Dinner

One trick I have learned for making the weekends without my husband more palatable is realizing that I get to plan the menus. He and I eat VERY differently, so getting to plan the food around my tastes is a treat. This weekend here was our menu:

Friday night

Herb crusted salmon steaks and green beans

Saturday lunch

Tomato Basil cream soup and seeded crackers with Laughing Cow swiss cheese

Grilled broccoli

Saturday night

Penne w/ Asparagus, Sage, and Peas

Honey Lemon Curd w/ Creme fraiche

Anyone noticing what is missing from the menu? Yep, you got it, not an ounce of meat among us! I love my husband's cooking and many dishes are my favorites, but I'm enjoying mixing it up a bit on the weekends.

From the Magazine Food and Wine come tonights recipes:

Ingredients
1/2 pound penne
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 pound thick asparagus, cut into 1-inch lengths
2 cups chicken stock
2 cups (10 ounces) shelled English peas or frozen baby
peas, thawed
1/4 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 tablespoon chopped fresh sage
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
cheese, plus more for serving
Salt and freshly ground pepper
Directions
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the penne and
cook, stirring occasionally, until al dente. Drain.
Meanwhile, in a large
skillet, heat the olive oil. Add the garlic and asparagus and cook over
moderately low heat, stirring occasionally, until the garlic is fragrant, about
3 minutes. Add the stock and boil over high heat until reduced by half and the
asparagus are tender, about 5 minutes.
Add the peas and cream to the skillet
and boil over high heat until the sauce has thickened, 3 minutes. Stir in the
penne and cook until heated through. Remove from the heat and stir in the
butter, sage and the 1/2 cup of cheese. Season with salt and pepper. Transfer
the pasta to bowls and serve right away, passing additional cheese at the table.

Honey Lemon Curd with Creme Fraiche

Ingredients
5 large egg yolks
1 large egg
2/3 cup fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest, plus more for garnishing
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons honey
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 8 pieces
Crème fraîche, for serving
Directions
In a medium heatproof bowl, whisk the egg yolks with the whole egg, the lemon juice, 1 teaspoon of the lemon zest and the honey. In a medium saucepan, bring 1 inch of water to a boil. Set the bowl with the lemon mixture over the boiling water, reduce the heat to moderate and cook the mixture, whisking constantly, until thickened, about 7 minutes. Remove the bowl from the heat and whisk in the butter. Pass the curd through a fine-mesh strainer into a medium bowl.
Ladle the strained curd into 4 cups or ramekins. Press a piece of plastic wrap directly on the surface of the lemon curd to prevent a skin from forming; refrigerate until chilled, at least 3 hours. Top the curd with dollops of crème fraîche and sprinkle with the remaining lemon zest.
Make Ahead
The lemon curd can be refrigerated for up to 2 days.
Serve With
Shortbread cookies.