I don’t have a name for this dish.  It’s something my sister and I came up with years ago when we saw something similar on some cooking show.

This started out as simply something to satisfy our cravings for spaghetti on a hot summer afternoon.  We didn’t want to get the kitchen all hot and muggier than it already was so we looked at what we had and made this.

For this particular dish, I had fresh mozarella, a chunk of Romano cheese, some roma tomatoes and a box of whole wheat spaghetti.

You start by chopping the tomatoes.  You can poach, skin and de-seed them before chopping…then again, that’s up to you.  Transfer to a bowl, add some extra virgin olive oil, salt and pepper to taste, some Italian seasoning.  The essential ingredient is the mozarella, which you dice and mix with the tomatoes.  Grate some hard cheese into the mix to give it another layer of flavor. We would  use queso de bola for this purpose.  I used Romano this time…same effect, not as salty as the de bola. Then you can throw in a finely minced garlic clove.

I like this with black olives, but I ran out and made do with green olives.  Sometimes, I’m in the mood for some capers too, but not this time. After the ensemble is all put together,  I let it sit in the refrigerator for half an hour to an hour to allow the flavors to blend.

Then I take it out and prepare the noodles according to package directions.  This spaghetti I used was from Ronzoni’s Healthy Harvest line, it’s Whole Wheat Blend Pasta.  It’s supposed to be healthier..but it’s not the same as regular semolina spaghetti.  This has a gritty texture that I honestly felt did not go with the sauce/dressing.

Soon as the pasta is done, transfer it directly from the pot to the bowl of sauce using some tongs.  Mix and watch how nicely the mozarella melts and melds with the tomatoes, noodles and everything else….mmmm…

Italian Comfort Food: Intensive Eating from Fresco by Scotto Restaurant

Chicken…always on everyone’s grocery list and a staple in most households. In fact, chicken is the one thing religions do not single out as unclean and therefore excluded frpm their followers’ diet.

Then came the Bird Flu when chicken and all fowls got a bad rap. While the flu hasn’t reached US shores and the Rocky Mountains, I’ll continue to enjoy my eggs for breakfast and my chicken for dinner and lunch.

This Chicken Marsala is derived from several recipes I’ve tried over the years. This particular one has cream but no rosemary. I don’t exactly like the mix of cream and that particular herb.

For a Chicken Marsala without the cream, I prefer it with garlic and rosemary. It’s delicious and perfect for a warm summer day with a light salad. Whatever version I choose to cook, I always end up serving it with spaghetti.

Recipe:

4 skinless, boneless chicken thighs

1 c. all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. black pepper

1/2 tsp. cornstarch

1/5 tbsps. butter or margarine

1 c. mushrooms, sliced

1/2 c. Marsala winde

1 c. heavy cream

bunch of fresh parsley, chopped

1 lb. spaghetti noodles, cooked as directed

Pound chicken to flatten it. Mix salt, pepper, cornstarch and flour in a dish. Dredge chicken with this mixture.

Melt half the butter in a large skillet over mdium-high heat until it sizzles. Saute the chicken breasts until golden on both sides, about 4 minutes to each side. Add the remaining butter, the mushrooms and the Marsala and cook over high heat for 4 minutes. Stir in cream, reduce heat to a simmer and cook 6 more minutes. Add parsley and turn off heat.

Serve with spaghetti.

Vino Italiano Buying Guide: The Ultimate Quick Reference to the Great Wines of Italy

This was my first time to cook Cannelloni.  My first taste of this was when my cousin had just come back from studies in the US and prepared it for one family gathering during our teens.  My cousin is really a gifted man in the kitchen.  It’s a trait he got from his godmother I was told…umm… by  his godmother…. who happens to be my Mom.

Back then, everyone swooned over how good this was since most of us hadn’t tasted it before.  I’ve had it a few times since then, but never thought of making it myself because I was intimidated.  Cannelloni sounds like a lot of work but isn’t really. There’s a lot of steps in the preparation, but they’re not at all delicate or difficult in anyway.  Besides, the results are worth it.

The combination of the ricotta with the spinach, tomato sauce with basil and rosemary and fontina cheese was excellent.  There’s a delicate sweetness to this dish I only tasted once before in a stuffed pasta shell dish of one restaurant.

It’s a home-style Italian restaurant in Cheyenne, Wyoming called Avanti Ristorante Italiano. They serve excellent Italian food, never touted as authentic, just home-style.  If you find yourself passing through the Cowboy State in the future, make a stop at Avanti. I guarantee, it will be worth it.

For planning purposes, I made one full recipe and have another dish sitting in my refrigerator for another day.  It should keep about 5 days.  Freezing is not recommended because the Bechamel Sauce will separate.

