Southern Italian Semolina Bread

DAY 1

Sprinkle 1/4 tsp yeast over 1/2 cup warm water.  Let sit 2-3 minutes.  Gently stir.  Add 3/4 cup all purpose flour.  Stir.  Cover with a damp kitchen towl.  Let sit several hours or overnight.

DAY 2

Mix the biga into 1 cup warm water.  It will be sloppy.  Add 1 cups semolina and work it in.  Cover with damp towel and let sit 2-3 hours until it has puffed and has bubbles over the surgace.  This is the first rise.

Add 3/4 cup room temp water and 2 2 1/2 cups semolina flour, alternating.  Add 1/2 tbsp salt and knead for 10 minutes.  Place in an oiled bowl and let rise another 2 hours.  (2nd rise)

Punch down and from into a loaf.  Let rise while oven is preheating.  Right before cooking slice a couple of gashes on the top.   Preheat oven to 450 degrees with stone in a cold oven for 30 minutes.  Slide onto stone.  Cook 15 minutes, then reduce heat to 350 and cook another 40 minutes.  Cool on a rack.

The bread recipe comes from The New Mediterranean Diet Cookbook.  The bean soup  comes from http://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/cannellini-soup.  This has been one of our favorite soups for years.  The bread was delicious.  The boys thought it was perfect with the soup, but they don't know any better.  This soup is truly the best poured over a real baguette.

Mediterranean Country-Style Bread

This delicious bread recipe came from The New Mediterranean Diet Cookbook.  The more I use this cookbook, the more I like it.  This bread took 3 days, but minimal effort. 

DAY 1

Make the biga   Sprinkle 1 tsp yeast over 2 cups very warm water, stir briefly with a wooden spoon.  Add 2 cups of white flour.  Stir to mix.  Cover with plastic wrap.  Let rise in a cool place overnight.  (If you have a start, mix a cup of starter with warm water and flour, cover and set aside to rise.)

 
DAY 2

Remove 1 cup of the starter, put in a glass jar and store in the refrigerator for future bread.

It's alive.  Add 2 tbsp salt, a cup of tepid water and 2 cups whole wheat flour.  Mix thoroughly with your hands.  Cover, return to a cool place and let rise overnight.

DAY 3

Obviously, I needed a bigger bowl.  So, I moved it to a much bigger bowl, add 1 1/2 cups tepid water and 7 cups white flour.  Knead on a wooden counter for 10 minutes, add flour as necessary.  Put in a clean bowl, dusted with flour, for another 2 1/2 to 3 hours.

Before the rise

After the rise.  Now punch the dough and knead briefly just to get the air holes out.  Form into two loaves, any shape.  This is where I kind of lost focus.

I made small loaves.  Let rise 30 minutes.  Then put a couple of slashes in each.  I forgot this step.

 

And one large long loaf.  Let rise 30 minutes.  Don't forget to put a few slashes before baking.  Again, I forgot. 

Preheat oven to 500 degrees with pizza stone in the cold oven.  I cooked the long loaf on the stone, the small loaves on a cookie sheet.  Cook 15 minutes.  Reduce heat to 350, cook the small loves 25 minutes, the large 35 minutes.  Let cool on a rack.

 

Pizza

This is by far the best pizza dough that I've made.  It was delicious and chewy.  This recipe came from The New Mediterranean Diet

Pizza Dough

Combine 1/2 tsp yeast with 1 cup very warm water.  Stir gently.  Add 1 cup all purpose flour.  Stir until just blended.  Lumps don't matter.  Cover and let sit for at least 30 minutes.  I let mine sit for a couple of hours.  If I have any organization the next time I make this, I will let it sit overnight.

