Just Breathe

The worst thing was the Halloween candy.

 Two weeks after two back-to-back storms the East coast is still reeling and dealing with the aftermath. I am thankful that we did not experience any damage or injury, and compared to what others are still suffering, a little over a week without power was just a minor inconvenience.

Through it all I cooked. It never occurred to me not to cook dinner. One dark and cold night as I stood at the cook top sauteeing veal chops in Marsala wine, perhaps sensing an oncoming melt-down, John stood holding the flashlight. Seeing the absurdity of the situation I said, "What in the world am I doing?" "What you always do," he said. Cooking. As usual."

Chris kept in touch from the West coast with texts. It still amazes me that his generation actually thinks that texting is the same as talking. "How's it going? Btw what have you been eating?" "I have been cooking. In the dark. As usual." "OK cool."

So when all is said and done, as Denise reminded me, cooking and our kitchens do comfort us. So it was fitting to make this hearty sausage and bean dish for dinner the other night.

I cut one pound of hot sausages into pieces and sauteed them in a heavy Dutch oven. When they were brown, I added a crushed garlic clove, some fresh rosemary, a little salt and pepper and a large can of cannellini beans, drained.  Then came a splash or two of red wine letting it cook down for about 30 seconds. Next I added about one cup of canned tomatoes, crushing them as I put them in. I then cooked the sausage mixture with the lid askew for about 30 minutes. Perfect.

Oh, the Halloween candy? The worst thing was that I ate it all!

Dinner Tonight: Snapper with Zucchini and Tomatoes

It seems as if we've eaten a lot of great fish over the summer, and although I like to buy and prepare local fish, sometimes it just isn't possible. If you can find fresh red snapper, use it in this dish--it is worth the splurge. Red snapper is a firm white fish with with a sweet, nutty taste.  It lends itself very well to a myriad of preparations and flavor pairings.

This recipe makes good use of end of summer zucchini and tomatoes and is good accompanied by  orzo tossed with olive oil, parsley and toasted pine nuts.

 

Snapper With Zucchini and Tomato

Recipe from Cooking Light July 2012
Serves 2

4 teaspoons olive oil, divided
Kosher salt
Black pepper
2 6-oz snapper fillets
2 tablespoons white wine or dry vermouth
1 cup diced zucchini
1 1/2 tablespoons minced shallots
1 teaspoon chopped fresh oregano
1 teaspoon grated lemon rind
1 cup halved cherry tomatoes
1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice

1.  Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat.  Add 1 teaspoon oil to pan; swirl to coat. Season fish with salt and pepper. Add fish to pan and cook 3 minutes on each side or until desired degree of doneness.  Remove fish from pan and keep warm.

2.  Add white wine to pan and cook until liquid almost evaporates.  At zucchini, shallots, oregano, lemon rind, 1 teaspoon oil and a pinch of salt. Saute 3 minutes or until zucchini is tender.

3. Combine zucchini mixture, tomato, pinch of salt, remaining teaspoon of oil, basil and lemon juice.
Toss gently and serve with fish.

COOK'S NOTE:

I used more than 1 teaspoon of olive oil to saute the fish. I used 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano instead of fresh, and I tend to season my food more liberally with salt and pepper than Cooking Light. In the last step I added the tomatoes to the saute pan to warm then the rest of the ingredients.

Dinner Tonight

Whenever I see thin sliced boneless shell steaks in the market, I am sure to pick them up.  It takes only four or so thin slices to make a great meal.

One of my favorite dinners in based on Marcella Hazan's recipe for Thin Pan-Broiled Steaks with Tomatoes and Olives.

  

Thin slices of beef are pounded to 1/4" thick.  Then slowly saute a small sliced onion in olive oil.  When it wilts, add some chopped garlic and continue to cook until the garlic is soft.  Then add about 2/3 cup canned tomatoes, roughly chopped, some black olives, oregano, salt and pepper.  Bring to simmer and cook for about 15 minutes until the oil separates from the tomatoes. Set aside on a low simmer.

Heat a large saute pan until it is smoking hot; quickly grease the bottom with an oil-soaked paper towel. Add the beef slices, brown on both sides, adding salt and pepper.  Do not overcook.  Add the simmering sauce to the saute pan, turning meat quickly and basting with sauce.

All that is left to do is serve while hot.  Enjoy.

Alone In The Kitchen With A Tomato

I found myself at home for lunch the other day with a few very ripe tomatoes and a small piece of fresh mozzarella.

I decided to cut one of the tomatoes in half, sprinkled the halves with some thinly sliced garlic, salt and olive oil. I then roasted the tomato in a 425 degree oven for about 15 minutes until softened.

Meanwhile, I cut a slice from the mozzarella. When the tomato was soft I removed it from the oven and sandwiched the cheese between the two slices as the heat from the tomato began to melt the cheese. Served with a slice of crusty bread, it made the perfect summer lunch.

Actually, I roasted the tomato a little longer, about 20 minutes, so it would be oozing its juices. I figured it was just me for lunch, and soaking up the juices with bread was an enticing though messy event.

If you roast the tomato until just done, then add a thin slice of mozzarella until it just turns soft, this would make a great first course for an end-of-summer dinner.

Since the rest of the tomatoes needed to be eaten that I day, I ran with it and continud the tomato theme for dinner with panzella salad. Bread salad. What could be better than that?

Cubes of crusty bread, chunks of tomatoes, cucumbers and thinly sliced red onions. All tossed with olive oil, red wine vinegar, salt and basil. 

With a shrimp vinaigrette on the side, it was the perfect light dinner for a hot evening.

Pomodoro Crudo

"Everything you see, I owe to spaghetti." Sophia Loren

Spaghetti does not look the same on me as it does on Sophia Loren.  Nevertheless, I wait all year to make Spaghetti Pomodoro Crudo. August in New Jersey is the perfect time to make this quick and delicious  summer pasta. It is pure and simple. The quality of the tomatoes is paramount, and now is the time to use those farm stand or garden-grown perfectly ripe tomatoes.

For dinner tonight I cut three tomatoes horizontally, seeded them, and then cut them into smallish chunks. To them I added one clove of garlic, pressed, and a handful of basil cut up (or torn, if you like), some fresh mozzarella, and a couple of grinds of pepper. I then poured about 1/3 cup of extra virgin olive oil over everything. Covered, this sat on the counter until dinner time. The mixture needs salt, but I waited until about thirty minutes before using it to add the salt so that it didn't become too watery.  The sauce can sit out at room temperature for up to four hours. It's best to let it marinate for at least thirty minutes to an hour.

This sauce takes well to improvisation. So feel free to add whatever you might like--capers, hot pepper flakes, anchovies, olives--you get the idea.

Some use spaghetti in this recipe, but I prefer a pasta that can hold the sauce, such as orecchiette or shells.When the orecchiette ( I used 6 ounces for two servings) was cooked and drained, it was immediately added to the sauce. The heat from the just-cooked pasta began to soften the mozzarella and barely heated the tomatoes. Heaven. Be sure to have some crusty bread on hand to sop up the extra juices.

Green salads have seemed lackluster to me lately, so I made a cucumber and red onion salad. And it proved to be a cool counterpoint to the pasta.