Cannoli

I have been wanting to make cannoli's since an Aunt left me her cannoli tubes and they are metal which is even better. When a friend of mine made them this summer and I saw that it was not as time comsuming as I thought, I then dove in and made them.  They are easy and the shells can stay for a few weeks in a closed container.

I even made my own ricotta cheese, although this time with the chaos of Christmas, I went the easy route and bought really good ricotta.

You will need a thermometer for the oil, 9 cm round rings to cut the dough and the metal tubes for the dough. 

You will need, 9 cm rings to cut the dough

Also, metal tubes for the dough

Dough Recipe:

250 g all purpose flour
5 g      cacao powder
1 tsp   Italian coffee, fine ground
30 ml  Marsala wine
30 g    confectioner sugar (powder sugar)
1 tsp   salt
1 large egg (50g) 
50 g    crisco (lard)
1 tsp   cinnamon
30 ml  white wine
Peanut oil is best, you can use vegetable oil if you wish

Candy thermometer

You will also need metal molds for the shells and a 9 cm round to cut the dough

Method:

Mix the flour, cacao powder, Italian coffee, Marsala wine, salt, crisco, cinnamon, white wine and egg.  Mix until it forms a soft ball, I did this by hand it was fast and easy.  Once the dough is formed, wrap in plastic wrap and place into the refrigerator for an hour or overnight.

Once the dough has rested, remove from the refrigerator and cut a piece off and roll it out, you can do this with a pasta machine.

Cut the dough into 9 cm rounds and wrap around the mold securing with an egg wash.  Once you have these done you are ready to fry them. 

In a heavy bottom pan or you could use a fryer if you have one, fill halfway with the oil and heat the oil, once the temperature reaches 170-180 C, you are ready to go.  Put two in at a time.. this will only take a few minutes, move them with tongs and once they have color remove and let cool completely before removing the shells.

You can store the shells in a container for a few weeks if you wish.

To make the filling:

750 g Ricotta cheese
300g Confectioner sugar

Mix this well and place into a pipping bag and then the refrigerator till you are ready to fill the shells.

It's best to fill these just before you serve them…  Thanks Joanne for your help.

Pizzelle

Getting ready for Christmas and one of the jobs that I like to do first is to get the Pizzelles done.  Yes they are a little labor intensive, but it is a labor of love and so important to have these.  As a friend suggested to me " Keeping the Traditions Going", she is so correct.

My Mom often made batches of these and not just for Christmas, Easter and other events.  She loved making them and when my nieces were young, she would make them and form them into bowls so that they could put ice cream in them.  Oh and I should say that she would hide the pizzelle  from us so that we would not eat them before Christmas…Sometimes we did find the hiding spots. Will post recipe soon, getting ready to make Cannoli shells.

Getting ready for Christmas - "Keeping the Traditions Going"

It's just a few weeks before Christmas and a very busy time of the year!  Last evening my brother (Joe), sister-in-law (Lorraine) and myself carried on the tradition on making the Raviolis for Christmas.  This is something that my Mom did and I so enjoyed watching and helping her, now that she is not here, we have been making the Raviolis every year since her death..to carry the tradition for the next generation.

I will be posting more as we get closer to Christmas, making the Pizzelles, Canolis, Bread etc.

However, last evening at my brothers house we made the Raviolis, and it was snowing which made it feel more like Christmas. Joe's job is to mix the dough, Lorraine makes the filling and assembles the Raviolis, my job is to roll out the dough, this  takes us about a little over an hour and we made about 120 Raviolis, plenty for Chistmas and some left over for the freezer to be used at another time.  Oh and of course when done we had to cook a few to do a taste test.

In the beginning!!! 

The flour goes on the table, then the eggs…..

The dough is then combined till all is mixed well together, then it is left to rest under a bowl for about 20 minutes or so

While the dough is resting we get the trays ready, putting a little cornmeal on the trays so that the Raviolis don't stick.
Now we roll out the dough and begin to fill the Raviolis.  
Here they are in the tray ready for the freezer.

We fill several trays, then put them into the freezer!

There they are all lined up.  Once they are frozen they will be placed into heavy zip lock bags till ready to be used.

