Italian Heaven: Saltimbocca alla Romana

You know that look, don't you? That look of increasing hunger combined with impending satisfaction. And no, not the look that McCain gives Palin when measuring her to be Cindy's replacement. By the way, did you hear (and I heard it in this column in the Washington Post) that the HI-larious lipstick joke that was written for her was originally used by evangelical pastor John Hagee, who cracked in his I'm sure VERY enlightening book "What Every Man Wants in a Woman,": "Do you know the difference between a woman with PMS and a snarling Doberman pinscher? The answer is lipstick." Ha-ha-ha-ha......get it?....women who are PMS-ing are mean bitches....boy, that is some funny stuff coming from a compassionate "Christian" mind. Nice job Mr. Speechwriter-for-Palin, stealing a sexist joke so your clueless candidate can robotically repeat it.

Sorry for veering off course there. The look I'm referencing above is the one w and I gave each other last night after our first bite of this SPECTACULAR Saltimbocca alla Romana I made last night. I saw the recipe in Saveur a few weeks ago, and have been pining to make it ever since. Various factors kept it out of my sauté pan until last night, and holy f*cking christ was it worth the wait. This is one of the best things I've stuck in my piehole in a long time. Tender veal cutlets topped with a few thin slices of prosciuotto di Parma and sage leaves, gently pan fried then topped again with a buttery, sensual sauce that Saveur perfectly described as "sumptuous". The best part, as with so many really good recipes, was how simple and quick it was to put together. This is one of those dishes that start to finish you can absolutely stagger your eager palates with in less than 30 minutes. I told w that I'm already pulling the guest list together for the next dinner party because i have some worthy friends that must experience this. With a side of polenta with some butter and Parmagiano stirred in, this was truly Italian heaven!
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Saltimbocca alla Romana
from Saveur Magazine
serves 4

"This dish is slightly salty, slightly woodsy, and entirely sumptuous."-Saveur
ingredients:
8 2-oz. veal cutlets (preferably
from the veal top round)
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
16 - 24 thin slices of prosciutto
16 sage leaves
1⁄2 cup flour
4 tbsp. olive oil
8 tbsp. unsalted butter
1⁄4 cup marsala (I was out of marsala but had some madeira which worked perfectly- bb)
1 cup Chicken Stock

method:
1. Using a meat mallet, pound the veal cutlets, one at a time, between 2 sheets of plastic wrap until each piece is about 1⁄8" thick. Lightly season with salt (little is needed, as prosciutto is salty) and pepper, to taste.

The veal topped with prosciuotto and sage (from my garden!) ready to be threaded on the skewers.

2. Lay 2 to 3 thin slices of prosciutto atop each piece of veal, gently pressing prosciutto against veal to adhere. Place 2 sage leaves on top of the prosciutto and stitch them into the veal with a toothpick. Place flour on a large plate. Dredge each piece of veal in flour, shake off any excess, and set aside.

The saltimbocca sautéing, just before flipping over.

3. Heat 2 tbsp. of the oil and 2 tbsp. of the butter in a 12" skillet over medium-high heat. Add half the meat and cook, turning once, until prosciutto side is crisp and the veal side is lightly browned, about 1 minute per side. Transfer the meat to a paper towel–lined plate. Repeat with more olive oil, butter, and remaining meat. Remove and discard the toothpicks.

Veal out of the pan resting while the sauce comes together. Almost there!

4. Drain and discard the oil and butter from the skillet; place over high heat. Add marsala; cook, scraping up browned bits, until reduced by half, 1–2 minutes. Add stock; reduce by half, about 3 minutes. Stir in remaining 4 tbsp. of butter; reduce heat to medium. Return meat to pan; cook, turning occasionally, until sauce thickens slightly, 1–2 minutes.

Your next dinner party: part 1- Appetizers

You might want to get your guest lists together for dinner this weekend, because by Friday you'll have a kick ass dinner party to thrown down that will garner you much love and appreciation. How do I know? Because I did this just last Sunday, and it was an absolute home run!

