What's For Dinner?

Spaghetti & Meatballs

1/2 # ground sirloin
1/2 # lean ground pork
1 egg, beaten
1/2 c. bread crumbs
1/2 c. parmesan cheese, grated
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/3 c. onion, finely chopped
1 Tbsp. fresh parsley, minced
1 Tbsp. fresh basil, minced
1/2 tsp. fennel seeds, minced
1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes(optional)
salt and pepper
2 quarts homemade or store bought marinara sauce
1 package dry spaghetti

Preheat over to 350 degrees. Mix all the ingredients except the marinara sauce and pasta in a large bowl. Note on the fennel seed: Put it in a small skillet on stove over low heat and cook until it's aromatic. Remove to a cutting board and mince to the best of your ability. It need not be perfect. Roll the ingredients into balls(I usually get 12 or 13). Place them on a cookie sheet about 2 inches apaprt and cook for about 10 minutes, turn them and cook for 10 minutes more. Put the marinara sauce in a large pot and add the meatballs. Keep heat on low/medium and let them cook together for about 30-45 minutes. Stir occasionally. Serve  with cooked spaghetti and top more more parsley and parmesan if you prefer.    

Baked Ziti with Sausage & Tomato

Olive oil
1 large onion, diced
1/2 - 3/4 # sweet Italian sausage, casings removed
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup dry red wine
1 28 oz. can whole plum tomatoes, with juices
1/4 cup  fresh oregano or basil or 1 Tbsp. dried
1 cup fresh ricotta cheese
1 cut Pecorino Romano cheese, grated
1/2 # fresh mozzarella cheese, cut into cubes
1/3 cup fresh flat leaf parsley, chopped
1 # ziti or other similar pasta
Pinch nutmeg
Salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 375. Lightly oil a large, shallow baking dish(9x12). Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.

Heat 2 Tbsp. of oil in a large skillet. Saute the onion for about 8 minutes. Add the crumbled sausage and garlic and saute until the sausage browns.  Add the red wine and let it cook off almost completely. Add the tomatoes with their juices and let simmer uncovered for about 12 minutes. Add the oregano or basil and salt and pepper to taste.

In a very large bowl, mix the ricotta, 1/2 of the Pecorino Romano, the parsley, and the nutmeg. Season with salt and pepper.

Cook the ziti until al dente. Drain and toss with the ricotta mixture. Add the mozzarella and mix well. Add the tomato/sausage mixture and mix again. Pour everything into the baking dish and sprinkle the remaining Pecorino on top. Bake uncovered until browned and bubbling, about 20 minutes. Serve immediately. 

Pizza

What follows is the recipe for the dough. Keep in mind that you can buy pizza dough at many markets and directly from local pizza restaurants. If you want to make it yourself, here is a recipe that works and tastes great. It makes four 12" pizzas or two 14" pizzas.

1/4 cup warm tap water(about 110 degrees)
1 envelope active dry yeast
1 tsp. sugar
4 cups bread flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1 1/4 cups cold tap water
1 Tbsp. olive oil

Activate the yeast by adding it to 1/4 warm water along with the sugar. Let it sit for about 20 minutes to rise. Put the cold water in the bottom of a large bowl or the bowl of a food processor. Add the oil, flour, salt, and the yeast mixture. If using a food processor, use the dough hook  and mix for about 10 minutes on low. The dough should come together and form a sticky ball after a few minutes. Continue mixing for the whole 10 minutes. If using your hands, work the ingredients together and then remove from the bowl and kneed for about 15-20 minutes. Put the dough in a greased bowl(olive oil cooking spray works well) and cover tightly with plastic. Put the bowl in the fridge and let the dough rise overnight.

About 45 minutes before desired dining time, remove the dough from the fridge. Also, preheat the oven to 490 degrees and put a pizza stone in the oven to heat up.  Let the dough sit on a cutting board and cover it with plastic. Separate into 4 equal sections if wanting to make the 12" pizzas. Start to flatten and loosen up the dough. It usually will resist some so let it sit for several minutes and then come back and work it some more. After a few rests you should be able to work the dough into a 12" pizza crust.  When you are ready to cook the pizza, sprinkle some cornstarch on the pizza stone. Place the dough on top. I sometimes roll it with a rolling pin while it's on the stone to flatten and stretch it more. 

I use a pastry brush to put olive oil on the outside edge of the crust for extra flavor.

Top with tomato sauce and cheese. Add desired toppings such as roasted red peppers, spinach, mushrooms, sausage, and basil. After many pizzas, I have found that one topping alone is better than loading it up with several different ones.

Bake for about 6-7 minutes. Enjoy!

 

Four Mushroom Risotto

2-3 Tbls. olive oil
1-2 Tbls. butter (optional)
4 Tbls. shallots, minced
2 medium cloves garlic, minced
4 cups mushrooms(cremini, shitake, porcini, morel), chopped
5-6 cups low salt chicken stock
1/2 cup dry white wine
1 1/2 cups arborio rice
4 Tbls. chopped parsley
1/4 cup grated Parmigiano Reggiano
kosher salt and black pepper

Put the stock in a large sauce pan and turn heat to medium low and let simmer.

Cook the mushrooms in a 10" skillet until very soft(10-15 minutes). Add some salt and pepper and half the butter, if using.  In a larger skillet, heat the olive oil and the rest of the butter over medium heat. Add the shallots and the garlic stirring so that they do not brown. Adjust the heat if necessary. Add the rice and stir constantly for about 4 minutes or until you can smell a nutty aroma. Add the wine and stir until all the wine has been absorbed. Add about 1/2 cup of the simmering stock and stir constantly until it has all been absorbed.  Continue this process for about 25-30 minutes. I usually time it. The rice will get thicker and creamier. Keep the heat at a level so that the rice and broth in the skillet bubble gently. Get some helpers to stir for you. You may not use all the broth. Taste the risotto to see if it is tender and if so, it is ready to serve.  Add the mushroom mixture to the rice mixture.Taste and  season with the salt and pepper.   

