Tartar of Shrimp and Artichoke – Antique Appetizer worthy of the Contemporary Chef

Sometimes we associate certain flavors and textures with a region or a period of time. Later we find out that the dish is antique, that the chef’s special recipe has been around for hundreds of years. One such dish is the Tartar of Shrimp and Artichokes. Yes, we would associate shrimp and artichokes with Italy but how does Cilantro get into the mix? Cilantro is an integral part of the Mexican flavorings surely it cannot be part of some antique dish from Sicily. Cilantro in Spanish, Coriander in English and Coriandolo in Italian, is an antique herb grown in the Mediterranean basin for over 3,000 years. It is a vital ingredient in Vermouth (Martini & Rossi) and often used in Sicilian recipes to balance flat leaf parsley, known as Italian parsley.

Initially, I thought it was just a contemporary chef’s attempt to differentiate traditional Sicilian dishes but I found this little treat offered in the most rustic of restaurants in the Sicilian Provinces. I will rarely shy away from an antipasto or salad made with shrimp, particularly with a glass of Prosecco. Tartar of Shrimp and Artichokes is a marvelously simple, quick and flavorful recipe. This Sicilian Appetizer will “wow” your guests and is tremendously easy to prepare.

Ingredients for 2 people:

2 Artichoke hearts
4 Medium to large Shrimp (uncooked, shells on)
1 tbsp Olive Oil
3 branches Italian Parsley
3 branches Cilantro
1 tsp Walnut Oil
2 tbsp Balsamic Vinegar
Salt & Pepper
Juice of ½ lemon
1 Egg yolk
½ lemon sliced into wedges

Preparation:

Chop the cilantro and parsley. Cut the artichokes into cubes and sprinkle with 1 tbsp of lemon juice.

In a frying pan, heat the Olive Oil. Add the Artichoke cubes and sauté for 1 minute.

Heat another frying pan over medium heat. Sear the shrimp on both sides for 1 minute.

Remove the pans from the heat and set aside.

In a serving or mixing bowl, mix together the shrimp, artichokes, parsley, cilantro, walnut oil, balsamic vinegar, salt, pepper and lemon juice.

Break the Egg yolk and mix into the shrimp-artichoke mix and serve immediately with lemon wedges.

This recipe can also substitute Crawfish for the Shrimp and it becomes a dish from Friuli.

Great with White wines like Grillo Feudo Arancio, Terre Alte Felluga, and Ribolla Gialla.

Tags: Gourmet Foods Shrimp Artichokes Appetizers Sicily Italian Recipes Food and Wine Travel Italy

Read the Full Story...

Crostini alla Salsiccia – Crostini with Sausage

Summertime in Italy means great savory foods. Appetizers are as much of a meal as entrees. Crostini are flavorful and their preparation is quick and simple. When the temperature is high and the appetite is light they can be satisfying meal with a bottle of good wine.

Ingredients for 12 crostini:

1 lb. (450 gr.) sausage (I suggest Beer Bratwurst)
75 gr. of Mascarpone
75 gr. Cream of Brie
1 Filone (the filone can be day-old)

I suggest the beer bratwurst because it is the closest to northern Italian sausage even though it does not contain Parmesan cheese. Any soft and creamy cheese can be used as long as it is not sweet.


Preparation:
Heat the oven to 350 degrees.

Cut the bread in slices about ½ inch thick and place on a baking pan.

Remove the casing from the sausage and place in a skillet over medium heat. Do not cook completely. The meat should turn grey but not braised. This will take about 6 minutes from the first sizzle.

While the sausage is cooking, in a bowl mix the two cheeses with a fork until the consistency is creamy and uniform.

Drain the grease from the sausage and add the sausage to the mixture. Mix together and taste for salt.

Spread the mixture on the slices of bread and place in the hot oven for 15 minutes.

Serve hot.

Tags: Crostini Sausage Appetizers Gourmet Food Italian Recipes Food and Wine Travel Italy

Read the Full Story...

Mozzarella di Bufala – Fact and Fiction

Mozzarella can be found in many forms but rarely tastes the same as the Mozzarella found in Italy. There are many reasons. The first is that Mozzarella di Bufala is made from the milk of the Water Buffalo. Another reason is that Mozzarella is a fresh cheese, which means it should be consumed within days of production. Another point in case is that Mozzarella must remain in the serum until it is consumed. All of these basic requirements make Mozzarella an unlikely candidate for mass production and distribution.

