Buying love with cookies

'Tis the season for chocolate, mulled wine, pine-smelling goodies, and holiday-themed sweaters!  I come to you today with a simple cookie recipe: Salted Chocolate Chunk Cookies.  I started making them this summer during my fun-employment and D and I ate a couple dozen in two days.  I brought them to a 4th of July BBQ and they vanished by the end of the night. A few weeks into my new job, I brought them to a potluck lunch and once again they were a hit.  In fact, they were loved so much that last week my boss asked me at our holiday lunch if I had made them and when I said I had brought gingerbread cake instead, she stomped her foot with displeasure. Wow! These cookies are getting in people's heads. 

These past few weeks we've had a handful of holiday parties with co-workers and friends and I feel lucky to be able spread cheer with these magic cookies.  In a new city the holidays can feel foreign and if it weren't for the people we've met who now consider us family, I don't know where we would be - oh wait, probably eating cookies on the couch by ourselves.  As we close out this year, I feel thankful for the friends, new and old, who help keep me sane, and for family who we will either be with in person or in spirit.  May your holidays be warm, bright and full of cookies!

Salted Chocolate Chunk Cookies (via Smitten Kitchen via Not Without Salt)

Yield: 18 - 24 cookies

1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature

2 tablespoons granulated sugar

2 tablespoons turbinado sugar (I usually use brown sugar instead)

3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons packed brown sugar (I leave out the 2 tablespoons)

1 large egg

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

34 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon fine sea or table salt

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 pound semi- or bittersweet chocolate cut into 1/2-inch chunks with a serrated knife (I cheat and use the Trader Joe's semi-sweet chocolate chunks)

Flaky sea salt, to finish

Heat oven to 360 degrees F (yes 360, not 350!) and line baking sheet with parchment paper. 

In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugars with an electric mixer until light and fluffy, roughly 5 minutes.  Add egg and vanilla, beating until incorporated, and scraping down the bowl as needed.  Beat in sea salt (not the flaky salt) and baking soda until combined.  Then slowly add flour and mix until combined.  The dough will look crumbly at this point - that's ok.  With a silicone spatula, add the chocolate chunks.  If the dough is still too crumbly, then add a tablespoon of cold water.

Scoop cookies into 1 1/2 tablespoon mounds, spacing them apart on the prepared baking sheet. Sprinkle each with a few flakes of sea salt.  Bake for 11 or 12 minutes, until golden on the outside but still very gooey and soft inside.  Once out of the oven, let them rest on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack.

Insider tip - I like to make a double batch and I form half the batter into scoops and then freeze them on a baking sheet until solid.  I've baked these right from the freezer when having people over or just wanting a couple for D and I to have when the craving hits!

Glints of red in a sea of green

Last week I spotted four trees, lined up a row, and their leaves were turning a beautiful shade of red.  I was walking Parker early before work and I looked around the street to see if anyone else noticed what I had.  Parker and I walked, he kind of pranced as corgis do, over to the other side of the street and I stood and stared at the ruby-colored trees.  Could it be?  I quickly snap-chatted a picture to a few friends and captioned it "I found fall in Dallas."  I wish I had saved the picture as proof. A friend of mine in Dallas replied, "Welcome to fall in the South." A few days later, I called my brother, who has lived in Texas and California for the last 9 years, and we talked about how weird it is to live in a place where the leaves barely change and the temps are in the 70's in November. He told me the payoff would be worth it in the winter.  

The last few days have felt more like fall.  There's a chill in the air and it smells different outside.  You know that smell of leaves, football, Oktoberfest beer and sunshine? This past weekend I went to a Beer fest and drank my fair share of Oktoberfest and Stout beer.  As the sun went down, I put on my jacket and thought to myself, I'm chilly! I pulled out my phone to check the temperature and it was 55 degrees. 55 DEGREES people.  My former midwestern-living self would have killed for a 55 degree night.  While I was tougher when it came to wind and cold in Chicago, I've learned to acclimate to the heat here and I'm ok with waiting longer for Fall.  In the past four months I've experienced more change in my life between moving, securing a new job (!!!), meeting new friends and exploring a different part of the country.  Because of this, I'm ok with the lack of change of seasons. 

