Sides, Vegetarian

Arugula with Garlic and Oil

May 1, 2020 robiulo Leave a comment

Arugula with Garlic and Oil

Here’s another easy recipe. This one’s for a side dish. Arugula with garlic and oil is just three ingredients plus salt and pepper. Precise measurements don’t matter much for this one. Arugula is also known as rocket and is similar to spinach and collard greens which you can also make this way.

Ingredients:

Arugula –as much as you like
2 sliced cloves of garlic – more if you like garlic
Olive oil – enough to coat the greens
Salt and black pepper to taste

Heat the oil in a pan and add the garlic, salt and pepper. Simmer on a low flame for about 5 minutes to infuse the oil with garlic flavor. Don’t brown it. Add the arugula, a ½ cup of water, and toss it until it wilts.

Arugula with Garlic and Oil

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Miscellaneous

Quarantine Garden

April 29, 2020 robiulo Leave a comment

An interesting article about seeds from Gastro Obscura –

Strawberry Spinach

These 7 Companies Ship Unique Seeds for Your Quarantine Garden

BY REINA GATTUSO

“In 1944, at the height of World War II, 20 million home gardeners across the United States dug deep to support the war effort. As the country poured the bulk of its resources into the conflict, Americans grew Victory Gardens to bolster the domestic food supply. . .”Bitter Gourd

See the whole article here.

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Pasta, Soup, Vegetarian

Pasta Fazoole

April 24, 2020 robiulo 4 Comments

Pasta Fazool

In Italian its pasta e fagioli – that means “pasta and beans.” Some people call it pasta fazool. Both pronunciations are correct. In the Neapolitan dialect its pasta e fasule, often spelled pasta fazool in America.

Ingredients:

Olive oil
1 cup trinity
1 lb. beans (whatever kind you like)
Salt and black pepper
Sm. can cherry tomatoes – optional
1 lb. small pasta
1 cup arugula or spinach – optional

Pick through and rinse the beans.

In a large pot, cook the trinity in oil. When the vegetables are soft, add the beans and 8 cups of water. Bring to a boil, lower heat and simmer, covered for 2 hours.

Add salt and pepper, the cherry tomatoes, 2 more cups of water, and the pasta. If necessary, add more water as the pasta cooks. When the pasta is almost done, throw in a couple of hands full of arugula or spinach. I’m using a mix of both. When the greens whilt, it’s ready to serve.

I think it’s tastier reheated the next day. Just add some water to the pot and stir over a low flame.

A pound of beans and a pound of pasta can rally grow as they cook. You might to cut those 2 ingredients in half.

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Drinks

Chianti Classico

April 22, 2020 robiulo Leave a comment

The Birth of a Wine: The History of Chianti Classico

by ANGELA NARDIELLO

“. . . Tuscany. If you’ve never been, I can guarantee you’ll be in awe of the beauty of its rolling vineyard filled hills, Cypress lined driveways and the golden glow that covers that land as the sun sets. They say it is one of the most beautiful places in Italy, so its no wonder that the world’s rich and famous have been BUYING up all of Tuscany for the last century…or more!

Although many of the most beautiful areas and ancient Villas have been bought up by rich foreigners much of ‘Chiantishire’ or simply Chianti, is still owned by the original families as is the case with the Villa Barberino that still belongs to the Conti Family. . . “

Read the whole article here.

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Pasta, Vegetarian

Pasta con Broccoli

April 17, 2020 robiulo 2 Comments

Pasta con Broccoli

Here’s a simple dish. It’s easy to make with just a few easy to get ingredients.

Ingredients:

broccoli cut into florets
¼ cup olive oil
2 cloves sliced garlic
1 lb. pasta (your choice)
Salt and black pepper

Place the broccoli in a pot of boiling salted water for 5 to 8 minutes.

Remove the broccoli to a bowl and with the water continuing to boil, add the pasta.

While the pasta is cooking, in another pot lightly sauté the garlic in the oil and then toss the broccoli, thoroughly coating it with the oil. Season with the salt and pepper.

