Roman- Sicilian- Fusion

Puntarelle alla Siciliana

"Sicilian Styled" Puntarelle Salad

What happens when a British-born Sicilian travels to Rome and falls in love with their most wonderful of all salad-greens, called "Puntarelle"? He returns to Frankfurt, Germany where he lives (of all places!)... only to discover that his Sicilian grocer stocks them! And what happens then, is that his love deepens and then blossoms into a blend of Roman and Sicilian traditions... and ends up as an incredible salad, in a lovely hand-painted bowl for all of you to see! Of course, only after he has eaten it that is!

I have to say at this point, that these Puntarelle were by far the biggest and best I have ever seen or ever eaten. I know that most of you will be lucky if you can get them wherever you live at all- unless you live in Rome! But before you gasp in awe at the sight of them, I think it is only fair to remind you at this point that you can prepare this same salad using endives, radicchio or dandelion greens too and have a similar flavor. But having said that... read on and prepare to enjoy the view!

You may not be familiar with Puntarelle... or you may have seen them right here on my blog on the previous occasions that I have prepared them... but the fact of the matter is that these here were literally at least 4 times as long as any I have ever seen before.

I plucked away some of the long, outer leaves, so that you can see the "stalks" of the puntarelle inside. Normally, the sprouts in the middle of the plant are no larger than your thumb, approximately speaking... but these here were a good 12" in length!

Once I cut away the root-end, the Puntarelle came apart into separate individual stalks, thicker than a large white asparagus... and in fact, what was unusual about these was that they actually looked a little bit like asparagus!

They are pretty impressive looking, aren't they?!?!?

I sliced them up finely on a diagonal, which obviously made them much easier to eat- especially these particularly large ones, although the traditional way would be to cut them into thin strips length-ways. Either was is good... the important thing is that you don't have pieces that are too large as it is as crunchy and refreshing to eat as it looks in those pictures, with a light bitterness which can be compared to that of endives or radicchio.

And once the puntarelle were nicely, finely cut, all that needed to be done was to prepare an awesome dressing... easy! If a little unusual at first glance ;-)

The main ingredients for the dressing were anchovies and pine nuts. Anchovies are traditional ingredients in the Roman preparation of puntarelle- normally they are combined with olive oil and lemon juice and that is an absolutely incredible combination already as it is. But I decided to add the pine nuts and later some raisins as well, as pine nuts and raisins are quite quintessentially Sicilian- and I just felt the pairing would taste amazing...

So, to make enough dressing for one head of Puntarelle, I used 3 anchovies, a tablespoon of pine nuts, the juice of 1 lemon and 2 tablespoons of olive oil. These all went into my mortar, to be ground by hand using the pestle, but of course you can also use a blender or other kitchen gadget should you prefer.

Make sure to crush the pine-nuts as these will help make the dressing thicker- the anchovies soon disintegrate and these 2 elements go to bind together the oil and lemon juice into a smotth, creamy dressing. I then added a teaspoon of honey and a little finely chopped lemon zest- but that was all! No salt, on account of the anchovies and a little honey on account of sourness of the lemon juice.

Next, I toasted 3 teaspoons of pine nuts and about the same amount of raisins in a dry frying pan- when you do this, make sure to keep an eye on them as they takes ages to get there, but as soon as the temperature is right they will turn brown in the blink of an eye! And at the same time, the raisins will swell up because of the heat and become juicier and more delicious too!

And basically, dear friends... at this point you have done all of your hard work- isn't that terrific? All you need to do now is to decide which bowl you want to serve your salad up in... and to do so! You already have that incredible dressing and the other ingredients ready... who knew you could do something this wonderful so quickly?!?!

Spoon the dressing over the salad generously and once it is evenly and well coated, sprinkle with the toasted pine-nuts and raisins. At this point you should be adding some freshly ground pepper at least... or should you want it to have more temperament, you could also go ahead and add...

