Tag Archives: Italy

Method

Prepare the squid. Grasp each squid body firmly but gently in one hand, its head and tentacles in the other hand and gently pull them apart. Most of the guts should come out of the body and still be attached to the head. Cut the tentacles away from the head by cutting as close to the eyes as possible without bursting them. (Yukko!) Discard the head and guts. Leave the tentacles whole. Slice open each squid body lengthways and pick off any gut remnants. (Yukko again!) Cutting about half-way through the flesh, score a criss-cross pattern on the inside of each squid body, then cut each into three pieces.

Mix together the the olive oil, lemon juice, salt, chilli and sugar. Put the squid pieces in a glass bowl and stir in the marinade. Leave it to marinate for 30-45 minutes.

Heat a ridged griddle pan until it is very hot. Grill the squid pieces for 30 seconds on each side, scored side down first. It is important that the pan is extremely hot so that the squid cooks very quickly. If it cooks for too long (2 minutes) it can become “rubbery”. (Phone the fire brigade and tell them that the smoke is NOT a fire.)

Make the vinaigrette dressing. Crush the ½ garlic clove to a paste with a little salt. Stir it into the balsamic vineger and leave it to infuse for about 15 minutes. Whisk in the olive oil and a few grindings of black pepper to make an emulsion.

Dress the salad leaves with the vinaigrette and serve with the grilled squid scattered over. Make sure the highly prized tentacles are fairly distributed. (Yummy!)

Method

Keep the stock hot in a separate pan ready to add to the risotto in batches. In your chosen risotto pan, melt half the butter over moderate heat. Reduce the heat to low, add the finely chopped onion, celery and garlic and fry gently for about 10 minutes to soften without colouring. Now add the rice; increase the heat slightly and, stirring constantly so as not to burn it, cook the rice for about 2 minutes when it should begin to look a little translucent. Toss in the vermouth and let the alcohol bubble off so the angels can have it.

Once the rice has absorbed the vermouth, start adding the stock, which should be very hot so as to keep the simmer going. Add the hot stock a ladle at a time. With the first ladelful, add the finely chopped tomatoes together with about half a teaspoon of salt and a good few grindings of black pepper. Adjust the heat so that the stock simmers and the rice does not cook too quickly. Stir the rice frequently to help release the starch and make the traditional creamy consistency of risotto. As each ladelful of stock is absorbed, add another and continue simmering and stirring.

The amount of stock required varies a little, maybe because of the rice but also depending upon the size of your wineglass and the tomatoes. You will learn to tell when not to add any more because it wont get absorbed. Don’t add it all if you don’t need it.

Add any raw seafood as you add the final ladelful of stock – the time taken to absorb the last stock will be sufficient to cook the seafood. Stir in any cooked seafood, together with the chopped/torn basil leaves, when the last of the stock is pretty much absorbed.

Finally stir in the remaining butter, adjust the seasoning, cover the pan with a lid and let it sit for two minutes. The resting both reheats the seafood and makes the risotto rich and silky.

Parmesan is traditionally NOT used with seafood risottos.

This really just needs a good leafy salad, appropriately dressed, for accompaniment.

Method

If you feel the need, degorge the aubergine chunks in the traditional manner by sprinkling with salt and leaving to drain for 30 minutes. (Personally, I don’t find this necessary these days. I suspect the food engineers have been at the aubergines.)

Heat half the oil in a large, heavy frying pan. Add the celery and cook gently, stirring frequently, for 10 minutes to soften (without colouring at this stage). Stir in the onions and cook for another 8-10 minutes to soften and for everything to become lightly coloured. Transfer to a bowl with a slotted spoon.

Add the remaining olive oil, increase the heat and sauté the aubergine cubes, stirring and turning for about 8 minutes until they are lightly browned. You may need to add a little more olive oil. Return the onion and celery mixture to the pan and stir in the vinegar & sugar mixture, the tomatoes, tomato purée, green olive slivers, capers and anchovies. Season a little with salt and pepper being careful of the salt (due to the anchovies). Simmer uncovered, stirring frequently, for about 15 minutes.