Apps, entrée, salad, dessert, and boatloads of wine. All the ingredients for a successful soirée, don't you think? There wasn't really a theme for the dinner. Just things I like and wanted to share. I can say everything worked together fantastically. Today I'll start with the appetizers which I've mentioned before in previous posts over the last couple of years, but since I have hundreds more readers, they both bear repeating because the are both so freakishly good and way easy.
First up is the best, easiest guacamole you will ever have! No shit, it really is that good. I've pulled this out several times over the past year or so, and every time people do the classic one bite, eyes go wide, then the "Oh, that's really good" comment always follows up without fail. The recipe is from Saveur Magazine. The one thing I think is indispensable here is a good mortar and pestle (here's the one i have. a serious piece of equipment that i LOVE!) to grind the initial onion, cilantro, jalapeno, and salt together which makes the paste that is the flavor base and is the key to the depth of flavor here. Also leaving the avocado in chunks is really a nice textural thing, so their innate creaminess and flavor really makes its full impact. Scooped out with my new favorite tortilla chips,, the Kettle Chips Blue Corn Tortilla Chips (I wonder if they'll send me a coupon for a free bag for mentioning them?!), these will disappear instantly!

Also on the table were my summer snack addiction I discovered last year at the Portland Farmer's Market. These little Pimientos de Padron are simply too good. It's spicy, salty food crack. I just spotted them at Viridian Farms booth last week, and my heart instantly started beating faster, my hands got sweaty, my eyes got a little wild, and I'm sure I looked like some meth addict when I handed them my money with shaking hands, scurrying off with my three little boxes. That first bite before dinner, when I hadn't had them for a year, was sublime. Use the stems for a little handle, and eat away. I don't know if you have these wherever you are, but if you don't they are worth seeing if you can have them shipped. The more addicts I have around me the better I feel about my "problem"!

The best things about both of these is you can make them last minute (in fact you want to plate the peppers hot right out of the sauté pan when your guests are there) in less than 20 minutes. We washed these down with a bottle of my favorite prosecco rosé and a couple of crisply delicious bottles of white.
* * * * * *

The World's Greatest Guacamole
adapted from Saveur Magazine

ingredients:
3 medium hass avocados (firmly ripe)
3 tablespoons finely chopped onions
2 tablespoons packed chopped cilantro
4 tablespoons chopped tomatoes
1 tablespoon chopped jalapeno
1 teaspoon salt

method:
1-In large mortar and pestle or molcajete, grind salt, one tablespoon onion, one tablespoon cilantro, and jalapeno into a paste.
2-Half avocados, carefully remove pit, and score each half four times both directions being careful not to cut through peel. Then scoop out meat from each half into mortar and carefully fold into paste, keeping avocado as intact as possible.
3-Fold in remaining ingredients, mix well, season with more salt of necessary, and serve!
- - - - - - - -
Sautéed Pimientos de Padron

ingredients:
1 dozen, more or less, pimientos de padron
olive oil
coarse sea salt (available at most markets. I get mine at Trader Joe's- BB)

method:
Pour olive oil to barely coat bottom of nonstick sauté pan, then add a smidge more. Heat oil over medium-high heat until it shimmers. Add peppers, toss some sea salt on top, and sauté until brown and white marks appear, about four or five minutes. Serve immediately, using the stems as convenient little handles.
Cooks not: the coarse sea salt is essential. It's worth huntng down!

Out of the archives, onto my plate!

This is another of those recipe finds that make all that shredding and tearing up of food magazines worthwhile. In fact, I tore this one out about two years ago on one of my futile magazine recycling binges, where I swear I'm going to whittle down that pile of saved Gourmet's, Bon App's, Saveur's, etc, tear out the recipes that look good and file them away under the proper heading (dinner/dessert/soup/blah-blah-blah). Unfortunately all I end up with is another over-stuffed file folder with this mish-mash of unorganized recipes from various sources, and within a few months another pile of neglected food magazines.

But every now and then I actually do look through the folder, and find something that reminds me why I go through this exercise in seeming futility. The other night I pulled out this oldie from the September '04 Bon Appetit. w and I always love whole fish when we go out (the fried fish at Malay Satay Hut here in PDX with what is basically a Thai fruit salad on top kills!), but I rarely make it at home. Yet almost every time I do it turns out pretty freaking good and reminds me to quit being such a whole fish slacker, especially when we have ABC Seafood so close to our house. ABC is a wholesale/retail Asian market that supplies a lot of other markets (like Uwajimaya) and the savvier restaurants around town. Their prices are amazing, and it is also the best place around to get whole live Dungeness crab for home cookin'. Anyway, that's the back story. The main point is this was really delicious...spicy, savory, really complex and rich yet not heavy. I subbed whole tilapia for the red snapper (cook about 5-8 minutes longer if you go this route) since ABC was snapper-less and it worked just fine. This is one of those really fun, interesting dishes that I used to dream of making but never thought I would (or could). Now I smugly have it in my repertoire, and can't wait to show it off again!
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Red Snapper Baked in Indian-Spiced Yogurt
From Bon Appetit

ingredients:
2 cups (lightly packed) coarsely chopped fresh cilantro
2 cups (lightly packed) fresh mint-leaves
1/4 cup fresh lime juice
4 jalapeno chiles, seeded, coarsely chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons minced peeled fresh ginger
2 cups plain nonfat yogurt
2 cups sour cream
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2 2-pound whole red snappers, scaled, gutted, or one 4-pound side of salmon

method:
1-Using on/off turns, puree cilantro, mint, lime juice, jalapenos, garlic, and ginger in processor. Transfer to large bowl. Stir in yogurt, sour cream, cumin, chili powder, sugar, and salt.