They look so happy!
Then we sat by the tree and had a Martini to toast our parents and tell stories………

And now the finale….

Yes the Martini was cold and so yummy

Another successful Ravioli making tradition…….Stay tuned for more Christmas traditions

Sushi

I love sushi and have it often, and also have my favorite sushi place, I am lucky to have one of the best Sushi  places within walking distance of my house.

 This week I had an awful cold and could only think of sushi, so, today when I woke up it  was the only thing on my mind, and it was a dreary day outside, warm for this time of the year.

Off I went…..

So, had a wonderful lunch.  I usually get an order of sushi pizza, but decided to change and get something different.

So, I ordered spicy tuna on crunchy rice

Then I got a spicy tuna roll, sea urchin (uni), which I love, blue fin tuna, it was so yummy!!!

I did have a hot sake, medicinal purposes and then my fortune cookie…..

Such a great fortune cookie….great lunch, sorry I didn't get my usual "sushi pizza"….just have to go back before the holidays.

Chicken Mince in Rice Paper

Chicken in Rice Paper

This is a really wonderful dish, easy to make and tasty also, one of my favorite dishes.  I can't remember where I found it, but it is a keeper.  Actually easy to do and a real crowd pleaser.
I love Vietnamese food and the rice paper, so many things to be done with it and great for parties.
Don't be afraid of the fish sauce, it actually makes this dish, just don't put too much.

INGREDIENTS:

Chicken

400g  - mince (ground) chicken
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons oyster sauce 
1/2 tablespoon sesame oil
fresh cilantro leaves about 1/2 cup or so
sesame seeds - to your taste a teaspoon or so
70g /about 1 cup breadcumbs
Rice paper sheets, 12 or so (depends on how large you make the logs)
12 mint leaves 
peanut oil
romain lettuce leaves

Sauce

80 ml  cup water
2 tablespoons fish sauce
110 g / 1/2 cup sugar
red chilies
limes juice about 2 tablespoons, nice if you can find kaffir lime leaves


Make the sauce:

Put the water, fish sauce and chili in a small pan over low heat and cook till the sugar is dissolved.  Bring  to a boil for a few minutes till thickened.  Remove from heat, add the lime juice and let sit in fridge until ready to use.

Prepare the Chicken:

Combine the chicken, garlic, oyster sauce, sesame oil, sesame seeds, cilantro and breadcrumbs.  Mix well, wrap and place into the fridge so that the mixture can become firm.

Divide the mixture into thin logs.

Take the rice paper and individually soak in warm water for about 15 seconds or until soft.  Lay the rice paper down an place the log on top place a mint leaf and begin to roll, roll both ends.  Place onto a plate till you finish the process.

Heat a non stick heavy pan and add a little peanut oil and begin to cook the rolls till the chicken is cooked inside, about 8 minutes or more.  The temperature of the chicken when cooked should be 70C (160F).  

While the chicken is cooking place the romain leaves on a plate.  When the chicken is done, place onto the romain lettuce and sprinkle with some baby greens, I used baby basil leaves. Place the chicken rolls on top of the lettuce and then add the sauce.

Artichokes----stuffed

Artichokes, I love them and have them often, I love the small ones, that I grill and also sauté them with olives, red pepper etc.  Here are my stuffed Artichokes, this is my Dad's recipe, amounts are kind of funny because he never really measured anything.

Got some really beautiful ones, test them, they should be firm, a little expensive but that is the way it is this time of the year, but well worth it.

So for the recipe:

8 large artichokes ( you can use less or more)
1 tin flat anchovies, remove the anchovies and mince them, SAVE the oil that is in the tin
Parsley, about a handful
breadcrumbs, I used 1 can
grated parmigiano or romano cheese, whichever you prefer, I use parmigiano
olive oil to drizzle on the top
freshly grated black pepper to taste, I don't use salt because of the anchovies and the cheese
Sopressata, this is an Italian dried salami, I use about a cup of sopressata cut into small cubes, more if you wish
Mix the above ingredients together 
4 cloves of garlic
3 bay leaves

Peel off some of the outer leaves and cut the stem off the bottom (save the stem), cut a little 
off the top.  Then spread the artichokes and fill them with the stuffing.

