Pre-Birthday Bash
Tomorrow is my 62nd birthday. I remember as a child of the '50s thinking that in the year 2000 I would be 48 years old. Ancient. Decrepit.
2000 came and went. Add 14 additional years and 62 doesn't seem all that bad. Other than a few aches and pains I'm hanging in there. It's all perspective, I guess...
I did a rare Sunday work, today, so Victor decided it was the perfect day to make me a birthday dinner! And what a treat it was!
Several years ago, he found a recipe for Ricotta Rollatini - it's a sheet of pasta spread with a ricotta filling, rolled, boiled, sliced, and baked. Seriously one of the most fantastic pasta dishes on the planet. Mere words cannot explain the lightness and tenderness and sheer deliciousness! Even Nonna went back for seconds - and would have gone for another but she wanted to save room for cake!
The ingredients are simple, the actual preparation and cooking is a bit more complex - but it is totally worth the time and effort. Totally worth it!
Victor started out by making the dough...
The recipe calls for rolling the dough with a rolling pin. Victor used his pasta machine and then just glued two sheets together...
After it's rolled, no one knows the difference.
From here, the roll gets wrapped in cheesecloth in preparation for its water bath...
Now it gets tricky. You need a pot large enough to hold the rolls. Fortunately, we have a fish poacher we got from our friend, Ruth.
After it cooks in the water, it comes out, cools, and then is sliced and placed in a baking dish with just a bit of sauce.
Just unbelievably good.
Ricotta Rollatini
Pasta:
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 eggs
- 2 egg yolks
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- water, if needed
Filling:
- 4 oz diced prosciutto
- 4 cups whole milk ricotta cheese
- 1/2 cup grated Locatelli
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 minced flat-leaf parsley
- freshly ground black pepper
Make pasta:
Mound flour on counter and make well. Add eggs and yolks and gradually work in the flour to make a firm but pliable dough, adding a few drops of water, if necessary. Divide into two pieces, cover, and let rest about 30 minutes.
Make filling:
Fry prosciutto until crisp. Drain and set aside.
Mix ricotta, eggs, cheese, pepper, and parsley. Stir in cooled prosciutto. Set aside.
Roll pasta to a 15″ x 7″ rectangle. If you have a pasta roller, bring it through to about 15″ on level three and then roll it width-wise to about 7″.
Spread half of filling on pasta sheet and brush ends and edge with egg. Roll jelly-roll style and seal ends and edge.
Repeat with second roll.
Wrap each pasta log in cheesecloth and tie ends with kitchen twine.
Lower into barely-boiling water and cook for 15 minutes.
Remove from water and place on racks to cool.
Remove cheesecloth and slice each roll into 3/4″ slices.
Cover bottom of baking dish with marinara sauce and lay out slices. Drizzle with marinara and sprinkle with additional grated Locatelli.
Cover with foil and bake until heated though – about 30 minutes at 350°.
Serve with additional sauce, if desired.
And then... because we had some eggplant, he decided to make Little Gram's Eggplant Appetizer.
This is another awesome dish made by Marie's grandmother.
Little Gram's Eggplant Appetizer
Ingredients:
- 1 medium eggplant
- 1 cup chopped celery
- 3/4 cups halved or chopped green olives
- 3 cups thinned Italian tomato sauce
- 3 tablespoons sugar
- 6 tablespoons vinegar
- 1/4 chopped Locatelli cheese
- 2 tablespoons capers
- fresh basil and mint
Cut eggplant in strips the size of French fries. Salt and let stand about an a hour. Dry on a paper towel. Deep fry in hot oil. Keep oil as hot as possible without burning. Add eggplant one at a time and keep adding one at a time to keep the oil at the same temperature. Fry each one until tender and cooked. Drain on paper towels.
To Make Sauce:
Parboil celery for ten minutes. Add olives and cook another five minutes. Drain all water out of the pot. Add the thinned tomato sauce and boil for ten minutes. Add vinegar and sugar. Cook for three minutes. Add cheese. Make it come to a boil and then turn off heat and allow to cool.
Pour sauce over fried eggplants. Garnish with fresh Basil and mint that have been sliced into very thin strips.
And there's Carrot Cake for dessert.
In fact... time to stop typing and get a piece.
It is really good to be me.
No question about it.
Pane Siciliano Tre
I got into the kitchen early this morning. I haven't really been playing a lot, lately, and decided today was the perfect day to make up for lost calories.
First thing I did was make bread dough for Pane Siciliano. It's warm and just a tad muggy outside. Mother Nature's perfect proofing box! The recipe comes from Carol Field's The Italian Baker and is a snap to make. Oddly, the first time I made it I had some problems with the dough - it was much too dry - but I made the exact recipe again in Sicily and it came out perfect. As did the batch I made today. Methinks I screwed up the first time and just didn't realize it, because the last two batches have been excellent - using the exact same recipe.
