Linguine with spring tomato sauce.

Spring is here and we are very fortunate to have such a vast selection of fresh fruits and vegetables nicely displayed at our groceries stores that it makes it fun to cook. On my last trip to the grocery store, and that is a daily occurrence, I picked up some wonderfully fragrant tomatoes to make a fresh, and yet, light tomato sauce.

While you can warm up the fresh tomatoes during the cooking process, I decided to cook mine slightly longer and add fresh cherry tomatoes at the last-minute. We enjoyed the consistency and full flavor.

For the fish, we placed a bed of grapefruits on the cookie sheet, small change from the usual lemons  because I have a huge tree in the backyard.

The combination of the flavors between the pasta and the fish, married well.

Bon Appetit!!

Giangi

Tonight’s April 14, 2016 dinner:

Linguine with Spring Tomato Sauce with Cod with Shallot and Parsley.

LINGUINE WITH SPRING TOMATO SAUCE

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 garlic clove peeled
4 medium tomatoes, skin scored on the bottom and around the middle part
¼ onion, peeled and thinly sliced
3 tablespoons finely chopped Italian flat leaves parsley
1 cup of cherry tomatoes, left whole
Salt and pepper
1 pound of Linguine pasta from De Cecco
Pecorino cheese
Finely sliced basil leaves

In a large pot bring water to a boil. Place the tomatoes that have been scored with a knife on the bottom and around them. Boil for 5 minutes or until the skin is peeling off the tomatoes. Remove from heat, peel and dice.

In a large pot over medium heat, add the oil, the onion and the parsley and cook until the onion is translucent.

Add the tomatoes to the onion mixture and cook for to 20 minutes. Salt and pepper.

Add the whole cherry tomatoes and cook for another 3 minutes or until the cherry tomatoes are tender.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the linguine and cook until al dente. Drain and place the cooked linguine back in the pot, and add 2 table spoons of butter and mix well.

Place the pasta in a large bowl, add the tomatoes sauce and cover with Pecorino cheese.

Sprinkle with basil and serve immediately.

COD WITH SHALLOT AND PARSLEY

1 shallot, peeled and finely chopped
¼ cup of finely chopped flat leaf parsley
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 rind of a grapefruit
Juice of 1 lemon
Juice of 1 grapefruit
Salt and pepper
1 grapefruit cut in very thin slices
1 cup cherry tomatoes halved
4 cod fillets

Preheat the oven at 375°. Cover the bottom of a cookie sheet with aluminum foil. Place the sliced grapefruits slices over the aluminum foil  and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place the cod fillets over it. Make sure they do not overlap.

Over medium heat place a small skillet with olive oil. Once warm add the shallots and sauté until translucent. Add the parsley, grapefruit rind and juices from lemon and grapefruits. Sautee for 5 minutes and remove from the heat. Spread mixture over fish and place the cherry tomatoes over the whole dish.

Place in the oven for 15 to 20 minutes or until done.

Serve hot.

And here is the whole dish. Not the best light unfortunately.  Enjoy!