Category Archives: Appetizer

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Squash Blossoms

I used to work with a guy that grew up in Italy. Like me, he loved to cook.

I asked him one day — “Alessandro, what’s your favorite thing to make?”, thinking I’d get a pasta dish or a great pizza recipe.

“They’re really hard to find, but when I can get them…squash blossoms. No question”

As it happens, a few weeks later I was in a farmers’ market and saw a nice looking bundle of squash blossoms. Without overthinking it, or finding a recipe, or planning anything out, I grabbed them.

The difficulty with squash blossoms is that you have to use them immediately. Like, same day. We had other dinner plans that night, but this opportunity was too good to pass up — I had never cooked these before myself, and I don’t think I’ve even eaten them in a restaurant.

A quick search found a simple recipe of mint, parmesan, egg. Whisk the filling together, and pack it into a ziplock bag. Cut the corner off, and pipe it into the blossom.

Then, whisk together some flour and some very cold club soda. Give each blossom a quick dip, and then fry in a heavy cast iron pan with 375 degree oil until you get a nice golden brown color.

Dip them into some warm tomato sauce immediately after frying — if you’re not close to burning your mouth, you’re waiting too long. These are best right out of the oil. (Ok, but don’t actually burn yourself).

What really works here is the delicate tips of the flower grab a nice coating of the batter and get super crispy. The creamy minty savory filling works perfectly with the crunch and sauce to deliver an addictive appetizer.

Good call Alessandro!

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Monster From the Deep

I’ve always been a little apprehensive to cook octopus. Read about it on web, and mostly what you’ll find are remedies to make the meat tender. Some advocate hitting it exactly 73 times against a rock near the water front (yes, has to be along the water front). Others say you have to leave it hanging in the sun for at least 3 days. My favorite — boil it with a cork. Perhaps a tipsy cook dropped his wine stopper into the pot once, and found that the meat seemed to be especially edible afterwards. Who knows.

I love this picture -- it just seems to scream "sea monster"

I love this picture — it just seems to scream “sea monster”

The truth is, cook it right, and the octopus will reward you with pleasantly firm, oh-so-slightly chewy, mild flavored meat. I’ve had it a few ways — in pasta, cold, in salads — but nothing compares to a hint of char and the citrusy tang of the Greek Holy Trinity: olive oil, oregano, and lemon. I made the dish as an appetizer, but found myself unable to devour about 2 out of the 3 pounds. (And at $3/pound, it’s about the best taste for your buck you can find!)

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I boiled mine for about 45 minutes with a bay leave, some wine, and yes, a cork (it would be toying fate to forego one). You’ll know it’s done when piercing it with a knife feels a bit like piecing a potato. If in doubt, cut off a small piece and see if it’s still overly chewy.

From there, I tossed it in black pepper, olive oil, oregano, lemon and salt and allowed it to marinade for a few minutes. I grilled it for about 10 minutes over high heat — enough to get a bit of char on the outside but not overcook, and then removed it. I added a bit more of the pepper/oil/lemon/oregano vinaigrette and served it over a bed of garlic spinach. A few dashes of aleppo pepper added some nice color and a hint of spice.

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Showin’ Off Your Mussels

Mussels are a special occasion food — the best I’ve ever had was at the Auberge du Soleil hotel bar in Napa, California. The Auberge bar is perched on a hill, overlooking the entire valley. The cocktails were great, the mussels were spectacular. Sure, a big part of the experience was the view and the company, but the Staube pot filled with buttery broth, heady herbs and meaty mussels alongside a loaf of crusty bread certainly capped everything off.

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But here’s a little secret — for all the fanfare, mussels are surprisingly easy to make. I’d certainly consider them one of the best bang-for-your-buck dishes out there. Trying to impress a girl (or guy) with a great dinner on a special occasion? You can’t go wrong with mussels and champagne. They’ll take you about 20-25 minutes, start to finish, and most of that time they’re just sitting in the pot, soaking up flavor.