There are three variations on shaping the dough listed in her book, so today, I decided to try one other than the 'S' I have done in the past. Both start out as a rope of dough but the one below is more like an 'M' with the end folded back over itself.
The instructions say not to tuck the final strip under the dough, but I could have made it a bit longer. It pulled back when it rose the second time.
Not that it mattered - it still tasted great!
Pane Siciliano
Makes 2 loaves
- 2 1/2 tsp active dry yeast
- 1/4 cup warm water
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tsp malt syrup
- 1 cup water, room temperature
- 2 1/2 cups durum flour or semolina for pasta
- 1 cup plus 1 tbsp unbleached all-purpose flour
- 2 to 3 tsp salt
- 1/3 cup sesame seeds
By hand:
Dissolve the yeast in the warm water in a large mixing bowl; let stand until creamy, about 10 minutes. Whisk in the oil, malt, and 1 cup of water. Mix the flours and salt and whisk in 1 cup at a time into the yeast mixture. Beat vigorously with a wooden spoon until smooth. Knead on a floured surface 8 to 10 minutes, occasionally slamming the dough down vigorously to develop the gluten.
By mixer:
Stir the yeast into the 1 1/4 cups warm water in a large mixer bowl; let stand until creamy, about 10 minutes. Stir in the oil and malt with the paddle; then add the flours and salt and mix until smooth. Change to the dough hook and knead on medium speed until; the dough is firm, compact, and elastic with lots of body, 4 to 5 minutes. Finish kneading by hand on a lightly floured surface.
First rise. Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl, cover tightly with plastic wrap and let rise until doubled, about 1 1/2 hours. The dough should be springy and blistered, but still soft and velvety.
Shaping and second rise. Punch the dough down, knead it briefly, and let it rest for 5 minutes. Flatten it with your forearm into a square. Rollit into a long, narrow rope, about 20 to 22 inches long. The dough should be so elastic that it could almost be swung and stretched like a jump rope. Cut the dough in half and shape each into a loaf. (The book shows 3 classic shapes and illustrations; Mafalda, Occhi di Santa Lucia, and the baked Corona. I made the Santa Lucia.)
Place the loaves on floured parchment paper, peels sprinkled with corn meal, or oiled baking sheets. Brush the entire surface of each loaf with water and sprinkle with sesame seeds; pat the seeds very gently into the dough. Cover with plastic wrap, and then a kitchen towel, and let rise until doubled, 1 to 1 1/2 hours.
Baking. Thirty minutes before baking heat the oven with baking stones to 425°. Sprinkle the stones with cornmeal just before sliding the loaves onto them. Bake 10 minutes, spraying 3 times with water. Reduce the heat to 400° and bake 25 to 30 minutes longer. Cool on racks.
It really is an easy bread to make - and it really does taste great.
Give it a try.
Focaccia - Ragusa-Style
One of our many fun food finds in Sicily was a local take on focaccia. While everywhere we went, it was referred to as focaccia, it seems it's also referred to as scacce. It's a stuffed bread. A fantastic, fabulous, and absolutely delicious stuffed bread.
It was one of the first dishes we had and it was a recurring item, everywhere. The great thing is no two were ever alike. Similar traits, but always different flavors. It is a bread with no rules that changes with the seasons.
It starts with a ball of dough.
We made this with Italian "00" floor because we bought 10 kilos of it before our trip. All-purpose will work just fine.
It is rolled out paper-thin, and then a thin layer of fillings is added.
This was tomato sauce and then a layer of fresh ricotta Victor made. It was then topped with thin slices of fried eggplant.
It then gets folded. The two ends fold to meet in the center, a bit of filling is added and then they are folded in half.
A bit of sauce goes on top and into a hot oven. 20-30 minutes later, you have achieved focaccia ragusana.
While we usually had it as a part of a thgree-hour meal, we thought we could live on it, alone, for dinner tonight.
And have plenty for lunch tomorrow, as well. Funny how those three-hour meals just aren't as much fun here...
But we do plan on making more fun meals - and showing them off on some new fun plates and bowls.
On our last trip to Italy, we bought dinnerware in Florence, along with a few serving platters. What we didn't get were serving bowls that are practical. We have a few that take up most of a table, but they don't quite make it for a mere 5 or 6 at the table.
So two new bowls came home with us.
They're the perfect size for a big batch of mashed potatoes, vegetables, or even salads.
