Tonight's recipe is a huge hit with my family, which is hard to accomplish, believe me. This is actually an inspiration from a couple different recipes I've been throwing around for a few months. I tried it out on my sister, who dislikes pretty much everything aside from pizza, tacos, french fries and milk shakes. She asks me to make it every time I cook now.
But enough blathering. Here's the recipe for my Brown Butter Pasta a.k.a. Em's Pasta.
Em's Pasta
First off, the most important thing is to get your onions going. Coat the bottom of a large saucepan with olive oil. Throw your onions in and saute them over medium-low heat. It's very important not to burn your onions, so watch them carefully!! You can add a pinch or two of sugar a few minutes in if you like. We're looking for a nice golden brown color.
Once your onions are going, you can start mincing your garlic and sage, grating your cheese and getting your water started for the pasta. Now normally I won't discriminate between cheeses. However, for this recipe, FRESH, good-quality Parmesan cheese is important. Anyway...
Once you've got all that done, your onions should be slightly browned. Continue to stir them until they're a deep brown color and they smell sweet. Once they're cooked, remove them to a small bowl and wipe out any bits along with any residual olive oil.
Put the pan back on the burner and turn the heat up to medium. Throw your butter into the pan and let it melt. With a spatula or a flat-ended spoon, swirl the butter around in the pan constantly. After a few minutes, the butter will start foaming and turning brown. Scrape the bottom to make sure that none of the butter burns. It will start to smell nutty and sweet.
Once the butter turns a light caramel color, turn the heat off and add your garlic, sage and onions. Stir for about thirty seconds then remove the pan from the heat. The sauce will bubble up like crazy, but don't freak. After it sauce settles, add the cream and pepper into it and stir until its incorporated.
Somewhere in this process, your pasta should have finished. Leave the pasta in the cooking pot then pour the sauce over it. Stir to coat. Add half of your parmesan and stir to coat. Repeat with the rest of the cheese.
Voila!!! I would post a picture of the finished product, but my family ate it all before I could snap one. Cheers!
But enough blathering. Here's the recipe for my Brown Butter Pasta a.k.a. Em's Pasta.
Em's Pasta
- 1/2 medium onion, diced
- 1 lb penne pasta
- 7 tablespoons butter, cut into small cubes
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon fresh sage, minced
- 2 tablespoons heavy cream
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
- 1 to 1.5 cups of Parmesan cheese
First off, the most important thing is to get your onions going. Coat the bottom of a large saucepan with olive oil. Throw your onions in and saute them over medium-low heat. It's very important not to burn your onions, so watch them carefully!! You can add a pinch or two of sugar a few minutes in if you like. We're looking for a nice golden brown color.
Once your onions are going, you can start mincing your garlic and sage, grating your cheese and getting your water started for the pasta. Now normally I won't discriminate between cheeses. However, for this recipe, FRESH, good-quality Parmesan cheese is important. Anyway...
Once you've got all that done, your onions should be slightly browned. Continue to stir them until they're a deep brown color and they smell sweet. Once they're cooked, remove them to a small bowl and wipe out any bits along with any residual olive oil.
Put the pan back on the burner and turn the heat up to medium. Throw your butter into the pan and let it melt. With a spatula or a flat-ended spoon, swirl the butter around in the pan constantly. After a few minutes, the butter will start foaming and turning brown. Scrape the bottom to make sure that none of the butter burns. It will start to smell nutty and sweet.
Once the butter turns a light caramel color, turn the heat off and add your garlic, sage and onions. Stir for about thirty seconds then remove the pan from the heat. The sauce will bubble up like crazy, but don't freak. After it sauce settles, add the cream and pepper into it and stir until its incorporated.
Somewhere in this process, your pasta should have finished. Leave the pasta in the cooking pot then pour the sauce over it. Stir to coat. Add half of your parmesan and stir to coat. Repeat with the rest of the cheese.
Voila!!! I would post a picture of the finished product, but my family ate it all before I could snap one. Cheers!
