And on a more personal note...

We're getting married!!!

He asked me at the Italian deli where we had our first real date. I didn't take any pictures of the food and wine, because I was too busy being, um, teary-eyed.

But I can describe.

Now I understand why people order pasta when they go out to eat. See, I grew up with dried pasta and jarred sauce, sometimes with the green can of shelf-stable Parm. Pasta, especially in tomato sauce, has always been poor food to me.

Oh, glorious simple carbs! The hand-made cavatelli were tender and full of flavor -- not at all like the bland boxed pastas of my childhood, the ones that had to be doused in tomato sauce to be edible. Not. At. All. I would gladly have eaten them with a simple garlic butter. But no! They came with a deliciously fresh meat sauce that made a mockery of the sauces I grew up with.

The wine was a Moscato D'Asti whose name I can't remember. We loved it so much that we took another bottle home with us. I'll rave about it when we drink it, because memory just won't do it justice.

I really think that it's impossible to plug that restaurant too much. It's so terrific that I'm almost afraid to try cooking Italian food at home!

Quick, easy, healthy snack

I had a bad case of the Mondays last night that only a bottle of wine would cure.

But what about a snack to go with it? It was 9:30 P.M.! It had to be healthy! And quick!

Done and done. Seriously, you don't even have to measure this stuff. It's so ridiculously simple.

Ingredients

• Roma tomatoes
• Grated Parmesan (or shredded Parmesan, or mozzarella)
• Freshly ground black pepper
• Salt
• Crushed red pepper flakes

Directions

1. Heat the oven to 400 degrees. If you have a toaster oven, that's even better (and I am very jealous).
2. Slice the tomatoes. Lay them on a baking sheet. Sprinkle with pepper, salt, cheese, and red pepper flakes.
3. Bake at the bottom of the oven for 10 minutes.
4. Serve. Drink wine. Feel better.
   

(The wine, by the way, was too dry. But then, I like super-sweet drinks.)

Italian pasta salad

My mom made pasta salad a lot when I lived at home: some pasta, some peppers, onions, and olives, and some Italian dressing. So (along with pancakes for dinner) it's kind of comfort food to me.

But I got to thinking: could I make it healthier by bulking it up with more veggies?

Yes. Yes I can. And now you can, too.

Ingredients

• 1 lb rigatoni
• 1 bell pepper, chopped
• 3 Roma tomatoes, seeded and chopped
• 1 broccoli crown, cut into bite-sized florets
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• about 15 black olives, sliced
  
• 1T capers, chopped
• 1t red pepper flakes
• 1/2 cup of your favorite Italian salad dressing
• freshly ground black pepper
• grated parmesan for dusting

Directions

1. Cook the pasta until al dente. Drain and rinse with cold water.
2. Cook the broccoli in boiling water 1 minute. Drain and rinse with cold water. Add to the pasta.
   
3. Add the pepper, tomatoes, broccoli, onion, olives, capers, pepper flakes, black pepper, and salad dressing. Toss until well mixed, then chill for 30 minutes.
4. Sprinkle the parmesan onto individual portions just before serving.

Notes

• Some salami or bacon would be a tasty addition. I meant to add the leftover bacon from the grilled cheese sandwiches, but I forgot. Oops.
• Maybe try some pickled cherry peppers instead of the crushed red pepper flakes, for heat with extra flavor.
• I'll probably use zucchini next time.
• Mushrooms might be good if you're into that kind of thing.