Spinach Cannelloni with Fontina Tomato Sauce:

1 tsp. olive oil

2 tbsps. minced shallots

1 can (28 or 32 oz.) whole italian tomatoes

2/3 c. water

1/2 tsp. chopped parsley

1/2 tsp. dried rosemarya few basil leaves, torn

1/4 tsp. salt

Heat the oil in a medium saucepan over medium high heat.  Add the shallots and cook 1 minute.  Add remaining ingredients and bring to a boil.  Simmer for 25-30minutes.  Set aside.

Crepes:

3/4 c. water

3/4 c. milk

3 large eggs

1/4 tsp. salt

1/8 tsp. ground nutmeg

1 1/2 c. all purpose flour

1 tsp. vegetable oil for brushing pan

Process all crepe ingredients except the flour and vegetable oil, at low speed in a blender.  Add the flour and process until smooth.  Lightly coat a 6-inch nonstick skillet with oil, over medium high heat 1 minute.  Pour 2 tbsps. batter into skillet, tilting to coat bottom. Cook 1 minute or until crepe sets on top and begins to brown on the bottom.  Invert onto a plate.  Repeat, stacking crepes.  Cover and set aside.

Bechamel Sauce:

2 tbsps. butter or margarine

3 tbsps. minced shallots

3 tbsps. all purpose flour

1/2 c. heavy cream or whipping cream

1 c. milk

1/4 tsp. salt

2 ounces fontina cheese, cut up

Melt butter in small saucepan over medium-high heat.? Add the shallots and cook 1 minute.  Stir in the flour, cook another minute.  Stirring constantly (a wire whisk is best for this), add the milk, cream and salt  gradually as you whisk.  TIP:  Put the liquids and salt in measuring cup with a lip to make pouring easier.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer 1 minute.  Stir in cheese until melted.  Cover and set aside.

Filling:

2 bags fresh spinach, steamed, chopped and strained rained

1 tsps. garlic

1 32 oz. container ricotta cheese

1 large egg yolk

1/2 c. freshly grated parmesan cheese

1/2 tsp. salt.

1/4 tsp. freshly ground pepper

Heat 1 oil and saute garlic over medium  heat.  Add garlic and cook 2 minutes.  Add spinach and saute 3 minutes.  Combine this with rest of ingredients in a large bowl.

Assembly:

Heat oven to 375F.  Cover bottom of shallow 4-quart baking dish with 1 cup of tomato sauce.  Spoon 1/3 c. of filling along center of each crepe, roll up and transfer to baking dish, arranging it so you have 2 4-crepe rows. 

Spoon 1 more cup of tomato sauce over crepes.  Cover with bechamel sauce and bake 25-30 minutes. Cool at least 10 minutes before serving. 

This is not your usual chili.  For one, it’s served “on top of spaghetti, all covered with cheese”.  This one in the photo is known as a five-way.  

It’s served with the chili or meat sauce, beans, cheese (I used provolone so you can hardly see it in the photo) and chopped raw onions over spaghetti noodles.  It’s a fantastic combination.

Another thing that makes this chili different are the spices for flavoring, including:  cinnamon, allspice and even cocoa powder….not your usual chili, like I said.

I found this recipe in Jeff Smith’s “The Frugal Gourmet Cooks American” years ago and have made it several times.  Like most of my regular recipes, it’s evolved from the original with the changes I’ve introduced.

My cooking skills were unexpectedly put to the test when I cooked this for an office get-together, not realizing one of my co-workers was originally from Cincinnati.  He recognized the smells as I was getting it ready for serving.  I knew he was skeptical at first, but I also saw his eyes light up on his first bite. And then all he said was my chili was “not bad” which, according to him, was an observation that was “not bad at all”.

Apparently, he’d tried several chilis puporting to be Cincinnati-style, which totally unimpressed him.  He even said some of the others he’s tried were downright bad and not at all like the original.  To make me feel better, he said this was not an easy dish to do if you were NOT from Cincinnati and mine was the closest one to the original he’s had – outside of Cincinnati, of course.

A couple of weeks later, he generously brings me a can of Skyline Chili, which his father ships him regularly. “So you know what the REAL Cincinnati Chili is supposed to taste,” he tells me. 

My officemate worked at the original Skyline when he was a kid and let me in on some secrets on how to cook this famous chili.  Before you know it, he was telling me about another Cincy favorite, goetta, which he said I should try cooking next time. I have yet to do that.

