As people who claim to know anything about Italian cooking, it is not hard to imagine how we ended up in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy on our trip after loving the food and culture in the Amalfi Coast and the Tuscan wineries and restaurants. The Emila-Romagna is an area many famous Italian chefs, including Mario Batali, herald as one of the food capitals of the world.  The Emilia-Romagna, a rather wealthy area of Italy, is home to Bologna, a city that is responsible for both Bolognese sauce, which Italians call ragu, and to the cold cut that shares its name, which Italians call mortadella.  West of Bologna you will find Parma, home to the famous Parmigiana Reggiano cheese and to Prosciutto de Parma.  Between these two cities lies Modena, the birthplace of Balsamic vinegar.  With all of these culinary highlights, it is a wonder we didn’t spend our whole trip here!

Of all of the wonderful offerings of this region, I intend to dedicate the remainder of this post to just one room, in a tiny osteria in the city of Modena, hidden in the back of a little market, containing only four beautifully set tables, in which Adrian and I were served what must be the best meal we have ever eaten.  We would have never in a million years found this jewel of a restaurant had we not been led there by Mario Batali’s online guide to traveling in Italy.  His praise for the restaurant claims that if you are to travel to any one place in Italy, “it must be here.”  High marks from an iron chef who has made his career studying and preparing authentic Italian cuisine.  So we heeded his advice, and we went there.  And “there” was the highlight of our whole trip.

The market that sits in front of this hidden restaurant is called Macelleria de Guisseppe Guisti.  It is a small little market with an amazing selection of cured meats, cheeses, and jarred goods, as well as a nice variety of balsamicos. There is also a cafe next door, but don’t mistake this for the real jewel, which we only found when Adrian questioned the man servicing the meat counter about “l’hosteria?”.  The man replied, “si, si” and shuffled us behind the counter, through swinging doors and a dim hallway into a room that couldn’t have been more than ten meters in width and length.  It contained only four tables, two of which were occupied.  He seated us, and we smiled at each other victoriously, glad we hadn’t had much of a breakfast.

Our waitress, who we soon learned was the great, if not the great-great granddaughter of Guisseppe himself, spoke enough English to give us some insight into the menu and to recommend a local Lambrusco, a sparkling red wine, served chilled, that locals drink with everything.

Our plan of attack, since it was around one in the afternoon, was to just go for a big lunch and not have to eat for the rest of the day, if ever!  So we decided on sharing an antipasti, each ordering a primi piatti, and splitting a secondi.   For the first course we decided on a seasonal dish, a zucchini blossom, stuffed with simple risotto, dipped in a batter, fried to perfection, and drizzled (of course) with an aged balsamic vinegar.  It was absolutely divine.    The risotto stuffing was perfectly al dente and undoubtedly seasoned with Parmigiana, and the flavor of the zucchini blossom was the star of the dish.

For our pasta course, we went with one seasonal and one very traditional dish.  The waitress told us that they had “special” fresh ricotta, so I ordered the tortelloni with ricotta, spinach, and lemon zest that was lightly sauced with butter.  The dish was so fresh, and if you can imagine anything tossed in butter tasting light, that is the only way I can describe it.  The fresh pasta that encased the tortelloni was perfectly thin and cooked to perfection.

Adrian went with a regional specialty for his primi – Pappardelle con Guanciale, or thick cut pasta with the cured cheeks of the pig.  Again, the pasta was so perfect, it was almost the star of the dish, were it not for the unbelievable, rich and slow sauce.  We both reluctantly switched plates to sample each other’s, only to become increasingly confused about which dish to fight for.  Either one of these dishes would have certainly been the best pasta we had ever had.

For our secondi course, we opted for their house made sausage, which the waitress assured us was their specialty.  We decided to trust her on that, wisely.  The sausage was formed in perfect disc-shaped patties, coated in a light breading, and deep fried until it had a perfect golden crust to encase the savory juices within.  The sausages were accompanied by a perfect zabaglione, which is an incredibly light custard made with whipped egg yolks, sugar, and Lambrusco wine.  Having a sweet accompaniment to such a savory dish was surprising at first, but when we tasted them together, it was indescribably delicious.  Who ever thought of that should be knighted.