Serve the risotto in soup bowls, if possible. I like to add some extra stock so that the consistency is somewhat soupy. I dislike risotto that has the consistency of thick oatmeal. Top each serving with parlsey and cheese.  Serve with crusty bread and olive oil. Serves 4.

Risotto is a labor of love.  The key is to layer flavors at every opportunity. If you like to make your own stock, it greatly enhances the flavor. The garlic, shallots and wine all do this as well.  The porcini mushrooms are the secret ingredient. Buy them dried and pour hot water over them to reconstitute(1/2 cup dried porcinis). Let sit for 10-15 minutes. Strain the mushroom liquid into the sauce pan with the chicken stock.  More flavor.  In cooking school, I learned to add copious amounts of heavy cream and butter to risotto.  I never do this and find the result more satisfying and healthier.

Spaghetti Vicenza

2-3 Tbls. olive oil
8 slices of bacon, chopped
2 medium onions, thinly sliced
10 peperoncini, seeded and chopped
35 oz. can of diced tomatoes
1 pound of dried spagetti pasta
1/3 cup chopped flat leaf parlsey
1/2 cup Parmigiano Reggiano, freshly grated(optional)
salt and pepper to taste

Bring 4 quarts of salted water to boil.

In a large skillet(12"), heat 2 Tbls. of olive oil over medium heat. Add the onions and cook until golden brown(about 15 minutes). Stir frequently so they don't burn but have some color on them. You will notice the sweet aroma as they caramelize. If you need more liquid, add a few Tbls. of water rather than adding more oil. When they are done, remove onions from pan and set aside. Add the chopped bacon to the same skillet and cook until browned(10 minutes). Add the onions back into the pan, along with the peperoncini, the tomatoes(and their juices) and some salt & pepper. Turn the heat down and let the ingredients simmer for 10-15 minutes.

Cook the pasta until al dente and drain. Add the pasta to the skillet and mix ingredients together. If skillet is not large enough for all the ingredients use a separate bowl.  Serve topped with cheese and parsley as desired. Serves 4-6.

Another easy recipe. I use turkey bacon and like that better than pork bacon. You can adjust the peperoncini depending on what you like. It's not spicy, just tangy.

Gnocchi with Bacon, Onions, Asparagus and Peas

This recipe serves 3-4.
Italian Recipes
1.5lbs frozen gnocchi
Kosher salt
3 Slices thick cut bacon
4 Tbs. olive oil
1/2 cup frozen peas
1 tsp. fresh thyme(or 1/2 tsp. dried thyme)
1 Tbs. grated parmigiano
2 medium yellow onion, sliced thinly
3/4 cup chopped asparagus spears

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Cook the gnocchi according to the instructions on the package. Drain and set aside. In a large skillet cook the bacon until crispy and transfer to a plate lined with paper towels. In same skillet, heat the onions over medium heat until brown and aromatic(caramelized). This can take about 15-20 minutes. Stir frequently.  Add the peas and thyme at the end of this process and cook for a few more minutes. Remove from pan and set aside. Add the asparagus to the same skillet and saute until tender crisp(about 5-8 minutes depending on thickness). Add the gnocchi and all the other ingredients(onion, thyme, peas, bacon) and the cheese. Add some water to the mixture if sticks to skillet. Let flavors cook together for about 2 minutes. Taste and adjust seasonings.  Serve immediatley with crusty bread.

Wild Mushroom Risotto

There is nothing better on a chilly night than a warm bowl of risotto.

Ingredients

3 cups homemade or low-salt chicken broth; more if needed
1 oz. dried porcini soaked for 30 minutes in 1 cup warm water; mushrooms chopped, soaking liquid strained and reserved
4 Tbs. butter
3/4 cup arborio rice
2 cups assorted fresh wild mushrooms, cleaned, trimmed, and coarsely chopped
2/3 cup dry white wine
Kosher salt to taste
1/4 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
2 Tbs. freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano

The trick to good risotto is patience. You need to stir it and add the liquid to the rice slowly in order to break down the starches. This will result in a creamy, delicious risotto. Here are some more great italian recipes.

Heat the chicken broth along with the reserved strained porcini soaking liquid; lower the heat to a simmer. In a medium, heavy-gauge saucepan over medium-high heat, melt 2 Tbs. of the butter. Stir in the rice, toasting just until it starts to sizzle and pop, about 1 minute. It should not color Stir the porcini and the fresh mushrooms into the rice. Stir in the wine.

When almost all the liquid has disappeared, after about 2 minutes, add just enough hot broth to cover the rice. Lower the heat to maintain a vigorous simmer; stir occasionally. When the broth is almost gone, add enough to cover the rice, along with a pinch of salt. Check on the risotto every 3 or 4 minutes, giving it an occasional stir to make sure it isn't sticking to the bottom of the pan and adding just enough broth to cover the rice when the liquid has almost disappeared.

Continue this way until the rice is just al dente, about 20 minutes total cooking time. Take off heat. Add the remaining 2 Tbs. butter; stir vigorously for a few seconds. Add the parsley, cheese, and more salt, if needed. The risotto should be moist and creamy, not runny. Stir in more broth to loosen the risotto, if you like. Serve immediately.