Monthly Archives: November 2020

Sides, Vegetarian

Caesar Salad

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Caesar Salad

This is a traditional Caesar Salad recipe. It contains raw eggs and anchovies. Caesar Salad was invented in Mexico by Caesar Cardini, an Italian immigrant who lived in San Diego but operated a restaurant in Tijuana where he could serve alcohol during Prohibition.

 

Ingredients:
  • ½ cup extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 cup day old Italian bread, crust trimmed, and cut into 1-inch pieces
  • Salt & black pepper
  • 1 clove garlic, halved
  • 2 large eggs
  • 2 dashes Worcestershire sauce
  • 4 minced anchovies (or more)
  • 2 tbsp. freshly squeezed lemon juice
  • 1 large head romaine lettuce, washed, dried and torn into pieces
  • ½ cup grated Parmesan

Put 2 tablespoons of the oil in a pan large enough to hold the bread in a single layer and turn heat to medium-high. When it’s hot, add the bread, salt and pepper. Toss and brown lightly. Remove and set aside.

Rub the inside of a salad bowl with the garlic clove and discard it.

Beat the eggs and pour into the salad bowl. Slowly add the lemon juice and 6 tablespoons oil, constantly beating. Stir in anchovies and Worcestershire.

Taste for seasoning. Keep in mind that the anchovies and cheese are salty but add lots of pepper. Toss to coat the lettuce. Add the Parmesan and croutons, toss again and serve.

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Pasta

Pasta alla Bottarga

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Pasta alla Bottarga

Pasta alla Bottarga
Don’t expect an assertive taste like caviar or anchovies. Bottarga is subtle. It’s the roe sac of a fish, usually mullet or tuna, which is salted, pressed, and dried.
Pasta alla Bottarga
Ingredients:
  • 1 lb. spaghetti or linguini
  • ¼ cup olive oil
  • 2 large garlic clove thinly sliced
  • 3 tbsp. grated bottarga divided
  • red pepper to taste
  • ½ cup chopped parsley divided
  • ½ cup toasted breadcrumbs
Start with boiling the water for pasta.
Add the oil, garlic, red pepper and ½ the parsley to a pan over medium heat. Fry for a few minutes. Don’t brown the garlic. Reduce the heat to low and add a tablespoon of bottarga. Stir and simmer for few minutes.
Pasta alla Bottarga
Save a cup of the pasta water and drain the pasta. Add the pasta and another tablespoon of the bottarga to the pan with the sauce and some pasta water if needed.
Pasta alla Bottarga
Turn off the heat and add the toasted breadcrumbs and remaining parsley. Serve, topping individual plate with the remaining bottarga.

 

Pasta alla Bottarga

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Seafood

Shrimp and Vegetable Stir Fry

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Shrimp and Vegetable Stir Fry

This is a quick recipe and a great way to prepare shrimp. You can make it with 2 cups of any kind of frozen vegetables you like. If you don’t have toasted sesame oil, substitute olive oil.

Shrimp and Vegetable Stir Fry

Ingredients:
  • 1 lb shrimp, peeled and cleaned
  • 5 tbsp. sesame oil, divided
  • Salt
  • ½ onion, diced
  • 2 cups mixed frozen vegetables
  • 1 tbsp. soy sauce
  • 2 minced garlic cloves
  • 2 tbsp. toasted sesame oil
Heat 2 tablespoon of sesame oil in pan over medium heat. Put in the shrimp. season lightly with salt and cook for 1 minute on each side.
Shrimp and Vegetable Stir Fry
Remove the shrimp from the pan and put in the remaining 3 tablespoons of oil.
Add the onion, a pinch of salt and cook for a few minutes  on medium heat until it begins to soften. Add in the vegetables, garlic and soy sauce, toasted sesame oil, and cook about 1 minute.

Shrimp and Vegetable Stir Fry

Return the shrimp and toss until everything is well mixed and the shrimp is completely cooked. Serve with rice.

 

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Meat

Chipped Beef on Toast

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Anyone who served in the military might wonder why I’d post a chipped beef on toast recipe. It’s  a standard Army breakfast which was not particularly liked my most soldiers. The Army served hearty breakfasts – eggs, toast, potatoes, grits, sausage/ham/bacon, hot and cold cereal, etc. and also chipped beef on toast. I’d never seen it until I began basic training. No one told me that I wasn’t supposed to like S.O.S. (a nickname that any ex-military understands) so not knowing any better, I actually liked it.
Me in basic training at Fort Gordon, Georgia where I first had S.O.S.
It’s a pretty simple recipe (similar in style to biscuits and gravy) and you’ll either love it or hate it. I happen to love it. Chipped beef is beef that’s ground, formed and sliced something like salami or baloney but very salty. You can also eat it plain on a sandwich or fried with eggs.

Chipped Beef on Toast     

Chipped Beef on Toast
Ingredients:
  • 3 tbsp. butter
  • 3 tbsp. all-purpose flour
  • Black pepper
  • Paprika – optional
  • 2 cups milk
  • 7 – 8 oz. chipped (dried) beef
  • 4 slices of toast
Melt the butter in a heavy pan over low heat. Add the flour and make a roux. Stir until slightly darkened. Add pepper and paprika, if using. Stir constantly until smooth. Add the milk, stirring to avoid lumps. Cook until the gravy is smooth.Chipped Beef on Toast

Chipped Beef on Toast

Chipped Beef on Toast
Slice the meat into 1 ½ inch long strips. Rinse in running  water to remove excess salt and drain. Mix it into the cream sauce and stir. Since the meat is so salty you probably won’t need to add any more. Serve it over toasted bread.

Chipped Beef on Toast

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Drinks, Miscellaneous

Italian Hot Chocolate

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Italian Hot Chocolate

Hot chocolate season is coming up. There’s an article in L’Italo Americano that will make you want some Italian hot chocolate now.

Italian Hot Chocolate

ITALIAN CURIOSITIES: THE TRUE STORY OF ITALIAN HOT CHOCOLATE

“. . . The fall is the season of the queen of sweet delicacies, the creamiest of treats, the most decadent of the cold season’s offerings: la cioccolata calda. If you tried it, you know that Italian hot chocolate is on a different level: there is nothing else in the world that can compare to it, at least when it comes to hot cocoa drinks. You may find others that are nice, that taste delicious and that do hit the spot if you need a chocolate fix, but no Italian will in earnest say any of those are better than our beloved cioccolata calda. . .”

For the complete article click here.

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