Fiddling Around

Every year in late spring or very early summer, I read something or other about fiddlehead ferns. One of the articles mentioned they grow wild in New England along mossy stream banks. That kind of lets Florida out, or so I thought until I found them in both the Fresh Market and Whole Foods. So I brought some home, did more reading and made them for dinner the other night.

So what are they exactly? They are the immature leaf fronds of ostrich fern plants that have not yet opened. Fern leaves are poisonous once they open and can only be enjoyed in this early stage. 
What do they taste like? A cross between artichokes and asparagus, kind of earthy and nutty.

Where do you find them? The ostrich fern is native to the northeast as well as to the upper Midwestern states. Ostrich fern also grows freely in Alaska and in many parts of Canada. It is grown in the Northwest where wild-food enthusiasts consider it high on the culinary list. Ostrich fern will grow in the home garden in regions with moderate to cold winters and mild summers. It does not do well in areas that remain warm year round. The winter chill period is important to the growth cycle of this fern.

So, look for them in late spring and very early summer. Fiddlehead ferns are only available for a short time, so grab them while you can. Because Florida does not have fiddlehead ferns growing by mossy stream banks or anyplace else, I looked to see where mine came from. The label said: Alpine Foragers Exchange Inc. in Portland Oregon. That's a long trip from Oregon to Florida for sure. I'm rather surprised someone in New England isn't supplying them, but maybe the prices are higher or perhaps nobody's thought of it.

I also read they are fabulous served with morels, which you lucky northerners can forage for at just about the same time. Those two earthy flavors combined must be a gourmand's dream. I think next spring I'm going to splurge and buy some dried morels just so I can taste these two together. But if you love mushrooms and don't want to spring for morels, use shiitakes or any other commonly available mushroom.

How to prepare them for cooking? If more than 2 inches of stem remains attached beyond the coiled part of the fiddlehead snap or cut it off. If any of the paper chaff remains on the fiddleheads you may rub it off by hand. I rinsed them in water and used a soft brush to get the chaff off. After the chaff is removed wash the fiddleheads in several changes of cold water to remove any dirt or grit. Drain the fiddlehead completely. Use them fresh as soon after harvest as possible.
When I made them, I got some salted boiling water going and parboiled them for a couple minutes. Not long, because you don't want them soft. Put them in an ice bath and then dry them completely. The first time, I fried them along with some shallots and garlic and seasoned them with salt and pepper, eating them as a vegetable. Double yum, people. 
Then I read Mary's blog.... Ocean Breezes, Country Sneezes and she had made them with pancetta, something I noticed a few other recipes suggested. Mary also mentioned you can freeze them. I'll try that next year, although I should think getting them absolutely fresh (which I can't) would be key to successful freezing.
The next night, because I had some angel hair pasta, I cooked that and at the same time, browned some pancetta, browned shallots and garlic with the parboiled fiddleheads, tossed it with the pasta and topped with a bit of Parmesan. Oh Lord. Deeee-vine. 

But next time, I'm using bacon which would be just as good if not better (and I almost always have some in the fridge), and mushrooms. Morels would be perfect if I could get them, which I can't, darn it, but we already discussed that. Next spring, if you find fiddleheads in your market or if you can forage for them, take some home. Make them with bacon and mushrooms. What a treat. So here's the recipe...with by-the-seat-of-your-pants instructions;  a combination of several recipes. 

Fiddlehead Ferns with Pancetta

Ingredients:
Fiddlehead ferns
Pancetta, 1/4 inch thick, diced (or bacon)
1 garlic clove, minced
1 shallot, diced
pasta, your choice
Parmesan
mushrooms, morels if you're lucky (optional)

Method:
Clean the fiddleheads as described above. Boil them in salted water for a couple minutes, then plunge them into an ice bath to stop the cooking.
Dry thoroughly. Brown the diced pancetta and remove from pan onto paper towels. I discarded the grease, wiped the pan and added some butter. Add the shallots, garlic and fiddleheads. Brown them lightly and then add the pancetta.

Cook your pasta as desired, drain and toss with the fiddlehead/shallot mixture. Top with some Parmesan and serve.

