25.4.09

Gorgonzola Stuffed Pork Tenderloin

This stuffed pork tenderloin is simple and full of taste. Like most of the food that I love, some good cheese is an essential part of the mix. In this case, it's gorgonzola, although if that is too strong for you, you can substitute brie, that has a much milder, more buttery taste.

Marinade - this is enough for about 3-4 lbs. of meat.
1/2 cup olive oil
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup white wine (for those of you a little squeamish to use wine, sorry, don't know what to tell you to substitute for it, you can always use cooking wine that you can get in any grocery store)
1 tablespoon honey
1 teaspoon white pepper

This part is really simple. Combine all of the ingredients, add the meat and let sit overnight. Done.

Sauce
1 cup heavy cream
1 tablespoon flour
1 tablespoon butter
1/4 cup gorgonzola
1/4 cup white wine (again, if you don't want to use wine, try the cooking wine or just use water for this part)
1 cube chicken broth

Melt the butter in a small sauce pan over medium heat, and stir in the flour. Crush the broth cube and add it with the cream, stirring constantly. Mix in the wine and continue stirring until the sauce boils. When the sauce reaches a boil, add the cheese and turn the heat to low, stirring until the cheese melts. When the cheese is melted, remove from heat and let sit for several minutes until the sauce thickens.

The Pork Loin
3-4 lbs Pork Tenderloin
1 apple or pear
1/2 cup gorgonzola cheese
1 tablespoon olive oil
baking twine

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Peal and core the apple, then slice it into thin pieces. Place a small pan over medium heat, add the olive oil and apple slices, and saute until tender, 2-3 minutes and then remove from heat. Remove the pork from the marinade and slit the pork lengthwise to at least the center of the tenderloin and stretch out. Place the gorgonzola and sauteed apple slices along the center of the tenderloin, wrap and tie with the twine to secure. Put the stuffed tenderloin in a pan over medium heat, and brown the tenderloin on all sides. Finally put the tenderloin in a pan, cover with foil and place in the oven for 20 - 25 minutes, or until it reaches an internal temperature of 165 degrees F (place the meat thermometer in the thickest part of the tenderloin). When the tenderloin is done, remove it from the oven and let it sit for several minutes before cutting it in medallions. Cover the medallions with the sauce and serve.
Buon Appetito!

22.4.09

Pasta Belligerence*

This dish that owes it's name to the excessive amounts of pasta eaten by missionaries in the Italy Milan Mission, and was named by Kimball Hobby. It also goes by Pasta Primavera, but is markedly different than another dish with the same name. This is a pasta salad, eaten cold and is comprised mainly of fresh vegetables. It is a perfect dish for either a light lunch or dinner, especially in the spring or summer.

2-3 tomatoes
1-2 bell peppers
1 cup olives - kalamata or large green
8 oz of fresh mozzarella
1/4 cup fresh basil leaves
1 lb penne pasta
salt
pepper
olive oil
balsamic vinegar

The above are the basic ingredients, but for those willing to go the extra mile, your taste buds will be rewarded. The extra mile also includes:

8 0z pancetta (if you can't find any pancetta, cubed bacon will do)
8 0z Italian sausage (I prefer hot)
1 can artichoke hearts

This dish is extremely simple. Boil enough water (I couldn't tell you how much water to boil, I always eyeball it, better too much that too little) for the pasta, adding about a tablespoon of salt and olive oil to the water. Dump in the pasta and cook until al dente. When the pasta is done, empty it into a colander and briefly (2-3 minutes) run it under cold water and then place in the fridge. Chop up all of the veggies and cheese and then combine them in a salad bowl. If you are going the extra mile, cook the pancetta and the sausage (I prefer them slightly overcooked and somewhat crunchy, adding a different texture to the salad) strain off the grease, and add the meat to the salad bowl as well. Once the pasta is cold, add the pasta to the rest of the ingredients.

When we serve the pasta, I prefer to let each individual dress it according to taste, with the chopped basil leaves, olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and salt and pepper. The pasta keeps well in the fridge for a few days, except for the cheese. So if you are planning on keeping it around as left-overs like we often do, plan on keeping the cheese separate from the rest of the dish, so that it doesn't become too mushy. Buon Appetito.

*At it's most belligerent, I made this with roughly 6.5 lbs of pasta, 15 tomatoes, 15 bell peppers, 7.5 lbs of fresh mozzarella, and four pounds each of pancetta and sausage. All for four elders. It was all eaten. Forza Grifoni!

21.4.09

Lasagne al Pesto

Early in our married life, Lisa made a lasagna and hasn't been allowed to make one since (I'm going to take a lot of flak for that comment). This is not to say that Lisa isn't a good cook, she makes many a mouth watering dish, it's just that I'm somewhat of a past-snob. A bottled Ragu sauce with grated mozzarella, cottage cheese and the wavy lasagna noodles does not a lasagna make. I was just spoiled by my time in Italy. All of that being said, this recipe is nothing like a typical lasagna either. There is no tomato sauce. No cottage cheese (please don't ever put cottage cheese in your lasagna, that borders on the sacrilegious). No wavy noodles. I hope that you enjoy it.

