Voyage to Venice Recipes
Ingredients:
2 quarts water
1 celery rib, cut into chunks
1 medium onion, quartered
2 carrots, trimmed
8 black peppercorns
1 1/2 pounds large shrimp
3/4 cup olive oil
6 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons chopped flat-leaf parsley
Directions:
Place the water, celery, onion, carrots, and peppercorns in a large saucepan,
bring to boil and boil, uncovered for 10 minutes. Add the shrimps and cook,
tossing them constantly, just until they have all turned bright pink - 1 to 2
minutes.
Drain the shrimps in a colander and let them cool to room temperature. Remove
the shells, leaving the tails intact. If you are using large shrimps de-vein
them.
To serve, place the shrimps in the center of 6 salad plates. Srinkle 2
tablespoons of olive oil and 1 tablespoon of lemon juice over each serving;
sprinkle with chopped parsley.
Ingredients:
3 fennel bulbs
1/2 onion
16 jumbo sea scallops
3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon ground fennel seed
2 ounces prosciutto
1 cup dry white wine
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
sea salt
freshly ground white or black pepper
1/4 cup unbleached flour
Directions:
Trim the fronds, stalks, and tough core from each fennel bulb, then halve the
bulbs lengthwise. Cut them into julienne. Cut the onion in to julienne of equal
size.
Rinse the scallops under cold running water and dry thoroughly with paper
towels. Set aside
In an ample, heavy-bottomed skillet, warm 1/4 cup of olive oil over medium heat.
Add the julienne fennel and sauté, tossing occasionally, until tender, 8 to 10
minutes. Transfer to a bowl. Rinse out the skillet and set aside.
In a heavy-bottomed pot or Dutch oven, warm 1/4 cup of the olive oil over medium
heat. When it it is sizzling hot, add the onion, ground fennel, and prosciutto
and sauté until onion is wilted, about 3 minutes. Add the cooked fennel and
toss. Pour in the wine and simmer until the alcohol evaporates, about 3 minutes.
Remove from the heat and stir in the butter and salt and pepper to taste, and
toss until the butter melts evenly. Set aside.
In the skillet used for cooking the fennel, warm the remaining 1/4 cup olive oil
over medium heat. Spread the flour on a plate. Dredge the scallops in the flour,
shaking off the excess flour, and slip them immediately into the hot oil. Sauté
the scallops until they are browned all over, 4 to 5 minutes. The scallops
should be neither raw in the center nor overcooked. Use a slotted spoon to
transfer them to a plate lined with paper towels.
Arrange the fennel and onion mixture on 4 dinner plates. Place 4 scallops over
each. Serve immediately.
Ingredients:
For the pastry dough:
2 cups unbleached flour
1 teaspoon sea salt
2 teaspoons chopped fresh sage or 1 teaspoon of dried sage
1 teaspoon dried rosemary
7 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/3 cup ice water
For the filling:
1 butternut squash or calabaza (3 pounds)
1 tablespoon unsalted butter at room temperature
2 ounces pancetta, chopped and sauteed until cooked, but soft
1 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
1/4 cup freshly grated percorino romano cheese
1 cup shredded Gruyere cheese
1 extra-large egg
1 teaspoon sea salt
pinch of freshly ground black pepper
Directions:
To make the dough. In a medium bowl, combine the flour, salt, sage, and rosemary
and stir to mix. Add the butter and using a pastry blender, cut it in until the
mixture resembles pea like pieces. Sprinkle in the ice water and using a fork,
stir and toss mixture until it comes together in a rough mass. If necessary, use
a little more ice water to moisten the dough enough for it to form a unified
dough. Work quickly in order to prevent the butter from warming too much, which
would prevent flaky crumb from forming. Divide the dough into two portions, with
one portion twice as large as the other. Cover each portion with a plastic wrap
and chill for a minimum of 1 hour.