To finish the meal, we couldn’t pass on their homemade ice cream drizzled with a reserve aged balsamic vinegar, an absolute treat, after which we expected to have to request a wheel barrel to tote us out to the street.  Remarkably, though, we felt wonderful, which is a testament to the perfect portion sizes and simplicity of the food we had just eaten.  Or perhaps it was the ease on our wallet that left us feeling so great – the whole meal cost less than sixty Euros.

We left through the back door, which puts you at the very end of a long alley.  Just outside the door, accross the alley, there was a wine store that carried an innumerable collection of Italian wines.  The lights were low and no one was presently in the wine shop, but the door was open nonetheless, despite the fortune of wines within.  Only in Italy!  We were pleased at the opportunity to just snap a few photos and let the high from that most incredible meal carry us back to our hotel in Bologna.

There are not many places in the world that I’ve seen like Toscana (Tuscany to us North Americans).  Especially in the summertime, when man, that Tuscan sun is intense – the movie didn’t lie about that one.

So after an amazing few days down on the Amalfi Coast, Aimee and I made our way via rental car (a little go-cart-esque Fiat) from Sorrento up the A1 highway to the hills of Tuscany.  Along the way, we stopped in Montepulciano quickly, took some pics and (not surprisingly) bought a bottle of Brunello wine – really great stuff.

Tuscany is the home of wine in Italy for the most part – the place where Chianti comes from, the pinnacle of the ancient Sangiovese grape, which is responsible for the makeup of the region’s most popular wine, Chianti Classico.  Chianti, as we learned at the Castello Fonterutolli outside of Castellina, MUST contain no less than 80% of Sangiovese grape – other than that it’s up to the vintner, many use Cabernet Sauvignon to complement.

We spent out time between the town of Siena – an awesomely ancient city (like going back to the middle ages in terms of the architecture, art and just the feel of the city).  In terms of food, we really enjoyed Siena as well, tasting probably what was the second best meal of our time in Italy, on Aimee’s birthday at the Antica Osteria da Divo, a fantastic little restaurant that we literally stumbled upon after a rather embarrassing incident driving through the mainly pedestrian streets of the Siena town center.  The restaurant was perfectly suited for Siena, with terra cotta floors and high, wood beamed ceilings.  The only light came from candles on the tables and around the room.

It’s unfortunate that we didn’t get some pictures of this food, as it really was delicious.  We started with Crispy Herb Scented Anchovies with Eggplant Cake and Basil Sauce, then sampled some of the regional specialties.  In Tuscany, they’re famous for their use of wild boar, which we sampled in the Pici with Wild Boar Ragu.  Pici is a hand rolled, or “pinched”, pasta that is shorter and much thicker than spaghetti.  We also ordered a risotto dish with zucchini and zucchini flowers served in a hollow wheel of pecorino cheese.  When they scooped the risotto out of the cheese, the dish was delightfully rich and creamy – a nice touch!   Since we had just been in Montepulciano, and we were planning to head to Chianti in the next couple of days, we decided to order a Brunello to sip throughout the meal.  Delicious all around for sure.

In Tuscany, Aimee and I also fell head over heels in love with perhaps our favorite ingredient in all of Italy this time of year – the tomato.  Bruschetta you see was in full bloom there, and we took full advantage in Tuscany.  Perhaps the second best Bruschetta we sampled in Italy was at a cafe right on the Siena’s main square the Piazza di Campo.  So simple and delicious – something that we’ve already re-created here at home for dinner.  Just toast up some crusty bread, rub the surface with a garlic clove, and top it with tomatoes tossed in a little olive oil, salt, and dried oregano.  That’s it.  But believe me, that is enough.  In the heat of July, bruschetta is a perfect snack.

Other highlights of Tuscany besides the wine and the food was the coffee – especially at the famous Siena roaster Nannini, which roasts their own coffee and offers homemade gelato and around 1,000 different types of pastries and biscotti.  It offers very few tables, but there is a long espresso bar at which you can stand and sip your cappuccino or espresso and nibble on your pastry.

