Pasta con rajas
May. 10th, 2009 04:53 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
rosefox posting in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
iron_chef_csaCorn is in season here in New York, which reminded me of this wonderful pasta dish we made last October after raiding the farmer's market. For once I really felt satisfied after eating a vegetarian meal! It's very flexible; we put in corn, onion, tomatoes, and poblano chiles, but pretty much any vegetable goes well with pasta and a classic white sauce.
Pasta con rajas (roasted poblano peppers in a white sauce)
1) In a 2 qt. saucepan, make a roux with 2 tbsp butter and 2 tbsp flour. Add 2 cups whole milk and blend until a thick sauce forms. Add tarragon, black pepper, and salt to taste, and toss in a splash of cognac or other liquor. (We used grappa.) Keep over low heat, stirring occasionally to keep a skin from forming on top.
2) Cut 1/4 of a large white or yellow onion into a half-inch dice. Add the onion to the sauce; continue to stir occasionally.
3) Blister the skins of four poblano peppers. (These peppers were amazing, buttery and smoky and delectable. Hooray for the farmer's market.) Put them in a sealed plastic bag for ten minutes and then rub off the skins under running water. Discard the stems and seeds. Cut into half-inch dice.
4) Cut the kernels off of two ears of corn. (It was so fresh and sweet that we kept sneaking handsful of raw kernels.)
5) Seed and dice five plum tomatoes.
6) When onion begins to soften, bring a large pot of water to boil, salt it, and throw in a pound (one box) of dried pasta. (We used shells.)
7) While the pasta is cooking, add the peppers to the sauce. If the corn needs to be cooked, add it as well.
8) Drain the pasta. Add the tomatoes to the sauce, and the corn if it hasn't been added already. Consume immediately. Serves four hungry people.
We devoured the whole thing and used most of a loaf of bread to wipe our plates, the bowl, and the saucepan. I can't usually have that much dairy, but a) if you're going to eschew meat, the protein has to come from somewhere and b) it was too delicious to pass up.
Credit for the chilis-and-cream idea goes to Mi Cocina, an upscale Mexican restaurant on Hudson and Jane that serves a wonderful dish called pechugas con rajas: grilled chicken with poblano strips and onion in a cream sauce, served with fabulous little crispy potatoes. This video taught me how to fire-roast poblanos over my gas range; I recommend leaving the peppers in the bag a little longer than she suggests, maybe ten minutes, so they get a really smoky flavor. Also note that smoother peppers are easier to roast and skin.sinboy had the brilliant idea of adding tarragon and grappa to the sauce.
Pasta con rajas (roasted poblano peppers in a white sauce)
1) In a 2 qt. saucepan, make a roux with 2 tbsp butter and 2 tbsp flour. Add 2 cups whole milk and blend until a thick sauce forms. Add tarragon, black pepper, and salt to taste, and toss in a splash of cognac or other liquor. (We used grappa.) Keep over low heat, stirring occasionally to keep a skin from forming on top.
2) Cut 1/4 of a large white or yellow onion into a half-inch dice. Add the onion to the sauce; continue to stir occasionally.
3) Blister the skins of four poblano peppers. (These peppers were amazing, buttery and smoky and delectable. Hooray for the farmer's market.) Put them in a sealed plastic bag for ten minutes and then rub off the skins under running water. Discard the stems and seeds. Cut into half-inch dice.
4) Cut the kernels off of two ears of corn. (It was so fresh and sweet that we kept sneaking handsful of raw kernels.)
5) Seed and dice five plum tomatoes.
6) When onion begins to soften, bring a large pot of water to boil, salt it, and throw in a pound (one box) of dried pasta. (We used shells.)
7) While the pasta is cooking, add the peppers to the sauce. If the corn needs to be cooked, add it as well.
8) Drain the pasta. Add the tomatoes to the sauce, and the corn if it hasn't been added already. Consume immediately. Serves four hungry people.
We devoured the whole thing and used most of a loaf of bread to wipe our plates, the bowl, and the saucepan. I can't usually have that much dairy, but a) if you're going to eschew meat, the protein has to come from somewhere and b) it was too delicious to pass up.
Credit for the chilis-and-cream idea goes to Mi Cocina, an upscale Mexican restaurant on Hudson and Jane that serves a wonderful dish called pechugas con rajas: grilled chicken with poblano strips and onion in a cream sauce, served with fabulous little crispy potatoes. This video taught me how to fire-roast poblanos over my gas range; I recommend leaving the peppers in the bag a little longer than she suggests, maybe ten minutes, so they get a really smoky flavor. Also note that smoother peppers are easier to roast and skin.
sinboy had the brilliant idea of adding tarragon and grappa to the sauce.