I also wanted to get little bowls for salt and pepper by the stove. I don't measure S&P, I use my fingers and add a pinch here and there. The bowls we have used for years were just 99¢ Ikea glass bowls. Time for an upgrade.
They're the perfect size - and they were really inexpensive - just a couple of euro each.
We got these in Modica at a local shop, along with a couple of ornaments, and a few other things. We made a trek to Caltagirone - the ceramics capital of Sicily - for a few more goodies...
I wanted a new cake platter since the one we have with the faux-Italian design that is slightly off-center is machine-made Made in China - and just not worthy of our culinary efforts. First place we walked into, we saw the perfect plate.
The perfect plate that didn't make the trip home in one piece. Even with some pretty good wrapping, it broke in half and chipped in a couple of places. Some good glue and it will work just fine. And now I don't have to worry about anything happening to it. It already has.
We also wanted plates for dolce - dessert. Sweets.
We walked in and out of a few shops and found some plates that just seemed right. The owner of the shop was also the artist who created them and gave us a tour of the shop, his studio, things in his kiln. It was a really fun experience. I lived with my dear ceramic artist friend Susan for years in both Tahoe and Boston and know first hand the work involved in creating these works of art. Each piece was better than the next. We had to settle for four small plates. I would have loved to bring home half of his shop.
All different, yet complimentary. Can't wait to use 'em!
And just because we saw it and liked it, we got a little wall piece at yet another shop.
The prices were good - we stayed well within our budget.
Now... back to tonight's dinner...
Victor made fresh homemade ricotta for these, but, as good as the fresh ricotta is, it's a little wasted on these if you add other filling flavors. A store-bought ricotta will work just fine unless you make it as a dessert.
Focaccia Ragusata
(makes two)
- 9 oz all-purpose flour (Italian "00" if you have it!)
- 5/8 cup warm water
- 1/2 tsp yeast
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- pinch salt
Proof yeast in warm water. Add flour, salt, and oil, and mix well. Knead about 5-6 minutes or until a smooth, elastic dough forms. Roll into a ball, cover, and let rest 30 minutes.
Divide dough in half and roll into a large, very thin circle. Spread with a very thin layer of tomato sauce and then top with a thin layer of ricotta. Add slices of fried eggplant.
Fold sides to almost meet in the center. Brush new tops with a bit of sauce and cheese. Fold in half, again, and press lightly to seal. Paint a bit of sauce on top.
Put into a preheated 475° oven and bake for 20-30 minutes or until dark brown. Take out of the oven and cover with a towel to trap steam and soften the top.
These really are no-rules focaccia.
The raw, uncooked rolls can be sliced into 6 or 8 pieces, dredged in grated cheese, liberally brushed with beaten egg on top, and then baked cinnamon-roll style.
The filling can be sweet or savory, they can be brushed with sauce, olive oil, egg, or left plain before baking.
You can brush a thin layer of olive oil on the dough and forego the tomato sauce altogether. Add some nuts - pistachios - or bits of sausage. Little bits of anything.
The only must-do is make them.
Our Last Night in Modica
Our host at Villa Modica had been so wonderful, we wanted to show a bit of our appreciation by taking him and his wonderful family out to dinner on our last night. He brought us to Taverna Nicastro - a great local restaurant cooking the traditional dishes of Modica. They have been in operation under the same family since 1948 - 66 years. You don't stay in business that long by serving mediocre food.
The restaurant is in Alta Modica - upper Modica - and probably would have been impossible for us to find on our own through the warren of narrow one-way streets in the area.
But when we did get there, a gastronomic treat awaited us.
After two weeks we had eaten some tremendous foods - local ingredients, hand-made regional specialties - and when we saw the menu, we knew we were in for more treats. The difficulty was going to be in deciding what to order. The problem was solved by just asking the waiter to bring us dinner.
The beauty of this approach was knowing we would get a representative sampling of the best foods on the menu. And we did.
Everywhere we ate, we ordered liters of house wine and it was almost always served in tumblers. While many places had extensive wine lists, we saw no reason to overspend when the house wines were always extremely good. I liked that the wines were in simple glasses. It relegated them back to where their place should be in the meal - an enhancement to a good meal - not the centerpiece of the meal. The wines never competed with what we were eating but were always a welcoming addition.
We started off with arancini and focaccia - two very traditional Sicilian antipasti. Every arancini we had on this trip was different. The concept remains the same, but every cook puts their own unique spin on it, making for some great food. These had sausage and chopped egg. What a flavor delight! The focaccia - totally unlike what we call focaccia here - is the same - every one different. These had either a red or white sauce and cheese, sausage, vegetables... Totally unique - and totally what I am going to be making soon!
