Tomato

Meaty Porcini Marinara

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This week’s cooking spree continued with homemade “meaty marinara.” I call it this because marinara is traditionally a tomato sauce and a Bolognese is a meaty version of marinara in a round-about-way. But, to the dismay of Italian cooks everywhere, I made a bastardized version of both and have chosen to call it meaty marinara. It was my first ever attempt at making either marinara (not surprising since I do not eat marinara) or meat sauce, and it was really – ummm -incredible. This accompanied turkey and arugula pizza pockets, but it would be wonderful tossed with fresh pasta and a bit of cheese, tossed with gnocchi, or made into a pizza sauce. If you choose to use Porcini, you will need to be dried as they only grow in Italy and must be imported. You can either grind them or you can reconstitute them in liquid before adding them to the sauce. This is a great sauce to make and then let hang out on the stove whilst you turn your attention to something else. Additionally, it gets better the longer it sits and this includes fridge time. Make a big batch and freeze it or use it to make three different dishes over a three or four day span.

I fear I must apologize as this “recipe” was concocted in true Andiland style. I threw stuff in a pan (without measuring as always) and then adjusted as necessary. The measurements I provide below are guesses at best, feel free to adjust to your preferences.

Note: I did not add celery to my Soffrito, only garlic, onions, and carrot. I did use celery seed in the sauce as a replacement. You can use whichever you like.

Meaty Porcini Marinara

Two slices Bacon
1/3 pound of Hot Italian Pork Sausage (bulk)
Four Large Shallots, sliced
12 Cloves Garlic, whole and slightly crushed (skin removed)
3/4 Tube of Good Quality Tomato Paste
Two Tablespoons Butter
Red Wine (I used a Malbec), about a half a cup
Beef Broth, about 2 and a half cups
Chicken Broth, about a half cup (this was added to thin the sauce out some and is optional)
About a quarter cup of porcini mushrooms, either ground or reconstituted
Three tablespoons Herbs de Provence and Italian Seasoning, split
A couple good pinches of salt
Three tablespoons black pepper
One large carrot, diced
One tablespoon celery seed (or a few stalks of celery cut into large dice)
One tablespoon crushed red pepper flakes (adjust according to preferences)
12 campari tomatoes on the vine, halved and gently squeezed of seeds
Fresh torn basil for garnish

In a large dutch oven, heat a couple glugs of olive oil over a medium heat high. Once fat is smoking, add bacon (or its porky sub) and all to crisp. Then add hot Italian sausage and brown slightly. Push meat to the side and add the soffrito (carrot, onion, garlic, celery seed) with a touch of salt. Once the onions turn glassy, add the tomatoes, salt, pepper, HDP and Italian Seasoning, Crushed Red Pepper, Tomato Paste, Ground Mushroom, and give a good stir to mix everything well. Then add in wine and broth (in 1:2 ratio), reduce heat and cover. Allow to simmer for a few hours (I cooked it for about four hours). Adjust seasoning as necessary. Once you are ready to serve, use an immersion blender to partially puree the mixture. Top with basil and serve or reserve for use with pasta else.

A few ideas of uses for this sauce:

Dipping Sauce for Pizza Pockets
Sauce for pasta and veggies
Lasagnameat sauce
Served individually with a little bit of cheese and fresh basil
Pizza sauce

Arugula Panzanella Salad

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The only redeeming quality about having 100 plus degree temperatures for forty straight days is knowing it is officially summer. Summer produces tomatoes that are to die for, no pun intended in this heat. Farmers come to market boasting the seasons best attribute – these red globes of sweet, sweet pleasure. Every time I leave the market, I find myself worrying about hurting my precious bounty as if were my own child I were protecting from bruising. Just looking at an heirloom tomato on my kitchen counter makes me want to call off whatever obligations I had and make a plate of food deserving of its glory. This is a lovely way to let summer ingredients shine and satisfy your urge to fill your mouth with one of the best natural flavors on earth – the perfectly ripe, sweet, succulent, juicy tomato. Needless to say summer heirlooms can turn even the most avid tomato-hater into a convert in no time (and if they cannot turn you, I highly suspect that you club baby seals or hate puppies). Kidding aside, I almost missed my work out class on Friday because I could not stop eating this ridiculously amazing salad.