2 boxes or 2 lbs. of lasagna noodles (I prefer the flat Barilla lasagne)
at least 8 0z. fresh mozzarella - you can always put in more if you like more.
1/4 cup Parmigiano Reggiano
at least 1/4 lb. ham (I find it easiest to get the ham at the deli, and I like smoked ham, again more is always optional)
Pesto - double or triple this recipe (I triple the recipe, but you could probably get away with just doubling it)
Four Cheese Sauce - double or triple this recipe (I'm sure that if you don't use all of the sauce, you'll be able to find some use for it later on)
Tinfoil

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Cut the sliced ham into little pieces (you can do it however you want, I go for about 1in by 1in) and set aside. Shred the mozzarella and set aside. In a 9in by 13in baking dish, spread a layer of the cheese sauce on the bottom of the pan and stir in a few small spoonfuls of pesto. Put down a layer of lasagna noodles (you do not need to boil them before hand) covering the entire dish bottom. You'll probably have to break the noodles to get complete coverage of the dish, that's OK. Next put a layer of cheese sauce over the noodles, and again stir in a couple of spoonfuls of pesto so that the pesto gets a good distribution. Put down a layer of mozzarella cheese and ham, and then cover with another layer of lasagna noodles. Then it is just a simple matter of repeating the process until you either run out of room, pasta, sauce or pesto. The final layer should be done just like all of the others. Put down a layer of lasagna noodles and then cover the lasagne with cheese sauce, stir in the pesto, and finish it all off by sprinkling the top with the 1/4 cup Parmigiano Reggiano. The most difficult thing for me is to judge how much sauce, pesto, mozzarella, ham to use in each layer, yet still have enough left at the top to adequately cover the last layer. I've yet to come up with an answer. I use guess work. Good luck. Cover the lasagna with tinfoil and cook for 25 minutes. After 25 minuets, uncover the lasagna and cook it an additional 5-10 minutes uncovered (I like the top just slightly crunchy, so don't leave it in too long after you take off the foil if your desired end is not crunchy). Remove the lasagna from the oven and let it sit about 5-10 minutes before you cut into it. If you cut into it too soon, it tends to be a little runny. The taste is fine, it just looks messy.

To add a little more flavor or variety to the lasagna, you can add sliced mushrooms, zucchini or other veggies to the layers of mozzarella and ham. Use your imagination. Go wild. Buon Appetito.

Lasagne Al Pesto on FoodistaLasagne Al Pesto

15.4.09

il Sugo di Quattro Formaggi

This is a heavy cheese sauce that is good on many things from bread, veggies, as a substitute for tomato sauce on pizza, to of course, pasta.

1 Tablespoon butter
1 Tablespoon Flour
1 cup heavy cream
2 Tablespoons Mascarpone (cream cheese can be substituted - Mascarpone can get pricey, especially when combined with all of the other cheeses)
1/4 cup Fontina
1/4 cup Parmigiano Reggiano
1-2 Tablespoons Gorgonzola - according to taste

In a small saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. When the butter is melted, mix in the flour and then the heavy cream. Once the butter, flour, and cream are mixed, add the Mascarpone and bring the mixture to a boil, stirring constantly. After the sauce has reached a boil, turn it down to low and add the rest of the cheeses, again making sure to stir constantly. If you let the sauce to sit too long without stirring, the bottom will burn and you'll be eatinig burned cheese sauce. When all of the cheese is melted, remove the sauce from the heat and let it sit for a few minutes to allow the sauce to thicken. I don't add salt or pepper to the recipe, so if you want some, add some. Buon Appetito.

4.4.09

Pesto alla Genovese

Pesto is a real simple dish. Perfect for a quick, light, and tasty meal.

1 cup fresh basil leaves, washed.
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon pine nuts
salt
1/4 cup shredded pecorino romano
1/4 cup shredded parmigiano reggiano
2 tablespoons olive oil

Place the basil in a food processor (if you don't have a food processor, a blender will do, or you can even cut it by hand with a half-moon knife). In a saucepan, saute the garlic and pine nuts in the olive oil for about 1 minute. Combine the basil, garlic, pine nuts and olive oil in the food processor and process. Add the pecorino romano and the parmigiano reggiano and salt to taste and continue to process. The finished product should be a finely chopped paste.

Pesto is great with several different kinds of pasta, such as angel hair, or as preferred in Liguria, with trofiette. It is also great with gnocchi, as a garnish on panini or even on pizza.

When eating with pasta, drain the pasta and then simply stir in the pesto. If it seems a little dry, add a little more olive oil.

Buon Appetito.

2.4.09

Cibo

I love food.

That is what this blog is about. Especially food that comes from Italy. Growing up, I never thought to much about food, but living in Italy for a few years really opened my eyes, mouth and taste buds (no offense mom, you're a great cook). A whole new world opened up for me. I would just like to share some of my favorite recipes and things that I love to eat. Please feel free to comment or send me your own favorites and I will post them.