Big Bend National Park

In my kitchen, I had been holding on strong to heirloom tomatoes, corn, and stone fruits.  As those disappeared from the grocery store I started to buy more squash, sweet potatoes, figs and grains.  Apparently my stomach has big plans for making tons of squash as I came home from the store the other day with acorn AND delicata AND spaghetti squash - but the good thing is, these goods keeps forever.  For dinner that night, I hacked (literally) into an acorn squash and filled it with a quinoa situation.  Using a Food & Wine recipe as a guide, I roasted the squash, boiled quinoa, threw in some goodies, whipped up a dressing and in under an hour I had created quite the autumn-themed acorn squash boat.  Wherever you live, this recipe is sure to put you into an autumn state of mind.  Now, if I can just learn to grasp that Thanksgiving is in two weeks since I'm hosting it for the first time. I better get to menu planning!

Acorn Squash Boats - Adapted slightly from Food & Wine

1 Acorn Squash, halved (could use Delicata, if you prefer)
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon maple syrup
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1 cup quinoa
2 cups water
2 tablespoons apricots, chopped
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon honey
1 apple (any kind), diced
1 large shallot, minced
1 garlic clove, minced
1/4 cup pecans, chopped

1. Preheat the oven to 350.  Brush the cut sides of squash with the 1 tablespoon of olive oil and season the cavities with salt and pepper. Place the squash cut side down on a baking sheet and roast for 45 minutes, until tender. When they are soft, remove from oven and brush with 1 tablespoon of maple syrup.

2. Meanwhile, in a saucepan place 1 cup quinoa and 2 cups of water and bring to boil.  Once boiling, turn the heat down to a simmer and cover for 10 minutes. Stir in the apricots and simmer another 5 minutes.  Transfer quinoa to a large bowl and let it cool.

3. In a small dish whisk the vinegar, honey and remaining tablespoon of olive oil and season with salt and pepper.  Add the dressing to the quinoa with the apple, pecans, shallot and garlic and toss well.

4.  Set the squash halves on plates. Fill with the quinoa salad and serve. Happy Fall!

Bikinis & Galettes

The other night I checked the temperature at 10:00pm and it was 92 degrees.  When friends ask "How hot is Dallas?" I usually respond with, "It's really hot, but honestly, it doesn't bother me." My coping mechanism is this: anytime I get into a swelteringly hot car and the temperature reads 112, I remember how I felt in Chicago in the winter and I immediately feel better. It's my new favorite thing.

But let's face the reality, we live in a place that is basically a sauna 24/7, so I've taken on a new hobby - swimming! I found a swimming pool and it's the perfect escape in this southern heat. The first day I showed up with my Target bikini and swim goggles and I think I only swam 4 laps of breast stroke. I was exhausted and totally enamored with the other swimmers who had sporty swimsuits, goggles, swim caps, pull buoys and flippers.  In addition to cool accessories, they all seemed at ease in the water. I left with a new appreciation and also a mission for my summer - learn how to swim a mile in this pool.   First things first, I bought a good swimsuit, so that I didn't risk accidentally exposing myself to my lap neighbor, and since then I've been building up stamina with each trip to the pool.  

Swimming is hard, and each time I leave the pool, I feel very proud of what I accomplished. Do you want to know what else is hard in my world? Finding the right job in this new crazy place. The other night over dinner, D and I talked about my job search and how many ups and downs I've experienced over the past few months. I've had a combination of great, ok and terrible interviews and learned a lot about myself throughout the process. Each day I still chug along by applying to jobs, meeting a new contact for lunch/coffee (whatever is easiest for them!), or having an interview. I've learned there are a lot of jobs out there, but finding the right one for me and then convincing them I'm the best candidate - is a lot harder than it looks. See, it really is JUST like swimming :)

Today, I'm happy to report, I swam a mile in an OLYMPIC SIZE SWIMMING POOL. It felt incredible. Small victories over here but it felt really good. I should preface, this recipe has nothing to do with swimming or job searches. Whenever I'm having a day that involves endless job board scrolling, I find that cooking something great makes me feel a whole lot better. This recipe for a Burst Tomato Galette just screams summer. You can choose any vegetable you want, really. Also, if you're not keen on making your own dough, a store-bought puff pastry is a yummy alternative. The word 'galette' sounds so fancy but really, it is very simple. You'll notice it has a few ingredients and takes an hour or so of time to pull together and I promise it's worth it. 