Nana's Baked Noodles Antin

I know exactly what you're thinking: who's Antin?  I've asked myself the same question. And I couldn't find a thing about it online, with the exception of one lone copy of the recipe....very strange.  It was on Cooks.com, where one often finds reprints of really old recipes usually with no explanation. The kind that were in those wonderful old church cookbooks. The recipe was identical to Nana's (my dear MIL), so I guess she wasn't the only one making this. One thing I do know, this is a really old recipe. I'd guess 40's or 50's at least, if not older. Would love to hear from anyone who might have heard of this before and if you know the background.

I imagine one of Nana's friends passed this recipe on to her....she had so many. One her nicest ladies' groups called themselves The Menopause Mamas. (no need to explain how that got started) The MM's for short. When I was pregnant with my first, the MM's had a baby shower for me and I got the most beautiful things! Wouldn't surprise me if the recipe came from one of those really fun women. They did everything together.

   My sweet MIL, Virginia Hayes Williams 

                                                                                                    
And yeah, that's me with the ghastly yellow/white hair, right after I had my daughter. (What was I thinking??) Nana was NOT pleased. She was such an elegant lady. "What have you done to your lovely hair, dear?" in the sweetest voice imagineable. And my ever-blunt paternal grandfather took one look and said: "does having a baby turn your hair white?" :)

At any rate, my MIL served this dish a lot with a grilled steak. Back in those days, that was pretty much the only thing anyone grilled.....well, perhaps chicken once in a while. I think it's much like a savory kugel, without the eggs. This would be even better made with whole wheat noodles, but I was using up what I had left over. Sort of a mac and cheese side dish. You might even have most of the ingredients in your pantry; toss them all together and you have one fast side dish. It wouldn't surprise me if this dish was invented to use up leftovers. Probably by someone whose last name was Antin! You can substitute some lo-cal sour cream and cottage cheese, although I've never tried that. (Will it curdle?) Anyway.. this is quick, easy, cheap and if you're a crunchy noodle lover like me, you will be eating the top off this casserole and then picking at the sides after dinner.

Baked Noodles Antin

Ingredients:
 5 ounces egg noodles
 1 cup  cottage cheese
 1 cup  sour cream
 1/2 clove  garlic, crushed
 1 sm.  onion, minced
 1 Tablespoon  worcestershire sauce
 dash tobasco
 salt and pepper
 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese


Method:
Cook noodles until barely done. Drain well  and mix with all other ingredients. Put into a buttered casserole, Top with Parmesan cheese and bake in a 375 oven until brown. 


Serves 6

Ricotta Gnudi

More Top Chef ... Did anyone catch this? I was watching an old episode and one of the judges mumbled something about gnudi and the way the chef had prepared it.  I reversed and listened again. Yep. They called it gnudi and the recipe title was spelled out on the screen. Not nudie, but gnudi. This particular chef served his gnudi fried, with scallops.

I didn't have a clue what gnudi was. Imagine my surprise to find out it's little cooked pillows of ricotta cheese, used exactly like pasta, and related to gnocchi. And it's pronounced the way you'd think: NU-DEE. Think "nude" ravioli: filling without the pasta around it —  light, fluffy and creamy.

This seems to be a month for discovering new things, so I decided to find a recipe and make it. Zen Can Cook suggested using fresh ricotta to make gnudi and I thought it was a great idea. (You can use regular ricotta too, just let it drain for an hour or so.) I remembered Heidi at 101 Cookbooks  had a recipe for making your own ricotta and it was so simple I could hardly believe it. You can find her recipe HERE and at the very end of this post, a photo of my efforts. Fellow blogger Reeni  posted a recipe for spinach gnudi recently so perhaps I'm a little late to the gnudi party.....

Zen made his without using flour in the ricotta, which may have been what caused so many problems for him; his ricotta was wet and he was frustrated several times before he got it to work: " if your ricotti is not dry enough it will collapse into a pitiful puddle of cheese at the contact of boiling water or hot butter… believe me, I went there."
So, sorry about this, gluten-free readers, but I ended up with another recipe for gnudi that uses flour. As a result, I had no problems. Then I proceeded to form and cook the gnudi the way Zen suggested.

