Baked Vegetable and Ricotta Frittata

Baked Vegetable Frittata

 

2-3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 onion, minced

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 medium zucchini, shredded with large side of cheese grater

1 medium yellow squash, shredded with large side of cheese grater

1 medium red bell pepper, seeded, cut into small dice

Kosher salt

Freshly ground black pepper

1 (10 oz.) package frozen spinach, defrosted, squeezed dry

2 cups frozen peas, defrosted

1 cup frozen corn, defrosted

1 cup broccoli florets, blanched 

8 large eggs, well beaten

1 cup whole ricotta cheese

3 tablespoons fresh basil, minced

2 tablespoons fresh mint, minced

1 cup grated Parmesan or Romano cheese

Grater for Vegetables

 

 

Directions:

1.      Preheat oven to 350ºF. Line a 9-by-13-inch baking dish with foil or parchment paper, leaving a 2-inch overhang on each short side. Coat the surface of the paper with olive oil so that the frittata will not stick.

2.      Warm oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add onion and sauté 5-6 minutes until translucent. Add the garlic and sauté about 45 seconds. Next, add the zucchini, squash and bell pepper. Season with salt and pepper. Sauté for 5-7 minutes. Add spinach, peas, corn and broccoli; sauté about 3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

3.      Whisk eggs, ricotta, basil, mint and Parmesan. Stir in vegetables. Pour into dish and sprinkle more grated cheese on top. Bake until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, about 30 minutes. Let rest about 10 minutes. Using foil or parchment paper, transfer the frittata to a cutting board. Cut the frittata and serve warm or at room temperature.

 

What an incredibly delicious and healthful recipe.  This recipe can be served as an appetizer, entree, tapas warm or cold.

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Pasta with Zucchini Garlic and Basil

Pasta with Zucchini and Basil

1 pound linguine or spaghetti

4-6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 large zucchini, thinly sliced
4 garlic cloves, minced
Salt and pepper to taste
10-14 fresh basil leaves, torn
Freshly grated Parmesan cheese for topping

Directions:

Bring a large 5-6 quarts pot of salted water to a boil, add the pasta and cook until al dente.

 

In large skillet, heat 4 tablespoons of oil and add the sliced zucchini. Cook on medium heat until the zucchini slices are golden and fragrant. Do not overcrowd the skillet with the zucchini slices or they may become too soft. If you do not have a large skillet, you can either cook the zucchini in 2 skillets or in 2 batches for best flavor. Stir occasionally to allow the zucchini to become golden on the bottom of the pan.. If the zucchini appear to be a little dry, add a drizzle of extra oil and continue cooking. The zucchini should be slightly golden and barely crispy.

 

Once the zucchini are ready, add the garlic, salt and pepper and sauté for a minute. Taste for seasoning and adjust with salt and pepper as needed. Remove from the stove, add fresh chopped basil and fold.

 

When the pasta is ready, strain and transfer to the skillet with the zucchini. Fold gently, add a drizzle of olive oil and freshly grated Parmesan cheese.

Zucchini

This is a simple an easy dish to prepare in less than half an hour using ingredients from your garden. It's a delicious summer pasta dish. Be sure to cook the zucchini on medium and not on high heat, or they may become slightly bitter.  Be patient when cooking the zucchini, the extra effort will result in better flavor.

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A Good Espresso with Orange Zest Sugar

Espresso with oranze zest sugar

Selecting the right espresso coffee

We think that the darker the beans, the better the taste of espresso. Dark roasted coffee beans could make espresso taste a little bitter. Coffee beans should roast slowly and gently for a more sweet flavor and smell. Purchase good quality slow roasted coffee beans to make a good espresso. I am very lucky to have coffee sent to me by relatives in Italy or France.  However, when I run out, I search for the best coffee I can find.  I will purchase a ¼ pound of coffee in coffee shops or specialty store.  It’s an adventure that I like to have fun with, so I purchase a small amount, taste it, critic it, and then decide whether I will purchase that coffee again or not.

 

Making espresso

I am not by any means a coffee snob, but I do enjoy it. I refuse to purchase an expensive espresso maker that you must know the exact pressure and water temperature.  I don’t like reading manuals. That’s not for me; I use the old fashion Italian coffee pots that go right on my gas burner. I’ve been making my coffee this way for many decades and my parents and grandparents before me. If the coffee pot ain’t broken, why change it?

