Cooking with my heart and soul... and garlic!

Wednesday, September 29, 2010

Feisty Fra Diavolo Sauce with Shrimp & Linguini

Although my first post was tacos, I mainly cook italian food. This recipe I really enjoy - it has a bunch of my favorite things in it. Garlic, Spice, Shrimp, Pasta! Yum. I hope you all enjoy it as much as I do! 


My Feisty Fra Diavolo sauce is just that FEISTY. If you don't like that much spice adjust the ingredients accordingly. These are not exact measurements, I don't like to be exact when cooking, these measurements are rounded.  

5 to 7 Servings 

  • 1 Small Yellow Onion 
  • 5 or 6 cloves of Garlic ( minced ) 
  • 3 (28 ounce)  Cans of Crushed Tomatoes w Basil 
  • 1 (6 ounce) Can Tomato Paste 
  • 3/4 a cup of White Wine
  • 1 palmful Dried Oregano 
  • 1 palmful Dried Parsley
  • 2 tablespoon Crushed Red Pepper, Plus a Dash More ( 2 teaspoons)
  • 2 teaspoons Onion Powder
  • 1/2 cup Fresh Basil 
  • Sea Salt
  • Cracked Black Pepper   
  • Good Olive Oil  
  • Splash of Clam Juice
  • Half of lemon 

Heat olive oil in the large pan for the sauce over medium heat. Dice and saute the onion, stir frequently until onions are translucent. Add the tomatoes, tomato paste, oregano, parsley, crushed red pepper, onion powder, white wine, a splash of clam juice and squeeze the juice out of the lemon. Salt to taste. 

If you like the Fra Diavolo sauce to be especially feisty, and people I mean feisty - A good rule of thumb, add ABOUT a tablespoon of crushed red pepper flakes for every 28 Ounce can of tomatoes you use. If feisty Fra Diavolo isn't your thing, add less -  I'd say only a teaspoon per 28 ounce can. 

I like to let the sauce simmer for at least 45 minutes, stirring occasionally-  you can serve it as soon as 15 minutes but 45 and longer allows for all the flavors to really come together.

 The longer the sauce cooks the spicier it will get.  10 minutes before serving the sauce, I like to take my immersion blender to the sauce to make it smooth, if you prefer a thicker consistency leave it the way it is. Then I add fresh basil to it. It's all about personal preference. 




Bring a pot of heavily salted water to boil for the pasta. 

While the sauce is simmering and you're waiting for the water to come to a boil, relax and sip your wine - the pasta and shrimp only take a few minutes!

 And what wine should you be sipping?? A lot of wines work well with shrimp but not as many work well with red pepper flakes. The list consists of mainly white wines.  The wine I chose to serve with this Fiesty Fra Diavolo is a Riesling. Chardonnay and Riesling both go really well with garlic but out of the 2 Riesling is better with the crushed red pepper.  Another option we have here is to go with a Rose Champagne, it has enough weight to stand up to the spiciness and the bubbles help complement the heat even more. 


The garlic shrimp recipe I use comes from my favorite NJ Housewife Teresa Giudice. Her cookbook "Skinny Italian" has a lot of great things in it, but in my opinion as she calls it,  "Gorgeous Garlic Shrimp" are amazing.  I use this recipe all the time - over angel hair, in this sauce, with rice.. ANYTHING it is sooo good! 

The only modifications I did to the recipe is add more garlic ( I am the Garlic Goddess after all) and add more shrimp. 
  • 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
  • 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped - I used about 6 cloves 
  • 1 1/2 pounds large (21 to 25) shrimp peeled and deveined - I used 2 pounds 
  • 1/8 teaspoon salt
  • 1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
  • 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice


About 5 minutes before you cook the shrimp (which I buy, peeled, deveined, with no tails). I like to let the garlic and oil sit in the pan - no heat just let the flavors say hi to each other. After that -  heat the oil and garlic over medium heat for about a minute (don't let garlic get brown!)  Add the shrimp and cook until pink 4-5 minutes.  Squeeze the lemon juice and add the fresh parsley and there you have it Teresa's Gorg Garlic Shrimp! 


I was eating these shrimp like candy! soo good! 
I kept the shrimp separate from the sauce, once again just personal preference. 

While you're cooking the shrimp the pasta water should be boiling away, add the pasta of your choice - I chose linguini and cook according to the directions on the box. I made 2 boxes  for 5 -7 servings. 



Once the pasta is drained I like to put it in the pot I cooked it in. Add a few spoon fulls of the sauce to it. Then put everything together - first the pasta then ladle 2 or 3 spoon fulls of the sauce - followed by the Gorg Garlic Shrimp and a little basil for garnish.  Or serve it family style with everything in one big serving bowl. Bon Appetit!


