Unovis

BAKED CHICKEN ( Read more... )

ROAST POTATOES ( Read more... )

POLENTA

1 cup corn meal
1 cup cold water
3 cups boiling water
Salt

Dissolve corn meal in cold water. Add to boiling water with a little salt. Stir constantly for about 10 to 15 minutes until it thickens. Makes 2 servings. May be served with a pasta sauce spooned over it, with lots of grated cheese, or as a side dish. You may also serve with beans: after polenta is cooked, add a can of cannellini (or other white) beans; heat well and serve.

Basic recipe; after this is cooked, it can be fried or shaped and baked, though we never did. This is my Aunt Jenny's recipe. My father loathed it, so my mother only made it for comfort, when he wasn't home.

PASTINA

Pastina (very tiny star-shaped pasta; NOT the same as acini de pepe or other soup pasta)
Chicken broth
Butter
Egg
Grated Parmesan or Romano cheese
Pepper

Cook pastina in chicken broth instead of water, to make a porridge-like mixture. When it's done, still over heat, quickly beat in an egg. Turn off heat and stir in a lump of butter and grated cheese. More cheese and black pepper topping when it's served are optional.

Sometimes you can find pastina marketed as baby food. It used to come in carrot and spinach varieties, though I haven't seen that for years.

Delicious, delicious, delicious. This is what my mother and my grandmother served me for breakfast during winter or just when they had time, instead of oatmeal. It's my ultimate comfort food, and my sister's, too. I still make it for her, for dinner, even.

For breakfast, my grandmother (Mom's mother) served us kids white bread torn up in a bowl with milk and sugar poured over. She also made "eye of the devil": an egg poached in a pot of stewed tomatoes with hot pepper. Dad made pancakes on Saturdays. On Sundays, we had rolls from the White Eagle bakery, plus a pastry. We had commercial cereal, too, but not enough for it to be a habit. I still hate anything sweet for breakfast.

PIZZA ( Read more... )

CRUST FOR EASTER PIZZA ( Read more... )

LENTIL SOUP

½ lb lentils
1½ qts water
2–3 stalks of celery and leaves, chopped fine
Chopped parsley
1 onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, chopped
Salt & pepper to taste
1 lge Tbs olive oil
3 fresh ripe tomatoes or ½ cup canned tomatoes
Bay leaf

Cook all ingredients in heavy saucepan until mixture comes to a boil. Let simmer for ½ hour or longer if desired. This may also be made with a ham bone or pieces of ham.

A staple, for Lent.

PEPPERS AND EGGS

Green peppers, cleaned and sliced (you can use Bell peppers or cubano/Italian long green peppers)
Onion, sliced (optional)
Eggs
Parmesan cheese
Salt & pepper
Oil

Peppers should be cut into long slices. Sauté peppers (and onions, if desired) until soft; beat together eggs, salt, pepper, and Parmesan. Pour eggs into pan with peppers; allow to set, then scramble eggs. Serve hot.

This is also very good with thinly sliced zucchini.

And another favorite, without meat

FIOR DI ZUCCHINE FRITTI (Fried Zucchini Blossoms)

Zucchini blossoms
Eggs (1 or 2, depending upon number of flowers)
Parmesan cheese
Flour
Salt & pepper
Oil

Wash and clean blossoms and gently pat dry; leave a bit of stem to use as a handle. Beat together egg, cheese, salt, and pepper. Have a bowl with a shallow layer of flour in it standing by. Heat oil for frying; dip blossoms in egg mixture, then dredge in flour, then place in pan to fry (just until lightly browned). Drain and serve. You could also beat egg mixture together with flour to form a medium batter, like pancake batter.

Cousin George made these for us on the grill in his garden with freshly picked flowers. He stuffed them with ricotta or mascarpone cheese, dipped them in egg and flour, and then cooked them on the grill.
My old friend Beppie first encountered these when she was a child, on a visit to Sicily. She knew the dish only as "chennay flowers": when she'd asked a woman who'd cooked them what they were called, she was told "Che ne in America" (they don't have them in America). I'm really happy that the Union Square greenmarket carries them every year, when the squash blooms.

ARANCINI DI RISA

Rice cooked in chicken broth
Eggs
Salt & pepper
Parmesan cheese
Seasoned breadcrumbs
Mozzarella, cut in cubes
Oil (not olive oil) for frying

Let cooked rice cool. Season with beaten egg, salt, pepper, and Parmesan. Form into balls the size of small oranges. With your thumb, make a depression in the ball and insert a chunk of mozzarella. Cover over hole and roll ball in breadcrumbs to coat. Fry balls in oil, just to form a golden crust.

You could also put a small square of ham in with the cheese. There's an Italian deli in the Village that sells these. You can smell them when you come in the door, and they're delicious.

ROASTED PEPPERS

Red or green bell peppers

Preheat oven to 450°; roast peppers on foil until skins are black and peppers are soft (about 30 minutes). Take out of oven, put in a paper bag and seal for 5–10 minutes. When you take them out, skin will peel off easily. Peel off skins, discard skins and seeds; cut into thin slices.

ROASTED RED PEPPER SALAD

8 large peppers (red or yellow)
2 lemons
Garlic
Olive oil
Salt

Roast peppers as described above. In a bowl (glass is nice) layer sliced peppers with garlic and season to taste. This improves if you let it stand for a while. Use as a side dish, in a salad, layered with slices of mozzarella, or in an antipasto tray.


Because they were on sale at the market yesterday in a gorgeous scarlet pile, and the produce man flirted with me outrageously when I told him I was going to roast them for this salad. Actually, as with pickled eggplant, I make the "salad" above as a condiment--I keep a covered container in the refrigerator and use them in sandwiches, next to scrambled eggs, on top of grilled fennel, on bagels with cream cheese, on top of couscous, and in a dozen other ways..

EGGPLANT ROLLS (SANDWICHES) ( Read more... )