Although he grew most of the vegetables we ate, my father wasn’t really much into cooking.   He was in charge of salads and made eggs on Sundays, but that was pretty much the extent of it.  Dad did, however, have a few signature dishes that he  loved to prepare – and he did so with great gusto!  One of said dishes was a frittata.

A frittata is a fancy, Italian name for a baked, open-faced omelet.  It’s an egg-based dish that usually contains  a combination of various vegetables, cheese and meat.  The cooking is started on the stove and then finished off in the oven.  It is very similar to the Spanish dish,  tortilla de patatas, except that there is no flipping involved, making it much easier to execute.

Frittatas were always on the menu at my house on “meatless” meal days like Christmas Eve and Fridays during Lent.  My dad would thoughtfully plan what to include in his frittatas based on what was growing in his garden at the time.  His favorite kind was filled with caramelized onions, fresh asparagus, mushrooms and big hunks of mozzarella cheese.   He would prepare each component of the dish separately, and with the skill of an architect, would carefully construct his creation before cooking it.  Then, Dad would strut into the dining room, proud as a peacock, and present his masterpiece to us. I can still see his face, beaming with satisfaction and delight!  My father’s frittatas always turned out perfectly – much better than mine ever do.  I wish I had paid more attention to his technique.  I guess I just thought that he would always be around to make them.    Sigh…

While it looks rather impressive, a frittata is a super simple dish to prepare, with lots of room for creativity.  And, it works equally well for breakfast, lunch or dinner.  You can put just about anything but the kitchen sink in it too, making it a great choice for when you need to purge your fridge.   This frittata is filled with onions, potatoes, ham and Parmesan cheese, which is what I happened to have handy on the night I made it.   If I had planned ahead, I would have probably also added mushrooms and some mozzarella or provolone chunks.  It’s all good!

Do you ever make frittatas?  What are your favorite things to put in them?  I’d love to hear your ideas in the comments.

In my family, we always knew it was a special occasion by the telltale aroma of lasagna baking in the oven.  Neither my grandmother nor my mother made it often.  A traditional lasagna is a labor intensive dish that takes several hours to prepare – even longer if you make your own pasta.  So, it was usually reserved for  holidays and the occasional birthday, christening or graduation party.  Maybe that’s why this classic Italian combination of layers of tender sheets of pasta filled with meat, veggies and ooey, gooey cheese tasted so wonderful to me.  Or, maybe it was because lasagna is just plain wonderful.

The thing is, that with a little advance planning and a few teensy shortcuts, you can make a perfectly scrumptious lasagna in a lot less time than you may think. And, if you prepare it in the form of these luscious, self-contained lasagna rolls, you can easily make enough to stash a batch or two in the freezer for later. How about that! You can enjoy lasagna any old time you feel like it! What a concept!

So, grab an apron and let’s make some lasagna rolls! 

Remember those teensy shortcuts I mentioned?  Well, the first one is using marinara sauce from a jar.  Oh yes, I really did just say that.  I know that cooking a marinara from scratch is preferable, but I’m trying to save you some time here.  And, unless you already have a vat of homemade marinara sauce in your freezer, it’s going to take an extra hour to make some.  Besides, there are some really excellent jar sauces out there made with San Marzano tomatoes, olive oil and other quality ingredients.  So, don’t be a sauce snob.  Embrace the convenience!

Another shortcut I take is using pre-shredded mozzarella.  Sargento makes a very good one, as does Sorrento.  There is no shame in not shredding your own cheese.  Even my mother does it.  I swear.

When I make this dish, I start preparing my filling at the same time I put a big pot of water on to boil for the lasagna sheets.  By the time the pasta is cooked, my filling is all ready to go.

Roll, baby, roll!

Cook your lasagna sheets just to the shy side of al dente.  They will be drenched in sauce and baking for a while.  This will help keep them from falling apart.  Also, be careful not to put too much filling into each roll.  A couple of tablespoons is enough.  If you overdo it, the filling will ooze out during baking.  It will still taste good, but it will look kind of yucky.  Yucky is not a good look for lasagna.

Snugly fit your rolls together in a baking dish and smother them with sauce and cheese.  See!  It looks just like a traditional lasagna, except that it will be a lot easier to serve.

