Shahi Paneer

This is the indian dish comprising cottage cheese (paneer) in an almond cream sauce. The ingredients are very particular to Indian cuisine, so you'll need to visit an Indian store to find them. I followed this guy's recipe on youtube: VahChef - Shahi Paneer

He gives a list of ingredients at the end of the video. Some need clarification:

Garam Masala - If you go to an Indian store and ask for this, they'll know what you're talking about. They have two variants: whole and powder. This recipe calls for both. Garam Masala is a medley of spices and herbs: Garam Masala on Wikipedia

Shahi Jeera refers to black cumin seeds. This is not the same as cumin powder that we use in western cooking. Again, you can find this at an indian store.

Khoya - Didn't use it. I'm sure the Indian store would have it.

Ginger Garlic paste - I used fresh ginger and fresh garlic and chopped them finely.

Paneer - This is the cottage cheese that is used in Indian cuisine. Again, it can be found at an Indian store.

 

Wild Mushroom Risotto

A week ago, as I was on my way to work, I noticed mushrooms popping up from under a layer of mulch next to a row of pine trees. Every day after that, as I passed them, I became more and more curious as to whether or not they were edible. This morning I decided to pick one on my way to work so that I could discuss the subject matter with my office mate. After a lengthy discussion on a variety of topics, some of which had little to do with fungi, we decided the best thing to do was to identify the mushroom on the internet. I found the closest match to be the Agaricus Campestris, which happens to be a close relative of the 'button mushroom.'

Literature: Agaricus Campestris (Meadow Mushroom)

Other websites advised against picking them as they could be mistaken for poisonous (some deadly) mushrooms, such as this one:

'Fool's Mushroom' or 'Destroying Angel'

I don't know about you but, I won't ever miss the opportunity to have free food. My mother found out I ate wild mushrooms and nearly cut my head off for it. Moral: do not do it! It's too risky.

Look at how beautiful they are. Now, if you had smell-a-vision you could also notice their sweet fragrance.

Long story short - I cut them up, sauteed them in olive oil...

Meanwhile preparing the risotto. I used two chopped onions, 3 cloves of garlic (chopped finely), 1 1/2 cups of arborio rice, 1 packet of condensed chicken stock, 3 cups of water. The risotto cooked on low heat for about half of an hour.

Toward the end I mixed in the mushrooms and continued cooking on low heat until most of the liquid reduced. I added 3 handfuls of parmesan cheese and a small bunch of parsley (chopped finely). Gnam gnam, e voila:

Enoteca Toscana

My Babbo (father) has a cafe` and a wine store in a small town named Radda in Chianti, located about an hour south of Florence. Babbo just recently moved his wine store to a new location closer to his cafe`. Here is a website that shows some photos: http://www.otwine.com/it/scheda/30/enoteca-toscana.htm

Union Market

There is a neat market in NE DC that has been around since the 1930s. This market originally (and still mostly does) catered to restaurateurs. It opens at an ungodly hour every morning and provides foods from all over the world. It is located just east of the New York Ave - Florida Ave - Gallaudet University metro station on the Red Line. Take Florida Avenue going South-East and you'll see the large sign on the left indicating "Union Market."

Patrick and I took a trip down there to visit an Italian store named  'A. Litteri' but, once we started walking down this two block by two block warehouse district, we were amazed by the variety of foods being sold. There was a Middle Eastern store that sold large (and cheap!) spices. The African stores sold all types of meats (including, but not limited to, goat, lamb, rabbit...) and fish. A latino store sold very cheap vegetables.

The eye-opener of the trip was exactly the reason we went there - the Italian store. Well... to be completely honest, the store itself mainly impressed with its large variety of olive oils (I tend to buy the Filippo Berio from Costco and am more than happy with it). The fresh mozzarella in this store is so far the best I've had in this country. It was soft, slightly stringy, and bled milk as soon as you split it open. Also, it was perfectly salted.

Go with a group of friends on a weekend. You won't regret it.