Put them into a heavy bottom pan, and once filled, add water to go halfway up the artichokes, put the garlic cloves  into the bottom of the pan along with the bay leaves.

Once that is done, drizzle the oil from the anchovies, and then a little extra virgin olive oil over the tops of the artichokes, put the cover onto the pan and bring to a boil, once to a boil, bring to a simmer and the artichokes are done when a knife inserted in the artichoke goes in smooth, about 40 min.  Do check to make sure the water does not evaporate, if you need to add more water, make sure that it is boiling.

And here they are, bet you can't eat ONE!!!!  Let me know how you make out...

Chicken Breast Supreme

What a beautiful November day, temperature 19 C, sunny and not a cloud in the sky…hope they stay like this for a while.  I'll take this great weather as long as it keeps coming.

Chickens were on sale and so I bought one, I only buy organic chickens, so brought it home and separated all the parts, packaged it up in pieces and stored it in the freezer for future use.  

I love the chickens from Whole Foods Market, maybe they cost a little more, but organic is the only way to go, with all the bad stuff they are putting in foods today.

Breaking apart the chicken, I saved the chicken breast and marinated in lemon, olive oil, laurel (bay leave), garlic and some black pepper.  

Actually this breast could be two servings.  Anyway, I marinated it for about 3 hours.  No real recipe today, add the flavors to your taste.

While the chicken was marinating, I cooked some wonderful Italian (lacinato) kale, it is sometimes called black kale.  It is really delicious.

This is very simple to cook, and all I do, is wash it, blanch it in boiling salted water, drain and cook in a sauté pan with olive oil, garlic, himalayan pink salt ( it is an awesome salt), and it's better for you than regular salt.

Cooking the chicken breast:
Turned the oven on to temperature 200C and let it come to temperature before pan searing the chicken breast.
Once the oven was up to temperature, I pan seared the chicken breast skin side down and a lightly oiled sauté pan, after 5 minutes when the chicken was browned, I turned it over and put it into the oven for about 35-40 minutes until the temperature of the chicken reached 71 C / 160F.  Let the chicken rest for 15 minutes covered.

Place the kale on a plate then the chicken and drizzle some really nice extra virgin olive oil on top of the chicken and enjoy.

This was just a really simple dinner that is very easy to make and really yummy also.

Spinach Quiche

I love quiche and make it quite a bit, last week I made a spinach quiche for a special person that helps me with my foto editing, Ginny.  We had a nice lunch with the spinach quiche and some red wine….and of course a good day talking photography etc.

Here is my classic spinach quiche, you can of course substitute the spinach for asparagus, seafood etc.  it's yours to decide. I have made this for many years and am always pleased at how it turns out.  Quiche is one of the easiest things to make and always a big hit with a nice salad and glass of wine.

For the crust:

200 g (1 1/2 cup of all-purpose flour
100 g unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
pinch of salt
5 tablespoons of ice cold water

Combine the flour, cut up pieces of butter and salt in a food processor, turn the processor on to combine the butter and salt. add the ice water just  till the dough comes together.

Once it is combined, remove from the processor and kneed on a floured surface to form a circle, then wrap in plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator for at least an hour or so even overnight.  It is important that the dough be cold.

Turn your oven on to 175C / 350F.  When the oven has reach it's temperature, remove the dough from the refrigerator and place on the counter and roll out to a large circle enough to fit into your quiche pan, I use a 24 cm / 9.5 inch, this recipe fits perfect in this pan.  Once the dough is rolled out drape it over a rolling pin and place it carefully into the quiche pan.  Gently set the dough into the pan.  

Get a piece of aluminum foil and fit into the crust to form it nicely against the crust, add dry beans and blind bake the crust for about 15 min with the foil then about 10 min without the foil.  