These lasagna rolls can be prepped the night before and will be ready to bake when you get home from work the next day.  They can also be made ahead and frozen in one of two ways.  You can prepare them and freeze either before baking or after.  I prefer to freeze before baking.   If do you freeze them, you’ll need to either thaw them out first, or add at least an extra half hour or so to the baking time.  This is no big deal, as your prep work is already done.

So, don’t wait for a special occasion to treat yourself to these cheesy, meaty, yummy lasagna rolls.  Every day should be a celebration!

I’ve always been somewhat of a food purist.  I’m probably the only person over the age of five that actually prefers a plain cheese pizza to one with a zillion toppings.  Pasta nirvana for me is a bowl of spaghetti with Marcella Hazan’s three ingredient tomato sauce.   And, I take my vanilla ice cream straight up – no add-ins, thankyouverymuch.   Actually, my very favorite ice cream flavor is fior di latte, which doesn’t even have vanilla in it.  It’s not that I don’t appreciate more complex flavor combinations, because I do.   But sometimes,  I just like to savor the purity of really good ingredients, like fresh, local, organic cream from happy cows; or sweet and juicy, ripened by the sun, heirloom tomatoes.  And, I love that soft tug against my teeth when I bite into a buttery, melting mass of fresh mozzarella that was made by real hands.

I like my panna cotta straight up as well.   I also enjoy it flavored different ways.  But to me, nothing says heaven more than a soft, pillowy cloud of simply sweetened, pristine creaminess, adorned  by nothing more than a smattering of fresh berries.    Oooh!  I get goosebumps just thinking about it!

Panna Cotta is one of the easiest desserts to make.  Yet, it is so elegant and luxurious, one would never guess.    This basic “fior di Latte”, or “flower of milk” panna cotta recipe only contains three ingredients: cream or milk, sugar and gelatin. That’s it!  And, you can whip up a batch in under fifteen minutes.   If you want to jazz your panna cotta  up a bit, you can add any number of different flavorings to the base, as well as a variety of toppings.  I’ve tried it with everything from instant espresso powder to  fruit purees.  It’s all good.    That’s why this recipe such a “must have” in anyone’s dessert repertoire.  Its ease and versatility make it perfect for every occasion.

Today, I’m sharing panna cotta “di due fiori”, i.e. “with two flowers”.  The first is the basic, unadulterated version, which can be topped with any kind of fresh fruit, gelée, or coulis.  The second one is a panna cotta di fiori di arancia, which translates to orange flowers.  Both recipes are identical, except that I’ve added some orange flower water to flavor the second one.  Orange flower water is a popular ingredient in Italian desserts.  It has a subtle floral quality, and is wonderfully fragrant.  You can find orange flower water at most Italian or Middle Eastern markets, as well as online.

I’ve garnished my plain panna cotta here with fresh blueberries and the orange ones with some of the candied kumquats that I made last week.  Candied orange peel would also be a good choice.  Or, you could just leave it plain and revel in its silky creaminess and sublime simplicity.

Next to the temperate weather, one of the nicest things about living in Florida is the abundance of citrus fruits we have here.  Several years ago, I planted a kumquat tree in my front yard.  It’s a spindly, sad-looking, little thing.  But, every year around this time, it give me masses and masses of lovely, plump kumquats.

Kumquats are an eclectic little fruit. While they look like miniature oranges, they’re not at all like the Valencia and Temple oranges that they share my yard space with.  For one thing,  a kumquat’s edible rind is thin, soft and sweet, while its flesh is bitter.  Most people eat the rind and toss the rest.  For another thing, they don’t have much juice in them.  You can usually squeeze out a scant teaspoon or so to add to a cocktail, but that’s pretty much it.  One thing they do have in common though, is that they’re both great for candying.

A few weeks ago, after picking a large basket full of fruit, I decided to candy them.  I love doing this because candied kumquats keep forever in the fridge.  Plus, you can use them in so many different kinds of recipes, both savory and sweet.   By themselves, kumquats have a bit of a bite, so I like to toss a split vanilla bean in with them as they poach.  The vanilla really mellows the kumquats and adds a lovely, subtle flavor.

There isn’t a whole lot of finesse involved in candying kumquats.  You basically just simmer them in water and sugar until they start to fall apart.  By that time, the fruit will have become soft and squidgy, and poaching liquid will be a thick, luscious syrup.

