Oodles of Noodles

As you may know, one of Dear Husband's jobs is to play for a local adult community choir. They meet on Sunday evenings to practice. After each semester, they get a short break, during which is held a potluck dinner and roast. A small group of dedicated singers and comedians re-writes lyrics to some of their songs and composes hilarious skits. At the most recent one, the group expressed their thanks to him for his talent and dedication in the form of a poem:

To find our pitch was futile,
so dress rehearsal was brutal.
New Year's Eve you didn't just noodle,
you played the whole kit and kaboodle!

Dear Husband was the featured musician at their New Year's Eve bash, playing a selection of rag-timey Americana. In addition, not only did he accompany the choir and the guest soloist, but he also played the theater organ before the concert and for the sing-along. So "the whole kit and kaboodle!"

At their annual showcase concert earlier in the fall, DH had acquired the nickname of "The Noodler," for the improvised introductions he played before the choir sang their unaccompanied pieces. So at the party, they presented him with a delicious basket of...every kind of noodle. We've broken into it already, making a tasty turkey noodle dish with the best sauce (it's the sage that does it):

Turkey and Pasta with Pears and Walnuts

Preparation time: 20 minutes
Cooking time: 20 minutes
Yield: 6 servings 

Ingredients:
1 pound pasta (or your other favorite grain, or mixed greens to be low carb)
1 pound turkey cutlets, thinly sliced
1 small onion, thinly sliced
2 tbsps. olive oil
3 pears, diced (or apples)
1/2 cup each: coarsely chopped walnuts, dried sweetened cranberries, sherry
2 tsps. chopped fresh sage or 1 tsp. dried
1 cup chicken broth
Salt, pepper, and parsley to taste 

1. Cook pasta according to package directions. Meanwhile, heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat; add turkey and onion slices. Cook until slightly browned, about 8 minutes. Add pears, walnuts, cranberries, sherry, sage, broth, salt and pepper to taste. Continue cooking, stirring until meat is cooked and ingredients are warmed, about 4 minutes. (The riper the pears, the less they should cook.)
2. Drain pasta; divide among six plates. Spoon turkey-pear mixture on top. Top with parsley if desired.

You've got your rice noodles and your Ramen noodles, your angel hair pasta and your Chef Boyardee... The basket also had a gift card for Noodles & Company, so we recently had a date to go ice skating and then eat lunch there.