Citrus Marscarpone Sauces

I’ve never made anything with Marscarpone before and this weekend I have now made three recipes that contain this wonderful cheese.  But before we get to two of these recipes that I made, let me tell you that they tasted even better because of how I obtained the Marscarpone cheese.

Yesterday was a day that just didn’t go right.  Down was up, up was down and everything in between did not make sense.  I’m on bed rest from pre-term labor contractions that happened about 2 weeks ago.  It came suddenly, obviously, but the resulting consequences of not being able to work for the next 18 weeks was the real shocker.  My job consists mostly of standing on my feet, or being out in the community and with the up and down heat here in Southern California, the doctor prohibited work until baby Lewis makes his debut, hopefully on-time and not early.

I can recall the days that I worked at a desk, and how little walking and standing that required.  This type of job, my doctor concluded, would have been fine.  So here I am, creating my own sort of desk job at home.  Learning more about blogging, social networking, and of course the impending world of breast feeding, getting zero night’s rest, and still contemplating how in the world it took me hours to put together a Graco swing.  That thing better save my life as everyone professes, because it almost took mine putting it together.

So yesterday, I met with my current boss and went over projects that we had been working on for the past year and  the transition of turning them over to the rest of the team.  It was like the cake that you made all weekend that is awaiting your arrival and as you walk in the house  after a long day’s  work, contemplating just which of the many teas that you have in your pantry will pair perfectly, you walk in to find that the cake has been devoured and there are no slices left for you.  All work and no play.  I must see the results of things that I work on, or I feel helpless and out of control. I miss my team and I’ll miss watching the year come to an end, but this is the hand I’ve been dealt right now.

And so, this was the state of mind that my husband was met with as I met him for lunch.  After breaking down in tears in the middle of the mall food court, he was caught off guard so much that he responded to me in the way anyone on their 60 minute lunch break would: proactively.  Solutions, next steps, and suggestions began flying out of his mouth and what didn’t happen were hugs, a shoulder to cry on, or just empathy with my despair. My husband is the most sensitive, loving, and caring man you will ever meet. He is also a fierce leader, proactive, and ready for action.  At this moment of his day, he was interrupted from being the professional leader and forced into a whole new realm that requires the switching of gears  to cuddly husband to an over emotional 31 week pregnant lady, and it just didn’t flow as much as we both had hoped.  And so was lunch.

I ventured to Trader Joes to purchase some Marscarpone to make pumpkin flan as I promised my Facebook and Twitter friends, and found myself weepy-eyed in the grocery line.  The sweet lady that helped me proceeded to only charge me for the salsa and green chili salsa for the easiest enchiladas in the world, and gave me the two tubs of Marscapone free of charge.  ”How’s your day?” she asked cautiously.  ”You know, it’s not that good,” I say and being to weep, right there in the line at Trader Joes.  ”Can I give you a hug?”  ”Yes! I would love that.”  And just like that, with a grocery bag in hand, a line full of impatient customers behind me, she came over and gave me the biggest most genuine hug. “It will be ok.  Please take care of yourself.  It’s going to be ok.”

And this, gave me the gumption and hope to stir up a few new recipes.

Citrus Marscarpone Sauces

1/2 cup marscarpone cheese at room temperature

1 large lemon or orange

a bit of zest from said lemon or oranges

Combine Marscarpone and juice from chosen fruit.  Make sure to not get any seeds in the mixture.  Use a zester to add a bit of zest to the sauce.  Whisk with a fork until combined.

Easy right?  It’s in the pairing that these sauces will really come alive.  Like that hug from the Trader Joes clerk, this sauce has to be in the right place at the right time, and when it is it will make a huge difference.

If you go the lemon route for your citrus choice, then add this mixture to some homemade chicken noodle soup.  This particular recipe had whole wheat noodles, celery, onions, grilled chicken and chicken broth.  Once soup is prepared, turn heat to low and mix in Marscapone lemon sauce and broth will no longer be clear but instead a milky color.

This tastes like the perfect remedy for a sore throat or a winter day.  It’s a bit of cream and zest that is both comforting and light. Delicious!

If you choose to go the orange route, then picture number two (and the top photo) will be your dinner.  For this dish, cook lemon pepper linguine, and after straining the pasta (save about 1/4 cup of pasta water and set aside), return the pasta back to the pan over low heat.  Add about 2-3 cups of fresh spinach, pasta water, and orange Marscarpone sauce.  Stir until sauce is mixed and spinach is just cooked.  Serve hot.

Both of these are delightful, and a bit of citrus seems to be the perfect comforting combination.  All photos were taken with an iPhone because, well frankly, it’s more doable when you are making recipes to cook away your sorrows.

And, as always, thanks for listening to my day.  You too, can hear these daily updates in 140 characters or less if you follow me on Twitter. Or Facebook.

Happy Eating!