Then stir in 1/2 cup all purpose flour and 1 cup semolina flour.  Stir.  Dissolve 1 tsp salt in 1/2 cup hot water.  Add some of the water and mix until you have a dough you can work with.  The recipe says how much water you add will vary by the humidity in the room.  I added 1/4 cup, which have me a soupy mess.  I slowly kneaded in another 1/2 cup or so of all purpose flour.  Knead for 10 minutes.  Put in an oiled bowl, cover and let sit for an hour.  Again, I let mine sit for a couple of hours.  It was very easy to roll.

Marinara

Heat 2 tbsp olive oil.  Slice 5 large garlic cloves.  Cook in olive oil about 5 minutes.  Don't let it brown.  Add 1 28oz can of crushed tomatoes and 1/2 tsp sugar.  Simmer for 20 minutes.  Season with salt and pepper.

Roll out pizza dough.  Pour about 1 tbsp olive oil onto crust and brush it to the edges.  Add marinara and garnish.  Preheat oven and pizza stone to 550 degrees.  When the oven is ready, slide the pizza onto the stone and reduce the heat to 500 degrees.  Cook 7-8 minutes.

 My pizza was dressed with black olives, mushrooms, and a small amount of italian sausage.  If I wasn't out of oregano, I would have sprinkled it on top.  When it came out I added grated parmesan.  This recipe makes 2 pizzas, with some left over sauce.

Green salad with pierpont farms cherry tomatoes, blue cheese and vinaigrette.

Unfortunately Sanford has pneumonia and is unable to participate in dinner tonight, or this week.  He had a ramen soup, per his request.  I threw out the flavor packet, since that has enough sodium for a week.  We had some shrimp stock in the freezer, so I used that to flavor the ramen.  I sauteed 3 large garlic cloves - minced, 6 sliced scallions, minced ginger and 1 sliced serrano.  Add 1 cup shrimp stock cut with 1 cup water.  (My stock was a little too strong).  Simmer.  Add the ramen and cook for another 2 minutes.

Another sick day, and boys choice

Sanford is still sick, so I made him a version my mom's potato soup in the pressure cooker.  I am blogging the recipe mainly so I can do again in the future.

Pressure Cooker Potato Soup

Saute 1 large chopped onion and 3 celery stalks in 2 tbsp butter.  Add 1 1/2 pounds peeled, chopped potatoes and 5 cups chicken broth, 1 tsp dried thyme, ground pepper.  Cover, bring to pressure.  Cook for 5 min at pressure.  Quick cool to release pressure.  Season with salt to taste.


Also, per our earlier agreement, the boys get to choose one non Med dinner per week.  They, being good American boys, chose hamburgers and mac and cheese, green beans.  The hamburgers were basic grass fed beef seasoned with salt and pepper and cooked on the flat top.

Mac and cheese.

Boil noodles.  I used left over orecchiette noodles from the other night. 

Melt 3 tbsp butter.  Add 3 tbsp flour.  Stir and cook 2 minutes.  Add 1 1/2 cup milk (I used skim), salt, pepper and a little nutmeg.  Whisk.  Cook until thickened, about 10 min.  Remove from heat, stir in 2 cups cheese ( I used sharp cheddar).  Stir in noodles.


The boys ate it in about 5 minutes, then out to a movie.  Glad dinner was quick.

Baked semolina gnocchi with pork chops and sauteed squash ribbons

This was an interesting dish.  I liked it, but I would do it differently in the future.  The whole time I was eating it I was trying to decide what other dish it reminded me.  Then finally I figured it out, and I am not crazy since my husband agreed with me (although he still has a fever and might not be the best judge).  It is reminiscent of Kurt's gorgonzola cheesecake from the Bistro, even though there is no gorgonzola in this dish.  Strange, but true.  This recipe is adapted from Essentials of Mediterranean Cooking.  I like this cookbook.  Might have to purchase it in the future.