Burst Tomato Galette from Smitten Kitchen

The Pastry
1 1/4 cups All-Purpose Flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
8 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into cubes and chilled afterwards
1/4 cup plain yogurt or sour cream
2 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup ice water

The Filling
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/4 teaspoon table salt
3 cups of cherry tomatoes
1 ear of corn, cut from the cob
1 small zucchini, diced
4 scallions, thinly sliced
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese

The Glaze 
1 egg yolk with 1 teaspoon of water

I'll default to Smitten Kitchen since she does a great job of laying out the steps.  Follow this link for her instructions.  The galette will keep for a day or two in an air-tight container in the fridge.  I think it's even better the next day!

Miles crossed

I am sitting on my patio and just finished a deliciously sweet and sticky popsicle.  Since my last post, we've moved almost 1,000 miles from Chicago to Dallas.  We said adios to our jobs, celebrated with friends and family, and said "see you later" to the city we called home for 7 years.  While in Chicago, D and I both started and finished graduate school, moved into our first apartment together, got married, made many lifelong friends, attended loads of concerts, ate/drank very well and fell in love with the Windy City. Now that we've moved, I've reflected on the aspects of Chicago that I miss, like our friends, favorite restaurants and views of Lake Michigan.  However, there are other parts that I'm happy I won't have to face anymore like the traffic and long commutes, the bitter cold of winter, and the need to feel like I'm always in a rush to get somewhere.  Dallas is very different than anywhere I've lived and so far I'm loving the heat, the constant sunshine (it's sunny on average 235 days a year here!), and the southern hospitality of strangers.

After living in one place for so long, it's incredible how many things you accumulate. For weeks leading up the move we packed what felt like thousands of boxes, used a ridiculous amount of bubble wrap, and tossed or donated many of our belongings. Somehow we managed to move everything and not one thing broke, which is a total miracle.  We're getting settled in our Dallas home and I'm feeling like a kid in a candy store in our kitchen since it has beautiful granite countertops, new appliances and so much cabinet space!  With all of our kitchen space, I decided it was high-time to purchase something that's been on my list for years: a popsicle mold.  Every summer in Chicago I went to buy a popsicle mold and decided against it since it's really only popsicle weather for two-three months out of the year in the Midwest. Now that we live in a place where the heat is a part of the everyday culture, I knew this kitchen accessory would get plenty of use.

For it's christening, I looked through several popsicle recipes such as strawberry-balsamic-mint, coffee and cream, and toasted coconut, but decided to go with something simple and refreshing. I made the Swirled Berry Yogurt popsicles from The Smitten Kitchen. I fell in love with this recipe because it's easy to make, can be adapted with any berry of your choice and they're also very pretty!  Strawberries are everywhere right now, so I went with these ruby jewels.  

With every bite you will find either berries - which taste like frozen jam - or sweet yogurt.  These are bound to make your summer afternoons and nights delicious.  I've even thought about eating them for breakfast because they're like a frozen smoothie and that constitutes as breakfast, right?

Swirled Berry Yogurt Popsicles

2 cups of berries - if they are large, I recommend lightly chopping them
2 tablespoons honey
1/2 lemon or 1 lime
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 1/2 cup plain unsweetened Greek-style yogurt

Place the berries, honey, and 1 tablespoon of lemon or lime juice in a non-reactive bowl, stir and set aside. Take the peel of the squeezed lemon/lime and put it in a small saucepan with the water and sugar. Cook on low heat and stir until the sugar has dissolved. Remove the citrus peel and chill the syrup completely.  To speed up the chilling process you can place the saucepan in a ice bath - it should cool in 5-10 minutes.  Once cooled, whisk the yogurt and syrup together.

Using a blender or food processor, blend the berries and leftover juices until smooth.  If you want to remove the seeds you can do so with a strainer.  I left them because that seemed like way too much work, it was 95 degrees outside and I needed a popsicle fast.

Assemble the popsicles by alternating the berry and yogurt mixture that you pour in. Repeat this until you reach 1/4 inch from the top of the mold.  This will allow for space when the popsicles freeze and expand.  Use a skewer or knife to swirl the mixture lightly in each popsicle (hint: this makes them pretty!). 