Next was the requisite plate of local olives, eggplant, salami, cheeses - including fresh ricotta and fresh mozzarella - and fresher than fresh carrots. Everywhere we went, the olives were exceptional, and these were no exception. They're all cured locally, and in many cases, are done in-house. The whole area is slow-food. Local, in season, fresh.
And then we had jellied pork. What a surprise! It was fun and unexpected.
Following was ricotta-stuffed ravioli in a tomato sauce. The sauce was make with pork and sausages and they were served later. The ricotta was fresh - as in fresh.
And following that, cavatelli with more fresh ricotta, cherry tomatoes, and wild fennel. Absolutely stellar. The flavors blended perfectly. Less is more - a mantra I have to keep repeating to myself.
Next came a platter of sausages and pork that were cooked in the tomato sauce. Fork-tender and heavenly.
And, finally, the house specialty - sweet and sour rabbit.
Potatoes, olives, carrots, celery, peppers, herbs, vinegar... and succulent chunks of rabbit. Everything about it was great - from the texture of the potatoes to the tanginess of the sauce. Some dishes are just meant to be - and this was one of them.
Finally, chocolate gelatto and cannoli. I ate before thinking about taking a photo.
Oh well...
This whole trip has been nothing but stellar foods served by wonderful people in homes and home-like settings. It was fitting that our last big meal complimented our first big meal - and that we were able to share the evening with our host and his lovely wife and children.
Vogliamo rifarlo.
My Dinner Date with Nonna
Victor is in Chicago. Once upon a time, a business trip for him meant an at-home project for me. Something messy, borderline-destructive... Infinitely fun. But times have changed. Now, it means an actual dinner for two instead of the chili dogs I used to make for myself while Victor was away.
Yep. Chili Dogs. Dietz and Watson old-fashioned skin-on hot dogs and Hormel canned hot chili with beans. Shredded cheddar cheese and raw onions. Who says I don't know how to live?!?
My home-improvement projects are much smaller in scope, nowadays. In fact, today's project was somewhat-cleaning up the shavings from a huge stump-grinding in the front yard. Actually, it was more talking to neighbors and playing with their dogs as they walked by, but I did get a bit of work done.
And then it was time for dinner. I planned ravioli for tonight, knowing that Nonna would not be overly-receptive to Chili Dogs à la Tim. And I even brought up a jar of Victor's pasta sauce. I added cubes of leftover beef and let it simmer a bit - and then broke out the fancy plates.
5pm dinner is a little early for candles, but we did have a nice meal. We cleaned our plates and Nonna got biscotti for her dessert.
And now we can settle in and await the call that the plane has landed and Victor is on his way home.
It's actually kinda nice not having the panic of thinking I won't be finished by the time he walks in the door, although I miss making those great messes!
Catching Up
You'd think we had stopped eating around here!
I've been pretty busy migrating websites - including this one - onto a new hosting account. The old account was old and clunky. Some sites were taking forever to load - and that's just not a good thing.
So... to make a long story longer, I was spending pretty much every waking moment chained to the computer, downloading sites, uploading sites, recreating sites - and in a couple of cases, making brand-new sites.
It's great having everything neat and orderly, again. There were 15 years of extraneous stuff on those old servers. It's all neat and organised. Today.
We did eat while all this was going on. Victor cooked several nights when he saw me totally immersed in a move. This site, in particular, was fairly nerve-wracking.
I started this site back in 2005 and it has grown to 1700 posts and 8 cookbooks and recipe collections. Thousands of recipes that I would hate to lose.
When I finally got it moved and uploaded, none of the pictures were there. And let's face it - it's all about the picture! After a bit of mild panic - and extraordinary luck - I was able to upload them separately and have them actually link.
The Internet. Gotta love it.
Ya also have to love quick dinners when you're otherwise detained. like the Stuffed Pepper Pasta, above. I took a jar of Victor's Pasta Sauce and added ground beef and a jar of stuffed peppers. Mixed it with pasta shells and dinner was served. Simplicity.
And we did a quick pork tenderloin with tomato salad...
Nothing fancy - just quick and basic.
Another quick - as in unattended - meal was a stuffed round steak.
I cut and pounded the steaks, filled them with spinach. rolled and tied them, and then let them simmer in a bit of red wine and beef broth for a couple of hours.
I pulled them out, cooked the noodles right in the sauce, and dinner was served.
So... hopefully, I can start spending a bit more time in the kitchen and a bit less time updating websites for a while. I do enjoy both, but cooking takes the lead...
Risotto
Risotto... one of my most-favorite comfort foods.
