View posts for » March, 2008

If you’ve ever checked out the salads page on our website, you’ll have a fair idea that Trudy and I are both BIG salad lovers.

We enjoy eating lighter leafier salads as a side dish, but we also love more substantial, heartier salads — the kind that stick to your ribs. And no other salad has quite the rib-stickability of potato salad.

This Greek-inspired potato salad is quite different from the usual potato salad. The potatoes are roasted with thick slices of lemon which impart the most wonderful lemony flavor deep into the potato flesh.

Also, there’s a special ingredient in this potato salad that not only imparts extra flavor, but adds creaminess without adding virtually any calories. All we do is roast some unpeeled garlic cloves along with the potatoes. The roasting process gives the garlic a milder sweeter flavor, and it also turns it into a creamy puree which we squeeze out of the cloves and fold through the mayo before adding to the salad.

Lemon-Rosemary Infused Potato Salad with Roasted Garlic Mayonnaise

Serves 4 as a side dish

• 2 lbs. (1kg) potatoes — peeled and cut into large chunks
• 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive
• 8 cloves garlic — left unpeeled
• 1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary
• 2 lemons — thickly sliced
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 3 tablespoons mayonnaise

PREHEAT the oven to 210°C (425°F). TOSS the potatoes in a baking dish with the oil, garlic, rosemary, lemon and salt and bake for around 50 minutes tossing halfway through cooking. REMOVE from the oven and remove the lemon and garlic. SQUEEZE the roast garlic puree from the skins and mix into the mayonnaise until well combined. ADD the garlic-mayo to the baking dish with the roast potatoes and mix well to combine with the baking juices. SERVE warm or at room temperature.

Although tofu has become more widely appreciated in the West as a nutritious food, it still has a reputation for being bland. Agreed, tofu may be insipid by itself, but with a little creative cooking it can be lifted to new heights. The trick with tofu is to add flavor — the thing that it intrinsically lacks. Being porous, firm tofu is a perfect candidate for marination, and its spongy consistency readily absorbs the flavors of whatever it’s mixed with.

In this simple recipe, tofu is cut into thick slices then marinated in a savory Japanese-style sauce before being grilled like a steak — which adds to the overall texture and flavor. These tofu “steaks” are than served on a bed of delicate, slippery soba noodles tossed with stir-fried Asian vegetables.

Grilled Marinated Tofu Steaks with Japanese-style Stir-fried Vegetables and Soba Noodles

Serves 2

• 1 cup water
• 1 teaspoon dashi stock powder
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon miso
• 3 tablespoons Japanese soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon mirin
• 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
• 2 teaspoons finely grated fresh ginger
• 10 oz (300g) block firm tofu
• 3 1/2 oz (100g) soba noodles
• 1 tablespoon canola oil
• 1 bunch bok choy (or other Asian greens) - roughly chopped
• 1 carrot - peeled and julienned
• 2 teaspoons cornstarch mixed to a paste with 1 tablespoon water
• 1 scallion (spring onion) - thinly sliced on diagonal

HEAT the water in a small saucepan until boiling and stir in the dashi powder and sugar until dissolved. REDUCE the heat to a low simmer and add the miso, stirring to dissolve. REMOVE from the heat and stir in the soy sauce, mirin, sesame oil and ginger. CUT the block of tofu in half widthwise, then cut each piece in half lengthwise. MARINATE the tofu steaks in the mixture, covered in the fridge, for at least 1 hour, turning halfway through. BRING a pot of water to the boil and cook the soba noodles for 4 minutes, then rinse under cold water and drain. HEAT a cast iron ridged grill pan over a high heat. ADD the tofu steaks (reserving the marinade) and cook for around 3 minutes each side. WHILE the tofu cooks, heat a wok or large skillet over a high heat, add the canola oil and stir fry the bok choy and carrot for 3 minutes. REDUCE the heat to medium-low, add the reserved marinade liquid, cover with a lid and cook for 3 minutes. STIR in the cornstarch paste and cook until thickened. ADD the scallions and soba noodles and stir to mix well and heat through. SERVE on a bed of the noodle-vegetable mixture with the tofu steaks on top (glazed with a little of the sauce).

With the recent Easter holiday, many of us now have extra hard boiled eggs in the refrigerator, and making deviled eggs is a great way to use them up. I always think of deviled eggs as a “festive” food, as I associate them with parties, picnics, good times and good friends. My dear friend Stef (who is a good egg) makes a fabulous deviled egg for cocktail parties with pals. But who needs to wait for a party to make deviled eggs? They are fun to make and eat any time.

Food historians say that the deviled egg dates back to early Roman times, when boiled eggs were served with spices poured on top. Classic American deviled eggs are made with a little mayonnaise blended with spicy ingredients such as mustard, cayenne pepper or paprika. (That’s where the “devil” comes from.) However, the name has long been used to describe any sort of stuffed egg, which doesn’t necessarily have to be spicy.

