Even though we are in October and technically in the fall, we still find lots of summer squashes in the market.  I like using a combination of the yellow crooked squash with zucchini in this deliciously light pasta.  You can whip up this meal in the same time in takes to boil the pasta.

Chef’s tip: To chiffonade basil, stack the leaves.  Roll tightly into a compact cylinder.  Using a sharp knife, slice thinly horizontally across the roll.  Fluff up the basil.

Ingredients:
8 oz dried spaghetti
3 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 yellow squash, grated coarse
1 medium zucchini, grated coarse
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 cup feta, crumbled
1/2 cup basil, chiffonade
1/2 teaspoon long pepper, freshly ground

1. Bring a pot of salted water to boil.  Add pasta and cook till el dente, about 12 minutes or according to package instructions.  Drain pasta, reserving about a cup of the cooking liquid.
2.  While pasta is boiling, grate squashes.  Chiffonade basil.
3.  Heat the olive oil in a saute pan over medium heat, when the oil begins to ripple, add garlic, saute until light golden, about 1 minute.
4. Add the grated squash and zucchini and suate until limp, about 2 minutes.  Layer on salt as you cook.
5. Add back the pasta.  Remove from heat.  Toss to mix.  Add in some of the reserved pasta water if needed to make the pasta strands easier to mix.
6.  Toss in feta, half the basil and the long pepper.  Toss lightly and serve.  Garnish with remaining basil.

Serves: 4

Tags: Califonina, Pasta, Vegetarian.

The stinging nettle is one of the tastiest veggies around. It has a robust aroma that is woody and mushroomy. Nettle has one of the highest protein content amongst green vegetables. Nettle is also one of those recherche items sure to impress your friends.

Nettle is a weed really, and you can find them in the fields if you just look. Don’t go picking them as its sting is quite painful. You need to protect your hands with a pair of rubber gloves when handling nettle. Hence, you will gladly pay for the $6/lb at the Ferry Building.

I grow my own nettle in my little urban “potager” on my balcony 271 ft above ground level (thanks Google Earth!). I took the washing liquid from a bunch of nettles I got from Star Route Farm and poured it onto a big pot of soil. Kept the soil moist and lo and behold, a few weeks later, tiny nettles began sprouting and they just grew and grew! Here’s a picture of my nettle “crop”. If you are planting nettles in the garden, do remember it’s pernicious and has a pretty potent sting, so you don’t want your dogs or toddler running into it!

Chef’s tip: Even tho its sting may intimidate you at first, just use a pair of tongs to handle it. Store-bought nettles are pretty sandy.  Rinse them in lots of water, shaking them with the tongs.  Nettle loses its sting when cooked even 1 minute in boiling water; its flavor is well worth the trouble!

Filling:
1 lb ricotta
1 teaspoon lemon zest
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup finely grated parmesan

32 pieces wonton skin squares
Some rice flour for dusting

Pesto:
1 lb nettle
2 tablespoons butter/ EVOO
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon fresh cracked black pepper

1/2 cup pine nuts, roasted
Parmesan wedge for grating

To make the ravioli filling (Omit if using store bought cheese ravioli like the picture in this post!)
1.    Mix together ricotta, lemon zest, salt and parmesan for the filling.
2.    To fold the ravioli, lay out wonton skin squares, 4 at a time. Brush edges with a water (just slightly damp). Place a teaspoon of filling in the center of each square and fold over to make a triangle shape, pressing edges to seal. Take the two corners along the long edge of the triangle and bring together to have both bottom sides meet (as if the raviolo is clapping with the back of its palms; the raviolo will look twisted) and press the tips to fuse together. Place finished raviolo on a baking tray dusted with rice flour. Repeat and set aside until pesto is done.
To make the nettle pesto:
3.    Rinse and wash nettles using rubber gloves and a pair of tongs. Drain and spin-dry with a salad spinner. Remove any large stems (they make great compost as they give out lots of nitrogen, no seeds nor flowers, though).
4.    Melt butter in a medium saucepot over medium high heat and add sliced garlic; sauté until golden brown. Add nettles, cover immediately to capture the aroma and cook until wilted, about 2 minutes. Add cream and salt, let the liquid reduce to half; about 1 minute. Taste. (Make sure nettles are cooked before you taste them; they loose their stinging qualities once cooked.)  Finish with some black pepper.
5.    Using a handheld blender, puree nettle until smooth. Keep warmed.
Cooking the ravioli:
6.    To cook the ravioli, bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Drop half the ravioli gently into the water, wait until all float to the top. Remove and drain. Repeat.
7.    Spoon the nettle pesto over the cooked ravioli. Sprinkle with pine nuts and serve with some grated parmesan.