Snap on the popsicle mold lid and place in a freezer for 3-4 hours.  To remove, run the sides under hot water for a few seconds.  Once your popsicle is out, you can bask in the sun while enjoying your frozen jeweled treats.

What's in a name?

I'm a sucker for horoscopes or personality quizzes of any kind. Are you? Since I decided to become a Psychology major in undergrad, against my parent's wishes of becoming a Business major, my love of character quizzes only makes more sense.  This hobby has evolved over time and a recent habit of mine is taking the BuzzFeed quizzes, which my friends and I send each other every Friday. While totally silly, these will make you laugh. Promise.

The other day, one of my favorite blogs featured a post about the meaning of a name.  I immediately lit-up and clicked on the link.  I know my name is German, stemming from my full-name Kristina; however, I didn't know what my name really meant. At last! A chance to see if I was living up to the name my parents chose 30 years ago. After submitting it, I read through the results grasping for any characteristic which remotely resembled me. Some of the conclusions were laughable, "She is a seductive and glamorous woman." HA! I don't think those words have ever been uttered together before. While other aspects were spot on, "She is torn between her concern for others´ needs...her memory is excellent... she will prove herself to be a remarkable hostess...[and she is] understanding, communicative, pleasant and friendly in her interactions with others." Even though this quiz is probably a bunch of BS, I enjoyed being reminded of the characteristics which I sometimes love and/or hate about myself. Here's the quiz, if you would like to take it.  

One of my personality traits that was validated by the quiz is I have a freaky accurate memory -- particularly with faces and names.  This proves to be helpful in my career (graduate school admissions) and with new friends or acquaintances. It's also helpful because this is not one of my husband's strengths.  Picture this: we'll be walking down the street and about to pass one of our neighbors we've met a few times.  I'll give him a quick heads up and whisper his/her name right before we pass them.  We make a good pair. Opposites attract, yes?

Also, I have many recipes stored somewhere in my brain. My favorite: the banana bread recipe from A Homemade Life. I find myself making this bread whenever I am anxious, nervous or in need of a pick-me-up. It might be because I'm concerned about someone close to me (see personality test results) or thinking about something personal. When I make this recipe, those bad feelings melt away and all is right in the world because I have banana bread. I have the recipe almost memorized, but, I still like to take the book out and turn to the dog-eared page for banana bread.  The book's binding is almost permanently cracked at this page and I love it.

I recommend trying this recipe because while it's a comfort food, the crystallized ginger gives it a fresh and spicy flavor which I hadn't experienced in baked goods before.  The dough is springy and with every bite you'll almost always find a pocket of melted chocolate or spicy ginger. These ingredients compliment banana bread oh so well. Special note -- this bread is best warm. You must try a slice shortly after it comes out of the oven. The next day, try toasting it and adding butter for breakfast or whipped cream for dessert. You can't go wrong. 

Banana Bread with Chocolate and Crystallized Ginger (from A Homemade Life by Molly Wizenberg)

6 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1/3 cup finely chopped crystallized ginger
2 large eggs*
3 large ripe bananas, mashed
1/4 cup well-stirred whole-milk plain yogurt (not low or nonfat)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

*You'll notice I have three eggs in the picture below.  My memory failed me and I used three instead of two.  I didn't notice a difference. 

1. Set a rack in the center of the oven, and preheat to 350F. Grease a 9- by 5-inch loaf pan with cooking spray or butter.

2. Melt the butter and set aside to cool slightly.

3. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt. Add the chocolate chips and crystallized ginger and whisk well to combine. Set aside.

4. In a medium bowl, lightly beat the eggs with a fork. Add the mashed banana, yogurt, melted butter, and vanilla and stir to mix well. Pour the banana mixture into the dry ingredients, and stir gently with a rubber spatula, scraping down the sides as needed, until just combined. Do not overmix. The batter with be thick and somewhat lumpy, just make sure all the flour has been incorporated. Scrape the batter into the loaf pan and smooth the top.

5. Bake into the loaf is a deep shade of golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 50 minutes to an hour. If the loaf seems to be browning too quickly, tent with foil.

6. Cool the loaf in the pan on a wire rack for 5 minutes. Then tip out onto the rack, and let it cool completely before slicing. Or, if you're like me, steal a quick slice first. The loaf freezes well wrapped in plastic wrap and again in foil to protect from freezer burn.