Fresh Mozzarella

Ever since I was a little kid I've been a little kid my favorite cheese has been fresh mozzarella. In Italy they are usually sold in individualized plastic packages, each filled about half way with "milk water" (as I call the liquid, in which fresh mozzarella is stored). I would cut the package open over a sink, drain the water out, and eat the mozzarella just as it was - no salt, no nothing! (I'm aware that's not correct grammar but you have to imagine me saying it like a NY mobster)

Mozzarella is a specialty of the region of Campania, where Naples is located. Can you believe it? Something delicious that didn't come out of Tuscany! Ai-iai-iaiiiiiii....

There are two types of mozzarella that I'm aware of:

1) Fior di latte (flower of milk - made with cow's milk) and
2) Bufala (made with buffalo's milk)

Costco sells Mozzarella di Bufala at a 'decent' price. Something on the order of $13 for four medium-sized balls. Go ahead, Patrick. I can just imagine you giggling in front of your monitor.

Mozzarella di Bufala is different from Fior di Latte in that the taste is slightly more pungent and it has a creamier texture. I personally prefer fior di latte because it is firmer and has more of a 'milky' taste. Also, fior di latte holds much better in, say, pasta dishes (because of its firmness).

Now, here's the trick: finding good fresh fior di latte - or what I plainly call 'regular' fresh mozzarella - in this area. There are several places I've been happy with in the past, but unfortunately have not been consistent. The Italian Gourmet Market in Gaithersburg - 'North Potomac' for the pretentious ;) - made great fresh mozzarella to begin with. At some point I noticed they were a bit too dry and too solid. I went to Vace in Bethesda - the first time I had mozzarella there it was great, then it became too rubbery, and just recently I tried the mozzarella and it was great again.

But a month ago I went to this 'warehouse' style market in NE DC with Patrick. The name of the market is 'Union Market' and I'll probably post something about it later. The point is that in this warehouse district there is an Italian store named 'A. Litteri.' Apparently they've been in DC since the 1930s. Anywho, Patrick and I tried the fresh mozzarella there. Our taste buds felt like they were fist pumping at a 1990s discotech (The song 'Everytime we touch' by Cascada is playing). No, but seriously - so far it is the best fresh mozzarella I've had in the country. They told me they don't make it there, they get it from someone else. It's ok, as long as the quality stays up and they keep selling it the world is at peace :)

This should be useful in making 'Babbo's Pasta,' which I posted in one of the previous months. I'm too lazy to get the link right now.

Here, are you happy?

http://massiferrucci.blogspot.com/2010/04/babbos-pasta_11.html

Pesto

Pesto is hard to quantify since I’ve heard a variety of preferences regarding how much of each ingredient to add. This recipe will try to reflect my tastes as accurately as possible but, as with any other recipe on this blog, please tweak it to your liking.

‘De gustibus non disputandum est.’

I find the best pesto is made with ‘Genovese Basil.’ This particular type of basil is slightly sweet and not as sharp in flavor. It is easy to distinguish because of its darker green color and its shape – a round leaf that tends to curve downward into a semi-sphere. This photo should clarify it:

(From Wikipedia under the title ‘Genovese Basil’)

The quantity of basil in the recipe reflects only the leaves, after they’ve been split off the stalk, washed in cold water in a colander, and quickly patted dry. Try not to get the flowers at the top of each stalk into the recipe. I imagine they aren’t very flavorful and might even be bitter.

Everything happens inside a food processor. At home I have a 3-cup Cuisinart food processor, so the amount of basil will reflect that volume. It would be preferable if you had a glass sealable container in which to store the pesto.

• Enough basil leaves to almost completely stuff a 3-cup food processor. The leaves have been washed and patted dry, then squished down into the food processor (make sure it’s not plugged in!) This should be about 8 oz of basil. See photo. 
• 8 tbsp of olive oil
• 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• ½ cup pine nuts
• ½ tsp salt
• ½ tsp ground black pepper
• 3 tbsp pecorino romano

First place the basil leaves into the processor and, as I said, push them down to fit as many as you can. Leave about ½ inch of space at the top for the rest of the ingredients.

