The Last Bit of Summer

Since I blew my deadline this week, you might not need to hear how I've been busy lately. You may have just assumed.

Well, I have been busy, and while I'm still cooking three meals a day and snacks around here, I just don't often pause long enough to think someone else might want to know what I'm making. That's why tonight's dinner was such a relief. It was so easy that if I didn't have the dishes to do, I'd of thought I didn't make dinner at all.

It's also funny that I make this dish today, on the first day of fall. The dish is a surprisingly pleasant combination of cantaloupe, coconut milk and pasta. Melons are ripe at the end of summer and they will carry over into the beginning of fall. I still couldn't help but think this dish was a last ditch effort to celebrate what's left of the season. It also doesn't hurt that melon -- watermelon, honeydew, cantaloupe or any other variety -- is one of my son's favorite foods. Combining it with pasta was about as great of an invention as the grilled cheese in his book, I think.


The credit goes to a great cook in my 'hood. He's cooking occasionally for a restaurant down the street when he's not selling fish tacos. When I popped by recently, with no intention of having a meal, I couldn't help but order this pasta dish. I sounded strange and delicious all at once, and it was, delicious, that is.

It's originally an Italian recipe that calls for cream. He decided to swap it for the coconut milk to make it a vegan dish. It's really very simple, and I'm just going to describe the method for the sauce. You can pick the pasta it goes on. I felt inspired by the coconut milk and chose Thai rice noodles. He served it over spaghetti, a nod to the Italian version. I'd say it would also be great over plain white rice, too. And I threw some thawed frozen peas and chopped tomato just to make it interesting.

Cantaloupe & Coconut Milk Sauce

Cube half of a medium, peeled and seeded cantaloupe. Add to a medium hot saute pan with a drizzle of olive oil. Cook for a couple of minutes, just until melon begins to turn tender and fragrant. Add one can of coconut milk and whisk in one tablespoon of tomato paste. Bring to a simmer and season as needed with salt and pepper. Let simmer for about four to five minutes and remove from heat. Toss with cooked pasta and serve. Of course you could absolutely stay true to the Italian version and use cream instead of coconut milk. Either way, I don't think you'll be disappointed.

Too many tomatoes?

Fresh fruits and veggies are never a bad thing. Here's something I cooked recently that was inspired by the bumper crop of huge red tomatoes from our garden. I suspect that a large can of diced tomatoes would substitute just fine. If you have access to good markets, try using a few different types of fresh tomatoes.

In most recipes I write I offer approximate amounts of ingredients. If an exact amount is neccesary I will make that clear. I always say, add more of things you like, less of those you don't. This recipes serves four.

Oh, and one other thing. I don't have some elaborate test kitchen. I'm just offering instructions on how I cooked a meal. If you see something that you think looks incorrect, send me an e-mail.

1 pound Italian sausage
4 large tomatoes diced
1 small onion chopped
2 to 3 cloves of garlic, minced
Few handfuls of bagged spinach leaves
1/4 cup of milk
salt and pepper to taste
Rigatoni pasta (or corkscrew, or anything you have on hand)
Grated mozzarella cheese

Brown sausage in a deep-sided pan. Drain excess grease once meat is cooked.

To the browned meat, add tomatoes (including juices if using canned), garlic, onions and milk. Bring to a simmer over low heat for about 10 to 15 minutes while pasta cooks.

Boil pasta in salted water until tender. Drain water and set aside.

Add spinach leaves to sauce and stir, allowing the leaves to wilt. Add drained pasta to the sauce and stir to coat pasta. Serve with cheese sprinkled on top.

Need sides?
Try a small salad and cheese toast.
To make cheese toast, turn the oven on to broil and line a cookie sheet with foil for easy cleaning.

Lightly butter a slice of bread (regular sandwhich bread is just fine). Sprinkle garlic powder on the buttered side of bread. Place the bread on the foil. Sprinkle mozzarella on top. Place the bread under the broiler and watch (seriously) until done. This could take just a minute.