Start by picking up a bag of mussels at the store — look for minimal cracked shells and a fresh scent that smells like the ocean. When you get them home, spot check them all as you drop them into a cool bowl of a water, throwing away any cracked or open (a little open is OK, a lot open is not) ones. Let them sit in the water for about 5-10 minutes to clean them off.

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The broth is the fun part — Ina Garten has a complicated recipe that takes an hour and looks delicious. I, on the other hand, typically just wing it — the essential parts are butter, herbs, white wine and garlic. Preheat the oven to about 350 degrees for your bread. Start by adding about 2 Tbsp of butter (more is better) to a cast iron dutch oven or large saucepan. If you have about 1/2 of a finely chopped onion or a shallot, add it and cook until soft, about 4 minutes. Add 2 cloves of minced garlic and a sprig of fresh thyme (or about 1/2 tsp of dried thyme). If you’re feeling complicated, you can add in a teaspoon of flour at this stage and brown it a bit — it will thicken the final broth slightly. From here, add about 1/2 bottle of white wine (or less wine and some chicken broth or water if you prefer) and bring to a simmer. Pour out the cold water that your mussels are swimming in and add them to the pot — you don’t need to cover them all with liquid, as steam will cook the upper ones. Now is also a good time to put the bread in the oven.

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Put a lid on the pot and cook the mussels for about 10 minutes, or until all of them are opened. Serve alongside the bread, and throw away any mussels that didn’t open. Crack a bottle of champagne, and you’re an instant hero.

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Shhh! Sardines, the Superfood

My introduction to sardines, like many people, came when I was about 5 years old, sitting in front of the TV. Almost without fail, on Saturday morning cartoons, a cat would get tossed into a trashcan, and come out with a sardine tin, top rolled back, stuck to his head. Not exactly appetizing, to say the least.

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Fast forward, 2012.

 

What kinds of foods are people into these days? High protein, low carb, low calorie. Omega-3 fatty acids. Sustainable fish. Deliciousness. Inexpensive never hurts either.

 

Sardines nail all of this. Protein? 17g per serving. Carbs? Zilch. Calories? 130 per can. Omega-3s? 1300mg per serving. Calcium? 25% daily value. Sodium? Just 8% daily value.

 

I’ve blogged about fresh sardines before, and decided they weren’t worth the effort. Prepared right, canned ones are just as good. My favorite canned variety is Brunswick, packed in spring water. They’re less than $1.50 per tin, and they can hang out on your shelf for a long time. No refrigeration.

 

Ok, so now I’ve convinced you that they’re one of the healthiest, sustainable, shelf-friendly, inexpensive and easy foods. Now, the big question — how do you transform them from fishy to fabulous?

 

My favorite way to enjoy sardines is broiled, with a sprinkle of herbes de provence (available in your grocery store), freshly cracked black pepper, olive oil, and lemon. If you don’t have herbes de provence (and you should, they are magic on fish), some oregano and thyme will be almost as good. Sprinkle the herbs and pepper on the fish, drizzle with olive oil, and throw under the broiler for 3-5 minutes, until sizzling. Take them out and top with a bit of lemon juice — fresh is great if you have it, but RealLemon tastes good too.

 

Something about this magical combination completely erases all traces of fishiness and goes perfectly with the flavor of the sardines. Scoop them up with a good cracker (I like Rosemary and OIive Oil Triscuits) and they’ll quickly become your go-to snack. You’ll be eating like a king in under 10 minutes. But keep the secret to yourself — if people realize how good this underrated food is, they might start flying off the shelf!

 

 

Recipe — Mediterranean Sardines
1 can sardines (Brunswick packed in spring water, or other)
Sprinkle of Herbes de Provence (or thyme and oregano)
Sprinkle of fresh black pepper
Sprinkle of lemon juice
Drizzle of olive oil
Salt, if desired
Crackers (Triscuits or other)

 

Drain can of sardines. Place in small oven-safe dish in a single layer. Sprinkle with herbs and black pepper. Drizzle with olive oil.

 

Broil for 5 minutes or so until sardines are sizzling and small delicious. Remove from broiler and top with lemon juice, to taste.

 

Eat voraciously with crackers.