Glenn Grisdale’s Pan-Seared Penne pasta is a simple recipe but has complicated tastes, which he came up with while cooking as a single parent for his daughter.
Roger LaPointe | Sentinel-Tribune
Glenn Grisdale strives for simplicity in work as well as cooking.
He has followed that goal with his Pan-Seared Penne, which is a simple recipe full of complex flavors.
“It’s so simple and so easy. I’ve made some that’s so complex and so simple. The benefit of pan-searing is the flavor, with the animal fats that are seared into the crispiness of the pasta,” Grisdale said. “The reason I like this recipe is it’s a complicated end product, but it’s very simple ingredients and it’s very simple to make.”
The concept is a common theme in Grisdale’s life.
“I came up with this because it’s so simple. I’ve been a single dad since my daughter was six months old. I’ve had to learn how to take things that she liked and make them a little more complex, in order to introduce new things into her life,” Grisdale said. “Spaghetti is just so bland. I asked myself how I could make it more interesting.”
Today, Emma is a 20-year-old college student who lives away from their home in Bowling Green, but Grisdale still makes the recipe and cooks with the same concepts.
Grisdale is well known in local government circles. He’s a community planner who works through Reveille, a Bowling Green-based planning and economic development company, where he is the principal.
“(The recipe) is kind of like the way I do community planning. I try to make our community systems so simple that it’s by-the-numbers implementation. We’ve made our systems, departments and our policies so complicated to understand that our communities are set up to fail because they are so complicated to understand. In whatever I do, in going into a community I try to understand them, understand their complicated systems and make the so simple that execution becomes easy. That’s why I like this pasta so much,” Grisdale advises.
He recommends the same simplification in cooking that he does with municipal management.
Several little twists on a basic spaghetti recipe make the pasta Grisdale’s own. Pan-searing the pasta, his Arrabiata sauce and the quality of his ingredients are each part of the synergy of flavors that turn something from potentially boring to a new and exciting meal.
The Arrabiata sauce is started first. It’s simply as spicier tomato pasta sauce.
Begin with a good olive oil. Grisdale’s favorite is Bono Val Di Mazara Sicilian Extra Virgin Olive Oil.
He uses thin sliced Boar’s Head pepperoni.
“The thinner you make it the more you can deploy it. It’s not for eating, but more for the cooking, as you emulsify the fats,” Grisdale said.
The pepperoni will become almost clear.
“Once it’s emulsified, then you add the garlic,” Grisdale said.
The pasta will be pan-seared in animal fats and olive oil, but the animal fats are for the additional taste.
He recommends a pasta sauce from a jar, but make sure there is no sugar added. His favorite is locally produced Dei Fratelli. He’s also a fan of Bill Hirzel and the fresh quality local ingredients he uses.
He learned his cooking from his father, Bill, who passed away in 2016.
“He cooked the best breakfasts, but I learned patience in cooking for myself,” Grisdale said. “He knew how to do everything, it seemed, but didn’t have the patience to teach.”
Make sure the pasta is drained vigorously, and remains a little al dente.
He uses a standard basic Barilla penne, but will occasionally substitute a Priano brand bronze cut rigatoni. When he uses it, the rigatoni comes from Aldi, but he says it’s a little harder to cook with, requiring greater attention.
The quality of ingredients extends to his cookware. He’s a minimalist, but enjoys quality. He cooks the sauce in a large All-Clad skillet, but he’s also a fan of cast iron, because they each keep heat evenly.
He also recommends ceramic cookware for the sauce, as it also heats evenly.
Top with Asiago cheese or Piave Vecchio Italian mountain cheese. He uses them as a substitute for grated Parmesan cheese.
“It’s made from the milk of cows that graze around the Piave River. The dry hard cheese gives the bite that you need,” Grisdale said. “It’s like an Asiago Cheese. It is some of the tastiest cheese. It’s grainy and nutty.”
Grisdale does a deep dive into learning about all of his ingredients. The Piave Vecchio is named after the river that runs through the Dolomites area of Belluno province of Veneto. It’s pasteurized cow’s milk cheese, but it’s a hard cheese that can be substituted for Parmesan or Asiago.
For sides, Grisdale will also stick with quality but basic ingredients, such as a cucumber and cherry tomato salad, with bread. As he’s trying to keep it quick, a take-and-bake bread from Panera works well.
As this is a dish for the busy single parent, he recommends cleaning as you cook and using a minimal amount of cookware.
He said that the sauce is so good you could display it on the side, or separately, for dipping.
Pan-Seared Penne
Ingredients
3 medium sized sweet peppers
Boar’s Head thin sliced pepperoni
Bono Val Di Mazara Sicilian Extra Virgin Olive Oil
20 ounce Jar of Ragu Simply Traditional or Dei Fratelli pasta sauce
Minced Garlic
Cayenne pepper
Asiago cheese or Piave Vecchio cheese
½ pound penne pasta, or bronze cut rigatoni, for 2 cups per serving
Directions
The Pan-Seared Penne makes two large servings for two, however Grisdale doesn’t use any measurements. He tastes it and varies the amount of the ingredients to the company for which he is cooking.
Cook the peppers and pepperoni for 5 minutes. Make sure the pepperoni has become clear.
For sauce, use one jar of tomato sauce that has no sugar added, such as Simply Ragu or Dei Fratelli tomato sauce. Add minced garlic and cayenne pepper. Let sauce simmer for at least an hour.
Cook the pasta al dente and drain vigorously. It will then be transferred to the pan with the pepperoni and add just enough olive oil to cover the bottom, if it has cooked off. Let the pasta cook on both sides, until it gets a little brown. Add to the sauce and add more pepperoni to taste. Top with Asiago cheese or Piave Vecchio Italian mountain cheese.
The cheese can also be grated on top of the bread, with garlic, as it is still warm and pulled out of the oven.
Pan-Seared Penne
Ingredients
3 medium sized sweet peppers
Boar’s Head thin sliced pepperoni
Bono Val Di Mazara Sicilian Extra Virgin Olive Oil
20 ounce Jar of Ragu Simply Traditional or Dei Fratelli pasta sauce
Minced Garlic
Cayenne pepper
Asiago cheese or Piave Vecchio cheese
½ pound penne pasta, or bronze cut rigatoni, for 2 cups per serving
Directions
The Pan-Seared Penne makes two large servings for two, however Grisdale doesn’t use any measurements. He tastes it and varies the amount of the ingredients to the company for which he is cooking.
Cook the peppers and pepperoni for 5 minutes. Make sure the pepperoni has become clear.
For sauce, use one jar of tomato sauce that has no sugar added, such as Simply Ragu or Dei Fratelli tomato sauce. Add minced garlic and cayenne pepper. Let sauce simmer for at least an hour.
Cook the pasta al dente and drain vigorously. It will then be transferred to the pan with the pepperoni and add just enough olive oil to cover the bottom, if it has cooked off. Let the pasta cook on both sides, until it gets a little brown. Add to the sauce and add more pepperoni to taste. Top with Asiago cheese or Piave Vecchio Italian mountain cheese.
The cheese can also be grated on top of the bread, with garlic, as it is still warm and pulled out of the oven.
