Italian Cuisine - Angel Hair Pasta with Broccoli and Garlic Sauce - And, why most vegetable pastas aren’t very good

Today's recipe video is a very simple broccoli "alia olia," but it's also a good example of the proper way to use vegetables in pasta. I almost never order veggie pasta in a restaurant. The main reason is that the vegetables are almost never cooked properly, or I should say prepped properly. Take this broccoli pasta as an example. In a restaurant the same ingredients would be used, but all broccoli pieces would be added at the same time. So, by the time the stems were tender the tops would be mush, or even worse, the tops would be perfect and the stems hard and crunchy.
You have to have a game plan when doing a vegetable pasta. If you are using vegetables that have different cooking times, you can't add them all at the same time, yet that's what most people do. One strategy is to cut the longer cooking veggies smaller and leave the more tender veggies larger, so they all cook at about the same time. Another trick is to precook the denser vegetables, like carrots, before combining them with less dense things like squash.
In this pasta, I separate the tops and stems of the broccoli. I basically make a sauce with the diced (and much tougher) stem pieces, and the tender flowers at the end so I get a nice uniform doneness. Anyway, all that being said, this is a delicious way to eat that broccoli all those doctors' keeps talking about. By the way, if you're a Chef that remembers the "garnish the edge of the plate" era (explained in clip), I'd love to get a comment from you. What we're we thinking? Enjoy!
(I'm going to try embeding two video players, from both YouTube and Brightcove, in case one of the sources is down, or one works better on your browser than the other. The Youtube embed is a smaller player, but not as temperamental as the larger Brightcove version.)

Ingredients:
1 pound angel hair pasta
1 1/2 pound broccoli
3 cups chicken stock
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup butter
6 cloves garlic
1 tsp red pepper flakes
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
salt to taste

 

Italian Cuisine - Merluzzo Pasta Puttanesca - Pimp My Cod!

Baccal? is Codfish in Italian language, and I just thought it will look cooler in it. In case you have never been aware of a "Puttanesca" sauce before, it's German for "in the style of the whore. inch I know, it seems appetizing doesn't it? Although, it really is a wonderful and fast pasta spices that may be prepared and threw on plain pasta, or used as a foundation for a far more complex menu as I did here. I've taken the fundamental Puttanesca sauce and added fresh codfish and Arugula to create a very nice, and quite healthy sea food pasta. Moreover, it flavor much better than it appears to be! The black olive tapenade I added makes for sort of grey and colorless looking sauce, but when you dress up with a little parmesan on top and even more red tear gas flakes, it suddenly becomes much more attractive (insert your own prostitute laugh here).
Now, as considerably as the storyline behind the Puttanesca sauce's origins, there are many stories, some more "colorful" than others. It is pretty much agreed after that Southwest florida was the birthplace, but that's about all that folks don't argue about. What follows are the most frequent answers of this delightful marinade; the females of the night do this nudeln sauce because the alluring aroma would help entice customers. It was created as a quick and cheap meal the females could eat in between customers. It is hot, spicy, and fast, similar to the woman for whom it's named.

Irrespective of the true source, it's a great marinade, and the one that should be part of your regular pasta rotation, whatever your own personal level of virtue is actually. I've made this version reduced caloric by reducing the standard amount of olive oil and replaced it with stock and wine. Enjoy!




Ingredients:
1 pound fresh cod
2 cups chicken or fish stock (or water)
1 pound pasta
1 cup white wine
2 tbl anchovy paste
2 tbl red pepper flakes
6 cloves garlic
2 tbl olive tapenade or chopped olives
1/4 cup capers
1 bunch Arugula (about 2-3 cups)
2 tbl olive oil
1/2 cup parmesan

Cauliflower Spaghetti “Aglio Olio” - Hello Old Friend

Well, I thought I had found them all, but this clip that I posted on YouTube a long time ago never made it to this blog. So, while some of you may have watched it there, here is the official article and recipe ingredient list. As you watch, it will be obvious this was done long before the new equipment and it sure looks and sounds like it. I mean I didn’t even wear a Chef jacket back then! But, it really is a great (and easy) recipe and I hope you give it a try.

