I spent the weekend with Peter while Emily went camping with friends. Not only was this unexpected alone time a treat, but I was able to sink my teeth into preparing several dishes for a barbecue for Peter to share with his coworkers this week. I was not able to join them, needing to return to maternal responsibilities, but all accounts were that the meal was a success, I prepared lamb kebabs, honey mustard chicken & teriyaki ginger pork chops in addition to vegetables in foil & corn on the cob. (If you are interested in any of these recipes, please let me know in the comments, I'd be happy to share).
Emily got home Sunday a couple of hours after I did, hot, tired and sun burned. I asked if she still planned to cook the following day, advising her to opt for something light. She agreed but was too busy catching up on her screens (Heaven forbid they not have electronics for a few days!) to choose something. I was paging through the magazine Wal-Mart offers its customers before tossing it into the recycling bin when I came across a recipe that looked appealing. I suggested it to Emily, who took a brief look at it before agreeing. After all it had bacon. And pasta. The girl does love her pasta! I tore the page out, tossed the magazine, and returned to my book.
Monday was a scorcher (+33) and Emily came home from school determined to learn whether or not the pool was open. It was and she found enough change for admittance and changed into her suit, confirming she would cook when she got home.
Shortly after five she returned and changed into yet another outfit (because I love doing laundry) and started amassing her ingredients. Soon she had a pot of water boiling and was asking to light the barbecue for the pork chops I had thawed. I told her it was still early and began mixing soy sauce & butter together to coat a couple of ears of corn to grill with the chops.
Once the pasta was cooking she began chopping a few slices of bacon, remembering I had once recommended using kitchen shears instead of a knife. She opted to cut up a couple of extra slices, since the bacon we had had not come out of the package in full strips, and was quite fatty, so there wouldn't be much actual bacon once it cooked. And, as she pointed out, you really can not have too much bacon.
She lit the barbecue with my supervision; last time I let her do it she didn't open the lid first & the accumulated propane startled her when it did ignite (the electric ignition doesn't always engage at first click). She did well, and returned to check on her noodles. As I went out to collect the last of my laundry from the clothes line I heard a frustrated shout, but as she didn't sound hurt I left her to cope with whatever she had done. As it turned out the peas had poured out of the bag too fast and had spilled all over the floor, and she was busily trying to sweep them up. No easy task that. I'm still finding a few this morning! I advised her to get the bacon started and went to check on the pork chops and corn. When I returned I took her tablet away, telling her she was not yet an experienced enough cook to attempt multi-tasking, suggesting if watching water boil and bacon fry was not amusing enough she could finish putting the dishes away. Needless to say this was not appreciated. After all I can take a turn at Words with Friends or read a page or two of my book while I cook dinner. I've also had a lot more practice.
I peeled the garlic for her, to some protest, although she did accept I was just trying to help. She wanted to squeeze the garlic press herself, but quickly returned it to me. I have no doubt she could have squeezed it hard enough if she had really tried, but I didn't press the issue. I helped her toss everything together before retrieving the chops and corn from the grill. Dinner was served.
It was very good, although I think she may have miscalculated the amount of peas. Still having a dish more vegetable and less pasta is not necessarily a bad thing. A cheese lover, Emily added grated Cheddar to her plate, feeling the Parmesan alone was not enough. She ate it heartily, who am I to argue?
Penne with Bacon & Peas
225 grams penne pasta 3 garlic cloves, minced
3 cups frozen peas 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
2 slices bacon
Cook pasta according to the package directions, until tender, 7-9 minutes, adding frozen peas to the water during the last 2 minutes of cooking time. Drain & set aside.
Chop bacon and cook in a large frying pan until crisp, spooning off any excess fat. Add the garlic and cook for about 1 minute. Add the penne & peas along with the Parmesan cheese and toss gently.
*I brushed the corn with a mixture of softened butter & wasabi flavoured soy sauce (2 tablespoons butter, 2 teaspoons soy) and wrapped them in foil, grilling over low heat.
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