Wheat-free Corn Pasta Recipe

First - sorry for my absence. This has been a really busy month around our house. There's always plenty for me to do - because I do write copy for a living and have all the usual stuff with taking care of a house and critters - but this month has been different.

It all started when our neighbor got the flu. He and his wife are in their 80's and they have cattle - and he was too sick to tend to them. Just feeding them doesn't take long, but those cows are having babies now, so Mrs. neighbor has needed a little help.

We've still got plenty of snow and ice, so it's really too cold yet for newborns. That means we've had a bit of fun with getting weak ones into the house to get them warm, and trying to feed them imitation milk that they really don't want until they're strong enough to go back outside - and then moving them back outside. Some of those babies are way heavy! And in between, we had to get our neighbor to the doctor and then - on Saturday night - go after him when the hospital suddenly decided he could go home.

Before you think I'm whining - it's been kind of fun. I hadn't been around calves for many years, and they are awfully sweet. And it sure feels good when you see one getting strong when you weren't sure it was going to live.

Meanwhile, we have found time to eat dinner most nights, and this week we tried the corn rotini.

Maybe it's been around in "big" stores for a long time, but our little store just got corn pasta a few weeks ago. I was tickled to see it, because I'm always trying to find something different that I think my husband will eat (can't get too creative here.)

I had an idea that corn pasta would taste different - more like cornbread or a corn tortilla. So I made a kind of "spaghetti sauce" except with taco seasoning. I added some crumbled and browned ground beef, just like I do when I make spaghetti the lazy way.

We all agreed that it tasted good - but not very much different than regular wheat pasta. The biggest difference was probably the texture - the corn pasta is firmer. That was OK with me, but my husband thought we should have cooked it longer.

I was in a big hurry that night - the cows, you know - so I didn't go all out with extras or trimmings. Next time I think I'll shred some lettuce, chop some tomatoes and onions, and grate some cheese to pile on top of it. Maybe I'll also add a spoonful of sour cream on top.

If you've used corn pasta and have a good recipe - please do share!

Actually, if you have any kind of recipe to share, you're not just welcome to do so, you're invited!