Bruschetta

Easy, right? Who needs a recipe to make something as simple as bruschetta? Well, after having seen (and eaten) brushcetta at local restaurants and at friends' house I feel compelled to post a real Italian version of the popular appetizer. Most people will be amazed to find out that there's no cheese -non: no mozzarella, no parmesan, no romano- on bruschetta. Also, you don't need a ton of garlic to give it its signature flavor. Too much garlic simply makes it taste too strong, while killing the other more delicate flavors of tomato and olive oil. So hold the garlic, put the cheese back in the fridge and try this recipe -you'll never order some artichoke and sundried tomato absurdity again.

Another plus? This appetizer is a breeze to put together, no matter where you are. I made bruschetta on my recent camping trip and it was an easy and delicious way to start off our evening meal.

BRUSCHETTA:

8 slices of bread (ciabatta, baguette, Cuban... use your favorite)
2 cloves of garlic
3 medium sized, good quality, on-the-vine tomatoes
1/2 onion
Salt, to taste
Crushed red pepper, to taste

Preheat grill on low or -if you want to make these on a grill pan- heat grill pan on low heat.

Cut the tomatoes and half onion in small cubes and mix them in a medium bowl. Season with salt and crushed red pepper. Dress with a little olive oil and set aside.

Place bread slices on grill and toast lightly on both sides, making sure the bread doesn't burn. In the mean time cut each garlic clove in half. When bread is ready, remove from grill and immediately rub garlic flesh side down on both sides. Discard garlic. Top with tomato mixture and serve. Trust be, the bread will have a wonderful garlic flavor but you'll also be able to taste the other ingredients. Buon appetito!

Camping in Arcadia, FL (part 2)

So, after it started raining and we had to leave the shore, we went back to the campgrounds for an evening of cooking, eating and drinking by the fire...
This was our campfire. Tommy went to the campgrounds store, bought lots of wood and brought it back to the trail right before sunset. I'm proud to say that I was responsible for it and it roared and roared until the wee hours of the morning.
I love Christmas lights. They looked really pretty after the sun set.
On Sunday morning we sat at the table outside and we prepped vegetables for Jayne's awesome breakfast burritos. It was the perfect cure for a killer hangover...
And last but not least, some wildlife. I have NEVER seen a squirrel laying down like this. He was chilling on a picnic bench and wans't afraid of humans. As a matter of fact, he was quite curious and approached me, sniffing the air and hoping for food:

Camping in Arcadia, FL (part 1)

This post isn't strictly food related, but it does contain some food-related elements. Tommy and I went camping at the Peace River Campgrounds near Arcadia, Fla., for the weekend and came back with great memories, full bellies and beer-induced hangovers. Our friends Bruce and Jayne were nice enough to let us stay in their trailer so we camped, but with A/C and some gourmet camping food! (I'll post the recipes asap!)Although it wasn't the quickest or shortest way, we decided to hop off I-75 and take US 80 to North US 31. As soon as we exited the Interstate the roadside eateries went from mainstream fastfood chains to... more interesting ones, like Charley Biggs' chicken and sauce. Unfortunately we had eaten lunch before leaving town, so we couldn't try any of Charley's chicken.
US 31 isn't the most trafficked road, as you can tell. And -as you also can tell- the weather can change pretty quickly in Florida in August.
Welcome to Arcadia. We havn't sold any hot jumbo boiled peanuts in a while, probably since Hurricane Charley.See? There was some food involved. As soon as we arrived at Bruce and Jayne's trailer I made some bruschettas to snack on. We grilled the bread on the portable gas grill and they turned out perfect.


This is Peace River. It was late in the afternoon and the weather was turning a little ugly, as it often happens in the summer in Florida. Unfortunately as soon as we got there it started raining, so we headed back to the trail to drink beer and cook dinner!

Spiedini of bread and mozzarella

This isn't the best picture, but I literally had to fend off my whole family while I was trying to take a couple of photos that wouldn't suck. Oh and my niece and nephew who constantly begged to "take the pictures for me". The appetizer of grilled mozzarella and bread, served over a bed of heirloom tomatoes and pesto, was a hit.

I recently joined a local co-op and for $25 a week I get two begs full of all kinds of fruit and vegetables. Luckily enough, on my first week I received a bunch of beautiful, organic roma tomatoes, which I used for this recipe together with a yellow heirloom tomato that I had bought for... let's say A LOT of money at Whole Foods. The tomatoes, my mom's homemade pesto and good mozzarella and bread all played very important roles in this easy, summery appetizer.

Did I mention that is made on the grill? So you don't even need a kitchen to enjoys these skewers!

