winter baked cherry tomatoes

While tomato season may be finished, cherry tomatoes are showing up on the grocers shelves here. Obvious use for them would be in salads etc. but being that it has been pretty cold outside I like warm stuff to fill my belly. I thought to mix my love of tomatoes with the love of warmth and made as a side dish, to this weeks leftovers, 'baked cherry tomatoes' The lovely ruby red color that the tomatoes turn will entice you. Best is that it is easy easy easy yet sooooooo tasty, I found myself licking my fingers after each bite. ( I bet it would go nice with couscous)

Ingredients:
red cherry tomatoes
red onion sliced thin
olive oil (you can used a flavored oil like garlic and chili)
spring onions around 2
basil leaves finely chopped
crushed garlic at least 2 cloves
splash of balsamic vinegar
splash of white wine
salt, pepper, hot chili flakes to taste

Prepare
Preheat oven to 350f which is 200c
toss tomatoes, red onions, oil, and salt, pepper and if you like a touch of heat some chili flakes.
place in baking pan and bake for 10-15 minutes.
Mix in spring onions, basil, garlic, wine and vinegar.
Continue cooking for about 5-10 minutes longer until the tomatoes have softened but keep their shape.
Dig In with some crusty bread and cheese of your choice!

Bow Tie Carbonara

Waking up to the New year I was greeted by the sound of the wind-whipped waves of the Mediterranean crashing into our garden wall. Don't ask me why but this made me think of cooking something warm and creamy for lunch. Taking a peak to see what was in the 'tomb' of the fridge I pulled out an open package of strip bacon, and some left over whipping cream. Now I knew there was a nice chunk of Italian grating cheese hiding in one of the darken corners behind leftovers, so I grabbed that. Having no real plan in mind in what way I was going to use these 3 ingredients. But it seems Nuba's vet was reading my mind because in came Moncef bringing 4 farm fresh eggs sent to us by him. At that moment I just new what lunch would be, wonderful oozing Carbonara. Now most people use fettuccine or spaghetti but I like to use bow-ties because they hold their firmness while allowing the carbonara sauce to ooze between the twisted parts. Here is a simplified recipe, easy to make. I know some people worry about eating raw eggs, but if you don't have eggs then it isn't carbonara! Since I knew what I was using was farm fresh I had no worries, I guess one could coddle them if need be. (like they do for Caesar salad)
ok so here we go Bow-tie Carbonara in honor of my bow-tie wearing dad! (even to bed)

Bacon Slices (4-8)
1 tablespoon of butter
1/2 cup cream
1/2 (or more) cup of Parmesan/Romano cheese
4 large egg yolks
1 box of farfalla (bow-tie) pasta
Salt, Pepper, Red Hot chilli flakes, Garlic and Parsley to taste

cook bacon until crispy in butter. Reserve drippings. Transfer bacon to paper towels and drain. Whisk cream , cheese and egg yolks to blend. Whisk in no more than 2 tablespoons of drippings from skillet.
Cook pasta until just tender, in boiling salted water. Drain and return to pot. Add cream mixture to pasta. Toss over low heat until sauce cooks through and coats pasta thickly but do not boil. (about 2-4 minutes). Season to taste with salt, pepper and hot pepper flakes, finely chopped fresh garlic and of course Parsley. Serve while hot adding additional grated cheese on top. Oh yes now this is the way to start the new year, simple, easy and fun to eat!