Our Christmas Cookbook - 9. Angelhair Pasta

“Good evening!”

The host of the TV talk show stood in front of her wildly-clapping audience, smiling broadly while pretending to hide something behind her back. “Thank you!” She waited for the people to calm down. “Thank you!” She put a finger on her lips, making a big show of almost dropping what she had in her right hand. “Oops.” She winked. “Today I have a surprise guest for you!”

Someone whistled loudly. Others began to yell guesses. “Keanu Reeves!” “Greta Thunberg!”

She laughed gleefully. “They would be lovely guests, I give you that, but you are all wrong!” Then she pulled her hand from behind her back and showed the camera a book. A close-up of its cover appeared on the large screen behind her.

Instantly, the audience cheered frenetically.

“So, who is my surprise guest?” she shouted.

The audience shouted back, “Ben Myers!”

She laughed. “You are right!” She hugged the book against her chest. “And this—is the last book of his Puppeteer series!” The audience flipped out.

The leader of the studio band grabbed a mike. “Did you read it?”

She grinned broadly. “You bet.”

“Is it any good?”

“Oh my God! It’s so good!” She wiped imaginary sweat from her forehead.

“Who is the puppeteer?”

She made a zip-closed gesture over her mouth.

Pouting in an exaggerated manner, he went back to his position. “So unfair!”

As she went to the bright yellow couch and sat down daintily, putting a strand of very blond hair behind her ear, he sneaked along the wall, hid behind a palm tree, crawled until he was behind the couch, and pretended to steal the book. “Gimme that!”

“Nuh-uh.” She held it out of reach. “You have to wait for tomorrow, like everyone else, my dear Amir.” She shooed him away. Smiling, she turned to the audience.

“Please welcome tonight’s first guest, Mr. Ben Myers, the author of the highly coveted crime book series, The Puppeteer!”

Music began to play, and a tall, dark-haired man wearing a blue, cable-knit, V-neck sweater and black slacks jogged up to the host. She immediately put her hands on his shoulders and exchanged air kisses. Next, she pointed to the couch. He waved to the audience shyly, grinning at the whooping, then he sat down.

She smiled. “It’s been so long.”

He pretended to have to think about this. “Wasn’t I here for the last book?”

She grinned. “And the book before that....”

He nodded sagely. “And the book before that.”

“In fact, I invited you every time a book of the Puppeteer series was published.” She giggled. “They’re so good I just had to spread the word.” She tapped his arm. “Spread the word, get it?”

For a moment it looked like he’d roll his eyes at her lame joke.

“Seven books. Where to begin....”

Ben got up from the couch and laboriously fished a piece of paper out of his pants’ pockets and made a production of unfolding it. “I have here a list from my publisher.” He straightened his back. “I am not to reveal the end.”

“Duh….”

He lifted the pointer finger of his right hand. “I am not allowed to say who the puppeteer is.”

“But maybe you could tell us if they are female or male?”

“I am not allowed to reveal whether they are female or male.”

“Okay...” She tapped her lips, pretending to think. “Does detective Clarkson survive?”

“I am not allowed to reveal--”

“Okay, okay. Will he get together with Sergeant Wagner?” She bent forward, her gaze riveted on Ben’s mouth.

“I am not allowed to reveal--”

“Of course, I already know you’re not able to talk about the things we are all dying to know. Which is why I asked around and learned an interesting thing about you. I heard you were already quite the storyteller when you were a ten--”

Ben’s eyes widened, and he shook his head, lifting his hands in a defensive gesture. ”No, not that!”

The host rubbed her hands gleefully. “Oh yes. You don’t want to tell us anything about your new book, so we are talking about how you ruined an entire Christmas dinner.” She waggled her eyebrows. “I only say angel hair pasta.”

“Oh no. How do you know—who told you?”

She looked smug. “I have my sources.”

“Apparently.”

“So, will you do the honors or should I?”