Panzanella is a salad that is quite common throughout Italy. There are hundreds, if not thousands, of versions but it traditionally is a method for using up old bread. If you do not have any day old bread, you can either buy some or omit it (though then the name changes “pane” being Italian for bread). It is perfect for a light dinner or lunch or served as a salad along side a more substantial main or as a stand alone appetizer. I used what I had, but feel free to play around with it and add items like red onions or fresh mozzarella cheese.

Arugula Panzanella Salad

Serves Four

One recipe Simple Arugula Salad
Two or Three large Summer Heirloom tomatoes (gauge number on size of tomato), cut into one inch pieces
Day old Italian Country Bread or similar, cut into half-inch pieces
One tablespoon olive oil (or flavored of choice)
Salt
Freshly cracked black pepper
Extra shaved cheese such as Pecorino Romano if desired
Spoonful of Caramelized Onions, minced red onion, or thinly sliced shallot (Optional)

On a baking sheet, combine olive oil and bread and toss to coat. Toast in an oven for about 5 minutes, then toss and continue toasting until the outside is crunchy and the inside remains soft. Whilst the bread is toasting, combine the arugula salad and tomatoes in a large bowl. Gently toss with Salt and Pepper to taste and drizzle just a touch of good olive oil and toss once more. Once bread is toasted, combine into salad mixture and add additional cheese tossing, gently, one more time.  Enjoy the simple pleasure of summer tomatoes and forget about the ridiculous heat for a few minutes!

Beautiful market heirloom

Smoked Tortilla Soup

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You know those days that you just cannot decide what you want to eat? The days when nothing sounds good, but you have 95 percent of the components of four different dishes that desperately need to be used up. Yesterday was one of those days in Andiland. I finally decided that I would get the remaining 3 elements that I needed for a stir fry (basically just needed a protein) and to make tortilla soup, thinking that if I made both I could have the soup for lunch or just freeze it. Fast forward to actually getting home and cooking dinner and I was just too tired to cook both – so soup was on the menu. I have always thought that the name of tortilla soup is funny. For starters, I do not eat tortilla chips with my tortilla soup – at this point does it just become Mexican tomato soup with chicken? I guess tortilla soup stills sounds better. Then you have people claiming to have roasted tortilla soup. What is roasted? The tomatoes? The Chicken? Could be anything or nothing really. Then you have smoked tortilla soup – when can also be chicken or the peppers. In my case I suppose I made Smoked non-tortilla tortilla soup because I used smoked chipotle peppers in adobo. Good enough for me! The beauty of this soup is that it is flavorful, can be adapted any which way, is healthy (go light on the cheese), and can easily be a pantry meal when you cannot get to the store. Additionally, you can make this in 30 minutes or let it slow cook. It is also adaptable for vegetarian diets (leave out the chicken) and has no gluten or dairy (omit cheese) so it can be great for those sensitivities.

Note: I would have rather used fresh, roasted tomatoes but I only had one and a can of fire-roasted crushed tomatoes – so that is what went in. I think I should have used a little less as the end result was a bit too tomatoey (though I could have added more stock – just did not want to make a HUGE portion). Additionally, I used chipotle peppers in adobo as my main source of spice – feel free to use dried chipotle peppers, cayenne, jalapeno, or whatever your pleasure is. I used a little more than half a can, I think I could have used a bit less. The end result was quite spicy and smoky, not necessarily a bad thing as D and I like both elements very much, but cooking for others I would have reduced it.Also, I hate bell peppers. Normally you would put some in a tortilla soup, but given my aversion, I could only manage to put maybe a quarter in (it was pre-diced as well because I cannot stand the smell of bell peppers at any stage of their journey).