As an alternative to the classic version, I’ve replaced the mayonnaise with Greek yogurt and silken tofu for Mediterranean and Asian inspired deviled eggs. Both ingredients work wonderfully to add moisture and texture to the egg filling, and are a nice change from the traditional recipe.

Greek Inspired Deviled Eggs

(Makes 6 servings)

Ingredients:

• 3 hard boiled eggs
• 2 tablespoons Greek style yogurt (I like Fage)
• 1 tablespoon crumbled feta cheese
• 1 tablespoon chopped black olives
• 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves

Directions:

Peel hard boiled eggs and slice lengthwise. Scoop out the yolks and place in a bowl. Using a fork, mash yolks with the yogurt and mix well. Mix in the feta cheese, chopped olives, and fresh thyme leaves. Spoon mixture into each egg cavity. Keep in the refrigerator until ready to serve—they taste even better after the flavors have set in the fridge for a while.

Japanese Inspired Deviled Eggs

(Makes 6 servings)

Ingredients:

• 3 hard boiled eggs
• 2 tablespoons silken tofu
• 1/4 teaspoon miso paste
• 1/4 teaspoon mirin
• 1 tablespoon chopped scallions
• 1 tablespoon shredded crabmeat
• 1 tablespoon chopped re-hydrated shiitake mushrooms
• A pinch of sea salt

Directions:

Peel hard boiled eggs and slice lengthwise. Scoop out the yolks and place in a bowl, then mash yolks with the tofu, miso paste and mirin. Mix in the chopped scallions, shredded crabmeat, and shiitake mushrooms. Season to taste with sea salt. Spoon mixture into each egg cavity. Store in the fridge until ready to serve.

Enjoy!

I don’t know about you, but to me cooking has always had a social factor.

When I cook for people here in Italy I can spend hours in the kitchen doing things as complex as they can be. I can actually go through all the Italian courses — Primo piatto, secondo piatto, contorno, dolce, and I can bake my own bread to go along with it. But when I cook only for myself I tend to be more economic with the time I spend in kitchen. But, hey, I never meant to say I lower my food standards in any measure!

Since Anna is away and I’m by myself this week, in this post I’ll share a recipe that won’t take more than 10 minutes of your time and requires no skills at all, yet is the kind of food you find in fancy restaurants, and often at unjustified prices.

Got ten minutes to prepare today’s lunch? Let’s go then!

Penne Rigate alla Ricotta e Noci

The first thing to do, of course, is give the dish a fancy Italian name, like they do in restaurants. Penne Rigate alla Ricotta e Noci — so there you go. Penne are those small pipes of pasta and rigate means they are ridged on the surface.

This was my pasta of choice because I wanted the ricotta to be able to fill the penne and because of the rough surface it will adhere better on the outside as well, but you can use other varieties of penne, or fusili. Basically any short pasta.

Ingredients

• 200g (7 oz) of penne rigate, or your pasta of choice
• 150g (5 oz) of ricotta
• 30g (1 oz) of chopped walnuts
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

Directions

• Cook the pasta in lightly salted water according to instructions on the package
• When the penne are done, drain, and immediately put them back in the same empty pan
• Add the ricotta and the olive oil and mix them gently
• Add the walnuts
• Optionally, if you like a stronger taste, you can add a some strong cheese, like a small piece of gorgonzola or ground pecorino or parmesan.

This recipe serves two, but another great thing is that just as simply you can cook for yourself alone or you can cook for a dozen — you will only need a bigger pan.

Today I want to focus on a rather special vegetable — broccoli. This simple vegetable is used extensively in Asian cooking and also Mediterranean cooking. It’s a vegetable that used to make me gag when I ate it as a kid, but now I thoroughly enjoy eating (simply because I’ve learned how to cook it properly — more on that in a minute).

But what makes broccoli such a special food is that it’s a real nutrition powerhouse. It’s rich in vitamins and minerals, including potassium, folate, calcium and vitamin C (which also acts as a powerful cell-protecting antioxidant).

Broccoli also contains plenty of dietary fiber as well as two particularly health-giving phytochemicals — sulforaphane and indol-3-carbinol. Scientific research has found that sulforaphane guards against cancer by stimulating the production of protective enzymes that detoxify carcinogens (cancer causing compounds). Indol-3-carbinol has been found to reduce breast cancer risk by preventing estrogen overproduction. A Harvard study even found that a high intake of broccoli reduced bladder cancer risk in men. And broccoli is quite a good source of protein (one medium stalk contains around 5 grams) and it’s low in calories while being nice and filling, so it’s an ideal food to help you stay in shape.

Apart from its health-giving qualities, broccoli is a fantastic food because it’s so delicious and versatile. Trudy and I love adding broccoli florets to stir-fries and noodle dishes (such as Tofu and cashew chow mein), but broccoli is equally at home in a pasta dish or a Thai curry. Steamed broccoli drizzled with a little extra virgin olive oil also makes a great accompaniment to grilled fish or chicken. Raw or lightly blanched broccoli can even be added to salads or served as part of a plate of vegetable crudités. Another tasty way to enjoy broccoli is blended into warming soups such as Spanish broccoli and almond soup.