I couldn't tell you when I first had a risotto. It certainly wasn't something my mom cooked. Pop wasn't exactly crazy about rice to begin with and any rice in the house was probably Uncle Ben's or Rice-A-Roni. Arborio - or any other risotto-style rice - just wasn't something that was in the pantry. I doubt it was readily available in those culinary Dark Ages.
But I've made up for it. Risotto is a regular menu item at our house - and a quick search of this site shows 4 pages of recipe results. As I said - I've made up for it.
And I usually make up the recipes, as well.
Risotto is a great vehicle for cleaning out the refrigerator or freezer. Anything can go in - and around here, it usually does. Tonight was a combination of chicken, basil and mozzarella sausage, and langostino. And it worked.
It worked so well, Nonna almost licked her plate clean!
Risotto
- 1 small onion, chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 cup arborio or other risotto rice
- 1 cup white wine
- 4 cups hot chicken broth
- 6 oz langostino
- 1 chicken breast, cut in chunks
- 6 oz sausage, cut in chunks
- 1 cup peas
- 1/2 container Boursin cheese
- 1 cup shredded parmesan cheese
- salt and pepper, to taste
Saute onion and garlic in a bit of olive oil and butter. Add chicken and sausage and cook about half-way. Add rice and cook until translucent, stirring continually. Add wine and cook until almost fully absorbed.
Begin to add broth by the ladle, stirring continually. Continue adding ladles of broth as the last one is absorbed, until rice is just tender.
At this point, stir in langostino. Add peas and heat through. Stir in cheeses.
Taste for seasoning and add salt and pepper, as desired.
Enjoy.
It's quick and easy - and comforting. Add mushrooms, don't use onions. Stir in some fresh parsley if you have it. Add chunks of leftover beef or pork.
Go for it and have fun!
Your tummy will thank you for it!
Sunday Sauce
Welcome to Sunday at the Dineen/Martorano household. Just starting to simmer on the stove is a vat of sauce I will be canning later on today. A 21-quart pot prit' near filled to the rim with simmering scintillating sauce! I'm pretty psyched!
We used to make big batches of sauce and freeze it in 1 quart tupperware containers - and then Victor got me a pressure canner! What a great addition to the family! I have had so much fun canning different things - and I really can't wait until the summer garden is over-producing! Making sauce with quality canned tomatoes is one thing - making it from tomatoes out of your own garden is a league of its own!
He doesn't make a complicated sauce. It's rich and flavorful and stands on its own, but can also be used as a base for other things. It's the perfect all-purpose sauce. And we're gonna have lots of it!
Victor's Sauce
- 2 - 28oz cans of crushed tomatoes
- 1 - Sm can tomato paste
- 1-2 cloves of garlic (or to taste if you like more) chopped fine
- Olive oil
- Dried Italian seasonings
- Hot red pepper flakes (a tsp or more or less to taste)
- Salt and Pepper to taste
- Red wine (always cook with a decent wine, never “cooking” wine) about a cup or cup and a half
- Meat – such as Italian sausage or some nice beef or pork ribs or pork chops
Ok…I ALWAYS make my sauce with meat, so start with a deep, heavy pot and add about 3-4 TBS of olive oil. On high heat, once the oil is hot, start frying the sausage or pork, Let the meat get good and caramelized although you don’t have to cook it all the way through because you’ll add it back to the sauce to finish. Once the meat is browned take it out of the pot, put it on a plate and set aside.
Lower the heat to medium and sauté the tomato paste for a couple of minutes until it begins to “melt”. Add the chopped garlic and sauté with the tomato paste for just a minute (no longer or it will burn). Then add about a cup of the red wine and deglaze the pan with it, scrapping up all the good bits that stuck to the bottom when cooking the meat.
When the wine reduces by about ½ start adding the canned tomatoes. Add one can of hot water for every can of tomatoes you use.
Now start adding the dried Italian seasonings. I eyeball it but I would guess a good 2 tbsp is fine. Add about another ½ cup of red wine, with red pepper flakes, salt and pepper. Stir everything into the sauce. It will be very thin at this point.
Add back the cooked meat. Now this is important….at the bottom of the plate you let the meat rest on will be some of the oil and juices that seeped out. Pour that back into the pot. It has a lot of flavor in it.
Bring the sauce back to a boil then turn the heat down low and let it simmer for at least 1 and a half hours, stirring every 15 to 20 minutes to keep it from burning. It should reduce by about a third or a little less and get thicker. The meat will absorb the sauce and get very tender.
When I make meatballs, I don’t fry them, I bake them on a sheet pan. When I do, I add them to the simmering sauce when they’re done so they also absorb the flavor.
I usually make the sauce early in the day and after it’s done, just let it sit on the stove until dinner then I re-heat it. This should make enough sauce for a couple of dinners or good sized lasagna.