...plenty of peperoncino, or crushed, ground chili flakes, to give it a touch of Sicilian heat! Fear not as it will not be too hot and spicy, should you choose to add the chili flakes, as the strong flavors of the nuts, raisins and lemon juice go well to balance the heat of the spice.

This is a very simple affair as you can see- but one that simply works! And as I already mentioned, should you be intrigued but not able to find puntarelle, you can easily get a very similar flavor by combining the other ingredients and the dressing with radicchio.

I do hope these have cought your eyes- and your imaginations- and that you go out and try this slightly exotic dressing out for yourselves- I have to say that I absolutely love it and I am not much of a fish eater as it happens. There is no fishy taste at all once the ingredients are blended together, the anchovies replace the need for salt and the honey, raisins and lemon juice make it very un-fishy! Basically the anchovies do the same job that a fish-sauce does in Thai cuisine.

So give it a go and let me know what you think! I know what I think... and I think that I now love these things even more!

Wascally White Wine Wabbit!

Coniglio & Carottini in Vino Bianco con Aneto e Glassa di Miele

Rabbit & Baby Carrots in White Wine with Dill & Honey Glaze

Don't be mad- I ate the Easter Bunny! Well, I ate a small but delicious part of one this evening- I even stole his lunch and turned it into a side-dish! I hope you all don't mind... it was done for a good cause- basically because it was delicious and also because I was hungry!

Together with these sweet, little baby carrots, fresh dill, shallots, honey and some white wine and then complimented by a great, locally grown "Portulac" cress, this made an exquisite and light dish which would be a real delight and day of the year and not just at Easter!

The ingredients for me, myself and I were 2 shallots, 2 sprigs of dill, 8 baby carrots and a good handful of that delicious Portulac- so pretty when it is in bloom  like it was today! As for wine, I used a Sicilian white, a Corvo, but you can use any that you prefer or even a rosé. 

I just wanted for this dish to remain nice and light in flavor but also in color and not to become a tomato or red wine dish. Don't get me wrong, I love both- and especially the combination of both... but for this evening, I had something a little different in mind...

I started off by sautéing the rabbit leg in a little olive oil until it became lightly brown and then added a little finely chopped garlic. I let it sizzle away gently for 2-3 minutes and in the meantime, scrubbed the carrots clean and then halved both them and the shallots, ready to go into the frying pan with the rabbit...

Before adding the other ingredients, I deglazed the pan with a glass of white wine to bring up all of the good flavors from the base of the pan. And then in they went! I seasoned everything generously with salt, pepper and the lovely sprigs of dill, simply plucked apart and scattered all over... as usual- simple as can be!

I put the lid on the frying pan and let it steam away for the next 5-10 minutes... basically until the frying pan had dried out. I then flipped the rabbit, added enough water to the frying pan to just-about cover the carrots and let it bubble away for a further 20 minutes or so...

In the meantime, I rinsed and shook the Portulac dry- pretty as a picture with the dainty little blossoms in the center and especially wonderful as it was local produce from Frankfurt, Oberrad :-) 

I don't know what the chances are of you being able to find this in your corner of the world- and yes, it is just a side serving here- but it IS also pretty terrific! The flavor is mild and nutty on the one hand, but also slightly peppery tasting on the other- and very, very refreshing and juicy!

After having cooked for around 40 minutes on the stove top, I added a pat of butter to the pan, gently flipped everything over to make sure it was nicely coated and then popped it into the oven, under the broiler, for 4-5 minutes until it began to turn nicely brown.

5 minutes later, I fetched it out again, added a squeeze of lemon and a drizzle of honey over anything and popped it back in for a further 4-5 minutes... and after THAT- well all I can say is that the result was just about as delicious looking as you could ever hope for!

Now that the rabbit and carrots were ready, all I needed was a few leaves of Portulac, dressed with a light dressing made from olive oil and lime, with a little salt, sugar and pepper- nothing fancy, just good fresh flavors.

