Tasty Fettuccini with Anchovy, Olives & Capers

There is a great deal of debate about who invented pasta. Many cultures have at a certain point created some sort of noodle-like food. Some historians believe that the pasta, in the form of rice noodles, was originated in ancient China as early as 1700 B.C. However, many Italians believe this delicious food was invented in ancient Rome around 400 B.C. when they began to make a lasagna-type noodle called “lagane” (a type of lasagna). However, the Romans baked their noodles in an oven, so boiled pasta had yet to be born in Italy. There are experts who believe that the first boiled noodles were prepared in Jerusalem during the 5th century A.C.

Obliviously, there is a lot of polemic regarding the origin of pasta and even its history. Although we don’t know who should be credited for this incredible culinary invention, I know that pasta is mouth-watering, versatile and easy to make. I grew up in São Paulo, Brazil, a city with very strong Italian roots, where exquisite pasta can be found anywhere. I have learned to appreciate pasta from a very early age and I am always excited to try a new pasta dish. Recently, I made a fettucine with anchovy that became one of my new favorite dishes.

Fettucini with Anchovy, Olives & Capers


Ingredients:

4 tablespoons of olive oil

3 garlic cloves, minced

3oz of canned anchovy filets

1 cup of olives, pitted and sliced or halved

1 tablespoon of capers, rinsed

10oz of cherry tomatoes, halved

1 tablespoon of fresh oregano, chopped

1 tablespoon of fresh basil, chopped (optional)

10oz of dried fettuccini

2/3 cup of parmesan cheese, grated


Cook pasta according to packaging directions. Drain it and reserve 1 ½ cups of pasta water. Drizzle 1 ½ tablespoon of the olive oil over fettuccini.

Heat remaining olive oil in a large sauce pan. Add garlic and sauté over low heat for about 2 minutes. Add the anchovy and mash them to a pulp with a fork. Stir in olives, tomatoes and capers. Add 1 cup pf pasta water and simmer for 7 to 10 minutes.

Stir in basil and oregano. Add pasta and toss gently. Add remaining pasta water, if desired. Transfer to serving dish and sprinkle with parmesan cheese. Serve immediately.

Primavera Easter Dinner

In my opinion, Easter dinner doesn’t have to be very time consuming or labor intensive. Thus, I put together a simple menu filled with spring flavors that I am excited to share with you.

Let’s start with two appetizers that you can prepare ahead of time:

Marinated olives:

Ingredients:

1 cup of black olives, pitted and drained

1 cup of green olives, pitted and drained

1 garlic clove, minced

¼ teaspoon of paprika

1 large spring of fresh thyme

3 springs of fresh oregano

1 ½ tablespoons of olive oil

Lemon zest, to taste

Ground black pepper, to taste

1 dried bay leave

Remove oregano and thyme leaves from stem and roughly chop the leaves. Set aside.

In a medium bowl, mix all the ingredients and refrigerate overnight. Serve it cold or at room temperature. Discard bay leave before serving.

Mozzarella & Tomato skewer:

Ingredients:

8 ounces of fresh mozzarella, cut into 48 (1/2 inch) cubes

24 cherry tomatoes, halved

12 large basil leaves, cut into 48 (1/2 inch) pieces

Olive oil, to taste

Sea salt, to taste

24 (6-inch) skewers

In a medium bowl, gently toss mozzarella cubes and tomatoes with olive oil and salt. Refrigerate for at least one hour.

To make the skewers, place a tomato halve, then basil, then mozzarella, followed by basil, another tomato halve and a mozzarella cube.

Serve it cold or at room temperature.

After enjoying these delightful appetizers, let’s move to the main course. The star of this course is an original vegetarian dish that will certainly please your guests, especially if there are vegetarians among them. I am talking about a Spinach and Ricotta Gnocchi (Italian dumplings), a restaurant quality dish that you can make at home. The second dish is porcini mushroom chicken, just one of the many meat alternatives that pairs well with this gnocchi.

