Butternut Squash Risotto, Cinnamon Spiced Chicken

“I could go crazy on a night like tonight, when summer’s beginning to give up her fight.” So goes the lyrics to my favorite Indigo Girls song. But as much as I love the beach, grilled food, and rooftop bars, I don’t go crazy when summer fades away. The shift in seasons means a shift in cooking. The beers we drink get a little darker and a little heavier. Oysters start to taste a bit crisper. Fresh beans and tomatoes give way to apples, squashes, and grapes, and the cooler temperatures mean more time that I get to spend indoors, particularly in my kitchen, where I love experimenting with autumn’s bounty.

Two recipes that showcase some of my favorite fall flavors are Butternut Squash Risotto and Cinnamon Spiced Chicken. These are perfect dishes to cook on that first fall day that’s chilly enough to make you wear a jacket!


Butternut Squash Risotto

4 cups chicken broth

2 T. butter
1 medium butternut squash, cut into cubes
1-2 shallots, minced
1 cup Arborio rice
1 cup dry white wine
1 t. nutmeg*
¼ t. cayenne pepper
1 T. olive oil
1 ½ c. grated pecorino romano
Handful chopped parsley
Salt and pepper to taste

Heat the chicken broth in a small saucepan. Keep the broth simmering on low while you complete the remaining steps.

In a large, heavy bottomed pot, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the butternut squash cubes and the shallot. Cook, stirring frequently, for 5-7 minutes, or until the shallot has softened.

Add the Arborio rice. Stir until each grain of rice is coated with the melted butter. Reduce heat to low and add the wine, nutmeg, and cayenne pepper. Stir constantly until all of the wine is absorbed.

Add 1 cup of the chicken broth. Again, stir constantly until the liquid is absorbed. Repeat this step, adding more chicken broth, until the rice is fully cooked through but not mushy.

Once the rice is cooked, add the olive oil, pecorino romano, parsley, salt and pepper. Stir until the cheese has melted.

Serve piping hot, alongside Cinnamon Spiced Chicken.


Nutritional information: serves four. 300 calories, 14 g fat, 36 g carbohydrates, 7 g protein.


Autumn Spiced Chicken

½ t. cayenne pepper
1 t. ground cinnamon
2 t. dried thyme
2 t. nutmeg*
Pinch salt
Pinch freshly ground black pepper
1 lb. chicken breast tenders, pounded thin

First, preheat the oven to 400. Next, combine everything but the chicken in a small bowl. Blend well, then rub the spice blend into the chicken until the chicken is fully coated.

Place the spice-coated chicken strips on a wire rack over a baking sheet. Place the chicken in the oven and bake for 6-8 minutes, then remove from the oven and allow to rest for 3-5 minutes. Serve alongside piping hot Butternut Squash Risotto.

Nutritional information: serves four. 124  calories, 1 g fat, 0 g carbohydrates, 31 g protein.


 
* You can use ground nutmeg in these recipes, but that stuff is practically flavorless – you’ll get a much brighter flavor if you buy whole nutmegs and grate them with a microplane grater just before use. To purchase a microplane grater, click the link below:

Soft-Handle Microplane Zester Grater, Green, 12" (Google Affiliate Ad)

 

 

Ingredient Spotlight - Fava Beans; Recipe - Fresh Fava Beans with Tomato and Pecorino



from Popscreen.com

Can anyone in the US hear the word “favas” without thinking of Hannibal Lecter and his nice Chee-antee? (It’s one of my favorite movies, but I still curse it for launching 100,000 mispronunciations of my favorite wine!) Outside of mentions in movie references, favas are not often featured in American cuisine. The Italians, however, have been spinning up great fava bean dishes for centuries, and the June issue of La Cucina Italiana features an entire spread of recipes starring these beans.

Tonight, I spotted a basket of fresh fava pods in Savenor’s market, so I added a few handfuls to my bag. Originally, I was going to bring them home and set them aside until I procured the ingredients necessary to make one of La Cucina’s recipes, but instead, I chose to use them immediately and make one of my tried-and-true springtime favorites - favas with tomato and pecorino.

If you come across fresh fava bean pods during your next trip to the market, be sure to try this recipe. It takes some time, but the fresh, clean flavors make it worth the effort.

Fresh Fava Beans with Tomato and Pecorino

4 lb. / 1.75 kilo favas in pods (about 4 c. when shelled)
4 medium sized fresh tomatoes, seeded and cut into small dice
4 T / 60 g pecorino romano, chopped or coarsely grated
1 large clove garlic, crushed with the flat edge of a knife
5 T / 75 mL top-quality olive oil
Freshly ground black pepper
1 t. / 15 g smoked sea salt

First, you must prepare the favas. This step can be done ahead of time. Some people like to boil the pods whole and then shell them, but I prefer to peel the pods open and pop the individual beans out - it takes a little longer, but if you’re cooking with others, this is a great shared task to do over a glass of wine and some great conversation. Or, if you’re cooking alone, pop on your hands-free headset and call someone you haven’t talked to in a while, or do it while you’re watching your favorite TV show.

Once the favas are out of the pods, boil them for 1-2 minutes in boiling water. Once they’ve cooked for about 2 minutes and they’ve swelled a bit, drain them immediately and rinse in cold water. Now, you’re ready to slip the beans out of their skins - simply pierce the skins with your thumbnail and squeeze; the bean should pop right out. Once the skin is removed from all the beans, you’re ready to prepare the salad.