Baked Semolina Gnocchi:

Heat 4 cups of whole or low fat milk.  (I used about 3 1/2 cups skim with heavy cream to equal 4 cups)  Bring to a simmer.  Stir in 1 cup semolina flour, 3/4 tsp salt, and 1/8 tsp grated nutmeg.  Stir with a wooden spoon constantly, until thickened.  This thickened for me almost immediately.  I cooked and stirred it for about 8 minutes.  Remove from heat.  Beat in 1 egg, 1 tbsp butter and 1/3 cup grated parmesan.

Pour into a butter pan and flatten with a wet spatula.  Refrigerate for an hour.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Cut into 2 1/2 inch circles.  Layer in another buttered gratin dish, as in the picture.  Brush the tops with 2 tbsp melted butter and another 1/3 cup grated parmesan.

Cook at 400 degrees for 25 minutes.  At this point, mine wasn't browned on top, so I put it under the broiler for another 3 minutes.

Garnish with halved cherry tomatoes and sliced basil.

When serving, the top part stayed intact, but the bottom became a gooey clump.  While delicious, I would have preferred it to be one intact circle.  The next time I will not layer them like in the picture.  I would put them on a buttered cookie sheet and cook them so that they are not touching.

I am not sure if this is technically Mediterranean, but sometimes a girl has to cook what's in her house.  I took 2 squash and using a potato peeler, sliced them into ribbons, stopping when I got to the seeds.  Heat 1 tsp butter with 2 tsp olive oil in a pan.  Add 3 minced garlic cloves.  Cook for a couple of minutes.  Add the squash ribbons.  Cook 2-3 minutes, until tender.

This might be my favorite way to eat summer squash.

Just a pork chop, seasoned with salt, pepper, and dried parsley, cooked on the flattop til med rare.  Sometimes simple is better.  Delicious.

Middle Eastern Pizza

I love this recipe.  The kids really liked it.  One of the best parts about it is they are delicious at room temperature, so perfect for lunches and Saturdays at the soccer field.  The recipe is adapted from The New  Mediterranean Diet Cookbook.

First make the dough.  In a non metallic bowl add 3 1/2 cups unbleached all purpose flour and 1 tbsp salt.  Whisk together.  Dissolve 1/2 tsp yeast in 1/4 cup warm water.  Make a well in flour.  Add the dissolved yeast.  Flick the flour over the yeast/water so that it's completely cover.  Let sit at least 10-15 minutes.

Then using a wooden spoon, start to incorporate the flour into the yeast/water.  Continue to stir while slowly adding 1/2 cup olive oil and 1/2 cup plain nonfat yogurt.  Then add up to 1/2 cup warm water, aiming for a soft malleable dough.  I only needed 1/4 cup.

Put in clean bowl, oiled, and cover.  Let rise at least one hour.

Next, make the filling.  Cook 1/2 cup pine nuts in a couple tablespoons olive oil.  Cook until golden, but not browned.  Remove with slotted spoon.  Add 1 large chopped onion.  Cook on low until soft, 15-20 minutes.  In a bowl mix the pinenuts. onions, 1 cup drained chopped whole canned tomatoes, 3/4 pound ground beef or lamb, one chopped red pepper, 1 cup finely chopped parsley, 1/4 cup finely chopped cilantro, 2 tsp ground cumin, 1 tsp ground allspice, 2 tbsp tomato paste, 1/2 tbsp lemon juice, 1/2 tsp ground red chili pepper.  Season with salt and pepper.  Mix with your hands until uniform.  Set aside.

Next, punch down the dough.  Knead a couple of times.  Divide the dough into four pieces.  Leave dough not in use covered with a damp towel.  Roll out the dough thinly, until it's about 1/8 inch thick.  Cut into 5-6 inch circles.  I used a saucepan lid.  You should get 4 from each 1/4 of the dough.  Repeat with remaining dough.  Place on cookie sheet.

                   Next, spread a thin layer of the meat mixture onto the dough, leaving a narrow rim.

     Bake at 450 degrees for 12 minutes.  Serve hot or at room temperature.  Serve with plain yogurt.