Tortilla Soup, Serves 3-4

One can Muir Glen Organic Fire-Roasted Tomatoes (Crushed, Diced, or Whole)
One Medium Tomato, roughly chopped
Four cups chicken broth
One White Onion, diced
Six cloves garlic, minced
Two tablespoons Cumin Seeds
One tablespoon Adobo
Two tablespoons Oregano
One Tablespoon Ground Coriander
One Tablespoon Tumeric powder
One Tablespoon Garlic powder (optional)
Nine Sprigs Fresh Thyme
One cup frozen sweet corn (optional)
One quarter green bell pepper, diced (use more if desired)
One Chicken breast, shredded (pre-cooked or cooked in soup, can also use dark meat with same method)
Juice of one lime
Salt and Pepper to taste

Garnish

Avocado Slices
Chopped Fresh Cilantro
Shredded Monterrey Jack Cheese
Fresh Fried Corn Tostadas
Lime Wedges

Heat a small amount of olive oil in a stock pot. Once heated, add the onions, cumin seeds, and garlic to the pan with a pinch of salt. If using chicken, place that in pan as well to brown the outsides.* Stir and allow to cook for a couple of minutes then add all ground spices. Add broth and tomatoes to pan, stir well. Add bell peppers (this should be done with the onions, but I cannot stand the smell of them cooking so I added them to the liquid) and thyme sprigs. Let the mixture simmer for about 30 to 40 minutes – you can actually make this a very quick meal or a slow-cooked meal if you prefer. The flavors will be more developed the longer it cooks so if you have the time to start it and let it sit for about two or three hours that will be fine. After about 30 minutes, add the lime juice and about a half cup to a cup of fresh chopped cilantro. Ladle soup into bowls and serve with a small garnish bowl of avocado, fresh cilantro, a lime wedge, shredded cheese and a freshly fried whole tortilla (heat a small amount of oil in a pan and fry corn tortilla one each side until it bubbles and curls).

*If using pre-cooked chicken, shred and add in about 10 minutes from when you will ladle soup out so that chicken does not over-cook. If using raw chicken, brown on all sides with onions, then allow chicken to slowly cook with the simmering stew (about 40 minutes). Remove from pan and shred if necessary, if using wings, legs, and thighs then remove bones from soup before serving.

Pico de Gallo

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Pico is one of the easiest things to make. I am not sure why anyone buys the store bought stuff – I guess there is an argument for time-savings, but the flavor, cost, and satisfaction is just so much better with homemade (and buying store bought really only saves you about ten minutes). Pico – at its best in the summer with the amazing summer tomatoes – is fast, fresh, healthy, and versatile.

Serves 8

Four large tomatoes, seeded and diced
3/4 to one whole white onion (to taste); small dice
Salt
Pepper
Juice of one to two limes depending on taste
Two Jalapenos, seeded and finely diced
1.5 cups fresh cilantro

Combine all ingredients in a bowl and mix gently. Flavors will develop more over time or serve immediately. That simple.

Longhorn Pizza

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This pizza will be called the Longhorn Pizza because even though our beloved Horns (and Cubs and Red Sox) lost in the College World Series opening day, D and I still won. In a BIG, grandslam kind of way. This pizza was awesome. It had a perfect crust, had excellent flavor and was just completely satisfying. All for a whooping price of $4.33, which represents the cost of the dough that I purchased from Rounders. Short background, D and I both were craving pizza and cannot spend money because we are savings for our upcoming trip to the Yucatan. We had been game-watching with wonderful friends at a bar downtown and they had a pizza menu – I tried it and it was not good. Mediocre at best, but the damage was done….I wanted some pizza! I needed to use up some stuff at home – mainly two tomatoes. I also had a small sprinkling of other items that had been previously purchased and needed to be used. So….stopped by Rounders on the way home and got to prepping. End result…AMAZINGNESS!!!! This was hands down the best pizza that I have made, ever (and I like my pizzas that I have made before). Let’s just go ahead and add pizza to the growing list of things I cannot eat out anymore. Shucks but my belly sure was happy. I served this with Garlic Knots that were made from the leftover dough (since there is enough for at least two ten inch pizzas)!

Favorite Pizza Dough
1/2 cup Basil Pesto
Salt and Fresh Ground Black Pepper
One Shallot, thinly sliced
Six Cloves Garlic, minced
2.5 tablespoons of Crushed Red Pepper
3/4 cup of Monterrey Jack, shredded
3/4s cup of Mozzarella, shredded
One half chicken breast, previously cooked with a salt, pepper, thyme, and cayenne crust – sliced roughly
Handful of baby spinach (I had every intention of using this, but forgot to add it – feel free to keep or omit)
8-10 fresh basil leaves, chiffonade
2 beefsteak tomatoes, sliced into quarter-inch pieces and seeded

