Dinsdag DIY (or CWB?)

For those of you who were unaware, "Dinsdag" is the Dutch/Flemish word for "Tuesday."

And it just so happens to be my second favorite day of the week. Not because the day itself is all that special. Little of note ever happens on Tuesdays. Prior to moving to Belgium, it's sole accomplishment was that it wasn't Monday. But here, Tuesday is "Dinsdag." And that is just such a fun word to say. Even better, it is one of about 4 Flemish words I can pronounce PERFECTLY.

Sometimes, when I'm waiting for BF at this cafe near the train station that is often packed with locals, I'll call him and drop it randomly into conversation. It goes like this:

Me: Where are you? I have a table. Would you like me to order you a drink?

BF: Yeah. Sure.

Me: (as I notice the waiter approaching...) Ahhh. Op dinsdag.

BF: WHAT?

Me: (to the waiter) "Twee Rochefort 10, alsjeblieft."

Waiter: (Guesses I'm a local and says something in Flemish that I most certainly do NOT understand)

BF: You poser.

Me: (completely undeserved gigle)

Anyways. Dinsdag. In addition to it being an excellent opportunity to fake Flemish, I recently decided that Dinsdag should be a DIY day. (in this case, I'm being boring and letting DIY stand for good old "do-it-yourself"...) If I were at all talented or crafty or design sponge-y, I would knit scarves, weave blankets, arrange flowers or... repurpose vintage suitcases into coffee tables. But lets be real. I don't knit. I don't have a loom. I think flowers are too expensive. And no matter how hard I look, I can't find any blasted vintage suitcases in our price range. So. For me. DIY = cooking without boxes. Or rather, cooking with books. CWB, if you will.

Either way, cooking from scratch is no small feat for me. But. Just last Dinsdag I did it. And it was wonderful. Delicious even. And I must share.

The cookbook (and by "cookbook" I mean cooking blog) I used for this dish was everyone's favorite, Smitten Kitchen. And the recipe that I selected was her twist on Spaghetti al Limone. Except, of course, I was missing some of the key ingredients. (BF was being stupid and wouldn't run to the store to get me what I needed even though I was slaving over the stove for a good 12 minutes. Possibly even 13. The nerve of him sometimes...) So I made some substitutions.

It went like this:

Britt's Bogarted Penne al Limone

• 500grams or half a package Penne pasta. Plus an extra shake or two.


• Salt to taste. (for me that's lots. for BF that's barely enough to throw over your shoulder.)


• 2 lemons. (or 1 lemon plus a few capfuls of lemon juice if you are me and don't have dozens of lemons laying around. or 2.)


• 1 oz goat cheese (you are supposed to put in parmesan but we didn't have any. I used goat. it was awesome.)


• 1/4 cup olive oil 1/4 cup Alpro Soya Cuisine (Ms. Smitten recommends heavy cream. We never have that in our fridge but we did have some soy heavy cream substitute leftover from a previous culinary experiment/disaster. I think it worked nicely)


• Ground black pepper


• Handful of spinach or some other healthy looking greenery

Cook penne in a big old pot.

While your pasta is boiling, zest a lemon or two. Make a teaspoon sized mound and put aside then juice your lemons. 1/3 to 1/2 a cup is ideal. If you don't have fresh lemons, locate your bottle of lemon juice and put it on the counter. If you have neither fresh nor bottled lemon juice, why are you reading this? Go to the store.

How long has your pasta been cooking? 8 minutes or so? Check it. Is it just past crunchy? Perfect! Pour through a strainer and reserve a cup or so of the pasta water.

Now, this is where the big old pot comes in handy. Dry it and then place it back on the stove. Put your olive oil, cream, lemon zest and spinach in the pot and cook at high heat for 2 minutes or so. Stir lots and lots so nothing burns or sticks. When it's a little frothy, pour your pasta back in. Add the lemon juice and a bit of the pasta water if you so choose. Then, as Ms. Smitten says, "toss, toss, toss everything together."

Do a quick taste test. Add a bit more lemon or cheese or spinach or salt. If you have any pine nuts on hand (hah. If you are the kind of person who has those on hand, you probably aren't reading this, but, whatever), toast those lightly and throw them in the mix.

If the taste test goes well, place into bowls. Do NOT eat straight out of the pot with two forks like savages. Not that being a savage is a bad thing, but I promise you will not get your fair share.

Finally, enjoy!

P.S. Since you went all DIY on your dinner you can go straight to the box for dessert. I recommend a box of Pierre Marcolini's chocolates: