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Mexican Squash Blossom Soup

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Mexican squash blossom soup

Recently I sampled artisanal mescal, cicciarones-filled gorditas and flautas with hibiscus flowers in Mexico City. All memorable. But back home what I couldn’t wait to make was squash blossom soup.

Actually that was just one of several superb soups I tasted in this great city. At the Hilton Mexico City Reforma‘s terrace restaurant, our waiter set down a bowl with formations of congealed consommé. As he ladled hot broth, they dissolved into a rich soup with peas and bits of celery and carrot. So simple, but the aroma evoked a memory of what I think was the first homemade chicken soup I ever ate…as it happens, in Mexico City.

I spent a couple of months in Mexico City after college and the family cook in the home where I was staying made chicken soup every few days. I wasn’t too focused on food at the time but did have the good sense to notice it was a far cry from the Campbell’s soup I’d grown up on.

This time I sipped tortilla soup in the gorgeous Hotel Ciudad de Mexico, overlooking the Zocolo. In Mexico City for a conference, we had the good fortune to eat in some unusual venues. For the mid-day comida in the courtyard of Antiguo Colegio de San ildefonso, surrounded by Diego Rivera murals, our first course was a dried chickpea soup that would win approval in any southern Italian household. My favorite, at a formal dinner in the ornate Palacio de Bellas Artes: a creamy puree with a squash flower floating in the middle.

Mexico’s growing seasons are similar to Florida’s, so squash blossoms were easy to come by in my local farmers market. I also added summer squash, fresh corn and part of a spicy red roasted poblano to my soup mix. Chicken broth for depth of flavor and heavy cream for a smooth finish. My very yummy squash flower soup didn’t look or taste exactly like that Mexico City sopa, but close enough to make me start dreaming about a repeat visit.

 

tortilla soup

dried chickpea soup

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Mexican Squash Blossom Soup
Prep Time
45 mins
Cook Time
45 mins
Total Time
1 hr 30 mins
 
Course: Soup
Cuisine: Mexican
Servings: 6 servings
Ingredients
  • 24 summer squash blossoms
  • 2 small zucchini
  • 2 ears corn
  • 1 medium potato
  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 2 to 3 cups salted chicken broth
  • ½ cup heavy cream
  • Salt
  • Roasted hot red pepper or ground red pepper
  • 1 tablespoon cornstarch dissolved in ¼ cup water
  • Fried tortilla strips for garnish, optional
Instructions
  1. Gently wash the squash flowers, break off stems and pluck out the stamens.  Peel 1 zucchini and cut in thick slices. Cut the other (unpeeled) in small dice. Shuck the corn and cut off and reserve kernels and scraped cobs. Peel the potato and cut in chunks.
  2. Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium-low heat. Cook the onion, covered, until translucent but not browned. Reserving 6 squash blossoms for garnish, stir in the rest. Add half the corn kernels, the cobs and the potato. Cover with chicken broth.  Bring to a simmer and cook, partly covered, until vegetables are very tender, about 25 minutes. Remove corn cobs. Stir in the cream. Cool until warm. Using a blender, puree the soup until smooth. Season with salt and roasted or ground red pepper to taste, blending briefly.
  3. Return the soup to the saucepan. Stir in the diced zucchini, corn kernels and cornstarch slurry. Reheat gently until the vegetables are cooked and the soup thickens. Spoon into bowls, topping each with a squash blossom and, if using, fried tortilla strips.

 

Sicilian Tuna, Potato & Caper Salad

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photo by Tina Rupp

If you’re like me, sometimes you have to step back and just have a salad for dinner.  This one satisfies the yen for fresh greens and vegetables, but the tuna and potatoes add heft, turning what would otherwise be a side salad into a satisfying meal.

When I chose this tuna, potato and caper salad for a cooking demo at the Saturday Morning Market, I realized I could get virtually all the ingredients from the vendors. Organic lettuce and other produce come from Worden Farm, owned and operated by two Ph.D.s in southwest Florida. Olive oil and white wine vinegar from Puglia from Tampa-based V Spicery make a lovely vinaigrette.

A good brand of canned tuna would be fine in this salad,  but I decided instead to use a special technique for poaching fresh tuna in olive oil. Martin Fisher ordered the tuna for me. If you’re not familiar with Fisher’s, his stand, check it out. Any given Saturday Martin can be seen deftly filleting grouper, snapper, mackerel, whatever the catch of the week might be.

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Sicilian Tuna, Potato and Caper Salad
Prep Time
15 mins
Cook Time
30 mins
Total Time
45 mins
 
Course: Main Dish, Salad
Cuisine: Italian
Servings: 4 servings
Ingredients
  • 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
  • 1/4 teaspoon sea salt or kosher salt
  • Freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 medium boiling potatoes peeled and cut in small dice
  • 1 large tomato or roasted red bell pepper
  • 1 celery stalk angle cut in thin slices (about 1/2 cup)
  • 1/2 small sweet onion halved pole to pole, cut in slivers
  • 1 to 2 tablespoons capers preferably salt-cured, rinsed
  • 4 cups torn salad greens
  • 7 ounces good-quality canned tuna or fresh tuna poached in olive oil recipe follows
  • Small black olives such as Gaeta
Instructions
  1. Combine the olive oil, vinegar, salt and black pepper to taste in a medium bowl.
  2. Place the potatoes in a small saucepan, cover with water and bring to a boil; reduce the heat and simmer until tender but not mushy, about 10 minutes. Drain and cool under running water. Add to the bowl with the dressing and gently turn the potatoes until coated.
  3. Halve the tomato and scoop out the insides; cut the shell in thin strips. Alternatively, cut a roasted pepper in strips. Add to the potatoes along with the celery, onion and capers.
  4. Line 4 plates with the greens and spoon the salad over them. Arrange the tuna and olives on top. Makes 4 servings.
Recipe Notes

Tuna Poached in Olive Oil: Cut 1 pound of boneless fresh tuna in large chunks and coat with 1 teaspoon sea salt or kosher salt. Pack tightly in a medium saucepan or small skillet. Add1 rosemary sprig, 1 garlic clove, several peppercorns, a bay leaf and olive oil to cover (about 1 cup). Bring to a simmer over low heat and cook very gently until just cooked through, about 10 minutes. Cool. Transfer the pan contents to a ceramic container or glass jar. Refrigerate for up to a week. To use the tuna, break into smaller pieces. When it’s all gone, discard the oil.

 

 

What to Do with that Panettone

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This is the time of year when Italian delis and e-commerce sites showcase those imposingly tall boxes, each one housing the dome-shaped sweet Christmas bread called panettone. There’s a good chance you’ll receive a panettone as a gift or, beguiled by the sheer size of the box, sweep one into your shopping cart.

Then what?

First, a bit of background. Panettone (“big bread”) originated in Milan and once bakers figured out how to make a shelf-stable version of this regional delicacy, spread far beyond.  You can buy a panettone like the one in my photo for about $8, or opt for the $70 Pasticceria Biasetto panettone, made with long-rising natural starter, Sicilian almonds and organic eggs from the baker’s neighbor.

I don’t agree with the panettone-hating Guardian writer who compared the taste of these traditional dome-shaped Christmas cakes to “Gandhi’s flipflop after three months in the desert.”  But I know where she’s coming from.  All too often, panettone has a dryish consistency that makes you want to quit after a bite or two. And the flavors don’t exactly sing.

Personally, I think there’s something to be said for the versions enhanced with extra ingredients. There’s panettone crusted with hazelnuts, panettone marbled with chocolate, panettone laced with Amarena cherries. Last year I wrote about my favorite, Panbriacone, a panettone-based “drunken” sweet bread spiked with passito, vin santo or rum. But the Bonci family’s production is so small their products aren’t exported to the U.S.–I’d have to catch a flight to Europe to enjoy it.

Back to that basic panettone problem. What to do with it? With its brioche-like texture, panettone is apparently great for desserts such as a lemon-curd bread pudding. I also like the idea of serving slices with zabaglione or crema di mascarpone, as one blogger suggested.

But nah, not this holiday season. If I’m going to bake, it’ll be biscotti or the bûche de Noel I’ve been planning to make for the last decade or two. Here are four ideas that won’t keep you in the kitchen.

Panettone Cubes: Cut the panettone in 2-inch cubes and pile in a pretty bowl, as one of my friends did when we met recently for Italian conversation. Accompanied by caffe latte, it was just the right thing to spur verb-retrieving brain cells at 8 a.m. Equally pleasant in the afternoon with tea or a glass of spumante wine. This is the way to go with a higher-end panettone, which is more likely to be moist.