Ready to stir cilantro puree into yogurt mixture








Putting yogurt "schmear" on fish to marinate







2-Cut 3 diagonal slits (in picture at top of post) through skin down to bone on each side of both whole fish (do not cut salmon if using). Pour half of marinade into 15x10x2-inch glass baking dish. Place fish in dish. Pour remaining marinade over fish to cover. Let stand at room temperature 1 hour.

Properly marinated and ready to pop into oven





3-Preheat oven to 450 F. Transfer fish to large rimmed baking sheet (do not scrape off marinade). Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake fish until flesh is just opaque in center, about 25 minutes for salmon and 30 minutes for snapper. Using 2 large metal spatulas, carefully transfer fish to large platter and serve.

Hey vegans...I hear ya!!

I always admit to an intolerance of intolerants of any stripe. Contradictory I know, but it's my blog, so what can you do? In my regular Thursday email to my constituents at VINO, where I talk about our weekend wine tastings, I got off a little on vegans (they're such a fun target, sitting there in their hemp fabric outfits, sallow-complected, all weak from lack of meat protein): "I'm not big on extreme, not very well thought out views (in spite of what you might think every week when you read this). Since most, if not all, of my thoughts revolve around food and wine and my next meal, I tend to peruse a ton of food related books, blogs, and magazines. My favorite tidbit this week came out of the new Saveur I was leafing through at home yesterday. They were reviewing vegetarian cookbooks. Now I don't have anything against vegetarian cooking. Some of my favorite dishes, including an awesome cauliflower side we had last night (check out the blog in the next couple of days for the recipe), are meat free delights. It's vegans I don't get. I side more with Anthony Bourdain, who called them "the Hezbollah-like offshoot of vegetarians". Of course I also think that duck fat is one of God's greatest creations. One of the books reviewed by Saveur was a vegan-oriented tome called "Veganomicon". In the intro to the book, the authors express this lament (and I don't think they're kidding): "Why nobody believes us when we mutter things about sacrificing beets under the full moon, we'll never guess." Um, okay. And as good as a tub of margarine sounds, I'll stick to butter, thanks."

As I mentioned, having said all that, I did promise the recipe for this off-the-charts (vegan!!) cauliflower dish we had a couple of nights ago. It was another find from the Wednesday NYT Dining section, and it was so fucking good that I just kept looking at w with this wide-eyed, slack jawed look (that I'm sure was very attractive) and muttered things like "oh fuck" and "holy shit" and all my other erudite food descriptors when I'm having mouth-gasms. In any event, this is kind of like a cauliflower paella, and is an absolute do-over at our house, and something you need to spring on your family and friends. Hm, maybe those whacked out vegans are on to something!
*** *** ***

Cauliflower With Tomatoes and Pimentón
from the New York Times
time: 20 minutes

ingredients:
1 medium head cauliflower, trimmed
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 mild dried chile, optional
1/2 onion, chopped
1 tablespoon slivered garlic
2 plum tomatoes, fresh or canned, diced
1 tablespoon sweet or hot pimentón (smoked Spanish paprika)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Chopped fresh parsley leaves for garnish, optional.

method:
1. Put cauliflower and 1 tablespoon water in a covered glass bowl and microwave on high power until quite soft (a thin-bladed knife will penetrate with almost no effort), about 7 minutes. Uncover and let cool. Meanwhile, put oil in a large skillet or casserole over medium heat and add chile, if using, and onion. Cook, stirring occasionally, until onion softens, about 5 minutes.

2. Add garlic, tomato and about 1/4 cup of water, raise heat a bit, and cook until mixture is saucy, about 5 minutes. Meanwhile, crumble cauliflower (if it’s still hot, mash it with a potato masher or use a couple of knives to chop it up in the bowl) and stir it into sauce, along with pimentón, salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until cauliflower is coated with sauce and hot. Taste and adjust seasoning, then garnish and serve hot, warm or at room temperature.

Yield: 4 or more servings.

