It's Friday and I sometimes like to end the week with an article or two that relates to what we're doing in the kitchen, food, or other things culinary. Sometimes they involve practical tips; other times they are there simply to make us smile or think. This week, I'm sharing one of each kind.
We begin with a careful look at pasta and how to make perfect, al dente pasta without a huge pot of water and even without boiling the water! Get ready to have some of your preconceived notions about pasta turned on their heads. Now, before you decide you don't need a large pot for pasta anymore, let me give you one major caveat: the method described in this article is intended for short and medium-shaped pasta. Long pasta still needs a lot of water to allow it to be completely submerged. Also, fresh pasta will not cook effectively using this method. That said, everything from homemade macaroni and cheese to penne with fresh asparagus are going to get a new treatment in my kitchen from now on!
Our second article is about a project that asks what our kitchens say about us. Photographer Ellen Silverman captures the beauty, simplicity, scarcity, and even joy to be found in the kitchens of Cuba. Her images show the kitchens without any fussing or cleaning for photographing. Recently used dishes sit out, paint peels along the walls, and rust appears at the edges of appliances. It's like walking into the life of the people who cook there. So what would your kitchen say about you?