Roll dough on a flat surface to desired thickness (I prefer thin crust so I roll mine somewhat thin). Place dough on an aerated pizza baking tray (I have found that my aluminum pizza tray with holes in the bottom makes the best crust, crunchy on the outside and chewy inside, but feel free to use your traditional stone or a cookie sheet if that is what you prefer). Spread the Pesto in a circular motion around the dough. Salt, pepper, and sprinkle dough with crushed red pepper. Sprinkle the sauce with garlic and shallots, followed by spinach if you are using this ingredient. Then top with cheese, followed by the chicken. Place tomatoes on the dough until entire surface is almost covered. Salt and pepper (and crushed red pepper) to taste and place in a 400 degree oven. Bake until the Crust is golden brown and the cheese is melted and the tomatoes are good and roasted. Upon removal from the oven, add the basil leaves and serve immediately.

Roasted Tomato Soup with Garlic Crisps

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Homemade tomato soup, as simple as it is, has never graced the insides of my pans. This is not due to some sort of prejudice against tomato soup, on the contrary, there are few things better than a hot bowl of tomato soup with a lovely grilled cheese toastie to accompany it when you are sick or not in the mood to cook. Honestly, I am not really sure why I have never made this before, but, I can assure you that this will become a more regular meal (even if only cooked one per week for a light lunch for a couple of days).

The story behind the roasted tomato soup: Because D and I are leaving on a family vacation for a family wedding in DC on Thursday, we did not want to go to the store to buy any food. This ended up working out quite well because no one was going to be at the lake so there were a ton of tomatoes and fruit that needed to be eaten and they came home with us. There were six large tomatoes and one and half pints of cherry tomatoes. So I said well I can make little ears one night and make bruschetta for lunch for a couple days. So last night comes around, I had switched the plan to little ears that night and tomato soup and grilled cheese the next night. Of course in Andiland, plans are frustratingly fluid and Little Ears night rolls around but my stomach, like it regretfully is prone to, was acting up quite mercilessly. I decided I just wanted some soup and not any filling pasta (that I would inevitably eat too much of). Ergo, I began trying my hand at tomato soup whilst D obliged me in making a large bowl of mango salsa (unrelated meal – I had bought the stuff to make it on Sunday and needed to make it so the food would not spoil). I also decided to forgo the grilled cheeses – in an effort to maintain some sort of session-weight-loss-get-my-2010-body-back diet. I did however pull some Rosemary Sourdough bread out of the freezer, grilled it and gave it a good spread of basil pesto – sorry, I just can’t have soup without bread no matter what diet I am on. I thought that the soup was fantastic and D wholeheartedly agreed – not surprising given his love of all things roasted tomato. I do fear that I will be making this (and the accompanying mess) once a week during the tomato months aka summer. You can make this as healthy or as unhealthy as you choose. Personally, I do not care for loads of cream (though loads of butter is fine by me) as I think it diminishes the sweetness of the summer tomatoes and I have issues eating dairy (and have begun using vegan products in lieu of dairy in many instances).

Notes of interest: I had six or seven (cannot remember for the life of me) larger tomatoes (cluster vine type and size) and I supplemented those with one and a half pints of cherry tomatoes. Feel free to use more large tomatoes and omit the cherry tomatoes – I was just using up what I needed to. You can also supplement fresh tomatoes with jarred roasted tomatoes, but I can promise roasting the fresh tomatoes will yield a better tasting product. In a pinch, I won’t hesitate to use stored tomatoes, but I will know the difference. Another note: feel free to roast a whole head of garlic and then squeeze the amazingly sweet garlicky paste out into the soup once they are done. I did not want to put the effort in for this but it would be amazing. Final note: Feel free to skip the shaved cheese topping on the soup and make grilled cheese or cheese toasts.