Orecchiette

I pulled everything out of my pantry today, painted the walls a lovely orange and the shelves white.  After putting everything back it was already 6pm.  My plans for dinner tonight involved making a pizza dough, which I didn't accomplish today.  So, a change of plans.  I couldn't find broccoli rabe at the grocery store, so again, a change of plans.  This was good.  It was also very quick.  It may be Italian, but I don't think they would ever eat a big bowl of pasta for the main course.  But a one pot meal was what I was looking for.

Orechiette with chicken, tomato and ricotta.

Bring a pot of water to boil.  Salt.  Cook orechiette until al dente.

Season small chunks of chicken breast with dried thyme and dried parsley, salt and pepper.  Cook in a little olive oil.  Set aside.

In a bowl, dice 2 pounds tomatoes.  Add 2 tbsp olive oil, salt and pepper. 

In a small food processor add 1 cup ricotta, 1/2 cup basil, 1 tbsp olive oil and salt and pepper.  Process until smooth.

Add the ricotta mix and the chicken to the tomatoes, along with the orechiette.  Garnish with sliced basil.

Sick Day

Sanford was sick today, so all bets were off.  He has a fever of 102.  Whenever he is sick and runs a fever, he wants something with big flavors and lots of spice.  So for lunch today I made a chicken, coconut milk and green curry soup.

Soup:  Chop 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breast and saute in a little olive oil.  Remove.  Add 1 chopped onion, 4 chopped garlic cloves, 1 chopped zucchini, 1 chopped bell pepper, a cup of frozen peas, 2 chopped serranos, and an inch of ginger, minced.  Salt and pepper.  Saute until soft.  Add 1 tbsp brown sugar, a couple of shakes of fish sauce (I used soy sauce since I was out of fish sauce).  Stir.  Add a couple of tbsp of thai green chili paste and a squirt of lemongrass paste.  Stir.  Add 1 can coconut milk and 2 cups chicken broth.  Simmer for about 15 minutes.  Add chicken back to pot.  Cook until chicken cooked through.  Serve with a sprinkle of cilantro.

For breakfast this morning I decided to turned the cracked wheat from the other night into a breakfast treat.  I took about 1 1/2 cups of the prepared cracked wheat and mixed with 1 tbsp or so of flour, 1 egg,  1 tsp each cumin and coriander, a sprinkle of baking powder and salt to taste.  Heat 1 tbsp olive oil in a frying pan.  Make the mixture into small patties, dredge in flour then cook for a couple of minutes on each side.  Tasty.

Another falafel dinner

Last night's dinner has all been blogged before.  It has become one of our favorites.  Falafel, roasted cauliflower and tzatsiki, from earlier this summer, along with sliced tomatoes, feta, and olives.  We served it with homemade pita, from Sept 11, which we have been making weekly and leaving the dough in the fridge.  We pull off what we need for each night's dinner.  Last night we cooked in the oven, but sometimes we heat a cast iron griddle and cook it on that, or Sanford likes to fry it in a little olive oil late at night.

Mixed grill with cracked wheat and tomatoe

I love tomatoes in the summer in Missouri.  These were dressed with goat cheese, basil, olive oil, balsamic, and salt and pepper.  Perfect!

Another try at bulgar, which I got wrong again.  This time I bought cracked wheat, which is close, but not bulgar.  Wikipedia explained it to me.  Bulgar is cracked wheat that has been parboiled, so the cooking time varies.  There are also different grades, but I will tackle that later.  So tonight I started by sauteing a chopped onion, yellow squash, celery, garlic cloves in olive oil.  Season with oregano and salt to taste.  Cook until soft.  Add white wine to deglaze the pan.  Stir in the 1 1/2 cups wheat and cook stirring for a couple of minutes.  Add 3 cups chicken broth.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat to simmer.  Cover and simmer 20 minutes.  Turn off heat.  Let sit 10 minutes.  Stir in chopped parsley.  Not a lot of "wow factor" but it was a nice addition to dinner. 