After that, I switched to a mushroom gnudi recipe I found in an old Bon Appetit; you know how much I love mushrooms. They had a super idea to flash fry some proscuitto and sage to garnish the dish. It was a brilliant idea (and I'm going to use it for some other dishes)...it tastes just like bacon and looked marvelous on top of the dish.

An additional note: there is some resting and refrigeration time involved, so read the recipe through before starting.

Now, the photo that accompanies the recipe is exactly the way it's supposed to look, but for some odd reason when I plated it, I didn't put nearly enough of the sauce on the plate. Trust me, there is plenty of sauce!

Ricotta Gnudi with Wild Mushroom and Truffle Sauce
Bon Appétit, January 2007

Ingredients:
1 pound fresh ricotta cheese
1 large egg
1/3 cup finely grated Pecorino Romano cheese (about 1 ounce) plus additional for serving
1/2 teaspoon salt
Large pinch of ground white pepper
1-2 cups semolina for coating gnudi

Garnishes:
5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
6 thin prosciutto slices
12 whole fresh sage leaves

Mushroom sauce:
2 pounds fresh wild mushrooms (such as crimini, oyster, and stemmed shiitake), sliced
2 large shallots, chopped
6 fresh thyme sprigs
2 teaspoons chopped fresh sage
2 cups low-salt chicken broth
1 teaspoon black truffle oil
1/4 cup ( 1/2 stick) chilled butter, diced

Method:
If you are using regular ricotta: Line a bowl with several layers of paper towels. Spoon the ricotta cheese into bowl. Let drain at least 30 minutes and up to 1 hour. 

If you are using homemade ricotta, ignore this step. The ricotta will be dry enough.

Beat egg, 1/3 cup Pecorino Romano cheese, salt, and white pepper in large bowl to blend. Mix in ricotta.  Spread half the semolina in a pie pan. Put the ricotta mixture in a pastry bag fitted with a #9 or #10 tip and pipe blobs (or drop 1 tablespoon at a time) onto the semolina. Cover with the remaining semolina (it should look like the Sahara Desert at this point) and refrigerate, uncovered, for at least 24 hours.

When ready to proceed, pick up the gnudi from the semolina brushing off the excess, and roll them in the palm of your hands one by one to form little sausage shapes . Refrigerate at least 1 hour (or up to 24 hours) until ready to use. (This also helps to ‘set’ the skin.)

When ready to cook, bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Cook gnudi until tender, about 5 minutes.

For garnishes:
Heat 1 tablespoon oil in large pot or extra-large skillet over medium-high heat. Add 3 prosciutto slices. Cook until beginning to brown, about 2 minutes per side. Transfer to paper towels. Repeat with remaining prosciutto. Add whole sage leaves to pot; sauté until crisp, about 1 minute per side. Transfer to paper towels.

For sauce:
Heat remaining 4 tablespoons oil in same pot over medium-high heat. Add all mushrooms, shallots, thyme, and chopped sage. Sauté until mushrooms brown and liquids evaporate, about 12 minutes. Transfer mixture to bowl. Add broth to same pot and boil until slightly reduced, scraping up browned bits, about 7 minutes. Remove from heat. Add 1 teaspoon truffle oil and mushroom mixture. Season to taste with salt and pepper. do ahead Sauce can be made 2 hours ahead. Let stand at room temperature.

Cook the gnudi as described above.

Meanwhile, rewarm sauce. Add butter; toss until blended. Using strainer, transfer gnudi to pot with sauce. Toss over medium heat until sauce coats gnudi. Season with salt and pepper.

Transfer to large shallow bowl. Crumble prosciutto over. Top with sage leaves; serve with additional Pecorino.

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

Making Ricotta:

A Very Ugly Pasta Sauce

I kid you not. It's made with eggplant and it's gray, soggy and really boring looking.

