I made this recipe again over the long weekend, and that’s when I suddenly realized that when I originally made the pasta dish I had also made my first roux. I had also cooked with wine and clam juice for the first time.

I never really thought about or cared about roux before, but after reading The Making of a Chef I’ve started obessing over some of the things that Ruhlman talked about, like roux. His section on the bread baking class enchanted me and I can’t stop thinking about no-knead bread recipes and bread makers. I really do not need another appliance in my kitchen right now.

Who knew this “learning to cook” thing would give me so many new things to obsess about.