Life of Wry

Taking just a wee break from the political horrors of yesterday.. (which is still a horror today, but more like horror aftermath and relentless analysis of said horror)…. to bring you a kitchen fail:

In some ways, not a fail at all. I believe it turned out exactly as the recipe intended. It’s just that neither of us liked it. Edible, more or less, but too much work.

Part of the work was the fact I made two dishes.. one with anchovies and red pepper flakes, the other — Jim’s — without.

This is what you do: saute some panko bread crumbs in olive oil. Set aside in a separate bowl and, when cooled a bit, add some chopped parsely, lemon zest and salt. In same pan, saute onion in anchovy oil, til browned, then add garlic and brown some more. Then divide the sauce between two separate pans. Add anchovies and red pepper flakes to one of the pans; then white wine to each pan (and reduce), then some butter to each pan. That’s your sauce. Meanwhile, make some spaghetti and divide between two pots. Add the sauces, one each, to each pot of spaghetti, add some of the crispy bread crumb mixture.

Kinda okay… if you like the strong flavors of lemon zest and anchovy. It’s a classic Venetian dish. Sounded good when I read the recipe.