Candied kumquats can be baked into cakes or muffins, used as a topping for tarts, custards or ice cream, and even cooked into savory dishes like chicken or pork.  They also make a great accompaniment to various cheeses. The possibilities are only limited by your imagination.   However, when I do use them in cooking or baking, I discard the flesh and seeds and just use the skins.   Aside from being bitter, the insides are just plain mushy and unattractive.   The syrup can also be used as a flavoring in baked goods, frozen treats and all sorts of beverages.  Try swirling some into a glass filled with ice cold seltzer water for a nice, refreshing drink.

If you’re not lucky enough to have a kumquat tree growing in your yard, don’t fret.  You can almost always find fresh kumquats this time of year at your friendly neighborhood supermarket.  They probably won’t be as pretty as mine, but they’ll still taste great! 

Let me just come right out and say it.  These Swedish meatballs are the bomb!  Seriously.  They. Are. Awesome.  IKEA had better watch out. I’m just sayin’.

Swedish meatballs are a perennial favorite among the smörgåsbord set, which is why I had to include them in my Meatball Week series.   These plump and moist little nuggets of meat are delicately seasoned with fragrant spices like cardamom, allspice and nutmeg before being bathed in a rich and velvety cream sauce.  As with most traditional ethnic dishes, you’ll find as many different recipes for Swedish meatballs as there are cooks who make them.  I’ve tried many different versions, and I think this one is the best I’ve tasted.

The basic recipe for my meatballs came from Marcus Samuelsson, who got it from his Swedish grandma.  When a recipe comes from a famous chef’s grandma, you just know it has to be good.   With ingredients like honey and pickle juice, it’s unlike any I’ve seen before.    I did deviate quite a bit from the original, but that’s just how I roll.  That’s the great thing about recipes like this.  There’s lots of room to improvise.

The meatballs themselves are made with a mixture of beef, pork and veal.  I’ve always been a fan of using veal in meatballs.  I think it gives them a lighter texture and better flavor.

Let’s get started! 

To make the meatballs, you first sauté some finely diced onions in olive oil.  Set them aside to cool while you gather up the rest of the meatball ingredients.

Toss the sautéed onions in with the other ingredients and mix them all up together in a big bowl.   Form as many golf ball sized meatballs as you can get.  I got a ton.  Then, brown them in a skillet.  But, don’t cook them all the way through.

Yes, that is butter that those meatballs are frying in – big, fat, voluptuous butter.  But, it’s okay.  I don’t do this every day.  And, I don’t have an endorsement deal with any big drug companies.

Next, whip up that fabulous Swedish meatball sauce.   You start by making a roux, which is used as a thickening base for all kinds of sauces, gravies, soups and stews.  A roux a mixture of butter and flour that is cooked together until it reaches varying shades of brown, depending on what it’s being used for. Cooking the flour allows it to thicken the sauce without giving it a “raw”, starchy taste.  The roux for this dish should be on the lighter side – sort of like a café au lait color.  Marcus’s grandma’s recipe doesn’t call for a roux.  But, I wanted a sauce with more body, so I made one.

When the roux is ready, add some stock, a little at a time so that it doesn’t sputter up and splash you in the face. Trust me, that is not pleasant!

Then, add some heavy cream, lingonberry preserves and pickle juice.   No, that’s not a typo.  I thought the pickle juice was weird too.  Just do it, though.  You’ll thank me later.

When the sauce starts to bubble,  gently plop the meatballs in.   Then, simmer them in that glorious sauce until they’re cooked through.  Honestly, it took almost all of my self-control not to just slurp that sauce up with a big, fat, giant spoon!

Serve them with more lingonberry preserves and some pickled cucumber slices -  and watch your guests drool.

TOUCHDOWN!

If you missed the first two Meatball Week installments, you can find them here:

• Scallion Meatballs with Soy-Ginger Glaze
• Kefta Meatballs in Moroccan-Spiced Tomato Sauce

Coriander, cumin, paprika and cinnamon are but just a few of the staple ingredients you’ll find in the Moroccan dada’s  pantry.   The cuisine is earthy, fragrant and complex, redolent of rich spices, chiles, onions and garlic -  punctuated with  bright bursts of citrus, cilantro and mint.    To me, it is both straightforward and mysterious at the same time.  I think that’s what I love most about it.  And, that’s why I decided to make the second quarter of my Meatball Week all about Kefta Meatballs in Moroccan-Spiced Tomato Sauce.

