Farmer H always knows the game plan for his suppers. Usually for the next three days. I bring it up in conversation. Ask if he has any auctions. Estimate about what time he'll be home. Then I know what to cook, and when to start it. I'd been telling him he'd have spaghetti on Sunday. But then I changed it to Monday, because The Pony had some fish and macaroni & cheese left over from a Country Mart Deli dinner. So Farmer H got that on Sunday, and The Pony made himself hamburgers with what I didn't have planned to go in the spaghetti or the taco sauce that I would be having, since I don't like spaghetti.
Anyhoo... Farmer H had been told for several days that he'd be having spaghetti. Yet when I came upstairs at 6:15 on Monday evening, to prepare that spaghetti, on my way to the box of 24 boxes of spaghetti noodles that Farmer H brought home from the auction long ago and didn't give away as he'd promised... Farmer H said:
"Don't you have some of those other noodles? The bendy kind?"
"You mean elbow macaroni noodles?"
"Yeah. That's it. Those."
"Um. I'm pretty sure we're out. The Pony had some, but he makes them often, with just butter and garlic. I'm pretty sure they're gone. I WAS JUST AT THE STORE again this afternoon! And I went on Saturday! WHY didn't you say you wanted macaroni then? I thought you LIKED spaghetti."
"I do. I just wanted the other kind."
"Well. I'll look in the pantry and see what I might have. Huh. There are four kinds. Ziti, shells, rotini, and wheat rotini. The rotini expired in 2016, and the wheat rotini in 2017. So they're out... The ziti is 2020, and the shells are 2019."
"Those last two are probably okay."
"Yeah. I don't really think they go bad. I just poured them out on a plate. They look normal. No bugs or anything. There's not enough of one kind, so I'll mix them. I'll just have to start the ziti first, because they cook three minutes longer."
The Pony was a bit surprised to walk in after work and see me draining ziti and shells instead of spaghetti. But not at all surprised to hear the expiration dates. Not that it mattered to him. He ate a giant plate of them.
I must say, they turned out well. A few were left over after serving Farmer H and The Pony mass quantities, and putting two (mushroom and non-mushroom sauce) in large Chinese soup containers for leftovers. I dumped the extras in the can of Chef Boyardee sauce that I'd added to the other sauce, and swirled them around in the dregs.
I kind of like spaghetti when it's not spaghetti...
I'm pretty sure that when I buy some elbow macaroni, Farmer H will want spaghetti noodles.
I know what shells look like, I use them in soup, the small size ones and for pasta salad too, but don't know ziti or rotini. Pictures please?
ReplyDeleteMen are the canines and women are the felines. Dogs will eat anything--especially if it's been dead for a while. Cats are finnicky--more particular.
ReplyDeleteI think Farmer H should sell his services to pasta manufacturers. New names for old pasta shapes... He would be a hit.
I googled!
ReplyDeleteYour ziti is what we call rigatoni and the rotini is what we call spirelli, but the names differ depending on what brand we buy.
River,
ReplyDeleteSorry I didn't read this soon enough to give you a picture. These were the small shells, but the ziti were about 2 inches long. I wouldn't have known their name, except it said it on the box. But I DID know rotini. I thought the ziti was penne, but they have angled ends.
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Sioux,
Farmer H would name pasta for tools and equipment. Like a hollow pasta might be PVC Pipe, and a flat noodle might me listed by the inch, as Measuring Tape.
And like dogs, men don't try to clean up or hide their poop!
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River,
I just googled, and found a site with pictures:
https://whatsfordinner.com/kitchen-tips/pasta-types-with-pictures/