“I suppose I will, since it’s my story after all. When I was a kid we didn’t have much money. My mother loved to cook and made up for the lack of funds with fancy-sounding dishes. One year it was Christmas angel hair pasta.

“At four years old, my sister Clara hated everything to do with hair. Every time there was a single hair on her clothes, let alone in her food, she threw a major fit. So, when she heard angel hair, she warily asked me if there was any hair in it. Of course I said yes, and told her if a family is poor God sends the Christmas angel, who cuts their hair for the parents to cook. I said it looks like pasta. She was totally grossed out when I told her the angel usually doesn’t have time to wash it before it’s cut because it’s such a busy time. Mom was so furious....”

“You were such a bad, bad brother.” The host shook her head and got up from the couch as the music began to play, announcing another guest. A woman wearing a full chef outfit, carrying a tray with a covered dish on it, entered the studio.

“Oh my God!”

“Let’s say hello to my second guest tonight! Clara Myers-Rossi, Ben’s little sister who is a chef now with her own restaurant.” The audience applauded wildly.

Clara set the tray down on the TV tray an assistant had run out with and set in front of the couch. “Pan seared scallops with lemon caper angel hair pasta.” She passed the host a napkin, a spoon, and a knife.

Ben frowned. ”Hey, what about me?”

“Revenge is a dish that is sometimes served hot.” Then she bent down and whispered into her brother’s ear, “Christmas dinner with Rita, the kids, and me. Six o’clock. I dare you.” She waved and quickly disappeared again.

“Okay, let me finish this spectacular dish before my third guest comes in.” The host grinned and shooed Ben out the door.

Pan Seared Scallops with Lemon Caper Pasta

Ingredients

· 1 pound scallops, jumbo size (about 20 pieces, 1-inch wide)

· kosher salt, for seasoning

· 2 tablespoons olive oil

· 3 tablespoons unsalted butter

· black pepper, freshly ground, for seasoning

· 1/2 pound angel hair pasta, Barilla

· 3 teaspoons minced garlic

· 1/2 cup chardonnay wine,

· 1 cup chicken broth, low sodium or unsalted

· 2 tablespoons lemon juice, plus zest from one lemon

· 2 tablespoons capers, rinsed

· 1 tablespoon finely chopped parsley

· 1 cup baby tomatoes, sliced in half

· 1/4 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese

Instructions

Scallops

Dry the scallops very well with a piece of paper towel. Season both sides with salt.

Heat a large stainless steel frying pan over medium-high heat. Add 2 tablespoons olive oil and heat until the oil ripples and begins to smoke.

Add scallops to a hot pan without crowding. Cook the scallops without moving them, until the bottoms are a rich golden brown, about 3 minutes.

Add one tablespoon of butter to the pan. Turn the scallops and caramelize the second side, about 1 1/2 to 2 minutes. Turn off heat but do not discard the pan.

Transfer scallops to a clean plate and lightly season with freshly ground black pepper. Lightly cover to keep warm while making the pasta.

Lemon Caper Pasta

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. In the meanwhile make the lemon caper sauce.

In the same pan used to cook the scallops, turn heat to medium and add one tablespoon of butter and garlic. Stir and cook garlic for about 1 minute, until fragrant but not browned.

Increase the heat to medium-high and add 1/2 cup white wine. Simmer, stirring as needed until the wine is reduced by half and you can no longer smell the alcohol, about 3 minutes.

Add the chicken broth, lemon juice, zest, and capers, turn heat to high. Cook until sauce is reduced by half (1/2 cup) about 8 to 10 minutes.

Turn off heat and add one tablespoon of butter, and whisk to combine. Taste sauce, season with salt and pepper as needed.

Cook angel hair pasta in boiling water about 4 minutes until al dente, 5 minutes for more tender pasta. Drain pasta and add to the sauce.

Add parsley and toss to combine. Add sliced tomatoes and gently mix. Season pasta with salt and pepper as desired.

Evenly divide the pasta amounts serving dishes. Top with scallops and freshly grated parmesan cheese.

(recipe by Jessica Garvin)