Spaghetti Frisbee
0
My few and far between updates lately have probably clued you into the fact that things around here have been pretty busy. I think we’ve spent half the month of July out of town and this will probably be my only post this week, too, because we have some dinner plans and also are going to Lollapalooza this weekend. Hopefully if I make it back (I’m getting too old and it’s far too hot for me to be going to a 3-day outdoor festival), things will start picking up around here in August.
A torta Giada made inspired me to make this dish because I had all the ingredients on hand. Well, okay, that’s not actually true. I discovered just as I was about to throw my spaghetti into the boiling water that I really only had 6 oz. of pasta. And then I realized I just had about 1/3 cup of sundried tomatoes. And I never have parmesan cheese – I always opt for more flavorful romano. And, well, you guessed it. I didn’t have fontina, either.
But no matter. This torta or spaghetti frittata or pasta quiche or whatever you want to call it (my husband, who always comes up with really unappealing names for dishes regardless of them being good, has dubbed this “spaghetti frisbee”) is a really basic, versatile dish that you can pretty much throw anything you want into.I decided to replace some of the egg with half and half because I needed to use it up before it spoiled. I also added some chicken sausage to bulk this up and add a little protein. And of course I added nutmeg because I personally do not think a white or egg sauce is complete without nutmeg. This was simple and good. A nice crispy outside with a creamy inside. I increased the sundried tomatoes in the recipe below because I do think mine needed a few more. I think some caramelized onions would also be a great addition to this.
Inspired by Giada DeLaurentiis 6 oz. spaghetti, cooked and cooled Heat 1 tsp. olive oil in a pan and then crumble the sausage into the pan, cooking until done. Set aside to cool. Mix together the cheeses, nutmeg, half and half, eggs & some freshly ground pepper. Toss the mixture with the cooled pasta and then stir in the sausage and the sundried tomatoes. Preheat the broiler. In a nonstick skillet (mine was 10″), heat the remaining tsp. of olive oil and the butter. Transfer the spaghetti mixture to the skillet, pressing to form an even layer. Cook until the bottom is golden, about 3 minutes. Transfer to the broiler to finish cooking and crisp up, about 5 more minutes. Allow to cool slightly before inverting onto a platter and slicing into wedges. Nutritional Information Per Serving (with whole wheat pasta & Trader Joe’s chicken sausage): Calories: 389 / Fat: 18.4g / Saturated: 6.5g / Carbs: 36g / Fiber: 5.7g / Protein: 24.1g
Spaghetti Frisbee
Serves 4
2 tsp. olive oil, divided
2 links (1/2 lb.) Italian chicken sausage, casings removed
1 oz. smoked gouda, grated or shredded
2 oz. pecorino romano, grated
pinch of nutmeg
1/3 cup half and half or cream
2 extra large eggs, lightly beaten
1/2 cup sundried tomatoes, drained and chopped
1/2 Tbsp. butter
salt and pepper (I actually used zero salt – odd for me – because of the cheese & sausage)