Pour the olive oil evenly on top of the basil leaves. This will not only lubricate the mixture but it will also serve as a sealant for the basil leaves since they oxidize very quickly once they’ve been chopped. Add the remaining ingredients.

Turn the food processor on and let it run for a good minute to a minute and a half. In case any ingredients get stuck on the sides of the processor and don’t get blended in completely, open the processor and use a spatula or a spoon to scrape them off and throw them into the mixture. Run the processor again. Add olive oil if the mixture is not creamy.

Once it’s mixed, quickly transfer it to a sealable container. In my case I used a glass container with a rubber gasket and metal clamps. Once you fill the container, take your olive oil and add a ¼ to ½ inch layer of oil on top of the pesto.

This provides a second seal which should keep the basil from oxidating as quickly. Close the container and refrigerate.

When I prepare the pasta with pesto I usually add a bit of butter to the pasta before mixing in the pesto sauce. It tends to keep the whole dish creamy.

Enjoy!

Master Coffeemaker at Cosi

My friend Roberto forgot his camera in my grandfather's car seat pocket. This was back in 2006. Four years later we found it and, even though the camera was fried, the memory cards were still good. Here's a photo he took of me in 2006 as I was working at Cosi in Bethesda.

Lamb Shank

Lamb is my favorite meat. It can be cooked rare like beef, but it has more flavor. When I am in the grocery store I often keep my eyes out for "cheap lamb meat." This refers to the cuts of lamb that are not as common, such as the neck bone or the shoulder, which usually need to be cooked longer to lose their toughness. Often enough I buy this meat (which is much cheaper than, say, lamb chops) and make a form of ragu`.

This evening, though, I was working with a lamb shank. Since I was out of my usual herbs, I needed to devise another recipe. Lamb is very big in the Middle East, North Africa, and parts of South Asia, so I decided to work with spices commonly used in those regions.

I dug out of my spice cabinet:

• Cardamom
• Ginger
• Cumin and
• Turmeric (more so for the intense yellow color it gives off)

I mixed equal amounts of these spices together (estimate), gave the lamb a light coating of olive oil, and rubbed the spices on. I first seared the lamb shank in a skillet with a bit of olive oil, 5 minutes on each side. Then, the shank went in a 400 degree oven for 40 minutes.

I cut up some potatoes and threw them in the oven alongside the lamb. They were done in ~ 45-50 minutes.

Five minutes before the lamb was done I used the same skillet to saute` garlic in some olive oil, then proceeded to add chopped red bell pepper - just to have some sort of vegetable.

Tiramisu` - Gnam Gnam!

Please refer back to my tiramisu` recipe: http://massiferrucci.blogspot.com/2010/01/tiramisu.html

Babbo's Pasta

Babbo is the Tuscan word for ‘Dad.’ Most other regions say ‘Papá.’ This pasta dish can be made at any time of the year, but it is best in the warmer months. My Babbo brings home from his café a little bit of his prepared bruschetta topping to make this pasta. I posted a recipe for it previously so, please, look to it for the instructions. As an interesting side note, here’s an article written about my Babbo’s cafè:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/27892779/

Ingredients:

Bruschetta topping

• 3 cloves of garlic – peeled, whole
• 1 cup of extra virgin olive oil
• 5 medium size tomatoes – cubed
• 10 large basil leaves (chopped finely)
• Salt and Pepper to taste

The rest

• 1 lb of penne
• 4 small mozzarellas  (or 2 large mozzarellas) - cubed
• 2 cans of tuna (preferably canned in olive oil) – drained

Procedure:

Bruschetta topping: http://massiferrucci.blogspot.com/2010/03/bruschetta.html

It is best if the bruschetta topping is made a couple of hours ahead of time since the garlic will be allowed to give off its flavor.

Fill a pot with water and salt and bring to a boil. Add the penne; stir every few minutes. As the pasta is cooking, you can prepare the sauce. Please keep in mind the cooking time suggested on the box of pasta. You don’t want to overcook it.

