Easter Sunday, which is when we ate this dish. If you want a recipe for making spinach pasta, click here.   For plain egg pasta, the fine OO flour from Italy is best, combined with fresh eggs. You can make a well on a board and mix it the old-fashioned way, but these days, I mostly use a food processor and dump the flour and eggs in there, starting with about 1 1/2 cups of flour and two eggs. Add more flour until it forms a ball in the food processor bowl, then remove it and knead it some more, adding a little flour if necessary. When it’s smooth as a baby’s bottom, cover it and let it rest for at least a half hour, then roll it out with a pasta machine, or by hand, and cut it in the fettuccine shape.

The sauce is a classic — and also a waist expander, but if it’s a special occasion, who cares? It’s worth every calorie. Sorry I don’t have any photos while I was making the sauce, but it comes together so fast and we were all so hungry that I failed to snap any photos. You make the sauce while the pasta is boiling in the water– it’s that quick to do. Start by cutting up the prosciutto into bits and cooking it briefly in the butter. Add the cream and peas and let the cream reduce a bit. However don’t let it thicken too much because  the parmesan cheese will naturally thicken the sauce. Drain the pasta, but retain a cup or more of the pasta water in case you need to loosen the sauce. Add the drained pasta to the cream, prosciutto and peas and bestow it a healthy amount of freshly ground black pepper. Swirl everything around and if it seems too thick, add some of the pasta water and swirl a bit more. Turn off the heat and add the parmesan cheese, incorporating it into the dish. Serve with additional parmesan grated on top.

Click here to connect with me on Instagram and find out what’s cooking in Ciao Chow Linda’s kitchen each day (and more)

Fettucine Paglia e Fieno

Author: Ciao Chow Linda

printable recipe here

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 pounds paglia e fieno pasta
• 4 tablespoons butter
• 1 pint (2 cups) heavy cream
• 1/4 pound (or more if you like) prosciutto, cut into small bits
• 1 cup frozen peas
• freshly ground black pepper
• 2 cups freshly grated parmesan cheese

Instructions

1. Cook the pasta in ample salted water and drain, but save about a cup of the pasta water.
2. Make the sauce while the pasta is cooking.
3. Cut the prosciutto into small pieces.
4. Melt the butter in a saucepan and cook the prosciutto bits until they start to crisp.
5. Add the cream and the frozen peas and cook a couple of minutes.
6. The cream will start to reduce.
7. Don’t reduce it too much.
8. It will thicken more when you add the parmesan cheese.
9. Add the cooked pasta to the sauce, sprinkling with a generous amount of freshly ground pepper.
10. Swirl the pasta in the sauce.
11. If need be, add a little of the reserved pasta water.
12. Turn off the heat, and add the parmesan cheese.
13. Swirl to blend it through, then add more once on top once it’s in the serving dish.

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