I see you, Winter

Winter has finally decided to show up in Chicago, which means chilly days and sub-zero windchill. The pretty blanket of white snow has turned into mountains of black, sharp and dangerous ice. We are still digging/chopping snow to find a place for our car and it's not uncommon to hear tires spinning and people screaming in agony as they try to shove their cars in and out of parking spots. February is usually the month where I find myself questioning why on earth people, like myself, choose to live under such conditions.  Luckily, with a move to a warmer place on the horizon (come on, June!), this winter has been a season of lasts for us and we are oh so excited.  In the meantime, we continue to celebrate the small victories like, "The sun is out!" or "It's still light at 5:30pm!"  

While it might be cold outside, my kitchen this time of year is usually toasty. I use the oven more in the winter to roast, bake or reheat leftovers. My favorite and most simple recipes involve roasting vegetables into oblivion and root vegetables, in particular, are even better the longer you roast them. When it comes to anything vegetable related, I always turn to Yotam Ottolenghi's cookbooks for recipes. I love his writing (he's hilarious) and also the fact that he pairs beautiful vegetables with loud spices and flavors. His cookbook, Plenty, is a staple in my kitchen and I highly recommend adding it to yours, whether you are a vegetarian or not. He moves vegetables from what would normally be considered a side dish to the main course. I first learned about Plenty from my best friend, and we made many a dish together from this cookbook before she moved to Denver a few years ago. One year for Christmas, it arrived on my doorstep from her and I couldn't have been more excited. We both continue to cook from it and send each other pictures of the meals we each have made so we can dog ear recipes to try in the future. One of my personal favorites is the Sweet Potato Cakes.  I'm going to post that recipe sometime very soon. Many of Ottolenghi's recipes involve a long list of ingredients, which can scare people away, but if you look closely a lot of the ingredients are spices and require little effort. For example, before I opened his cookbook, I hadn't heard of harissa, but it is worth the purchase at your local specialty foods store.  

I enjoy making most of his recipes on Sunday afternoons/evenings when I have the time to chop, peel, roast, bake, or what have you. Yesterday was cold and sunny (!!!) so while D was walking Parker, I opened up this cookbook to find inspiration.  I stumbled upon this recipe because of the title, "The Ultimate Winter Couscous," which appeared to be screaming at me when I read it.  For Yotam to be using the word "ultimate" in a recipe, I figured it must be damn good.  After a boozy brunch at Lula Cafe, we stopped at Stanley's Fruit and Vegetables, Chicago's best kept secret for fresh and reasonable produce.  Chicagoans, you must go here if you haven't been yet. But shhhh, you must also keep it a secret before all of Chicago starts to shop there. I usually come home with 3-4 bags of produce each week and it never costs more than $25. One time, I bought 8 lbs of strawberries for $1.99. We had smoothies coming out of our ears. 

When we got home from Stanley's, I proceeded to peel, cut and chop the root veggies and squash, put them into a dutch oven and then watch the Red Carpet at the Oscar's while it roasted and delicious scents started to waft out of the oven. After the vegetables did their thing, I made the couscous and sauteed chicken. You could add any protein you like, or leave it as is. The vegetables are cooked to the point where they still crunch and the spices (paprika, ginger, turmeric, cinnamon, anise, bay leaves, chili flakes) give just enough heat. I bought cilantro and forgot to add it in the end.  It didn't need it, but I would add it just to give the meal even more dimension. This meal is going to become a staple in our house, I can just tell.  We gobbled it up and shortly after watched Lady Gaga's Sound of Music tribute at the Oscar's.  Check out her performance if you missed it, while eating The Ultimate Winter Couscous.  Oh, and buy Plenty! You won't be sorry.

