Rag Bag Pasta and Auld Lang Syne

I think there is a saying or sentiment that as you clean and un-clutter your house…so your mind and spirit will be cleaned and un-cluttered. That has been my focus this week as all the decorations and “stuff” went back up to the attic. In Scotland, the New Year is welcomed by cleaning the house. Perhaps some small-encoded Scottish gene is called forth within me during this month of January, but I get in a sort and destroy mode that leaves even the dogs shaking their heads. It has seemed to my eyes that everywhere I look this week there are piles!

Piles in my junk drawer…Oh come on...you know.... 

you have one too!!!;-)

Piles of clothes in my closet…it’s called….come home…change clothes….back out the door for the next event…a mess!!

Laundry piles to be washed….

And so during these warm, grey, and gloomy days I started. I started cleaning, sorting, washing, and rubbing. I needed rags. I couldn’t find rags to clean the house. As a child, I remember a large canvas bag with a drawstring that held rags…lots of rags. How on earth could I not find a single old piece of material to use as a cleaning rag????? Rags for me are wonderfully comforting…. probably because they come from old cIothes and towels, memories of days of old…(now I KNOW I am getting old!!) I finally found my small rag “stash” and it made me stop and think….What was this rag in its “former life”…????

I started with the dirty front windows…Three dog noses all leaving their trace.

See one of the culprits????

When my hands get busy…my mind at first quiets and then lots of thinking begins and my mind starts getting busy too. I think I do some of my best thinking….I know...let me rephrase! When cleaning…I have inspired, focused thinking that brings ME enjoyment. I guess I need to clean more…huh ???….Oh, dear!!! Well...anyway....I started on the windows at least the on the inside and it began raining.

Rats!!! So I postponed the window project and began laundry and cleaning out the refrigerators.

Every shelf came out…every drawer came out…every

tid-bit….gone…a clean fresh start! I was a HAPPY WOMAN!!! I looked at the time…where did the afternoon go???? Time to start thinking about dinner and voila…the recipe of RAGS came to mind. Mario Batali says that there are two groups of people…Italians and those who wish they were Italians…well let’s just say I am in the latter group. I LOVE the flavors of Italy. So….a pasta dish had to be dinner.... in honor of my day of rags and a New Year’s cleaning frenzy!! Long ago I had this dish that was called straccetti – beef tatters with arugula…rather rag like. Then the pasta called stracci that is formed to look like rags came to mind. My mind just played with all this a bit and I came up with my version and homage to RAGS. I am calling it…Rag Bag Pasta. Besides…a person can only clean for so long and the reward is to go make pasta!!!!

Rag Bag Pasta:

(You can make this recipe using already made lasagna noodle sheets...Just break them into random shapes. However, they need to be approximately the same size.  Try and make homemade pasta once though...you'll be hooked....just sayin'.....)

Pasta recipe…no eggs

½ cup unbleached all purpose flour

(I know 00 flour is the preferred pasta flour, but I don’t have any so…. I used King Arthur unbleached…just fine…really fine for this rustic pasta!)

½ cup whole-wheat pastry flour

1 cup semolina

3 tsp. of extra virgin olive oil…helps the texture with no eggs

¾ cup water (it may take a little more or less depending on day)

Measure three flours and combine well.

Make a well in the middle and add oil and a little water.

Work the flour from the perimeter into the liquid and continue adding water as needed to bring the flour into a “craggy” dough.

Knead the dough for a good 10 minutes or use stand mixer with dough hook. Dough will become smooth and you will no longer feel the grit of the semolina. Come on…it’s the New Year’s Pasta Upper Body Workout!!!!!

Dampen a kitchen towel and put the dough to rest for 20 to 30 minutes…

awww sweet baby!!!

After rest time...cut dough ball into quarters.

Take a quarter section and flatten with your hands…dust dough with a bit of flour and run it through pasta machine on the widest setting. (If you don’t have a pasta machine… just roll very thinly and disregard the rest of the pasta machine suggestions…;)) I run the dough through on the widest setting and then the next one down 3  times folding and passing it through.  I alternate between the two settings. The rollers are not only are thinning the dough, but they are kneading it and the pasta dough becomes satiny smooth.

Now I run the dough through the next settings in order until it is the thickness of a playing card. It doesn’t have to be paper thin for this rag shape. Dough will get thin and long….

Now this shape is EASY! Cut dough into rag shaped triangles, rectangles, or trapezoids… whatever your rag fancy. The shape doesn’t matter, but keep them all about the same size so you have an even cooking time for all the pasta.

(Do each quarter of dough the same way. I was only cooking for two tonight, so I had more pasta than I needed. YOU CAN FREEZE fresh pasta dough!!! I simply take each quarter of dough and dust it in some flour and place it in a freezer bag. Place in the freezer and it stays great for 2 to 3 months. To thaw just put it in the refrigerator the night before you want to use it and you have fresh pasta….yippee!!)

See my pasta rag pile????

Now for the sauce and topping!!!


Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees...

Sauce:

In the bowl of a food processor or blender…

3 cups fresh baby spinach

1 cup fresh baby arugula

2 cloves of roughly sliced garlic

5 oil packed sundried tomato halves

1/3 cup walnuts

2 T. nutritional yeast

2 tsp. dried basil

pinch of salt - go easy as the topping has the saltiness

pinch of red pepper flakes

Process until roughly chopped.

