Cacio E Pepe Pasta Sauce with Angel Hair Pasta and Chicken

 Cacio E Pepe Pasta Sauce with Angel Hair Pasta and Chicken

    So, I was at the store recently and saw a product by Lotito Presto called "Cacio E Pepe Pasta Sauce Starter" (in English, it's a pasta sauce with sun dried tomatoes, pecorino cheese & black pepper.  On the lid, it says that it is a "traditional Roman recipe".   I decided to give it a shot, because there is no shame in using a sauce starter. Plus, I thought if I liked it, I could try and recreate it.  It's very easy, cook your noodles (I picked angel hair); put the dry sauce mix in a bowl; when your noodles are done, reserve one cup of the water you cooked the noodles in and drain your noodles.  Add the cup of water to the mix and stir.  Add the sauce to your noodles, stir and you are ready to eat.  It was just me tonight, so I just put my noodles back into the pan and added the sauce.  I also, diced up some chicken breast and cooked that with a little bit of garlic.  I stirred in the chicken after mixing the sauce and noodles.  I also added some red chili pepper flakes to the top of my bowl.  

    Back to the use of a starter sauce mix.  We've all seen sauce starter or meal starter kits at the store and like I said earlier, there is no shame in using a starter.  They're great to have on hand if you are pressed for time.  Plus, you are still cooking a meal, just with some of the ingredients already mixed together.  

    So, did I like the finished pasta dish?  Yes! Would I buy this product again? Yes.  Will I try to recreate it on my own? Also, yes, especially because I don't remember which store I found it at. The container of dry sauce starter mix is 6oz, so I'd use about that much cheese and there wasn't a lot of sun dried tomato, so I could add more or less to my taste. Will I try it with parmesan cheese? Probably.  Will it be just as good? I'm sure it will be.  

Crazy Cake - Success!!!

CRAZY CAKE!!!! 

           I made the Crazy Cake recipe which my grandmother submitted to that cookbook, referenced in my last post. I had to guess at oven temperature and pan size since it wasn't included in the recipe, then I started at the beginning (always the best place to start) by pre-heating my oven to 350 degrees, greasing and flouring an 8x8 square baking pan and collecting my ingredients.  I mixed the flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, baking soda and cocoa together. Then I added my wet ingredients one at a time, stirring after each addition and ending with the egg (the batter ended up nice and thick).  I spread the batter in the pan and you know what? It looked like I guessed correctly on the size, so  I popped the pan into the oven and set a timer for 30 minutes.  

        When the timer went off and I opened the oven, my first impression was that it looked awesome (It was pretty perfect looking) and it smelled good.  When I pulled it out and gently pressed on the top of the cake, it felt firm and I was confident it was completely cooked. I sat the pan on top of a wire rack for it to cool. Eventually, I cut into the cake and put a corner slice on a plate for myself. The cake was nice and moist and was completely baked, so I was spot on, on the baking time and the pan size (Go Me!!!).  Before I taste tested and just for fun, I actually used a measuring tape to see how tall/thick the cake had gotten and it was two inches.    

        Now, to the actual taste testing. Like I said, the cake was nice and moist.  I thought the flavor was so-so and it wasn't very, sweet. That said, I was okay with the fact that it wasn't super sweet. I had just hoped for a little more flavor. I didn't do a frosting on the cake, because I wanted to try it without.  I think it would be good with frosting. Because it's not overly sweet, a thick, sweet frosting would be fine.  Warmed, it would be a great vehicle for a scoop of ice cream, custard or mousse.  

        Overall, I was pleased with "Crazy Cake".  Would I make it again? Yes.  Would I try adding a little more flavor and/or experiment with different flavors like mocha or peppermint? Yes. Can you now try "Crazy Cake" because the 8x8 pan and 30 minutes at 350 degrees worked? Yes. I'd love to hear how it turns out of you make it. 

Pics below. 

Crazy Cake

 CRAZY CAKE

    It's been awhile since I posted.  Life has gotten busier.  I have a new boyfriend and I have a brand new Little Brother with Big Brothers Big Sisters.  So, it's exciting times.  But, I started this blog for a reason and wanted to make a post, so I pulled out the Cook Book which started this all and was searching for a recipe to make this week.  It's time to start making something from it, even though I haven't finished drafting that list (that will take forever!).  

    So, I'm searching recipes and I land on page 55 and a recipe called "Crazy Cake". I look at it and the instructions are simply to "Put mixture together".  There's no direction as to what size pan or how long to cook the cake.  Truly a crazy, cake. Then, I look a the name of who submitted it, and it is my very, own grandmother!!!!  Like I said my great-grandfather (grandma's dad) was the minister of the church whose ladies created the cook book.  So, this week I will make Crazy Cake, starting with an 8x8 pan, at 350 degrees for 30 minutes and no matter how it turns out, I'll share pics.  Recipe below:

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup milk

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 egg

1 1/2 cups flour

1/2 teaspoon soda

1/2 cup shortening

1/2 cup hot water

1/2 cup cocoa