Macaroni and cheese and mushrooms and broccoli in a cast iron skillet

Gnocchi with blue-cheese-almond "pesto" and arugula

Homemade farfalle with tomatoes, basil, and ricotta salata

Rigatoni with heirloom tomatoes and garden basil

Riverdog has been giving us beautiful heirloom tomatoes in all different colors, ranging from wine to lemon. And our garden has produced a bouquet of basil with light greens but also eggplant-purples. Toss tomatoes, basil, minced garlic, and olive oil with al dente rigatoni, and serve with a grated parmesan or romano.

Pesto with garden basil

Pasta with green beans, fennel, and smoked tuna

Pasta with tuna confit and beans

We followed the recipe for tuna confit from Alice Waters' Chez Panisse Cafe Cookbook. We began by slicing a one-pound piece of tuna into four pieces and liberally salting everything. We placed it in a medium mixing bowl with about half a head of garlic (crushed but not peeled), one or two fresh bay leaves, a small hot red pepper, some whole pepper corns, a handful of fennel seed, and a few sprigs of thyme. We covered everything in olive oil (about 2.5 cups — Alice says 3), covered the bowl with saran wrap, and refrigerated the fish overnight.

The next day, we transferred everything to a pot, and warmed it on medium-low. The fish should cook ten to fifteen minutes, until it is don't on the outside but still a little pink in the middle. (Actually, we cooked it through, but Alice prefers it pink in the middle, and so do we.)

Meanwhile, we prepared a pound each of green beans and fresh cranberry beans. Following the instructions, we simmered the shelled cranberry beans for half an hour in lightly salted water with a sprig of thyme. This got the beans mushier than we like — next time we'll do twenty minutes. Alice likes her green beans parboiled two minutes, but we like them softer: between six and eight. We also boiled a pot of water for pasta: whole wheat penne from Barilla.

After draining everything, and reserving the oil (passing it through a sieve), we minced a few scallions (Alice wants shallots) and whisked in a liberal dose of the flavored oil, and then mixed this with the beans and pasta. We should at this point have flaked the tuna into the pasta as well, but instead we decided to serve the tuna in steaks. It was very good, although a bit too salty for steaks, and had a taste of the very best canned tuna you've ever had. Grated cheese for the pasta, of course, and white wine.

Of course, it was enough food for at least four as the main course.

Ratatouille lasagna

We love the flavor combination of ratatouille: tomatoes, eggplant, summer squash, supplemented with onions, garlic, peppers, and herbs. But the vegetable mix is never satisfying as a dinner: you eat and eat and eat and never fill up. Much better is a lasagna, layering the vegetables between cheese and pasta. So we decided the have the best of both worlds.

We began by slicing and lightly salting the vegetables (eggplant, onions, bell peppers, zucchini) and spread them in single layers in pans to roast uncovered in the oven. Meanwhile, we made a pasta dough with one part white flour to two parts semolina, a little salt, a couple eggs, and enough water to hold it together but not so much as to make the dough tacky. We rolled the dough through the hand-cranked pasta maker and let it dry on a rack. Then we put together our cheese mixture: minced garlic, grated mozzarella, grated romano, fresh thyme, grated black pepper, and ricotta. Finally, we diced some tomatoes, saving the juive, and mixed in some diced onion and chopped basil and a little salt.

Ingredients prepared, we started layering the lasagna. Begin by putting a splash of oil and just a little of the tomato juice at the bottom of the pan, and then a layer of noodles. Then some of the tomato mixture, a layer of zucchini, and a layer of cheese, with some of the roasted onions and peppers dotted through. On top of all this, another layer of pasta, then tomatoes, eggplants, cheese, and continuing in this way until the casserole is assembled. End with noodles and a thick layer of cheese, decorated with some roasted onions and peppers.

Cover the casserole with a tent of foil, and bake about half an hour. Then remove the foil and cut it into strips to wrap just around the edges of the pan, so that any noodles showing don't crisp too much in the oven, and bake another half hour. Let the casserole cool about ten minutes before slicing and serving.

Camping: farfalle with red sauce

For our last night camping, we made pasta. For the sauce, we sauteed onions and garlic, added bell peppers, mushrooms, and tomatoes, and topped it off with herbs we had brought from our garden at home. We served the dinner with the Pinot Noir from Territorial, a Willamette Valley vineyard.

Hand-made pesto with hand-made semolina egg noodles

First dinner at Indian Lake: farfalle with tomatoes, basil, garlic, and feta

The tomatoes and garlic came from the farmers' market in Troy, NY, although the pasta, basil, and feta were from the supermarket in North Creek. When we found the Troy farmers' market, we decided to try to do our shopping there, so we had lunch and then looked around. Then, just as we were starting to buy things, the bell rang signaling the end of the market. We did manage to get some absolutely amazing romano-style goat cheese from Gillis Acres Farm to go on top of the pasta.

Pasta caprese

For a fantastic, simple pasta, mix al dente penne, fresh mozzarella, lots of basil, minced garlic, olive oil, and the very best tomatoes you can find. Serve with a grated parmesan or romano. Another nice dish, substitute feta for the mozzarella, and reduce or drop the basil.

Hand-made pesto

There is little better than mashing your own pesto in a stone mortar and pestle; the only thing I can think of is mashing your own pesto from basil you grew yourself. Begin by combining the garlic and salt — the salt will provide coarseness to break up the garlic, and also extract the juices. Then work in the basil, which takes a while. Occasionally, add grated parmesan or romano cheese, which helps absorb extra moisture from the basil. If you have some, pine nuts are also a wonderful addition. When you have made everything into a paste, and only when you have incorporated all other ingredients, add copious amounts of olive oil. The oil, by lubricating everything, makes it much harder to mash the rest, but in addition to tasting good, it helps distribute the pesto evenly over the pasta. Serve with an al dente farfalle and more grated cheese.

Rigatoni with beet greens, sausage, and white beans

Scallops; campanelle with onions and morels

Bring water to a boil for pasta.

Begin by coarsely chopping a large white onion, and sauteing in copious amounts of browned butter. Add washed whole morel mushrooms, your favorite spices (salt, papper, thyme, taragon). Once onions are soft, remove most of the sauce to the serving bowl for the pasta.

Salt the boiling water and add the pasta, and, as always for perfect pasta, set the timer for two minutes less than the package instructions.

Brown some more butter in the same pan, and, when it is hot, sear the outsides of some large bay scallops. Be sure to buy them dry-packed — most scallops are "wet", which means they are packed in a soapy-tasting liquid to keep them plump longer.

Plate the scallops. Drain the pasta.

If necessary, brown even more butter, and return the onions to the pan. Add cream and white wine, and reduce briefly, making some sort of stroganoff. Toss with the pasta. Finally, deglaze the pan with white wine, and pour the jus over the scallops. Enjoy!