Panettone Toast: Toast panettone slices until golden brown. Spread with butter and perhaps a bit of marmalade or fig preserves.

Panettone French Toast: Cut the bread in thin wedges and soak in your usual mixture of beaten egg and milk. No need for extra seasonings. Fry in melted butter until  nicely browned and serve with maple syrup and fruit salad.

Panettone “Churros”: Cut strips from panettone slices. Dip and fry in the same way as the French toast. Coat with a mixture of sugar and finely grated citrus zest.

 

Zucchini Stuffed with Farro and Goat Cheese

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Stuffed vegetables don’t show up much in restaurants, here or in Italy. But turn the pages of a cookbook or food magazine meant for home cooks and it becomes clear that Italians will stuff just about anything.

Bell peppers, tomatoes,  eggplant, artichokes and squash (including patty pans and zucchini) are seeded, scooped or otherwise emptied to make way for a savory filling. In the case of escarole and cabbage leaves, it’s a wrap job.

Stuffing can be a method with frugality at its heart, a way to extend an expensive protein such as meat or seafood. But the impulse to stuff vegetable is more likely driven by creativity, a zest for celebrating a particular kind of produce by uniting it with interesting new partners.

Often the filling is based on fresh bread crumbs or rice, but couscous makes a great filling…and so do farro and barley. In this recipe. walnuts echo the nutty wholesomeness of the grain, while goat cheese adds tangy richness.

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Zucchini Stuffed with Farro, Goat Cheese and Walnuts
Prep Time
45 mins
Cook Time
45 mins
Total Time
1 hr 30 mins
 
(from Piatto Unico, by Toni Lydecker)
Course: Main Dish
Cuisine: Italian
Servings: 4 servings
Ingredients
  • Sea salt or kosher salt
  • ¾ cup pearled farro or barley
  • 4 large zucchini
  • 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
  • 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
  • 2 shallots or half a small onion finely chopped
  • ¼ cup walnuts toasted and broken in pieces
  • 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves or ½ teaspoon dried thyme
  • Freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 to 3 ounces goat cheese or semi-soft sheep’s milk cheese feta is fine
  • 2 cups prepared or homemade marinara sauce
Instructions
  1. Combine 1 1/2 cups water and ½ teaspoon salt in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil; add the farro; adjust the heat to a simmer and cook until tender and all of the liquid has been absorbed, about 20 minutes.
  2. While the farro is cooking, cut off and discard the zucchini ends. Halve the zucchini lengthwise.  Fill a large, broad saucepan with 1 inch water and bring to a simmer. Lay the zucchini halves flat in a steamer insert, cover and steam until a knife penetrates easily, about 10 minutes. Transfer the zucchini to a cutting board or other work surface. Cool until they can be handled.
  3. Preheat the oven to 350°F. With a spoon, scoop out the zucchini pulp, leaving a shell about ½ inch thick. Sprinkle the zucchini insides lightly with salt. Roughly chop the pulp.
  4. Melt the butter with the olive oil in a medium skillet over medium heat. Saute the shallots until golden. Add the zucchini pulp and cook briefly. Add the farro, walnuts and thyme. Fold in the goat cheese. Season with more salt, if needed, and pepper.
  5. Preheat the oven to 350F. Spread the marinara sauce over the bottom of a large rectangular casserole dish. Spoon some of the farro-goat cheese mixture into a zucchini shell, pressing lightly in order to mound more on top. Place it in the casserole dish and repeat with the other zucchini.
  6. Bake the stuffed zucchini until heated through and lightly browned on top. Spread some of the marinara sauce over the bottom of dinner plates or shallow soup bowls. Top with two zucchini halves per serving.

 

 

Chickpea “Pizza” with Mushrooms and Tomatoes

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My favorite dish during a four-day stay in Vancouver:  a crisp chickpea-flour flatbread topped with sautéed local chanterelles, buffalo mozzarella and luscious heirloom tomatoes. The chef of Cioppino’s Mediterranean Grill, Pino Posteraro, was looking to do something different, he told us, and he succeeded.

Plus, for those who care, the chickpea flour makes this dish gluten free.

I’ve been thinking about that little masterpiece ever since. So today, back home in the opposite corner of the continent, I set out to make it.

I figured Chef Pino’s crust was a riff on farinata, a Ligurian flatbread I remember as an outrageously good olive oil-soaked treat. But thinner and crisper than what I tasted there. After a bit of research, I realized it’s a “pizza” in quotes because there’s no yeast and kneading. Instead it’s made from a thin pancake (think crepes) batter.