In my opinion, one of life’s simple pleasures is the classic spaghetti “aglio olio.” Pasta tossed with lots of garlic, oil, and maybe some butter and cheese. For those of us that grew up in Italian-American homes, this might have been the first pasta dish we ever tasted. My mother did a variation on this comfort classic by adding chopped cauliflower which as a youngster I always enjoyed. Like most kids I hated cauliflower in any other form, but for some reason when it was in spaghetti “aglio olio” it was delicious! One health tip: if you want to lower the calories in this dish, you can cut down the oil and butter a bit and add more pasta water to lighten the recipe. Having said that, don’t do it.

For whatever reason, as an adult I kind of forgot about this dish. For me, the cauliflower area of the produce section is certainly not a destination by any means. During a phone call with mom she told me she couldn’t talk any longer as she was just about to drain some pasta for this dish. It brought back so many happy food memories that I ran out and got some cauliflower and went to work. It had probably been 7 or 8 years since I had made this pasta dish and I savored every bite. It was like running into a dear old friend you haven’t seen for a very long time. Enjoy!



Ingredients:
1 large head of cauliflower
1 pound spaghetti
1/3 cup olive oil
1/2 stick butter
6 cloves crushed garlic
1/3 cup finely grated parmesan cheese
1 tsp red pepper flakes
salt to taste
1/4 cup chopped basil and/or Italian parsley

Spaghetti with Red Clam Sauce - One of my "Go To" Favorites

There are certain recipes all cooks have that form the base of their culinary repertoire. These are recipes that are fast and easy, that they can create from memory, with no notes, in any kitchen, for any group, any time of the year. Some Chefs refer to these as their "go to" dishes. This red clam sauce is one of my "go to" recipes.
It's incredible simple to make (much easier than saying "canned clams" as you'll hear in this clips running gag). It takes about 15 minutes start to finish. It's bursting with flavor, yet only uses a few ingredients and except for crushing a couple cloves of garlic, requires no prep. This sauce is great on any pasta, but I enjoy it best on angle hair or spaghetti. And, yes, I DO put some Parmesan on my clam pasta, thank you very much. Never say never when it comes to food. Some Chefs (fascists) say you can never put cheese on seafood pasta, never, ever, never. Well, while I agree that Parmesan would not be a great choice on some seafood pastas using very light, delicate varieties of fish and sauce. On this red clam sauce and its strong, bold flavors and meaty clams, the Parmesan tastes wonderful, and no one can prove me otherwise.

Please note while watching the video recipe the secret to what I think makes a great pasta dish. Under-cook the pasta by a minute, drain it, add it back to the pot (off the heat of course) and pour over the hot sauce, cover and let everything meld together for a few minutes. The hot sauce and steaming pasta will finish cooking and the pasta will absorb all those amazing flavors. I can't believe it when I see a plate of plain pasta with the sauce just ladled over! Anyway, give this a try and maybe it will become one of your "go to" recipes. Enjoy!



1 pound pasta
2 cans (6.5 oz) chopped clams in juice
3 cups tomato sauce (plus 1/4 cup water to rinse jar)
1 cup good white wine
1 tbl anchovy paste or 2 fillets
3 cloves garlic
1 tsp red pepper flakes
2 tbl capers
2 tbl olive oil
Parmesan to taste
salt and pepper to taste
fresh herb to taste, basil or Italian parsley

“Homemades” – Making Pasta with Uncle Bill

If you’ve been watching my video recipes for a while you have probably heard me mention my Uncle Bill more than once. Several of the Italian dishes on the site are variations (or exact copies) of his recipes I enjoyed growing up. So, before I left New York I wanted to try and capture Uncle Bill in action. This homemade fettuccine was always called “homemades” around the house, and so I thought I would post this recipe with it’s proper family name.

I enjoyed this very basic, but delicious pasta recipe, which was made into either spaghetti or fettuccine every Christmas when Uncle Bill would cook an amazing feast for the family. There was always this homemade pasta (I mean “homemades”), as well as sauce, chicken and herbs, bracciole, salads, and countless other Italian delicacies (not to mention my Aunt Angela’s amazing pies).