Place the bruschetta topping in a large serving bowl; add the tuna and mozzarella.

When the pasta is al dente, drain the water and add the pasta to the sauce. Mix thoroughly. If the pasta seems a little dry, add olive oil. 

Enjoy!

Tiramisu` Cheesecake

Equipment necessary:

• 1 spring form pan
• 1 large, deep roasting pan (large enough to hold the spring form pan)
• Aluminum foil
• 2 large mixing bowls

For the crust:

• 18 ladyfingers (crushed completely into granules)
• 4 tbsp unsalted butter (melted)

For the filling:

• 2 (8oz) packages of cream cheese (at room temperature)
• 2 (8oz) packages of mascarpone (at room temperature)
• 1 ½ cups sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 4 eggs (at room temperature)
• 1/3 cup espresso (cooled to room temperature)

Discussion:

This cheesecake, like many other cheesecakes, will be baked in a “Bagno Maria.” In other words, the spring form pan will be placed inside of a deep roasting pan filled with enough water to cover at least half the height of the spring form pan. The “bagno maria” method shares the same concept as a double boiler in that the cooking temperature does not go above 100° C (boiling point of water). The ultimate purpose of using “bagno maria” is to prevent the cheesecake from cracking as it cools down to room temperature.

Procedure:

The crust:

The spring form pan does not have a perfect seal so, to prevent water from seeping into the cake, we will wrap the bottom half of the exterior of the spring form pan with several sheets of aluminum foil. Make sure to cover the whole circumference of the pan. Preheat the oven to 350° F.

The quickest way to crush the ladyfingers is in a food processor. Transfer the crushed ladyfingers into a bowl and mix with the melted butter. Press the mixture into the spring form pan, making sure to cover the whole bottom surface. Place the spring form pan (NOT in “bagno maria”) in the 350° F oven for 10 minutes. Take out and let it cool to room temperature.

The filling:

Separate the egg whites from the egg yolks, each into their own large mixing bowl. Make sure that there is no egg yolk in the egg whites, as that will prevent the egg whites from fluffing up. Into the egg yolks add the sugar and the vanilla extract, mix well. Add the cream cheese and mascarpone and beat until the mixture is creamy and has no clumps.

With another mixer/whisk (or after thoroughly cleaning the one used for the above mixture) beat the egg whites until they are completely fluffed. Remember, if any egg yolk gets into the egg whites they won’t fluff.

Using a spatula, carefully fold the egg whites one spoonful at a time into the creamy mixture. If you notice that some of the egg whites have resettled into their liquid state, whisk them into a fluff and continue folding them in. Make sure that all of the egg whites you fold in are fluffed.

Take 1/3 of the mixture and pour it into the – what should now be empty - mixing bowl that was used to fluff the egg whites. Add the espresso to the 1/3 mixture and fold carefully, so as not to deflate the fluffed egg whites.

Start by pouring a thin layer of the regular mixture on top of the crust. Then pour some of the espresso mixture. Repeat until you’ve poured both mixtures completely. You can choose to leave the cake layered horizontally or you can use the spatula to “swirl” the two mixtures.

Place the spring form pan in a “bagno maria” (see above) and bake in a 325° F oven for one and a half hours (1 ½). To check if the cheesecake is done baking, gently shake the spring form pan. The outer 2 inches of the cheesecake should be firm, while the center should jiggle slightly. Remove the whole “bagno maria” assembly from the oven. Take the spring form pan out of the “bagno maria” and carefully remove the aluminum foil (preferably near a sink since there will be some water accumulated on the bottom). The water will be near 100° C so be careful when removing the aluminum foil. Make sure the outside of the spring form pan is completely dry. Place the pan on a cooling rack and let it sit at room temperature for one hour. Cover the top of the pan with aluminum foil and refrigerate overnight (or at least 6 hours).

Enjoy!

Bruschetta

Ingredients

• 5 Medium-sized tomatoes
• 3 cloves of garlic
• 10 large leaves of basil
• 1 cup of extra virgin olive oil
• Salt and pepper to taste

A few notes before I explain the procedure.