I do like to grind my own coffee right before I make a pot of coffee. I believe the beans stay fresher and moister until right before use.  I love my ritual of filling the bottom of the espresso pot; adding the ground coffee without pushing down on it too much.  I make sure the pot is screwed on just so, not loose and not too tight. I place the espresso pot on the burner at medium-low heat and wait for that wonderful perky sound that let’s me know that my coffee is almost ready.  Then I close my eyes and enjoy talking a deep breath as I smell the wonderful aroma of freshly brewed espresso.  Ahhh!

Drinking espresso

There is a rule in Italy, that milk does not have a place in an espresso cup.  Milk is meant to co-exist in a cappuccino and not  an espresso.  If you want to stay true to that rule, drink espresso without milk, add a little sugar, stir, and enjoy!

I like to add orange zest to my sugar jar and allow it to aromatize my sugar.  I use this sugar to sweeten my espresso coffee.  This extra little step, takes my experience of enjoying my espresso to the next level.  

Italian Espresso Pot

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Pasta with Calabrese Meatballs

Calabrese Meatballs

½ - 1 cup Italian breadcrumbs

¼ cup or more milk
1 pound ground beef  (or half pork, half beef)
5 garlic cloves, minced and divided
2 medium red onions, shaved and divided    
½ bunch fresh Italian parsley, minced
1 large Egg
½ cup grated cheese
Salt and pepper to taste
2-3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 large carrot, minced                                                           
1 celery stalk, minced                                                
1 (28 ounces can) tomato sauce
1 pound short pasta such as rigatoni, penne
12-14 large basil leaves, torn

Directions

In a bowl add the breadcrumb and milk. Mix well and strain any access milk thru your fingers. Transfer mixture to a larger bowl.  Add the meat, 2 garlic cloves, 1 onion, parsley, egg, grated cheese, salt and pepper.  Mix well and shape meatballs any size you like. Set on a platter.

In a large sauté pan, add the oil, 1 onion, 3 minced garlic cloves, carrot, and celery and cook until golden.  Add the meatballs to the pan and sauté until golden on all sides. When ready, remove the meatballs for a moment. Next, add the tomato sauce, basil, salt and pepper. Cook the sauce for about 5 minutes and return meatballs to pan. Cook until the meatballs are cooked thru and the sauce is well seasoned about 10-15 minutes depending on size of meatballs.

In a large 5-6 quart pan, cook the pasta in boiling salted water until al dente. Strain and transfer to a large pasta bowl.  Add some sauce and mix well. Serve In individual plates, add meatballs and sauce on top.  Garnish with fresh basil, cracked pepper and grated cheese. Serves 4-6

penne

I made this dish in my June cooking class. The was a moment of silence while people were eating it. My grandfather would say that it is a sign that people are truly enjoying their food. It was a sucessfull recipe that I know many students will make for their family and friends.

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Fresh Lemons Cake

Fresh Lemons Cake

3 cups all purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1 cup whole milk

1 (6 oz) container lemon yogurt

1 teaspoon pure vanilla

Zest and juice of 1 lemon

16 ounces (1 cup) softened butter

1 3/4 cups sugar

3 large eggs

Cake Directions:

Preheat oven to 350F. Butter and flour a 9 X 12 baking pan.

In a medium bowl combine flour, baking powder and salt.

In a small bowl mix together milk, yogurt, vanilla, zest and lemon juice.

In a large bowl, beat butter and sugar at medium speed until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. On low-speed, add and beat flour mixture into butter mixture in 3 stages, alternating with milk mixture. Beat well after each addition. transfer to buttered pan. Bake for 35 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. Cool completely. Poke holes in the cake with a toothpick so that when the syrup is spooned on the cake, it will penetrate a little deeper.

  

Fresh Lemon

 

Frosting:

1 cup water

1 cup sugar

Juice ½ lemon

1 bay leaf

1/3 cup Limoncello

1-2 lemons cut in very thin slices (8-12 thin slices)

In a small saucepan, add the sugar, lemon, water and bay leaf. Bring to a boil until sugar has melted.  Reduce to simmer and cook for 10-15 minutes until the syrup becomes glossy.  Remove the bay leaf, and add the Limoncello and lemon slices. Simmer for 5 minutes and remove from stove.  When the cake is ready, drizzle the warm syrup with a spoon on the cake. Decorate with the lemon slices. Serve as is, or with fresh strawberries.

