BAKED PASTA WITH TOMATOES, SHIITAKE MUSHROOMS AND PROSCIUTTO

The following recipe is the reason that I started a food blog. I made this many, many years ago then promptly lost the recipe.
It took me about 15 years to find it again. I first found this in a 1991 issue of Gourmet magazine.

I post it now so as never to lose it again.

This is one of my all-time favorite party recipes. It can be made the day before and popped into the oven to bake just before guests arrive. A perfect midwinter dish served up with Italian bread, a salad and red wine.

I know it looks long and complicated but it really is so easy, and just a little time consuming.



2 cups finely chopped onion
2 large garlic cloves, minced
1/4 teaspoon dried hot red pepper flakes, or to taste
1 teaspoon dried basil, crumbled
1 teaspoon dried orégano, crumbled
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 pound fresh shiitake mushrooms, stems discarded and the caps
sliced
1/2 stick (1/4 cup) unsalted butter
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 cups milk
two 28-ounce cans Italian tomatoes, drained well and chopped
1/4 pound thinly sliced prosciutto, cut into strips
1/4 pound Italian Fontina, grated (about 1 cup)
1/4 pound Gorgonzola, crumbled (about 1 cup)
1 1/2 cups freshly grated Parmesan
2/3 cup minced fresh parsley leaves
1 pound farfalle (large bow-tie-shaped pasta) or penne (quill-shaped
macaroni)

In a large skillet cook the onion, the garlic, the red pepper flakes, the basil, and the orégano in the oil over moderately low heat, stirring, until the onion is softened.
Add the mushrooms, cook the mixture over moderate heat, stirring, for 10 to 15 minutes, or until the mushrooms are tender, and transfer the mushroom mixture to a large bowl. In the skillet melt 3 tablespoons of the butter over moderately low heat, whisk in the flour, and cook the roux, stirring, for 3 minutes. Add the milk in a stream, whisking, and simmer the mixture, whisking, for 2 minutes, or until it is thickened. Pour the sauce over the mushroom mixture and add the tomatoes, the prosciutto, the Fontina, the Gorgonzola, 1 1/4 cups of the Parmesan, and the parsley.
In a kettle of boiling salted water cook the pasta for 5 minutes (the pasta will not be tender) and drain it well.

Add the pasta and salt and pepper to taste to the mushroom mixture, toss the mixture until it is combined well, and transfer it to a buttered 3- to 4-quart baking dish. The pasta may be prepared up to this point and kept covered and chilled overnight. Bring the pasta to room temperature before continuing with the recipe. Sprinkle the pasta with the remaining 1/4 cup Parmesan, dot it with the remaining 1 tablespoon butter, cut into bits, and bake it in the middle of a preheated 450°F. oven for 25 to 30 minutes, or until the top is golden and the pasta is tender.

Add the mushrooms, cook the mixture over moderate heat, stirring, for 10 to 15 minutes, or until the mushrooms are tender, and transfer the mushroom mixture to a large bowl. In the skillet melt 3 tablespoons of the butter over moderately low heat, whisk in the flour, and cook the roux, stirring, for 3 minutes. Add the milk in a stream, whisking, and simmer the mixture, whisking, for 2 minutes, or until it is thickened. Pour the sauce over the mushroom mixture and add the tomatoes, the prosciutto, the Fontina, the Gorgonzola, 1 1/4 cups of the Parmesan, and the parsley.
In a kettle of boiling salted water cook the pasta for 5 minutes (the pasta will not be tender) and drain it well.

Add the pasta and salt and pepper to taste to the mushroom mixture, toss the mixture until it is combined well, and transfer it to a buttered 3- to 4-quart baking dish. The pasta may be prepared up to this point and kept covered and chilled overnight. Bring the pasta to room temperature before continuing with the recipe. Sprinkle the pasta with the remaining 1/4 cup Parmesan, dot it with the remaining 1 tablespoon butter, cut into bits, and bake it in the middle of a preheated 450°F. oven for 25 to 30 minutes, or until the top is golden and the pasta is tender.

Serves 6 to 8.

ALRIGHT, ALREADY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Cooking a piece of meat at 425 degrees is not a good idea.

Waterbaby- help me.

I have been badgered endlessly about the temperature in the pork roast recipe. here's my concession. Enough already.
I thought the pork came out fabulously at that temp. but others seem not to agree.

Casserole, By Water Baby

Hi all! This is one of the very few dishes that I can successfully make, so it must be easy, right? It's an asparagus casserole that my mom taught me to make, she learned it from the lovely Grandmother Bulletholes.

Prep time: 15-20 minutes, 5 minutes in the oven

You will need:
1 casserole dish, any size
1 bowl
1 box wheat crackers, Wheatables or other
1-2 cans of uncooked Campbell's Cream of Mushroom Soup
1-2 cans of asparagus *don't use fresh, it won't work*
Grated Cheddar Cheese
Hard Boiled Eggs

Prep:
1. Pre-heat the oven to 400.
2. Crush up crackers with a rolling pin, your hands, be creative! Put a layer about 1/2-1 inch thick on the bottom of the casserole dish.
3. Drain the juice from the cans of asparagus into the bowl. Lay the asparagus side by side on top of the crackers, just one layer, depending on how big your dish is.
4. Spoon a layer of the soup about an inch thick on the asparagus.
5. Sprinkle the cheese on top, a layer of 1-2 inches.
6. Slice the hard boiled eggs and put the slices on top of the cheese, however many you think it needs.
7. Slowly pour the asparagus juice over it all, you don't been all of it, so be careful, if it is too runny it won't turn out right. Use a toothpick or a fork to poke a few holes to the bottom so the juice gets to the crackers.
8. Put it in the oven for 5-10 minutes until the cheese is all melted. Let cool for a few minutes before serving.

This is easy, fast and great for something to take to a party.