Before I jump into Secondo or the main course, I want to take a snack break to discuss the new Italian megastore right smack in the middle of Manhattan, Eataly.  As I sit here after a long day of “advanced pasta” eating the winnings of my savory shopping spree, I wonder if this is really what Nonna had in mind?

 

Yesterday our class made it to Eataly, Mario Batali’s newest venture, on just its second day open to the public.  Eataly added to its current locations in Turin and Tokyo on Tuesday; hoards of people lined up to taste what it’s all about.  When we arrived at the double doors on East 23^rd Street the lunch crowd had dissipated, taking the last of the panini selection, but allowing us to make our way into the locally grown produce section for our tour.  We were then ushered into a confusing dining area that I’m guessing is modeled after an Italian bar containing high top tables, sans chairs, surrounded by salumi and crudo displays that were just that, a feast for the eyes.  The signage everywhere drew us onwards to the lands of cheese, chocolate, dessert cases and cocoa making me long to be the marketing guru that reaped the bling from all these graphic installments. 

 

Despite the directional overkill which, perhaps, makes navigation more difficult, after your first visit you’ll be making your way through the kitchenware, fresh & dried pastas, meats, seafood, oils & condiments, bread, and pizza sections on the other side of the store in no time!  Lest I forget the wine store which mandates entry via the street thanks to NY law.  Not to worry, if this sounds like a challenge you can always stop by the travel agency to point you in the right direction (to Italy for authentic food experiences). 

 

We happened upon Batali’s Mom somewhere between the coffee and gelato counters and I couldn’t help but think how proud she must be of her son, seeing his new store in all its bustling bright glory.  It’s a pretty amazing thing and surely no easy feat to introduce America to the joys of Italian cooking via import from Europe and Salumeria Rossi on the Upper West Side.  The meats and most of the cheeses I sampled and bought were quite good and the wine, at 5pm, was a welcome site, but I was especially impressed by the knowledge of the sommelier, the breads, and the selection of goods actually from Italy.  How convenient though, to be able to pop in on your walk home from the office and buy some fresh fettuccini instead of grabbing the months old box out of the pantry!

But after a long day battling saffron, whole wheat, and semolina dough, using guitar strings and wooden boards to cut and roll shapes into small, but delicious works of art I started to wonder.  Tonight we had the pleasure of hearing Toni Lydecker’s talk about her travels in Emilia Romano to research an article on pasta for La Cucina Italiana.  She spoke of the history behind each recipe, how families work together in the kitchen, and how recipes are passed down throughout the ages and I wonder how convenience impacts tradition.  I, for one, know that while I grew up learning my grandmother’s recipes, they were quickly replaced by studies and parties by the time I was out of my parents’ house.  I’m not sure, were there with me yesterday, if she would marvel at the shiny counters and displays or wish she were back in Italy speaking the language of the various vendors as she smelled, tasted, and spoke with them about why their tomato is better than the guy at the booth next door.  Here time is something you never have enough of, but I think that time, there, is something you make for the things you deem important.  Perhaps that, more than the family recipe for tortellini, is the lesson Nonna wants us to learn.

There is a method to the madness that is making risotto, but that doesn’t stop the sparks of fear inside me & my classmates each time we see it listed on the board.  It seems as though something with such a detailed regimen would be foolproof, but I’m pretty sure disaster can only be avoided with constant babysitting and knowhow from failures past.  If you also take into consideration, however, that each individual prefers their risotto served according to their unique taste, then you’re pretty much reaching for the stars.  That said, my chef’s stars are, after multiple risottos, within my grasp, so we will follow Guido’s guidelines in the following lesson.

First, the method.  No, I am not trying to fit cooking into one of the neat little methods I learned to build in my days of coding.  I am referring to risotto as a method because once you’ve mastered these, dare I say, basic steps you can apply them to various other starches and grains like the farro-to in the recipe below!  In my long history with risotto, I’ve even gone so far as to make this creamy dish out of potato?! 