Meanwhile prepare the filling:

FOR THE FILLING:
Spinach, I use frozen about 400 to 500 g, drain well
Salt & Pepper to taste
Gruyere cheese 100g cut into small pieces
a few grates of fresh nutmeg

FOR THE CUSTARD:

2 whole eggs
2 egg yolks
fresh parsley chopped fine, about a handful
a few grates of nutmeg
125 ml / 1/2 cup milk
126 ml / 1/2 cup heavy cream
Whisk together these ingredients

To assemble:

Take you blind baked crust, don't forget to remove the foil and beans …. put the cheese into onto the crust, then the drained spinach, then pour the custard over the mixture and cook about 40 minutes or so.  You will see it will start to turn a brown a little and bubbling.

Once done remove from the oven let it cool and enjoy!

Pan Seared Center Cut Pork Chop with lemon

Today was cold and grey day and felt like snow but it didn't…..thank goodness!!!  So, I decided this was a good day to have the oven on and made this Pork Chop for lunch, I served it with Broccoli Rabe and White Rice…..a real nice treat.  It is very easy, remember it's all about taste.

Pork Chop:

1 center cut pork chop

juice of one lemon, plus the zest

Parsley, about half handful

micro greens, you can find these in the vegetable section of your supermarket

salt & pepper

olive oil

1 garlic clove, sliced thin

To marinate, put about small amount of olive oil in a non reactive dish, add the pepper, juice of one lemon and parsley and mix, then rub this all over the pork chop.  Place in the refrigerator for about one hour.  Do not add salt when marinating.

To cook the pork chop:

Preheat oven to 190 C / 375 F. After one hour remove the pork chops from the refrigerator and let it come to room temperature.  After it has come to room temperature, sprinkle with salt to taste.

In a heavy bottom pan, place a small amount of oil just to cover the bottom of the pan, and add the pork chop, cook 4 -5 minutes till browned.  Once browned, turn over and place into the oven for about 6 minutes.  When done, remove from the oven and cover with foil to let it rest.  Now you can cook the broccoli rabe.  

Broccoli Rabe:

Clean the broccoli rabe and trim if needed, wash and let drain.  In a stock pot bring water to a boil and add  salt and broccoli rabe and let it cook for just about a minute.  Drain and let sit. In a sauté pan add about a tablespoon of olive oil, add the sliced garlic and cook.  Do not over cook the garlic, once it is brown you can remove it from the pan or leave it in.   Add the broccoli rabe and put cover on the pan.  Stir the broccoli rabe in the pan and add salt and pepper to taste.  It does not take too long to cook, just a minute or so….then turn off the gas.

You are ready to plate.  Put some broccoli rabe on  a plate, place the pork chop on top and drizzle with some nice extra virgin olive oil, then place some micro greens on top and the zest of one lemon.

I served this with white rice

Thanksgiving

What does Thanksgiving mean to me?  

Thanksgiving is the end of the Harvest season and time to give thanks for the harvest, and spending time with family.  For me, being in an Italian family it means lots of food.  We use to have pasta at beginning, but had to remove it from the menu because there is always so much food.

Living in New England this time of the year is exciting, there is definitely a chill and the air, the leaves are just about gone and that means snow is on the way.  And it's the beginning of the Christmas season.

How do I celebrate Thanksgiving?

We have a very large dining room table that is filled with family, lots of noise and conversation.   Once we get to the house where dinner is being served, we start with a toast to the family members who are no longer with us.  Then the chaos begins, with several bottles of good red wine, and the wonderful dinner.

What kind of dishes do we serve?

The traditional kinds of dishes for this holiday:

Turkey that is roasted without stuffing (but we do make stuffing and make it separate from the Turkey).

Sausage / potato stuffing

Brussell sprouts, or string beans

Stuffed artichokes

Homemade bread 

Roasted chestnuts with red wine ( this is usually at the end of the meal before coffee or desserts)

Italian coffee with Sambuca, this is suppose to help us digest

Desserts:

Pumpkin pie

Squash pie

Italian pizzelles

Canolis filled with ricotta cheese 

What is my favourite:  

My favorite is the stuffed artichokes,  cranberry sauce (we are lucky to have so many cranberry bogs in Massachusetts, and the harvest of the cranberries just happened the end of October.  Of course red wine,  and finishing touch the italian coffee.

Here are a few fotos of the foods that we have.  

