Slow Food

A Taste of Oregon Coast Winters, Past and Present.

Sausage and cheese manicotti.

Sausage and Cheese Manicotti is a warm, satisfying dish on a cold night.

By Kristin Albrecht
For The Gazette

The meals prepared for people you love are often the best and most memorable. The first meal I ever fixed for my husband, Mark, was just days after I'd met him. We were both in graduate school and I was living in an old, drafty, creaky house (with incredibly cheap rent) which was probably one minor inspection away from condemnation.

My roommate and I had decided to forgo having our gas heat turned on so we could afford to pay our tuition, plus buy food and wine. This meant we actually had plants growing out of the rusty heating vents.

Along with the plants and no heat, there came a mouse (and eventually a mouse family) which we promptly adopted and who typically made an appearance at meal time, often startling new guests and weeding out intolerant ones.

We had almost no furniture and no lamps, but lots of candles. The candles guaranteed plenty of time studying in the well lit and heated library at night.

My parents had donated an ancient card table and folding chairs (bought with books of green stamps back in the day) which was the centerpiece of our humble and bare domicile. Thankfully, we also had a mostly working old electric oven and range so at least whoever was cooking was somewhat warm when they cooked - which meant I cooked a lot.

It was a record breaking cold winter for Oregon that year, with the temperatures dipping into the 20s on a regular basis. On the evening that Mark was invited in for dinner, he showed up wearing his mountain climbing gear, with layers of wool, a bright blue gore-tex parka and hiking boots.

I set the main course of manicotti covered with a rich tomato sauce down at our places on opposite sides of the rickety candlelit table. The steam was so thick we couldn't see each other three feet away. The dripping wax candles in empty wine bottles were like light houses on a pea-soup fog night, barely able to illuminate through the white clouds rising off the hot food. I had baked loaves of bread as well as an apple pie for dessert, so there were lingering and enticing aromas of good things to eat in the house. You just couldn't see what they might be!

Mark ate with his gloves on and kept waving the steam away so he could find his meal for another bite and another and another...

We've since had many a memorable candle lit meal over the years, and this manicotti recipe is still one of our favorites. Serve on a cold winter night, with a tossed salad, a bottle of wine and lots of love. Guaranteed to warm one up. Happy Valentines Day!

Sausage and Cheese Manicotti

Ingredients:
4 teaspoons olive oil
1 medium onion, coarsely chopped
1 pound Italian sausage*
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
14 (8-ounce package) manicotti
1 (15-ounce) container whole-milk ricotta
3 cups shredded mozzarella
1 cup grated Parmesan
2 tablespoons chopped fresh Italian parsley leaves
2 garlic cloves, minced
3 cups marinara sauce
2 tablespoons butter, cut into pieces

Directions:
Heat a heavy medium skillet over medium heat. Add 1 teaspoon of the olive oil, onion and ground Italian sausage. Season with salt and pepper. Saute until the meat browns and the onion is translucent, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat, and cool.

Brush 1 teaspoon of oil over a large baking sheet. Cook the manicotti in a large pot of boiling salted water until slightly softened, but still very firm to the bite, about 4 to 6 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the manicotti from the pot to the oiled baking sheet and cool.

Meanwhile, combine the ricotta, 1 1/2 to 2 cups mozzarella cheese, 1/2 cup Parmesan, and parsley. Add the garlic, salt, and pepper to taste, and mix. Stir the cooled meat mixture into the cheese mixture.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Brush the remaining 2 teaspoons of oil over a 13 by 9 by 2-inch glass baking dish. Spoon 1 1/2 cups of the marinara sauce over the bottom of the prepared dish. Fill the manicotti with the cheese-meat mixture. Arrange the stuffed pasta in a single layer in the prepared dish and spoon the remaining sauce over.

Sprinkle the remaining 1 1/2 cups of mozzarella cheese, then the remaining 1/2 cup of Parmesan over the stuffed pasta. Dot entire dish with the butter pieces. Bake the manicotti uncovered until heated through and the sauce bubbles on the sides of the dish, about 30 to 35 minutes. Let the manicotti stand 5 minutes and serve.

* We use our local sustainable meat vendors' sausage. Both Lance's Farm Vittles and OK Ranch deliver on a regular basis to Cannon Beach. To reach them about ordering and their delivery schedule, you may contact them at the following: Lance's Farm Vittles - Phone: (503) 322-2226 or email waldron@hotmail.com. OK Ranch and Retreat - Phone: (503) 322-3546 or email okranch@oregoncoast.com.
(c) 2010 Kristin Frost Albrecht