The closest I’ve come to Cincinnati, Ohio was to cross the Ohio River somewhere in Indiana when Spouse and I missed our turn on the way from Colorado to Orlando, Florida.  I hope to make it to Cincinnati someday and try the real thing.  For now, this will do for me…

Cincinnati Chili

2 tbsps. vegetable oil

1 lb. ground pork

1 lb. ground beef

4 onions, chopped

6 cloves garlic, minced

1 tbsp. whole cumin seeds (A MUST)

4 -6 tbsps. hot chili powder

3 whole bay leaves

2 tsps. cinnamon

2 tsps. allspice

2 tsps. Tabasco

4 tbsps. cocoa powder

2 tbsps. Worcestershire sauce

4 tbsps. white vinegar

1 28-oz. can pureed tomatoes

2 tbsps. tomato paste

1 tbsp. oregano

2 lbs. kidney beans, soaked and cooked

salt to taste

Heat a large heavy stockpot and add the oil.  Saute the meats, onion, garlic, cumin seeds, chili powder adn bay leaves until the meat is browned.  Drain the fat and discard.  Add the remaining ingredients, including the beans and bring to a simmer.

Cook, covered for 1-1/2 hours.  Make sure you have enough water in the pot.

TIP:  What you’re looking for is a meat sauce that’s been cooked down to a fine consistency, not an overly thick sauce.  The color should be more red than brown, and the cumin will give it a very Southwest flavor.

To serve, pile spaghetti noodles on a plate, top with the meat sauce, then the beans, cheddar cheese (or any cheese of your choice) and some chopped raw onions.Very good with beer, preferably the Colorado brew, Fat Tire Amber Ale.

This Spaghetti Puttanesca recipe is again from The Sopranos Family Cookbook.  Honestly, I was not impressed when I was dishing this up.  I’ve cooked it before and my version was lighter.  After I took my first bite of this one, all relaxed and away from my kitchen, I was surprised at how different the same dish with the same ingredients could be.  Both are good…just different.

My mother (again!) first told us about Spaghetti Puttanesca when we were kids.  Of course, there’s going to be a related story….families are all about stories, right?  My family especially…

Apparently, this was the dish her second eldest brother, the lawyer in the family, learned from somewhere and introduced to their home.  One day after the war (WW2), he came home with all the ingredients, cooked it for everyone to try.  And of course, he started telling them about its scandalous origins  (which I assume you all know), which, of course shocked his old, widowed mother and his five sisters.  Good thing my grandmother was always a good sport and spoiled her kids rotten, especially after my grandfather was killed during the liberation of Manila.  As a result of that tragic time, Lola Blanca tried harder to be accessible to her children and let the aunts and uncles…especially the uncles…get away with almost anything.  She always remained her loving, laughing self….after an initial, disapproving, “I’m not impressed” kinda look of course.

Years ago, after I got my first job with a restaurant group in Manila…I heard about this dish and completely forgot my mother’s story about it.  I come home with all the ingredients and cooked it and before I was able to tell the story about its origins, my mother beats me to it….

It’s my ideal dish…every ingredient in here, I love…..one of the few things without meat I  have always actually liked…

Ingredients:

2 tbsps. light olive oil

3 garlic cloves, crushed

8 pcs. anchovy fillets

1-28 oz. can Italian crushed tomatoes

salt to taste

1 tsp. oregano

1/2 c. black olives, chopped

1/4 c. capers

red pepper flakes, to taste

chopped parsley

1 lb. spaghetti noodles

Start by heating 2 tbsps. olive oil in a pan where the sauce and spaghetti will fit.  On medium-low heat, saute the garlic and anchovies till the garlic is golden, not brown, just golden.  Add the tomatoes, oregano and salt and bring to a boil.  Allow to simmer for 20 minutes.

In the meantime, cook a pound of spaghetti according to package instructions.

Put in the rest of the ingredients into the sauce and cook 2 more minutes.  Throw in the noodles and turn off the heat.  Add a dash or two extra virgin olive oil before serving.

Silver Spoon

Food allergies are a terrible thing to live with, especially if it’s shrimp and crustaceans you cannot eat anymore!  Does one really have a choice when the last lobster meal I had sent me to the emergency room half dead?  Goodness, but hat meal was worth it….

Spouse loves shrimps.  He has a  nose like an English hound for the best deals on “Eat All You Can Shrimp” promos from here to Iowa.  For Valentine’s Day, I just had to make him a shrimp dish to make up for all the shrimp he cannot have all the rest of the year.

Cook about half a pound of spaghetti noodles according to package directions. Drain and reserve 1 c. of the pasta water.  Meantime, saute about 1.5 tsps. of minced garlic in hot olive oil over medium-high heat just before it turns brown.  

Add as much deveined, shelled shrimps as you want.  Throw in a few capers, about a tablespoonfull.  Keep stirring and throw in some pasta water to build on your sauce.  This should only take a couple of minutes.  Throw in some chopped parsley and Olivio margarine at the last minute.  Season with salt and pepper according to taste.  Squrt with fresh lemon juice before serving.

Some of you might want to add red pepper flakes to this dish, the heat blends nicely.  But please don’t add cheese.  The flavor will overpower the sweetness of the shrimp.

