Time and Place Pasta

I remember the first time I cooked for a boyfriend. It was a pasta dish with a Tarragon white wine cream sauce tossed with seared shrimp and scallops. I realize now this may be why I am still single. My timing with food has always been off. When you are a 19 year old boy you like hamburgers and fries or maybe a steak and loaded baked potato. You get your vegetable rations of the Pyramid by eating salad with Ranch dressing.

I decided to bring out this dish again and see if it was just a mature palate that it needed. I have been rejected by a total of 11 male run restaurants where I have offered to wash dishes in exchange for food prep cooking experience in their establishment. I am guessing I need to get to work on some grilling skills. So, lets have one last hooray with a Lenten version of this pasta dish. I have a feeling it has a future in my female run establishment!

I wash some fresh asparagus; halve a lemon and gather my dried tarragon, cracked pepper, half n half and dry white wine. I use half n half because I already have it on hand for my coffee. But you can use whipping cream or milk. I already have wine on hand because I am a single 40 something year old living out in the middle of no where. I have to use dried tarragon for the same reason; though I don't think the herb really discriminates on age and sex.

The garlic minced (about two small cloves), a tablespoon of butter and a tablespoon of flour (for thickening) starts the pan off. Then Tarragon is added; about a teaspoon. An 8 oz glass of Wine is added after about a minute. Then add your cup of cream and a few swirls of cracked pepper, a pinch of salt and a ¼ cup of shaved cheese such as Parmesan.

Cook the pasta (enough for two servings) – I like bow tie for this dish; don't rinse when done so the pasta will hold the sauce. Then I saute the asparagus in olive oil and super thin sliced garlic.

In the end I combine everything and top with more shaved cheese and cracked pepper!

It looks pretty good; and it tastes pretty darn great! I can say, at 19 I didn't knew about the idea of butter and flour to thicken so this was probably a pretty runny sauce that first go around...thanks Chad for eating it anyway...! (I re-ran this recipe for Greg years later after I learned some refinements; but he was such an ass I wish he had been the beginning tester of when I was learning the dangers of salmonella ~ ah, how food is a memory).

It has occurred to me that I make a lot of dishes that recommend you accompany them with crusty bread and a mixed green salad; so I will work on that for future posts. I will also work on food fit for the 40 (or 30ish~ :)) something year old boyfriend as I am sure he is just on the other side of the pasta isle; probably somewhere in the grilling section!

And Ladies, if you don't have pasta or a man in your life; then I pray you have one of these: