The Global Kitchen

Runners World magazine has turned out to be a great source for great recipes. These are courtesy of  Italian restaurant legend Joe Bastianich, who is also a marathoner.

The Pomodoro Sauce is so easy and so good I plan on keeping it on hand for last minute meals. I think the trick is to use San Marzano's which taste better than regular canned tomatoes. But regular will work too. Jim went back for seconds, which rarely happens even when he really likes something. He likes his meat but was left satisfied with his vegan dinner(he skipped the cheese).

I made the sauce a few days ahead of time. I didn't use rigatoni. I used whole grain fusilli. And my oregano is Turkish not Sicilian.


Pomodoro Sauce
Pomodoro (or tomato) sauce is the base for all of Chef Joe Bastianich's pasta dishes featured in these pages. Use a full batch of pomodoro for each recipe.

1/4 cup olive oil
3 garlic cloves, crushed
3 16-ounce cans of peeled, whole Italian plum tomatoes, such as San Marzano
1 teaspoon Sicilian oregano (optional)
1 teaspoon salt (or to taste) Today's food marathon begins with what
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Heat oil in a saucepan over medium. Add garlic and saute until golden brown, about three minutes. While garlic browns, pour tomatoes into a bowl. Squeeze with your hands to break them up. Add tomatoes and their juice to the saucepan. Add oregano (if using), salt, and pepper. Simmer on low for 45 minutes. Add a little water if needed to keep sauce from becoming too thick (it should be bright red; if it turns brick red, it's too thick). To make oreganata, simmer sauce with sprigs of fresh oregano. Make arrabiata by adding red pepper flakes to taste. Makes six one-cup servings.

CALORIES PER SERVING: 139
CARBS: 9 G
PROTEIN: 2 G
FAT: 9 G


Rigatoni a la Norma
"The very best eggplant is like filet mignon," says Bastianich. Here it's lightly fried "and incredibly tender and flavorful."

Pomodoro sauce
1 medium eggplant, peeled, then cut into one-inch cubes Salt and pepper to taste
4 tablespoons flour
2 garlic cloves, crushed
4 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1 medium onion, thinly sliced
1 pound rigatoni
6 tablespoons ricotta cheese

Boil a pot of salted water. Heat pomodoro in a saucepan. Sprinkle eggplant with salt. Place on paper towels to drain for 10 minutes, then dust with flour. In a saute pan on medium, saute one garlic clove in 1 1/2 tablespoons oil until golden. Add half the eggplant; saute until brown on the outside but tender inside. Place on paper towels to drain excess oil. Repeat with 1 1/2 tablespoons oil and remaining garlic and eggplant. In the same pan, saute onion in last tablespoon of oil until tender (seven minutes). Add to pomodoro sauce. Season with salt and pepper. Add pasta to boiling water. Two minutes before pasta is cooked, remove from water and add with the eggplant to the pomodoro sauce (with some pasta water if needed to keep the sauce liquid). Cook until pasta is tender. Divide into six servings. Top each with a tablespoon of ricotta.

CALORIES PER SERVING: 559
CARBS: 74 G
PROTEIN: 14 G
FAT: 21 G

OK so I didn't make dramatic changes but after trying on multiple looks I decided simple is best. I also discovered I'm low on patience when things that are supposed to work fail. I did add one element I really wanted which was a tag cloud. Much cleaner than a list. I'll continue to tweak here and there.

On to the food. I've made this several times and it's great! Company always seems to be impressed too. I strongly suggest making the sauce ahead of time and leaving it on a low burner to warm. My littleneck clams weren't so little so I put fewer than 12 on the plate. Depending on your appetite for clams you could get away with less if they're large and you have a lot of sides.

The vegetables are amazing! I make these at least once a week in the summer. The crunch of the panko and the tang of the dressing makes this so much better than plain grilled vegetables.

Grill Roasted Clam Linguine Recipe

Spanish-Style Grilled Vegetables with Breadcrumb Picada Recipe

Easiest appetizer ever! I used applewood smoked salmon and regular. I really liked the way the applewood tasted with the rosemary.

Asparagus and Smoked Salmon Bundles

Recipe courtesy Giada De Laurentiis

Ingredients

* 1 bunch asparagus, ends trimmed (about 20 spears)
* 2 tablespoons olive oil
* 1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary leaves
* Pinch kosher salt
* Pinch freshly ground black pepper
* 4 to 6 ounces thinly sliced smoked salmon (1 slice per asparagus spear)

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Lay the asparagus on a foil-lined baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil. Sprinkle with rosemary, salt, and pepper. Roast until cooked and starting to brown around the edges, about 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and transfer to another baking sheet to cool.

Once the asparagus have cooled, wrap each spear in a slice of smoked salmon. Arrange on a serving platter and serve at room temperature.

This is my second time making this dish and it's outstanding. It's a perfect vegetarian dish. Or a new years resolution dish for that matter. It's from Eating Well's Jan/Feb issue.

The first time I made this I didn't use a non-stick skillet because my large one does not have a lid. I used a sautee pan. Really it's better to use a nonstick skillet as I did the second time with a lid borrowed from another cookware set.

I also subbed crushed red pepper for the black pepper because I like spicy food. And because every can of Italian-style tomatoes at the regular grocery store had HFCS I went with a can of Hunts roasted garlic. I had Italian style the first time I made it and I really didn't taste the herbs so it was no biggie.

I found shelf stable gnocchi with the dried pasta on the top shelf. The brand is Ferrara. You could use some from the refrigerated section but that will cost more.

Recipe HERE

This isn't really bread soup but rather a bean and vegetable soup with croutons. This version is from Tuscany.

The croutons are easy to make and delicious. Just cube some bread(I bought one of those mini-baguettes). Heat some olive oil and a crushed garlic clove in a skillet. Add some salt and bread cubes. Toss until brown on all sides. Oh and do not leave the croutons on the counter. You will eat them every time you go stir the soup!

I used kale because it's one of those things that's really good for me but I don't eat enough of it. I've never had collards so I might try that next time.

The soup is hearty and excellent. Definitely use dried or fresh pod beans as they give the broth incredible flavor.

Bread Soup
Zuppa de Pane

Adapted from How to cook Everything Vegetarian by Mark Bittman

1 1/2 cup cranberry, pinto or other pink spotted bean. I used cranberry beans.
6 cups vegetable stock
2 medium onions, chopped
1 tsp fresh thyme or 1/2 tsp dried thyme
2 cups shredded savoy cabbage, spinach, kale, or collards
salt and fresh ground pepper
Croutons (see above)
chopped Italian parsley
Extra Virgin Olive Oil for garnish

Soak beans

Drain beans and combine with stock and one chopped onion. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer until beans are very soft(this took about an hour an 40 minutes). Stir occasionally. Add salt, pepper and greens and simmer until tender. Five minutes for spinach, 15 minuted for kale.

Stir in croutons and garnish with parsley, onions and a drizzle of olive oil.

My photo isn't half as pretty as the photo in Bon Appetit. But mine was very tasty. I cut back on the butter and skipped the olive oil.

Easy meal. This would be good over pasta.

My picture



Bon Appetit's photo and recipe

I've decided to start working my way through all the Rancho Gordo beans and various grains I have squirreled away.

I decided to start with RG's runner cannellini beans. I pre-soaked a cup of these bad boys for 2 hours, bringing the water to a boil first and keeping them covered.

Those I used in a salad inspired by THIS recipe on the RG website. I used fresh basil instead of oregano, canned tomatoes and olive oil and white wine vinegar. I spooned it on a bed of greens for lunch. It would also be a good filling in a whole wheat pita.



I soaked another half cup for the Farro-Mushroom soup.

Farro is my favorite grain and I need to eat more of it so choosing this recipe was a no brainer.

The farro-mushroom soup comes from Bittman's How to Cook Everything Vegetarian. He says it's from Lucca, Italy. I've been to Lucca and loved it. Anything that reminds me of Tuscany is a good thing.

The recipe actually starts as a farro soup with a mushroom adaptation. Lo and behold I had some dried porcini's so there was another item liberated from my pantry.



The soup is excellent but next time I'll use canned beans to reduce the cook time. I did use canned tomatoes.

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 large onion, sliced
2 celery stalks, trimmed and chopped
2 carrots, peeled and chopped Salt and pepper
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 cup farro, spelt or barley
1 cup dried white beans, soaked for several hours or overnight
2 cups chopped tomatoes (canned are fine; do not drain)
6 cups stock or water, more as necessary
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil,
optional Freshly grated Parmesan

Put oil in a large, deep saucepan over medium heat; a minute later add onion, celery, carrots, a large pinch of salt and some pepper. Cook until vegetables are glossy and onion is softened, 5 to 10 minutes. Add garlic, and stir; add farro, beans, tomatoes and stock, and stir.

Bring to a boil, then adjust heat so mixture simmers steadily. Cook until farro and beans are tender, at least an hour, adding stock or water as necessary if mixture becomes too thick. Stir in parsley and basil (if using), then cook another 5 minutes. Taste and adjust seasoning, then serve with lots of Parmesan

It's not really soup season here but I'm so freakin' tired of summer I had to do it! I'm hoping for cooler weather soon.

Also I sort of had all the ingredients on hand and by sort of I mean I used canned tomatoes. I also wanted to start digging into my stash of RG beans. I used borlotti beans.

I love the soup! It's pretty hearty so a green salad and some bread are all that's needed to round out the meal. If you use vegetable broth instead of water you could serve it whole instead of pureed and it would be excellent. I used an immersion blender for that step.

It's an all day soup. 8 hours to soak the beans and up to 3 1/2 hours cooking time. I'm not sure why the recipe on Epicurious said 50 minutes. It also makes the house smell really really good.




Tuscan Farro and Bean Soup
Gourmet August 2006
Adapted from Beth Elon, author of A Culinary Traveler in Tuscany

Servings: Makes 6 to 8 servings.

1 cup dried borlotti or cranberry beans
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil plus additional for drizzling
1 large onion, coarsely chopped
2 carrots, coarsely chopped
1 celery rib, coarsely chopped
2 garlic cloves, smashed and peeled
10 cups water
1 large tomato (1/2 lb), coarsely chopped
1/4 cup loosely packed fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves
10 fresh sage leaves
3 sprigs fresh thyme
1 cup whole-grain farro
2 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper

Pick over and rinse beans. Soak in cold water to cover by 2 inches at least 8 hours and up to 12 hours. Alternatively, quick-soak beans. Drain well.

Heat oil in a 5- to 6-quart heavy pot over moderate heat until hot but not smoking, then cook onion, carrots, celery, and garlic, stirring occasionally, until onion is softened, about 10 minutes. Stir in water, drained beans, tomato, parsley, sage, and thyme and bring to a boil, then reduce heat and cook at a bare simmer, partially covered, stirring occasionally and adding more water if necessary to keep beans covered, until beans are tender, 2 to 3 hours.

Discard thyme sprigs, then blend mixture in batches in a blender until smooth (use caution when blending hot liquids), transferring to a large bowl. Return soup to pot and bring to a boil. Add farro and salt, then reduce heat and simmer, stirring frequently, until farro is tender (it will be chewy like barley), about 30 minutes. Stir in pepper and serve drizzled with additional oil.

Cooks' Notes:
• To quick-soak, put beans in a 4- to 5-quart pot and cover with cold water by 2 inches. Bring to a boil, uncovered, then boil 2 minutes. Remove from heat and let stand, covered, 1 hour before draining.
• Soup can be made 5 days ahead and cooled completely, uncovered, then chilled, covered. Thin with water when reheating.

Another winner from Mario Batali Italian Grill!!

I've been finding recipes online but I think I'm going to have to check this book out at the library and try a few more recipes. If there's more success I'll add it to my collection.

My cookbook collection isn't large. It used to be. Or I thought it was until I learned there are people on the CL boards that have thousands of cookbooks. I thinned mine a few years ago when I realized I hadn't used a lot of them.

I decided before I buy a new cookbook I would check it out at the library first and try as many recipes as possible. If most of the recipes are great or if I check the book out more than once I either buy it or put it on my wish list. I get Amazon gift certificates at work on a regular basis and that is my cookbook budget.

Back to the artichokes.

I had all the ingredients on hand because I intended to make this earlier in the week. In my opinion artichokes are a PITA to prepare but the payoff is worth it. The heart is my favorite part and I always save it for last.

The chicken on the plate isn't interesting. It's just a boneless skinless breast I marinated in my home made vinaigrette and grilled.

The artichoke would be the perfect compliment to a steak!



Grilled Artichokes with Mint and Chiles

- serves 6 -
Adapted from Mario Batali Italian Grill by Mario Batali
Ingredients

6 large artichokes, preferably with stems
2 lemons, halved
1 bunch mint, chopped, stems and all, plus about 1/4 cup fresh mint leaves cut into chiffonade (thin slivers)
6 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 cup dry white wine
2 to 4 red jalapeños, diced or thinly sliced
Coarse sea salt
Procedure

1. Fill a large bowl with about 6 cups of water and add the juice of 1 1/2 of the lemons; add the 3 lemon halves too. Snap off the tough outer leaves from one artichoke until you come to the leaves that are pale yellow toward the bottom. Cut off the top 1 inch of the leaves. As you work, rub the cut surfaces with the remaining lemon half. Trim off the bottom of the stem and, using a paring knife, trim away the tough outer layer from the stem. Trim any dark green parts from the bottom of the artichoke. Halve the artichoke lengthwise and, using a grapefruit spoon or small sharp spoon, remove the fuzzy choke. Pull out the small purple inner leaves. Put the trimmed artichoke in the bowl of lemon water, and repeat with the remaining artichokes.

2. Combine the chopped mint, garlic, olive oil, and wine in a large pot. Add the artichokes and the lemon water, along with the lemon shells, then add more water if necessary to cover the artichokes. Put a pan lid on top of the artichokes to keep them submerged and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat, cover, and simmer until just tender, 15 to 20 minutes, depending on the size of the artichokes. Drain and allow to cool.

3. Preheat a gas grill or prepare a fire in a charcoal grill.

4. Place the artichokes cut side down over the hottest part of the grill and cook, unmoved, for 3 to 5 minutes, until nicely charred. Turn and cook for 5 minutes more, or until golden brown on the second side.

5. Place the artichokes on a platter and strew with the remaining mint and the jalepenos. Serve with a bowl of coarse salt.

I really wanted to do grilled artichokes with this but when I went to fire up my grill the flint was broken. Wah! Grill repairman comes Friday.

So I did this on my cast iron grill pan which filled the house with smoke but the end result was great! Be sure and scrape up any little charred bits. They're tasty!!

I made 2 mistakes-neither one ruined the dish:

-I forgot to put the parsley in the bread crumb mixture so I sprinkled it on the final dish.

-I missed the part of the recipe where the oil was supposed to sit overnight. Mine sat for a hour and I just skimmed some off with a spoon. I imagine my leftovers will be better.



Chicken Thighs with Snap Peas and Agliata

- makes 6 servings -
Adapted from Mario Batali Italian Grill by Mario Batali.
Ingredients

12 garlic cloves, crushed
1/2 cup plus 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 salt-packed anchovies, filleted, rinsed, and patted dry, or 4 oil-packed anchovy fillets, drained
1/2 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley
2 cups fresh bread crumbs
12 boneless, skinless chicken thighs
3 shallots, sliced 1/4 inch thick
1/2 teaspoon anchovy paste
1 pound snap peas, blanched in boiling water just until bright green, chilled in an ice bath, and drained
Olio Piccante for drizzling
Procedure

1. Combine the garlic, 1/2 cup of the oil, the anchovies, parsley, and bread crumbs in a food processor and zap until smoothish.

2. Put the chicken thighs in a large bowl and sprinkle with the bread crumb mixture, turning to coat well. Arrange in a single layer on a platter and put in the refrigerator for 15 minutes.

3. Prepare a gas or charcoal grill for indirect grilling.

4. Place the chicken thighs skinned side up on the cooler part of the grill, cover the grill, and grill, turning once, until the chicken is cooked through, about 15 minutes per side.

5. Meanwhile, heat the remaining 3 tablespoons oil in a 10- to 12-inch sauté pan over medium heat. Add the shallots and anchovy paste and cook, stirring occasionally, until the shallots are soft, about 5 minutes. Add the snap peas and cook, stirring, just until heated through. Transfer the snap peas to a platter and set aside.

6. Arrange the thighs on top of the snap peas and serve with a drizzle of olio piccante.

Olio Piccante

- makes about 1 1/2 cups -
Ingredients

2 cups extra-virgin olive oil
5 jalapeño peppers, coarsely chopped
1/2 cup hot red pepper flakes
1 tablespoon sweet paprika
Procedure

1. In a small saucepan, combine the oil, jalapeños, pepper flakes, and paprika and bring to just a simmer over medium heat.

2. Pour the oil (and all the flavorings) into a heatproof bowl and let cool, then cover and refrigerate for at least 8 hours, or overnight.

3. Strain the oil and keep refrigerated until ready to use. It can be stored in the refrigerator in a tightly sealed jar for up to 10 days—no longer.

The words "cheese gilded" sounded like heaven to me when I was reading The Splendid Table's How to Eat Supper. This is not as decadent as it sounds and makes a great Sunday afternoon dinner. I'd serve it as an informal meal to company.




Cheese-Gilded Linguine with Smoky Tomatoes

Serves 4 as a main dish

15 minutes pre time; 20 minutes stove time.
The sauce can be made 1 hour before serving.

You can buck up the personality of a bowl of pasta by merely switching the order of how grated cheese and tomato sauce are blended with the noodles. Bring in smoky flavors and a snap of chile, and you have a modern improvisation.

This cheese trick comes from Naples, where cooks make simple tomato-sauced pastas more substantial by tossing the pasta first with the grated cheese, then with the sauce.