 Spinach and Ricotta Gnocchi:

Ingredients:

2 ½ lb of fresh spinach, stalks removed

1 ½ tablespoon of olive oil

15oz of ricotta cheese

1 ¼ cup of parmesan cheese, grated

3 eggs

½ teaspoon of garlic powder

½ teaspoon of dried basil

¼ teaspoon of dried marjoram

Salt and pepper, to taste

1 1/8 cup of all purpose OR whole wheat flour, plus more for dusting

1 cup of salted butter

1 tablespoon of fresh oregano, chopped

1 tablespoon of fresh thyme, chopped

In a large heavy sauce pan, heat olive oil over medium heat. Place washed spinach in the pan and cook over low heat for about 7 minutes (or until just wilted).

Drain spinach in a colander. Set aside. Meanwhile lightly beat eggs with garlic powder, basil, marjoram, salt and pepper. Press out remaining liquid from spinach and chop it.

In a large bowl, mix chopped spinach, ricotta, eggs and half of the parmesan cheese. Beat until fully combined. Season with additional salt and pepper, if necessary.

Shift the four and add to the mixture. Add more if necessary to obtain a workable mixture. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

With floured hands, roll mixture into 1 inch balls. Meanwhile, bring a large pan of lightly salted water to a boil. Add the dumplings and cook for 3 to 4 minutes, until they rise to the surface. Remove from pan, drain well, transfer to serving plate and set aside.

Meanwhile, melt butter in a large sauté pan over medium heat. Add the oregano and thyme and lower the heat. Cook for about 1 minute stirring constantly. Pour over gnocchi, sprinkle with remaining parmesan cheese and serve immediately.

Serves 6.

Porcini mushroom Pan Chicken

2 ½ lb of chicken breast, boneless and skinless

¾ cup of chicken stock

6oz of porcini mushroom, sliced

¼ teaspoon of paprika

3 large cloves of garlic, minced

1 tablespoon of fresh sage, chopped

1 tablespoon of butter (optional)

1 ½ tablespoon of olive oil

Salt and pepper, to taste

In a large sauté pan, heat olive oil over medium heat. Season chicken with paprika, salt and pepper and place it in the pan. Cook for 5 minutes on each side. Transfer chicken to a plate and set aside.

Place garlic in the pan and sauté for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the mushroom to pan and cook for 5 to 7 minutes. Move mushroom to the side of the pan and place chicken breast back in the pan. Add chicken stock and sage and cook for 10 to 15 minutes covered. Lower the heat, uncover the pan and simmer for another 7 to 10 minutes. Add the butter and stir until fully melted. Check seasoning and add more salt and pepper, if desired. Serve it immediately.

Serves 6.

To finish this delicious meal, you can serve a creamy and luscious Mocha Chocolate Terrine.   I think that this dessert deserves special attention, so I will have an entire post dedicated to it tomorrow.

It is Olive time!

I have always been a big fan of olives! When I was small girl my dad use to take me to the city's only Deli & Imports store to taste and buy olives and I was excited to go every single time! Sometimes I was so anxious to try all the different kinds of olives that I would put 2 or 3 in my mouth at the same time – it caused me swallow a couple of pits but it was worthy!

I like olives so much that I am always trying to incorporate them in my dishes. Today, I want to share with you two recipes that can be great life-savers when you are planning a party:

Tapenade

Ingredients

2 cups of Kalamata olives, pitted and drained

1/3 cup of green olives, pitted and drained

1 clove of garlic, coarsely chopped

½ cup of sweet roasted peppers

1 tablespoon of capers, rinsed and drained

1 teaspoon of dried oregano

2 large leaves of fresh Basil, roughly chopped

¼ cup of olive oil

Ground black pepper to taste

Place all the ingredients in the bowl of a food processor and pulse for 20 seconds or until you obtain the desired consistency. Put the tapenade in the refrigerator for up to 12 hours for flavor infusion.

Use it in dips, savory tarts and appetizers or as a spread for sandwiches and bruschettas.

Light Olive Dip

 Ingredients:

15oz (1 container) of ricotta cheese

Tapenade

In a bowl combine the ricotta cheese and homemade tapenade. Stir with a rubber spatula until combined. Preserve it covered in the refrigerator for 2 weeks. Serve it with crackers or small toasts.

If you don’t have time to make your homemade tapenade, you can use an entire jar of store-bought tapenade to make this quick and tasty dip.

Bon Appetite!