Combine the shelled and peeled favas with the tomatoes, pecorino, garlic, and olive oil. Gently stir to combine. Refrigerate for about an hour, checking at 10-15 minute intervals to gently toss.

Once the salad has chilled for at least an hour, remove the garlic clove, and add the smoked salt and a generous sprinkling of freshly ground black pepper. Stir to combine, and serve in individual bowls with a crisp Italian white wine.


Nutritional info: 4 servings. Per serving - 505 calories, 22 g fat, 34.6 g carbohydrates, 24.2 g protein

Orechiette with Sausage, King Oyster Mushrooms, and Roasted Red Pepper Crème

Sausage and peppers - a classic flavor combo that really can’t be beat! Whether served on some sort of toasted bread, spooned over pasta, or stewed together and served as a simple side dish, this is one pairing that everyone seems to love in one form or another.

For every written recipe for sausage and peppers, there must be 100 unwritten variations, passed down over time from one person to the next. Here, I tried an unusual variation, roasting and pureeing the peppers, and blending them into a creamy sauce with bits of hot Italian sausage, shallot, pecorino romano, and flavorful, meaty mushrooms.

I chose king oyster mushrooms for this recipe because of their ability to hold their firm texture during cooking. These large, trumpet-shaped mushrooms (shown left) are recognized by their thick, trunk-like stems and a small caps, and they may be labeled with other names, such as king trumpet mushroom, French horn mushroom, trumpet royale, or in an Asian market, xing bao gu or eringi. Although the flavor is not overpoweringly rich, the texture is very meaty, so if you cannot find these, substitute a mushroom like portabella or porcini - something with a texture that won’t wilt and become lifeless during cooking.

Try this recipe when you need a break from the same old sausage and peppers!


Orechiette with Sausage, King Oyster Mushrooms, and Roasted Red Pepper Crème

16 oz. orechiette or other short pasta
Splash olive oil
8 oz / 230 g hot Italian sausage, removed from casing
8 oz / 230 g king oyster mushrooms, sliced
1 large shallot, minced
2-3 red bell peppers, roasted*
1 cup / 240 ml dry white wine
½ c. / 115 g coarsely grated pecorino romano
Handful basil, cut chiffonade-style
Salt and pepper to taste
Extra basil leaves, to garnish

Cook the pasta in salted water. In the meantime, heat the olive oil in a large, heavy-bottomed pot, then add the sausage. Brown the sausage for a minute or two, then add the mushrooms and the shallot. Cook for 5-7 minutes, or until the sausage is browned, stirring occasionally and breaking up any large chunks of sausage into smaller bits.

While the sausage, mushrooms, and shallots are cooking, put the roasted red bell peppers and the white wine in a blender or food processor, and puree until mo large chunks remain and the mixture is somewhat emulsified.

Once the sausage has cooked, add the red pepper and wine puree to the pot with the sausage. Cook for another 5-10 minutes or so, stirring frequently to ensure that the sauce is not sticking to the bottom of the pot. Next, add the pecorino and cook for another 2 minutes, stirring frequently, or until the pecorino has melted and blended completely into the sauce.

Finally, drain the pasta and add the cooked, drained pasta to the pot with the sauce (if the mixture seems a little dry, add a small splash of the pasta cooking water). Stir until each piece of pasta is coated with sauce, then add in the basil, salt and pepper. Give the pasta mix a few gentle stirs to work in the basil, then serve in a decorative bowl or on individual plates, garnished with the extra basil leaves.

* As I’ve said many a time, roasted red peppers in a jar ALWAYS taste like roasted red peppers in a jar. Roasting them yourself gives a much better flavor, and it is very easy. Click here for instructions on how to roast red peppers!

Nutrition facts: Serves four.  858 calories, 11.5 g fat, 100 g carbohydrates, 35 g protein

Chestnut Flour Pasta with Sautéed Radicchio, Chicken Livers, and Grapefruit

chestnut honey, chestnut flour pasta,
parsley, radicchio

This is one of those recipes that snowballs from a basic idea until I have no choice but to give into my curiosity and try a recipe that sounds like a long shot flavor-wise. First, I wondered if chestnut honey and grapefruit juice would taste good together. They did. I wanted to carry the chestnut theme through the dish, and I had about a cup of chestnut flour in my pantry, so that got thrown in a bowl with some eggs and I turned it into pasta. Chestnut flour is a bit gritty and earthy tasting, so I needed ingredients that would not be overpowered by the chestnut flavor. Radicchio and chicken livers seemed perfect. Would it work?

It worked! It would have been more appropriate in autumn, but it tasted great! This dish is not for everyone - you have to be a true lover of intensely earthy, woodsy, bitter flavor combinations in order to appreciate this one, but if you’re anything like me and you can’t bear to not try something, take a chance on this recipe!



Chestnut Flour Pasta with Sautéed Radicchio, Chicken Livers, and Grapefruit

1 batch cooked chestnut flour pasta (recipe below)
Splash olive oil
1 large shallot, minced
12 oz. Chicken livers, chopped into bite-sized pieces
2 T. chestnut honey
1/3 c. grapefruit juice
½ c. coarsely grated pecorino romano
2 heads radicchio, shredded
Salt and coarsely ground pepper
Handful coarsely chopped parsley
Pecorino romano shavings, to garnish

In a large, heavy-bottomed pan, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the shallot and chicken livers and saute for about 5-7 minutes, stirring frequently, until the shallots are softened and the chicken livers have browned.