When the pasta is almost done remove it from the water and add it to the broccoli, garlic, oil mix to finish cooking. Add some of the pasta water and a sprinkle of oil, stir and serve with grated Parmesan cheese if you like. This recipe also works with cauliflower instead of broccoli.

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Drinks

Pabst Blue Ribbon

April 16, 2020 robiulo Leave a comment

A great article on how a beer company survived Prohibition.

When the Government Banned PBR, Pabst Made Cheese Instead

By Mark Hay

“ . . . Yet as America moved towards Prohibition, the folks at Pabst recognized that their beer empire was about to dry up. So, soon after the nationwide ban on alcohol went into effect in 1920, Pabst pivoted to making a “delicious cheese food.” They called it Pabst-ett and sold it in block and spreadable forms, as well as in cheddar, pimento, and Swiss flavors . . . ”

Read the complete article here.

Pabst Blue Ribbon

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Meat

Sausage Cooked in Red Wine

April 10, 2020 robiulo Leave a comment

Sausage Cooked in Red Wine

Here’s another simple but excellent recipe and it only has 2 ingredients. I got it from Giovanna Bellia LaMarca in her Sicilian cooking class at the Institute Culinary Education.

Ingredients:

1 lb. Italian sausage, hot or sweet
¾ cup dry red wine (something good enough to drink)

Place the sausage in a single layer in a pan. Add enough water to reach ½ way up the sausage and cook, turning half way, until the water is almost evaporated.

Add the wine and cook on medium-high heat, turning at least once, until the sausage is cooked on all sides. Serve the sausage with the pan drippings poured over them.

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Miscellaneous

Seven O’clock Thank You

April 6, 2020 robiulo Leave a comment

My posts have been a little irregular for the last two weeks. It had nothing to do with the corona virus. Two weeks ago I spilled a glass of wine on my keyboard. You should try to never do that. It killed my laptop. The was nowhere to quickly get it fixed or buy a new one. Bridget had an old one which I’m now using and although it took a while to gather all of the programs I needed to produce them, Reveries and Recipes blog posts are back. (Although I’m still having trouble with the new post notification email.)

Every night at 7 pm New York opens its windows and with 2 minutes of applause and cheers, thanks the medical and other essential workers.

https://www.facebook.com/robert.iulo/videos/10222354828849702/?t=5

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Miscellaneous

Forks

April 3, 2020 robiulo Leave a comment

Caterina De Medici introduced the fork to the French in the 1500s when she became queen of France.

There are all kinds of forks . . .

tuning forks,

bicycle forks,

garden forks,

bar forks,

pitch forks,

and forks in the road.

. . . but since this is a food blog, here’s what I’m talking about.

This is from an interesting article in Italo-Americano about forks .

Italian Inventions: The Utilitarian Table Fork

by MARIELLA RADAELLI

“In most western households, forks are a basic part of a table setting — unless you’re all eating is soup. The relationship Italians have with the fork is certainly crucial. How could we eat spaghetti without one? When I was a kid, my dad spent hours teaching me how to twirl my fork so that not a strand of spaghetti hung down as I lifted that incredible tool to my mouth. He also taught me you don’t use a fork and a spoon to eat pasta. Twirling spaghetti against a spoon is for children and at a certain point I had to grow up . . . “

Complete article here.

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Pasta, Vegetarian

Turmeric Pasta

March 20, 2020 robiulo 2 Comments

Turmeric Pasta

An interesting recipe – turmeric pasta – from Sue Li in the New York Times. I think of turmeric as a typically Indian ingredient but it really works with pasta. I made a couple of changes to her recipe replacing butter with olive oil and heavy cream with ricotta. You can do it either way.

Ingredients:

1 lb. small pasta
Olive oil for frying
1 small onion, thinly sliced
2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1 ½ tsps. Turmeric
1 cup ricotta
1 cup Parmesan cheese
4 tbsp. chopped parsley

Start a pot of salted water to cook the pasta. Drain the pasta when done, reserving 2 cups of the pasta water.