Chez Panisse Pasta, Pizza and Calzone

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Two years ago, Stepson gave us “A Goomba’s Guide to Life” by Steven R. Schiripa.  Schiripa is better known as Bobby Bacala of HBO’s The Sopranos.  Spouse and I  really enjoyed that book and the show. Since Spouse grew up in New Jersey and his grandparent’s and parent’s last home was just a few blocks from where the Sopranos’ pork store, Satriale’s,  is located (Kearny Avenue Kearny, NJ), you really can’t fault us for being big fans of this show.

The book also has some common Italian-American recipes, some of which  I’ve tried.  One of my favorites is  Pasta Fazool or as they call it in proper Italian, Pasta E Fagioli – noodles and beans.  It’s an Italian comfort food that’s rich tasting and easy to prepare.  The combination of beans and pasta is very healthy because of the complex carbohydrates and proteins of the main ingredients.

Pasta Fazool is actually a soup, but Spouse likes it more like a stew.  I like mine topped with extra virgin olive oil and freshly grated parmesan cheese. The olive oil HAS to be extra virgin to bring out the very earthy flavors of the beef, the basil and the beans.  This is a meal in itself….perfect for a cold winter evening.  I like my Pasta Fazool with crusty Italian bread, red wine followed by a simple green salad of  arugula and mushrooms with a balsamic vinegar and olive oil dressing.  Not bad for Tuesday dinner.

Next time you’re in a hurry and want something warm and comforting for dinner, try this recipe.

Pasta Fazool

2 tbsps. light olive oil

.5 lbs. beef spareribs or lean ground beef (if you prefer low fat)

.5 tbsp. dried basil

2 garlic cloves, crushed

1-12 oz. can Italian tomatoes with their juices, diced

1 16 oz. can cannelini beans

.5 lbs. uncooked ditalini pasta

salt and pepper to taste

parmesan cheese

extra virgin olive oil

Start by heating the oil over medium heat and brownin the meat well.  Lightly season with salt as you’re browning.  Adding salt as you introduce a new ingredient into your dish is a good way of maintaining balance in your dish. 

 Make sure you make all that brown bits in the bottom of the pan, this will provide a lot of flavor later.   Add the garlic and basil and cook for about 2 minutes more or until garlic is soft.  Add tomatoes and simmer for 30 minutes.

Add your canned beans and about a cup of water.  Allow this to boil, then add your uncooked noodles.  Lower the heat to medium low and watch that the bottom doesn’t stick.  The noodles will take longer to cook in this thick sauce than the usual 9-10 minutes but it’s worth it.  If needed, add some hot water as you go along.

The original recipe calls for the noodles to be cooked separately but I find that adding the uncooked noodles directly to the stew makes it even heartier.  Season with salt and freshly ground pepper.  Add a pinch of basil to freshen it up and you’re ready to serve.

Ladle into bowls, top with extra virgin oil and freshly grated parmesan cheese.  Mangiamo!

A Goomba’s Guide to Life

This is another common Filipino dish usually using annatto seeds to liven up the color. This particular one didn’t have the coloring because I always like the colors of the vegetables in pancit to show as naturally as possible. I wrote about it in an earlier post on pancit.

Sotanghon, almost always, will include some crustacean like crab or shrimp, but I had to forego that due to my allergy. This pancit can be served as a soup or just stir-fried. This one started out as a soup but the bean noodles eventually absorbed most of the broth by the time I served it.

Sotanghon is actually the kind of noodle used for this dish. It’s made from mung beans and will be clear when cooked. Chinese in origin, it’s found in most of Southeast Asia, where it may also be called Soto. There are plenty of fake bean noodles in the market today – in the US and the Philippines. They use rice instead of beans and this will turn into pulp during the cooking.

Youngest Sister was on the hunt for the authentic kind some weeks back. When she found one, she made a bright orange Sotanghon that reminded me of how my mom would make it for parties. I then decided to find me some noodles and make this so I can share the recipe here.

Again, the original recipe had shrimps or crabmeat and the annatto coloring. For the annatto, just soak about a quarter cup of the raw seeds in warm water and let it sit for about half an hour. When you put in your broth, follow it with the annatto water after giving it a vigorous stir. The shrimps or crabmeat can be added during the saute, after you add the meats. When using shrimp for Sotanghon, you have to pound the shells and head (discard the “helmet” with the sharp end) to a pulp and dilute it with about a couple of tablespoons water. This is then strained into the sauteing meats, just before you put in your broth.

The Recipe:

3-4 tbsps. cooking oil

1 head garlic, peeled and crushed

1 big onion, chopped

1/2 c. boiled chicken meat, shredded or diced

1 Spanish chorizo link, minced