Add the chestnut honey, grapefruit juice, and pecorino romano, stirring gently a few more times until the mixture is well-blended. Add the radicchio, cover, and reduce heat to low. Cook for 5-7 minutes, stirring once or twice, until the radicchio is wilted.

Add the salt and parsley to the mixture, stir until blended, and spoon over the cooked chestnut flour pasta. Garnish with extra chopped parsley and shaved pecorino romano.


Chestnut Flour Pasta

¾ c. chestnut flour
¾ c. unbleached white flour
1 t. salt
1 t. olive oil
2 eggs

Combine the ingredients in a bowl and blend, using your hands. Work the ingredients together until you have a stiff dough, and knead for 6-8 minutes. Wrap the dough in plastic and refrigerate for at least one hour, if not overnight.

After the dough has refrigerated, use a pasta machine to roll out the dough. Don’t use the thinnest setting; chestnut flour pasta tends to be more brittle than wheat flour pasta. I recommend the 2nd or 3rd thinnest setting. Cut the dough into 1/3” wide noodles, and let dry for at least 30 minutes.

When you are ready to cook the chestnut flour pasta, cook it in heavily salted water and stir as little as possible, as it has a tendency to break easily. Serve with the recipe above.

Farro Tagliatelle with Zucchini, White Beans, and Pink Peppercorns

For weeks, I've been planning to write a post about what to do with game day leftovers, but instead I’m choosing to be petty―there will be no mention of Sunday's main event. Game or no game, post or no post, I still had to eat last night. Although I was tired and had spent the greater part of the morning battling a hangover, ordering take-out was not an option, as my stomach could not handle any more salty, greasy, fatty food. I decided to suck it up and prepare something quick and light.

What ended up on my plate was an unintentionally vegetarian pasta dish using my favorite brand of farro tagliatelle, lots of garlic and butter, fresh zucchini, canned beans, and flavorful seasonings, including pink peppercorns. Try this recipe when you’re feeling lazy but still craving something nutritious!



Farro Tagliatelle with Zucchini, White Beans, and Pink Peppercorns

white beans and zucchini

12 oz. farro tagliatelle
3 oz. butter
Generous splash olive oil
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 lb. zucchini, quartered lengthwise, then thinly sliced
1 16oz. can small white beans
1 t. dried thyme
½ t. dried oregano
1 t. coarsely ground black pepper
1 T. pink peppercorns
Salt to taste
Sprigs of parsley, for garnish
Shaved or grated pecorino romano, for garnish

Cook the pasta in generously salted water. In the meantime, melt the butter in a large, heavy bottomed pot over medium heat. Once the butter is melted, add the olive oil, then add the minced garlic. Sauté the garlic for a minute or two or until the garlic is fragrant.

Next, add the zucchini to the pot. Cook for 3-5 minutes before adding the beans, thyme, oregano, ground pepper, pink peppercorns, and salt. Cook, stirring frequently, until all the ingredients are heated through.

Once the pasta is cooked, add it to the pot with the beans and the zucchini. Toss it well so that each strand is coated with the butter and oil. If it seems a bit dry, add a small splash of the pasta cooking water and toss it again. Serve on individual plates, garnishing each portion with a sprig of parsley and shaved or grated pecorino romano cheese.

Cavatappi with Roasted Cherry Tomato Sauce

Great tomatoes in January, in Boston. If you're a serious foodie, that sentence probably just made you raise your eyebrows and question my credibility; as well you should have. However, I've been buying these tomatoes for quite some time, and I've never been disappointed in them, even in January.

Grown locally by Backyard Farms, these tomatoes are packed with flavor and rival some tomatoes I've had in August. I probably go through at least one box of their cocktail tomatoes per week, if not two or three. The other day, I got the idea to roast them and make a garlicky tomato sauce, and the idea evolved into this quick, easy, and delicious pasta recipe. Try this one the next time you're able to find good tomatoes!
　

Cavatappi with Roasted Cherry Tomato Sauce

1/2 lb. cavatappi, or other textured short pasta
8 cherry tomatoes, quartered
1/4 c. butter
1 c. dry white wine
1/3 c. tomato paste
1 c. grated pecorino romano
3-4 garlic cloves, minced
generous amount coarsely ground black pepper
salt (if necessary)
handful fresh basil leaves, chiffonade-cut*
additional basil leaves, for garnish

Cook the pasta in heavily salted water. In the meantime, preheat the oven's broiler. Arrange the cherry tomatoes on a foil-lined baking sheet with one cut side down (as shown in picture above). Broil the tomatoes for 7-10 minutes, or until the tomatoes' skins have begun to blister and blacken. Remove from oven and set aside.

chiffonade-cut basil

While the pasta cooks and the tomatoes broil, combine the butter, wine, and tomato paste in a large, heavy-bottomed pot over medium-high heat. Whisk vigorously until the tomato paste has completely broken down and blended with the wine and the butter has melted. Turn heat down to low and add the pecorino, garlic, and pepper (you probably won't need salt; pecorino is a salty cheese. Taste for seasonings and only add salt if absolutely necessary). Continue to whisk until the pecorino has completely melted. Once the pasta is cooked, drain it and add it to the sauce along with the roasted tomatoes and the chiffonade-cut basil leaves. Stir a few times until all the pasta is coated, then serve hot, garnished with fresh basil leaves.
　
* Chiffonade-cut is a technique often used on fresh herbs. To cut basil, stack the leaves on top of each other, roll up lengthwise, and cut into 1/8" strips. By placing the largest leaf on the bottom of the stack, the smaller leaves will be contained in the roll and the leaves will be easier to slice.

