It occurs to me that I have this thing for dishes that can be prepared in large quantities, so that you can prepare them Friday evening or Saturday morning and then don’t have to think about cooking for the rest of the weekend. The downside here is that you have to like that one dish so much that you don’t mind – in fact, actually enjoy – eating nothing much beside it.
So, if you think about spending and adventurous weekend, doing exciting stuff and maybe eating out or preparing a fabulous dinner, this is not the thing for you. If you want to spend the weekend mostly on the couch, watching DVDs and reading, this might exactly be what you want. And in my opinion there’s nothing wrong with a weekend spent on the couch. In fact, I love those lazy-ass weekends every once in a while. There’s always a tiny little feeling of guilt, a little voice that tells me „You should get out and do something“, but I learned to ignore it.
So there I have two special dishes that I make on these occasions. One is my oh-so-yummy Chili con carne, which I usually serve with some kind of pasta to make it last longer, the other is My Very Special Pasta Salad.
Please be aware that this is in no way healthy food, but to me it is comfort food at its best. I bet it has a lot of calories too, especially since there’s mayonnaise involved, but I’m not a calory-counter. If I like it, I like it and that’s that. So, if you’re looking for a healthy and diet-approved meal, skip it, please. You won’t be happy with what you’ll get. If you’re looking for something to eat while watching your favorite TV shows (which means Gilmore Girls, Veronica Mars and a lot more) on a couch, probably cuddled up under a blanket, then this might be the one.
In my experience it lasts up to three days, if stored properly, but it’s usually best on the second day. So I would prepare it on Friday evening, enjoy your first bites while the pasta is still warm and then spend the next day running from the living room to the kitchen and back to get another serving. At least that’s what I do.
Anne’s Very Special Pasta Salad
250 g pasta (I use a kind of gobbetti, called „Gabelspaghetti“ in German)
2 or 3 onions
200 g pickled gherkins (known here as cornichons)
200 g ring bologna
250 g corn
5 eggs
250 g + 2 tablespoons mayonnaise
2 tablespoons unsweetened whipping cream
1 tablespoon ketchup or to taste
salt and pepper to taste
Cook the pasta according to the instructions on the package. I recommend using any kind of short pasta for this, though it doesn’t necessarily have to be the kind I use. Boil the eggs as well. You’ll want them hard-boiled, because you’ll later have to cut them and you wouldn’t want to make a big mess. Besides, I do believe that one of the best parts of the pasta salad are the egg yolks. But maybe that’s just me.
Cut the onions, gherkins and bologna into small pieces, mix it all together and add the corn. I never said this was going to be complicated, did I?
For the sauce mix the mayonnaise, cream and ketchup. Yes, I know, how gross that sounds. Just do it, I promise it will turn out fine. You can add a bit of milk if the sauce is too thick. Or if you’re afraid of calories, use a bit of yoghurt or skimmed milk instead of the cream and use less mayonnaise. Anyway, you’ll want a creamy sauce, a bit less thick than mayonnaise on its own. Add the salt and pepper to taste, and go crazy with other spices and herbs if you feel like it. Sometimes I add a bit of thyme or herbes de provence, but this isn’t a must.
You’re nearly done then. All you need to do now is cut the eggs into small pieces and mix the pasta, other ingredients, eggs and sauce together in a big, big bowl. I usually do this in three layers, meaning that I add about a third of the pasta to the bowl, then a third of the gherkin-mix, one or two cut up eggs and about a third of the sauce, then mix and repeat two times. But again, that’s just me and my obesession with pasta salad. Feel free to ignore and that just plain mix.
You’re done now. From my experience, this salad is best two times. The one time is the moment you’re done mixing, especially when the pasta is still a bit warm. Do enjoy your first serving right then, right there, standing in the kitchen. Then it’s usually a good idea to cover the bowl and wait until the next day, because that is the day this salad also is as its best.
Serves 2 really good eaters and pasta salad lovers for one weekend or up to 20 at a party with lots of other food. And probably every number in between depending on the occasion.