* 5 quarts salted water in a 6-quart pot
* Extra-virgin olive oil
* 6 thick slices bacon, sliced into 1/4-inch-wide sticks
* 1 medium to large onion, chopped into 1/4-inch dice
* Salt and fresh-ground black pepper
* 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes, or to taste
* 5 large garlic cloves, minced
* 2-1/2 to 3 pounds delicious ripe tomatoes, cored and fine chopped (do not peel or seed); or one 28-ounce can whole tomatoes with their liquid, plus one 14-ounce can, drained(I used one can whole and one can chopped)
* 1 pound imported linguine
* 1 generous cup fresh-grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, plus more for the table

1. Bring the salted water to a boil.

2. Lightly film a straight-sided 12-inch saute pan with oil, add the bacon, and set over medium-high heat. Saute until the bacon is golden. Remove it with a slotted spoon, setting it on paper towels to drain. Pour off all but about 3 tablespoons of the fat from the pan.

3. Return the pan to the heat, and stir in the onions, salt and pepper, and red pepper flakes. Reduce the heat to medium. Sauté until the onions soften and start to color, 5 to 8 minutes.

4. Blend in the garlic, cooking for 1 minute, and then add the tomatoes. If using canned ones, crush them as they go into the pan. Stir in the cooked bacon. Bring the sauce to a lively bubble and cook until it is thick, 7 to 8 minutes, stirring to keep it from sticking. Remove from the heat, taste for seasoning, and cover the pan. The sauce can wait on the stovetop for up to an hour. Bring it to a bubble before adding it to the pasta.

5. Drop the pasta into the boiling water, and cook until it is tender but still a little firm to the bite. Drain, and turn it into a serving bowl. Toss with the 1 cup cheese until it clings to the noodles, then toss with the sauce. Serve hot, with additional cheese at the table if desired.

I realized out of all the countries I've cooked from I have not made anything from Italy. Strange because I LOVE Italian food! So I checked Cucina Del Sole; A Celebration of Southern Italian Cooking by Nancy Harmon Jenkins out from the library. The recipes look fantastic but there are no pictures! I like cookbooks with pictures!

Anyway, this version of spaghetti caught my eye because I had most of the ingredients on hand. She recommends using olive oil packed tuna. I used water packed because I cannot open a can of tuna in my house without having a yowling cat at my feet. I don't actually feed her the tuna but I do let her lick the can. I really didn't want to give her olive oil because I'm the one who cleans the litterbox. This recipe does work with water-packed tuna but I will tell you that if you use it you may want to increase the amount of olive oil in the paste as mine was a bit dry. I was also intrigued by salt packed capers. I've always bought the brined. I picked up a bottle of salt packed, rinsed one off and the flavor is different. Not suprisingly they're salty and lack the vinegar taste of the brined.

I liked this dish and will definitely make it again, although next time I will add more olive oil for the aforementioned reason and make it into more of a pesto. And I'll keep telling myself how good all this oil is for my heart. Mediterranean people live longer than a lot of us and diet has been credited.

I did not add any extra salt as the olives and capers provided enough. I also used multi-grain spaghetti. Safeway has a brand called Eating Right which has the same nutritional profile as Barilla Plus but I think it tastes better and it's cheaper.



Spaghetti alle Olive Verde
Spaghetti with Green Olives and Lemon Zest

3-4 Tbs Olive Oil
2 Garlic Cloves sliced
3/4 cup bread crumbs-preferably homemade
1/4 to 1/3 cup drained canned tuna preferably oil-packed
2 tbs capers, preferably salt packed, rinsed and drained
1/2 cup mixed flat-leaf parsley leaves and basil leaves
2/3 cup coarsely chopped pitted green olives(I got mine at the olive bar at the grocery store)
Sea Salt (I ommitted this)
Crumbled dried red chili (I used red pepper flakes)
1 lb spaghetti
Grated zest of one lemon

Combine 2 tbs of the olive oil with the garlic in a small skillet and cook over medium-low heat for a few minutes, stirring frequently until the garlic begins to brown. Remove the garlic slices from the oil and discard. Add the bread crumbs to the oil in the pan and toast, stirring frequently, until the crumbs are golden and crisp. Remove from the heat and set aside.

In a food processor combine the tuna through the olives and process to a coarse paste. Add 1-2 tbs of olive oil and procss again. Taste for salt and add salt(if desired) and the chili to taste.

Cook spaghetti. Toss in a large bowl with the paste. Add the lemon zest and toss again. Top with the bread crumbs and serve.

Makes 4-6 servings.