We also sampled some of the traditional dishes of Italy in Tuscany, such as Pesto Genovese, Fagiuoli all‘Uccelletto – the traditional Tuscan white beans in a simple tomato sauce.  Panzanella, a salad made with bread, cucumbers, and tomatoes, is also a regional specialty during the summertime, but the authentic version unfortunately falls a little short of the american adaptation.

Rather than making the dish with fresh baked crusty croutons, as we often see Giada prepare it on the Food Network, the serve it with mushed up day old bread, sparingly incorporate peeled and chopped cucumbers and tomatoes, and dress it with little more than olive oil.  It is served chilled and lacks much acidity.  This is one dish we tried that we definitely prefer to eat at home.

All in all, Toscana’s stunning scenery and rich history make for a memorable experience.  We’ll certainly be back.  For now, off to Bologna, Modena and Emilia-Romagna!!

So with a few days of married life under our belts, Aimee and I set off to Italia – a place we’ve long looked forward to traveling together for the sights, architecture, art, bot mostly the food and wine.  Our first stop on the trip was the Amalfi coast, where after loads of recommendations, we decided to stay in Positano, a town literally built into a 3-4K foot mountain with views right down to the Mediterranean and cool shops and restaurants throughout.

In terms of the food, we figured two things: first, we’re on the water, so the seafood must be delicious.  Second, we’re near Napoli (Naples), the home and origin of pizza, so we thought that sampling a few of these local delicacies was a good idea.  We really had no idea about which restaurants were which, but we tried to stick by our guns and find places that were more like holes in the wall instead of fancy places looking for Michelin stars.

Our first night in Italy, quite tired from a red eye flight and the day of traveling that followed, we struck out and found a restaurant called ‘Ristorante Il Capitano’, situated on a corner of a steep Positano street, just overlooking the harbor and water. Quite a setting, and they complimented it with a duo Lute and Guitar player for a small charge (something that every restaurant in Italy does I’ve learned).

Our meal started with perhaps my favorite dish of the trip so far: Thinly sliced fried Zucchini, dressed with salt, vinegar and olive oil.  Imagine something like a plate of small potato chips, but instead of potatoes, they’re zucchini instead.  Delicious, and something that I’ll try to reproduce for sure.  We then ate a pasta dish made from homemade squid ink pasta served with small fishes and tomatoes.  Delicious, and the pasta, albeit not the best made pasta I’ve ever had, was flavored with the quid ink and insanely good.  We then shared a pizzetta with some salumi and simple fresh tomatoes from San Marzano, which I later learned are grown in the area on the southern slope of Mount Vesuvius, just outside of Napoli.

This pizza really changed my idea of pizza totally around, and not just on the pizza front – on all food in general.  The food here in Italy is SO SIMPLE.  These people who cook here (basically everyone) don’t try to do too much.  It’s a lesson I needed to come here to learn – less is more.  For example, the tomato sauce they use for the pizzas in Napoli: it’s literally just pureed tomatoes – possibly a touch of garlic, but that’s basically it, and that’s all it needs to be.

Our eating experiences in Positano continued at the Saraceno D’Oro, right down the street from our hotel.  We ate simple things here as well, such as simple spaghetti with cherry tomatoes, bruschetta con tomate (best bruschetta I’ve had BY FAR) and the best thing (again) was the pizza – this time with Fungi Porcini, fresh porcini – tasting almost as delicious as if there were actual truffles on the pizza.  The bruschetta was made by the way the restaurant prepared the bread – it was baked fresh, then simply toasted to perfection (not just thrown in the toaster – it was golden brown throughout) then rubbed with garlic and topped with olive oil, before the tomatoes went on.

In terms of drinks, the Amalfi coast is known for it’s citrus groves, mostly lemons – so you can imagine it’s the home of limoncello.  What I was surprised by is that every little gift shop and bar in Positano and Amalfi makes their own version of the stuff.  We tried a couple different samples, and liked them all, especially at the Saraceno D’Oro where they gave us free samples after our meal.

As we drove out of the south of Italy, through Sorrento, Napoli and the surrounding coast, we were more than content and happy we had gone there and experienced the culture, views and of course of the food of the Amalfi coast – it’s qite a place.  Oh, and if you’re considering coming here and also potentially Cinque Terre, take it from me (I’ve been to both places) go to the Amalfi Coast, it’s much bigger and more dramatic.  Don’t forget you’re in the home of pizza!

Next Stop: Tuscany: Siena and Chianti!

Sorry for not posting more lately.  Aimee and I are getting married very soon, and that means that our lives are literally consumed by planning and work with little time to do other things we love….like cook and write here on TFD.  In any case, tonight was one night that I did find some time to get some cooking done, and after our dear friends Katie and Tyson hooked up the Momofuku cookbook for a wedding gift, I’ve hardly been able to put it down.  Seriously, if you’re into Asian-influenced, just plain old downright dirty awesome grub, get the Momofuku cookbook.  It’s righteous and one fo the best books on cooking I’ve seen in quite a while.

One thing I dig about it is how quirky the chef David Chang is in his recipes – his constant use of Grapeseed oil (or other neutral oil), the funky stories that you can tell have come out of his totally organic growth and rise to popularity.  He’s humble and a bit overwhelmed at the recognition he’s received, and from his book alone it’s partly because his food appears honest.

Honest, simple food is something that I typically look for in a chef and in a cookbook.  With Chang and Momofuku, even when they get a little nuts and use transglutaminate (AKA meat glue) it’s accompanied by a cool story from his own experiences, which makes it seem more approachable as an ingredient.

This recipe was the first I’ve tried from the book and comes from the ‘Noodle Bar’ section of the book – which is sectioned off between the different Momofuku restaurants all in NYC (Ssam Bar and Ko are the others, and both considered more high end I believe).  This is the fried chicken recipe, which jumped out to me as I read the book, because of the uniqueness of the recipe.  No breading, and tossed in a vinaigrette, but brined and steamed first, instead of pre-baked or just fried from raw. Here’s how we did it.  First the brine:

• 4-5 cups water
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup salt

Now the Chicken itself:

• Sections of chicken, mostly dark meat – we used 6-8 thighs here, but you can use breasts too
• Garlic-ginger vinaigrette (recipe follows)
• Peanut oil for frying

For the vinaigrette:

• 2 Tbsp. finely chopped garlic
• 2 Tbsp. finely chopped ginger
• 1/4 cup light sesame oil
• 1/4 cup rice wine vinegar
• 4-5 slices of pickled jalapenos (or other picked peppers) – diced
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 1 Tbsp. sugar
• Fresh ground black pepper

Making this recipe is somewhat simple, though the cooking process is rather unique.  The basic process is 1) brine 2) steam and 3) fry.

For the brining step, simply combine all of the brine ingredients in a large bowl and stir until all of the salt and sugar are disolved.  Add the chicken, cover and let brine for between 1-3 hours in the fridge.

Once it’s done, pull the chicken out of the brine and pat dry with some paper towels.  Prepare a steamer on your stovetop and when the water begins to boil, add the chicken and cover with a lid that’s barely ajar.  Let the chicken steam for around 20-30 minutes or until it’s fully cooked through.

Meanwhile, you can whip up the vinaigrette by combining all ingredients besides the oil, then whisk in the oil at the end to emulsify.

Once the chicken is done, remove it from the steamer and let it rest.  Chef Chang in the book says to let it rest for up to a day or two, but as I didn’t really have time for this, I let it rest for around an hour before frying, but I think the longer you can let this go, the better it will end up.

When you’re ready to fry the chicken, prepare a wok or pot with peanut oil and heat to 375 F.  Add the chicken and fry for around 7 minutes or until the chicken gets a nice golden brown color.  Once it’s done, remove to paper towel lined plate, then toss with some if the vinaigrette and serve.  Enjoy!

Let’s face it, we all probably know and love Pad Thai in some respect. It’s perhaps the most popular Thai dish in America today, something that you’ll likely try before anything else if you’re not a seasoned Thai food connoisseur. We’ve tinkered with other Thai dishes in the past, such as this Pad Kee Mao recipe and this green curry with tofu recipe, but this Pad Thai may be the best one yet.