1) You will notice that the garlic will not be chopped or minced. This is done so that the garlic can be kept separate from the rest of the ingredients. Many don’t want chunks of garlic in their bruschetta. The great thing is that the garlic will still give its flavor off into the bruschetta, even if it’s only crushed.

2) When choosing tomatoes, make sure of a couple of things. The tomatoes should be ripe, therefore red. And secondly, the tomatoes should be firm on the inside. Unfortunately, I am not familiar with the many varieties of tomatoes out there but can suggest using “Romana” tomatoes from Costco. They are much like “Roma” tomatoes, but larger and juicier.

3) It is best to prepare this several hours before serving. This way the garlic has a chance to give off its flavor. If you plan on using it quickly you don’t need to refrigerate it – the olive oil provides its own “seal.” If you make it the day before, you can refrigerate it overnight and take it out an hour before serving.

4) When the tomatoes are all eaten there will most likely be left over olive oil and crushed garlic cloves. Don’t throw them away! You can reuse them in the next batch of bruschetta.

Dice the tomatoes into 0.5 cm x 0.5 cm cubes, throwing out the piece on the top where the stem connects. Place in a large bowl.

Peel the garlic and crush it using the side of your knife. Throw in with the diced tomatoes.

Finely chop the basil leaves. Add to tomatoes and garlic. Add the olive oil and season with salt and pepper to your liking. Mix everything well.

Once the bruschetta “mix” has marinated, slice some French bread or any bread that you like and toast it slightly. Take a clove of garlic (either from the bruschetta mix or a new one) and rub one side of the toasted bread with it. Holding the side with the rubbed garlic up, bring the toast over the container with the bruschetta and top it, making sure to drain excess olive oil from the spoon first.

Enjoy!

 The only bread we had left in the house was hamburger buns, so we made do with what we had!

Guaccamolo (Guacamole)

I was on vacation with my father here in the US and we decided to make guacamole. When I introduced the word "guacamole" to my father he never really picked it up. In fact, from the beginning he decided to give it his own Italian name: "Guaccamolo." I haven't been able to call it anything else since then.

Ingredients:

• 5 avocados
• ¾ cup finely diced red onion
• ½ cup finely chopped cilantro
• ½ lime, squeezed
• 2 small tomatoes, chopped into very small cubes
• Salt and pepper to taste

Procedure:

When picking the avocados make sure to get those that are ripe. There are two ways to tell if they are ripe: The color of their shell is so dark it could almost be considered black, or they are soft to the touch. The latter is a better determinant since it can happen that avocados have a dark shell but are still too firm on the inside.

Cut the avocados in half along the longer axis and around the seed. Don’t try to cut the seed, it’ll come out easier if whole. Remove the seed. You can either peel the shell off if the pulp is still firm enough to stay together or you can scoop the pulp out. Place the flesh into a large bowl along with the diced red onion, the chopped cilantro, and the juice from ½ of a squeezed lime (lime juice from a bottle can also be used, ~ 2 tbsp perhaps).

Mash the contents until you get the consistency of a dip, some small chunks are allowed. In fact, some prefer chunks in their guaccamolo.

We add the chopped tomatoes after mashing so the tomatoes can maintain their shape. Add salt and pepper as you wish.

Enjoy!

Grilled Eggplant and Zucchine

• 1 large eggplant
• 3 medium zucchini
• 5 cloves of garlic
• 1/3 bunch of parsley
• ½ cup of olive oil
• Salt and pepper

This is a typical Italian summer side dish. It is best when the vegetables are cooked on a grill but, if a grill isn’t available, it can be done on a griddle.

Wash the vegetables and cut the ends off. Cut the eggplant perpendicular to its length axis, such that you get circular slices ¼ inch thick. Since eggplants are very bitter fruits, they should be placed in a large bowl and covered completely with salt water. Put something heavy on top so as to keep the eggplants submerged. They should be allowed to sit in the salt water for at least half an hour.