The Ultimate Winter Couscous
From Plenty, by Yotam Ottolenghi
 
2 medium carrots, peeled and cut into 3/4" chunks
2 medium parsnips, peeled and cut into 3/4" chunks
8 shallots, peeled
2 cinnamon sticks
4 star anise
3 bay leaves
5 Tablespoons olive oil
salt
1/2 teaspoons ground ginger
1/4 teaspoons ground turmeric
1/4 teaspoons hot paprika
1/4 teaspoons chili flakes
2 1/2 cups cubed butternut squash
1/2 cups dried apricots, roughly chopped
1 can chickpeas
1 1/2 cups chickpea liquid or water
1 cups couscous
large pinch saffron
1 cup boiling vegetable stock
3 Tablespoons butter, broken into pieces
2 Tablespoons harissa paste
1 oz preserved lemon, finely chopped
2 cups cilantro leaves

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Place carrots, parsnips, shallots, cinnamon sticks, star anise, bay leaves, 4 T olive oil, 3/4 t salt and all other spices in a large oven proof dish. Mix well and cook for 15 minutes.

Stir in the butternut squash and cook for 35 minutes. Add the apricots, chickpeas and their liquid. Cook for 10 more minutes.

About 15 minutes before the vegetables are done, place the couscous in a heatproof bowl with the remaining 1 T olive oil, saffron and 1/2 t salt. Pour the boiling stock over the couscous and cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap. Let sit for 10 minutes until all the stock has been absorbed. Fluff and stir in butter with a fork until melted. Cover to keep warm.

Remove the vegetables from the oven and stir in the harissa and preserved lemon. Taste and add more salt if you like.

To serve, spoon couscous into individual bowls, top with vegetables and sprinkle with plenty of cilantro leaves.

New Year, New You

Happy New Year!  I realize that it's February and we are way past the stage of saying Happy New Year, but this is my first post in awhile. This year has been good to me thus far.  I turned 30 recently and had one hell of a celebration.  I love birthdays more than most people and so the celebration turned into a several week affair.  We celebrated at the Signature Room (bucket list, check!) on the 95th floor of the John Hancock building with my parents, and the following weekend D and my sister threw a cooking inspired surprise party which ended with an epic dance party at one of our favorite bars.  I've been told by news sources that my birthday is technically the "most depressing day of the year" due to the freezing climate, lack of sunlight and the fact that it's a month after the holidays.  Even in the bitter cold of winter as I trudge up and down Wacker Drive, cursing at the wind and snow, I am thankful for a winter birthday to remind me of all those who I love and am thankful for. 

Now as I move past the birthday celebration afterglow, I plan to hibernate my way through winter by continuing to write, cook, check things off my Chicago bucket list, and make more time for new adventures. Recently, a friend and I signed up for a Zumba class (we're the youngest ladies in the class by 20 years) and I'm having more fun than I imagined.  I learned that I'm wayyyy more uncoordinated than I thought and that it's ok to feel awkward in my own body. Also, a coworker, who happens to be an amazing yoga instructor, has started teaching a yoga class at work during lunch and it's a nice break in the middle of my week.  I've almost (!!!) conquered the "crow" position thanks to her and Lo.  New Year, New You, right?

Speaking of trying new things, I've been cooking more simple meals throughout the week to leave more time for reading, watching shows like Downton Abbey, and spending QT with D and Parker.  At first I sort of felt like a cop-out for making such simple meals like quesadillas or fish sticks and corn, but now I feel like my nights are more full, in fact.  I wouldn't say that this was a new year's resolution, instead it's more a pleasant surprise and the result of shifting interests.  Enter another quick meal: One-Pan Pasta. Who knew that you could boil all your pasta ingredients in one pan and that the water/broth turns into a delicious sauce?  Magic!  In talking with friends, I learned that I am late to the game on this one. Well I'm sure glad I found out about this magic. Better late than never, right? 


One-Pan Pasta (from Lottie + Doof via Martha Stewart Living)
12 ounces spaghetti or linguine 
12 ounces cheery tomatoes, halved
1 onion, thinly sliced
6 garlic cloves, sliced
1/2 teaspoon red pepper chili flakes
2 sprigs basil
2-3 tablespoons olive oil
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon ground pepper
4 1/2 cups water (or chicken stock)
Plenty of freshly grated parmesan cheese for serving


Combine pasta, tomatoes, onion, garlic, red-pepper flakes, basil, oil, kosher salt, pepper, and water in a large skillet. Bring to a boil over high heat. Boil mixture, stirring and turning pasta frequently with tongs, until pasta is al dente and water has nearly evaporated, about 10-12 minutes.

Season to taste with salt and pepper, divide among bowls, and garnish with basil. Serve with oil and parmesan.