The Art of Pasta

I'm sure you've heard many ways to boil pasta: add salt, oil, butter - or omit those steps. Here's what you do:

Add Salt!
Salt adds flavor to your pasta. Add a generous amount of salt to your boiling water, or before it boils. This helps flavor your pasta which will make your meal taste better. There is the thought that adding salt to your pot of water will lower the boiling temperature for water. This is true. However it may only be by 1 degree or so for your little pot.

Pro's and Con's of oil/butter-
If you add one of these to your pasta pot your noodles will not stick! It will also help keep your water from bubbling over your pot. However, there is a cost to this.... if you add oil/butter the pasta will become oily itself. When you go to add your sauce to your pasta, it will slide right off. If you have the problem of water boiling over - use a bigger pot or use less water.

When you drain your pasta let it sit in your colander until the steaming dies down. Then add your sauce. This will help your sauce stick to your pasta better.

What is al dente? To the tooth or bite. It is a term used to cook pasta firm but not hard. Pasta will be fully cooked but not soggy. There will be no "crunch" to the pasta either. Al dente is common for most pastas unless you are going to bake them - al forno "at/from the oven". An example of this is lasagna. You don't full cook your lasagna when you boil it because it will finish cooking in the oven.

Peach Cobbler - Ode to my mother

Growing up my mother had recipes that she just knew how to make. This is one that has carried on. It is fun to make with your kids and your house will smell delicious! I hope you enjoy this as much as I have over the years.

2 Large cans of sliced peaches - drain one if you don't want your cobbler runny
1 Box of yellow or white cake mix
1 Stick of butter
Ground Cinnamon
Ground Nutmeg
Ground Allspice

Preheat your oven to 350 deg F. Take paper off one end of butter so you can hold the other end and not get your fingers all slippery. Butter rectangle baking dish. Set butter aside for later. Empty peaches into dish. Spread cake mix over peaches. Slice up stick of butter and lay slices over the cake mix. Sprinkle lightly with nutmeg and allspice (these spices are strong - you want enough for flavor but not too much to make you cough) and sprinkle generously with cinnamon. Bake for 45 min. Let cool for 15 min. Serve warm with ice cream or alone. Place leftovers in fridge. You can eat leftovers cool or warmed.