Recipes

[IamMrsG]

The Chew's website is copyrighted, so I will not copy the recipe. Instead here is a link to

Mario Batali's Pasta alla Norma, a dish based on penne pasta and eggplant. We had it for dinner last night and lunch today, for a total of 4 servings (instead of the 6 it says in the header). Additionally, do not be turned off by the 60-120 minutes it says is needed. I had it on the table in about half an hour. A real fan of ricotta, I loved it at first bite, while DH thought it could use some "pizzazz." Here are my copied notes from our first trial of the dish:

My notes: 1. Mario's reference to basic tomato sauce is probably his own recipe. I used an 8 oz can plain tomato sauce to pour over the pasta mixture in the skillet and opened another one for spooning some over at plating. It worked for me, but this might be a good place to add some 'pizzazz' for DH next time.

2. Wine: Cabernet Sauvignon or Cabernet Franc or any other dry red you like.

3. During the show, Mario was challenged as to who Norma was and why she merited having a recipe named for her. He was prepared with the answer that "Norma" references an Italian opera. His show cohorts oohed and aahed in mock admiration of his vast knowledge.