But remember that old adage: don't let appearances fool you. You cook this eggplant in olive oil with some garlic and a little stock and then mash it into a sauce. And OMG, the flavor! Silky, garlicky, eggplanty and luscious with oil. You add a bit of fresh basil, salt, pepper and dried tomatoes at the end just to brighten things up. I gobbled it down before even thinking of grating some Parmigiano-Reggiano on top, but you can if you insist.

I'm ahead of the game because I really LIKE eggplant. But a lot of people don't. This particular recipe came from food writer Francis Lam who wasn't an eggplant fan either and, in his own inimitable way, had this to say about eggplant:

"It’s not always easy to deal with eggplant. It’s a fussy creature, finicky and unpredictable. It can be horrifyingly bitter if you get it when it’s overmature and seedy. It can soak up grease with the gusto of a ShamWow. But the oily, gray, lifeless, and utterly delicious eggplant I had at a neighborhood place in Rome inspired me to rethink my treatment and relationship with the stuff. Why fight the eggplant and try to get neat, seared cubes? Let it be what it wants to be! Let it turn to mush!"

So he's a convert...and you will be too after you make this very simple Italian peasant dish.

Pasta with Let-My-Eggplant-Go-Free! Sauce
Recipe from HERE and HERE.

Ingredients:
1 pound eggplant, cut into ½ inch slices, leave the skin on
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
3 cloves garlic, lightly smashed
2 springs thyme, chopped
1 cup chicken stock
2 tablespoons sun-dried or oven-dried tomatoes*, minced
6 leaves basil, sliced thinly
Salt and pepper
1 pound spaghetti

Method:
Lightly salt the slices of eggplant, stack them back together and let sit for 20 minutes.

Put the olive oil in a wide, heavy saucepan, add the garlic cloves, and set over low heat. Dry off the eggplant, cut it into chunks.

When you start hearing the garlic sizzle a little and can smell it, drop in your eggplant and stir to coat it all with oil. Turn up the heat a little bit to medium high and add the thyme and stir. When the eggplant is turning translucent and softening, add the liquid, let it come to a boil, and turn it back down to medium-low. Let it bubble for a bit and cover it, leaving a crack for steam to escape. Stir once in a while so that the bottom doesn’t stick.

After about 20 minutes or so, the liquid in the eggplant pan should be mostly evaporated and the eggplant should be soft and melting. Mash it with a fork or spoon, and adjust the seasoning to taste.

Toss the eggplant purée with the spaghetti that you cooked al dente. Stir in the minced tomatoes and basil.  Serve immediately.
Serves 3 or 4.

*I used some left over roasted tomatoes I'd had for lunch. Never made oven roasted tomatoes? Here's how. Easy peasy.

Take 12 plum tomatoes, cut them in half and remove most of the seeds. Place them on a baking sheet and sprinkle with olive oil, salt and pepper, some minced garlic, some balsalmic vinegar and a teaspoon of sugar. Bake in a 275° oven for about 2 hours. Cool.

And the salad I had for lunch? I made it with fresh mozzarella, fresh basil  and these delicious roasted tomatoes with a bit more balsamic and EVOO on top. Yum.

Little Pockets of Squash

This looks complicated.
Totally not.
All you need is a bit of time and then you can freeze these babies and use them whenever you want.

Here's the thing:
When I look at a butternut squash (or any large squash for that matter) I'm dead certain I'm going to chop off a finger while cutting it in half. It wouldn't be the first time I cut myself badly in the kitchen, but let's not discuss that. (shiver) Then one day I read  about a safe method for cutting any large squash in half. You get a nice long, sharp knife and a hammer. That's what I said: a hammer. Set the knife where you want to cut the squash, hold on to the handle of the knife with your left hand and tap the knife firmly with the hammer along its length until it works on through the squash. Try it, it works like a charm. On any squash. No appendages lost. No ER.

These squash pockets are another of Giada ("The Rack") De Laurentis's recipes but I changed a few things. I'm at a loss to explain why she added amaretti cookies to the filling- not my taste at all. Texture? A touch of sweet? Sometimes I think Giada adds something "Italian" merely to make the recipe different without much thought to flavor. It doesn't always work. I've seen her do it several times and without even tasting it I thought to myself: she just ruined that recipe.
My opinion.

