Where Do You Think I Am?

At first glance I could be standing in front of a building in any American city. The sign clearly says “Wine Bar” in english. Only, I’m not in the USA, I’m in Rome! I’m outside the enoteca (wine bar) which is part of the huge Gusto complex located at Piazza Augusto Imperatore.

It’s really quite an interesting concept encompassing an osteria with classic Roman dishes, two other restaurants (one featuring fish and vegetarian entrees), a pizzeria, a wine shop, a wine bar, formaggeria (cheese shop) and a culinary store with all types of cooking equipment and cookbooks!

Of course I had to check out the cookware shop and we dined once at the Osteria, which I remember being good, but not unbelievable. The place that we were drawn back to over and over during our stay in Rome was the wine bar. It was a little intimidating as neither of us spoke any Italian at the time and we were the only americans in there, but we loved it! We ordered great Italian wines by the glass and for just a few euros per plate, you can help yourself to their selection of “snacks”. I can’t remember exactly what they were, but it was all delicious.

Thanks to Lola at Roma Every Day I now know that Gusto has a Sunday brunch. Now, I am not really brunch buffet type person, but if it’s being served at Gusto, I’m willing to give it a try!

Walnut Crescents

I have to have a cookie with my morning cappuccino. I just need one, but if I don’t have it, I’m looking for something sweet to nibble on all morning long. I try to have a container full of homemade cookies on the counter at all times, but if not, I’ll settle for something store bought. Lately I’ve done a variety of things with hazelnuts and with almonds so it seemed time for a cookie with walnuts. This recipe came from the same old issue of Bon Appetit as the Sweet Cheese Puffs from last week and I’ve decided that maybe I should bake my way through all the recipes featured in the article.

These walnut crescents couldn’t be easier-no chilling of the dough and there’s only five ingredients (not counting the chocolate-that was my little addition).

Walnut Crescents

1 stick unsalted butter
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup unsifted all-purpose flour
3/4 cup (2 ounces) finely ground walnuts

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Line baking sheets with parchment paper. Beat the butter until light and then gradually add the sugar and blend well. Add vanilla. Stir in the flour and ground nuts. Using about a teaspoonful of dough for each cookie, form the dough into a crescent and place on prepared baking sheet. Bake until just lightly browned, about 10-12 minutes. I always rotate the sheets halfway through. Let cool on rack.

I dipped half of the batch into semisweet chips that I melted in a double boiler. The rest I dusted with a little confectioners sugar. The recipe said it the yield was about 4 dozen, bit mine must be a little larger-I got about 34 crescents.

Another Veggie To Love

Belgian endive. Are you familiar with it? I love to slice it and add it to salads. It’s crispy and has a very slight bitter taste and is a nice counterpoint to the other greens in your salad bowl. Have you used it as an hors d’oeuvres? The leaves are the perfect vessel to fill with a savory topping-like an herby cheese spread or fresh crab salad. I’ve been a fan for a long time, but it wasn’t until yesterday that I actually cooked endive and I have to tell you that it was wonderful!

Once again I found a great recipe in one of Domenica Marchetti’s books-The Glorious Soups and Stews of Italy. I love this book and while I’m thinking of it, I have to mention her second book-Big Night In- which is equally as informative and chock full of recipes that you’ll want to try.

I was looking for something not too heavy, but packed with flavor to serve at my recent luncheon. I had already decided on an Italian chicken soup with meatballs and escarole and wanted to serve a little something along with some crusty bread. This recipe caught my eye and all I can say is that I wish I had more endive in the fridge because if I did, I’d make it again tonight!

Indiva Brasata Al Forno
Oven-Braised Endive

1 tablespoon butter, plus more for preparing the dish
6 heads Belgian endive
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 carrot, peeled and finely chopped
1 rib celery, trimmed and finely chopped
2 ounces pancetta, chopped
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup dry white wine
3/4 cup canned whole tomatoes, diced
2/3 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Butter a rectangular baking dish large enough to hold the endive in one layer.

Trim the stem end off each endive and discard any soft or discolored outer leaves. Cut each endive in half lengthwise. In a large skillet heat the butter and olive oil over medium heat. When the butter has melted and begins to sizzle, add the endive halves, cut side down and brown for 4 minutes. Turn and brown the other side for 4 minutes and then transfer endive to the prepared dish.

Return the skillet to medium heat and add the carrot, celery and pancetta and saute for about 5 minutes, or until the pancetta has rendered its fat and the vegetables have begun to soften. In a small bowl mix together the garlic and salt to form a paste and add to the vegetables. Season the vegetables with pepper and continue to saute for a few minutes more. Increase the heat to medium-high and pour in the wine. Cook for 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes and cook for 5 minutes to allow the flavors to mingle. Taste and adjust seasoning with salt and pepper. Pour the sauce over the endive in the baking dish.