1. Sweat finely diced onion in olive oil until opaque.  Onion should not take on any color!
2. Add rice (carnaroli is the best) and “toast” just until warm and coated in oil.  Rice should also not take on any color! 
3. Deglaze with white wine and reduce until the alcohol has cooked off.
4. Gradually add HOT stock* until the rice is perfectly cooked al dente** (about 1-2 ladles at a time around the outside of the pan).  The temperature/stock ratio should be thus that the rice is always dancing and never drowning in too much liquid.
5. Finish or mantecare with your fats (butter, olive oil, cheese, etc) and don’t be stingy! Note that butter and oil will add additional liquid and the cheese will absorb liquid, so, chances are, what was perfectly all’onde when you began step 5 will turn into either a soup or a glob in the resulting bowl or plate.

*You should really have homemade stock.  I know it’s a pain, but realize that the method basically enables a small amount of rice to soak of a large amount of stock.  That means that whatever flavors that stock contains, be it salt, rancid vegetables, etc is going to be infused into the entire dish and magnified in its concentrated form.  Just saying…

**This is the impossible part.  You want the rice to absorb the liquid quickly enough that it doesn’t cook forever and turn to mush, but you want it to cook slowly enough that it’s not crunchy on the inside and runny on the plate.  All’onde means that when you shake the plate the kernels should move and flatten.  Al dente means that the kernel should have a slight bite.  These terms are yours to master.

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Farrotto Primavera (Farro with Spring Vegetables)

Serves 2.

• 1 artichoke, trimmed & quartered
• ¼ lemon
• 4 oz asparagus
• 1 L vegetable stock
• 3 g EVOO
• ¾ oz red onion, chopped
• 3 g garlic, coarsely chopped
• 4 oz pearled farro
• Salt and fresh ground pepper
• 5 g marjoram, chopped
• 2 ½ oz frozen peas
• ¾ oz butter
• ¾ oz grated Parmigiano Reggiano
• 5 g parsley, chopped

 

Keep trimmed artichoke in acidulated water with lemon until ready to use.

Heat stock and keep at a simmer.

Remove the asparagus tips and peel the stalks.  Cut into 1 inch pieces at an angle.  Simmer the stalks in the stock for 20 minutes and remove. 

Combine the oil, onion, and garlic in a saucepan and soften onion.  Add farro, season, and cook for a few minutes until hot.  Continuously add stock for the next 15 minutes making sure to keep the farro well hydrated. 

Mix in artichokes and continue cooking, 5 minutes.  Add asparagus stalks and marjoram and continue cooking, adding stock, and checking seasoning for 20 minutes.  Add the peas, asparagus tips, and cook through.

Remove from heat and vigorously stir in the butter, cheese, and parsley until smooth and creamy!

I finally saw Eat, Pray, Love (Julia Roberts, always) and, guess what, I am now really really hungry: hungry for life, hungry for pizza, and hungry for “dolce fa niente” or the sweetness of doing nothing.  Luckily for you I haven’t acted on the latter, but instead targeted my hunger (for food) into writing this post on pasta asciutta or dried pasta.  As for la dolce fa niente, I plan to actively apply this Italian manner of existence to my personal being.  Ah, but isn’t that mindset my problem in the first place, actively attempting to do nothing…

 

Dried pastas are more prevalent in southern Italy where you find shapes like rigatoni and orecchiette often made with vegetables like Pasta Alla Norma.  I feel like the southern Italians live an even lighter and freer existence than their northern counterparts, perhaps it is due to the time saved with boxed pasta!  Albeit, I hope that this dolce fa niente doesn’t necessitate loads of free time, but instead can be established by finding joy in our day to day tasks that are seemingly menial.  My chef mandates 8 hours of work, 8 hours of fun, and 8 hours of sleep in his day to day.  I challenge you to eat the foods that you enjoy, pray for the things you cannot change, and love not just what is lost such that you too can find and maintain this very bearable lightness of being!

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Spaghetti Alle Vongole (With Clam Sauce)

Serves 2.