Turns out the chickpea flour (aka garbanzo bean flour) is easy to find–among an array of Bob’s Red Mill products at Rolling Oats, a local health-food store. And the little flatbreads are easy to make, too. My broiling/pizza stone method worked fine. You can also cook the flatbreads stovetop in a crepe pan or on a griddle–but I found they still needed a trip to the oven to crisp up.

OK, my flatbreads were not quite as crisp as Chef Pino’s. But the texture and taste were irresistibly coarse and nutty. Savory shiitakes stood in for his wild chanterelles. The tomatoes I had on hand were fat grape tomatoes, not heirlooms, but they rose to the occasion once bathed in olive oil and a French quince vinegar called vinaigre de Coing.

All in all, delicious. I’ll be making these chickpea “pizzas” again and hope you will, too.

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Chickpea-Flour Pizzettes (Panissa) with Mushrooms and Ricotta
Prep Time
45 mins
Cook Time
45 mins
Total Time
1 hr 30 mins
 

These pizzettes are a riff on panissa and farinata, the chickpea-flour specialties from Liguria. The batter is first cooked like crepes and then crisped in a hot oven.

Course: Appetizer, Main Dish, Snack
Cuisine: Italian
Servings: 6 pizzettes
Author: Toni Lydecker
Ingredients
  • 1 cup chickpea flour
  • 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil plus more for the pan
  • 1/2 teaspoon kosher or sea salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme or oregano
  • 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper optional
Toppings
  • 1/2 cup chopped shallot
  • Extra virgin olive oil
  • 8 ounces shiitake caps or mixed mushrooms cut or torn in small pieces
  • 1/4 cup Marsala wine optional
  • Sea salt or kosher salt
  • Freshly ground black pepper
  • 1 cup good-quality ricotta (such as Calabro)
  • 1/4 cup grated Parmigiano Reggiano
  • Cherry or grape tomatoes
  • Balsamic or quince vinegar
  • Microgreens (such as frisee, arugula or watercress sprigs)
Instructions

  1. Prepare chickpea flour batter: Place 1 cup water in a small bowl. Sift chickpea flour into it and whisk to blend well. Blend in olive oil, salt, thyme and pepper (if using). Let batter stand at room temperature or refrigerate for at least one hour.

  2. Prepare toppings: In a large skillet, sauté shallot with 2 tablespoons olive oil over medium-high heat until it starts to turn golden. Add mushrooms, cooking until they soften. Add Marsala if using and cook a few minutes longer. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

  3. In a small bowl, combine ricotta with Parmigiano Reggiano and a pinch of salt. Cut tomatoes in halves or quarters. Drizzle with balsamic vinegar and sprinkle lightly with salt.

  4. Cook pizzette crusts: Heat a crepe pan or other small heavy skillet (about 6 inches in diameter)* over medium-high heat, and brush with olive oil. Off heat, pour about 1/3 cup of the batter into the pan and swirl to cover the bottom. Cook, nudging edges with your spatula (this helps with the turning), until the top feels firm and perhaps takes on a leathery appearance, about 2 minutes. Carefully turn and cook about 1 minute. Remove to a plate and repeat with remaining batter, brushing pan with olive oil each time. The pizzettes will be a bit thicker than crepes. (At this point, proceed immediately with recipe or refrigerate crusts and toppings for a few hours.)

  5. If you have a pizza stone, place it in upper third of oven and set temperature to 425°F.

  6. Assemble pizzettes: Spread each crust with ricotta mixture. Top with sautéed mushrooms.

  7. Slide pizzettes onto hot pizza stone or a baking sheet. Cook until ricotta turns bubbly, about 10 minutes (or longer, for extra crispness).

  8. Garnish pizzettes with dressed tomatoes and microgreens. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Recipe Notes
  • I like to use a well-seasoned carbon steel crepe pan. A small nonstick pan also works well, although the pizzettes may not brown quite as well. 

 

chickpea flatbread closeup

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Wild Salmon in Parchment

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sockeye salmon, ready for wrapping

You can find wild Pacific salmon other times of year, but June into August is really its season. At my two sources in St. Pete–Sammy’s, a wholesale operation with a retail counter and Fresh Market, a local supermarket–the salmon are definitely running.

While the supply lasts, I’m buying wild salmon every week to grill, poach and steam in parchment.

I used to think sockeye salmon (also sold as Copper River salmon) was inferior, perhaps because that’s the kind typically found in a can. But now it’s my favorite salmon species.

Sockeye salmon’s odd name comes from the word suk-kegh, meaning “red fish,” in the language of an obscure indigeous people who lived on rivers in British Columbia. I like the intensely orange-red color sockeye has when raw. But I also love the flavor, more pronounced than the king salmon sold alongside. That’s a matter of taste, however, and many people prefer milder-tasting king salmon.

salmon, wrapped in parchment

I cook wild salmon lots of good ways. Marinated in a dressing of olive oil, mustard, maple syrup and soy, and then grilled with smoky cedar chips. Poached and chilled with a garlicky, herby mayo on the side. And, best of all, this method for steaming salmon under wraps–whether in parchment paper or aluminum foil. The fillets are tucked inside on a bed of couscous, sprinkled with good ingredients found in so many Italian fish recipes–capers, olives, lemons, olive oil, sea salt.  Here’s how to do it.

salmon, unwrapped

 

 

 

 

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Wild Salmon in Parchment
Prep Time
20 mins
Cook Time
15 mins
Total Time
35 mins
 
Course: Main Dish, Seafood
Cuisine: American, Italian
Servings: 2 servings
Ingredients
  • 2/3 cup large-grain Israeli couscous also called pearl couscous
  • Extra virgin olive oil
  • 2 teaspoons + 2 teaspoons chopped fresh dill
  • Sea salt
  • Freshly ground black pepper
  • 1 tablespoon + 1 tablespoon chopped fresh dill leaves or snipped chives
  • ¾ pound sockeye salmon or other wild Pacific salmon
  • 1 lemon
  • 8 black oil-cured olives or other Mediterranean olives
  • 1 tablespoon capers preferably salt cured, rinsed well
  • 1 Peppadew pepper cut in slivers (optional)*
Instructions
  1. Combine 1 cup water in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil. Add the couscous and simmer, covered, until tender, about 5 minutes. Cool until warm (the couscous should absorb all the liquid). Gently mix with a drizzle of olive oil, just enough to keep it from sticking, and 2 teaspoons of the dill. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
  2. Preheat the oven to 500°F.  Remove the salmon skin by pushing a sharp knife between the skin and the flesh. Cut in two portions. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cut ½ of the lemon in thin slices; squeeze the juice of the remaining lemon half.
  3. Tear off two pieces of parchment paper, each one 18 inches x 13 inches. Draw a large heart on each one with a pencil and cut it out.**
  4. Open one of the hearts and lay it on a baking sheet. Spoon half of the couscous on the right half. Top with a salmon filet. Drizzle with olive oil and half of the lemon juice. Lay half of the lemon slices down the middle. Scatter half of the remaining 2 teaspoons dill, olives, capers and Peppadew pepper (if using) on top. Fold over the left side of the heart and fold/crimp along the edges to close it. Repeat with the remaining heart and ingredients.
  5. Bake for 12 minutes. Serve on dinner plates, allowing the packets to rest for 5 minutes or more (delicious even at room temperature). Open the packets at the table and slide the contents onto plates.
Recipe Notes

* A round red pepper that is piquant in flavor--often found on olive bars. * *Alternatively, tear off an 18-inch piece of heavy aluminum foil. With the shiny side down, layer the couscous, salmon fillets and other ingredients as described above. Draw together the long edges of foil and fold over, crimping to prevent leakage but leaving room inside for heat circulation.

 

Rice Salad, a Summer Tradition

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I wasn’t thinking about rice salad until I read the latest post on Gastronauta, my favorite Italian food site. Blogger Cristina Rombola talks about her family’s take on this summer classic, so easy to stash in the fridge for snacking or pack for beach trips and picnics.

Now I can’t wait to try their rice salad.

According to Rombola, the essential additions to an insalata di riso are giardiniera (pickled vegetables), canned tuna, cherry or grape tomatoes, small cubes of ham and cheese.  The recipe also includes fresh peas, beets and the option of adding mayonnaise to the olive oil dressing.

In my run-up to making this rice salad, I might whip up a batch of giardinera–the colorful pickled vegetables keep well and are great to have on hand as an ingredient, sandwich side or antipasto platter component. But if I’m feeling lazy, I’ll buy giardiniera n a jar.