Anyway-I put some dried sage in for more flavor. I think this dish is better as a savory- not a sweet. And while I like acorn squash with brown sugar this seems better with just the dried fruit and nuts to give it a touch of sweetness. As for the brown butter sauce, if you put the fruit and nuts in when she says to, you end up with tasteless dark brown pebbles. So I browned the butter, then added the sage, nuts and fruit at the end.

As for the scrumptious filling, I scarfed down the leftovers for dinner. 

Butternut Squash Tortellini in Brown Butter Sauce
(Adapted from Giada De Laurentiis, Everyday Italian)

Ingredients:

1 butternut squash, approximately 2 pounds, peeled, cubed (about 3 cups)
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus 2 tablespoons
1 1/2 teaspoons herbs de Provence
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more to taste
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more to taste
2 large shallots, chopped (about 1/2 cup)
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1 cup whole milk ricotta cheese
4 small amaretti cookies, crushed (I omitted these, add if you like)
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 package small wonton wrappers

For the Brown Butter Sauce:
3/4 cup butter (1 1/2 sticks)
2 tablespoons torn fresh sage leaves
1/2 cup toasted walnuts, coarsely chopped (I used pecans)
1/2 cup dried cranberries, or chopped dried cherries, or mixture of both
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more to taste
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more to taste
1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Method:

Preheat the oven to 375°. On a foil-lined baking sheet toss together the butternut squash, 2 tablespoons of olive oil, herbs de Provence, salt, and pepper. Bake in the oven until soft and golden, about 25 minutes. Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a small saute pan over medium heat. Cook the shallots and garlic until lightly golden, about 3 minutes.

In a food processor, combine the butternut squash mixture, the shallot mixture, and the ricotta cheese and pulse a few times to blend. Add the crushed amaretti cookies (which I omitted and instead added 1/2 teaspoon dried sage), the nutmeg, and sprinkle with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Pulse until smooth. The tortellini filling can be made one day ahead.

To make the tortellini, lay out 6 wonton skins, (I used a silpat) keeping the remaining skins inside the package or under a very lightly dampened paper towel. Place 1 large teaspoon of squash mixture in the middle of each skin.

Dip a pastry brush in a little water and wet the edges of the skin all the way around. Gently fold the square wrapper into a triangle, making sure the edges are securely closed and there are no air pockets inside.

Dampen the two bottom corners of the longest side of the triangle and gently bring them together, pressing lightly to secure.

Place the formed tortellini on a baking sheet and cover with plastic wrap. Before laying out another 6 wonton sheets, be careful to dry the work surface.  Continue until all the butternut squash mixture is used. There should be approximately 36 tortellini. (The tortellini can be formed, frozen on the baking sheet, transferred to a tightly sealed plastic bag or container and stored for up to six months. To cook, simply toss the frozen ravioli into the salted boiling water and cook for 4 minutes.)

To cook the tortellini, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.

Meanwhile, melt the butter in a large, heavy skillet over medium heat. Allow the butter to foam and then begin to turn golden. Watch carefully because it only takes seconds to go from a lovely brown to burned. Add the sage, walnuts and cranberries and let everything warm through. Turn the heat off and season with salt, and pepper.

Place the tortellini in the boiling water and gently stir. When they begin to float they are done, about 3 minutes. Using a slotted spoon,  spoon the tortellini onto a serving platter, Top with the brown butter sauce, sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and serve.

Hearty Tomatoes

The temperature is getting low outside. It is that time of the year when we start feeling a lot hungrier for carbs and other hearty foods. Making an effort to keep a healthy diet will definitely pay off after the holidays!

During the next couple of months we'll bring a few family recipes to help you keep it healthy and delicious!

Starting with the basics, try this easy-to-make organic tomato sauce, perfect for pasta, dipping, poultry, meat balls, etc. This recipe has been created by an Italian mom, and approved by a big demanding crowd.