We just used up the last of the batch he made before Christmas. Some of that batch went out as Christmas gifts. This one is going into the cupboard! It's mine! All mine!!! All 18 quarts!
We used one for dinner.
The older I get - and I am getting old and crotchety - the more I really appreciate slower, simpler food. I'm totally over mass-produced instant gratification food. I just don't care that a frozen whatever or a canned or refrigerated whatever tastes fabulous - I'm not bringing it home. I can totally appreciate the artistry behind a fabulous restaurant meal. I'd rather sit home and make a pot of soup.
Of course, in a mere 82 days we'll be heading to Sicily for 2 weeks. I think there will be a restaurant meal or two in my future while we're on the island. But I also think the places we'll be eating will be off the beaten track and more neighborhood rustic than Michelin starred. And the villa we rented has an organic garden - and we have exclusive use of it. More time in the kitchen!
Then, again... I'm not there, yet. Anything is possible. Because my preference today is for one thing does not preclude me from wanting and/or enjoying something entirely different tomorrow. It's why I don't make meal plans and figure out meals for the week. I don't know what I'm going to want on Thursday. I'll figure that out, then.
In the meantime, I'm going to have a lot of sauce to play with.
I'm pleased.
Orecchiette al Tonno
My clever ruse worked. And, it worked even better than I had hoped!
I was looking through an old issue of La Cucina Italiana yesterday and found a recipe for orecchiette with a tuna sauce I had somehow missed. It was a simple recipe and just by reading the ingredients I knew it would be a hit.
I showed the recipe to Victor and he said he would make fresh orecchiette! The plan was working very well...
This morning, he said he would actually make the whole dinner! Ya gotta love a man who can cook. I happily said go for it and set out to make a loaf of crusty bread as my contribution - smiling, knowing I was in for a treat for dinner.
I tell ya - this one is a winner times two! The pasta is stellar and the sauce is out of this world. And all of it is simple to do. The pasta took a little bit of time to make, but it was done in about 30 minutes. The sauce took no time, at all.
We all cleaned our plates - I sopped up every last drop with buttered slabs of crusty bread. It was a sacrifice I gladly made.
Orecchiette al Tonno
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 4 anchovy fillets
- 1 garlic clove, finely chopped
- 1/2 cup Italian parsley, chopped
- 1 6oz can tomato paste
- 1 pound fresh orecchiette (dried, if you must)
- 1 (5-ounce) can high-quality tuna in olive oil, drained
- Freshly ground black pepper
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.
In a large skillet, combine oil, anchovies, garlic and half of the parsley. Heat over medium heat, stirring occasionally and breaking up anchovies until fragrant, about 5 minutes.
Add tomato paste and 3/4 cup water; bring just to a boil, then reduce to a gentle simmer and cook about 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, cook pasta until just tender, 5 to 6 minutes. Drain pasta (reserving 1/2 cup cooking water) and transfer to skillet with sauce; add remaining parsley, tuna and generous grinding of pepper.
Cook over high heat, tossing to coat pasta with sauce, and adding as much of the pasta cooking liquid you need to moisten, as desired. Add S&P, as desired and top with freshly-grated cheese.
You can use a store-bough orecchiette, if you really have to, but this is pretty stellar - and really easy to make.
Fresh Orecchiette
- 2 cups semolina flour
- 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 2/3 cup water
On counter, whisk together flour and salt. Mound flour mixture, then form a well in center. Slowly pour 2/3 cup warm water into the well, whisking with a fork to incorporate flour from inside rim. Continue until liquid is absorbed and a rough cohesive dough forms, then knead, scraping as you go, until dough forms a mostly complete mass.
Knead 8 to 10 minutes more to form a smooth dough.
Divide dough into 6 pieces; wrap all but 1 piece in plastic wrap. On a clean work surface roll unwrapped dough into a 1/3-inch-diameter rope. Cut rope into 1/3-inch-long pieces.
With the side of your thumb, gently but firmly press 1 piece to just flatten into a coin-like shape, then simultaneously gently but firmly press and drag the coin to create a small lip. Flip the coin over your forefinger to create the small “ear” shape, with the inner surface now on the outside.
Transfer orecchiette to a lightly floured baking sheet and repeat with remaining pieces and dough.
Making fresh pasta really isn't as difficult as you think - and the results are so worth the trouble (says the guy who never has to make it because Victor always comes through...)
But if your house doesn't have a Victor, grab a kid - or spouse - and have a bit of fun-together-time in the kitchen!
It really is worth it.
Oh... and here's the bread I made...