Supremely Seasonal Summer Dinner!

Maybe it's the lazy days of August as summer winds down, but until recently, I admit to not feeling very creative, or motivated, in the kitchen. Relying on a bunch of fallback recipes, while satisfying our tastebuds, hasn't added much luster to the recipe repertoire. But I think the doldrums are coming to an end, and if I had to say why, it must be the onslaught of tomatoes off of our overloaded plants and the exploding colors at our local Montavilla Farmer's Market. If you can't get excited by wandering outside into your garden to pluck still-warm cherry tomatoes off the plant, having their sweet burst of flavor explode in your mouth, or being dazzled by the riot of color that is high pepper season at the market, then perhaps you'd be better make eating your way through the Lean Cuisine section of your supermarket your life's culinary work. For the rest of us, we'll be getting our fill of all that is delicious and fresh.

A bowl of brilliantly colored potato & roasted corn salad









Which brings me to last night's dinner, where for further motivation my sister's family was popping over for dinner. I always feel the need to do more, because besides being an über-talented cook herself, I know my sister will bring a fabulously fresh seasonal dessert for apres dîner. My stuff had better measure up! And after a bit of online research and a brand new cookbook for motivation, I have to say last night's food fest was one of the best start to finish meals I've had in a long time. From the apps of artisan cheeses with flutes of bouncy, fizzy prosecco, on to the first course of rice-stuffed tomatoes (the picture up top) followed by a stunning trout main course (I usually don't give myself that much credit, but this dish was off the f-cking hook!) with a deliciously seasonal potato salad, and finally followed by a perfect peach galette from my sister, it was one satisfying bite after the next. Ah, summer!

The trout and pot salad, looking quite delicious!










Here's the recipes for my contributions. These are all very easy and will knock out your guests, I promise! I have linked above to my sisters peach galette. Bonne chance et appréciez!!

********************

Pomodori a Riso
(Tomatoes stuffed with rice)
from Saveur Magazine
and thanks to my friend Francesca for the inspiration!- BB
serves 4-8

Ingredients
8 firm, ripe medium to large tomatoes
1/2 cup raw arborio or other risotto rice
2 tbsp finely chopped Italian parsley
2 tbsp finely chopped fresh basil
3 cloves garlic, peeled & minced
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
salt and freshly ground black pepper

1. Position oven rack in top third of oven, then preheat to 400 degrees. Pull or carefully cut stems off tomato tops, then trim about 3/4" from bottom of each tomato and set ends aside. Working over a medium bowl, use a small spoon to carefully scoop out inner pulp without puncturing the walls of the tomatoes. Reserve scooped out pulp. Arrange scooped out tomatoes open end up in the medium baking dish.
2. Pass tomato pulp through a food mill or pulse in a food processor to a chunky paste, then transfer back into bowl. Add rice, parsley, basil, garlic, and oil, then season generously with salt and pepper. Mix well. Spoon filling into prepped tomatoes (there may be a little filling left over) and placed reserved tomato ends loosely on top of each stuffed tomato. Drizzle a little olive oil over tomatoes and bake until rice is swollen and tender and tomatoes are soft and well browned, about 50 minutes. Remove from oven and set aside to cool to room temperature.
#### #### ####

Potato and Roasted Corn Salad
from epicurious.com
makes 8 servings.

ingredients
3 ears fresh corn, unhusked
2 large red bell peppers
2 pounds 1 1/2- to 2-inch-diameter unpeeled red-skinned potatoes, quartered
4 thick bacon slices, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons Sherry wine vinegar
1/3 cup crumbled blue cheese (optional)
1 cup chopped green onions
3 tablespoons chopped fresh oregano

1.Prepare barbecue (high heat). Grill corn until husks are blackened on all sides, turning occasionally, about 15 minutes. Cool 15 minutes. Remove husks and silk. Cut kernels from cobs.
2.Cut 1/2 inch from top and bottom of each pepper. Quarter each pepper lengthwise. Trim ribs and seeds from peppers. Flatten pieces, breaking slightly, if necessary. Place peppers on grill, skin side down. Grill without turning until skins are blackened and blistered, about 10 minutes. Cool 10 minutes. Peel peppers; cut into 1/2-inch squares.
3.Cook potatoes in large pot of boiling salted water until tender, about 12 minutes. Drain; let cool 5 minutes in strainer. Transfer to large bowl.
4.Sauté bacon in medium skillet over medium heat until crisp. Using slotted spoon, transfer bacon to paper towels.
5.Whisk oil and vinegar in small bowl to blend. Season dressing with salt and pepper. Drizzle 1/4 cup dressing over potatoes; toss to coat. Add corn, bell peppers, bacon, onions, oregano, and 3 tablespoons additional dressing (you can also add the blue cheese at this point. We left it out because the salad was tasting so fresh without it, and it made it a little lighter- BB); toss to coat. Season salad with salt and pepper. Add remaining dressing by tablespoonfuls to moisten, if desired. Serve warm or at room temperature.
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Pan Fried Trout with Lemon and Pine Nuts
adapted from Starting With Ingredients by Aliza Green
serves 4