SPIEDINI OF BREAD AND MOZZARELLA

1 loaf ciabatta bread or other rustic Italian loaf
2 8-ounce packages of mozzarella bocconicini
5 medium sized tomatoes (red, green, yellow... whatever you have handy!)
3 tablespoons high quality pesto
Mediterranean sea salt, to taste
Pepper, to taste
Extra virgin olive oil
Bamboo skewers, soaked in water for at least 30 minutes

Cut each mozzarella bite into 4 pieces and set aside.

Slice bread into thick, 1 1/2 inch slices. Cut each slice into 6 pieces, so you get 6 bread cubes out of each slice. Place bread cubes in a bowl and season with olive oil and salt.

Chop tomatoes into small cubes and place on the bottom of a serving dish or a pyrex. Season with salt and pepper, set aside.

Starting with a piece of bread, skewer bread and mozzarella on a bamboo skewer so you have four pieces of bread and three pieces of cheese on each skewer.

Grill skewers on low heat for a couple of minutes on each side, making sure you don't over-melt the cheese. Serve over bed of tomatoes and eat immediately.

Ratatouille

We've all seen the movie. The Pixar cartoon about the cute little rat that wants to become a chef. I particularly enjoyed it, not only because I think Pixar movies are sheer genius, but also because the whole plot revolves around the relationship between chef and restaurant critic. Of course ever since I've seen the movie I've been obsessed with creating the perfect ratatouille, the French peasant dish that eventually wins over the heart of the -aparently heartless- restaurant critic. Last night I made a pretty good one, even though I say so myself. So here it is: the perfect side dish to make when you have a lot of vegetables sitting around the kitchen.

RATATOUILLE:

1 small eggplant (not those giant, flavorless ones, please...)
2 small zucchini
1 onion
4 cloves of garlic
1 red bell pepper
1 can of good quality chopped tomatoes, such as Del Monte
Salt and pepper, to taste
Extra virgin olive oil
Fresh thyme
Fresh marjoram
Fresh oregano

Coarsely chop all the vegetables and mince the herbs.

In a large dutch oven pour a couple of tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil and gently saute the sliced garlic and onions, until tender. Add eggplant and zucchini and cook for a couple of minutes, stirring constantly. Add bell pepper, tomatoes and season with salt and pepper to taste. Add minced herbs, cover and cook on low for 5 minutes more. Serve as a side dish or as a main course with slices of bread.

Killer ribs

If you like ribs, this recipe is a must try. My mom got it from the local Roy's restaurant (part of Roy Yamaguchi's empire), slightly tweaked it to better fit our taste and started serving it whenever she needs to feed a crowd. The major change she made is the quantity of marinade, which she makes more of, so that the ribs are tastier and more tender. Also, instead of finishing them off under the broiler we throw them on a hot grill, which leaves those lovely grill marks on the meat. Either way they are delicious and the meat literally falls off the bone. They make a great appetizer or a main course, depending on how much food your serving.

ROY'S KILLER RIBS:

4 pounds pork baby back ribs
2 /1/2 cups hoisin sauce
2 tbsp minced garlic
3 tbsp minced ginger
3 tbsp Chinese chili garlic paste
3/4 cup honey

Cut the slabs in half and place in a pot full of boiling water. Gently boil for about 1 hour and 15 minutes, or until rib bones pierce through the meat and meat looks cooked.

Remove from water and let cool off.

To make marinate combine remaining ingredients and place in refrigerator.

Preheat oven to 450F.

Baste ribs with marinade on both sides, place on a cookie sheet and cook in hot oven for 15 minutes. Remove from oven, let cool for a few minutes. Separate ribs, baste with remaining marinade. Either broil for a few minutes or cook on grill for 3-5 minutes. Enjoy!

Chili (chili dog version)

What's the difference between normal chili and chili made specifically for hot dogs? I didn't know either until a while ago, but apparently it's a capital sin to put beans in a chili that is destined for hot dogs. Not that I load my chili with beans anyways... but to make everyone happy I started making my fiery chili without beans when I know it's going to be used as a hot dog topper. This recipe makes a very, very spicy chili. For a tamer version you can substitute regular tomatoes and regular tomato juice for the hot ones.

Pretty much my whole family is in town right now and we are constantly trying to come up with meals that easily serve a crowd (if we all go to my parents' house at once -like we did last night- there is 16 of us!). Yesterday, while the kids played in the pool, I made a batch of this chili and we made wonderful chili dogs. My mom also made her killer ribs -I'll post the recipe for those as soon as I get it from her.