If you prefer to have a sauce to go with your rabbit, the thing to do would be to add a sprinkle of flour to the now "empty" frying pan, stir it in well and then deglaze the frying pan yet again with a 50-50 mix of water and white wine- just enough to cover the base of the pan. In just a few minutes you will have a light sauce with all of the flavors of all the ingredients as well as the white wine.

I loved this combination of sweet carrots, tender meat and refreshing salad- so perfect for our elusive Springtime which is just starting to get into gear! Oh, and of course for Easter! Or in fact an fact at any time at all!

Just make sure to give it a go- and as always- to enjoy! :-)

Sicilian Brilliance

Caponata Siciliana

Sicilian Caponata

No dish is more typically Sicilian than Caponata- in embodies all of the colors, flavors and diversity of our beautiful little island, its varied cultural backgrounds and its flamboyant culinary style... oh yeah- and it tastes pretty amazing too!

You will find some incarnation of Caponata on every menu at every restaurant in Sicily and more probably than not, you will find that no 2 are alike, although they may all use the same ingredients... and I like that! I love food that carries its makes signature! 

Although I have made caponata on many occasions, this evening was the first time that I prepared it "properly"- meaning in the classic manner, pre-cooking each ingredient separately first and then combining them at the end with the herbs and spices that go to make it so vibrant and delicious. Of course, you can simply fry all of the ingredients together at the same time... but for a number of reasons, the result, tasty as it may be, is never quite as good as doing it this way. It is cutting corners... which is fine... but this evening I went that extra smile... and yep! This was the best caponata I have ever made... just sayin' ;-)

The ingredients I used to make what was easily enough for 4 servings, were, 1 small eggplant, 1 zucchini, 2 sticks of celery, 2 Spring onions, 2 shallots, 1 yellow pepper, 1 handful each of olives, capers, pine nuts, oregano, parsley, tomato paste and red wine vinegar. And a little patience. And 2 frying pans going at the same time, to SAVE time... read on!

The first thing I did was to toast the pine nuts in a dry pan until they were lightly golden brown- basically I was toasting them to make them crisper in texture... but it doesn't hurt if they turn gorgeous and golden at the same time!

Next, I sautéed the celery stalks, cut into bite-sized slices, together with the spring onion and shallot also in nice little chunks. I fried them for 2-3 minutes until they were beginning to turn brown, then added a pinch of sugar and a splash of water, before putting the lid on the pan to let them steam for maybe a minute, making the celery and onion nice and sweet. Once the last remaining water had evaporated away, I set them to one side to cool down and carried on with the bell pepper...

I halved the pepper and then removed the seeds and cut it into bite-sized "slivers", cutting small slices off at an angle, just so that all of the ingredients that were going into the caponata did not have the same shape. I chose yellow, quite simply because of the color- any color will do of course- I will leave that decision up to you!

The same thing happened with the zucchini, although I cut it into 4 lengthwise and then cut those into slices into bite-sized chunks, but as with the other ingredients,  I fried them first with just the barest minimum of olive oil, then added a splash of water, steamed them briefly and then let the steam dissipate away.

The next of the main ingredients was the absolute star of the show when it comes to caponata- the eggplant. And again, I followed the same procedure as with the other ingredients, giving them their little steam bath to help move things along quicker as well as to cut down on excess fat... because sometimes caponata can tend to be a little bit greasy- and that is something that I set about changing from the get-go with my recipe.

Last but not least of the ingredients that needed cooking were the tomatoes, to which I also added a little sugar before frying, which gave them a nice shine... and also added some much needed sweetness for when the ingredients stopped just being simple ingredients and started becoming tasty and delicious caponata.

The transformation took place when I returned all of the ingredients to my frying pan, along with a couple of teaspoons of tomato paste, a good tablespoon of oregano, salt, pepper, a hint of cayenne and a pinch of cinnamon.

I stirred everything carefully but thoroughly together, added a good splash of red wine vinegar, a cupful of boiling water and kept stirring until all of the moisture had thickened considerably... all no problem with the tomato paste in there. 