My only change from the last time I made it was switching out 1/4 cup white for whole wheat flour. I still used the 1/3 cup rye flour.
Enjoy.
Pasta alla Norcina
I decided to get a subscription to Cooks Illustrated - again. I've had an on-again/off-again love affair with them for years. I generally like their recipes, but they can annoy the hell out of me with their three pages of how they got there. I really really enjoy the science behind food - it's why I used to really like Alton Brown before he became Mr Food Network Whatever He Is - but sometimes the path they take to get to a place completely changes the dish they wanted to make over to the point that it no longer even resembles its former self.
And then, they come up with something that is genuinely great - like this pasta dish. I've never had the original so I don't have anything to compare it to, but this is pretty darned good. Even Nonna cleaned her plate.
The premise is browning the sausage in a large patty instead of crumbling it up - to keep it from drying out but still getting some nice browned bits. In theory, it succeeded, but I think cooking it crumbled but just not cooking it all the way through would also work - and be a bit easier. Next time.
Regardless, it was a hit. It makes a ton, so Victor and Nonna had it for lunch, today, as well. I think it would be good with some asparagus tips cooked in the sauce, as well...
Pasta alla Norcina
adapted from Cooks Illustrated magazine
- Kosher salt and pepper
- 1/4 tsp baking soda
- 4 ounces ground pork
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 1/4 tsp fresh rosemary, minced
- 1/8 tsp nutmeg
- 8 ounces cremini mushrooms
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1 lb orecchiette
- 1/2 cup dry white wine
- 2 oz Pecorino Romano cheese, grated
- 3 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
Grease small dinner plate with oil. Dissolve 1 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp baking soda in 2 tsp water in medium bowl. Add pork and fold gently to combine; let stand for 10 minutes.
Add 1 tsp garlic, 3/4 tsp rosemary, nutmeg, and 3/4 tsp pepper to pork and stir and smear with rubber spatula until well combined and tacky - about 10-15 seconds. Transfer pork mixture to greased plate and form into a 6" patty.
Pulse mushrooms in food processor until finely chopped, 10 to 12 pulses.
Heat 2 tsp oil in skillet over medium-high heat. Add pork patty and cook without moving it until bottom is browned, 1 to 2 minutes. Flip patty and continue to cook until second side is well browned, 1 to 2 minutes longer (center of patty will be raw). Remove pan from heat, transfer sausage to cutting board, and roughly chop into 1/8- to 1/4-inch pieces. Transfer sausage to bowl and add cream; set aside.
Cook orecchiette according to package instructions. Reserve a cup of cooking water, then drain pasta.
While pasta cooks, add 1 tbsp oil to skillet and heat. Add mushrooms and a pinch salt and pepper. Cook, stirring frequently, until mushrooms are browned, 3 to 5 minutes. Stir in remaining remaining garlic and 1/2 tsp rosemary. Stir in wine, scraping up any browned bits, and cook until completely evaporated, 1 to 2 minutes.
Stir in sausage-cream mixture and about 1/2 cup reserved cooking water and simmer until meat is no longer pink.
Remove pan from heat and stir in Pecorino until smooth.
Add sauce, parsley, and lemon juice to pasta and toss well to coat. Check seasoning and add salt and pepper to taste. Add additional pasta water if desired to thin sauce.
Enjoy!
Strozzapreti with Beef and Onion Ragu
Strozzapreti. I just had to type it one more time. What a great word. It's a type of pasta from Italy. There must be thousands of shapes of pasta in Italy. Every time I turn around I'm seeing a new name and shape. It's a far cry from the 4 varieties I remember as a kid.I like different shaped pastas and will buy new shapes - provided they're priced the same as the other stuff. I'm way too cheap to spend twice as much money for a barely-discernible difference. And a lot of the shapes on the market really are just a half-twist away from being called something else.
I bought the strozzapreti at Cost Plus a while back and it's been sitting in the cupboard just waiting a reason to come out and play.
Tonight was the reason.
I was perusing my latest copy of Cooks Illustrated and came upon a recipe for Italian Beef and Onion Ragu. I like Cooks Illustrated, although they can also annoy me sometimes with their quest to make something better - and by doing so, change the dish so completely it doesn't even resemble what it was they started with.
Their recipe sounded good, so I used it as my starting point and made a few changes to make it more to my liking.
Rigatoni with Beef and Onion Ragu
- 1 1/2lbs boneless beef chuck roast, cut into 4 pieces and trimmed
- 2 oz pancetta, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
- 4 oz salami, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
- 2 carrots, coarsley chopped
- 2 celery stalks, coarsely chopped
- 2 1/2 pounds onions, coarsely chopped
- 6oz can tomato paste
- 1 cup dry white wine
- 2 tbsp minced fresh marjoram
- 1 pound pasta of your choice
- 1/2 cup Pecorino Romano, grated, plus extra for serving
Sprinkle beef with 1 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper and set aside. Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and heat oven to 300°.