Ingredient Spotlight - Cardoons

After years of curiosity, I was recently able to find cardoons. I didn’t hunt them down, I simply saw them in the produce section of my local supermarket. Cardoons are not a common vegetable in America, and they are very hard to find, so imagine my surprise when I saw them displayed next to common leaf lettuce and carrots!

Cardoons grow wild in Mediterranean countries, and they are a very popular vegetable in Italy. They grow in bunches and resemble celery, although the flavor tastes nothing like celery - more like a mild artichoke. If you ever see cardoons in the market, pick up a bunch and try this simple pasta recipe that showcases this hard-to-find vegetable!


Spaghetti with Cardoons and Pecorino Romano

Cooked cardoons

1 bunch cardoons, sliced
Salt
Juice of 1 lemon
Splash mild vinegar
1 lb spaghetti rigati (textured long pasta) or plain spaghetti
Splash olive oil
2 slices bacon, chopped
2 large shallots, minced
1 cup chopped parsley
2 T. Butter
½ - 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
Generous amount of coarsely ground black pepper
Pecorino Romano, grated
　
Place the cardoons in a large pot with enough water to cover them. Add a few pinches of salt, the lemon juice and the vinegar. Cover; bring to a boil, and boil for 30-40 minutes. Once they are done cooking, drain them and set aside.

Cook the pasta in salted water. In the meantime, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat in a large, heavy-bottomed pan and add the bacon. Once the bacon begins to crisp, add the shallots and cook for a few more minutes, or until the shallot softens. Add the cardoons, then add the cooked pasta. Toss to combine, then add the parsley, butter, crushed red pepper flakes, and ground pepper. Toss again, then serve with lots of grated pecorino romano.

Italian "Sushi"

About a week ago, I was giving serious consideration to turning life as I know it upside-down and heading to a cattle call for a chance to be included in the next crop of reality TV cooking show contestants.  After careful consideration (and careful reading of the fine print legalese on the application form),  I decided not to go after a spot on MasterChef, but I did gain something from the decisionmaking process – a new recipe. 

As part of the audition process for MasterChef, each contestant is required to bring a pre-prepared dish to the audition.  Contestants are not permitted to prep or cook any part of the dish at the audition; all work must be be done off site.  Although some leeway is allegedly given in the judging because of the fact that applicants have to wait for hours at a time, I’m sure the judges would wonder about a contestant’s judgment if he/she presented a dish that was only at its peak under specific temperature conditions.  The instructions suggested packing the prepared dish in temperature-controlled containers, such as coolers and ice packs for cold dishes and heat wraps for hot dishes, so I wanted to make something that would be OK in a cooler whose temperature regulation might crap out after six hours of waiting in queue. 

Although the show’s producers wanted contestants to present their signature dishes, my signature dish – linguine with radicchio and cream - would taste like raw sewage if not served piping hot (OK, not raw sewage – but the flavor and texture would be less than ideal).  I challenged myself to come up with something that would be OK served either slightly chilled or at room temperature.  I thought of making the Seared Sesame Tuna and Gingered Pumpkin that I cooked in “Around the World in Eighty Bites – Japan,” but my mom advised against it, her reasoning being that A) seared tuna has been done a thousand times,  and B) it is not the best example of my cooking style. 

Had I decided to audition for the show, I needed a dish that would make me stand out from the crowd and truly shine.  I was less concerned about perfect execution than I was about creativity – perfect execution can be achieved through practice, but creativity and the ability to be inspired are things that can’t be learned.  I also wanted to stay true to my culinary roots, so I was determined to cook something using Italian ingredients and/or techniques.  Something based on risotto, another one of my go-to dishes, seemed like a good starting point.  That’s when it hit me – Italian “sushi!”

My plan was to wrap cold risotto around a filling of sliced roma tomato, then roll each “log” through a layer of very finely chopped fresh basil.  Each roll would be sliced into small cylinders, much like maki rolls, and they would even look like maki sushi – green basil exterior, white risotto base, and the red tomato in the middle would resemble the filling in a tuna or salmon maki roll.  I’d make plain risotto with only a few teaspoons of grated parmesan – no other additions – so that the flavors from the risotto would not overwhelm the other ingredients.  I conducted my experiment last night, and it worked beautifully. 

I made the risotto using Japanese short-grain sushi rice, not because I thought it would work better, but because yours truly didn’t check her pantry before creating a shopping list.  I assumed I had risotto rice…you know what they say about assuming.  Risotto made using sushi rice tastes just like the real thing, but I’ll have to try this recipe again using real risotto rice to assess the texture and determine which rice is more suitable for this recipe.   Also, I made the first roll using only minced basil for the exterior, but I discovered that combining the basil with a few flakes of kosher salt helped the basil better adhere to the rice.  Be sure to use wax paper to make the rolls – the rice will stick to foil or plastic wrap. 

Try this recipe if you’re feeling creative – the result is a delicious cold dish perfect for an antipasto course! 

