Continuing Italian

A little late I know, but grades were do at school so life has been busy. Now the cooking adventure can continue. As previously mentioned, mom and I had planned an Italian feast in an effort to celebrate our trip to Eataly. So early the next morning I rose (and worked out in order to prevent a total calorie extravaganza) and my mom headed to Kings to get some accessories for our meal along with some back up pasta in case our pasta making turned into a fettuccini fiasco.

I headed to my parents' house around 11am and the work quickly began. We started by making a quick pasta dough using Giada DeLaurentis' recipe, a pasta machine from Target, and some tips from Gian Carlo (the innkeeper at Podere Spedalone where I stayed in Tuscany). We then put the dough in the refrigerator and moved on to our next task: cannoli filling!

For this we used fresh ricotta cheese, a little bit of mascarpone cheese, chocolate, and orange zest. The ricotta cheese was from our trip to Eataly & was out of this world (available here) & we used Giardelli bittersweet chocolate (also highly recommended). It was delicious. I could have eaten the whole bowl with a spoon, but refrained due to the fact that two big hungry men would been appearing that evening. Instead, we placed it in the fridge to stuff the purchased shells right before serving so they wouldn't get mushy.

We then broke for lunch. A delicate panini from Eataly made up of prosciutto di parma with a few spoonfuls of Ligurian pesto (snuck through customs on my return from Italy) made for the perfect bite.

After lunch, we began our pasta adventure. We ran the pasta dough (separated into quarters) through the machine (with the help of my nephew Kenny). We laid the dough on the counter, spread flour atop it, and then rolled the dough up (like a jelly roll). We sliced it into 1/4 inch spirals that we handed to Kenny who let them unravel into beautiful pasta ribbons of fettucini. They were then tossed into a pile with flour & placed aside.

Next, we cleaned up the pasta making mess, set the table, arranged our meat & cheese platter, plated our figs & prosciutto. My mom threw some quick sausage in a pan to ensure that the hungry Irish men would not be saddened by the carb load we had planned with our pasta. In the meantime I did some searching of the net to make sure we knew what we were doing when it came to our stuffed zucchini blossoms. We had already decided on the stuffing (again based on my trip to Italy). It was to include more of that wonderful ricotta along with fresh mint & some salt & pepper.

As the gentleman arrived, we opened our chilled prosseco to drink & snack a bit before preparing the zucchini blossoms & pasta dish. We combined our fresh m ade breads wit h cheese, meat, & fruit spreads all from Eataly. The combination was a sweet, salty little bite of Italy. The gentleman moved onto football discussion and the kitchen beckoned for our return. We carefully stuffed each blossom, twisted the end, and planned to steam four & fry four. As four steamed away, we carefully placed the other four in a batter of fl our, seltzer, and fresh cut chives (a similar consistency to heavy cream) before putti ng them in the heated vegetable oil.



We called the boys to the table as they were each served zucchini blossoms two ways, fresh fettucini w/ truffle butter, and grilled sausage. The pasta recipe was from the Food Network's Ina Garten & the sausages were ala Barnicle! The mix of the creamy, earthy truffle butter with the smoky grill of the sausage created a delicious balance.



Finally, we finished with freshly stuffed cannolis, prosecco, & limoncello. All in all our evening was a great success & our bellies were quite full. This ended our night of Italian delights...next up will be the recipe for the sauces we made to pair with the butternut squash & spinach & cheese ravioli we also purchased during our trip.

Eataly...a quick & easy substitute for the real thing

So if you haven't heard, there's a new Little Italy in town, located not too far from Mulberry St, at 200 5th Avenue. Speaking as the Jersey girl I am, it's a nice walk from Penn Station, or if you're too lazy to walk on down, grab the 1 Train and head downtown.

My mom and I arrived early, as in 3 minutes before opening, on a Thursday morning in order to avoid crowds and lines and of course to get our hands, eyes, and stomachs on the very best they had to offer us. The method to our madness began, as any smart foodie knows, with a scouting mission. We were sure to check everything out before purchasing or more importantly making choices about where & what we were going to eat.

The doors opened to a beautiful selection of fruits and vegetables (Yes, I should have brought my camera), we ooed and aahhed before moving into the center area where we ended up splitting up as we roamed around. After about a half hour or so of strolling around & making our way to the other entrance, I needed a treat. First up, Cappuccino & brioche, the same way I started every morning in Italy. With one bite, my taste-buds flew right over the ocean and forced my not yet hungry mother to taste both, and she too was delighted by the sweet, light, flakiness of the brioche & the depth of the Cappuccino. YUM.

While finishing up, we officially decided we were on a mission to create a homemade Italian feast the following evening. We headed straight back to the vegetables where I purchased (with unbelievable excitement) Zucchini blossoms. If you haven't tried them, they are absolutely delicious. Whether they are stuffed with cheese or anchovies or fried or steamed they are worth the extra effort. I have only ever had them in Italy & at a small family run Italian restaurant in my hometown, but if you find them, go for it. We also bought figs and some blood oranges before heading off to the pasta lady (I don't know if there is an official term for that), cheese monger, and the butcher. After loading up on three types of ravioli, Pecorino de Nocce, the most delicious Ricotta cheese I've ever had, salami, prosciutto, and some fresh bread (pancetta/parmesan & olive), we had worked up quite an appetite.

