now or never

Tomato season is almost at an end. The quantity quickly dropped off with the arrival of the cooler weather. Instead of the 5 pounds of tomatoes we were still getting two weeks ago, we got 1 pound, and they are mostly still green. And there are always some that begin to rot immediately, ripe or not, so I have to remain vigilant and use them as soon as possible. So when a tomato isn't quite ripe but needs to be used NOW, a puttanesca pasta sauce is delish. While you are preparing the sauce, put another pot on for your pasta.

Puttanesca

1-2 T. olive oil
3-4 cloves garlic, minced
1 hot pepper, seeded & chopped
1 tomato, diced
1/4 tsp. kosher salt
6-8 olives, sliced
1-2 T. capers, drained
1 cup tomato sauce (or 1 small can tomato paste + a few T. water)

Put olive oil in a saute
pan over low heat. Add
garlic & hot pepper. Cook
less then a minute, then
add diced tomato & salt.
Cook 1-2 minutes. Add
olives & capers. Cook for
another minute. Then
add tomato sauce (I thawed
the oldest batch of sauce I'd
made during the peak of
tomato season two months
ago). Cook over medium-low
heat until reduced to desired
consistency. Toss with hot
pasta. I also added a cup of
frozen spinach when the

pasta was almost done
cooking to add some
leafy greens to the meal.




Pasta Puttanesca

Ryan worked in Boston this weekend with his father. I sent him off Saturday morning with enough food to get him through the day, though he also scored some veg sushi at the convention and some chips & salsa.
Ryan's food for the day: peanut butter pretzel Mojo bar; white chocolate macadamia Luna bar; baby carrots; a pickle; snap peas; smoked Tofurky, lettuce, soy cheese, Veganaise sandwich on Italian bread; an apple; grapes.