Category Archives: Recipes – Observations

Beans, beans, they’re good for your heart …

Posted on November 9, 2007 | 1 Comment

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This is a fairly easy recipe and good to make when you want something warm and you’re feeling lazy. Most people think of beans & rice as a traditional side dish for Latin-American dishes, but it works well on its own with a small salad or veggie on the side.

What else can I say? I guess the Italian spices make it “Italian,” but the whole deal is fairly close to other recipes I’ve seen. I once tried to substitute red beans, and it worked ok, but not as good as black. Also, and keep in mind I haven’t tried this, I think you can throw the bean mixture in a blender and turn it back out into the pan for “refried” beans. Again, that’s just theoretical conjecture on my part.

Oh yeah, a little reminder on salt: since the bacon is already salty, be sure not to toss too much in during the final cooking. A little dash will… you know.

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Don’t call it marinara

Posted on October 23, 2007 | Leave a comment


See, I told you: five ingredients. Unless you want to count salt & pepper separately, but that’s just silly.

Anyway, the key to tomato sauce (“marinara” is something different in my book, even though most places and companies confuse the term) are the tomatoes. While that may be obvious, using canned tomatoes may not be.

Fresher is not always better, especially when it comes to tomatoes. Preparing fresh tomatoes to use in sauce takes an awful long time, a lot of work, and even then, will usually not come together as well as the canned kind.

I have a picture of Rosa tomatoes here, but you can use any kind, as long they’re Italian. I know, it’s snobby, but the Italian ones really are the best.

The tomatoes are usually packed in puree, and should come with basil. Make sure they do not have tomato paste (Death to tomato paste!) or are Italian style (meaning they are probably from New Jersey, not Italy: actually two different places, as opposed to what cable TV leads you to believe).

On a side note, my friend Lou maintains that the onions are dispensable, Sicilian addition. I can’t bring myself to try it another way.

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From the back of a soup can, straight into my heart

Posted on October 12, 2007 | 3 Comments

Now, this recipe I did not get from Mom. This one came from the back of a soup can – College Inn Light & Fat Free Chicken Broth to be exact. I still have the label.

The only break from the recipe I make is with the spinach. I use frozen spinach, which is not as easy, but allows me to keep the spinach on hand whenever I need it.

When it’s time to add the spinach, I just throw the frozen square in the middle of the skillet and flip it occasionally to melt the spinach down. This will take quite a while – probably about 15 minutes – but when the spinach is all broken up, it will taste exactly the same.

Actually, I’m not sure of that since I’ve never made it with real spinach. I should probably try that.

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More than just meat sauce

Posted on October 10, 2007 | Leave a comment


OK, first thing’s first: this is not just tomato sauce with meat in it. Every time I see a crappy, low-rent Italian restaurant try pass off their regular marinara with some hamburger in it as “pasta bolognese,” I want to vomit. Fortunately, I restrain myself.

This, again, is another one of my mom’s recipes, passed down through the generations. Actually, I have no idea if she got this from a cookbook, but I like to think it was the generations thing.

I know you’re probably tired of hearing this, but I use ground turkey in my sauce to appease the little lady. Yeah, it’s not as rich or flavorful as veal, but I’m all about saving the baby cows. Come on, you know they’re cute! Remember when Bill Crystal played midwife to that calf in City Slickers? Just hang on to that memory and you’ll enjoy the turkey a lot more.

Anyway, I also use baby carrots because I’m lazy and they come pre-peeled. I find that filling up my 3-cup pulse grinder with them just about equals two full carrots.

As far as which pasta to use, this sauce goes best with the long noodles. I use fettucine or linguini, but the more traditional shape is tagliatelle. You can also use the smaller shapes, as long as they pick up the sauce – something like shells would do.

Top it off with a little Parmesan, and you’ve got a classic!

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The Ultimate Comfort Food

Posted on October 6, 2007 | Leave a comment


OK, not such a great picture, but you probably get the idea.

Pasta Ceci (pronounced “chay gee”) is really one of the most simple, yet comforting dishes in my arsenal. Instead of mashed potatoes or mac & cheese, this is my family’s go-to comfort food.

My mom always told me that this was a kind of peasant’s sauce. The story goes that in Italy, all of the leftover pasta shapes accumulated during the week are cooked together and tossed with the ceci for a nice, simple meal, or a warm-up for another main dish. I almost always use a full pound of pasta for my dishes, meaning that I don’t have the fun menagerie of shapes that is traditionally required. Instead, I usually use shells, farfalle or campanelle. Again, this is probably not a good recipe for long noodles.

Without the chickpeas, this can also be considered a basic Italian pasta sauce. Some of the old-school folks will simply saute the garlic in the oil, toss with pasta and throw a little bit of Parmesan over it.

I always need at least that one other ingredient (try broccoli, mushrooms or other things) to keep my taste buds happy.

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Always bet on brown

Posted on September 30, 2007 | 2 Comments

This is some good stuff. I’ve made two upgrades to the original recipe given to me by mamasito. First, the preparation of the chicken helps keep the meat juicier and gives it a nice little taste boost. In fact, I’ve used this technique – pound, salt & pepper, flour – to make a number of other chicken dishes and it always makes for a more positive experience.

The second thing I’ve added from another recipe: the lemon juice. You can add up to two tablespoons, depending on your preference. But definitely add a little; it really makes the chicken dance in your mouth.

As far as pasta shapes, I usually go with farfalle, gemelli or penne, although you can probably do just about anything. I’m not really a pasta snob, but I generally stay away from the long shapes (like spaghetti and linguine) for this dish. I’m also lazy and just make the whole pound of pasta, even though it’s probably more than you need.

Enjoy!

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My Favorite

Posted on September 24, 2007 | Leave a comment

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So, have you all tried this recipe yet? If so, you will have discovered that it’s the bomb! Seriously, it’s just about my favorite meal.

Like most of the recipes that will appear on this blog, it’s a hand-me-down from dear, old Mom. Although, I hope she’s not reading this, because she wouldn’t appreciate being called “old.” But I mean it in the most endearing way possible.

Anyway, since the wife is a semi-vegi (no cows, no pigs), I usually substitute ground turkey for the meatloaf mixture. Maybe I’m too used to it this way, but it’s damn good. Of course, the original formulation will yield a more rich stuffing. You may also need a crash cart.

Generally, I’m a Parmesan freak. I only use the real stuff on pasta (procured from DiBruno Brothers, natch). But when I’m using it more as an ingredient, I have been known to use the tube stuff. I know my Italian relatives are spinning in their grave, but I’ve made my peace with it.

Biggest danger in this recipe: the sauce. Mine tends to be on the soupy side. I need to let the water evaporate off in the last ten minutes to get it back down to an acceptable viscosity.

Let me know how yours turn out.

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