Stream in:

½ cup extra-virgin olive oil

 A yummy pesto that is good on ANYTHING…but is the base of the rag bag pasta sauce. Remaining pesto can be stored in refrigerator. 

It is great on sandwiches!!!

½ cup pesto will be used for the sauce for two servings it will take all of it for 4 servings.

Topping:

Peel a medium sized eggplant.

Slice eggplant long-wise into thin ¼ inch slices. Place slices on a baking sheet. Spray or brush both sides lightly with oil and season with black pepper and garlic powder. Roast in a 400 degree oven for 15 minutes, turn slices over and roast for another 15 minutes. The eggplant will become brown and a little crispy. Don’t let it burn!!!

10 minutes before eggplant is ready to come out of oven...start pasta water to boil…you need a large pan and please salt the water. Bring water to a boil while you finish the rag topping as the pasta takes such a short time to cook…2 to 3 minutes tops!!

(In a LARGE skillet)

3 T. of olive oil

5 oz. of sliced Shiitake mushrooms

Sauté shiitake mushrooms over medium high heat

(Shiitake mushrooms are packed with good minerals, iron, and B2 and the smoky, hearty flavor is really wonderful…but whatever your favorite mushroom…that works too.)

Once mushrooms are caramelized add:

1 clove chopped garlic

1/3 cup chopped onion

Pinch of red pepper flakes


Let this hang out for a few minutes.... and add:

12 Asparagus

(wash and snap off tough ends…cut remaining stems in half so the pieces are 3 to 4 inches long)

Add asparagus to sautéing veggies.

Now add:

¼ cup olives pitted and sliced into quarters

(I used kalamata)

1 T. of rinsed capers

1/2 of a  jarred roasted red pepper sliced into thin strips

1 tsp. fresh chopped rosemary

Continue heating until asparagus is crisp tender.

Remove eggplant from oven and tear or cut it into smaller rag shapes.

Add the crispy browned eggplant to the veggie sauté. Taste for seasoning…the olives and capers are salty and thus you probably will not need additional salt.

Cook the Pasta….
If using pre-made pasta...follow package directions.

(We eat smaller amounts of pasta and more veggies…so prepare the amount YOU like to eat. I cook 12 small rag pieces per person...it is about 1/2 cup )

Place pasta rags in the boiling salted water. Stay put…do not overcook the fresh pasta after you have gone to this effort. Be ready to fish out the floating 
al dente rags and place the pasta rags directly into the sauce…it takes just minutes…start checking after 2 minutes. The pasta will float like gnocchi floats when it is done. SO…..BE READY!!!

Sauce:

In a large skillet placed on medium low heat add:

(this is for two servings increase to 1 cup for 4 servings)

½ cup of the pesto

Pour one ladle of the pasta water into the pesto and stir well to combine. 

As the pasta finishes cooking spoon into the sauce and toss gently. There will be some water with the pasta as it goes into the sauce. All pasta should be lightly coated in the green goodness and add more pasta water if needed to thinly coat all pasta rags evenly.

Ready to plate!!!!

In a large shallow bowl for each serving:

1 cup of fresh baby arugula or baby spinach or a combo of the two…

Add a serving of pasta on top of each serving of fresh greens.

Top pasta with the rag vegetable topping arranging the asparagus around the bottom and colorful red pepper strips across top. Garnish with a sprig of fresh rosemary and a drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil to finish….Yummmy!!!

Better than the beef straccetti years ago….mama mia….it sa good!!!

I KNOW BAD ACCENT!!! Sorry, Mario….

This first full week following all the holiday hub-bub is always a challenge. It takes a few days to get back into a routine. Cleaning the environment where you live or work is a good transition back to reality. My rag hunt was valuable in that it helped me remember how things have been long ago. Going through the Christmas Greeting and Photo cards one more time and remembering all the friendships we've made through the years made me smile. Every year I hear, “Auld Lang Syne” on New Year's Eve.  I remember as a child hearing Guy Lombardo and his orchestra play this song from some fancy New York hotel on TV. I remember my parents singing, “Should old acquaintance be forgot and never brought to mind? Should old accquaintance be forgot and auld lang syne…….we’ll take a cup of kindness then and auld lang syne.” I remember learning in school that the Scottish man, Robert Burns, wrote these words back in the late 1700’s as a poem and I remember thinking as a young girl…Wow…Mr. Burns must be smiling in heaven. People hundreds of years later are singing his words every year…now that’s a POEM!!! 


Cleaning my surroundings allowed my mind to remember, to be creative, to relax and focus. I found out this week staying hydrated doesn’t hurt either. I have a new Christmas present that is the BEST and I have to share it. I got a BRITA water bottle and I have NEVER had so much water to drink…I am cleaning my insides too!!! I highly recommend it. Try one…it’s great!!!

Trying to clear away clutter and excess…well…it reminded me of the important parts of life…the relationships that make life meaningful, the memories that make life rich, and the affirmation that clearing away makes room for newness. I think that is why the dogs put their noses against the glass…they are waiting for something new.

Here’s to new…and not worrying about nose marks on the glass….Are you waiting for something new???

Thoughtful living moment today:  Cleaning one area a day…either physically or mentally…makes room for something new to be present in life and……. it surely prevents piles!!!!