Pad Thai’s flavors are part salty (fish sauce), part sweet (brown sugar), part spicy (sriracha) and part sour (tamarind) – all of which combine with the peanuts, noodles and vegetables and are awesome on the palette. This recipe comes from the excellent blog of Chez Pim, who’s post seemed the most traditional and authentic to me, and really was excellent (Thanks Pim!!)

This video should explain most of it – this is @taylorbarstow making the same dish a few months back:

Here’s the recipe: The Sauce first!  This amount of sauce will make around 5-6 servings of Pad Thai

• 1/2 cup fish sauce
• 1/3 cup brown sugar
• 1 Tbsp. paprika
• 2 Tbsp. Sriracha hot sauce (less or more depending on your level of spice needs)
• 2 Tbsp. tamarind concentrate (or 1/2 cup tamarind extract) – (likely you’ll need an Asian market to find this, but potentially you can get it at a standard super market)
• Water to thin out the sauce (see the consistency in the video)

Simply combine all of the ingredients in a small sauce pan and bring to a boil.  Then kill the heat and let the sauce rest while you do the rest:  PLEASE NOTE, these quantities are PER SERVING, which you make separately!!!

• 1 medium package or thin rice noodles – soak them in warm water until pliable but not mushy
• Eggs – 1 per serving
• Tofu – around 5-6 thin slices per serving, so 1 standard block is sufficient
• 5-6 medium sized shrimps per serving – peeled and de-veined
• 1 generous handful beansprouts per serving
• 1-2 Tbsp Thai basil per serving
• Small handful coarsely ground peanuts per serving
• 1 handful Chinese garlic chives, green onion tops or regular chives – roughly chopped
• 2 baby bok choy heads – halved (optional) – Yes, you can use broccoli instead if you want!
• Peanut or canola oil
• 1/4 lime for finishing

See video for prep instructions!

Start with the oil in a hot wok until it’s basically smoking, then add the tofu (being careful not to splatter yourself with the hot oil).  Once the tofu starts to brown slowly, add the bokchoy (if using) and then the noodles and a small ladleful of sauce on top.  Keep things moving while you go, and cook the noodles until rather soft.

You’re then going to want to add the egg on one side of the wok, stir to incorporate, then add the rest of the vegetables and the shrimp and cook until the noodles reach the desired texture.  You then want to make sure it’s got the right amount of sauce and seasoning (add more sriracha if you want) and serve with lime juice squeezed on top.  Serve immediately and enjoy!

Part two of this post is as casual and simple as part one ’spring ramps with poached eggs and toast’, and at least equally delicious.  Pizza is a great vehicle for ramps because it gives them room to shine, and the salty prosciutto and savory mushrooms make a brilliant combination.  This pizza couldn’t be easier to make, either, because you precook the dough a bit, pre-saute the mushrooms and ramps, and spread a layer of creme friache instead of laboring over a sauce.  We prepared the whole meal in about twenty-five minutes.

When this pizza emerged from the oven, the aroma alone was enough to stir our normally docile dog into a mild frenzy.  We both agreed that we would be quite happy with this pizza even if we had ordered it from a gourmet pizzeria.  If you can’t find baby shitake mushrooms, you can use regular shitakes if you remove the woody stems and chop them into bite sized pieces.  Also, given that it was mid-week and we started cooking at eight, we used a pre-made pizza dough from Whole Foods, which was actually quite good.  You can also usually convince your favorite pizza parlor to sell you some dough, or certainly, if you are so inclined, you can make it yourself!  Either way, you will impress a crowd with this one!

This recipe is made much easier with a pizza stone and peel.  If you don’t have one, it is a worthwhile investment if you think you would like to make pizza at home.  The recipe below makes one large pizza and serves 3-4 people.

