Cooking on Instinct: farfalle with lemon, walnuts and parmesan

Well, it's been a while. Thanks to all the amazing bloggers who guest posted and shared their wonderful recipes. I was getting near the end of my rope, so to speak, and that end of summer vacation was much needed. The Mr. and I have been going to North Truro for 14 years now. Almost the furthest tip of Cape Cod, it's the last town before Provincetown, it's nestled between Cape Cod Bay and the ocean. And the view from our deck is just what the doctor ordered for this busy city girl.

The girls had fun too.

And here's a picture of that accidental quahog the Mr. found while walking on the beach during low tide—it made an awesome chowder. Can you believe how much meat was tucked into that beast?

Vacation cooking is a fun challenge. For one, the stove there is electric, a bit different from gas cooking. We've been renting the house for five years, so I've mastered it (things like bringing to a boil and quickly reducing to a simmer require preheating another burner). Then there's the pantry. I bring a few spices, olive oil, balsamic vinegar, etc. but I don't have access to the endless list of ingredients like at home. It's also a fun challenge to use up everything towards the end so nothing goes to waste.

Three days before we were set to leave, I was sure we'd have to make a sandwich run to Farland Provisions (incidentally, they make the best blueberry muffins I've ever had). I stared at the fridge's contents wondering what I could make to avoid changing from my swimsuit and taking the drive into town. I spied local walnuts I found in a basket in the produce section of the health food store. There were a few lemons leftover from the stock I kept on hand for our evening sidecars, and I'd bought a nutty, aged wedge of Parmesan-reggiano at the start of our vacation. Oh, and there was a bag of farfalle pasta (bowties).

Without a real plan, I started peeling some garlic, shelling the walnuts and really just went along until it started feeling right. I was cooking on instinct, knowing what flavors would meld nicely to produce a satisfying meal. And there was always the Farland takeout menu as a back up. Thankfully it wasn't needed. The end result was a creamy walnut, lemon and parmesan farfalle that tasted like something out of Gramercy Tavern (yes, I am patting myself on the back). I wish the pictures I took had come out nearly as great as the dish. Guess I was too much in a rush to eat my creation. Anyway, the photo above is of what I did with the leftover cooked farfalle. I always make extra pasta and store it in the fridge for just such ocassions. It became a delicious cold tomato and corn pasta salad on our last beach day.