Even if your Italian is limited to “ciao” and “grazie,” you can figure out how to make the Gastronauta salad with the help of an Italian dictionary and metric scale.

Or you can try MY rice salad, with somewhat different add-ins: roasted bell peppers, fennel or celery, and snipped fresh herbs.

What these two recipes have in common are makings that hit the right flavor and texture notes:  crunchy, soft and savory, tangy. Whichever version you make–theirs, mine or your own–you can’t lose.

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Rice Salad with Roasted Peppers and Mozzarella
Prep Time
30 mins
Cook Time
10 mins
Total Time
40 mins
 
(from Piatto Unico, by Toni Lydecker)
Course: Main Dish, Salad
Cuisine: Italian
Servings: 4 servings
Ingredients
  • ½ cup extra virgin olive oil
  • Juice of a small lemon 3 to 4 tablespoons
  • Sea salt or kosher salt
  • Freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 cups Carnaroli or Arborio rice
  • 2 small red and/or yellow bell peppers roasted, peeled and cut in small squares
  • ½ cup diced fennel bulb or celery
  • ¼ cup black Mediterranean olives pitted, halved or slivered
  • ¼ cup chives basil or flat-leaf parsley leaves, snipped in small pieces with scissors
  • 6 to 8 ounces fresh mozzarella diced small
  • 2 cups baby arugula optional
Instructions
  1. In a serving bowl large enough to hold the salad, whisk the olive oil, lemon juice, and salt and pepper to taste.
  2. Fill a large saucepan about two-thirds full of water and a small handful of salt. Add the rice, stirring well, and simmer until just tender, about 10 minutes. Turn into a colander or strainer and cool under a gentle stream of running water; drain well.  Transfer to the bowl with the dressing and stir gently.
  3. Mix the bell pepper, fennel, olives (if using), and chives into the rice. Taste and add more salt or pepper if needed.  Let the flavors blend for up to an hour at room temperature (or longer, refrigerated).
  4. Just before serving, fold in the mozzarella. Pass the serving bowl or serve in shallow bowls lined with baby arugula.

Asparagus, Ham & Ricotta Pie: Beats Quiche

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Even though we can get them anytime, foods like asparagus, ham and eggs still trigger thoughts of spring. That’s also when quiche gets its annual rebirth, at brunches and such. But here’s something better: this Italian asparagus, ham and ricotta pie, a variety of torta salata (“savory pie”).

The ricotta stands in for cream and, in place of quiche’s gruyère, there’s a generous sprinkling of pecorino cheese. This recipe (which appears in my cookbook Piatto Unico) came from our friend Sara, shown here in the garden of Il Poggiolo,  her Tuscan hilltop home.

Sara made her torta salata in less than an hour, using prepared dough made with butter and vegetable oil. In Italy this dough is packaged in a nifty triangular oblong and unfolds to fit in a pie/cake dish, with higher sides than ours. At home I usually make my own pasta frolla, an easy-to-work Italian dough containing egg, but you could substitute a high-quality prepared crust (avoid ones with hydrogenated fat).

Serve the pie warm or at room temperature as part of a brunch buffet, or pair it with dressed spring greens and crusty bread for a one-course meal.

Print
Asparagus, Ham and Ricotta Pie
Prep Time
30 mins
Cook Time
40 mins
Total Time
1 hr 10 mins
 
