Meat Free Blt Spaghetti With Butter Lettuce Leek And Tomato Food

MEAT AND TOMATO SAUCE

Steps:

• In a large soup pot or Dutch oven, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the pepper flakes and cook for 15 seconds. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden brown, about 15 minutes. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Stir in the tomato paste and cook, stirring constantly, for 1 minute. Add the tomatoes one at a time, crushing them by hand as you go. Season with 1 teaspoon salt and pepper to taste. Simmer the sauce over low heat, covered. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the beef, pork, veal, savory, thyme, oregano, and fennel seeds. Season with 1 teaspoon salt and pepper. Break up the meat with a wooden spoon, and cook until it loses its raw color, about 7 minutes. Add the meat to the sauce, holding back any excess fat. Add the rind of the Parmesan, if using. Simmer the sauce, covered, over low heat, for 1 1/2 hours. (If the sauce gets too thick adjust the consistency with water.) Taste and season with salt and pepper to taste. Just before serving, remove the Parmesan rind and add the grated cheese. Cook's Note: 3 to 4 cups of this sauce will dress 1 pound of pasta, like spaghetti or rigatoni. It is also perfect for lasagna. This sauce freezes very well.
• Copyright 2001 Television Food Network, GP. All rights reserved

BLT: BEEF, LEEK AND TOMATO SALAD - WITH BACON DRESSING - AN EXTRA "B"!

Steps:

• Heat a grill pan or grill to medium-high heat.
• Bring steaks to room temperature, drizzle with extra-virgin olive oil and season with salt and pepper on both sides.
• Place the steaks on the grill, cook meat 10 to 12 minutes for pink centers. Turn twice and let meat rest 5 minutes before slicing.
• While meat cooks, brown bacon in a drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil in a medium to large skillet over medium-high heat.
• Chop the leeks then soak in a large bowl of water or separate the chopped leeks by running under water. Dry the leeks in a kitchen towel.
• Place cooked bacon on paper towels to drain. Pour off all but about a tablespoon of bacon drippings then add leeks and wilt down. Season cooked leeks with salt and peppe, to taste.
• Transfer the cooked bacon to a food processor and add Worcestershire, vinegar, mustard, some black pepper and a splash of water. Turn processor on and stream in 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil.
• On each dinner plate, arrange a bed of shredded romaine and thickly sliced tomatoes. Slice meat against the grain of the steak. Arrange the steak over the sliced tomatoes. Scatter the leeks over the sliced steaks and pour bacon dressing down over the top.

MEAT FREE BLT SPAGHETTI WITH BUTTER LETTUCE, LEEK AND TOMATO

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of water to a boil over medium heat. Salt the water, add the spaghetti and cook 1 minute shy of al dente. Remove a ladle of the pasta water and reserve. Drain the pasta and set aside.
• Meanwhile, chop and reserve 1 lead lettuce. Chop second head and add to a food processor with the parsley, basil or tarragon, mint, pine nuts, lemon zest, salt and pepper, to taste, and the cheese. Pulse to chop the greens, then with the processor on stream in 1/4 to 1/3 cup of extra-virgin olive oil, to form a pesto. Transfer the pesto to large pasta serving bowl and reserve.
• Heat 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the leeks and garlic and saute until wilted, 3 minutes. Add the grape tomatoes, stir, raise heat a bit and put a lid on the pan. Cook for 8 to 10 minutes to burst tomatoes - force the last few along with a potato masher or a wooden spoon if you get impatient. Season with salt and pepper, to taste, then stir in the wine and cook for 1 minute.
• Add the ladle of the reserved pasta water to the pesto. Add the pasta to the bowl along with the tomatoes and leeks. Toss for 1 minute, and season with salt and pepper, if needed. Douse the pasta the lemon juice and garnish with the reserved chopped lettuce. Serve with extra cheese for topping.