Junebugs

As per my June 4th entry…J. and I had been wanting to try to re-create the “Pasta Yia-Yia” that we enjoyed at Lula Cafe.  Last night was the night. We walked through the alley behind J.’s house to the local mercado /fruteria /verduleria, Armitage Produce. The owner of that shop stands in the entryway to say “hola” as you walk in, and helps the check-out ladies pack bags as you leave. I think his motivation is more surveillance than kindness. Nevertheless, I think he’s getting to know the white kids who live around the block pretty well, now. We picked up a fresh avocado, garlic, cinnamon sticks, roma tomato, romaine lettuce & mango.  

With a little bit of guesswork and online research, here is our take on the delicious and flavorful pasta. To go alongside, J made a wicked fresh salad.

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Pasta Yia-Yia (a.k.a. bucatini with brown butter and Moroccan cinnamon)
1.5 sticks of unsalted butter (3/4 cup)
3/4 t cumin
1 cinnamonstick
1/2 t ground cinnamon
4-5 cloves of garlic, sliced thin
16 oz bucatini pasta
2 T vegetable oil
3-4 oz feta  (or queso fresco, if a mercado is all you have nearby)
salt & pepper

- In a large stock pot, cook the pasta al dente to package instructions.
- In a smal pot, over low heat, brown the butter.*
- In a separate skillet, heat vegetable oil and when oil is hot add cinnamonstick, ground cinnamon and cumin. Heat for a few minutes until you can smell the aroma of the spices. Lower heat and add garlic. Cook the garlic, careful not to burn.
- Once butter is browned properly, drain the pasta and combine the pasta, browned butter and oil+spices mixture. Add salt and pepper to taste (they really brought out the other flavors). Top with crumbled feta or queso fresco (Lula served with a fresh feta, but our local mercado only had queso fresco. And I actually think I enjoyed the queso better).

*This is the first time I really looked into the technique of browning butter, and it reminded me of ghee in Indian cooking. Anyone have experience or tips on this? I may have to write more about this later.

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Guacamole Salad
1 avocado, cubed
1 lime, juiced
1 tomato, cubed
red onion, diced
cilantro, chopped
roman lettuce

J titled this “guacamole salad,” and it’s fantastic with fresh vegetables. Combine everything above, and if you need to.. add a bit of oil and vinegar for extra dressing.

….C