Ingredients:

• Pizza dough (~8 oz. or enough for one large pizza)
• 1/4 lb. thinly slices prosciutto de Parma (amount allows for minimal snacking)
• 1/4 lb. of fresh baby shitake mushrooms

• 10-15 fresh ramps, cleaned and sliced into diagonal strips
• 1/2 cup  creme friache
• 1/3 cup shaved Pecorino Romano
• 1 tablespoon of butter
• 2 tablespoons olive oil (for brushing on the dough)
• Salt and black pepper to taste

Preheat your oven to 550 degrees with the pizza stone in it.  For best results, put a layer of corn meal on the pizza stone and flour your pizza peel.  Toss or roll out your pizza dough and set it on your peel while the oven preheats and you complete the next step.

In a saute pan, melt the butter over medium heat.  Add the baby shitake mushrooms and saute for about three minutes.  Add the ramps and season with a pinch of salt, and saute for one more minute, and then remove from the heat.  Set aside.

Once the oven is hot, brush your pizza with the olive oil and pre-cook for about 5 minutes or until the dough becomes lightly golden brown and bubbly.  Remove from the oven.

To assemble the pizza, spread the creme fraiche in an even layer over the dough.  Then, break up the prosciutto into bite size pieces and spread over pizza.  Evenly distribute the ramps and mushrooms.  Return to the oven for another 3 minutes.

Remove the pizza from the oven and garnish with fresh black pepper and the Pecorino cheese.  Serve immediately.

Ramps, a remarkable member of the onion and garlic family, only emerge for a few weeks each year, and it is a time I await with much anticipation.  Ramps are wild leeks, and their flavor is a beautiful combination of spring garlic and mild sweet onion.  They look a little bit like scallions with wispier, more tapered leaves.  The whole ramp is edible, and can be sauteed, roasted, grilled, or eaten raw.  If you ask me, they are just a perfect ingredient.

Many people advise that ramps can be prepared in any way you might use green onions, but I think ramps are too delicate and have too spectacular a flavor to take a back seat.  My favorite way to eat ramps is in simple preparations that don’t contain too many competing flavors.

Since ramps only come around for a short period of time, I tend to go on a “ramp”age.  When I found them at Russo’s market in Watertown, MA, one of my favorite places to shop for food, I bought out most of their inventory, and intend to eat them in almost all of the meals I prepare at home over the next week.  For that reason, this will be a three part post that offers three different preparations of this special vegetable.

The first preparation is an aggressively seasonal dish that glorifies all things strictly available in Spring.  It is a simple but wonderfully comforting an delicious dish that works for breakfast, lunch or dinner.  The fresh morels add a wonderful richness to the dish that works so well with the garlicky punch of the ramps, but any fresh wild mushroom, like chanterelles or oyster mushrooms, would also work well.  So hit up the early season farmer’s market or your favorite specialty foods store and pick up a huge bunch of ramps, because once you try this dish, you will be ready for parts 2 and 3 of this post! Don’t wait, though, because you will miss this precious season!

Ingredients:

• 10-12 fresh ramps, cleaned and cut into diagonal strips
• 3-4 oz. of fresh morel mushrooms, cut in half lengthwise
• 1/4 cup fresh peas, removed from pod
• 2 Yukon gold potatoes, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
• Shaved Pecorino Romano cheese to taste
• 2 slices of good toast (I prefer sourdough)
• 4 farm fresh eggs
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• Salt and pepper to taste

Bring a large pot of water to a boil.  Season well with salt and blanch the potatoes for about 5 minutes or until they are cooked to al dente.  Remove the potatoes with a slotted spoon  and set aside.  In the same boiling water, blanch the peas for 1-2 minutes.  Remove and set aside.

Prepare a pot for poaching the eggs by bringing at least two inches of water to a boil and then reducing the heat to low.  Keep on low until you are ready to poach the eggs.

In a saucepan, heat the butter and oil over medium heat.  Add the potatoes and mushrooms, season with salt and pepper, and let caramelize for about 5 minutes.  Add the ramps and saute for another two minutes, tossing or stirring frequently.  Add the peas and remove the pan from the heat.

In the last 5 minutes, put your bread in the toaster and poach your eggs.  For great poaching technique, see our Yukon hash post.

