The Night Owl's Special: Midnight Spaghetti

[elleng]

Sometimes a simple pasta of pantry staples is the best company.

*I live my truest life in that hour from 12 a.m. to 1 a.m., in the spirit of a spaghettata di mezzanotte, a late-night Italian spaghetti party, which often evolves (or devolves, depending on how you look at it) from the kind of evening that wants to linger. It’s one of the few things in life that is always within reach, even when your fridge is practically empty. As my colleague David Tanis once wrote, “The smell of pasta boiling is a heady cheap thrill.”

'What I love to eat most during this cherished time is spaghetti, with its comforting slipperiness. Other shapes work, too: I’ve been known to make a mean midnight orzo with guanciale, Pecorino Romano and black pepper, sometimes egg yolks if I’m feeling “in the carbonara way.” Other nights, it’s something punchier, like an alla vodka sauce made à la minute with fusilli: tomato paste bloomed in some fat, such as butter or olive oil, then swirled with a splash of vodka and cream. For the man, it’s a ragù, made the way of his grandfather’s family in Ferrara. Maybe for you, midnight pasta is a fridge clear-out, where you turn all of your leftover crisper-drawer vegetables into a nubby sauce.'

Peanut Butter Noodles

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Ingredients
8 ounces Udon noodles

½ cup chicken broth

3 tablespoons soy sauce

3 tablespoons peanut butter

1 ½ tablespoons minced fresh ginger root

1 ½ tablespoons honey

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 teaspoons hot chile paste (Optional)

¼ cup chopped green onions

¼ cup chopped peanuts

Directions
Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook udon in boiling water, stirring occasionally, until noodles are tender yet firm to the bite, 10 to 12 minutes. Drain.

Meanwhile, combine chicken broth, soy sauce, peanut butter, ginger, honey, garlic, and chili paste in a medium saucepan. Cook and stir over medium heat until peanut butter melts and sauce is heated through.

Add drained noodles to peanut butter sauce; toss to coat. Garnish with green onions and peanuts.

https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/11835/peanut-butter-noodles/

https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1025047-peanut-butter-noodles

((GUESS I'll think about it!!!))

[SWBTATTReg]

1. An interesting twist to this spag. recipe, peanut butter!! Wow, I've bookmarked and I'm going to try this. I'm

a big fan of spag, and all of its variations (which are endless). Easy to make, easy to add to and enhance, and you can use the extra unused cooked noodles in a nice cold salad (with a variety of cold beans, olives, and such). God, you got me hungry!!

[elleng]

2. ME too hungry, even tho just had ice cream!

[Marthe48]

3. I use a similar recipe

when I make peanut butter chicken. I saute chicken, add onion, chopped green onion chopped celery and most of the other ingredients. I add mixed vegetables. One of my favorite meals. I used to have noodles, but I've been low carb for awhile. It all tastes good together

[Retrograde]

4. Sounds like it's edging towards dan dan noodles

which is a favorite of mine. I'll have to try it - I'm trying to wean Mr. Retrograde away from the notion that pasta sauces must be red.

[elleng]

5. Yes (edging toward dan dan noodles,)

and wean away from red sauces. (May have choice tomorrow, so we'll see!)