Creamy Corn and Seaweed Pasta

I like to think of myself as a creative person, but I rarely cook without a recipe. Even when I modify the recipe (as I did yesterday), I am still relying on the steps someone else has laid out.

This leads me to wonder what the "rules" are about modifying someone else's recipe and claiming it as your own. I beg forgiveness for the recipe below not only from Alexandra Stafford, whose "Creamy Corn Pasta With Basil" I modified, but also from the New York Times' Melissa Clark, whose "Creamy Corn Pasta With Basil" Alexandra Stafford modified! It's complicated, I guess, but I'm going to give those chefs credit and then take a little of my own.

"Jennie Aylward's Alexandra Stafford's Melissa Clark's Creamy Corn Pasta With Basil"

Um, never mind....let's try again:

"Creamy Corn and Seaweed Pasta"
Serves 4-5

Ingredients

• 12 ounces dry pasta
• 4 tablespoons oil, divided (I used vegetable only because I ran out of olive)
• At least 2 scallions, trimmed and thinly sliced (whites and light green parts only), to taste
• 2 large ears corn, shucked and kernels removed (2 cups kernels)
• 4 ounces of ready-cut frozen kelp, thawed
• ⅓ cup torn basil or mint, more for garnish
• Juice of 1/2 lemon
• Chopped fresh tomato (optional)
• Grated parmesan cheese (optional)

Instructions

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Cook pasta until 1 minute shy of al dente, according to the package directions. Drain, reserving 1/2 cup (or more) of pasta water.
2. Meanwhile, heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in large sauté pan over medium heat; add scallions and a pinch of salt and cook until soft, 3 minutes. Add 1/4 cup reserved pasta cooking liquid—dip a measuring cup into the pot if the pasta is still boiling—and all but 1/4 cup corn and all but 1/4 cup seaweed; simmer until corn and seaweed are heated through, 3 to 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste, transfer to a blender (or food processor), and purée mixture until smooth, adding a little extra water if needed to get a thick but pourable texture.
3. Heat the same skillet over high heat. Add remaining oil. Add reserved 1/4 cup corn and 1/4 cup seaweed and cook 1 to 2 minutes. Add the corn/seaweed/scallion purée and cook for 30 seconds to heat and combine the flavors.
4. Reduce heat to medium. Add pasta and 1/4 cup of the reserved pasta cooking water, tossing to coat. Cook for 1 minute, then add a little more of the pasta cooking water if the mixture seems too thick. Stir in the herbs, the lemon juice, and salt and pepper to taste. Top, if desired, with tomato and/or cheese.

Everyone liked the results, and it being Vegan Vednesday, I ate mine with a sprinkling of salt rather than cheese, and I was very happy.

Vegetarian version!

Vegan version!

And speaking of Vegan Vednesday, I made it happen, and I'm patting myself on the back. Last night I put in motion a slow-cooker oatmeal with pears. It's handy that you can use unripe pears, and they will soften nicely. We drizzled it with maple syrup, which was nice. I liked the oatmeal flavor (I think Emma would have liked it sweeter), but the texture was a little gelatinous. I might try this recipe again with steel-cut oats next time to combat that problem.

Still-life with pears

For lunch, I made a wrap with green olives, fresh tomato, and vegan cheese - not spectacular, but it wasn't bad.

This is the cheese I used (though this wasn't today's lunch). And I swear to you: it tastes really good! It melts a little oddly, but I highly recommend it for sandwiches.

Final note for today: Last year I accidentally grew tomatoes. This year I am accidentally growing cantaloupes! Isn't that exciting?!