Italian "Sushi"

3 cups cold plain risotto

1 or 2 firm roma tomatoes, peeled and sliced lengthwise into thin strips

1 bunch fresh basil, very finely minced

Kosher salt flakes

Place about 1/3 cup of the risotto on a sheet of wax paper 4-5 inches wide.  Using the curved back of a large spoon, press the risotto into a rectangle approximately 2.5” X 6” and about 1/3” thick.

In the center of the risotto rectangle, place two of the tomato strips lengthwise. 

Bring the ends of the paper up and together so that the long edges of the risotto rectangle touch, then roll the remaining edges of the wax paper between your thumbs and index fingers so that the rice comes together around the tomato strips and a long cylinder is formed (as shown in photo, left). 

Spread the basil and a pinch of kosher salt in a thin, even layer on a cutting board.  Bring the risotto roll, still wrapped in wax paper, to the edge of the cutting board, then unroll it and guide the risotto roll onto the basil layer, rolling it through the basil so that the minced leaves cling to the rice. 

Once you have rolled the risotto through the basil, place the risotto roll on a clean surface and slice it crosswise into 1-inch cylinders.  Place them cut-side-down on a platter. 

Repeat these instructions until all of the risotto is used, then serve with Garlic and Caper Dipping Sauce, and eat using chopsticks. 

VARIATION:  To make an entire spread of Italian “Sushi” rolls, vary the fillings, the exterior herbs, and the dipping sauces.  For fillings, try strips of roasted red or yellow bell pepper, smoked mozzarella, thinly sliced prosciutto or mortadella, anchovies, preserved lemon peel, or marinated portabella mushrooms.  For the exterior herbs, try minced oregano, parsley, mint, arugula, or tender young chicory leaves.  For dipping sauces, try balsamic vinaigrette or bagna cauda, a hot dip based on butter, olive oil, and anchovy.

Garlic and Caper Dipping Sauce

¼ cup olive oil

2 T. dry white wine

1 T. grated pecorino romano

1 T. finely minced salt-packed capers (do not rinse salt)

1 garlic clove, finely minced

Combine all ingredients in a small bowl.  Whisk well with a fork or small whisk, let stand for at least 15 minutes, whisk again, and serve with Italian “Sushi.” 

Spaghetti alla Puttanesca - Pasta for the Working Girl on the Go

Spaghetti alla Puttanesca.  The name sounds pretty, until you realize that its English translation is "Whore's Pasta."

Who are these ladies of the night, what were they cooking, and how did they get a pasta dish named after them?  Legend has it that the "working girls" didn't have much time between "clients," and if they wanted to eat, they had to whip together something quick and simple.  Sorry, ladies, no bolognese for you!  This sauce of garlic, tomatoes, olives, anchovies, and capers was easy to prepare and went together in less time than it took to boil the pasta water, which gave the ladies plenty of time to engage in their economic pursuits. 

Think about our eat-on-the-run culture.  Often, food advertisements lure us in with the promise that so-and-so's new product can be cooked in under two minutes, or its packaging is designed to allow us to eat without utensils so we can get the "food" in our mouths while walking, driving, etc.  We can eat soup while talking on hands-free phones and dodging traffic on the way to work!  Really?  This is supposed to be a good thing? 

Our culture demands that we spend the majority of our waking time auctioning off little pieces of ourselves in exchange for wages, and the process of preparing a meal has been reduced and degraded to "what can I throw in the microwave and inhale on the way to my meeting?"  We rarely make slow-cooked sauces, and we rarely sit down for hours and enjoy a luxurious meal with friends and family.  We're much too busy for that stuff...not so unlike the puttane whose compromised time and desperate lifestyles gave name to this pasta recipe.  Are we all just a bunch of prostitutes?  Are we so busy selling ourselves that we have to multitask during dinner? 

I should mention that at least 1/3 of my posts are written from my cubicle while eating microwaved leftovers and watching the clock.  Trust me, the irony is not lost on me. 

Please try this recipe sometime, and please eat it sitting down at a table with a friend or two and a glass of wine...or three.

Spaghetti alla Puttanesca

1  pound spaghetti or other long pasta (I used fusilli lunghi)
generous splash olive oil
1  2 oz. tin anchovy fillets (do not drain)
1  garlic clove, minced
1  small onion, minced
1  28 oz. can crushed Italian tomatoes (Rienzi, Pastene and Tuttorosso are good brands) 
1/4 c. capers
1 t. dried oregano
1/2 t. crushed red chile flakes
1 cup chopped black olives
salt and pepper to taste
grated parmesan or pecorino romano, to serve (optional) 

Cook the pasta.  In the meantime, heat the olive oil in a heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium heat.  When the oil is heated through, add the anchovy fillets and their oil, the garlic, and the onion.  Cook for about 2 minutes, stirring frequently, until the anchovies have begun to break apart.  Be careful not to let the garlic burn. 

Next, add the tomatoes, capers, oregano, and chile flakes.  Stir well, cover, and cook until the liquid comes to a boil.  Reduce to simmer and cook for about 10 minutes. 

After the sauce has simmered, add the olives, salt and pepper.  Cook for about 2-3 more minutes, stirring frequently.  In the meantime, drain the cooked pasta, toss with a bit of olive oil, and divide into 4 bowls.  Ladle a bit of the sauce over each bowl, serve, and toss with grated cheese if you'd like.