My source for this dish came from Paula Wolfert’s The Food of Morocco, considered by many to be the definitive work on Moroccan cuisine.  With a lifetime spent immersed in Moroccan food and culture, Wolfert’s name has become synonymous with it.  And, luckily for the rest of us, she loves to share her enthusiasm.

The original dish is a tagine, which is a slow-cooked stew named for the pot that it is traditionally cooked in.   Wolfert’s kefta tagine features little lamb meatballs simmered in a cumin and paprika-laced tomato sauce.  Before serving, eggs are draped on top of the stew and poached.  Oh my!  I had to fight myself not to chuck the whole meatball plan and just make the recipe as written!  But, I’m hopelessly devoted to you, dear readers, and I could not leave you “meatball-less”.    So, here we go… 

The first thing you need to do is make your meatballs.  Wolfert says to use either lamb or beef, and I chose the more traditional lamb.  Onions, spices, garlic and crème fraiche are added to the lamb.  Crème fraiche!?!?  Yeah.  I had the same reaction, but it works.  The meatballs turn out kind of light and fluffy and have a subtle, pleasant tang to them.

Here we have the “Offensive Line” ready to cross the line of scrimmage.

Next, we start to make the line of scrimmage, er….um… I mean the tomato sauce.

Sauté finely chopped red onions in olive oil, then whisk in tomato paste.

Mix in the tomatoes and spices, and let it come to a bubble.   Wait a few minutes and then, breathe deeply.  It will smell heavenly.

Finally, add the kefta balls to the sauce and gently poach them for about half an hour.  Resist the urge to crack a few eggs in there.

Aaah!  Mmmmeatballs!

It’s meatball week here at Chez SGCC.  That’s because we love meatballs and think they make the perfect Super Bowl nosh.   They’re compact, easy to eat and can be made a zillion different ways.  So, as we count down to the big game, I’ll be sharing some different and delicious meatball recipes for you all to try out.

Let’s kick off with these yummy Asian-style Scallion Meatballs with a Soy-Ginger Glaze.

The original recipe for these tasty little morsels, from Canal House Cooking, calls for ground turkey.  I decided to make them with a combination of ground chicken and pork.    You can use whatever you want.  Turkey is perfectly fine.   I just think that Asian meatballs should be made with chicken and pork.   I also put a splash of fish sauce in my meatballs.  Don’t ask me why.  I’m just crazy like that.  I think it ups the umami quotient. 

I like to pulse the meat up a few times in the food processor before I mix in the rest of the ingredients.  You don’t have to do this either.  I find it gives the meatballs a finer texture, though.

There are no bread crumbs or other thickeners in the original recipe either.  I found the meatball mixture to be a little too wet for the balls to hold their shape, so I added a little cornstarch to it.  It worked great!

I love these gratuitous frying pan shots, don’t you?  The bubbles make me giddy!

Once your meatballs are all cooked, serve them with a drizzle of soy-ginger glaze.  They taste even better if you eat them with cute little curly-topped bamboo toothpicks like these.

I have been dreaming about this cauliflower soup ever since I first saw it on the Food 52 site last month.  I don’t know why.   There’s nothing at all that’s fancy about it.   And, it’s probably one of the simplest soups in the world to make.   But, something about it just spoke to me – or rather gently whispered in my ear, over and over again.  It looked so light and bright and pure – almost cleansing, in a way.   I filed away the recipe, knowing that I would get back to it as soon as I found some beautiful, fresh cauliflower that was worthy of it. 

This recipe for this soup comes from Paul Bertolli’s book, Cooking by Hand.  Bertolli was a chef at the famed Chez Panisse for over ten years, so it’s not surprising that he knows exactly how to make a cauliflower sing.  And, sing it does!  There are only five ingredients in this soup, and one of them is water.   None of them are butter or cream.  Yet, it is so smooth and velvety, you’d never guess.  It’s the perfect little, guilt-free indulgence after eating your way through a long Holiday season.

