What's A Nice Recipe For A Late Night Snack/Meal/Dessert?

Great! There are at least three of us here now…samclem’s the other.

Just had another brilliant idea…a quick, simple pasta dish that Romans often throw together after an all-night party…follow-up seduction is a given.

Spaghetti Aglio-Olio Peperoncino

6 garlic cloves
2 tblsp extra virgin olive oil
1 lb spaghetti
3-4 anchovy filets, chopped (or a good goosh from a tube of anchovy paste)
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
1/2 cup minced flat-leaf parsley

Bring a pot of water to the boil.

Chop garlic coarsely and saute gently in oil, in a pan large enough to hold a pound of cooked pasta. Cook JUST until garlic softens and starts to turn golden.

Start cooking the pasta.

Add the anchovies to the oil & garlic and cook briefly, mashing the filets with a fork. Stir in chile pepper and half the parsley, and carfeuilly add a ladleful of the pasta cooking water. Let simmer and reduce slightly while the pasta finishes cooking.

When spaghetti is barely al dente, drain it and add it to the pan with the sauce. Turn the heat up slightly and cook, mixing pasta and sauce together well for 1-2 minutes, or until pasta is done to taste.

Turn pasta into a serving bowl, sprinkle with remaining parsley, and serve with the Romano grater and a nice bottle of red wine alongside.

(The anchovies are optional but highly recommended. You can substitute some chopped shallots for some of the garlic, if you want a less pungent dish.)

Ukelele Ike:

Garlic, anchovies, & red pepper flakes in a seduction dish? It sounds yummy & all, but the kissing portion of the evening might have to be skipped after eating that stuff, methinks.

Or was that your intention all along, you sly dog? :wink:

Ahhhh, if they’re BOTH full of garlic, they won’t notice. Just ask a Mediterranean.

A less stinky option would be a few dozen sparkling fresh oysters on the half-shell, with a squeeze of lemon and a cold bottle of a good, flinty Chablis. (insert winking smiley here)

What means “flinty”? I think flint, I think starting a campfire. :slight_smile:

Garlic is no problem at all in the seduction realm, as long as both participants like it! Garlic makes me happy, and happiness is conducive to other pleasurable activities. Plus it keeps away the vampires.

Anchovies, however, are another story. It’s all a matter of individual tase, though.

Go for the crepes, but remember what Eva said about letting the mix rest in the fridge for at least an hour. It softens the cellulose in the flour, and makes for a crepe instead of a sheet of cardboard.

And I’d do the savoury kind, perhaps a chicken and mushroom or asparagus in a light bechamel sauce, or even a spinach and cheese. They sound ‘complicated’ but are really dead easy, and everything can be whipped up beforehand. Just cook the crepes at the last minute, and fill with the stuffing.

Or if you feel like mucking around in the kitchen for a bit longer, try some home made wonton, with minced pork/chicken, mushrooms, water chestnuts, bamboo shoots, spring onions and minced ginger/garlic/. Put about a tspoon into a ‘wrapper’, twist, and either steam or fry in hot peanut oil (and a couple of drops of sesame oil). Serve with a sweet chili sauce…mmmmmm…but make lots, they’re addictive.

God I’m hungry. :smiley:

Naw, if you’re making crepes, make the dessert ones! You can put cream cheese in them and they’ll be great! Fresh fruit and cream cheese. Mmmmmmmmmmm

What IS this suddenly, the “crepe thread” ?

Pearls before swine, I’m tellin’ ya…

I vote crepes. Matters not to me sweet or savory, but crepes for late, late night are great.

So, like, what did you make, Quasi?

It’s 11 at night! Getting a little late for serious cooking isn’t it? Well for me crepes are serious cooking.

My favorite for a late evening snack is a slice of angel food cake topped with fresh berries, ie. rasberries, blueberries, strawberries, etc… A quick dab of fresh whipped cream. None of this can or bowl stuff. Then a little drible of a rasberry sause. Its lighe, cool, tastes good, easy to make, colorful.

Oops, thats light not lighe. Teach me not to proof first.

And more importantly, how did the cookin’ go? :smiley:

No, more importantly, how did the evening go? Did you win back the girl?

Y’all are gonna think I’m the biggest wimp ever! I tried the crepes, but failed, so I made a German apple pie. She liked it. Need some more practice, I guess. Sorry EL and everyone! :frowning:

Q

Here’s an easy one for making finger foods…as long as you both eat meat, that is.

Go to the store and buy:
1 package of canned crescent rolls
1 package kelbasa
1 package of monterary jack cheese

Open can of crescent rolls and separate them. You can either leave each of the 8 (or 10?) triangles intact, or cut them in half depending on how large you want your finished product. Chop up the kelbasa so it’s small enough so each piece can be fully wrapped with your crescent roll piece (you may want to “skin” the kelbasa first since it can be tough to chew through; some people also boil the kelbasa to remove fat somehow, but I’m not sure how that works) and add a piece of the cheese before you seal the roll shut. Bake according to the directions on the rolls, since kelbasa is already cooked when you buy it.

You could add a side dish, be it a veggie, a pasta you make from a mix (three cheese rotini is nice and takes less than 20 minutes if you use a microwave), rice you add some cheese to, or just eat them by themselves. Either way they’re yummy, and they look like they took more effort than they really do. Or you could just make Rice Crispy Treats for the same effect :slight_smile:

Quasi, you’re killing a hopeless romantic!!! Did it work out with the girl??? Forget the food!!!

Well, if it worked out, he’s probably too busy to log on. And if it didn’t, maybe he’s a) too despondent to log on, or b) plotting his next move (or recipe). Or maybe he’s just too polite to type with, ummmm, his mouth full.

Or maybe he’s busy practicing his crepe-flipping.

I’m dying of suspense, too! Quasi, anybody home?