Italian Tomato Sauce

- 7 to 10 organic diced tomatoes, or a 28oz. can of organic dices tomatoes.
- 1 diced yellow onion.
- 5 diced garlic cloves.
- 1 tblspoon of dry oregano.
- 1 tblspoon of dry parsley or basil (optional).
- 1 tblspoon of capers.
- Salt and black pepper.
- 1/2 tablespoon of Honey, or sugar (to eliminate the bitterness of the tomato).
- 2 tbspoon of canola oil

In a saucepan, combine the onions, garlic and oil. Cook it until the onions are transparent, usually about 5 minutes. Add the tomatoes, capers, honey, salt, pepper and herbs. Stir, and let it cook for 5 minutes.

Add water as you see necessary, the quantity may vary depending on the size of the tomatoes. If you are cooking pasta, boil it in unsalted water, and use that same water in the sauce instead. It's thicker, and will add some pasta flavor to the sauce. Let it simmer for about 20 to 25 minutes.

Pasta tip: cook the pasta al dente, then finish cooking the pasta in the sauce. It will absorb the sauce flavors, and the result will be delicious!

Fregola: Sardinia's Best-Kept Secret?

A few months ago Giada used fregola in a salad and I was totally intrigued. And embarrassed to admit I'd never heard of it. A quick search turned up the following: fregola has an ancient history in Sardinia; it's actually a pasta made by rubbing tiny grains of semolina together with a bit of water, toasting them, rubbing them together again, toasting them again, and so on until you end up with tiny pasta balls. It looks like Israeli couscous, but is more pebbly, less smooth and has all kinds of gorgeous toasty hues. And it has a nutty, wheaty, roasted taste that couscous lacks. Sounds interesting, right?

Finding it was another story. Not easy. (Although someone told me Whole Foods had it- mine didn't.) You may have to shop at International grocery stores or Italian delis to get it. I finally gave up and ordered mine from Urban Herbs. Or check Amazon- they can find anything!  Dried pasta keeps well, so you might want to stock up on it if you're a fan. Almost all brands are imported from and made in Italy.

Why bother? I bet your Italian friends could give you some great answers to that question. But here's what I discovered: you can add it to soups, make a salad with it or use it in a hot side dish. How about using it in tabbouleh instead of bulgur wheat? You could just cook it in some broth and serve it warm with a touch of olive oil and topped with some grated pecorino. In fact, use it any way you might use a small pasta- fregola has so much more flavor and character.

I decided to try both a salad and a side dish and I can tell you right now the side dish was far and away my favorite… it was fantastic. You can use up that zucchini you have left in your garden too. And it was just as good the next night- if you are lucky enough to have any left over. Chocolate &  Zucchini posted this recipe in 2004- pure luck I found it... thank you, Clotilde, thank you! That's how good it is. This is comfort food personified. No kidding. On a rainy, stormy or snowy day I would love to cozy up with a big bowl of this. I've made it several times already; everyone loved it- and nobody knew what it was!

Cooking fregola is simple enough. I used 4 cups of chicken broth (you can use plain salted water too) and when it came to a boil, I added about 1 1/2 cups of fregola. I let it simmer for 12-15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until it was done, but still somewhat chewy. (It puffs up; add more broth if necessary) Drain the fregola and, if you are using it in a salad, dump it on a large baking sheet.

Spread to a single layer and let it cool for 10 minutes. It clumps pretty badly as it cools so break it up with a fork. Then you just mix with your favorite salad ingredients.

For the zucchini recipe, I just kept it covered to keep it warm. I promise you, this is a fabulous recipe- addictive even. The recipe is quick, short and to the point. It's finding fregola that takes time!

And here's the big winner!

Fregola Sarda with  Zucchini and Pine Nuts
(Adapted from Chocolate and Zucchini, October 5th, 2004 post)

Ingredients:
3 small and slender zucchini
2 cups cooked fregola sarda
2 handfuls of pinenuts, dry toasted
2 ounces parmesan cheese
olive oil
salt
herbes de provence

Method:
Wash and slice three zucchini very thin. Sauté in a bit of olive oil, with herbes de provence to taste and just enough salt to bring out the zucchini flavor. Add the fregola and pinenuts. Grate liberal amounts of parmesan on top and mix in. Serve warm. Serves 2 with leftovers for lunch.