New England-Inspired Pasta with Pumpkin, Cranberries, and Spice-Crusted Duck

Pumpkin, cranberry, and duck - all autumn foods, all native to New England, but not necessarily anything you’d associate with linguine and cream sauce!

My intention for tonight’s dinner was to use the pumpkin I had left over from Sunday’s broiled polenta squares. I was going to cube and cook the pumpkin, add it to alfredo sauce with a little bit of nutmeg and black pepper, and serve it over radiatore, a type of short dried pasta. Still, I felt the recipe was bland and needed a kick, but I had no clue what that kick would be. Then I saw a bag of cranberries, and I found the kick. After I threw the cranberries in my basket, I went straight for the poultry section and picked up a fresh duck breast.

I had no idea how cranberries would work with pasta, but I was willing to find out. I had a recipe in mind - which is what I’m sharing with you below - but several kitchen mishaps and zone outs prevented my final dish from coming into fruition the way I would have liked. First, as I was stirring my pasta, I managed to splash boiling water out of the pan and straight onto my hip, so instead of attending to my food I was attending to my skin. Then, I completely zoned out, and instead of waiting until the pasta was plated to add the duck, I added it with the cream sauce. Oops. Finally, when I tasted it, I realized that it was missing something - I forgot to add the salt. So, I added a generous pinch of salt, stirred, dealt with the fact that I wasn’t going to be able to take a pretty picture, and mourned for the crispy spice crust on the duck that got lost once I added it to the cream sauce. Put it this way - if Gordon Ramsay was in my kitchen tonight, he probably would have told me to piss off. That being said, he wouldn’t have spit my food out, because despite my little string of disasters, the final product was delicious!

Here is the recipe as it was intended to be. Enjoy the flavors of fall in New England!


Linguine with Spice-Crusted Duck Breast, Pumpkin and Cranberries

10 oz. Linguine
1 duck breast, skin removed and reserved
½ t. nutmeg, separated in half
½ t. finely ground black pepper, separated
2 T. butter
2 cups cubed pumpkin
2/3 cup cranberries, halved
1 T. grappa
1 cup light cream
½ c. grated pecorino
Salt to taste

Cook the linguine. In the meantime, heat a heavy bottomed pan over high heat. Once it is hot, place the duck skin in the pan and cook it for 2-3 minutes until the fat begins to melt and coat the pan. While duck skin is cooking, rub the duck breast with ¼ t. of the nutmeg and ¼ t. of the pepper.

Remove the duck fat and place the duck breast in the pan. Cook each side for approximately 4 minutes, then remove from pan and set aside. Lower heat, add the butter and stir until it melts, then add the pumpkin, cranberries, and grappa. Cook for 8-10 minutes, or until the cranberries have begun to break apart. In the meantime, slice the duck breast crosswise into 6 slices approximately ½” thick.

Next, add the cream and pecorino, stirring until the cheese has melted into the cream and the sauce has thickened. Add the remaining nutmeg, pepper, and salt to taste, stir a few times, then add the cooked pasta. Cook for an extra minute, then serve, dividing pasta into 3 portions and topping with 2 slices of the cooked duck breast.

Battle of the Butchers

How many of you purchase your meat from butcher shops? I’m guessing not many. Old-school butchers seem to have gone the way of the dinosaurs and the Zack Morris cell phone, but I stumbled across two butcher shops in Boston’s North End - DiPaolo & Rossi and Sulmona‘s. I had to stop into both and decide once and for all who gave me the best steak.

I’ve shopped at a real butcher’s before - Hill’s Meat Market in the Wesleyville neighborhood of Erie, PA, my hometown - and I consider myself lucky to have grown up with the experience of walking into a small, family-run store and hearing my mom ask, “What’s fresh today?” and planning a meal around Donny’s recommendation. Sure, my mom and I also shopped at supermarkets and other specialty retailers, but as a kid, I remember our meat wrapped in thick paper the color of Crayola’s Burnt Orange crayons; no Styrofoam tray, no moisture-absorbing paper, no plastic wrap.

My Godfather Joe owned Joe Zak’s Market, a neighborhood grocery store in Pittsburgh with an on-site butcher (read more here). Although I was only three when Uncle Joe retired and closed the store, the article from the Pittsburgh Press style section reporting on the closing hangs in my kitchen, and I get to look at Uncle Joe and Aunt Eleanor while I prep. The article talks about the history of the store and the neighborhood’s reaction to the closing, and talks about how pro baseball players used to help Uncle Joe prep the turkeys for delivery. You’d never see an article like this about the local Stop & Shop going out of business.

 How did I evaluate DiPaolo & Rossi vs. Sulmona’s? At each store, I bought a 6 oz. Sirloin steak approximately ¾" thick. I cooked them at the same time, in the same pan, for the same amount of time per side, and with the same seasoning and sauce (recipe below). I allowed the flavors to speak for themselves, and I found that DiPaolo & Rossi’s sirloin was more tender, while Sulmona’s was tougher but more flavorful.