Stuffed Artichokes

Sausage / Potato stuffing

Pizzelles 

I want to thank Catherine Bedson from farmhousehome for asking me to describe Thanksgiving in the US.

I will post more fotos after Thanksgiving so that you can see what it all looks like. 

Today was very hot, sunny and there was a little breeze.  I didn't realize hot it was till I started to grill.  But the end product was worth it.

Grilled Coffee rubbed skirt steak with, grilled artichokes and potatoes

So, this is really easy and I have posted the coffee rubbed  a little while ago.  This is a really delicious dish.  I use only Hardwood Charcoal......

Ingredients:

baby artichokes 8, or more if you wish, they are so good
small red potatoes, cut into thin slices, 4
skirt steak, 1.5 kg 
olive oil

Salsa;
4 plum tomatoes, seeded and cut into small pieces
2 garlic cloves mashed
salt and pepper to taste
olive oil to taste
basil about 4 large leaves, cut into chiffonade
parsley about a hand full, minced


Method:

Salsa:
Mix all the salsa ingredients together and let sit for a few hours.



Coffee rub:
3 tablespoons chili powder
3 tablespoons finely ground coffee
1 tablespoon dark brown sugar
salt & pepper to taste
1 teaspoon garlic powder

Mix everything together and put into a jar.  You may want to make more because it is so good.


Take the meat and rub it with the coffee rub all over and let it sit for a bit.

For the baby artichokes, clean and cut in half and blanch in lemon water for about 15 minutes.  When done remove and let them drain.  When drained rub with olive oil and salt and pepper and let them sit.

For the potatoes, slice into thin slices, rub with olive oil and salt and pepper.

Start the grill and when coals are grey, cook the meat, artichokes and potatoes.

When done, slice the meat and add the salsa if you wish

It's Summer and what else to have this wonderful summer day than a great seafood lunch!!!  Been thinking of Lobster for the last week, when I got up this morning I thought, that is what is for lunch....

Ingredients:

Lobster

shrimp

mussels

clams

olive oil

garlic

parsley

crostini

Enjoy!!!  if you need me to give you a "recipe"  please connect with me.  And don't forget to have some cold wine ready.... A really yummy dish and so refreshing!  Enjoy!

Coffee Rubbed Grilled Steak Tips with Chimichurri

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons chili powder
3 tablespoons finely ground coffee
1 tablespoon dark brown sugar
2 teaspoons of sea salt
black pepper to taste
1 garlic clove mashed up fine
600 grams (1 to 1.5 lbs) steak tips (or any other steak you wish)
3 red or yellow bell peppers, cut into thick strips
Tomato chimichurri  to follow

Method:
1. Combine the first  six ingredients, rub over both sides of the steak and let it sit for a few hours.
2.  Grill the steak and peppers 5 to 7 minutes each side or until desired degree on doneness.
Let the steak rest for 10 minutes before slicing, this is important.  
3.  Serve the steak and peppers with the salsa.
Makes about 4 servings

Chimichurri:
3/4 cup flat-leaf parsley leaves
1/2 cup fresh cilantro leaves, chopped
125 ml / 4 oz of extra virgin in olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
diced plum tomatoes (3)
Mix all ingredients

Enjoy

Green Curry Chicken:

I love thai food and have cooked it for many years, this is one of my favorite chicken dishes and I love the Green Curry Paste.  The dish is easy and quick..

Ingredients:

1 whole chicken, cut up 
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
kaffir lime leaves (3), but if you can't find them you can use the zest from a lime
lemongrass 1 - 2 stalks
2 x 400ml coconut milk
1/4 cup cilantro leaves
red chili cut up, if you wish

Serve with steamed rice

Method:

In a heavy bottom pan, heat oil over medium heat .  Add the chicken pieces skin side down, and cook for about 4 -5 minutes or so, then remove to a plate and keep warm.

Add the curry and ginger to the pan and cook for a minute or so, then add the lime leaf, lemongrass and coconut milk, bring to a boil then lower to a simmer, add the chicken and cook over medium covered for about 25 minutes.  Temperature of chicken should be 70C/160F.

Top with cilantro and red chili sliced if you wish.