• 1 oz EVOO
• 1 clove garlic, sliced
• 2 ½ oz (dried) spaghetti
• Pinch of dried chili flakes
• 15 clams, scrubbed and soaked in salted water
• 1 oz white wine
• Chopped parsley

 

Sweat garlic in olive oil and add chili flakes and parsley stems to season.  Add white wine and clams.  Cover and agitate pan, tossing the clams about, until opened.  Stir in spaghetti, cooked about 5 minutes in VERY salty water, and add additional pasta water as needed to form an amalgation between the sauce and the pasta.

I am a diehard fan of fresh pasta, any shape or way you cut it.  My Nonna taught me how to make fresh spaghetti with her at a young age and some of my best memories are of us hanging the long strands over a broomstick under the ceiling fan to dry.  Eating it late night for dessert with Grandpa’s spicy sauce was pretty great too!  In class we started with the traditional pasta all’uovo and then learned how to translate the basic dough into various flavors and shapes by adding spinach or squid ink and changing the types of flour to produce the correct consistency.  We then learned how to properly finish a pasta in the sauce and, of course, al dente, which means “to the tooth.” 

The two flours used in the recipe below are 00 and semolina.  The double zero flour is ground much finer than the semolina and yields a more tender pasta like fettuccini.   You might use solely semolina to make orecchiette, in which case you would also drop the egg from the recipe.  When rolling out the dough (hopefully using a pasta machine) you also need to determine how thin the sheets should be.  Generally, I think level 7 is good for wider pastas like fettuccini and pappardelle, whereas a higher level is needed for stuffed pastas like ravioli and tortellini.  I’ve learned that cooking is much more straightforward if you can stay tuned in to the final product and consciously make decisions throughout the process in order to produce the desired result.  Take ravioli, for example.  If you think about it, it obviously needs to be rolled  thinner than a regular pasta because it will be doubled on top of itself in its final stuffed state.  The same thoughtful awareness can be applied when determining how to cut vegetables, when to add spices, and how long to cook various ingredients.

Once you have your fresh pasta, it only takes a couple minutes to cook, but you actually want to finish cooking it in the sauce to form an amalgamation between the two.  Apparently my usual routine of draining and shocking the pasta in cold water is a huge no no…  If your sauce is not ready, you should remove the pasta after a little more than half of the cooking time and then toss it with olive oil and lay it on a flat surface to cool.  Then, when you are ready to sauce and plate the dish, you transfer the pasta to a sauté pan, containing the appropriate amount of sauce, and finish cooking using pasta water as needed to bind.  The pasta, when removed from the sauce, should still retain the sauce’s influence, if you will.

Pasta All’Uovo (Fresh Egg Pasta)

• 5 oz 00 flour, plus extra
• 5 oz semolina flour, plus extra
• 4 eggs
• Pinch of salt
• 1/3 oz EVOO

Combine flour and salt and form a well in the center.  Add eggs and olive oil and use a fork to combine, adding extra flour if needed until you can form a ball.  Transfer to a floured work surface and knead until springy to the touch, about 10 minutes.  Wrap and refrigerate for 10 minutes. 

To shape, cut the dough into 4 pieces and run through the widest setting of the pasta machine 2-3 times, folding in half between each roll, until you have a nice rectangular shape.  Continue running the dough one time through each consecutive level until you have the desired thickness. 

When the desired thickness is reached, either run the dough through the pasta cutter or roll into a tube and cute strands by hand.  Dust pasta with semolina and let dry until ready to use.

Bolognese

Serves 4-6.

• 9 oz red onion, finely chopped
• 7 oz celery, finely chopped
• 2 oz carrot, finely chopped
• 2 ½ oz pancetta, chopped
• 2 oz EVOO
• ½ t red pepper flakes
• 12 oz ground pork
• 12 oz ground beef
• 2 ½ oz prosciutto, finely chopped
• 9 oz red wine
• 28 oz pureed tomatoes
• Salt
• 9 oz water
• Parmigiano Reggiano, to serve

 

Cook the soffrito (onion, carrot, & celery) with pancetta in oil for a couple minutes.  Add the red pepper flakes, salt, and pepper and continue cooking over medium heat for about 10 minutes.  Add the ground meats and prosciutto and cook through, about 15 minutes.  Add the wine to deglaze the pan and reduce until evaporated.  Add the tomatoes and simmer for 20 minutes.  Add the water, season, and cook for 2-3 hours until the flavor is rich and the sauce has thickened.

