Counter Intelligence is the column I founded and wrote for the Charleston Gazette-Mail for three years before I moved to Louisiana. I also wrote a cookbook of the same name and in this 20 Questions blog series, I have loved reconnecting with friends from everywhere and learning their counter intelligence kitchen tips. Ted Boettner probably reads everything within reach, he made it all the way to the back page of the Gazette’s Life&Style section. He emailed me on occasion about something in my column which led to lively debates about butter, sugar and all things kitchen. It was great to engage on cooking topics with a widely published think tank guy! We made a salad during the legislative session in West Virginia and I shared the recipe in my Counter Intelligence column (linked below with Ted’s recipe question).

I caught up with Ted when I visited Charleston a few years back to visit friends and unveil the Charlie Cart teaching kitchen at the YMCA. He brought his young daughter to the interactive cooking demo and when they made the featured ‘Three Sisters Saute’ last week in their home kitchen, he sent a pic of his now eight-year old daughter chopping zucchini for the dish. He must have read my mind! He was in my cue for 20 Questions. He just switched to a new think tank and now works as a senior researcher with Ohio River Valley Research Institute, focusing in part on sustainable economic development.

When he’s not being a policy wonk, Ted enjoys a nice whitewater paddle in West Virginia, running marathons, hiking at Dolly Sods, some political theory, and cooking for friends.

What’s your 20 minute recipe? My go-to because of the kids and what they love is Marcella Hazan’s tomato sauce with onion and butter. I serve it over whole wheat spaghetti. I swear it is so good and simple! With a good can of Italian tomatoes it’s 1-2-3 and done in 20 minutes. I like to make a nice salad to go with it.

What’s your favorite city? There are a couple of places I would move to: Missoula, Bozeman, or Helena, Montana. I went to Missoula a few years ago and after driving across the country, went to a paddle shop and the guy there made some calls and lined up a shuttle and everything for us. Big Sky has some of the best backpacking and not very many people. It’s a playground!

What’s your favorite restaurant in your current city? Cafe Cimino. It’s 50 miles away, kind of old fashioned. The chef comes out and they keep bringing you stuff. It’s all really damn good! It’s the kind of place you order coffee after dinner.

Treasured find in the back of your fridge? I have some ramp butter. Also there are some things in life you have to have. I always keep feta in my fridge. It makes everything better

Who taught you to cook? My mom definitely. We had meals at the table at least 5-6 days a week, very ritualistic. We had church at the table, preparing good food and taking time to enjoy it. She taught me to be a good analyst of recipes, reading them from the bottom up. It reminds me of a James Baldwin quote: “Children have never been very good at listening to their elders, but they have never failed to imitate them.”

What’s your go-to dish for company? That’s a good question. I do the opposite of what you’re supposed to do. I experiment on company. When it works out, it’s a lot of fun. I always make a grain salad in case it doesn’t work out. I got a really nice piece of flank steak from Dickinson Gould the other day and served it to company. It was like, “chimichurri, come to me!” I like to do a large side of salmon and cook it, it’s easy but the people are like ‘how did you do that?!’

What’s on your cooking playlist? I do a very eclectic mix. I’ve been listening to Florence and the Machine. Sturgill Simpson, I really like him a lot. John Prine, too.

Coffee, tea, or Kombucha? Coffee no doubt. I look forward to my morning coffee when I go to bed at night. I do like kombucha! It helps if I’ve had too much to drink the night before.

Date night--at home? or out? Usually out. We love Secret Sandwich Society in Fayetteville! It’s worth the drive.

Most stained cookbook? Yours, of course! What I end up doing is watching shows and then I google how to make some of the dishes. I got really into this show about Argentinian street food, hence the chimichurri.

Surf? or Turf? Surf. Fresh caught grouper is really amazing. I’ve had salmon that I caught in Alaska and it was good, but the grouper I caught off the coast of North Carolina was better.

Indispensable kitchen tool? Right now I’d say it’s my new carbon steel pan. There’s nothing that thing won’t do! I keep it out on my stove.

Staple childhood comfort food? Sloppy Joes. My mom used to whip those up all the time. I still make them. I make a really bourgeois version with pickled red onion and a good bun. They make me feel really comfortable.

Who would you most like to share a meal with? past, present or fictional? My reflexive answer is Christopher Hitchens. He was witty and smart and loved indulgence.

Ideal grilled cheese? Hearty wheat or sourdough with a combo of cheeses. I like something sharp with muenster, I like the way it melts. I’ll add thinly sliced apples and onions.

Favorite pizza topping? My uncle makes this wonderful pizza with pepperoni and blueberries. It’s fabulous!

Where would you want to take a cooking class? I’ve always wanted to go the the King Arthur baking school in Vermont for a weeklong immersion bread course. I would love to do that.

What’s your Counter Intelligence cooking tip? I’m going back to the feta from before. Also when I’m cooking meats, I use a really good quality garlic powder instead of fresh garlic which tends to burn. I’ll make a rub with garlic powder, cayenne, salt and pepper.

Three things next to your stove? Tongs, kosher salt in a barn, olive oil.

Favorite Sports Team? New York Mets. The first time I went to New York City my dad took us to a Mets game. I took my daughter to Pittsburgh for three games when the Mets were in playing the Pirates. Also I love watching 30 for 30.

Deliciously simple tomato sauce tossed with whole wheat spaghetti, ready to embellish (or not) and serve .

Tomato Sauce with Onion and Butter

Marcella Hazan, the famed Italian cooking teacher and writer has many styles of tomato sauce to her credit. A super simple version with canned Italian tomatoes, a halved whole onion and a varying number of tablespoons of butter is arguably one of the most popular. For good reason! It is delicious and the marriage of bright tomato and creamy butter with a backstory of onion is hard to beat, especially since you can cheat the suggested 45 minute simmer time and get ‘er done in 20 flat. Ted likes to serve with whole wheat spaghetti and a meatball or two. He also uses the sauce for lasagne.

1 (28 ounce) can good Italian whole tomatoes
1 medium onion (about an 8 ouncer) peeled and halved through the shoot and root
5 tablespoons good butter, cut into 5 pieces for quick melting
Salt

POUR the tomatoes and their juices into a large deep pot (I used an enameled Dutch oven. The depth keeps the vigorously simmering sauce from spattering everywhere). Crush them with your clean hands (a great job for the kids!) into smallish pieces, or mash them with a wooden spoon once you get the heat going.

ADD the onion halves, the butter and about a teaspoon of salt.

HEAT the sauce over medium high until it boils, stirring occasionally.

REDUCE the heat to medium or the level of heat that makes you feel like your sauce is conversing with you while you go about cooking your pasta and making your salad.

STIR the sauce from time to time, cooking until the tomato juices have reduced a bit and the butter melted into a glossy perfection. With a lively-simmer/boil, I coaxed mine into done at 20 minutes.

REMOVE the onion from the pot (it’s a great cook’s treat or fun to add to your next morning’s egg scramble), add salt as needed, and serve with your favorite pasta.

This batch generously coats a pound of spaghetti. It also invites embellishment: fresh basil, red pepper flakes, maybe some Parmesan.