Chocolate-It's What's for Dinner

When I first saw this recipe in the NYTimes I knew I had to make it. It sounded so simple and I love when I make pasta al forno and the pasta gets all crusty. This sounded similar to that crusty-ness but a lot more of it. Pasta Tahdig (Adapted from the NYTimes ) 1lb spaghetti 2 c homemade tomato sauce 1 c parmesan cheese (grated) olive oil Cook pasta until al dente. Drain and add back to pot. Mix with 2T olive oil, tomato sauce and parmesan cheese. Heat a 10" skillet. Add 3T of olive oil. Add pasta. Press it down with a spatula. You want it to form a dense cake-like blob. Brown for 20 minutes. Be sure to move the spatula under to ensure it's not sticking every few minutes. Add more oil as necessary. The oil should be bubbling a bit up the sides. Carefully drain off the oil. Using a pizza pan (or other flat surface such as a pot lid), flip the pasta cake out of the skillet. Put the drained oil back into the pan and slide the pasta cake back into the skillet. Again

Grilled octopus is so delicious. It seems so intimidating to make, but it isn't. Grilled Octopus 8qts water 1 c white wine 1 onion, quartered 1 carrot, cut in 3 1 rib celery, cut in 3 3 whole clove garlic salt 3lb octopus olive oil sugar Place water through salt ingredients into a large stock pot. Bring to a boil and boil for about 10 minutes.  While water is coming to a boil, clean the octopus. You might need to remove the innards from the head (more than likely they have been removed already). Cut the octopus head right below the eyes. From the lower part of the body find the firm piece and remove (sometimes called the beak). You might need to cut in with the tip of the knife to find it. Cut the eye section from the head. With a mallet tenderize the legs and body of the octopus (a few whacks should do it). Now you should be ready to cook the octopus. Lower the water to a simmer. Gently lower the octopus in body into the water. Keep in the water for 3-4 seconds. P

I followed this recipe without any changes (I must be going soft). At first I wasn't going to do the salted caramel (it did say optional after all). Then I thought well it's not often I make pudding (which I don't know why I don't because pudding is really good stuff) so why not go full on. Well I do have to say the caramel does add that little something extra. The pinch of salt on top also adds. I do like the receipe process of adding the cornstarch to the egg yolks and egg. It ensures a smooth consistency. I've made another butterscotch pudding but I think I prefer this one. For the pudding when I added the heavy cream and milk, I did have to put it back on the heat to melt the caramel. With the sauce, I had a similar situation but not as bad.

I've previously posted about the overnight oats . What I didn't mention is that I use these for travel. I omit the maple syrup and use brown sugar instead. I also omit the vanilla. I pack them up in little sealed bags, bring a spoon, and a plastic container. As long as there is a refrigerator in the room, I'm all set for a good breakie. Instead of those awful hotel breakfasts.  Often the hotel has containers of milk for sale or if not, there's always somewhere selling milk close by.