MOLTISSIMO!!

i thought about dinner all freakin' day.
truly, it was at the forefront of my thoughts-
as soon as i admitted to myself that the odds of me making a sexxxy pastry tart
in the morning were so nearly non-existent as to just not be a thing...
that was when i knew for sure i was gonna have to make something special later on....
really, though,
i didn't know what to make until i saw that i'd been accidentally stockpiling semolina.
uh-huh.
i have bags on bags, and the best way to make room in the pantry is to use it up, obvi.
and that's what i did.
neighbors!
a good tortellini, in a well-appointed broth is pretty damned expert.
uh-huh.
and a LOT of 'em?
well, too much is the right amount, so you know it's even better.
check it out:

c'mon, c'mon, C'MON, C'MON!!!
there's broth in the bottom, there's sprankles all over the top,
and there's exxxtra excellence all over the flippin' place.
mmmmmmmmm.
for real, though-
get a look at all that flavor, bruh:

WOW.
i surprised myself, and i think very highly of myself in this kitchen, kids.
real talk.
that's slices of garlic, crisped up in olive oil,
and dry-fried mushrooms, browned with a bit of pink salt,
and fresh parsley spranks coupled with fire-roasted tomato sprankles, too.
yeah!!
....and i know you see those blistered baby tomatoes, dudes.
that's an added bonus of dopeness to stimulate your hungry head-hole.
uh-huh.
i had three -quarters of a cup of broth,
with 1 T dried tomato flakes, and black pepper, and those tomatoes,
all skin-bursty and hot.
WORD.
that's so expert,
you'll wonder out loud where these tortellini have been hiding all your life.
-
the pasta portion?
1/2 cup flour;
1/2 + 3 T semolina flour;
1 1/2 tsp sea salt;
2 T olive oil;
2/3 cups warm water, +/-.
i naturally used my stand mixer, and beat it all up for 11 minutes.
rules is rules,
and at the Folk Life & Liberty Fortress the dough goes to eleven
or else it doesn't go anywhere at all y'all.
-
i've made a lot of pasta over here,
and i think regular readers will know that you wrap and rest it for a bit,
then roll it out on a floury surface, and cut some three inch circles....
like, thirty.
yep.
that's a monstrous mountain of tortellini.
which is exxxactly what's necessary to activate the maxxximum level
of satisfying shark-gluttonous overindulgence.
(my favorite)
-
what's inside of 'em?
1/4 block of xxxtra-firm tofu, with 3 T caramelized minced vidalia onion,
and 2 T nootch, and a healthy shake or three of GPOP, and pink salt.
finished with smoked paprika, for a rich, hearty, manly flavor.
that's right.
i just saute the sh!t until it looks done.
how long?.
i dunno, man.
i'm cooking by feel, not by the clock.
ha!
*
i'm sure you already know all about this, but-
i LOVE food.
and when i'm sittin' around in the snow, in the dark,
and the bright bright bright moonlight is hidden by clouds,
and i have emotions bubbling up,
there's only one way to direct those energies into something nourishing,
and nurturing, and healing, i guess.
mmhmm.
making food.
the process is like meditation.
the results are like affirmation.
the entire method, and the cause and effect are all what i need to make
some sense of what happened, and what needs to happen,
and all of it is certainly gonna, whether i'm read or not.
yeah.
so, the meal is the destination,
and the active participation in the progression from idea to fruition if the journey.
i'm a travelin' man, in the kitchen,
even though i don't really go anywhere else;
never quiet, never soft.....