Again as well practiced foodies looking to fit as much as possible into our tummies, we devised a plan to hit Verdure (the vegetable restaurant), Pesce (the fish restaurant) and La Piazza (a combo of pretty much everything) and sample appetizers and some vino at each. At Verdure, we split the special bruscetta, an absolute mouthful of earthy goodness (spaghetti squash, brown butter, aged balsamic, sage, and Parmesan cheese) & the Frito Misto (a beautiful bright platter of perfectly fried fresh vegetables). The batter was light & perfectly seasoned, even my salt loving mother thought the season was up to par. And of course a glass of the house Prosecco.

We moved on to Pesce where I had a 1/2 dozen raw oysters and my mom ordered the bay scallops with a small salad of chervil resting on top of a good size serving of scallops. I then watched (in amazement) as the waiter grated fresh horseradish on each of my oysters. In the center of the iced dish was a vinaigrette that balanced the dish perfectly, and for those of you also amazed by the fresh horseradish, don't be too impressed. It actually isn't that hot when it's fresh :). After finishing up our last sip of Prosecco, we headed of to La Piazza to get some, "Salumi & Formaggi."

Here, we ordered the Grande Piatto Misto, which was a nice helping of five meats and five cheeses served with a delicious multi-grain bread (that we then went and bought) and honey, a fig & red pepper relish, and candied orange rind. WOW is all I can say about the entire experience there. Unfortunately, they are not yet selling these delicious assortments at Eataly; however, we did head over to the jam/preserve area to get some fig, pear, and apricot spread. We had a glass of red wine to finish things up & headed off to a buy some of the wonderful things we had just tasted.

Before leaving we also of course had gelato, Pistachio & Vanilla. Both were smooth with rich flavors; it was the perfect end to an incredible day. In the end, we headed back to Penn Station with the following menu planned.

Salami & Cheese Platter
Olives
Figs Wrapped in Prosciutto (if you haven't had this, go to the store now & buy it--you'll feel like a queen)
Stuffed Zucchini Flowers Two Ways (Fried & Steamed)
Homemade Fettuccini w/ Truffle Butter
Canolis (store bought shells but homemade filling)

And of course some Prosecco, Red Wine & Limoncello

It was quite an Italian feast for these two Irish girls. In the end, if you're a foodie, a trip to Eataly is a must. If you're looking for more info, be sure to check out the links below & stay tuned for some delicious recipes from the feast :)

New York Times Review
Eataly Website

A New Endeavor

For years, my mother and I have talked about opening a restaurant, a stand at a market, a cute food specialty store in town, or just trying to make our way in the food world. However, before we take a plunge that involves finances, I've decided it's time for us to blog about it. Seems weird I know, but as someone incredibly involved in the world of education, (I'm a teacher by day & sometimes late into the night) I was already into the blogging thing and I thought this might be the perfect place for my mom and I to get our itch scratched...or our garlic minced :).

First a little bit about us & how we have become what our friends define as major foodies. Growing up, my mom was a full-time mom whose husband was a teacher, coach, ref, umpire, rec director, and any other odd job that would make ends meet so my mom could stay home to take care of me & my brother. My mom married at the young age of 24, & as she claims, "had no idea how to cook." Based on her current ability & her constant humility though, I highly doubt that :). Anyways, as I grew up, we ate the regulars: spaghetti and meatballs, macaroni and cheese, meatloaf and mashed potatoes. As a curious & adventurous little red-head, I wanted to help. My mom was as patient as possible as I stirred the rue for the macaroni & cheese over the edge of the pot & consistently put the mixer on higher than it should be. Over the years, we spent hours together in the kitchen whether it was me doing the things my mom hates like grating cheese, pulling pomegranate seeds out, or stirring risotto or working together to make cookies for my dad's classes, holiday breads for the neighbors, or a care package for my then long distance college boyfriend. Over the years my mom went from her spaghetti & meatballs (which are delicious by the way) to risotto, beer battered soft shell crabs, and delicious homemade cream puffs.

Now at the ripe age of 30, I spend a good amount of time cooking at my own place, either for me, my current boyfriend, or my friends, and luckily, I know mom is always just a phone call away if I need to double check a recipe, or, more importantly make sure, "this is what it's supposed to look like?!"Obviously we have no real culinary background or training, but overall my mom and I (and my father & boyfriend by default), spend a large amount of time talking about food, cooking food, reading about food, eating food and creating adventures around food (Our latest being a trip to Eataly this past Thursday). In the end, we have an awful lot to share including recipes, tips, places to visit, things to try, and of course our love for food. Up next a post about our trip to Eataly (2nd only to the real thing...my two week adventure in Italia). Until then, keep the stove hot...