Letter and recipes from Sister Carroll

May 15, 2015

Hello Elder Day and "Momma,"

I just have to tell you, Sister Day, that your son is a great missionary!  He's organized, responsible, and works hard... plus he has great taste in books and anime :-)  My husband and I love having him over and he and your family are welcome to stay with us anytime post-mission.

Small world in the church: I think that it's wonderful that I was an EFY counselor in Redlands, and now we are both in the same area!  We can geek out about EFY together!

Here are four recipes that I was able to type out... but I can't promise any definite measurements.  I am still looking for Chef's Penne Carbonara recipe because a) it is phenomenal and b) I've been craving it ever since we moved here.  Thanks to the help from the elders, I am now able to access my recipes.

Also, the pesto that I made for you was just from a jar. The best store brands that I have found are the Trader Joe's "Pesto Genovese" or Kroger's "Private Selection" brand of green pesto.  I make my own pesto (basil, garlic, pine nuts, cheese, olive oil), but it is hard to get the mix right without a Vitamix or other high-powered blender.

The pasta we had for dinner was just a cheese tortellini.  My favorite pre-packaged pasta to eat is butternut squash ravioli with some olive oil, balsamic vinegar, fresh parmesan, and crushed walnuts on top.

Thank you so much and let me know if you would like any more cooking ideas!

- Sister Arielle Carroll  From the Staunton Ward 

(Jeremy must have requested some recipes) 

Bruchetta

(This is one where I don't have the measurements, sorry.)

Ingredients:

• Vine ripe tomatoes (approx. 6-8)
• Fresh basil leaves
• Fresh minced garlic
• Olive oil
• Balsamic vinegar (not too much)
• Salt and pepper (to taste)

Italian Cheesecake

It's better if you make your own sweet crust, but I'm too lazy, and this works just as well :-)

Crust:

2C Graham cracker crumbs

½C Sugar

½C Butter

Mix crumbs with sugar and melted butter.  Using a fork, press into the base and sides of a 9in pie pan to form a crust.

Cake Ingredients:

2 (8oz) packages of cream cheese, softened

2 Eggs

2/3C plus 2T sugar

1C sour cream

2 tsp vanilla

• Blend the cream cheese until smooth.  Blend in the eggs, 2/3C sugar, and 1tsp vanilla.  Pour into the crust and bake at 375 for 20 minutes.  Remove from oven and let cool for 15 minutes.
• Meanwhile, combine sour cream with 2T sugar and 1tsp vanilla.  Carefully spread the mixture over the cooled, baked filling. Return cake to 425 oven and for 10 minutes.  Let cool, and then chill overnight.
• Top with your choice of fruit (I choose blueberries)

Pasta Lemone

Ingredients (I guesstimated these measurements):

• 1 large yellow (or I like sweet) onion cut into small slivers (not squares. Don't make them too thin.)
• 3 chicken breasts cut into very small cubes
• Olive oil (a few cups)
• Angel hair pasta (1-3 packages.  Good pasta this size should only need to cook for about 2 minutes.)
• Parmesan or Romano cheese (as much as possible)
• Lemon juice
• Salt and pepper to taste

Start your water for the pasta (make sure it is heavily salted) so that it will come to a boil after your pan ingredients are simmering. 

Saute the onions in just a couple of Ts of olive oil until they are just beginning to brown.  Then, add the uncooked chicken.  The chicken should be cut into small enough pieces that it cooks in just a couple of minutes.  Then, add enough olive oil to cover the entire base of the pan in a thick layer… yes, it's a lot of oil.  Add a little salt and pepper.  Let all of your pan ingredients simmer together on low for several minutes.

While your pasta is cooking, get the cheese and about 1C of lemon juice ready.

As soon as the pasta is finished, drain it and place it in a large bowl.  Add all of your ingredients at once (chicken, onions, oil, cheese, lemon) and mix together quickly so that the cheese melts all the way through and does not clump.

Enjoy!

Red Pepper Cream Sauce

Use over the pasta of your choice.  I also like to bake some bread so that I can mop up the extra sauce and cheese!

Ingredients:

• 6-8 large red peppers, diced
• 1 large yellow onion
• Approx. 1T of Italian pepperoncinos (I had to look for these online.  They're basically hot peppers, but not a South American taste.)
• Lots of heavy whipping cream… I'm really not sure how much.  Probably 3-4 pints.
• Romano cheese… lots
• Olive oil
• Salt to taste

On high heat, saute the onions and pepperoncinos in olive oil until soft.  (Don't stick your face in the steam… it's spicy.  This is when I wear my steampunk goggles!) Reduce heat to medium or medium-low. Pour in heavy whipping cream and stir constantly. 

Wait until the cream is heated to steaming, then add the diced red peppers and as much of the red pepper juice as possible.  The peppers should take up the majority of space in the pot.  You don't want too much cream because then the flavor will be weak.  Keep stirring so that the cream doesn't stick and until the peppers are cooked in the cream… this could take over an hour. 

Then, remove the sauce from heat and ladle it into a blender (make sure that the blender is not too full!  You don't want to burn yourself or melt the blender.)  Blend the sauce together so that it becomes a nice orange-red with no chunks. 

Return it to the pot on medium-low heat and add a lot of Romano cheese.  Cook it together for at least another 20 minutes.  Don't forget to stir!

Ladle the sauce over cooked pasta and top with even more cheese!