Friday, September 24, 2010

Tasty Tacos Time

"One of the very nicest things about life is the way we must regularly stop whatever it is we are doing and devote our attention to eating. "  ~Luciano Pavarotti and William Wright, Pavarotti, My Own Story 


Food connects people. 


I decided to write this blog because food is one of the only things everyone, and anyone can connect on. Food renews our spirits and enriches our lives. In my book, life without good food is a dark and dreary day. Being italian (ok, ok I'm 50 % Italian and 50% Polish) I've grown up with many Aunts, Uncles and cousins and many, many traditions. We sing a song to our turkey on Thanksgiving (Don't ask, I'll share the lyrics to this song another time) Christmas Eve dinner revolving around the 12 fishes.. I could go on and on.  And what do all these deep traditions have in common folks? You guessed it! FOOD! 


As for the ingredients, I'm somewhat of a hippie child here. I love locally grown, organic produce. My dad has grown an awesome garden this year (some years don't produce as much as others). Amongst other things on a daily basis I use basil, rosemary and parsley all from good ol' Dad's garden. I love needing a tomato or two and going outside and picking that tomato right off the vine. If you ever picked something fresh you know that SNAP is the best sound in the world.  


Last night I made Tacos, and without that handy spice packet and taco kit. I like to make my own seasoning for two reasons. First reason is that the Spice Packet has an absurd amount of sodium and salt and secondly, I like my taco meat SPICY! - Cue the Mariachi Band! I also am a self-proclaimed Guac - o - holic and what's Taco Night without some awesome Guac ?! 


Now as for my beer or wine of choice with tacos, I love a good larger. Specifically, Land Shark. Many of you who know me know I love a good Land Shark every now and then and in this instance the Land Shark Lager complements the spicy mexican food perfectly. 


What's great about pairing food with wine or beer, there's very few wrong answers here, only some that may be better than others. When I pair them I will try and pick out one of the better ones for you. 


Onto the ingredients, when I cook, I'm more of a dab of this a dab of that and taste type girl but I will try to give you as exact measurements as I can. Remember these Beef Tacos are SPICY, if you don't like as much spice, add less. That's the beauty of cooking, you can make it your own. 
Spicy Beef Tacos 
Serves about 5



1 1/2  lbs ground beef (at least 90/10 or 80/20) 
4 tbsp chili powder
4 tbsp ground cumin
2 tsp paprika
2 tbsp garlic powder
2 tbsp onion powder
2 tbsp of crushed garlic 
1 tsp sea salt
1 tsp black pepper 
1 Lime
4 tbsp hot sauce (I like Frank’s) I like to just pour it into the pan and go around the pan 4 or 5 times 
1/2 cup jarred mild salsa
1 tbsp Grape Seed Oil 


Add the oil to the pan over medium to high heat. Add the meat in breaking apart with your spoon. After the meat is brown and cooked drain the grease out of the pan. I like to use the pan's lid to help me do this. Add all the spices and cook for about 2 minutes, then proceed to add the hot sauce, squirt the lime juice and salsa. Cook for about 5 minutes more and Voila! Spicy Taco Meat! 


Taco Garnishes
2 Roma Tomatoes Diced
1/2 Head of Red Leaf Lettuce
Shredded Cheese - Mexican Blend (I like Sargento) 


Crispy Corn Shells


As for the tortilla I like to use corn tortilla's and fry them myself in Grape Seed Oil ( you can use Canola Oil but Grape Seed is my new favorite frying oil, its healthier and tastier) 
Corn shells/wraps (I like white corn)
Sea Salt
Grape Seed oil 
1 Lime halved 
Heat a skillet over medium heat with enough grape seed oil to coat the bottom of the pan, 
and then some. I like to take the halved lime and rub it on one side of the shell. 
Cook the shells one at a time about 1 minute per side using tongs to flip. 
Place on paper towel lined plate and sprinkle with sea salt. 


Guac - o - holic 
2 very ripe avocados
1/4 red onion chopped finely 
Garlic salt to taste
Fresh parsley 
2 Limes

I like to use an old fashioned potato masher to really smash the avocado. Add the finely chopped red onion, as much garlic salt as you'd like ( don't be shy), and squeeze all that lime juice out of the lime. Use the fresh parsley for garnish.

If you're making the Guacamole in advanced to stop it from turing brown cover with thin lime slices and place in fridge covered.











That's all for now. I hope you all will enjoy this meal as much as my boyfriend and family did! 


Yours Truly, 
Garlic Goddess

Wednesday, September 22, 2010

Today is a good day to start a blog!

Who is this Garlic Goddess Foodie?!

Well the name is pretty self explanatory, I am a


self-proclaimed foodie obsessed with garlic. 


Join me on my journey as I check out restaurants, cook up a storm and pair beer and wine with my foodtastic creations.