Assemble the dish but placing the toast on the bottom, topping with the sauteed vegetables.  Add two poached eggs, garnish with the shaving of Pecorino Romano cheese.  Crack fresh black pepper of the dish and serve immediately.

Serves 2.

Totally simple recipe here, nothing too fancy, but some great flavors and easy to prepare.  These are the sorts of recipes that I love to make when I don’t have a lot of time on my hands, because I can literally have them ready in 10 minutes, and it’s a wholesome, satisfying meal.  I add the egg for some protein, and you could certainly add in some bacon or other protein as well, but I decided to keep it simple.

The key to sauteing broccoli I’ve found is to cook it properly.  You want to start it off over high heat to give it a good sear, then lower the heat and cook it slowly to tenderize it, sometimes with some liquid like wine or stock.  I also love to cook the stems, and can’t stand to see people throwing them out.  I think they have a fantastic consistency and merit using…so next time, try cooking them in your dish and don’t throw them away!  Here’s an idea for your next couple stalks of broccoli:

• 2 medium sized stalks of broccoli – florets chopped and stems roughly chopped
• 1 medium white onion – thinly sliced lengthwise
• 1 egg

• 2 cloves of garlic – smashed and diced
• 1/3 – 1/2 cup of dry white wine – something you would drink
• 1-2 Tbsp. white wine or champagne vinegar
• 2-3 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
• Kosher salt to taste
• Freshly ground black pepper
• (optional) Crushed red pepper flakes
• (optional) A few lardons (thin slices of bacon)

Pretty easy assembly here – start with prepping the broccoli, making sure it’s chopped along with the onions and garlic.  Start with a saute pan over medium/high heat and add a good glug of olive oil – enough to coat HALF of the bottom of the pan.  Add in the onions and broccoli and season with some salt.  Cook over the higher heat for a 2-3 minutes and then add in the garlic.

Stir frequently to make sure the veg doesn’t burn.  Once the vegetables become rather tender, lower the heat a little bit and add in the wine.  You can estimate all of the above measurements by the way – you’re looking to add around a small glass of wine into the pan.

Once the wine has evaporated, likely 4-5 minutes, kick the heat back up a bit and then crack the egg into the pan.  Season with a little more salt and pepper and then stir the egg vigorously into the rest of the dish.  Finish the dish with the vinegar and a little bit more olive oil and adjust the seasoning to taste.  Serve immediately and enjoy!

The first time I ever heard of Zucchini bread, I thought is was rather gross sounding, but that was before I tasted it.  You see I’ve never been a huge fan of zucchini, besides in certain French applications like ratatouille.  This recipe was adapted from an old friend who swore by it (and by this, I mean typically made it like once a week).  So I’ve finally decided to try it for myself.  I couldn’t find Christina’s recipe, so I took the recipe from Smitten Kitchen and adapted it a bit to our tastes.

What I found through the process of making zucchini bread, is that it’s a lot like banana bread or other sweet breads like this blueberry bread recipe.  In all honestly, I messed up in making this a bit and actually added a little bit too much sugar, which made the bread a bit sweeter that I was looking for, but I’ve adjusted that in the recipe, so that should be good to go.

This is also one of those recipes that you can use with some of the larger zucchinis too, you know, the ones that are supposedly bad to eat.  Use this recipe for them.  Also, my zucchini bread always comes out a little darker – a direct result of using brown sugar instead of white.  The molasses gives it a good taste and texture.

Wet Stuff

• 2 medium zucchinis – around 1 1/4 cups – grated on the medium holes of a box grater
• 1 egg + 1 egg yolk
• 1 1/2  cups brown sugar
• 1/2 cup canola oil
• 1 1/4 tsp. vanilla extract

Dry Stuff

• 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
• 1/8 tsp. freshly ground nutmeg
• 1 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 1/4 tsp. baking powder
• 2 pinches of salt
• Heaping 3/4 cup raisins (more or less depending on your taste)

This recipe is actually really easy.  Preheat your oven to 350 F.  Grab your trusty (non-stick if you have it) loaf pan (see the pick for what I’m talking about…) and lightly oil it with some vegetable or canola oil.