So who won? I’ve got to give them a tie - the only logical way to solve this dilemma would be a dance-off. In the big picture, the winner is the customer - buying meat from a local proprietor who cares about his/her product really does make a difference. Small, independent shops may not have the selection that big-box chains offer, but at the same time, you know the product hasn’t been sitting in a freezer case for months hoping to be thawed, and you won‘t smell more plastic wrap than meat when you open your package. The butcher will cut the meat as small or as large as you’d like, and you’re not going to be stuck cutting away ginormous chunks of fat. When you buy from a butcher, you get meat your way and you’re not at the mercy of some corporate store manager more concerned with administrative BS than what’s in your shopping bag. The best part of neighborhood shops is that while they don’t always have what you’re looking for, you know that if you ask for it, they will get it for you, or you could challenge yourself, walk in and ask, “What’s good?” and then base a meal around what they offer you - not so unlike a Top Chef challenge!

Obviously, steaks were on the menu, and I decided to base the meal on seasonal ingredients, using pumpkin, porcini mushrooms, kale, and a touch of bacon, butter, and booze. Serve these steaks with broiled polenta squares over braised kale. Complete the prep work ahead of time, and you can fix this meal in about ten minutes.

Sirloin Steaks with Whiskey Cream Sauce

2 oz. pancetta or uncured bacon
2 6 oz. sirloin steaks, approx. 3/4" thick, rubbed with salt and pepper
1 T. butter
1 shallot, finely minced
1 1/2 oz. whiskey
1/4 c. heavy cream
1 T. reconstituted porcini mushrooms, finely minced (see below)*
1 t. fresh thyme leaves

Heat a heavy-bottomed skillet (cast iron is preferable) over medium-high heat. Once the pan is hot, add the pancetta or bacon and fry until crisp. Remove from the pan and place on paper towels to absorb grease; pour grease off pan (I save bacon grease, it makes a great soup base!) When the pancetta or bacon has cooled, crumble it into small bits and set aside.

Turn the heat up to high. Add the steaks and cook for approximately three minutes per side for medium rare. Once the steaks are cooked, remove them and set aside on a plate. They will continue to cook and distribute their juices, do not disturb the steaks while they rest.

Now it is time to make the sauce. Remove the pan from the burner for a minute or so to reduce the heat so that the sauce ingredients do not cook too quickly and burn. Next, place the pan over low heat, and add the butter. When the butter has melted, add the shallots and saute them for a minute or so, stirring constantly. Now, add the whiskey, cream, mushrooms, and crumbled pancetta or bacon, stirring constantly until all the ingredients are blended. Remove from heat, pour sauce into a small bowl, and add the thyme, stirring until blended. Spoon a small amount over your cooked steak and serve.


Broiled Polenta with Pumpkin and Pecorino

several pieces dried porcini mushrooms*
water
1 cup polenta
salt and pepper
2 T. butter
1 cup shredded raw pumpkin
1/2 cup shredded pecorino romano
2 T. crumbled pancetta or bacon

In a small bowl, add 1 cup of boiling water to the porcini mushrooms. Soak for 10 minutes, then remove the mushrooms, chop finely, and set aside. Pour the mushroom soaking liquid into a large saucepan with 3.5 additional cups of water and a pinch each of salt and pepper. Bring to a boil.

When water has reached a rolling boil, slowly pour the polenta into the water, stirring quickly and constantly. When all the polenta has been added, continue to stir. Do not stop stirring, or the polenta could come out lumpy. The polenta will begin to thicken; keep stirring for about 5 minutes, until the polenta becomes very thick. Add the butter and stir until it is completely dissolved. Remove from heat, then pour into a 9 x 13 baking dish, spreading with a spatula so that the polenta forms an even layer approximately 1/2" thick. Set the polenta aside to cool, once it has cooled to room temperature, place it in the refrigerator to set for at least an hour. This step can be done the night before.

Once the polenta has set, cut it into 12 squares (for a nicer presentation, use a cookie cutter and cut them into rounds, saving the leftover polenta for a random snack). Place these on a baking tray, and preheat the broiler on high. Next, sprinkle the shredded pumpkin on top of each polenta round, making sure all the pumpkin is used. Repeat this step with the pecorino romano cheese, with the crumbled pancetta or bacon, and with the minced porcini mushrooms.

Place under the broiler for 5-8 minutes, or until the cheese has completely melted. Serve on top of a bed of braised kale.

* If you cannot find dried porcini mushrooms, they can be purchased online.


Braised Kale

Lacinato kale is also called Tuscan kale, dinosaur cale, or cavolo nero. Curly kale can be substituted if lacinato kale is not available.

1 bunch lacinato kale, stems removed, chopped into 1" thick strips
4 sprigs fresh thyme
pinch salt and pepper

Rinse the kale in water; do not dry. Add the wet kale to a large pot with a lid with the thyme, salt, pepper, and approximately 1/4 cup water. Cook over medium low heat, until the kale begins to wilt. Serve, season with additional salt and pepper if necessary.

Bacon and Butter and Booze, Oh My!

Bacon and butter and booze, oh my! Don’t forget cream, olive oil, and radicchio, one of my favorite vegetables. Yes, this recipe contains a lot of dieting no-nos, but calories are not a valid reason to miss out on something this delicious. Deprivation is not the key to anything, except maybe bingeing and unhappiness. If you’re really concerned about calories, keep in mind that this recipe makes four servings, so each portion only contains a teaspoon or so of the high-fat ingredients. Also keep in mind that our bodies need fat to function, and it’s much better to get your fat from a beautiful, flavorful pasta dish than from some chopped, formed deep-fried by-product garbage procured from a drive-thru. This dish is not one to miss!