Tags: Californian, Greens, Pasta, pesto, Ricotta, Vegetarian.

I first tasted Aushak at the Salang Pass restaurant in Fremont, a city where a lot of Afghan immigrants have settled. Aushak is proof that Marco Polo made his way through that part of the world (I mean through the Hindu Kush, not Fremont!) enroute back from China. Aushak is traditionally made with beef – it’s the Afghan version of ravioli with a meat sugo sauce, except that the Afghans use spices such as cardamon, sumac, coriander etc instead of herbs like oregano and basil.
I prefer the vegetarian version of Aushak, and instead of a flat dumpling, I make a “tortellini” shaped dumpling that can hold the sauce better.

Chef’s tip: In line with Mr. Polo’s “Chinese” influence, I recommend using wonton skin to make the dumplings. I think Marco Polo will agree.

Ingredients:

Tomato Sauce:
3 tablespoon Oil
1 yellow onion, finely diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tablespoon ginger, peeled, grated
1 Tablespoon cumin seeds
1 28-oz can crushed tomatoes
4 Cardamom pods, ripped opened but intact
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 Tablespoon ground coriander
½ teaspoon cayenne
1 teaspoon sumac
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 ½ cups water

Yogurt sauce:
1 cup plain yogurt
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 Tablespoon fresh mint
1/4 teaspoon salt

Leek filling:
3 leeks (about 4 cups chopped)
1 teaspoon kosher salt
½ cup finely chopped cilantro

Ravioli:
48 pieces square wonton wrappers
Some mint, chiffonade

Preparing the tomato sauce:
1.    Heat oil in a pan set over medium heat.  Add chopped onions, and sauté until translucent about 3 minutes.  Add minced garlic, ginger and cumin and sauté, 2 minutes, stirring frequently, until seeds are browned and oil is fragrant.
2.    Add tomatoes,  cardamom, cinnamon, coriander, cayenne, sumac, salt, pepper and water.
3.    Simmer gently over low heat until sauce is redued by half and is thick.  Keep warn until aushaks are ready to serve.
Preparing the yogurt sauce:
4.    Mix all the ingredients together and adjust seasoning to taste.
Preparing the ravioli:
5.    Cut off the dark green hard leaves from the leek. Keeping the roots to hold the leeks together, halve lengthwise.  Fan out the leeks and rinse under the faucet to remove sand.  Slice finely cross, wise, discard the root..
6.    Microwave leeks until soft, about 4-5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
7.    Combine leeks with salt, cilantro and let it cool.
8.    Folding the dumplings: On a clean surface lightly dusted with cornstarch, brush edges of the wonton wrapper with a little water (just slightly damp).  Mound about 1 Tablespoon of the filling in the center of each wrapper.  Bring opposite corners together to make a triangle and press to seal, making sure to remove any air from the filling.  Make sure seams are well-sealed. Next bring the two corners along the long edge of the triangle to meet together and overlap them.  Press the two corners together to fuse them.  Place on a tray dusted with cornstarch.
9.    Bring a pot of water to boil.  Drop in about 12 dumplings in at a time, give it a stir so that the dumplings do not stick to the bottom.  Wait 2-3 minutes or until the dumplings float up.  Remove with a slotted spoon.
10.    Place dumplings in a plate, ladle over tomato sauce and drizzle with yogurt sauce.  Garnish with mint.
Serves 6

Tags: Afghan, dumplings, ravioli, sumac, Vegetarian.