Lost in translation...or thankfully not...

So I was browsing through the cookbook selection at Borders last week as I was waiting to go to my class at the gym (ironic, huh:P) I always seem to be really hungry right after school, and on the days I go to a 5:30 class, I have about an hour to kill. I usually go to Borders and grade, but I just was not in the mood to look at tests that particular day. I found the bargain book stand and there were all these $4.99 cookbooks, so I started browsing. I found one called 30 Minute Meals: A Commonsense Guide. I thought, 30 minutes, great! I flipped through quickly, saw that it had chicken, fish, beef, and pasta recipes, so I bought it.

Well, after I got home that night and was looking at it in detail, I realized the thing was British! The measurements were metric (but had standard ones after them, thank goodness), and there were words like "flavour" and "yoghurt" in the recipes. They also kept referring to this one salad green as "rocket!" Thankfully, there was a handy glossary in the front. And there were pictures if all else failed! 

Yesterday I found one recipe where I recognized all the ingredients and decided to try it out. It was about 90 degrees outside, so I didn't want something with a lot of standing over the stove involved, and this one looked nice and cool. And it tasted pretty good! Here ya go...

Fusilli with Roasted Tomatoes, Tapenade and Bocconcini

(don't be intimidated--there is a translation--and I won't include the metric measurements :)

1 lb 12 oz cherry tomatoes (I just got 2 12-oz bags)

1 lb fusilli (this is the spiral pasta)

About 10 oz (I used a half pound, or 8 oz) bocconcini, a.k.a. fresh mozzarella cheese, sliced

1 T chopped thyme

1 1/2 T capers (these are little green things you can find in the Italian section)

2 small garlic cloves

1 1/2 cups sliced black olives

3 T lemon juice

4-5 T extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO for you Rachel Ray fans ;)

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 400 F. Place the tomatoes on a baking tray. Season well (they didn't really explain this one so I just dumped some pepper on them!) and roast for 10 min, or until slightly dried.

2. To make the tapenade (fancy word for sauce stuff that goes in the pasta), put the capers, garlic, olives and lemon juice in a food processor and mix together. Gradually add the oil and continue to mix in the processor until the mixture forms a smooth paste.

3. Cook the pasta in a large saucepan of boiling salted water until al dente. Drain well and return to the pan to keep warm.

4. Toss the tapenade and mozzarella cheese throughout the pasta. Serve topped with the tomatoes and thyme.

Yum yum!