The bacon, butter, cream, and wine make this a very, very rich dish, but the richness is balanced out by the bitterness of the radicchio. When choosing radicchio, select firm heads with white stems and tightly packed leaves. This tasty and versatile vegetable can be eaten raw or cooked, and is delicious quartered, grilled, and dressed with olive oil and lemon juice.

Linguine with Radicchio and Cream

12 oz. linguine
Splash olive oil
6 oz. Uncured bacon or pancetta, sliced
1 small onion, minced
1 head radicchio, quartered and shredded into ¼” strips
¼ c dry white wine
½ c grated pecorino romano
½ c heavy cream
2 T butter
Salt & pepper
Chopped parsley

Cook the pasta. In the meantime, prepare the sauce.

In a heavy-bottomed pan, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the bacon and the onion, cook until the bacon is starting to crisp and the onion is translucent, stirring occasionally.

Next, add the radicchio and the wine. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and cook until the radicchio is wilted. Stir once or twice.

Add all the remaining ingredients, stirring constantly until the butter an cheese have melted. When the pasta is cooked, drain it and add it to the pan with the radicchio, stir, and cook for 1-2 minutes more. Divide among 4 plates and serve.

Beach Blogging, Yesterday's Recipes

This post comes to you from the beach, where I'm sipping lemon water and watching seagulls pick apart crabs and clams that have washed up in the surf.  It's a damn shame birds aren't sophisticated enough to figure out how to melt butter.

Knowing that this could potentially be my last beach day until next year makes me a little sad, but it helps to know that once summer fades away there's plenty of fall food for me to cook.  Grilled steaks, steamed clams, cucumber salads, and frozen drinks will soon give way to pork chops braised in Magners, baked cod, butternut squash, and Sam Adams Oktoberfest.  When you love food, there is something to look forward to every season, every day of the year. 

Today would be the perfect day to throw together a great end-of-summer meal, but since I'd rather soak up the last of the summer's rays, I offer you yesterday's recipes.

Last night's dinner consisted of broiled grouper with grapefruit & mint salsa, risotto with fennel and pecorino romano, and a glass of my heavenly new white wine.  Really, who serves a citrus-y, warm-water fish with a dish like creamy risotto?  Answer:  Someone who doesn't have the patience to conduct only one culinary experiment at a time.  Friday, I yearned to try a mild risotto with my new wine.  That same day, I got my Daily Catch e-mail from Mercato del Mare alerting me that grouper would be available Saturday.  I've never tried grouper...the wine was open, and it needed to be finished...the grouper would not be available forever...  This culinary conundrum led to my mismatched multitasking.  Sure, the two dishes don't go together, but neither do army pants and a satin halter top, and that never stopped me from combining them!  Here are yesterday's recipes:

Grouper with grapefruit & mint salsa
1 grapefruit
handful chopped mint
1 habanero pepper, sliced into 1/4" rings
splash olive oil
salt & pepper
1/2lb. grouper fillets

To make the salsa:  Peel the skin from the grapefruit like you would from an orange.  Divide the segments, scoop the grapefruit pulp from the white pith, and place in a shallow baking dish (left).  Add the chopped mint and habanero slices to the grapefruit (right).

Add a splash of olive oil, salt, and pepper to taste.  Stir until blended, then add the fish fillets to the dish, covering them with the grapefruit salsa.  Marinate for 30 minutes to one hour. 

Preheat the broiler.  After the fish has marinated, remove the habanero slices and discard.  Place pan in broiler with salsa still covering fish, and broil until the fish is flaky, about 7-10 minutes depending on the thickness of the fish fillets.  Serve hot.

Risotto with fennel and pecorino romano 
splash olive oil
2 shallots, finely minced
1.5 cups arborio rice
1 cup dry white wine
4 cups chicken broth, simmering (more if necessary)
1 fennel bulb, sliced into 1/8" thick strips
3/4c. grated pecorino romano cheese
3T. butter
salt & pepper
fennel fronds, for garnish

Heat the olive oil in a large, heavy-bottomed pot over medium heat.  Add the shallots and saute until they begin to soften.  Do not let them brown.  Add the rice and stir until each grain is coated with oil, then add the wine.  Cook, stirring constantly so that rice doesn't stick to the bottom of the pan, until the rice has absorbed the wine, as shown.

The chicken broth should be kept in a small saucepan next to the risotto pot.  As soon as the rice has absorbed the wine, add 1 cup of the chicken broth.  Stir constantly until the rice has absorbed the broth.  Repeat this step several times, adding 1/2 cup at a time.

Once 3 out of the 4 cups of broth have been added and absorbed, add the sliced fennel with the remaining broth.  Stir constantly, letting the rice absorb all the broth. 

Once all the broth has been absorbed, the rice should be cooked through and have a slightly creamy texture.  The rice should not stick to the bottom of the pan, but it should stay firm and not "run" when you scrape to the side, as shown in the photo to the left.  If this texture has not been achieved yet, you can add more broth.  Once the rice is fully cooked, add the grated pecorino, butter, salt, and pepper.  Stir until the butter and cheese are melted and fully incorporated with the rice. 


If you care about presentation, grease the inside of a measuring cup with olive oil, pack the risotto into the greased cup, and turn out onto a plate.  The risotto will keep the basic shape of the mold, budging ever so slightly.  Garnish with several small fennel fronds.