Grilled chicken and lamb chops, marinated in olive oil, garlic, salt, pepper, cumin (tiny bit), oregano, herbs de provence.

Italian ground beef

Tonight's dinner came from the website spinachtiger.com  I was interested in it because I had all of the ingredients in the house and it talked about the simplicity lending to the deliciousness.  I found it boring, as did Sanford, so we did a little adjusting.  It was much better, probably due to the cream!

Italian beef.  Saute 1 chopped onion in olive oil.  Add ground beef which has been salted and peppered.  Cook until med rare.  Add a couple of cups of frozen peas and red chili flakes.  At this point, I thought it was boring so this is where we embellished the recipe.  Add 1 tsp each dried thyme and dried oregano.  Cook a little longer.  More salt and pepper to taste.  Add about 1/4 cup heavy cream.  Cook.  When off of heat, add minced basil and grated parmesian. 

We served this with steamed cauliflower, tomatoes, aioli and a baguette.  It worked surprisingly well together!

A break from the Mediterranean, sort of

I promised the boys that during our year of Mediterranean food, that once a week I would make something different.  This morning - tortilla espanola and a peach, Lunch - greek salad, hummus, those little meat balls from earlier in the week, so for dinner I was attempting something Mexican inspired.  This was partly because of their love Mexican food and their recent withdrawal symptoms, but also due to the fact that there were poblanos and tomatillos and pork shoulder in the house.  What I ended up with was not really Mexican, due to the added Barley Pilaf (from earlier in the week, which I called bulgar pilaf.  That recipe called for bulgar, but I had barley on the brain, so I used it.  No wonder it took longer to cook.  I will try that recipe again using the correct grain.  I am sure it will be much better!)  Anyway, back to dinner, tonight's was really tasty, even if it wasn't what I started out making.  It did follow the Mediterranean concept of using what is available to you.

Pork Stew

Cut 1 pound pork shoulder into one inch pieces.  Brown in a couple of tbsp olive oil.  Remove.  Add 1 chopped onion (half of my onion was bad, so I also used a couple bunches of chopped scallions), 1 chopped zucchini, 1 chopped poblano, 5 chopped tomatillos, 4 minced garlic cloves.  Cook til softened.  Add the pork back to the pot, along with enough chicken broth to cover.  Season with about a tbsp each cumin and coriander.  Add 1 cup or so of white beans (these were still in their cooking juice so I added the juice too.) and a couple of cups of the cooked barley.  Season with hot sauce to taste.  Bring to a boil, reduce to simmer and cook until pork is tender, stirring occasionally.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.  Sprinkle with minced cilantro.  I served it with corn tortillas with melted pepper jack.

Yesterday  to celebrate back to school and Julia Child's birthday, I surprised the boys with Madeleines.    This was really quick, which was good since I only had about 25 minutes from the time I got home from work til the bus arrived.  The recipe was taken from epicurious.com  They were really great, but the cooking time was a little too long, so I have shortened in the following recipe.

Madeleine

Butter and flour 2 madeleine pans.  I think you could probably use muffin pans if you are not lucky enough to have in-laws that send you cool things like madeleine pans.

Melt 10 tbsp butter, cool slightly.

In an electric mixer, beat 2 large eggs with 2/3 cups sugar just to blend.  Beat in 1 tsp vanilla extract, 1/2 tsp grated lemon peel and a pinch of salt.  Add 1 cup flour.  Beat until just combined.  Gradually add melted butter in steady stream.  Beat until just combined.  

Spoon 1 tbsp into each cup in pan.  Bake 14 minutes, until puffed and brown at 375 degrees.

Dust with powdered sugar. 