After 4-5 minutes of stirring, I added the finely chopped parsley, the olives and the capers and with that everything was done that needed doing. Except for toasting a couple of breakfast rolls, whilst I plated-up the caponata and sprinkled it with the crispy, golden pine nuts... mmm! How I love them!

The great thing about caponata, is that as wonderful as it is straight from the pan... a day later it is better... and better... and better! Not that mine is going to be around for that long, I don't think!

In any case- do give this a try! And maybe make a little bit more of it than I did... because I think you might just like it! And your friends and family too!

The Toast of Breakfast Time

Banane Tostate in Padella con Fiocchi d'Avena, Mandorle & Confettura di Mirtilli

Pan-Toasted Banana, Oatmeal, Almonds & Cranberry Jam

Lucky me- and the rest of Europe that is... because today is Good Friday and we are off work! Yes, I would call that good... in fact it was very, very good! And it began with a good breakfast...

...which does not mean it was anything weird, wild, wonderful and exclusive- not at all! In fact, it was just a way to use up the 2 last bananas I had in the house- very ripe ones they were too! But not wanting to let them go to waste. I wasted no time in transforming them into a real delicious treat!

2 ripe bananas, a good handful of oatmeal, a handful of almonds, 2 teaspoons of cranberry jam, a little fresh yogurt and a few minutes of heat from my stove top and breakfast was served!

I have made oatmeal and banana in a similar way before and I am sure I will do it again- because the toasting of the oatmeal flakes and the warming of the banana brings out the best of both world- the added crunch and more intense sweetness, which is just the thing to help you start your day with a smile... especially when it's something so healthy!

What I did today that was a little different, was that I chopped up the banana into good bite-sized chunks, just using the edge of a fork, and then squashed down into the  banana with the fork leaving ridges... kind of looks like gnocchi, doesn't it?

What this does, is that it softens the structure just a little, so that the banana becomes stickier and juicier and therefore lets the oatmeal stick to it better, whilst still retaining its shape and texture- you wouldn't want to mash the bananas up so that become soft and squidgy now!

Pop the banana pieces into a dry frying pan first and crank up the heat to a high setting, then as soon as the banana pieces begin to turn a deeper shade of yellow, add the oatmeal and stir everything together gently. As soon as the banana pieces are coated from all sides, they become much easier to stir.

Continue stirring until the oatmeal begins to toast slightly and then add the almond flakes and continue stirring. At this point add a tiny pinch of salt and regular pinch of sugar and keep going for a couple of minutes more, until the almonds also turn golden brown and then remove from the heat and allow to cool.

It is pretty amazing, but the banana is transformed into delicious little balls of sweetness and toasty goodness... whoever would have thought? This is also a good time to add a little sprinkle of cinnamon if you feel that way inclined, as it will stick well to the warm and steamy, freshly toasted banana... it's all about timing!

Although the banana actually was sweet enough in itself, but I decided to be a little indulgent and added a couple of teaspoons of luscious cranberry jam- that is about as far as I go when being decadent at breakfast, haha!

That sounds as if I am very strict about eating healthy- which I am ;-) but not to the point that it will ever keep me from enjoying yummy food- it is more the simple case of me striving to only add enough sweetness of fat to my food. I just think things taste more interesting and exciting when they are well-balanced  rather than being overly sweet or fatty. 

And taking a look at these pictures, I am pretty sure you will agree that this looks lush and rich and delicious as you could possibly want a breakfast cereal to look! I have to admit that I am almost tempted to go and make myself another bowl of this right now... even though it is coming up to midnight!

If I were you, I would give this a try- I really would! In fact, I think I may well make it for myself in the morning... which at this point in time is only a few short hours away... so maybe I will go get my frying pan out right now... and set my alarm clock! I want another bowl of this right now!

Summertime- and the Dinner is Easy!