Saute the onion and garlic in oil in a pot. When the onion is soft add the turmeric and stir it into the onions for about 30 seconds. Slowly whisk in the ricotta and bring to a simmer. Stir in the Parmesan and add enough of the pasta water (you may not need all of it) to thin to a sauce consistency. Add the cooked pasta and parsley, blend and serve with additional cheese.

Click here for updated GALLERY III

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Arugula with Garlic and Oil

Ingredients:

Arugula –as much as you like

2 sliced cloves of garlic – more if you like garlic

Olive oil – enough to coat the greens

Salt and black pepper to taste

Heat the oil in a pan and add the garlic, salt and pepper. Simmer on a low flame for about 5 minutes to infuse the oil with garlic flavor. Don’t brown it. Add the arugula, a ½ cup of water, and toss it until it wilts.

An interesting article about seeds from Gastro Obscura –

These 7 Companies Ship Unique Seeds for Your Quarantine Garden

BY REINA GATTUSO

Pasta Fazool

In Italian its pasta e fagioli – that means “pasta and beans.” Some people call it pasta fazool. Both pronunciations are correct. In the Neapolitan dialect its pasta e fasule, often spelled pasta fazool in America.

Ingredients:

Pick through and rinse the beans.

In a large pot, cook the trinity in oil. When the vegetables are soft, add the beans and 8 cups of water. Bring to a boil, lower heat and simmer, covered for 2 hours.

Add salt and pepper, the cherry tomatoes, 2 more cups of water, and the pasta. If necessary, add more water as the pasta cooks. When the pasta is almost done, throw in a couple of hands full of arugula or spinach. I’m using a mix of both. When the greens whilt, it’s ready to serve.

I think it’s tastier reheated the next day. Just add some water to the pot and stir over a low flame.

A pound of beans and a pound of pasta can rally grow as they cook. You might to cut those 2 ingredients in half.

The Birth of a Wine: The History of Chianti Classico

by ANGELA NARDIELLO

Pasta con Broccoli

Here’s a simple dish. It’s easy to make with just a few easy to get ingredients.

Ingredients:

Place the broccoli in a pot of boiling salted water for 5 to 8 minutes.

Remove the broccoli to a bowl and with the water continuing to boil, add the pasta.

While the pasta is cooking, in another pot lightly sauté the garlic in the oil and then toss the broccoli, thoroughly coating it with the oil. Season with the salt and pepper.

When the pasta is almost done remove it from the water and add it to the broccoli, garlic, oil mix to finish cooking. Add some of the pasta water and a sprinkle of oil, stir and serve with grated Parmesan cheese if you like. This recipe also works with cauliflower instead of broccoli.

When the Government Banned PBR, Pabst Made Cheese Instead

Pabst Blue Ribbon

Sausage Cooked in Red Wine

Here’s another simple but excellent recipe and it only has 2 ingredients. I got it from Giovanna Bellia LaMarca in her Sicilian cooking class at the Institute Culinary Education.

Ingredients:

1 lb. Italian sausage, hot or sweet

¾ cup dry red wine (something good enough to drink)

Place the sausage in a single layer in a pan. Add enough water to reach ½ way up the sausage and cook, turning half way, until the water is almost evaporated.

Add the wine and cook on medium-high heat, turning at least once, until the sausage is cooked on all sides. Serve the sausage with the pan drippings poured over them.

Every night at 7 pm New York opens its windows and with 2 minutes of applause and cheers, thanks the medical and other essential workers.

There are all kinds of forks . . .

. . . but since this is a food blog, here’s what I’m talking about.

This is from an interesting article in Italo-Americano about forks .

Italian Inventions: The Utilitarian Table Fork

Complete article here.

Turmeric Pasta

An interesting recipe – turmeric pasta – from Sue Li in the New York Times. I think of turmeric as a typically Indian ingredient but it really works with pasta. I made a couple of changes to her recipe replacing butter with olive oil and heavy cream with ricotta. You can do it either way.

Ingredients:

Start a pot of salted water to cook the pasta. Drain the pasta when done, reserving 2 cups of the pasta water.

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