This does not mean that the products named Mozzarella are not good cheeses, simply that they are not Mozzarella. In Italy, where false advertising is a felony and the naming of products is controlled by legislation, the products that do not meet the basic requirements are called string cheese, mozzari, or by some other similar imaginative name.

Mozzarella di Bufala has antique origins. First found in official documentation in 1570. The word Mozzarella derives from the base word Mozzare or to cut off by pinching between the index finger and the thumb. This term comes from the process of production. Once the cheese ball has formed the artisan pinches a small amount of cheese from the ball, thus Mozzarella.

The Buffalo were originally used for heavy farm work much like the Ox in US history. The farmers believed it was a waste to not use the Buffalo milk but Buffalo milk is very hard to digest. The production process of Mozzarella was designed to tone down the strong flavor of Buffalo milk. The resulting process makes Mozzarella type cheeses made from cow’s milk practically tasteless. The serum is a mixture of the residual whey and brine. The Mozzarella ball absorbs some salt from the brine stopping the fermentation and allowing the product to remain fresh for several days.

Mozzarella di Bufala is an important ingredient in many recipes but for Caprese and Pizza it is a basic element. When Mozzarella is a basic ingredient it is important to use the real stuff but that can be difficult in the US. We have found one producer who makes real Mozzarella di Bufala and this product can be found, here in Dallas, at Central Market. It will cost twice as much as the industrial string cheese but is well worth the price. The product may also be ordered online directly from the producer Bubalis Bubalis, Inc.

Tags: Mozzarella di Bufala Caprese Mozzarella Italian Cheese Italian Recipes Food and Wine Travel Italy

Read the Full Story...

La Caprese – Mozzarella di Bufala Campana and Tomatoes

It is summertime, at least here in Dallas with 100 degree temperatures, and that means changing the types of food consumed, particularly during the day. Red meats, fat-based and high carbohydrate foods are to avoid while fresh fruits, cheeses and vegetables are in. Cold rice based salads combined with vegetables and fresh cheeses will provide the necessary calories without overloading the body. One of my favorites is the Caprese.


The Mozzarella di Bufala Campana Caprese, or simply La Caprese, is made in different ways in different parts of Italy. In Campania, the region around Naples, it is simply Mozzarella, tomatoes, fresh basil leaves, salt, pepper and oregano. The Caprese in Milan adds olive oil and does not always have oregano. I have seen, in some parts of eastern Italy, both olive oil and wine vinegar. Oil would never be added in Campania, the region where Mozzarella di Bufala is produced, because the locals believe that the oil modifies the taste of the cheese.

No matter what seasoning is added this dish is so simple that the ingredients must be quality. I would use homegrown tomatoes, whenever possible, and the mozzarella must be the large balls and not the bite size pieces. Processed mozzarella, the kind that comes in a block, should not be used. The mozzarella must be fresh and I would buy the best mozzarella I could afford. The difference in price actually means something in mozzarella. Balance is everything in this dish; follow the instructions carefully.

La Caprese Campana

Ingredients:

1 lb. (450 gr.) of Mozzarella di Bufala
1 lb. (450 gr.) vine ripened tomatoes
6 leaves fresh Basil
Oregano
Salt
Pepper

Preparation:

Cut the Mozzarella and the tomatoes into 1 inch thick slices. Place one slice of mozzarella on the plate, overlap with one slice of tomato. Continue to fill the plate. Sprinkle with salt, freshly ground pepper, and oregano. Place the whole leaves of Basil on the slices. Keep cool and serve within 1 hour.

La Caprese Milanese

Ingredients:

1 lb. (450 gr.) of Mozzarella di Bufala
1 lb. (450 gr.) vine ripened tomatoes
6 leaves fresh Basil
1 deciliter quality Olive Oil
Salt
Pepper

Cut the Mozzarella and the tomatoes into 1 inch thick slices. Place one slice of mozzarella on the plate, overlap with one slice of tomato. Continue to fill the plate. Sprinkle with salt and freshly ground pepper. Break, not chop, the basil leaves into small pieces and sprinkle the Basil on the slices. Pour the olive oil evenly over the entire plate. Keep cool and serve within 1 hour.