Linguine Estive con Asparagi, Pomodorini, Gamberi & Coriandolo

Summer Linguini with Shrimp, Asparagus, Cherry Tomatoes & Coriander

Summer can't come quickly enough, with all of the fresh, light foods we enjoy all the long, hot and sunny days- but at this point, the first days of Spring and the warmth and sunshine they bring will do just fine! At least they have me in the mood for some light and yummy food already- and that is a good thing!

At the same time, I remain a down-to-earth kinda guy and stay true to my guns in not ever being wasteful with food or letting anything go to waste- which is why I made yet another dish with asparagus this week before it outstayed its welcome in my fridge and got to be past its prime. And anyway- having the same ingredient in more than 2-3 meals after another is only boring if what you DO with it is boring!

So after a week of doing other dishes with it, finally the Sicilian in me got the better of me and I decided to make a pasta dish- it just had to be! From just a few very simple ingredients I made a truly wonderful plate of linguini that will thrill your family, friends, loved ones... and of course yourselves, for sure!

I used up the last of the green asparagus- just a handful at this point, a couple of handfuls of cherry tomatoes, a couple of Spring onions, a handful of shrimp and a handful each of parsley and coriander- or cilantro, depending where you are in the world! And a handful of linguini... or any other pasta you may prefer for that case- everything pasta is good!

But wherever you are, with these simple ingredients, a little lemon juice, some good olive oil and a splash of Sambuca... a light and delicious dish is just 15-20 minutes away... so go get in the kitchen!

The first thing I did of course was to get the water boiling and the pasta cooking! In the meantime, there were plenty of other simple things to do- like cutting the asparagus into 3 pieces, keeping the tender tips separate and keeping the firmer middle and end pieces next to the pasta saucepan for later.

After shelling the shrimp and removing the insides, I finely chopped the Spring onions and then sautéed these 3 ingredients in a little olive oil at a nice, high heat. I decided not to add garlic to mine, but it would also taste terrific and this would be the time to add it if you choose to do so...

Once the pasta has boiled for 5-6 minutes, add the end pieces of the asparagus and turn off the heat- there will be enough residual heat in that water to a.) finish the pasta off cooking and b.) cook the asparagus just enough that it remains firm and tender.

After 2-3 minutes of frying, the shrimp will have become a lovely, vibrant orange-pink color and the asparagus will be a deep, bright green- time to start working some magic and turning this all into a real meal!

What I did with my dish, as I was eating alone, was that I first, briefly deglazed the pan with a splash of sambuca, to bring up the good flavors from the base of the pan, and then added the linguini, straight from the saucepan. Of course you may leave out the Sambuca if you are cooking for children- just add a ladle full of the pasta water, which will also do the trick. I just picked up my pasta with a pair of tongs and dropped it straight into the pan, but you can also drain it properly of course.

Toss the pasta together with the other ingredients, then add the cherry tomatoes, which I chopped into 3-4 slices each, then a good drizzle of olive oil, a squeeze of lemon juice- just make sure to keep the pasta moving and soaking up all of those good flavors...

Next, add the parsley and coriander, both nicely and finely chopped, turn off the heat and toss or stir once more to make sure that the pasta is nicely and evenly coated... its all easy stuff- I told you that it was at the beginning, didn't I?!?

Add a little more olive oil if it needs it- the same applies to lemon juice (maybe a little extra squeeze), but with the juice of the tomatoes and the refreshing cilantro and parsley, I would just say at this point that you shouldn't need to be adding too much of anything ;-)

One thing that is an absolutely not to be overlooked is the freshly ground pepper- and plenty of it! I enjoyed mine piping hot, but have to say that this would taste equally wonderful if it were to be served lukewarm or even nice and cold as a Summer side dish... at this point whatever you do, it is going to taste fantastic!

It doesn't always have to be tomato or cream sauce, it doesn't always have to be complicated... without it being either of those things it can still be wonderful! 

And this is the proof, right here in these pictures... but also hopefully in your own kitchens too if you decide to try this out! I know that I would if I were you! Enjoy!