To start, onions are sautéed in olive oil over low heat until they are tender and sweet.

Then, the cauliflower is added and stewed with the onions.  After that, the water is added to the pot and everything simmers.   I swapped out a cup or so of the water with some chicken stock.  You don’t need to do this.  I just did because I had some broth in the fridge that I needed to use.

Once the cauliflower has finished cooking, the whole pot is pureed into the smoothest, most divinely luxurious soup you’ll ever taste.  I swear!  But, don’t take my word for it.   Make a pot for yourself.  Then, slide into your fluffiest bathrobe, put some cool cucumber slices over your eyes and pretend you’re at a fancy schmancy spa.

Thanksgiving is, without a doubt, the most food centric holiday of the year. And, anyone who has ever prepared a Thanksgiving dinner knows how much work – and stress – is involved. We obsess over every little detail as we strive to wow our families and friends with our culinary prowess. But nobody’s perfect, and sometimes even the best-laid plans go awry. That’s when it helps to have a few tricks up your sleeve.

One year, my mother-in-law accidentally turned my oven on to “broil” while I had two beautiful pumpkin pies baking in it. As I sifted through the ashes of my poor, incinerated pies, I just wanted to cry! Actually, I did cry. But then my creative spirit kicked in, and I came up with this super quick and easy alternative using ingredients that I already had in my pantry.  

Pumpkin Pie Parfaits with Gingersnap Crumbles are a riff on a traditional pumpkin pie. They have all the delicious components of the classic, with a fraction of the effort. The parfaits can either be made the day of or prepared in advance. Thus, they won’t take up valuable real estate in your oven.

The base of these parfaits is a cool and creamy custard made with cook and serve vanilla pudding mix and canned pumpkin puree. The custard is layered with freshly whipped cream and spicy, crunchy gingersnap and pecan crumbles. Despite their humble beginnings, they make a lovely and elegant holiday dessert.

Whether served in pretty wine goblets or funky vintage jars, your guests will never suspect that these scrumptious, little Thanksgiving treats didn’t take hours to prepare.

One of the more annoying things about living with a food blogger is that they rarely make the same recipe twice.  This is especially irksome when a dish is particularly fabulous, because the blogger’s poor family knows that the chances of enjoying it again are virtually nil.   But hey,  I’m not heartless.   I realize that there are certain dishes that are favorites and beg to be made again – like these killer candied sweet potatoes.  They are absolutely to die for!  That’s why I always include them on my Thanksgiving menu -  and you should too. 

The original recipe for this dish was given to me by my mother.  It was one of her Thanksgiving specialties when I was growing up.   She only made them once a year, and believe me, they were worth the wait!  Earthy sweet potatoes are bathed in a pool of rich, gooey brown sugar syrup and baked until meltingly soft and caramelized.   Then, they’re topped with marshmallows and popped back in the oven just long enough for the marshmallows to puff up like crazy and get all browned and toasty.   It’s like eating candy for dinner.  Oooooh!   I get verklempt just thinking about it!

I’ve tried making this dish a couple of different ways, and I’ve found that it is best to partially cook the sweet potatoes before adding the syrup.  You can either boil, steam or bake them for about fifteen minutes or so.  I prefer baking the potatoes first because that leaves one less pot for me to wash, and I’m all about efficiency.   Also,  there’s less risk of the potatoes falling apart that way.   It doesn’t matter which way you choose.  You really just want to reduce the “candying” time so that the syrup doesn’t burn.

While I almost always use both light and dark corn syrup to make this dish, I have tried it with maple syrup instead of the dark corn syrup. It is really delicious that way too. In my experience, the syrup doesn’t get quite as thick, but the maple flavor is really wonderful.   One year, I also added some chopped pecans to the syrup, for a little crunch.   I liked it and would definitely do it again.

Woo Hoo!  Look at those marshmallows puff!   My salivary glands are in overdrive right now just looking at them!

I have to tell you that while I love sweet potatoes in any way, shape or form, these are something special.  Maybe it’s because they conjure up lots of sweet memories of Thanksgivings past for me.   Or maybe, it’s from the anticipation of waiting a whole year to eat them.  Whatever the reason, Thanksgiving at my house just wouldn’t be the same without my mom’s  candied sweet potatoes.