New Year's Eve Recap: Ina's Truffle Pasta

I've been a bad, bad blogger. I know. But, just as I assured you all last year, THIS year I am going to post more on The Dinner Diaries.

Maybe.

Hopefully.

Well, okay, let's just say "We'll see." That's nice and non-committal.

Anyway, I have to say, I think this was, by far, the best New Year's ever. The hubby and I aren't exactly 24-hour party people, so to us a "New Year's Rockin' Eve" consisted of staying home with the dog, playing Scrabble (I lost... twice), and eating copious amounts of luxurious food that I wouldn't normally buy.

And in this instance, that meant whipping up a recipe I've been wondering about ever since I got Ina Garten's Barefoot Contessa Back to Basics last Christmas, but could never quite justify purchasing the ingredients: Tagliarelle with White Truffle Butter.

If I had to describe this recipe in two words it would be "ungodly expensive," but if I could tag on a few extra it would be "ungodly expensive but delicious." Also, it's super quick to make, which is important when you're in the midst of a heated board game and can't be bothered by your culinary exploits.

I made the recipe exactly as written and the results were spectacular and unbelievably rich. With that in mind, I would highly recommend serving it with something light and fresh tasting, like romaine lettuce tossed with a white wine vinaigrette and following up with a fruit based dessert. I made Pear Clafouti, which was good, but I think the ideal dessert would actually be poached pears.

All in all, it was a great night, save for my brief moment of unsportsmanlike conduct following my second consecutive Scrabble loss.

(And in case you're wondering, yes, that is a bottle of Martinelli's Sparkling Cider and, yes, we really did drink it... par-tay!)