Spicy Mustard Cream Sauce

Recently on a friday night i had my friend Adam over for dinner in exchange for him helping me retrieve photos and files from my old laptop that had died. Since i think i've only cooked once or twice for him i was able to use some of my old favorites - caesar salad and bruschetta. I was going to be adventuresome, but i ended up making pasta, which is kinda comforting on a friday night.





I picked up a great baquette from The Junction Fromagarie - they stock Thuet bread and its right downstairs so its a great option when i want something fresh and amazing. I used the bread not only for the bruschetta, but also for the croutons- there is something about warm croutons in a caesar salad that i love!




For the veggies this was a little bit of a whatever was in the fridge kinda pasta dish - which i think is fine. This one had asparagus, cremini mushrooms, carrots, shallots and garlic.

I was talking to a friend from school who is from Guyana, and mentioning that i like hot peppers, so she brought me these ones to try. I thought that the pasta might be a great place - spicy cream sauces have a spot in my heart. Adam isn't the biggest fan of spice, so i had to add this as a subtle heat. Not sure what these little numbers are called, but they have some heat!

I did a mustard cream sauce - using some of the fancy Whiskey mustard that my parents brought back from England. It was grainy and had an excellent flavour. I also added some arugula and Parmesan that i had in the fridge, the arugula to add a little colour, and well Parmesan... it was a cream sauce!

Quick Creamy Pasta

I really don't eat too much pasta, but sometimes i crave it, and its a great way of using up things in my fridge. This monday i was just feeling like carbs, and was actually considering going out for pasta when i realized how lazy that would be, so i quickly picked up some leeks and mushrooms, as i already had asparagus, broccoli, red peppers, garlic and tomatoes.

I also saw some fresh basil on the stem at the organic market while i was there, so i decided to throw a bit of that in there. I had some left over cream, and finished off my precious Kozlicks Mustard to make the sauce. Basically this was decedent and carby - just what i was craving. I topped it with some fresh cherry tomatoes and basil to lighten it up a bit. (who am i kidding look at the sauce)

Pasta for Joanna

I was recently talking to my friend Jo about the recipes that i make on my blog, and she mentioned that i never make pasta, and i guess this is true in many ways. I make noodles, which are very similar, but i don't make pasta all that much - at least since i've started blogging. I guess part of it was being a vegetarian for so long, often pasta is your only option at a restaurant and when you're a student its quick and cheap. I used to make pasta for eric all the time, but she's right i've been off pasta.

This saturday was so glorious in the city. I had a great run down to High Park, and once there i sat in the sun on a bench with my eyes closed, face turned to the sun. Not only did i have a great run, i also set off to do a bunch of home jobs that i really wanted to get at. By seven o'clock i had accomplished a lot, but my place looked like a bomb hit it and i hadn't eaten since one. I thought what better a night to have a nice rich and carby dinner - so here it is: My Pasta for Joanana.

Part of the reason i don't make pasta at home is because i LOVE rich pasta. The kind of things i want to put into pasta are not good for you, but since i had some cream left over from a soup recipe, Parmesan, mushrooms and petso i thought it was a sign. Of course i used whole wheat pasta to balance things out. Right at the end i added a little whole grain dijon - it sort of came to me at the last minute, since Jo and i had been talking about a recipe with mushrooms and a dijon cream.

Along with making the pasta, i took the opportunity to try these frozen whole wheat Ace Bakery demi-baguettes i had purchased a while ago. Baquettes are funny in that they really are only goo the day you buy them, and you have to be pretty organized if they are not on your regular shopping list. I thought this was a brilliant idea. They were actually really good. I liked the size - i ate half a demi-baguette and will use the other half for a sandwich. Recommended.


Above:

Carby delight (excuse my dirty fingernail - i had been renovating)
ACE Bakery frozen demi-baguettes
Ingredients
The Sauce (see why i can't eat this a lot)
Dinner is served!