Cut the zucchine half way perpendicular to their length axis, then slice them lengthwise, also ¼ inch thick.

Grill the vegetables on both sides until they are soft and have nice grill marks. Put them aside.

Finely chop the garlic and the parsley. Mix together with olive oil, add salt and pepper to taste.

Drizzle the parsley and garlic “sauce” on top of the vegetables. You can serve right away or let the “marinated” vegetables sit in the refrigerator overnight. They’ll be a lot tastier.

Enjoy!

Chicken Salad Sandwich

I had some left over chicken breasts so I decided to make chicken salad for tomorrow's lunch. I cut about one breast and a half of the chicken into small pieces, chopped a small stalk of celery, added 2 heaping tablespoons of mayonnaise and one heaping teaspoon of mustard. Salt and pepper, naturally.

I used costco bread and since I was out of tomatoes I used fresh red peppers. Then I added lettuce. Gnam!

Potatoes

There are many different potatoes out there and I've tried my luck with several. Most often I bake them with olive oil, salt, pepper, and chopped rosemary. I've noticed that the best potatoes to use all-around are "Yukon Gold." They are flavorful and they keep rigid in the oven. Other types of potatoes are either tasteless or tend to crumble easily.

Espresso at home for a good price

Who says you need to spend several hundred dollars to have good espresso at home?

This neat little stovetop gadget can be purchased off of Amazon.com for $20-25 and makes excellent espresso. It might not be a pump machine (so you won't necessarily get the gold "cream" that you get with the industrial pump machines) but it gives the perfect consistency for caffe` e latte. In the US these machines are sold in 1-, 3-, 6-, 9-, and 12-Italian cups (1 Italian cup = 2 US fl oz). Typically the 1-cup machine serves me well for the one US cup of caffe` e latte that I have in the morning.

The "Moka Express," as it is called in Italy, separates into three parts:

1) The water reservoir

2) The coffee 'portafilter'

3) The spout/top

The water reservoir is filled with water up to the small circular "steam outlet," which you can see both on the outside and on the inside. The portafilter is then placed on top of the water reservoir. If any water comes up through the filter, quickly remove the filter and shake the water out of the funnel. Place the portafilter on the reservoir and continue the previous process until water no longer seeps through.


Fill the portafilter with espresso coffee. Twist the top on tightly and place over a small flame/electric element. Make sure to keep the handle outside of the heat source. I have known too many people who had their handle melt because they put it over the fire!

When you order the Moka Express, make sure you order extra gaskets (of the same size). Gaskets need to be replaced every 6 months or so as they become worn out. The gasket fits between the porta filter and the top section.

My recommendation for coffee is Lavazza Crema e Gusto. It is one of the most flavorful and cheapest coffees available in the US. The Sovrana Store (located in California) provides the best price for a case of 20 "bricks" at $82 ($4.10/brick) not including shipping.


http://sovrana.stores.yahoo.net/lavcremgus.html

 

If you have friends and/or family who either live in Italy or will visit you can ask them to send you/bring you back Lavazza Qualita Oro. This is by far my favorite coffee. I do not recommend buying the Qualita Oro sold here in the US - it is nothing like the one available in Italy.

Tap House Grill

This establishment serves 160 different draught (draft) beers. Also, they have homemade root beer. The following are before and after photos of my third dinner in Seattle. The conference has started so I haven't been able to enjoy the city as much. Also, the rain has arrived and won't leave until after I go back home. I originally booked with LaQuinta for my personal vacation, then was moved to the Renaissance Hotel (imagine I'm pronouncing that like a pompous British woman - make sure to excessively roll the R) for the work-related part of the stay. I am back at LaQuinta now by request as they are smaller, quainter, and more generous (for half the price!!!). Luxury is overrated ;)

Mickey Schmickey's

Last night I had dinner at one of my favorite seafood chains - Mickey Schmickey's (otherwise known as McCormick and Schmick's). I had fresh-made pappardelle with lobster, tomato, and spinach sauce. The waitress convinced me to try their key lime pie. To retain some of my manliness I had a root beer to drink with it all.

