gloss sauce

hi friends, lovers & people probably related to me —

114 — why is my brain wired to want a $200 dollar ring that looks like a gumball? asking for a friend

i couldn’t remember the last time i had tortellini & that felt sad

so i had janel over for a dinner hang¹ which is a v. good late sunday afternoon/early evening activity. you should do it sometime. alright longer letter later. i’ve got real & fake errands to run & i’ve spent too much time staring at a screen do it a second longer.

ingredients for the sauce + pasta
shallots (2)
garlic (like 6 cloves)
mushrooms, sliced (i used baby bellas, but you can use whichever ones you’d like)
sundried tomatoes (don’t skip these they get so plump & jammy)
spinach + whatever left over greens you have wilting (in my case there was also arugula)
calabrian chili
red pepper flakes
olive oil
salt & pepper
white wine
heavy cream
pecorino
tortellini ( you can use another pasta if you want but that would be lame)

ingredients for the crispy lemon chicky
canola oil
panko
lemons
salt & pepper
thin chicken cutlets
cornstarch
eggs

ingredients for topping
pecorino
chives
lemon

steps

1st in a dutch oven or other large heavy bottom pot - add a generous drizzle of olive oil, dump in your sliced mushrooms (either you sliced them yourself or they came that way) with some salt & pepper, cook until rich in color and almost crispy. remove and add in a lil bit more olive oil — add the thinly sliced shallots & the garlic (grated, sliced, minced, whatever your pref is), cook until almost caramelized, stirring as needed. add the mushrooms back in and half a jar of chopped sundried tomatoes, a pinch of red pepper flakes & a lil calabrian chili. pour a bout a half cup of whatever white wine is currently in your fridge and bring to a simmer and then turn to low. while that melds move onto the chicken

2nd if you’ve been reading this newsletter the next set of steps isn’t new. lemony chicken cutlets are one of my signatures. take your cutlets out (if they are a bit thinker than you would like feel free to pound them thinner), put your panko, cornstarch & the zest of 1 lemon in a shallow plate/bowl (i find a pie plate works best) season with salt + pepper, then crack two eggs in another bowl also season generously with salt + pepper. pull out a large sheet pan to stage your chicken, dip in egg then panko - pat it on. then transfer - repeat till all cutlets are full coated. heat canola oil in a deep(ish) skillet — it should start to get shimmery + bubbly, you can also throw a couple drops of water in there and see if they sizzle). turn oven to 200. fry your cutlets in batches till crispy (they should be rich golden brown color) - let drain on a paper towel and sprinkle with flaky salt + a generous squeeze of lemon and leave in the oven to keep warm.

3rd add a small container of heavy cream to the sauce and half a bag or more of spinach + whatever greens to wilt. bring a pot of heavily salted water to boil. and finely chop some chives & grate some pecorino. once water is boiling drop the tortellini(s) they will cook rather quickly, using a slotted spoon — drop them into the sauce a long with about a quarter cup or so of pasta water and some pecorino. stir gently till glossy and combined. plate with pasta on the bottom, then the lemony chicken cutlet, some pecorino, a shower of chives & an extra lemon wedge.

gloss sauce ft. my new blates

particularly good things i consumed recently

thanksgiving — with the famdamnily (missed you megs) — the turkey was perfect grilled (thank you bacon fat), there was leeky sourdough stuffing, & classic mashed potatoes, gravy, cranberry sauce (homemade of course, and perfectly tart), a slaw brussel salad + plenty of apple crisp

futuro indy — a takeout/delivery only pizza joint slinging delicious detroit style pies in indianapolis (perfect for ordering to your hotel room so you can watch diners, drive-ins & dives until you fall asleep

all my library holds were ready @ once & all of them are dark (which was unintentional). if you’re into that shit — check out the following: bright young women, my murder & midnight pharmacy

diversey (a lil wine tasting) x lonesome (nachos & a mezcal marg, ofc) w/ kiera — the perfect way to spend a chilly gray sunday

duck duck goat w/ allison — lovely catching up over spring rolls, soup dumplings, fried rice, moo shu & crispy banana dumplings

an accidental late night w/ becca & kate that started with the west town shop & sip, with stops for thai food (jj’s is v. good) & wine & ended @ the clipper (for me bc then i had to go home & make a quessadilla)

currently consuming

a lil nespresso pre-run, pre-errands, pre-diversey, pre-making soup sunday

as always,
mk

1. a dinner hang is when someone comes over and hangs out with you while you cook dinner, just chatting, drinking the wine, tasting the sauce, maybe chopping something if needed.