Chicken with lentils

The chicken was tossed with olive oil and lemon juice, salt and pepper, then roasted at 350 with wedged onions for an hour and 15 minutes.  The lentils come from the Zuni Cookbook.  Warm 1/4 cup olive oil in a 3 qt saucepan.  Add 1/2 cup each diced celery and carrots, and 3/4 cup diced onion.  We added garlic, even though it didn't call for it.  Add a couple of pinches of salt.  Cook until softened.  Add a bay leaf, few thyme sprigs, 1 1/4 cup small black or french lentils, rinsed.  Add 1 cup of red wine and 1 cup of warmed chicken broth.  (Warm 2 cups chicken broth total).  Turn up heat, bring to a simmer.  Stir occasionally.  Add more chicken broth as the pan gets close to becoming dry.  (As if you were making risotto).  Continue until the lentils are cooked.  (May not use all of the 2 cups). Remove bay leaf and thyme sprig.  Stir in 2-3 tbsp olive oil while still over heat and stir.  Serve.  Pita on the side.  This dinner needed a sauce, in my opinion.  We served it with plain nonfat yogurt, which was good.  Kind of a mix of many mediterranean countries.

For Jack, a creamy salad dressing.  Mix a couple of tsp of grated parmesan with some dijon vinaigrette and a tbsp of mayo.  Stir.  Toss with romaine and tomatoes. 

Shrimp in a roasted red pepper sauce with bulgar pilaf.

First, I think I need to start using my real camera instead of my phone for the photos.  It's just so much easier.

Tonight's dinner was shrimp in a roasted red pepper sauce with a bulgar pilaf and salad.

Shrimp in a roasted red pepper sauce:  This is adapted from "The new mediterranean diet", using what was in my pantry.

Heat 2 tbsp olive oil.  Add shrimp and cook quickly on both sides.  Remove.

Add another tablespoon of olive oil.  Add 1 med chopped onion and 1/4 cup minced parsley.  Cook about 10 minutes, until soft but not browned.  Add 2 jars roasted red peppers (I sliced mine, then rinsed the brine off of them) and 1 can diced tomatoes.  Cook for about 20 minutes.  Add 1/2 cup red wine and boil to cook the alcohol off.  I let mine simmer for another 10 minutes.  Puree using an immersion blender.

Put some saffron in warm water to bloom.  Add it along with 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper to the sauce.  Stir.  Add the shrimp back into the pan.  Cook on low until shrimp is warm.  Serve at once.

Bulgar Pilaf:  (Also adapted from "THE NEW MEDITERRANEAN DIET")

Warm 3 cups chicken broth.

Saute 1 med chopped onion until soft, about 10 minutes.  Add 1 1/4 cup barley.  Stir.  Add 1 can diced tomatoes.  Stir and cook about 5 minutes.  Add the broth and salt and pepper to taste.  Cook, on med, covered 5 minutes.  Reduce heat to low and cook another 15 minutes.  Turn off heat and let sit for 10 minutes.  When I tasted it at this point the barley was still pretty firm, so I returned it to med-low heat for another 10 minutes.  Let sit another couple of minutes covered.  Stir in 1/4 cup minced parsley.

Chicken Cacciatore

Chicken Cacciatore 

This is adapted from "Cooking Under Pressure" .  I used the pressure cooker, but you wouldn't have to.  Just increase the cooking time when you add the chicken.  If I was not using the pressure cooker, I would have left the skin on the chicken and browned it first.

Heat 3 tbsp olive oil in pressure cooker.  Add 2 med chopped onions.  Saute a couple of minutes.  Add 2 chopped celery stalks and 1 chopped green bell pepper.  Saute another couple of minutes. Deglaze with 3/4 cup red wine.  Add 1/2 pound thickly sliced mushrooms.  Stir.  Add 2 bay leaves, 1 tsp oregano, 1 tsp fennel seed, 1 tsp salt and fresh ground pepper.  Add skinned chicken thighs and legs (8).  Stir.  Add 1 28oz canned tomatoes, chopping them coarsely.  DO NOT STIR.  Put the lid on and bring to pressure.  Cook 9 minutes.  Bring pressure down using the quick release method.  (I let mine come down naturally since I was doing other things)  Add 1/4 cup chopped parsley and 2 minced garlic cloves.  Simmer until raw garlic flavor is gone.  I simmered mine for about 20 minutes while I finished the rest of dinner.