In a mixer with a whisk attachment or simply with a whisk and a mixing bowl, beat the eggs with the oil and sugar until there are some streaks left by your whisk.  Add the zucchini and vanilla and continue mixing until the mixture is well combined.

Separately, add the raisins to a large mixing bowl and then sift in the rest of the dry ingredients listed above on top of the raisins – make sure there are no lumps left.  While stirring the wet stuff, add the dry ingredients in three parts, waiting until the last part is combined well before adding the next part.  Once all of the dry ingredients have been mixed in, pour the mixture into your loaf pan and cut a small line down the center of your batter to create a nice ‘crack’ in the finished cake.

Bake in the oven for about an hour, but check after 50 minutes – you want a small skewer stuck in the middle of the cake to come out just clean, with potentially a few crumbs still sticking to it.  Let your cake cool, cut and serve!  It’s delicious with some peanut butter btw…Enjoy!

This post was co-authored (really the recipe was co-cooked) by @taylorbarstow

At some point during the winter, I inevitably will get a serious craving for some delicious and wholesome braised beef short ribs. With winter waning, a few of us on a ‘dudes night’ decided to do something we rarely all do together: cook. It was really rainy out, and all of us were thinking about drinking some dark beer, so Guinness was the answer for both the glasses and the dish. After shopping around a bit with Taylor and Kippy, we found ourselves in the North End, at Sulmona Meat Market on Parmenter Street – classic, old school Italian butcher and had some beautiful short ribs that we decided to have the butcher leave whole and not chop in half like usual short rib cuts.

The cuts of beef will look rather large as you can see in the pictures, but this was cool with us all around.  We decided to use a combination of braising liquids, all brought together with the classic French mirepoix of onions, carrots and celery.  Braising liquids included Gunniess, chicken stock (you can use beef too of course) and a touch of coffee.  We decided to pair the dish with some creamy Parmesan polenta and some of the braising liquid on the plate.  I’d also consider serving some blanched and sauteed bitter dark greens – or really whatever you like.  The beauty of short ribs is that they’re so damn tender “falling off the bone” that you tend to forget whatever else is on the plate.  Here’s what to do:

Before starting, remember that these short ribs can take up to 3 hours to cook!!!  So start early with them!

• 4-6 Whole (or 8-12 halved) short ribs – the freshest you can find – Grass-fed beef preferred!
• 1 large (or 2 medium) carrots – roughly chopped
• 2-3 stalks celery – washed and cubed
• 1 large white onion – diced
• 3 cloves of garlic – smashed
• 2 bay leaves
• A few stalks of parsley
• 2 pint cans of Guinness stout
• 2 cups chicken or beef stock
• 1/2 cup coffee (optional)
• Olive oil
• Salt and pepper

First thing you want to do is locate a good heavy bottomed pot to use for the braise.  I’ll sometimes use a large roasting pan that I cover with tinfoil if I have too many ribs to fit in my Le Creuset dutch oven.  Once you’ve got your equipment, preheat your oven to 350 F.

Season the short ribs thoroughly with salt and a small amount of pepper and set aside.  Heat your pot over medium/high heat and add a few glugs of olive oil to coat the bottom of the pot.  When the oil is just about smoking hot, add the ribs and brown on all sides, then remove the ribs and set aside.

Lower the heat to medium/low and add all of the vegetables, including the parsley and bay leaves and mix to combine and cook until softened – around 5-7 minutes.  Add the braising liquid and bring to a simmer, then add the short ribs back into the pot, cover with a heavy lid and place into the preheated oven.

The time you want to cook your short ribs is really up to you, but I would advise AT LEAST 2 hours.  My rule of thumb I learned from Taylor Barstow and it basically goes like this: cook the short ribs until they are basically completely falling apart and the bone comes out easily.

The last part really pulls the dish together: Start a saute pan over medium high heat and a just a tiny bit of olive oil.  When the pan is really hot, add the short ribs and sear them on each side to add a little bit if texture back to the short ribs (a little crust for your meat).  Once they’re done, serve along side polenta or whatever you’d like and enjoy immediately!