I don’t have much time this morning, but I will add more to this post later today, including the ingredient list. Like I already said, this is a simple recipe that just uses regular AP flour. You can, of course, use a mixture of semolina flour like many pasta recipes suggest. But, this recipe is very user friendly, and if you’ve never made your own pasta before, this would be a good place to start. By the way, those pasta machines are surprisingly affordable at your local mega-store or Bed Bath and Beyond-type home-goods places. Get one! The white motor you’ll see attached to the pasta roller in the clip is also sold at the same stores, and made to fit almost any model pasta machine. It does make things a little faster, but I kind of missed hand-cranking the handle on the machine.

What did we do with this homemade fettuccine? You’ll have to check back later for the full story. Enjoy and stay tuned!



Ingredients:
2 1/4 to 2 1/3 cup AP flour (you can always add flour, but not take it out, so even though we started with 2 1/3 cups, it may be better to start with 2 1/4 and then add a bit more latter if it seems too sticky.
2 large eggs
1 tsp salt
1 tbl olive oil
1/3 cup water

Shrimp and Vegetable Couscous – Ancient and Easy

Couscous is a tiny, granular type of wheat pasta, which is as delicious, as it is simple to prepare. It’s origins go back thousands of years and while usually considered a Moroccan dish, this is also a staple in Algeria, Tunisia and Libya. The amazing thing about couscous is how fast it “cooks,” and how versatile it is. This is one of those recipe clips that should give you lots of ideas regarding ways to vary it to create your own combinations. By the way, this is the “home” version, the real traditional method used to cook this dish uses a steamer called a “kiska,” sometimes called a “couscoussier” in French cuisine.

A few very important keys as you watch the clip: Make sure the “grains” of the couscous are coated with the olive oil, as this will keep it fluffy and separate. Also, as soon as you pour the hot stock over the couscous, wrap with foil IMMEDIATELY and TIGHTLY, and don’t touch it for 5 minutes! Most supermarket couscous will call for the basic 1 to 1 ratio of stock to dry couscous, but be sure to read the instructions.



Ingredients:
2 Cups Couscous
2 1/3 Cups Cold Water
1 Pound Raw Shrimp (With Shells)
1/2 Cup Diced Tomato
2 Green Zuchinni
1 Eggplant
1/2 Bunch Tarragon
1/2 Bunch Dill
Pepper
Salt
Cayenne
1/3 Cup Olive Oil
Lemon To Garnish

Spicy Thai-style Steak and Rice Noodle Salad – Hot and Cold, Sweet and Sour, Soft and Crisp; an adventure in culinary contrasts!

This is my favorite Asian-style noodle salad. There are so many different flavors, temperatures and textures mingling together. I love almost any pasta salad with meat, but what I really love about this one is the chewy rice noodles I use as the base. As you’ll see, they don’t really get “cooked,” but simply covered in very hot water for 8 minutes before being drained and rinsed in cold water. You should be able find the rice noodles (sometimes called Rice Sticks) in the Asian section of any large grocery store. They are a perfect contrast to the crisp cold vegetables mixed into them, which is a perfect contrast to the warm savory slices of the spicy steak, which is perfect with the sweet and tangy peanut dressing, and so on. This is just a fun dish to eat.

The beef we’re using for the salad is skirt steak. It’s very flavorful and easy to work with. You’ll find it next to the flank steak in the butcher case. While you’re in the Asian section at the store there’s couple of exotic ingredients we’ll need to pick-up. For both the dressing, and to marinate the steak, we need Shiracha, which is a hot Asian chili sauce. We’ll also use Asian Fish Sauce in the marinade. This is a very common addition to many Southeast-Asian dishes and is well worth finding at the market! By the way, you should still have some fish sauce leftover from the caramel chicken recipe.



Ingredients:
1 skirt steak (about a 1 1/4lb)
1/4 tsp chipotle chili powder
1 tsp shiracha or other hot sauce
1 tsp red curry powder
2 tbl fish sauce
8 oz. rice noodles
1 bunch mint
2 cups shredded cabbage
3/4 cup grated carrot
peanut dressing to coat, about a cup
chopped peanuts to garnish
lime to garnish

The Peanut dressing I also demo in this post is a very basic version, and doesn’t have lots of additional ingredients since I usually use this as a base for other recipes, as I did here. As Chefs are always telling young cooks, you can always add ingredients, but you can’t take them out. Enjoy!




Ingredients:
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup seasoned rice vinegar
1/3 cup vegetable oil
2 limes, juiced
1 tsp Shiracha
12 drops sesame oil
1 clove garlic