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Peters cooking blogger shares a Valentine’s Day menu

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Nicole Shadel gushes over her favorite style of Italian pasta, De Cecco brand noodles, during a class on cooking for Valentine’s Day at Peters Township Library Saturday.

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Shadel combines all the ingredients for her version of bocconcini and tomato salad.

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Nicole Shadel shows size differences in basil, cautioning against bigger ones in recipes that call for individual leaves.

McMURRAY – Baked pasta is better reheated, according to fictitious mob-boss wife Carmela Soprano. Real Italian-American cook Nicole Shadel – known as Nicky D to most – would differ a bit on that point.

“I mean, you want to make pasta for people who aren’t going to leave any behind anyway,” said the Peters Township cook and educator.

On Saturday, Shadel instructed a group of 25 at Peters Township Library on a Valentine’s Day menu that’s meant to impress without intimidating newbie cooks. The three-course spread started with a mozzarella and tomato salad, a five-cheese baked penne and finished with ice cream served on a cold, chocolate-covered pizzelle.

It’s no accident Italian cooking prominently features the country’s colors. It’s no more simply on display than it is in Shadel’s version of bocconcini and tomato salad. The recipe calls for:

8 ounces bocconcini mozzarella balls, halved

2 pints of cherry tomatoes

20 basil leaves

Extra virgin olive oil

Balsamic vinegar

Salt and pepper

Cut the basil into ribbons, halve the tomatoes and mozzarella, then drizzle with the oil and vinegar and fold in the basil and seasoning.

“Stay away from dark balsamics,” Shadel said at the class, “it’s just for aesthetics, but it matters. It can sometimes become like a glaze. It can look like a murder scene. It gets dark, streaky and globs together. Stick with a light balsamic.”

For the main dish, a five-cheese baked penne, Shadel advised to stick to some things while saying it’s permissible to switch other cheeses out. The recipe calls for:

½ cup grated Italian cheese (Pecorino Romano, Parmigiano-Reggiano, or Romano-Parmesan)

6 ounces fontina cheese

¼ cup crumbled Gorgonzola

2-3 tablespoons of ricotta

¼ lb. fresh mozzarella

2 cups half-and-half or cream

1 cup crushed tomatoes

1 handful of torn, fresh basil

1 pound penne pasta cooked al dente

½ stick unsalted butter cut into cubes

Cook the pasta, drain, set aside. Combine all ingredients except penne, basil and butter. Then, mix in penne, fold in basil and pour mixture into a 9-by-13 greased baking dish with cubes of butter spread on top. Cover and place in 350-degree oven for one hour. Remove cover for last 15 minutes to brown cheese.

“You cannot do this recipe low or nonfat. You can’t. It’s a crime against cheese. I had a friend try and it was a disaster. Skim milk, fat-free creams, cheeses: They don’t melt, they don’t really come together texture-wise,” Shadel said.

“You can switch bleu cheese for the Gorgonzola. One area not to play with is the ricotta. Even for people who don’t like heavy ricotta or its flavor, it’s the perfect amount and it’s crucial for the dish’s consistency.”

For Shadel, the most important part – the pasta – comes with its own set of rules.

“I say cook al dente to cover your bases, but you want to really cook this a minute before al dente. It helps keep the firmness you want as it bakes,” she said, “and I use De Cecco pasta from Italy. Everyone has their preferences, but for me, this tastes the best. It’s the fresh spring water they use. Some in my family like San Giorgio, but I don’t. It tastes mealy. Use whatever you want, but bad or overcooked pasta is like a limp handshake. No one wants that.”

Shadel said she designed this meal to be both impressive and easy in light of today’s cooking education culture.

“It used to be you could turn on Food Network and learn. But it’s now about competitions and showiness and flash. It can be intimidating,” she said.

So Shadel advises new and aspiring cooks to turn to the blogosphere, but to do so with a discerning eye – and taste.

“A Pittsburgher who’s now down in Jacksonville has a blog called ‘Will Cook For Smiles’ and it’s wonderful. Her name is Lyuba Brooke. She has a blog that sets the example of what you’re looking for: easy to follow, great personality and most importantly, dishes that taste great when you make them.”

Shadel’s own blog, www.nickydcooks.com, has been going since 2011. She writes for Ciao Pittsburgh and has been teaching cooking classes at community colleges in Allegheny County since 2011. She got her nickname in part because her mother hates nicknames. The D is for DaCosta, a maiden name.

The style of cooking Shadel imparts on her students is “peasant food,” or Neapolitan-style comfort food.

“It’s a ‘big’ food philosophy. This is food you can make on a budget, but when you look at it, it’s like hugs on a plate. It’s the ideal comfort food.”

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