The soul that sees beauty must sometimes walk alone.
—Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Eat alone too. Trust me, I've been there.
I'm reluctant to go public with this, but for a lot of years now, when I am all by myself around the dinner hour, particularly after an emotionally trying day, I seek comfort inside, well... a six-ounce can of tomato paste.
There, I said it.
I toss a whole lot of olive oil and an onion into my favorite quick-fry pan, the one that I picked up at a used restaurant equipment warehouse years back. Once the onions are nice and soft I pop open a can of my favorite paste (Pastosa from New York) and apply anywhere from half to two-thirds of the contents to the saute.
Toss in some just-cooked pasta (what, you were expecting sanddabs?) and stir.
And there you have it. A beautiful thing.
Fine, don't eat it with me. Nobody else around here will either.
That headline is there for a reason, you know.
I prefer to buy my tomato paste in a tube, especially when I can get the double concentrated style from Italy. Unfortunately, I don't go to Italy on a regular enough basis. So how do you, Dottore Polpetta, store a half used can of tomato paste?
ReplyDeleteLet's just say "collateral damage" and leave it at that.
ReplyDeleteAdd a little more pasta and you have enough for my hubs and myself..It looks great to me, I love ricotta cheese, I would top it with that and a shave of parmesan cheese..Some good bread and call it a nice small dinner! Happy St. Patricks day to you, love your blog read it all the time. ciao!!!!!!!!!!
ReplyDeleteYou can freeze it. Just scrape the remains from the can into a small container or plastic bag and put it in the freezer. Then when you need it, you can just take it out and toss it into the pot. Works like a charm.
ReplyDeleteThis works a lot better for me than corned beef and cabbage.
ReplyDeleteLove it. I've been doing similarly (& surreptiously) since the mid-60s.
ReplyDeleteMy Irish grandmother, raised in Brooklyn early in the last century, and
a Sunday-Gravy Artist to be reckoned with, IMHO, would smack me one if
she knew...
Sadly, she's safe from such disappointments. But even in these degenerate
times I attempt the real thing at least once a month. Your (recently dis-
covered) blog can't but help - When the complaints start rolling in you'll
know who to blame...