We don't eat a lot of pasta, so when I saw this on the schedule, I thought I'd skipped it. But then after speaking to my HCB/FFWD blogger gal pal Monica, who said: "pasta, yeah, what's not to love?" - I changed my mind.
Well okay in her defense, that's not her exactly words/sentence, but it's along the same "yeah let's make it!" lines.
In any case, looking at the recipe, I have to admit it looks interesting (I've never made pasta with dried fruits and nuts before.)
And most importantly - easy to whip up!
So I made this for lunch one Sunday afternoon.
I used whole wheat pasta, which is healthier and a bit tastier than regular pasta. Cooking time is a couple minutes longer, so no biggie.
A couple of minutes before the pasta finished cooking, I melt some butter over medium low heat until it started turning brown. Then add in the sliced almonds, dried figs, and golden raisins (I forgot to get pistachio). Once the almonds and dried fruits started getting brown, I added the pasta, salt and pepper. Stir everything up. Once they started smelling fragrant, I called hubby down for lunch and served with some grated parmesan.
Hm.. it's not bad but it's really nothing special. While I do taste the beurre noisette flavor in the pasta, I feel like I'm eating buttery pasta, which is not very pleasant. So in the end we make sure we ate each bite of pasta with some almonds and dried fruits, just so we have other flavors in there. I'm sad to report that this dish - while super easy to prepare - probably will not make another appearance in the kitchen.
Ah. Sorry this one wasn't a hit for you - I can see how this one could go either way for people. It looks lovely, though!
ReplyDeleteSorry you didn't enjoy this one more! I was prepared to hate it and through it together somewhat haphazardly only to love it.
ReplyDeleteIt's funny, reading through FFWD'ers reviews of this recipe, I didn't realize how many folks don't like buttered pasta. Not that I can point fingers - I'm one of those people that can't stand raisins! (They were definitely subbed in this recipe.)
ReplyDeleteI agree with your thoughts on the dish - it was just buttered pasta if you didn't have toppings in each bite. Not a fan of buttered pasta. :(
ReplyDeleteYour photos look delicious though! Love all the melted cheese!
Oh man now I feel guilty that I push you to make it.. and I totally did not! YIKES! But your pictures look so amazing...maybe a bit of olive oil with the butter would make it a bit more "Sauce-y"? Something to think about if you ever decide to repeat.
ReplyDeleteWell, you sure make it pretty in your photos! I only made a quarter batch knowing my picky family wouldn't touch it. I was surprised how much I enjoyed this dish, but doubt I'll make it again :)
ReplyDeleteYour pictures look fantastic! Next week should be awesome with the salted butter breakaways, so I hope you are looking forward to that.
ReplyDeleteNice picture! I thought it was great...sorry you weren't crazy about it.
ReplyDeleteThis recipe was definitely something different. Good for you for trying it, even if you needed encouragment from Monica. I also considered skipping this one, but I'm glad I tried it, even though I probably won't make it again.
ReplyDeleteI thought this dish was kinda greasy so next time I make it I'll make sure to use less butter. I loved the fruit and nut flavors.
ReplyDeleteI loved the buttery flavor. :) But, I would like to cut down the amount of butter next time. Your photos are so pretty.
ReplyDeleteLooks terrific...sorry it didn't quite hit the spot for you. My son decided after the second plate that he didn't really like it much either. Not sure why it took two plates to reach that decision.
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