Stir in the pine kernels and adjust the seasoning with salt, pepper and vinegar (there should be a slight but not overpowering sourness).

Leave to cool before refrigerating until needed.

Method

Preheat the oven to 190°C/375°F/gas mark 5. Cut the butternut squash in half lengthwise and scoop out the seeds with a spoon. (If you can be bothered, pick the seeds out of the pith and reserve them for later. They can be roasted and added to the dish.) Cut the squash into 1cm slices. Don’t bother to skin the squash, the apparently waxy, hard skin gets softer with cooking.

Crumble the dried red chilli into a pestle and mortar with the coriander seeds and a pinch of salt and pepper. Grind all this together, mix with a tablespoon or so of olive oil and rub this all over the butternut squash slices. Put the squash in a roasting tray and cook in the oven for about 30 minutes. If you’ve reserved the squash seeds, stir them in to the roasting tray and roast for another 5 – 10 minutes, otherwise just leave the squash for the additional time. Remove the squash from the oven and allow it to cool enough to handle. It will have shrivelled a little and be quite soft now; chop it into chunks of about 1cm.

When you are ready, make the risotto. Get the stock hot in a separate pan ready to add to the risotto in batches. In your chosen risotto pan, melt half the butter over moderate heat. Reduce the heat to low, add the finely chopped onion, celery and garlic and fry gently for about 10 minutes to soften without colouring. Now add the rice; increase the heat slightly and, stirring constantly so as not to burn it, cook the rice for about 2 minutes when it should begin to look a little translucent. Add the vermouth and let the alcohol bubble off so the angels can have it.

Once the rice has absorbed the vermouth, you can start adding the stock, which should be very hot so as to keep the simmer going. Add the hot stock one ladle at a time. With the first ladelful only, add about half a teaspoon of salt. Adjust the heat so that the stock simmers and the rice does not cook too quickly. Stir the rice frequently to help release the starch and make the traditional creamy consistency of risotto. As each ladelful of stock is absorbed, add another and continue simmering and stirring. In this manner, it should take about 15 – 20 minutes to get all the stock incorporated.

Now stir in the diced, roasted butternut squash. Adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper now, remembering that the Parmesan cheese (added next) is salty so go easy. Add the parmesan cheese with the remaining half of the butter and stir again. Cover the pan with a lid and let it sit for two minutes; this reheats the squash but most importantly makes the risotto wondefully unctious. (Now there’s a posh word for some posh nosh.)

If you’ve roasted the squash seeds, sprinkle them on top. A few sage leaves quickly fried in butter wouldn’t go amiss, either.

This really just needs a good leafy salad, appropriately dressed, for accompaniment.

Method

Preheat the oven to 170°C/Gas 3. Cut the bread into large cubes and spread it out in a large roasting tin. Toast it in the oven until golden (about 20 minutes). Leave to cool.

In a bowl, mix the cucumber, onion, tomatoes and toasted bread cubes. Season with salt and pepper.

Whisk together the olive oil, vinegar, capers, sugar, some salt and pepper, and add this to the bowl with the basil. Give it a good stir. Cover it and leave it in the fridge overnight for the flavours to mellow. The bread should feel moist but not soggy.

Serve it as a starter or as a salad accompaniment to grilled or roasted meat.

Method

Peel the potatoes and cut into large, even pieces. Boil them in salted water for 8-12 minutes, depending upon th esize, until just tender. Drain thoroughly, then return to the pan and place on a very low heat for 3-5 minutes to drive off all the excess moisture from the potatoes.

Mash the potatoes, preferably with a mouli or potato ricer, then mix in the egg yolks, flour, seasoning and nutmeg. Tip the dough out onto a floured work surface and knead lightly until smooth.

Divide the dough into workable pieces (about fist-sized) and work with one piece at a time. Roll each piece into a sausage about 2cm in diameter, then cut this into 2cm chunks. Use a fork to flatten the chunks slightly and print the traditional lines on the gnocchi. Place them a floured tray, making sure they do not touch.