Napolitan Pizza from 'Tutta Bella' Restaurant - Seattle

Breakfast in Seattle

I've been told Seattle is serious about its coffee and I think it's becoming obvious. Much like Boston, Seattle has a coffee shop on nearly every corner and it's most likely not Starbucks, Caribou, or Dunkin' Donuts. The temperature reaches the upper 50s to lower 60s during the day. The air smells really fresh and there is actually a landscape to this city. In the background you see mountains and the city itself is full of steep uphills and downhills. Mamma mia, here is another city that I'm falling in love with.

Smoked Salmon Risotto

Ingredients:

• Olive Oil
• 2 scallions (sliced along the length of the stems)
• 12-14 oz Arborio Rice
• 32 oz  of stock (chicken, fish, or vegetable stock work) Note: The amount of stock is approximated. See why in the instructions below.

• 8 oz smoked salmon
• ½ pint of heavy cream
• Italian parsley (chopped very fine)
• Salt and Pepper to taste

Equipment:

1 small sauce pan

1 deep skillet

Procedure:

In a small sauce pan sauté the smoked salmon in two tablespoons of olive oil for a minute at medium-high heat. Add the heavy cream, mix slowly until the cream almost reaches boiling point. Turn heat to low and continue stirring, making sure the cream doesn’t stick to the surface of the pan and burn. After 5 minutes turn off the heat and cover the pan. Put aside.

Heat a deep skillet at medium-high heat; add enough olive oil to cover the bottom surface. Throw in the sliced scallions. Let them sizzle for 30 seconds. Add the Arborio rice. Mix so that the rice gets thoroughly coated with the olive oil and scallion mixture. Lower heat to medium-low and let the rice cook for a minute, making sure to turn it every 15 seconds so as to not let it burn. This is where I would add some salt and pepper, so that they cook into the rice. Add enough stock so the rice is barely submerged. Make sure you don’t have any rice outside of the stock (it won’t get cooked!). Let the stock reduce. Mix the rice around, and add another helping of stock. Again, just barely submerging the rice. Repeat until the rice is “al dente” or “chewy but not crunchy.” Even though I bought a 32 oz container of stock, I only used about ~28 oz of it. This is where the “approximation” comes in.

Once the rice is done, turn heat to low. Pour the salmon and cream mixture into the skillet, and mix thoroughly into the rice. The entire concoction should be of a creamy consistency. If it is at all liquid, let it cook on low heat, mixing it every minute or so, until it gets to a creamy consistency. If you didn’t add the salt and pepper earlier, you can do it now, or let your guests add to their own tastes.

Serve and garnish with finely chopped Italian Parsley. Enjoy!

Note 1: The easiest stock to use is the one already made that you can buy in the grocery store. I would suggest, if you really want to go out of your way, to make fish stock from scratch by boiling the skin and the bones of salmon in water. Make sure you remove all the solid pieces from the stock before using it, though!

Note 2: I’ve seen this dish also include a little bit of tomato paste. If you would like to try it, take a spoonful of tomato paste and add it at the same time you add the dry rice. Mix it well and it will venture alongside the rice until the end.

Long and short pasta

What to use when?

In case you aren't familiar with the terminology, long pasta refers to spaghetti, linguine, fettuccine, angel hair, etc. Short pasta refers to farfalle, shells, rigatoni, penne, so on and so forth...

The rule is simple but not necessarily intuitive:

Long pasta for creamy, more fluid sauces. Short pasta for chunkier sauces.

For example: meat sauce, which has chunks of ground beef, goes well with short pasta. Pesto, which is made of finely chopped bits of basil, goes well with long pasta.

How about a sauce made with chopped spinach? Depends on how you prepare the sauce. If you simply saute` the spinach with some garlic and olive oil, then you'd want to use short pasta. If you decide to put the cooked spinach through a food processor, thus making it creamy, then you could use long pasta instead.

The best way to understand how the consistency of the sauce decides the pasta is to try it out. I am confident you'll pick it up right away.