Oh salad, fresh salad, how I could write an ode to thee.  After a week of cooking pasta fresh, stuffed & dried pasta, gnocchi, risotto, and pizza a salad actually sounds quite exciting.  I know you, out there, are anxiously awaiting the aforementioned recipes, but first things first for us Americans that often preface our meals with leafy greens.  Many Europeans actually finish their meal with salad as a digestivi, to freshen their breath, and for other varied reasons.  Alas, I’m still American and prefer a big fat scoop of ice cream for dessert, but maybe I’ll at least day crave il formaggio , or cheese course, to round out a nice dinner. 

 

These salads can, for the most part, stand alone.  I’m taking creative liberty to mix and match recipes from different lessons throughout my studies thus far to bring you these salad selections.  At this point I’m happy to have any vegetable that is placed before me, but these are particularly delicious.

 

Insalata di Pollo (Chicken Salad)

Serves 2.

• 2 oz white wine
• 20 g dark raisins
• 10 oz chicken stock
• 9 oz boneless, skinless chicken
• ½ oz pine nuts, toasted
• ½ oz carrots, julienne
• ¾ oz celery, julienne
• 2 g chives, chopped
• ½ t tarragon, chopped
• 15g lemon juice
• ¾ oz red wine vinegar
• 1 oz olive oil
• Pinch of sugar
• Bibb lettuce

Soak the raisins in the white wine. 

Bring the chicken to a boil in the chicken stock, reduce, and cook until cooked through, about 10 minutes.

In a bowl, gradually whisk the olive oil into the vinegar, lemon juice, and sugar to form the dressing.  Season dressing with salt and pepper and toss with greens. 

Combine herbs and veggies with raisins and shredded chicken.  Toss with salad to serve.

 

Insalata Di Uova E Carne Secca Del Pontormo (Egg & Pancetta Warm Salad)

Serves 1-2.

• 15 g Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 70 g diced pancetta
• 2 g chopped parsley
• 2 g chopped marjoram
• 2 g chopped thyme
• 2 eggs
• Salt and pepper
• 30 g mesculun
• Red wine vinegar
• Balsamic vinegar

Put the olive oil and pancetta in a cold pan and slowly heat to render the fat from the meat.  Add herbs.  Break eggs into the pan and mix only enough to ensure they cook. Try to maintain the difference in color between the whites and the yolks.  Season with salt and fresh pepper.

To form the vinaigrette, slowly whisk olive oil into vinegar and season with salt and pepper.  Toss dressing with mesculun greens and then toss dressed salad with egg mixture.

 

Pizza Bianca con Rucola

• 2 g active dry yeast
• 340 g tepid water
• Pinch of sugar
• 660 g pizza flour
• 25 g extra virgin olive oil
• 12 g salt

 

Add yeast and sugar to tepid water and let sit until foamy.  Combine water and oil with flour and salt and knead 10 minutes until springy to the touch. 

Coat the dough with olive oil, cover, and let rise 1 hour.  Punch down, divide into 6 pieces, and let rise again. 

• 350 g ricotta cheese, strained
• Salt and freshly ground pepper
• Arugula
• Extra virgin olive oil

 

Season cheese with salt and mix with a spoonful of olive oil.  Dress the arugula with olive oil and salt. 

Roll dough out using semolina flour to prevent sticking and drizzle with olive oil and salt.  Bake the in a pizza oven or at a high temperature in a regular oven until crisp.  Top with ricotta and arugula.

Happy Saturday, Atlanta!

 

Set your DVRs for the 11 Alive Saturday morning news at 9:00 am where I will be demonstrating the fabulous Buttermilk Carrot Cake, aka Best Carrot Cake EVER!  Below, a link to the broadcast online:

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http://www.11alive.com/video/default.aspx?bctid=437712397001

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Enjoy!

A perfect slaw!

 

How do I love thy cooking, Tyler Florence?  Let me count the ways….delicious food, fresh ingredients, and interesting spins on classics.  When my mom had the opportunity to attend one of Tyler’s cooking demonstrations, I was green with envy. 

