Ah, Bainbridge. A beautiful getaway across the water from Seattle. You take a ferry to get there. Even on a grey day, it is soothing and beautiful to be on the shores, listening to the waves (though not touching the waves because they’d be crazy cold). I went there with a group of friends a few weeks ago and relaxed and feasted. This was our view.

And at one point the clouds parted and we were treated to the magic of a Double Rainbow! Can you believe it?

Planning food for this dinner was a bit challenging. We’ve got a couple of people with some dietary challenges that made planning more interesting. One person couldn’t have any dairy and another couldn’t have any starch. That narrows things down significantly. But, we came up with some interesting options. We had “Zucchini pasta”, which were thin slices of zucchini that were sauteed in olive oil with salt and pepper until soft. This was the starch free alternative to the regular pasta we made for the crew. We also grilled Italian sausages and roasted a ton of cauliflower.

I love roasted cauliflower. It is one of the things I’ve come to appreciate this winter. I tried to slice them into large vertical slices, which made for some beautiful flower like presentations and lots of random florets that fell apart. Either way, they were fabulous. And easy!

Roast Cauliflower:
Preheat oven to 400.
Slice cauliflower and put on cookie sheet.
Drizzle with olive oil and salt and pepper generously.
Cook for about 20 min or until golden on the edges.

All in all, it made for a lovely plate. I quite liked the zucchini pasta and would make it again. The recipe we were using suggested using a vegetable peeler to shred the zucchini into pasta like ribbons. I used my new fancy mandoline and it was done in no time. I think next time I’ll make more narrow strips to give it more of a pasta feel.

Oh! And then I made a zesty red sauce that went over just about everything. It was a delightful meal. I used my basic red sauce. There is nothing easier than this. I make this all the time for spaghetti or lasagna or any red sauce I need. Adjust it to your will, but this is an excellent staple.

Zesty Red Sauce
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 large can of crushed tomatoes
salt and pepper
olive oil

Saute the garlic and red pepper flakes in a dash of olive oil until fragrant. Add tomatoes, salt and pepper and let simmer for at least 20 min.

That is the basic zesty red. When I’m at home, I usually toss in some dried basil and oregano. They didn’t have any at the place we were staying, so I tossed in some herbs de provence. But really, whatever seasonings you want to add, go for it, but the zesty red can hold it’s own.

Bon appetit!