The Tuscan Coast at Castiglione della Pescaia

Tiramisu`

• 450 grams of Mascarpone
• 6 eggs (at room temperature)
• 10 tablespoons of sugar
• 24 savoiardi (ladyfingers)
• Espresso coffee (to soak the ladyfingers)
• Cocoa Powder (optional)

Equipment:

• 6 inch x 9 inch x 3 inch (depth) casserole dish
• Hand mixer or whisk
• Spatula
• "Moka Express" stovetop espresso maker or any other espresso machine

Procedure:

Leave the eggs at room temperature for a couple of hours. Separate the egg yolks from the egg whites – putting the egg yolks into a large mixing bowl and the whites into a medium mixing bowl (the egg whites will later be transferred into the larger mixing bowl with the egg yolks).

Beat the egg whites until they have risen and are firm. It must be noted that when trying to fluff the egg whites, the mixer/whisk should be completely clean and free of any egg yolk. When egg yolk is mixed into the egg whites, the egg whites won’t fluff.

Add the sugar to the large mixing bowl with the egg yolks and mix. Add the mascarpone to the large bowl and mix. Mix until you have a completely creamy consistency.

Carefully fold in a couple of dollops at a time of fluffed egg whites into the creamy mixture. If some of the egg whites reduced back into their liquid form, make sure to whisk them into fluff before folding them in. Again, make sure the mixer/whisk is completely clean.

Brew 3 "Italian cups" (1 italian cup = 2 US fluid ounces; so 6 US fluid oz total) of espresso so that you can soak the ladyfingers in it. Start by creating a first layer of soaked ladyfingers in the casserole dish. Pour on top the egg/sugar/mascarpone mix until the layer of ladyfingers is no longer visible. Gently place another layer of soaked ladyfingers on top of the mix, making sure not to press down – keeping the layers even. On top of the second layer of ladyfingers add another layer of the mix, covering the ladyfingers until they are no longer visible. Do this until you run out of the mix – making sure that the mix is the last layer to be added.

For decorations you can sprinkle some cocoa powder on the top of the tiramisu.

Enjoy!

Lemon Chicken (Pollo in Fricassea)

• 2 Chicken Breasts (Cut into cubes) – Any other cutlet works fine
• 1 small onion or ½ of a large onion – diced finely
• Olive Oil
• 1 lemon (squeezed) – or equivalent in lemon juice
• 1 tbsp of flour
• 3 egg yolks

Procedure:

Heat a large and deep skillet at medium heat.

Add enough olive oil to create a thin layer covering the whole bottom surface of the skillet. Throw in diced onion and chicken pieces at the same time. Cover the skillet. If skillet doesn’t have a lid you can use aluminum foil to cover the skillet. Uncover every few minutes to stir – making sure nothing burns. If the chicken and onion mix seems to get dry, you can add some water to keep it moist.

When the chicken is thoroughly cooked (take a piece and cut into it to check that it is cooked all the way through), take the cover off, raise heat to medium-high or high. For a few minutes stir frequently to make sure nothing burns. The goal is to slightly brown the chicken.

When the chicken has a nice golden color, turn the heat to simmer.

Mix the lemon juice with the egg yolks. Take some of the hot/warm liquid from the skillet and pour it spoonful by spoonful in the lemon-egg mixture while continuously mixing. The reason we want to do this is so we will slowly raise the temperature of the eggs so that when we finally mix them into the chicken, they won’t curdle (like scrambled eggs). Make sure not to put too much of the hot liquid in at one time since it will cook the eggs. 4-5 spoonfuls of the hot/warm liquid should be enough for the eggs not to curdle later.

Sprinkle the flour over the simmering chicken.

Add the lemon juice and egg yolk mixture and quickly turn everything with a large spoon or spatula (this is where the depth of the skillet comes in handy).

The resulting product should be something like gravy. If the sauce is too liquid, add more flour. If too dry, add more lemon/egg yolk mixture (make sure to slowly raise the temperature of the eggs before throwing them in!!).

Enjoy!