Dinner with Emy!

Yesterday, my friend Emy, who also happens to be Serena's dogwalker (and one of her all-time favorite humans), offered to make dinner for me. Not being one to turn down a free meal, especially when I know there is promise of it being really tasty, I gladly accepted. After work yesterday, I took the dog for a walk at the wind tunnel that is Alamo Square, although it was less of a walk and more of a lay down and roll around with the ball (see picture below). Then Emy met me at my place. She was kind enough to come over, so Serena (aka the world's most spoiled dog) didn't have to stay home alone. 

Really?

Emy brought the makings of dinner and we chatted in the kitchen while she whipped up dinner. The end result was a very delish Japanese fusion pasta dish that I could not get enough of and a fresh, summery salad. She called her dish mentaiko spagehtti and it was comprised of mentaiko (spice cod roe, which I think are fish eggs), butter, shiso leaves (yum!) and nori (double yum!). Below is a picture that doesn't give the dish justice, but you have to trust me, it was great! It reminded me of Japanese carbonara and it was equally as easy to make. This will soon be added to my list of favorites and hopefully I can recreate it myself.

Yum!

Recipe for Mentaiko Spagehtti

1/2 a box of spagehtti

Water for cooking the pasta

2-3 Tablespoons butter

1 package mentaiko (found at a Japanese specialy store)

Handful shiso leaves, torn into small pieces

1 package nori, cut into small strips

Cook pasta according to package directions. While the pasta cooks, scrap the mentaiko out of the casing. When the pasta is almost done, heat the butter in a medium to large skillet. Once the butter has all melted and starts to foam, add the mentaiko and turn off the burner. Stir the mentaiko to separate it. Drain the pasta, reserving a cup of the water. Add the pasta to the skillet and toss to combine, adding pasta water if it gets too thick. Serve into bowls or plates and top with the shiso and nori to taste. EAT LOTS!