Bring a pan of lightly salted water to a gentle boil. Drop in as many gnocchi as will comfortably fit the pan and simmer gently. Don’t stir or the gnocchi may disintegrate. As they cook, they’ll bob to the surface. Give them about 1 minute from the time they surface, then scoop them out with a slotted spoon. Drain them on a plate lined with kitchen paper, then transfer them to a warm dish. Repeat with the remaining gnocchi until all are cooked.

Toss with your chiosen hot sauce or melted butter with fresh sage leaves and serve immediately.

Method

In a large plastic bag, combine the flour, pepper, salt and dried marjoram. Add the beef cubes, seal the bag and toss it about to coat the beef with the seasoned flour. Set the beef aside on a plate.

In a large flameproof casserole, heat the olive oil and fry the bacon pieces, stirring occasionally, until they are crisp and have rendered their fat. Remove the bacon with a slotted spoon and reserve. Add the onion and celery to the pan and fry gently for 6 to 8 minutes until the onion is soft and translucent but not brown. Shake excess flour off the beef cubes and add them to the casserole, stirring occasionally for another 6 to 8 minutes to brown them lightly. Add the fresh marjoram, reserved bacon, and stir in the stock and wine. Bring to the boil and simmer uncovered for 30 minutes or until th eliquid has reduced by about half. Stir in the tomato purée and continue to simmer for a further 30 minutes.

The sauce should be thick and dark by the time the stufatino is cooked. We’re trying it with some homemade gnocchi and some tenderstem broccoli.

Method

First, start bringing an unfeasibly large pan of water to the boil. (It needs to be big enough to hold all the green vegetables and the pasta together.)

Next, deal with the tomatoes. Sweat the onion in some olive oil until soft. Toss in the tomatoes and cook gently for about three minutes. You don’t want the tomatoes to disintegrate. This isn’t like a classic Italian tomato sauce but should be something fresher tasting. Try to keep the quarters largely intact but release some of their juices. Season with some salt and pepper, turn off the heat and reserve.

Now for the mushrooms. In another pan, heat another few tablespoons of olive oil and sauté the mushroom quarters for about two miutes. Throw in the crushed garlic, stir annd cook for another minute. Season with some salt and pepper, remove from the heat and reserve.

Once the unfeasibly large pan of water is boiling, add a generous amount of salt and toss in all the green vegetables and the pasta together. Bring back to the boil, reduce the heat and simmer gently for five minutes. Strain the lot – and yes, I know, you need an unfeasibly large strainer, too. Spalsh some more olive oil back into the cooking pot, return the pasta and vegetables and stir to coat with the olive oil. Now throw in the mushrooms and the tomato mixture and mix well together once more.

Serve topped with grated Parmesan cheese.

Method

First, make the salmoriglio. Place the olive oil and water into a bowl and whisk together until emulsified. Add the lemon juice and a pinch of salt to taste. Stir in the garlic & herbs (oregano, celery leaves, parsley) and mix well.

Either fire up a barbecue and let the flames die down or preheat a ridged griddle pan until very hot. Brush the swordfish with olive oil and season on both sides with crushed chillies, salt and papper. Cook the swordfish, either on the barbecue or griddle for about 4 mins on each side until cooked through.

Serve the swordfish steaks drizzled with the salmoriglio.

Method

Heat the oven to 200°C (400°F, gas mark 6).

Choose a suitable dish for the lasagne: you will want four layers of pasta sheets sandwiching two layers of Bolognese sauce and two layers of béchamel sauce. Grease the dish with butter and set aside.

Cook the pasta sheets in boiling salted water until tender, then drain them on clean damp cloths (e.g. tea towels).

Line the base of your chosen dish with pasta so that it comes slightly up the sides. Trim the sheets with kitchen scissors to fit if necessary. Cover the pasta with half the Bolognese sauce. Put half the mozzarella slices over the sauce and cover that with another layer of pasta. Now add half the béchamel sauce and sprinkle one third of the grated parmesan on top of that. Now build up another pasta, Bolognese sauce and mozzarella layer, then cover the cheese with the last remaining pasta. Pour the remaining béchamel sauce over the top layer of pasta and sprinkle the remaining two thirds parmesan on top of that.

Bake in the centre of the oven for about 20-30 minutes until golden and bubbling.

Serve with a salad of the most interesting leaves you can find.