Bay leaves

If you like the taste of fresh lemons, this is the cake to make.  It's a refreshing taste from heavy icing cakes!

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Sicilian Pistachio Mint Pesto

Pistachio Mint Pesto

½ cup shelled pistachios

½ cup blanched almonds
2 cloves garlic
1 cup basil leaves
1 cup mint leaves
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1/2 - 3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

Directions:

Place all ingredients, except the oil, in a food processor and pulse a few times until everything is well blended. Next, add the oil and pulse twice. Taste for seasoning, and adjust if needed.  Makes about 2 cups.

When the pesto is ready, transfer to a glass jar.  Top with more olive oil to preserve the color and freshness of the pesto. If you do not cover it with oil, it will turn brown and spoil. Refrigerate up to 2 weeks covered with oil and in a closed glass container.   

When you are ready to use, boil pasta according to package directions.  Strain and transfer to a serving bowl, add a few tablespoons of pesto and enjoy. 

Pasta

This pesto can also be used on grilled, fish, chicken, pork and vegetables.  It can also be a delicious topping on a crostini with a slice of fresh mozzarella cheese.

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Tunisian Brik a L'oeuf (Egg Brik)

Tunisian Brik

One of my favorite foods from Tunisiais a brik (breek).  It is made with malsouka dough which unfortunately cannot be found in stores. The malsouka dough has the consistency of phyllo and spring roll dough which can both be used to make brik.  My preference is to use phyllo dough because it is flaky and easy to find.  A Tunisian brik is usually shaped like a triangle and filled in the middle with a raw egg, or other fillings such as hard boiled eggs, canned tuna, boiled potatoes, capers and parsley. If you have all of the ingredients prepared ahead of time, a brik can be cooked in less than 2 minutes. 

12 phyllo sheets (3 sheets for each brik, Makes 4 brik)

4 whole eggs
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
Canola oil, for frying
1 lemon, cut in wedges
4-5 tablespoons fresh cilantro, roughly chopped

 Directions:

1.  Preparing the phyllo dough: Be sure to follow instructions on the phyllo dough box on how to keep the phyllo dough from drying out.  I usually put damptowels on my counter under and over my phyllo dough. Each time I remove 3 phyllo dough sheets to make a brik, I cover the other phyllo immediately.  In order for the process and the recipe to be successful, prepare all of the fillings and ingredients ahead.  Then you can stuff and fry the brik one at a time in hot oil. Next, have a platter or tray with lots of towel paper ready to place the hot brik, to absorb any excess oil on the brik.

2. Preparing the brik with the filling:You need to do 2 things simultaneously to make a good brik. One is to keep the oil hot and two is to fold the phyllo and add the filling very quickly to keep the dough from drying. 

3. In a large skillet over medium heat, add enough oil to cover the bottom of the skillet, about ½ inch deep.

4. Take 3 phyllo dough sheets together and make a square.  Since the phyllo usually comes in rectangles, you may need to fold the ends on two sides to make the square.  Place the phyllo dough square on a plate and get close to the frying pan. Quickly crack an egg in the middle of the phyllo square , add cilantro, and season with salt and pepper.  Next, fold two ends of this phyllo square to make a triangle. Approach the skillet with the hot oil, and slide the brik a l’oeuf in gently to not splash the oil. Stay close to the skillet because it is going to take less than a minute for the bottom of the brik to turn golden. As soon as the bottom turns golden, turn it over gently with two large spatulas to cook the other side. The other side will also cook in less than a minute. When both sides are golden, gently lift the brik from the hot oil. Let the oil drain back in the skillet, and transfer the cooked brik to a platter with towel paper to drain any excess oil.  Let it rest about a minute, and transfer to a serving plate. Repeat process until all 4 briks are cooked. Squeeze fresh lemon juice and sprinkle cilantro on top of each brik.

 

5. How to eat a brik a l’oeuf:The trick is to hold the triangular brik over the plate with the point up and biting into it without letting the egg run down your chin. That’s why you have the plate.  If the egg runs on the plate, soak it up with the other parts of the brik.  Either way, you will enjoy this recipe.

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