Course: Main Dish, Pie
Cuisine: Italian
Servings: 6 servings
Ingredients
  • Unbleached all-purpose flour for dusting
  • Pastry dough for a single-crust pie or a prepared crust
  • 1/2 pound asparagus ends trimmed
  • 1 medium red or yellow onion
  • 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
  • 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
  • 3 ounces prosciutto cotto available in some U.S. delis or other cooked ham cut in ½-inch cubes
  • 4 large eggs
  • 1 cup whole-milk or part-skim ricotta
  • 1/3 cup grated aged pecorino Parmigiano Reggiano or Grana Padano
  • 2 to 3 tablespoons snipped parsley or basil leaves
  • ½ teaspoon sea salt or kosher salt
  • ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
  1. If rolling the crust: Lightly dust a marble pastry board or other smooth surface with flour. Roll the dough into a disk about 11 inches in diameter, dusting the top  as necessary with a little more flour to prevent sticking. Transfer the dough to a 9-inch Pyrex pie plate; press it into the pan; trim all but ½ inch of overhanging edges with kitchen shears or a knife; flute the edges or finish as you like. Chill in the refrigerator while preparing the filling.
  2. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Angle cut the asparagus in 1-inch lengths. Halve the onion, pole to pole, and cut crosswise in thin slices.
  3. Fill a small saucepan two-thirds full of cold water and bring to a boil. Add the asparagus and cook until crisp-tender, about 2 minutes. Drain and cool under running water.
  4. In a medium saucepan, melt the butter with the olive oil over medium heat. Cook the onion until soft and golden, about 10 minutes; cool. Add the asparagus and ham.
  5. In a medium bowl, whisk the eggs until frothy. Add the ricotta and ½ cup water, whisking until well blended. Stir in half of the pecorino cheese, the parsley, salt and pepper.
  6. Spread the asparagus and ham mixture in the pie shell. Add the ricotta-egg mixture and use a spatula to distribute it evenly and smooth the top. Sprinkle the remaining pecorino on top.
  7. Bake the pie on a rack in the lower third of the oven for 20 minutes or until the bottom crust is well browned. Move to a rack in the top third of the oven and continue to cook until the filling is set, 10 to 15 minutes. The top doesn't necessarily brown much; if you want a deeper hue, brush with melted butter or sprinkle on extra cheese in the last minutes of cooking. Cool for at least 10 minutes on a rack before serving.
Recipe Notes

Variations: This pie takes well to other vegetable combinations--sauteed zucchini and mushrooms, for example. Salami or cured pancetta cut in small pieces could be substituted for the ham. It’s fine to omit cured meats altogether, but the filling may need a little more seasoning (salt, pepper, herbs) if you do.

 

 

Veal Stew with Mushrooms and Peas, on Toast

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Veal and mushroom stew, with just a touch of cream, is my idea of the perfect one-dish Sunday supper.

Ladled over toasted country-style bread, this piatto unico is Italian comfort food at its best. Share at the table with people you love–or follow my Sunday routine and take a tray to the sofa for an episode of Downton Abbey or Breaking Bad.

The dish is also good with lamb shoulder or stew meat, or you could substitute beef, but I prefer the delicacy of veal. The recipe belongs to the spezzatino category of rustic, gently simmered stews.

Italians would be more likely to serve the peas on the side, rather than as part of the stew. But I love the ease of one pour from the frozen-pea bag, and the pleasure of eating a few in every bite.

Print
Veal Stew with Mushroom and Peas, on Toast
Prep Time
30 mins
Cook Time
2 hrs
Total Time
2 hrs 30 mins
 
(from Piatto Unico, by Toni Lydecker)
Course: Main Dish
Cuisine: Italian
Servings: 4 servings
Ingredients
  • 2 pounds bone-in veal shoulder steaks or 1 ¾ pounds boneless veal stew meat
  • Extra virgin olive oil
  • 1/2 cup chopped shallot or onion
  • 1 thick-cut pancetta slice 1/4-inch thick, cut in small cubes (about 1/3 cup)
  • 10 ounces crimini or white mushrooms halved, thinly sliced
  • Sea salt or kosher salt
  • Freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 tablespoons flour
  • ½ cup white wine
  • 1/3 cup heavy cream
  • 1 ½ cups frozen baby peas
  • 4 large slices white or whole-grain country-style bread
Instructions
  1. Blot the veal shoulder dry with paper towels. Trim it, discarding the fat but reserving the bones. Cut the lean meat in 1/2-inch cubes.
  2. Over medium heat, heat enough oil (about 2 tablespoons) in a large straight-sided sauté pan. Cook the shallot and pancetta, stirring often, until the fat is rendered and the shallot and pancetta are lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Stir in the mushrooms, cooking until they soften and release some of their liquid, about 8 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste. Scoop the contents of the pan into a bowl.
  3. Heat a little more olive oil (about 1 tablespoon) over medium-high heat in the same pan. Cook the veal (in batches, if necessary) until lightly browned; season with salt and pepper. Stir and continue cooking until browned all over.
  4. Lower the heat to medium. Sprinkle with the flour; stir for a minute or two. Add the wine, letting it sizzle while scraping the bottom of the pan with a spatula.
  5. Return the reserved veal bones (if any) and mushroom mixture to the pan, and add ½ cup water. When it comes to a simmer, reduce the heat to low and cook, partially covered, until very tender, about 1 ½ hours; add a little water from time to time if needed.
  6. When the veal is tender, remove and discard the bones (if any). Stir in the cream and peas, and cook a few minutes longer until the peas are cooked through and the sauce thickens slightly.
  7. Toast the bread until crisp but not browned; slice in half diagonally. To serve: Arrange two toast halves in the center of each plate. Spoon the stew on top, letting it cascade over the sides of the toast.