Roasted Tomato Soup – Serves three to four

Seven cluster tomatoes on the vine, halved, cored and seeded
One and a half pints of Cherry or Grape tomatoes
One Vidalia onion, diced
A couple shallots, sliced (optional)
8 cloves garlic, minced plus 2 cloves garlic, sliced paper-thin, to use for garnish
2 tablespoons Herbs de Provence (can sub Italian seasoning)
A couple of glugs of garlic olive oil
Salt and Black Pepper, generous amount but to taste
3 to 4 tablespoons Crushed Red Pepper, to taste
3 cups chicken or vegetable stock (I used chicken)
2 tablespoons butter
2 cups fresh basil leaves, chopped plus six leaves julienened for garnish
1/4 cup shredded or shaved Pecorino for garnish
Ten Thyme Sprigs, One Rosemary Sprig – made into a bouquet garni (optional)

Pre-heat oven to 400. Combine tomatoes with garlic olive oil, Herbs de Provence, salt and Pepper, garlic, and onion. Roast, with the inside of the tomato facing upwards, for about 40 minutes.

Heat butter and a dash of olive oil in a stock pot. Once heated, add entire contents of roasting pan (including juices) to the stock pot. Add a pinch of salt, crushed red pepper, chicken stock, cherry tomatoes, bouquet garni, some fresh ground pepper and let simmer for about 20 minutes. Add  seasoning to taste. Stir well. Using an immersion blender (or food processor if you do not have an immersion blender), puree the soup until smooth. Most people will tell you to now strain the soup, but I like the rustic consistency of the soup as it is without straining it – plus I did not want to make the effort for this as it was already 9:30 pm. Let the soup simmer for a few minutes longer and heat a good amount of oil (enough to cover the paper-thin garlic) in a small fry pan. Once hot, fry the garlic chips until golden brown, remove from pan and place on a paper towel to absorb excess oil. Meanwhile on a griddle, or in a Panini maker, place two slices of buttered Rosemary Sourdough bread and grill until golden brown. Remove and spread with basil pesto (optional).

Spoon soup into bowls and top with shaved cheese, julienned basil, and garlic chips (and an optional dollop of goat cheese or creme fraiche). Serve with grilled pesto toast.

Little Ears

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One of my favorite pasta dishes is one that created on a particularly lazy “let’s hang out and not go to the store” night. My friend Kelly and I were having a slumber party and the menu was based on the ingredients that we had that desperately needed to be cooked. The original for this dish was created and now it part of my kitchen arsenal for something easy, satisfying and versatile. I also call this the “best pasta ever” in a previous post – a good indicator of how much I love it. I have decided to officially call it “Little Ears” because I always use Orecchiette, which means “small ear” in Italian. You can add as much or as little to this as you want. The original version had only shallot-white wine sauce as a base, fresh mozzarella, cherry tomatoes and basil and it was incredible. This version strays from the original but still boasts the basic ingredients.

Two tips – actually more like two very, very strong suggestions: 1) Use Rustichella d’abruzzo Orecchiette. This is the BEST brand that I have found and this dish really is not the same with other brands. Trust me, I learned the hard way. The Whole Wheat kind of this brand is absolutely incredible – though now I have to special order it as Whole Foods now only sells regular Orecchiette and Central Market sells the brand but not the type at all. 2) You will want to cook the pasta until just under al dente, strain and the allow to finish cooking in the sauce so that the pasta absorbs all that yummy flavor. These are both good tips for any pasta dish that you make in the future =)

Little Ears, about 3 servings

One Half to Two-thirds box of Rustichella d’abruzzo Orecchiette
One pint cherry tomatoes, halved and seeded
Small amount of shredded Pecorino Romano cheese for serving
One cup of Shredded Cheese (half Mozzarella, half smoked Provolone)
Two cups Baby Spinach
One Zucchini, quartered
1 cup chopped fresh basil
Fresh ground pepper
Salt to taste, plus ample salt for pasta water
One Shallot White Wine Sauce Recipe
1/4 Cup Starchy Pasta Water


Boil salted water and cook pasta to instructions, under-cooking by two or three minutes. When straining, reserve some pasta water to add to sauce.

Begin making shallot white wine sauce (make enough for the amount of sauce that you want). Add Zucchini at the stage when the shallots and garlic become glassy. Saute for a minute or so before adding liquid. Reduce liquid, then halved tomatoes and cook until the skins loosen and tomatoes lose their shape slightly, if you have not already (and you need more sauce) add the pasta water. Add spinach and allow to wilt just slightly. Put  Combine with pasta and allow to cook a few more minutes. Add half of the basil, salt to taste, add pepper and cheese and stir gently but well. Garnish with remaining basil and some shaved Parmesan or Pecorino and serve. This is an excellent side for your favorite baked fish or chicken or with Andi’s Favorite Chicken. It is also a great way to use up leftover chicken – you can shred it and throw it in the pasta or serve it alongside!