Cover the dish with foil, place in the oven and braise for one hour. Uncover, sprinkle evenly with the cheese and cook for another 20 minutes.

Remove from the oven and let cool for 5-10 minutes.
Makes: 6 side dish servings

I have to say that this really delicious and my friends L. And V. remarked how great it would be served as a sandwich on crusty bread-it was sort of reminiscent of eggplant parmesan!

This photo does not do justice to the greatness of this dish!

Sweet Cheese Puffs

This recipe was originally published in a very old issue of Bon Appetit. I don’t even want to admit how old, let’s just say I was quite young when I tried this recipe for the first time and not afraid to attempt anything in the kitchen. It was in an article about Flo Braker, an expert on the art of baking. I saved the magazine all these years as I loved all the recipes that were included-cookies, bars and tiny pastries that you would love to be served at a tea.

Year passed and Flo published a book called Sweet Miniatures, which contains all the recipes from the old magazine article and many more. These little bites are a sweet cream cheese filling encased with a flaky pastry made with sour cream-the perfect ending to my luncheon with friends.

Sour Cream Pastry

2 cups unsifted all-purpose flour
1/8 teaspoon salt
8 pounces unsalted butter, chilled and diced
1/2 cup sour cream

Put the flour and salt in a bowl, stir to blend. Scatter the butter slices over the flour and then cut in with a pastry blender until the mixture resembles small peas.

Stir in the sour cream with a fork. The pastry will be dry. With your hands manipulate the dough into a ball. Divide the dough into three equal pieces. Shape each into a 5″ square, about 5/8″ thick. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate until cold and firm, about 4 hours. You can keep in fridge for up to 3 days or freeze for a month.

Cream Cheese Filling

8 ounces cream cheese
1 large egg, beaten lightly
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest

Process all the ingredients for the filling in a food processor until smooth.

Remove one square from the fridge and set aside for 10 minutes before rolling. On a floured surface, roll the pastry into a rectangle, slightly less than 1/8″ thick. With a ruler and a pastry wheel, trim the ragged edges. Measure and cut the pastry into 3″ squares. Repeat with remaining dough.

Lay the pastry squares across the top of a ungreased 12 cup mini muffin pan, centering each square over one cup. Spoon 1 heaping teaspoon of filling on each square, then bring up the opposite corners to the center and press to seal. Ease the pastry into the cup. Roll and shape the remaining pastry squares in the same fashion. Refrigerate for 30 minutes before baking.

Adjust rack to lower third of oven and preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Bake three pans at a time for about 20-25 minutes until the pastries are light brown. Remove from oven to a wire rack for about 10 minutes. Remove pastries from pan to a wire rack to cool completely.

Sprinkle with powdered sugar before serving at room temperature.

Makes 2-1/2 to 3 dozen puffs.

Minestra Della Nonna

I haven’t posted anything for Gratitude Friday for the past few weeks. It’s not that I’m not grateful for the life that I have and the people that are in it, it’s just that I haven’t been in the mood to write about the good things that surround me. I’m sure you can all understand going through times like that. I knew that I needed a little attitude adjustment and the best way to do that (besides expensive champagne) is to get together with girlfriends! So I’m doing just that-having two good friends for lunch. I decided to keep it very simple and knew that a comforting bowl of soup would be the perfect antidote for whatever has been ailing me.

I had homemade chicken broth in the freezer and a craving for meatballs so I went with this classic Italian recipe. Some may call it Italian wedding soup, but Domenica Marchetti calls it Minestra della Nonna in her great book the Glorious Soups and Stew of Italy, as her grandmother served it every time she visited.

Minestra della Nonna

For the meatballs

1-1/2 cups fresh bread crumbs*
1/2 cup whole milk, heated to warm
5 ounces ground beef
5 ounces ground pork
5 ounces ground veal
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
1 tablespoon minced Italian parsley
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

* To make the breadcrumbs cut away the crusts from 3-4 thick slices Italian country bread. Tear into chunks and place in food processor and pulse to coarse crumbs. You may have more than 1-1/2 cups.

For the soup

10 cups chicken broth
1 small head escarole, washed, trimmed and coarsely shredded
3 cups thin pasta noodles, broken into pieces

Freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano for serving

To make the meatballs combine the bread crumbs and milk and let sit for about 15 minutes or until the bread has absorbed all the milk.

In a large bowl combine the ground meats, milk-soaked bread, cheese, garlic, parsley and salt. Mix until ingredients are thoroughly combined. Pinch off a piece, about a teaspoon, of the mixture and roll into a ball. Continue to form the meatballs until you have used all of the mixture.

To make the soup bring the broth to a boil in a large saucepot over medium heat. Carefully add the meatballs and and escarole and simmer for about 10 minutes, or until meatballs are just cooked and greens are wilted. Stir in the pasta and let the soup boil until the pasta is cooked al dente. Ladle the soup into shallow bowls and sprinkle with with cheese and be happy!