 

Clam Chowder with Italian Touches

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Cedar Key, a charming town three hours north of Tampa Bay that once dubbed itself “the Venice of America,” ships farm-raised clams all over the country. So it’s a  great place to indulge in steamed clams, fried clams and, of course, clam chowder.

My husband and I hadn’t come here just for clams. After spending a weekend celebrating a friend’s birthday, we returned to this unspoiled fishing village on our own for a restorative visit.  Cedar Key pleasures are simple but sufficient: Wander down the two-block main street, stopping at the visitors’ center to bone up on the town’s 19th-century heyday as a center for oystering, shipping and manufacture of red cedar slats for pencils. Check out the excellent artists’ coop. Walk the abandoned rail line, now given over to songbirds and native plants. Watch sunsets over the island-strewn bay.

One day was spent in the company of Captain Carl Robinson, who sped us

across flats and into gorgeous estuaries in his air boat. We caught a zillion redfish, all of which failed to meet the 18-inch limit, but they were feisty and that’s what counts with fishing. Capt. Robinson is the fourth generation of fishermen in his family and figures he’ll be the last–his son decided to take up house painting instead.

The mixed seafood platter at Tony’s was tasty–fried fish, steamed clams, broiled sea scallops and other delicacies I could imagine eating on the coast of Italy. What the restaurant is really known for, though, is its “World Champion clam chowder,” winner of a national competition three years in a row. I’ve eaten it, but…eh. I have to say that rich, creamy chowder is not to my taste.

So, instead of stocking up on Tony’s chowder, I bought a 12-pound sack of Cedar Key clams to take home. I had a choice of small, medium and large–and took the advice of the guys on duty, who insisted that the larger ones, though a little more expensive, are a better value.

Then I set out to make clam chowder. The so-called Manhattan kind, with tomatoes but no béchamel sauce or cream. Inevitably, I headed in an Italian direction, using olive oil, wine and a good brand of imported plum tomatoes. And why use salt pork when pancetta would be so much better?

The clam chowder was good and, as I hoped, light enough for the shellfish flavor to shine through. No need to return to Cedar Key if I make it again–the town’s clams are available here in St. Petersburg. But I have plenty to other reasons to go back.

Print
Clam Chowder Any Italian Would Love
Prep Time
30 mins
Cook Time
20 mins
Total Time
50 mins
 
Course: Main Dish, Soups
Cuisine: American, Italian
Servings: 5 servings
Ingredients
  • 5 pounds medium or large clams about 4 dozen
  • Kosher or sea salt
  • 1/2 cup white wine
  • 2/3 cup chopped red onion
  • 2 ounces thick-cut pancetta or bacon diced small
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 2/3 cup chopped canned plum tomatoes with some of the puree
  • 1 large Yukon Gold or other boiling potato diced small
  • 1 large stalk celery diced small
  • Freshly ground black pepper
  • 1/4 cup freshly chopped flat-leaf parsley
Instructions
  1. Scrub the clams to remove sand. Combine 2 quarts water with 1 tablespoon salt in a large bowl. Stir until it dissolves. Add the clams (add more water if necessary to submerge). Let stand for 2 hours to expel any sand.
  2. Lift the clams out of the water and combine in a large skillet with the wine and 1/2 cup water. Steam, covered, removing them as the shells open. Cool, remove the clams with a spoon and roughly chop them.
  3. Sauté the onion and pancetta with the olive oil in a medium saucepan until lightly browned. Stir in the tomatoes, potato and celery. Using a fine-mesh strainer, strain the clam broth into the saucepan and add enough water to cover the vegetables with a few inches to spare. Bring to a simmer and cook for a few minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste.  Continue cooking until the potato is tender.
  4. Stir in the chopped clams and parsley (if using) shortly before eating. Serve with water crackers or, better yet, taralli.
Recipe Notes

Note: For a thicker consistency, stir in a little cornstarch dissolved in water toward the end of cooking.