Greens, fruit, and cheese: the perfect combination

Thanksgiving is approaching quickly. As an Italian I would feel quite uncomfortable to give you the recipe for a traditional turkey, duck, or the various turducken combinations with casseroles that ensure American families a sensational Thanksgiving meal. So I will give my little contribution for tasty and light dishes for the days in between the festivities nosh-ups. A choice of two interesting and unusual salads that in a larger portion can be a main course. I read the recipes in my precious collection of Sale & Pepe magazines and I find the combinations delicious: fennel and orange, and radicchio and persimmons.

My Sunday basket

I am still warming up after my long absence. And still trying to catch up with cooking, writing, working, trying to have a little joy with my family and friends. Soon very soon many recipes. For now a basket of fresh seasonal vegetables bought at the Marin Farmers Market on Sunday, November 15, and some ideas on what to do with it.

All the colors of the Fall

Sweet November. The fragile sound of falling leaves, a mild and gentle sun, the impressionistic colors of nature and the sweet melancholy of the long and warm summer days. Going for a walk in the countryside and to farmers markets in this season is simply a pleasure.

How much is a good meal worth?

11.54 $ for two people (and this is fish!)… let me make a little premise.

The pork and the apples on the run

(for two/three persons)

Ingredients:

1 pork tenderloin, about 1 pound

2 large Granny Smith apples, skinned and chopped

1/2 white onion, slice thinly

1 garlic clove

1 tablespoon brown sugar

2 tablespoons olive oil

1/2 cup marsala, or porto wine

1 cup water with two teaspoons of bouillon

2 tablespoons rice vinegar

2 bay-leaves

Preparation:

Remove excess fat from the pork, if any, and slice the loin in 1 1/2 inch pieces. The Crock Pot would be perfect for this preparation, but I still don’t have it, so I used a normal cooking large pan. Place water and bouillon in the pan over heat, when the bouillon is completely melted, add all ingredients together. Stir gently to mix well. Cover with lid and cook on low heat for about 2 hours. Check often during cooking and make sure that the preparation doesn’t dry. If this happens, have prepared and add some vegetable broth.

(for two/three persons)

My mum uses to tell me “cooking for few people is very different than cooking for many”, I know she is very right. I learned with the experience that cooking big pieces of meat and get them soft, tasty, and with a rich sauce, requires a lot of time and attention. But, with a limited quantity, you can use less time and a little less attention and you can still put together a recipe that looks like “oooohhhh you must have spent a lot of time in the kitchen!”.

Auguri mamma…

Questa ricetta la dedico alla mia mamma lontana e in onore suo la scrivo prima in italiano. Non che ami particolarmente le torte di mele, ma con queste giornate ancora grigie e con la mancanza della mamma, diciamo la verità, ci sta bene. Poi pochi dolci forse sono rassicuranti, confortanti e “sanno di casa” come la torta di mele e avvicinandosi il giorno della mamma e pensando alla mia e al suo, da me lontanissimo, meraviglioso babà (che ancora non mi ci provo a fare, ma prima o poi…), ho preparato questa piccola torta. Ho pescato su un vecchio giornale una bella ricetta per una pasta frolla un pò più morbida della normale frolla e ho preparato una salsa anglo-pasticciera profumata al marsala che secondo me ci si è abbinata benissimo. 

Dunque la ricetta per la torta è la seguente:

230 gr. farina

80 gr. zucchero (ce ne vorrebbero 100, ma a me piace la frolla un pò meno dolce dello standard)

100 gr. burro

due tuorli

2 dita di latte

un pizzico di sale

un pizzico di lievito paneangeli (opzionale)

Formate la usuale fontana di farina sul tavolo per la pasta con un foro al centro, mettete tutti gli ingredienti e lavorate tutto insieme cominciando col mescolare gli ingredienti più umidi nel centro e assorbendo a mano a mano la farina. Lavorate fino ad ottenere una palla morbida che metterete a riposare in frigo per una mezz’ora almeno.