Makes 10 first-course servings.

La Lingua Italiana

I’ve started another Italian class-well sort of. I’ve gone to the first two meetings and as eager as I am to keep moving forward with my pursuit of speaking Italian, I’m just not sure if this is the class for me. The dynamics of the class remind me a little bit of high school. Last night I was assigned to a group for conversation and the other participants immediately began writing what they wanted to say. They looked at me like I was pazza (crazy) because I wanted to talk out loud and speak in Italian, while they chatted in English. The teacher thankfully is a native Italian from Trieste, and I hear that he’s a great instructor, so maybe I should stick it out.

Now this photo is of a class I loved being part of-students from around the world, everyone speaking Italian all day long since it was the only language we had in common! La Cultura Italiana in Arezzo-a school where every morning we had a break to run out to the corner bar for a quick espresso or cappuccino. Some day I’ll return and sit around that table up on the top floor of a very old building and share conversation with others who love Italy as much as I do.

Searching For Sweets

I wish there was a pasticceria down the street. Somewhere that I could stroll to and come home with a neatly wrapped package tied with ribbon, perfectly packed with little bites of pastry. A shop where I could walk in and be totally befuddled as to what to order as the choices are astounding. Piles of little cookies, tiny tartlettes piped with chocolate or hazelnut cream, layers of flaky pastry enveloping fluffy ricotta. Do I need to go on? I’m sure you get the picture. Maybe you are lucky to live in a city where you can find authentic Italian pastries. If so, I’m jealous of your good fortune!

So what do I do to take care of my daily need to have a little something to go with my morning cappuccino? I head to the bookshelf and pull out Gina Di Palma’s Dolce Italiano and start baking. This week I had an urge for anything with hazelnuts. Initially I had hoped to try a new recipe, but then I remembered a cookie that I had already tried and loved. Gina’s description of her inspiration for them brought a smile to my face “this recipe is my attempt to duplicate some wonderful cookies I sampled froma Roman bakery near the Campo de’ Fiori. On the last morning of a visit to the Eternal City a few years ago, I bought a bagful and took them to the train station with me. By the time I got to Florence, they were gone…”

How could I not bake these Hazelnut Cookies?!

My Friends Know Me

I met my blogging buddy Linda, from Cucina Cara Mia, for lunch today. It’s been much too long since we’ve gotten together and in between bites of our burgers, we caught up on the last few months. Much to my delight Linda presented me with a book that I had not heard about-In Late Winer We Ate Pears-the story of a couple who spent a year living in Italy and then went on to open an osteria in Woodstock, Vermont called Pane e Salute.

Of course I rushed home, happy to have no plans for the rest of the afternoon and proceeded to sit myself down on the couch with the book and all of a sudden I realized a few hours had passed! Talk about the perfect gift for me-a book about living in Italy with wonderful descriptions of meals enjoyed there along with recipes from their restaurant. I’m a happy gal and can’t wait to get through the entire book and head into the kitchen and make believe I’m cooking in my kitchen somewhere in Italy!

Thank you Linda for your very thoughtful gift-maybe the next time we’re together you’ll be sampling something from the book!

Sausage, Peppers and Polenta

I love good Italian sausage. Even though I don’t have what I would call a real Italian market nearby, there is a small family owned restaurant that makes (and sells) delicious sausage. Years ago I had a little corner store that I could walk to from my apartment and their sausage was the best. The source I now have ranks a close second.

I grew up eating Italian sausage cooked in the big pot of tomato sauce (better known as gravy) that my grandmother made every Sunday. Even as a child I was known to put away a big plate of pasta, along with a meatball or two and a link of sweet fennel sausage. After hours simmering away in the sauce the sausage was fork tender and full of flavor. Not to be forgotten is the sausage and pepper sandwich served on crusty bread which was a staple of the backyard barbecues of my youth. These were also a must have at the Italian street festivals that we frequented.

Tonight I decided to combine my two favorite sausage preparations by combining sausage and peppers with a tomato sauce. I’ve been craving polenta and had originally planned on having friends to dinner and serving it topped with a pork fennel stew, but our guests had to cancel. J. came home with a big bag of both sweet and hot sausage from the restaurant, so it made sense to top the creamy polenta with a hearty tomato sauce with sausage and peppers. I’ll save the pork stew for the re-scheduled dinner party.

You don’t really need a recipe for this-I heat some olive oil in a pan, brown the sausages, lower the heat, throw in sliced onions and red and yellow peppers and saute until vegetables are softened. Add crushed tomatoes or tomato puree, season with salt and pepper and let simmer. I think I’ll throw in a little basil and that’s it! I’m serving this over polenta made with the easy oven method and a loaf of crusty bread. Buon appetito!

Looking To Escape

What can I say? If you’ve followed my blog for more than a few days, you know where I long to be. Italy, anywhere…