I served this with orichiette (from March 2011), steamed broccoli and salad.

Jack said the flavors made his "taste buds tingle and dance with joy".

Italian Bean Soup:

Cook one cup small white beans until tender.  Drain reserving liquid.  

Put 1 slice pancetta or bacon, 1/3 cup chopped parsley, 3 small chopped carrots, 2 chopped garlic cloves, 1 chopped onion into a food processor and process until almost a paste.  Heat a couple tablespoons olive oil.  Add the paste and cook, stirring for about 5 minutes.  Add 3 cups chicken broth and 1 cup reserved bean juice.  Add 1 bunch chopped kale and 2 cups white beans.  Simmer 15 minutes.

I followed the basic recipe from Essentials of Mediterranean Cooking.  The boys and I agree that we prefer the way I've always made this. 

The old recipe:

Cut a couple of italian sausage links into bite size pieces.  Brown in a little olive oil.  Remove.  Add 1 chopped onion, a couple of chopped carrots, 3-4 minced garlic cloves, a pinch of thyme, and a bay leaf.   Cook until soft.  Add 1 bunch chopped kale and stir.  Return sausage to pan.  Cover with chicken broth and let cook until kale softened and sausage cooked.  (The longer, the better flavor).  Add a couple of cups of white beans and cook until warmed through.

Here is a spin on a mediterranean/middle eastern meatball.  Normally this would be made with lamb, but I found a few recipes that called for ground beef.  Since we bought part of a cow last winter, and I have a freezer full of ground beef, I decided to go with it.  This isn't from one particular recipe.  In the future, I would increase the seasonings for more of a wow factor. 

Meat balls:  1 1/2 pounds ground beef mixed with 1/2 tbsp of thyme and oregano, 2 tbsp sumac, salt and pepper to taste.  Make small patties.  Cook in olive oil.  Sprinkle with more sumac to taste.  I served this with hummus, olives, cucumber, tomatoes, tzatziki, feta, and some homemade pita.

Spanish dinner with Barbara

I didn't take any pictures last night, and all of the recipes from our dinner are found elsewhere in this blog.  We had gambas al jillo (which we added halved baby bellas), tomatoes in olive oil and balsamic, tortilla espanola, aioli, and a crusty baguette.  It was wonderful to see you last night Barbara!

Sausage pasta and Broccoli

Broccoli alla Romana (from Mediterranean Harvest):  Heat 2 tbsp olive oil in a pan.  Add 1 minced garlic clove, after a few seconds add 2 pounds broccoli florets.  Toss until all broccoli is coated with oil.  Add 1 1/2 cups of chicken broth.  Simmer 5 minutes, stirring occassionally.  Cover and simmer 15 minutes.  Remove broccoli when tender, then reduce wine and pour over broccoli.  (I actually like this better when you use less white wine and add some chicken broth and red pepper flakes.  But, I guess that makes it a different recipe.)

This is from Mario Batali.  A little reminiscent of hamburger helper, the Italian style.  Very homey, a hit with the kids.  Heat 1 tbsp butter and 1 tbsp olive oil.  Saute 1 minced onion.  Add 1 pound italian sausage, casings remove.  Cook 10 minutes.  Add 6 tbsp tomato paste.  Cook another 8 minutes.  Add 1/2 cup white wine.  Cook until reduced.  Add 1/2 cup whole milk.  Salt and pepper.  Simmer 15 minutes.  Meanwhile, cook 1 pound dried pasta ( I used small macaroni noodles) until al dente.  Remove 1 cup pasta water.  Drain noodles and add to sauce.  Toss, adding reserved pasta water as needed for correct consistency.  Top with grated parmesan.