ingredients
1/2 cup Zante currants
1/2 cup brandy
2 tbsp butter at room temperature
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
2 teaspoons finely grated lemon zest
8 boneless trout filets
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
Flour, for dusting 2-4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup pine nuts
1/2 cup diced fresh tomato

1.Preheat the oven to 200. Soak the currants in the brandy. Using a fork, mash together the butter, lemon juice, and lemon zest until the liquid is absorbed and the butter is creamy. Set aside.
2.Lay fish flat, skin side down., and season with salt and pepper, then dust lightly with flour, shaking off excess. In a large skillet (preferably cast iron or non-stick), heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Brown four filets on each side about 2-3 minutes, or until done to desired firmness. Remove from skillet and keep warm in oven. Repeat with remaining four filets, adding more oil if necessary (and it probably will be- BB).
3. reduce heat to low, pour off excess oil. Add pine nuts and brown lightly, shaking often. Add the currants and brandy. Averting your face, flame the liquid. Shake the pan and cook until the flames die down, Add the diced tomato, heat gently, then remove skillet from heat. Stir in the reserve lemon butter, plate two filets per dinner plate, pour sauce over fish and serve immediately.

A spicy start and sweet finish!

Okay...enough being selfish and self-indulgent. The blog-vacation is over! It's time to get some new food news up here at Eat.Drink.Think., because it's not like I've been going hungry these past couple of weeks. Last night was case in point. Mom's birthday dinner (btw- HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MOM...I love you!), where the main course was my famously perfect rotisserie roast chicken, along with a side of chopped Caprese salad, and a decadent creamy polenta with mascarpone which is as rich and wonderfully sinful as it sounds!
But my sharing moment today has to do with our pre-dinner cocktail snack and our dessert, both of which were awesome uses of some of the seasons best fresh produce. For our app, we had a great guacamole, which was one of the best versions of this standard dish I've ever had. Inspired by a recipe from Saveur Magazine, this is, as they called it, the World's Best Guacamole. Instead of mushing up the avocado this recipe preserves it in a more chunky form, making it much more interesting texturally. Plus it gives me a chance to use my heavyweight mortar and pestle (I bought the 9" by the way...size matters!), which if you don't have one is a must, not only for your kitchen, but for your own peace of mind.
Then after all the wonderful flavors that were mom's birthday feast, we finished with w's now signature seasonal treat, blueberries and peaches in a balsamic syrup. Fabulous fresh flavors, and this never fails to get raves, I promise. Both these recipes are way too easy, and will absolutely rock your next dinner party!

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The World's Greatest Guacamole
adapted from Saveur Magazine

Ingredients
3 medium hass avocados (firmly ripe)
3 tablespoons finely chopped onions
2 tablespoons packed chopped cilantro
4 tablespoons chopped tomatoes
1 tablesppon chopped jalapeno
1 teaspoon salt

1-In large mortar or molcajete, grind salt, one tablespoon onion, one tablespoon cilantro, and jalapeno into a paste.
2-Half avocados, carefully remove pit, and score each half four times both directions being careful not to cut through peel. Then scoop out meat from each half into mortar and carefully fold into paste, keeping avocado as intact as possible.
3-Fold in remaining ingredients, mix well, season with more salt of necessary, and serve! ********************
Balsamic Blueberries and Peaches
adapted from epicurious

Ingredients
3 tablespoons sugar, or to taste
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
3 cups blueberries (about 1 lb)
1 lb peaches or nectarines, sliced
1/2 teaspoon black pepper (optional)

Boil 3 tablespoons sugar with vinegar, and 1 cup blueberries in a 1- to 1 1/2-quart heavy saucepan, stirring, 1 minute. Remove from heat. Combine remaining 2 cups blueberries with peach slices in a large bowl. Toss with hot blueberry syrup and black pepper, then add sugar to taste. Let stand, tossing occasionally, 30 minutes.
*Cooks note: Vary sugar depending how sweet and ripe your fruit is.
Makes 4 servings.