I literally eat this with my hands for breakfast the next day! Enjoy!

Baked Tomatoes, Italian Grandmother Style (Almost)

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Awesomeness

Let’s just clear the hurdle and accept the fact that you will see an abnormal (by abnormal I mean INSANE) amount of baked tomatoes. And some will be different and some will not be different. When you have a man-friend who would literally eat baked tomatoes at every meal it is bound to happen. Additionally, I almost always have everything i need to throw them together and since they are healthy and extremely satisfying , cheap, and easy – trust me when I say I am not complaining at all. So, Saturday we were in Katy (yes – this girl just said that) for D’s best friend from – well diapers I think – wedding shower. I have been hearing, pretty much since the day we started dating, the amazing food that he would eat at this Italian/Texan via Mexico household growing up. Side-bar: Gooey Butter Cake was mentioned frequently. Naturally, I was thrilled to get to experience this food and talk food with foodies (they own restaurants in the Houston Metroplex). The day was wonderful, the people were absolutely incredible and the food was – celestial (I really wanted to use another word, but propriety stopped me – first and last time for that to occur I can promise you). It was kind of like one of those get-togethers you read about in a Bon Appetit magazine – you know when food really brings you together (okay really it was the engagement of a fantastic couple – but food brought me closer to a dream I have had since I started cooking. This dream, ladies and gentlemen, is to cook with an Italian grandmother. Recall I mentioned that the family was half Italian. By this I mean Nina came off the boat from Sicily. HEAVEN. So whilst I was gorging on amazing pulled pork and cabbage slaw with sweet buns, I had a long conversation with an Italian grandmother. She suggested how I should make baked tomatoes. Spicy Provelone is the secret. I also got an invite to her home, which incidentally has a basement that has been converted into a second kitchen. So last night I made baked tomatoes (thought not exactly following her instructions but that will come later) and today I am happy that I am one step closer to my dream.

These tomatoes were so good. They were large tomatoes and I left a good amount of juice in them before baking, something I normally do not do. The result was almost like a brothy soup with yummy stuff in it. I made four thinking we would eat two and save two for lunch today – that did not work out – we ate them all. =) If you are looking for a budget and belly friendly meal that is tasty and satisfying this is it. You can feed a family of four with this meal for about ten dollars (probably less – I can cook, but my math skills are not anything to brag about).

  • Two large heirloom or beefsteak tomatoes, halved
  • 1 Large shallot, diced
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • handful of torn arugula, roughly chopped
  • 6 large basil leaves,roughly chopped
  • Fresh Ground Pepper, to taste
  • Salt, to taste
  • Red Pepper Flakes
  • 4 slices of smoked Provolone
  • One link of Spicy Italian Chicken Sausage
  • One tablespoon pesto

Topping

  • 2 cups baby Spinach
  • 3 tbs white wine
  • 1 shallot sliced
Stuff me please!

Cut tomatoes in half and scrape out about half of the juice (trying to get as many seeds out as possible – the seeds can give you heartburn, make the tomato acidic or be bad for people with certain health conditions). Place each half into a small ramekin and let them hang out for a little bit.

Heat oil of choice in a skillet. Add shallots and garlic and a pinch of salt, cook for about five minutes and add the sausage, red pepper flakes, and pepper. Cook for about five minutes and remove from heat. Add to basil, arugula, pesto, pepper and mix well. Stuff the mixture into the tomatoes. Bake on 375 for about 20 minutes, remove, then add the cheese slices over the top and return to the oven for about five minutes.

Sausage, Garlic, Shallots: They Love Each Other


Whilst the tomatoes are baking prepare the spinach by heating a small bit of oil in the same pan the sausage was in. Add shallots, cook until glassy and add the wine. Allow the wine to cook until the alcohol is just cooked off, add spinach to the pan, crack fresh pepper over it and allow to wilt. If making garlic bread (which is HIGHLY recommended) begin preparation now and add to the oven in the last 7 minutes.

Remove tomatoes and top with Sauteed Spinach and serve with garlic bread that is very toasted.