Here are some more delicious recipes that include broccoli:

Tuna & broccoli pasta with tomato red pepper sauce
Honey-lemon chicken with almonds
Lemony tuna, olive & vegetable pasta
Braised Sesame Chicken Noodles

And if you need a primer on how to cut broccoli into florets, here’s a step-by-step guide.

I like to spend a couple of hours on the weekend preparing a few food basics that, once made, take the hard work out of cooking meals for the week ahead — a strategy I refer to as ‘weekend cooking for weekday eating’. In addition to curries and soups I invariably make some kind of tomato-based Mediterranean sauce for its sheer versatility.

Apart from a classic bolognese sauce or a piquant puttanesca sauce, one of our favorites is this rich sauce made with a medley of vibrant red ingredients including tomatoes, roasted red peppers, red onions, red wine, and red chili. I really enjoy the process of making up batches of this sauce, it brings out the Italian mama in me, especially when I put on Italian opera while I’m cooking.

Producing my own homemade sauce rather than buying the store-bought stuff in jars gives me a feeling of self-sufficiency, and it’s healthier and cheaper as well. Just knowing that I’ve got a supply of this delicious and nutritious sauce on hand fills me with a real sense of satisfaction. Over the past week we’ve had this sauce drizzled over grilled fish on a simple couscous salad, and then a couple of nights later tossed with rigatoni, broccoli and canned tuna as a quick pasta meal.

The sauce can be stored in the fridge, covered for up to 3 days, or in the freezer for up to 3 months.

Robust red sauce

Serves 4 (or enough to make the following 2 meals, each serving 2 people)

• 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 2 red onions — diced
• 4 cloves garlic — finely chopped
• 28 oz (840g) canned tomatoes — chopped
• ½ cup red wine
• ½ teaspoon dried rosemary
• ½ teaspoon dried red chili flakes
• 1½ teaspoons salt
• ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• ½ teaspoon sugar
• 4 red bell peppers — deseeded and quartered

HEAT the oil in a large saucepan over medium heat and cook the onions for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the garlic and cook for another 5 minutes, stirring regularly. ADD the tomatoes, wine, rosemary, chili flakes, salt, pepper and sugar and bring to the boil. COVER, reduce the heat to medium and cook for 20 minutes. WHILE the sauce simmers, place the peppers (skin side up) under a hot broiler (griller) until the skin blackens all over, about 10 minutes. REMOVE and cover the charred peppers with a clean dishcloth or plastic wrap for 5 minutes to allow the steam to loosen the skins from the pepper flesh. PEEL off the blackened skin from the peppers and roughly cut the flesh into pieces then add to the sauce. PLACE the sauce into a food processor or blender and process until smooth.

Grilled fish with robust red sauce and couscous salad

Serves 2

• 4 tablespoons lemon juice
• 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 2 cloves garlic — minced
• 2 x 6 oz (180g) firm white fish fillets
• 1 cup couscous
• 2 small zucchini — quartered lengthways and very thinly sliced into quarters
• 1¼ cups boiling chicken or vegetable stock
• 1 scallion (green part only) — thinly sliced on diagonal
• 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh parsley
• 1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh mint
• 2 oz (60g) crumbled feta
• ½ portion of the Robust Red Sauce recipe — heated

MIX together the lemon juice, olive oil, salt, pepper and garlic in a bowl. POUR half the lemon/oil mixture over the fish fillets and marinate, covered, in the fridge for 1 hour. COMBINE the couscous and zucchini in a bowl, pour over the boiling stock, cover and allow to steam for 5 minutes. FLUFF the couscous with a fork and toss with the scallion, parsley and mint. DRIZZLE over the remaining lemon/oil mixture and the crumbled feta and toss well to combine. SET the couscous salad aside while the fish continues to marinate. HEAT a cast iron grill pan over a high heat until very hot. COOK the fish fillets in the pan for around 3 minutes each side until just cooked. SERVE each fillet on a bed of the couscous salad and spoon the heated robust red sauce over the top.

Variations: Grill chicken breast fillets instead of fish. Serve any leftover couscous salad tossed with strips of smoked salmon and cubed avocado (drizzled with lemon juice to prevent browning).

Rigatoni with robust red sauce, tuna and broccoli

Serves 2

• 8 oz (240g) dried rigatoni pasta
• 2 cups broccoli florets
• ½ portion of the Robust Red Sauce recipe — heated
• 6 oz (180g) canned tuna in olive oil — drained and broken into chunks
• Shaved or grated Parmesan cheese to serve

COOK the pasta in a large pot of salted boiling water, adding the broccoli to the pot for the final 5 minutes of cooking. DRAIN the cooked pasta and broccoli, put the sauce in the bottom of the pot and top with the hot pasta, broccoli and tuna chunks. TOSS together gently to combine well and heat through. SERVE the pasta with a little shaved or grated Parmesan on top.