A New Pasta Sauce

Tonight, I thought I'd try making a new and slightly different pasta sauce. This sauce was inspired by a "Shepherd's Sauce" recipe in a Lidia Bastianich cookbook. Starting with her recipe, I added my own little twist which I think turned out well.

My Shepherd's Sauce

serves 6-8 

2lb sweet Italian sausage, bulk or removed from casing
1 med. yellow onion, diced
1 6oz. can tomato paste
1 Tbs. minced garlic
1  15oz. package of part skim milk ricotta cheese
2 tsp. dried basil
1 dozen fresh basil leaves, shredded
Salt and pepper to taste
2 cups water


---Brown the sausage in a large heavy bottom pot. Drain most of the grease and then add the diced onion. Stir around and allow to cook for a minute. Add the garlic and stir.
--Add the tomato paste and stir well, cooking for 30 seconds or so. Next add the entire package of ricotta cheese and stir well. Everything will look very thick; don't panic, it's supposed to look that way. Now add the water (white wine or chicken broth can be substituted for the water) and stir. Turn the heat down to a simmer.
--Add the dried basil, salt and pepper. Allow to simmer for 10 to 15 minutes and taste. Adjust seasoning. Five minutes before serving, add the shredded fresh basil.

Serve this sauce over rigatoni and top with some grated Parmesan cheese.

Chicken Tandoori Spiced Stir Fry

     This dish was created with the hope of winning a recipe contest sponsored by Hellman's Mayonnaise. I normally don't use mayonnaise when I cook, so this was a big challenge for me.
 I think it turned out well and I hope you enjoy it too.

Chicken Tandoori Spiced Stir Fry


serves 4

3 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into thin strips

For the first marinade:
1 1/2 Tbs. lemon juice
1/4 tsp. cayennne pepper, optional
Salt to taste

For the second marinade:
1/4 cup plain yogurt
1/4 cup Hellman's Mayonnaise with Olive Oil
1 Tbs. minced garlic
1 Tbs. ginger paste (easily found in jars at Indian grocery stores)
1 tsp. Garam masala (a spice mix also found at Indian grocery stores)
1/2 tsp. smoked paprika
1/4 tsp. cardamom powder
Red food coloring, just a few drops and completely optional
Salt to taste


Vegetable for stir fry:

1 small onion, peeled and chopped
1 large carrot, peeled and sliced thin on the diagonal
1 cup of green cabbage ribbons, about 1/2 in. wide
12 or so fresh okra pods, cut into 1/4 in rounds
2 tsp. minced garlic
3 Tbs. peanut oil

3 sliced green onions, as garnish


---For the first marinade, mix the lemon juice, salt and optional cayenne in a medium sized bowl. Add the sliced chicken pieces and stir well. Allow to marinate for at least 30 minutes to an hour.
---For the second marinade, mix together all of the ingredients in a medium to large bowl. Transfer the chicken strips from the first bowl to the second marinade. Cover and allow to marinate in the refrigerator for another hour or more.
---While chicken is marinating, prepare vegetables for stir fry. When everything is ready, place a wok on medium high heat. Add oil to wok and allow to heat. Place half the chicken in the hot wok and stir frequently. Cook for 3 to 5 minutes. Remove the chicken to a plate and place remaining half of chicken in wok and cook just like the first half. Stir frequently to prevent burning. Remove chicken to plate with the rest of the chicken.
---Wipe any excess yogurt out of wok after removing chicken. This will prevent burning. Place wok back onto heat and add remaining peanut oil. Allow to heat for 30 seconds to a minute. Add chopped onion. Stir fry for a minute or two before adding okra and minced garlic. Stir rapidly to allow the okra mucilage to cook out and dry up a bit. Add the carrots and the cabbage. Stir some more and allow to cook for another minute or two before adding the chicken back to the wok. Mix well and allow to cook for another 5 minutes or so.
---If things look like they are trying to stick or burn, turn the heat down a bit and add a couple splashes of water. Stir well. Serve immediately and garnish with green onions.