CHILI (WITH NO BEANS)
1 pound ground sirloin
Salt and pepper to taste
2 onions, finely diced
1 green pepper, finely diced
2 stalks of celery, finely diced
1 15-ounce can chopped tomatoes
1 10-ounce can Rotel tomatoes with habanero peppers
1 10-once can V8 tomato juice hot and spicy
1 10-ounce can tomato paste
3 tablespoons cumin powder
6 tablespoons chili powder

Place meat in a large dutch oven and season with salt and pepper. Cook on medium heat for a few minutes, stirring to crumble. Add chopped vegetables, tomatoes (with their juices), tomato juice, tomato paste and spices. Stir well to mix. Lower heat to low. Simmer, covered, for about two hours, stirring occasionally. Serve with sweet pepper relish on hot dogs.

Tommy's famous cheeseburgers

I kid you not, these cheeseburgers are famous around here. And around Italy, which makes them famous in two different continents. Now THAT is something, right?
Growing up I was always unimpressed with McDonald's overcooked, thin patties of mysterious "meat". Barbecues at friends' houses -the kind where they cook the meat to death until there isn't one drop of juice left in it- didn't help the matter at all. So when my boyfriend made me his famous cheeseburger for the first time I was like "WOW". All of the sudden cheeseburgers were my favorite food and my family quickly converted as well. We now request his burgers every time there is something to celebrate and he's more than happy to make them even fore crowds of 20 or more. What makes them special is that the cheese instead of being on top, is inside the patty and it oozes out when you bite into it. Yummy!

TOMMY'S FAMOUS CHEESEBURGERS

Ingredients per person:
5 oz. ground sirloin
1 slice American cheese
1 leaf crunchy lettuce
2 slices of tomato
a few very thin slices of onion
a table spoon of chopped green olives
bread and butter pickle chips
Ketchup
Mayonnaise (preferably homemade)
Martin's hamburger potato bun (no substitutes!!)

Divide the meat in two equal parts and, using your hands, make two thin patties. Fold cheese slice in four, place it in the middle of one patty, place the other patty on top and seal the sides with your fingers. You know have a cheese stuffed patty.
Cook on a medium/hot grill until medium rare or medium. Don't overcook!
On the bottom bun place the leaf of lettuce. This will keep the bun from getting soggy. Top with ketchup, tomatoes, burger, mayo, onions, olives and other half of the bun. Enjoy!

Spinach and prosciutto roll-ups

Last month my parents threw a Forth of July party and each guest had to bring a dish, so that my mother wouldn't spend the whole party slaving in the kitchen. Her Swiss friend Thesi brought these roll-ups and they were such a hit we all asked her for the recipe. This is my adaptation: instead of using bacon bits I prefer to use deli sliced prosciutto and -if available- fresh spinach in lieu of the frozen ones. What I like best about these appetizers is that they are easy to make for a crowd and can be frozen until ready to use. Talk about simple!

SPINACH AND PROSCIUTTO ROLL-UPS

10 oz. frozen or fresh chopped spinach well drained
1 cup of mayonnaise
8 oz. sour cream
1 bunch green onions chopped
1 oz. envelope Ranch style dressing mix or seasoning blend to taste
3 prosciutto slices, finely chopped
8 flour tortillas

Stir together first 6 ingredients, then spread evenly on tortillas.
Rollup jellyroll fashion, pressing edges to seal. Wrap in plastic wrap.
Chill 4 to 6 hours, cut into slices. Can be wrapped in plastic wrap and frozen until ready to use.

Spiedini of veggies, mozzarella and aromatic bread

I absolutely love this recipe. My mom found it on La Cucina Italiana magazine a few years back and we enthusiastically started making these spiedini (Italian for skewers) for parties and family gatherings. It's great summer recipe because you out to good use the bounty of fresh zucchini and bell peppers that we get to see in June, July and August. The eggplants... not so much. Not in Florida. They are too big, too expensive and they usually don't taste like much, which means that eggplants have quickly become one of my least favorite ingredients. But everyone else loves them, so I put them in the spiedini anyway. Yes, I'm THAT nice =)

SPIEDINI OF VEGGIES, MOZZARELLA AND AROMATIC BREAD

1 red bell pepper
1 yellow bell pepper
2 zucchini
1 small eggplant
16 cherry mozzarella balls
2 cups of Italian bread
1 bunch of fresh parsley
1 tablespoon dried marjoram
1 tablespoon dried thyme
Salt and pepper to taste
Extra virgin olive oil
3 garlic cloves

Cut vegetables into 1/2 inch thick chunks and grill on a grilling pan. Set aside on a plate and season with salt. On each skewer place two of each: red pepper, eggplant piece, zucchini slice, yellow pepper piece, mozzarella ball.

Using fingers, break bread into very small pieces. Heat olive oil and garlic cloves in a skillet for a minute, until fragrant. Add bread, season with salt and pepper. Let bread soak up oil for 30 seconds. Add herbs, stir and remove from heat.

Sprinkle bread mixture over vegetable skewers and serve with extra olive oil on the side.