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Good mom that she is, she brought me home an autographed copy of his new cookbook, Real Kitchen.  Here is one of his recipes for a delicious, tangy, and surprisingly light slaw that is ridiculously simple to make but yet stands apart from the run-of-the-mill slaws that always seem to be bogged down with too much mayo and not much flavor.  Once again, Tyler delivers an “ultimate”!

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Ingredients

• 1 head savoy cabbage (I used regular green cabbage)
• 4 green onions
• ½ bunch fresh cilantro (8 sprigs)
• ½ c sour cream
• ½ c mayonnaise
• 1 ½ T sugar
• 2 limes
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

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Directions

Shave cabbage with a sharp knife or mandoline so you have thin ribbons. Cut green onions long and on the bias so you have pieces similar in shape to the cabbage. Toss cabbage, green onion, and cilantro together in a large salad bowl. Set aside

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Make dressing by combining sour cream, mayonnaise, sugar, and the zest of the limes in a medium bowl. Season with salt and pepper and finish with a squeeze of lime juice. Pour dressing over cabbage mixture and toss to combine.

Note: I added grated carrot that I had left over from a carrot cake recipe for additional texture and sweetness.   

 

Lentil and Cous Cous Salad (left) and Mom's Potato Salad (right)

What to do when summer party time calls, but so does the hot, hot sun?  Why, make a light, easy, and fresh picnic salad, of course!  This recipe that I adapted, chock a block full of bright summer flavors is a perfect poolside dish and, because it contains no mayo, will keep fresher…longer (sounds like a jingle, doesn’t it?)  I served it at a recent summer BBQ and received the best compliment of all….an empty dish as the end of the day!

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Ingredients

1 c lentils (I used brown)

4 T red wine or apple cider vinegar

1 ¼ cups water

1 c couscous

½ t salt

¼ c olive oil  

Juice of 1 lemon

½ c finely chopped fresh mint leaves

1 bunch arugula, stems discarded and chopped (wash it well to get the sand out)

1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes, halved

4 – 6 radishes, chopped

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Directions

Simmer lentils submerged under water for roughly 20-25 minutes, until tender and no longer toothsome. Transfer hot lentils to a bowl and stir in 2 T vinegar and salt and pepper to taste. Cool lentils completely, stirring occasionally.

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In a saucepan bring water to a boil and add couscous and salt. Remove pan from heat and let couscous stand, covered, 5 minutes. Fluff couscous with a fork and transfer to a large bowl. Stir in 2 T oil and cool completely, stirring occasionally.

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In a small bowl stir together remaining oil and vinegar, and lemon juice.  Stir lentils and dressing into couscous; salt and pepper to taste. Chill salad, covered, at least 3 hours and up to 24.

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Just before serving, stir in remaining ingredients and serve.

Photo credit: Epicurious (I accidentally deleted my pic!)

 

Carrots make me happy.  And doesn’t every girl deserve to be happy?  I first had these little gems, a Bon Appetit creation, at my lovely cooking partner’s house during the traditional Wednesday Cochran Family Dinner (plus Katy.)  They have a spicy kick that’s tempered by what’s become my favorite summer herb—mint.  Fire and ice carrots!  I recommend setting the oven to either convection or broil to ensure that they turn into delicious, browned, shriveled morsels of carroty goodness.  Make some, eat some, be happy. 

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Ingredients

• ¼ cup fresh orange juice
• 2 T olive oil, divided
• 1 T unseasoned rice vinegar
• ½ t dried crushed red pepper
• ½ t salt
• 4 bunches baby carrots (about 32), trimmed, peeled
• 2 T thinly sliced fresh mint
• 1 ½ t finely grated orange peel

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Directions

Preheat oven to 375. Whisk orange juice, 1 tablespoon oil, and vinegar in small bowl to blend; set aside.

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Stir remaining 1 tablespoon oil, crushed red pepper, and salt in medium bowl. Add carrots and toss to coat. Scrape carrot mixture onto large rimmed baking sheet. Arrange carrots in single layer.