Process pancetta and salami in food processor until ground to a paste. Add carrots and celery and continue chopping until very fine. Place in pot. Finely chop onions in processor and set aside.
Transfer paste to Dutch oven and begin cooking over low heat.
Cook pancetta mixture over medium heat, stirring frequently, until fat is rendered and poaste begins to brown. Add tomato paste and cook, stirring constantly, until browned, about 90 seconds. Stir in 2 cups water, scraping up any browned bits. Stir in onions and bring to boil. Stir in 1/2 cup wine and 1 tablespoon marjoram. Add beef and push into onions to ensure that it is submerged. Transfer to oven and cook, uncovered, until beef is fully tender, about 3 1/2 hours.
Transfer beef to carving board. Place pot over medium heat and stir in remaining 1/2 cup wine and cook for 2 minutes. Shred beef into bite-size pieces. Stir beef and remaining 1 tablespoon marjoram into sauce and season with salt and pepper to taste. Remove from heat, cover, and keep warm.
Cook pasta according to package instructions. Drain and add to warm sauce. Add Pecorino and stir. Serve, passing extra Pecorino separately.
It came out really good. Oniony without being overpoweringly so and really rich. We all ate a lot and there's enough left for another meal.
Not bad, at all...
Spinach Risotto with Chicken Meatballs
I was looking through a past issue of La Cucina Italiana last night and came across a recipe I didn't recall seeing before - a risotto with chicken meatballs. It may have been that I automatically dismissed chicken meatballs as being something I would just never make so why bother continuing - but this time I was intrigued and stopped to read it.
I'm glad I did.
I'm not a fan of chicken sausage, ground turkey, or other poultry-replacement items. I just don't see the reason. There's no there there. By the time you add enough filler and spices to make it palatable you've probably negated any supposed health benefits you were expecting. And speaking of expecting, regular ground turkey is usually 15% fat - just like an 85/15 ground beef. And it includes skin and connective tissue and all that. Yummy. All-white ground turkey is less fat, but it's also dry and flavorless - unless you add fat to it. Why bother?!?
And ground chicken at the grocery store always looks skeevy to me. Totally unappealing. So... I chopped my own. I bought a package of organic boneless skinless chicken thighs and went to work. I roughly cut it and put it in the food processor. After just a few pulses I had a perfect chopped chicken for meatballs.
And I have to admit they came out pretty good. Very simple with a nice texture. They might actually be good in a soup. Winter is on the way... we'll see..
Spinach Risotto with Chicken Meatballs
loosely adapted from La Cucina Italiana
Meatballs
- 1 lb chicken thighs, chopped
- 2 slices bread, torn in pieces
- 1/2 cup milk
- 2 tsp chopped parsley
- 1/2 tsp sage
- 1/2 tsp thyme
- salt & pepper, to taste
- 1 carrot, finely chopped
- 3 tbsp butter
- 1/2 cup white wine
Place chicken thighs in food processor and coarsely chop. Soak bread in milk. Add parsley and spices. Mix with chicken.
Form into about 30 small meatballs.
Melt butter in skillet over medium heat. Add meatballs in one layer and sprinkle in carrots. Reduce heat and cover. Cook about 10 minutes. Add wine and cook - again covered - about 5 minutes. Turn off heat and set aside.
Risotto
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 2 tbsp butter
- 1 leek, finely chopped
- 4 oz pancetta, diced
- 1 1/2 cups arborio rice
- 1 cup white wine
- 4 cups chicken broth mixed with 1 cup water, hot
- 1 cup grated parmesan or grana padano
- 7 oz baby spinach
- salt & pepper, to taste
Melt butter and oil together in large skillet. Add leeks and pancetta and cook until leeks are wilted and pancetta is beginning to brown - about 6 minutes.
Add rice and stir continuously until it is fully coated about 1 minute. Add 1 cup wine and cook until absorbed, stirring all the while.
Add 1 cup broth and stir until it is mostly absorbed. Continue adding hot broth 1/2 cup at a time, stirring until broth is mostly absorbed before adding the next.
Continue until rice is cooked. You may have broth left over. Stir in chopped spinach and stir until wilted and combined.
Add cheese and stir until combined.
Check for seasoning and add salt and pepper, as desired.
Serve with meatballs and broth.
Nonna ate 4 meatballs and a pretty good portion of risotto. It's always a telling sign when she remarks that there's too much food on her plate - and then cleans it!