Tags: Mozzarella Caprese Campania Summer Recipes Italian Recipes Food and Wine Travel Italy

Read the Full Story...

Bruschetta – The One The Traditional

Bruschetta is the perfect appetizer. Five minutes to prepare and the ingredients are usually on hand, stale bread, olive oil, salt (in some areas pepper) and fresh garlic. It is an expression of simplicity yet this savory munchie is perfect with before dinner drinks, wine or just to close that hole in the stomach before dinner. Today there are numerous variations of Bruschetta and it would be a sacrilege to talk about Tuscany without at least a mention to the one, the original Bruschetta.

Originally Bruschetta was intended to use the left over bread. Tuscany bread has two primary characteristics, the first it has no salt and secondly it is only water and flour so it dries out relatively quickly. The early inhabitants of Tuscany found that if they put some olive oil on the bread and toasted it on the fire the bread would come back to life. The next step was flavor, bread, in itself is a great carbohydrate but a little salt and a lot of garlic made Bruschetta not only nutrient but also savory. A meal unto itself, when you did not have an exuberance of food.

Bruschetta is so important in the culture of Tuscany that there are several fairs celebrating wine and Bruschetta. The most important is in Panicale during the third week in November and includes a museum, an all day celebration with a market and a guided tasting tour among the numerous participants in the fair. Oh, yes there is also new wine and olive oil.

Ingredients

10-12 slices of Pane Toscano
Olive Oil
Salt
Pepper
2 cloves of Garlic

Preparation

Toast the slices of bread in the oven or over the coals. Spread the olive oil, salt and pepper evenly over one side. Rub the garlic directly on the toasted bread.

After this base you can add just about anything edible.

Technorati Tags: Bruschetta Bread Appetizers Tuscany Food and Wine

Read the Full Story...

Cipolline alla Senape Arancione – Spring Onions with Dijon Mustard Sauce

We had the wonderful opportunity to celebrate the Al’s birthday, one of our cooking buddies, last night. Raffaella and I were in charge of the dinner and had been thinking about the dinner all week. He had requested cannelloni but we still needed to come up with a first course that would properly compliment the dinner. We also decided that we wanted to share two of our favorite wines that we had been saving for a special occasion.

Both wines are Gaja, a 1998 Barbaresco and a 1997 Sori Tildin. John, our wine guy in the group, provided various other great wines before and after. We had been thinking about this combination all week, an onion soup, peppers with olive, capers and mozzarella, stuffed tomatoes, our choice fell on a traditional dish from Piemonte just like the filling and sauce for the cannelloni.

This is an antipasti dish. Antipasti are often substituted for first or second course plates in a dinner so this would compliment both the cannelloni that we would prepare or would do marvelously with the Brasato al Barolo instead of a first course dish. The preparation is not difficult but does take some time so begin early. This plate can be prepared the day before and then heated before serving.

Ingredients:

16 Spring Onions (medium)
200 grams pancetta (½ lb bacon) – cut into small cubes
3 cups of dry white wine
2 tablespoons of flour
2 carrots - shredded
2 tablespoons of Dijon Mustard
1 cup of heavy cream
Butter, Olive Oil, Salt and Pepper

Preparation Spring Onions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Remove the outer skin of the onions and place them in a casserole pan with high sides. Add 2 tablespoons of Olive Oil and 2 cups of wine. Salt and pepper moderately and place in the oven. Allow to cook until the wine has reduced by 90%. This will take about 90 minutes. Check after 60 minutes, it is important that the onion do not lose their structure.

Preparation of the Sauce:

Melt 2 tablespoons of butter in a medium sized pot. Sprinkle the flour over the shredded carrots and toss to distribute the flour. Saute’ the carrots with the Dijon mustard. Add salt and pepper and allow the sauce to become dense.

In a separate pot sear the pancetta with a tablespoon of olive oil. Add the remaining cup of wine and completely reduce.

Remove the pancetta and add the heavy cream. Bring to temperature and add to the carrot mixture. With a mini-pimer or soup mixer reduce to an even texture.

Serving:

Serve the onions medium warm to hot, with two spoons move an entire onion onto the individual plate and pour the carrot-wine sauce over onion and serve immediately.

Accompany this dish with a hearty red wine.

Tags: Onions Appetizers Italian Recipes Food and Wine Italian Wine Piemonte Travel Italy

Read the Full Story...