Sbucciate e pulite cinque o sei mele, meglio usare mele croccanti e succose, annurche (ad avercele!!), o Golden Delicious. Taglialele a grossi spicchi. Sciogliete in una padella 50 gr. di burro con due cucchiai rasi di miele e uno raso di zucchero (preferibile di canna), aggiungete le mele e fate colorire per 6-7 minuti girando delicatamente, profumate con una spruzzata di marsala che farete evaporare. Spegnete e lasciate raffreddare. Nel frattempo stendete la base di sfoglia nella teglia usando i due terzi della pasta; dico i due terzi perché io volevo ottenere una copertura a intreccio stretto e consistente, dall’aspetto molto rustico. Versate sulla base le mele e sistemale in uno strato più o meno uniforme. Formate delle striscie con il restante impasto e formate un bel reticolo sulla torta. Ho pizzicato il bordo per decorarlo più carinamente. Infornate in forno già caldo a 175°-180° per circa 25-30 minuti.

Come accompaganmento alla torta ho fatto una crema pasticciera leggera, diciamo una via di mezzo tra una crema inglese ed una pasticciera. Per 300 gr. di latte ho usato 3 tuorli, 1 cucchiaio di maizena, 120 gr. di zucchero, 1 striscia di scorza di limone (che ho rimosso a fine cottura) e due cucchiai di marsala. 

Come vedete dalla foto ho servito la torta su una base di crema e decorato con scaglie di mandorle… purtroppo non alla mia mamma che è in Italia e che abbraccio forte forte.

This recipe is dedicated to my mum and in her honor I will write it in Italian. 

Put the accent on the contrasts

(For two)

200 gr. spaghetti or linguine 

200 gr. pearl or cherry tomatoes

two handfuls baby spinach

fresh basil, a small bunch

extra-virgin olive oil, three spoonfuls

cloves of garlic

two spoonfuls pine-seeds

Bring the water to a boil in a pot. Meanwhile heat the olive oil in a large saucepan and add the cloves of garlic. Cook over low-medium heat until the garlic turns to a gold color and remove it from the oil. Add the pineseeds and toss for few seconds, add tomatoes, some cut in halves some whole, add salt and let it cook to a medium heat for few minutes. In case the sauce is too dry, add a little water. Turn off heat and add spinach, adjust with salt and sprinkle with black pepper if you like. Once pasta is cooked, drain it and pour it onto the sauce. Add the fresh basil now and stir gently. 

The “accent” of this very simple dish is the roasted prosciutto on the top. I had a few leftovers slices of prosciutto in the fridge and I thought that it could be a nice addition as a decoration and also to create an interesting contrast of flavours, the intense salty taste of the prosciutto vs. the mild sweet of the spinach and pineseeds, and also a contrast of consistencies adding the crisp prosciutto to the smooth spaghetti. Serve with a dry white. Very nice.

The “accent” of this otherwise very simple dish is the roasted prosciutto on the top. I had a few leftovers slices of prosciutto in the fridge and I thought that it could be a nice addition as a decoration and also to create an interesting contrast of flavours, the intense salty taste of the prosciutto vs. the mild sweet of the spinach and pineseeds. It is also very pleasant the contrast of consistencies of the crisp prosciutto with the smooth spaghetti. 

The small boat in the clouds

Once upon a time there was a little zucchini that wanted to play the “perfect spring meal on a sunny day…” Sun, who said sun? Who evoked spring? Yes I know, weather is not matching our desire for the bright colors and for the delicate and delightful smell of the spring. But zucchini are in season and they demand to play a role in the story.

Analisi della lingua di gatto

“Lingue di gatto” (cat’s tongues) are delicate and delicious cookies with a characteristic thin shape with sharp edges and a color shading from dark gold at the edge to light in the center. Excellent to decorate cakes, to accompany ice cream or cream, and, to make rolls, baskets and cornucopia to be stuffed with whipped cream and fresh fruit or whatever you like. Well, they are really fast and easy to do, but you have to take in mind a few tricks. This is what I learned from my mistakes.

I’ve got you under my skin

I’ve got you under my skin
I’ve got you deep in the heart of me
So deep in my heart, that you’re really a part of me
I’ve got you under my skin

Or, in this case… I’ve got you under my scales.