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Roast carrots until almost tender, stirring occasionally, about 15 minutes (depending on size). Add juice mixture and toss to blend. Roast until juices are reduced to glaze and coat carrots, stirring occasionally, about 10 minutes longer. Season to taste with more salt, if desired. Transfer carrots to large bowl; add mint and orange peel and toss to blend. Transfer to serving bowl.

To begin, I would like to dedicate this post to my vegetarian college roommate Darcey, without whom I would probably still be confusing Manchego with Parmesan.  Thanks for bringing me into your world of cheese (and wine).  You almost have to correlate the two, no?  I hate to put wine & cheese on the same level as, say, peanut butter & jelly, but now that I know such a thing as a cheese tasting exists, I think I might.   I was aware there was a whole world of cheese out there to be tasted, hence the cheese plate, but I was naive to the fact that is a defined process and vocabulary by which to taste.  This is where my roommate failed me, or perhaps did not yet dare to venture.

Cheese, apparently, should be judged first by observation, then by touch, smell, taste, and aftertaste.  You can describe its texture using words such as chalky, assertive, oozy, voluptuous, and fluffy.  After you take a whiff, you might say that it smells a tad earthy or stale.  And after that first bite declare it biting or piquant!  The list continues, but my point remains that this cheese tasting business seems just as complex as the beloved wine tasting.  But were the two combined?! 

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When you too throw calories to the wind and adopt cheese tasting as your new hobby, note that like (red) wine cheese needs to breathe before eaten.  It also should be room temperature and should progress from mild cheeses to sharp cheese for a bold finale.  We learned about the different types of milk used to produce cheese, the resulting color, & fat content which quickly blew from my memory.  We learned of the different processes that make a cheese young, hard, or with a purple rind.  When organizing a cheese plate you should select a variety of cheese types from light to robust, from pillowy to firm, and all those buttery adjectives (and vino) in between.  Here is a custom designed Chritine Plate from the gazillion samples we were so lucky to taste plus the recipes for ricotta and mozzarella.  I still cannot believe I made cheese!

1. Crescenza Stracchino – I didn’t catch the brand, but make sure to have some toasts for spreading and, perhaps, an herbed oil.  The word buttery was made to describe this cheese.
2. Gran Bu – This cheese is made from buffalo milk giving it too a high butter fat content and thus a very luxurious affect on the palette.  This cheese is very brittle, so let it break as it will and chisel the cheese along the grain.
3. Ubriacone – A good soaking in grape must gives this cheese a beautiful purple rind and striping throughout the cheese.  It will add color and a pretty strong wine taste to your tasting if you didn’t pair   You always need at least one cheese with a crazy kick!
4. Fontina Val D’Aosta - Not your usual Fontina.  Did you know that one with the red rind at your local grocer is a fake?  The super intense, nutty, and mushroomy flavor of this cheese pairs nicely with fruits or an orange or quince paste.
5. Gorgonzola Dolce – For all you blue cheese haters out there I apologize, but this is your big finish!  It doesn’t get any bolder than blue cheese, but I promise this one isn’t as pungent as some. 

Ricotta

Yield 14 oz.

 

• 2L milk
• 1/2 t citric acid
• Cream, as needed
• 1/2 t salt

Place the milk, acetic acid, and salt in a small saucepan and heat to 195 F, stirring often.  When the curds start to form and separate from the whey, remove from the heat and let rest without stirring for 10 minutes.

Carefully ladle the curds and whey into a strainer lined with cheesecloth and strain.

To serve, mix ricotta with cream to desired consistency and drizzle with honey and balsamic vinegar.  Or use untouched for your recipe of choice.

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Mozzarella

Yield 17 oz.

                                                                              

• 3 L water
• salt, as needed
• 17 oz mozzarella curd

Heat water to 180 F.  Add salt.

With the curds in a stainless steel bowl, add water to cover.  Work the curds, pulling and stretching, until the water is cloudy and white.  Replace cloudy water and continue working, repeating this process until the water is clear. 

Once the mozzarella is the correct consistency, pull off small pieces and roll into balls in the hot water.  Transfer to ice water to cool. 

Dress small mozzarella balls, or cut balls into quarters, with olive oil, herbs, and salt and pepper.