To make the filling. While the dough is chilling, preheat the oven to 400
degrees F. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and oil the foil. Cut squash
in half length-wise and scrape out and discard the seeds. Place the squash
halves, cut side down, on the prepared baking sheet. Bake until tender
throughout, about 40 minutes. Test for doneness with a sharp knife or thin
skewer; it should meet no resistance. Remove the squash from the oven and reduce
temperature to 350 degrees F.
When squash is cool enough to handle, peel off the skin. Mash pulp well with a
fork or potato masher in a bowl or puree it in food processor and transfer to a
bowl. Add the butter, pancetta, chesses, egg, salt, and pepper and mix well.
Select a 10 inch glass or ceramic pie dish or a 9 inch pie dish for a deeper
filling. Butte and flour the pie dish and shake out excess flour. Remove the
larger dough portion from the refrigerator. On a lightly floured work surface,
roll out the dough into a round at least two inches larger than the pie dish and
about 1/8 inch thick. Carefully transfer the round to the prepared pie dish and
ease it into the bottom and sides. Trim the edges to leave an overhang of about
1/2 inch that can be crimped later to form an attractive edge. Remove the
remaining dough from the refrigerator and roll it out in the same manner into a
round at least as large as the diameter of the pan and about 1/8 inch thick.
Using a fluted pastry wheel, cut the round into strips about 1/2 inch wide. Pour
the filling into the pastry-lined dish. Using the pastry strips, weave a lattice
crust over the filling. Then fold the overhang of the bottom crust inward and
crimp as for a fruit pie.
Slide the pie into the oven and bake until a skewer passed into the center of
the filling comes out clean and the crust is golden., 55 to 60 minutes. Transfer
to a rack to cool. Serve warm or at room temperature, cut into small wedges.
Ingredients:
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
4 ounces pancetta finely chopped
1 large clove garlic, minced
1 onion chopped
1 large carrot, peeled and chopped
1 celery stalk, including leaves, chopped
1 bay leaf
scant 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1 1/2 pounds ground beef or venison
8 ounces chicken giblets, trimmed of fat, chopped
2/3 cup dry red wine
3 tablespoons tomato paste
3 1/2 cups peeled, seed, and chopped fresh or canned tomatoes
1 teaspoon sea salt
freshly ground pepper
Basic polenta
Directions:
In a large saucepan, warm the butter with the oil over medium-low heat. When
they are hot, add the pancetta and sauté until golden, 7 to 9 minutes. Add the
garlic, onion, carrot, celery, bay leaf, coriander, and cloves and sauté over
low heat until the vegetables are well softened, 10 to 15 minutes. Add the
ground meat and giblets, using a wooden spoon to break them up. Turn the meats
over evenly, cooking until lightly colored, 5 to 7 minutes. Now add the wine and
allow the alcohol to evaporate, about 3 minutes. Stir in the tomato paste and
sauté gently for 2 to 3 minutes, then add the chopped tomatoes and salt. Cover
partially and simmer over low heat heat, stirring occasionally, until the sauce
thickens and is aromatic, about 1 1/2 hours. If it seems to be drying out, add a
few tablespoons of water to moisten. Add pepper to taste and remove the bay
leaf.
Pour the hot, loose polenta into a large, shallow serving dish. Use the back of
a large spoon to create a well in the center. Spoon the meat mixture atop the
polenta. Serve immediately.
Ingredients:
3 1/2 pounds smoked or fresh pork ribs
5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon fresh rosemary, minced or 1 teaspoon dried rosemary
1 tablespoon fresh sage, minced or 1 teaspoon dried sage
1/2 teaspoon ground juniper berries
1 cup dry white wine
1/2 cup water
3/4 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 large onion, sliced
1 ounce smoked ham sliced and then chopped
1 pound sauerkraut
Directions:
Trim any excess fat from the ribs. In an ample, heavy-bottomed skillet, warm 3
tablespoons of the olive oil. Add the ribs and sauté on all sides until nicely
browned, about 8 minutes total. Remove the meat from the skillet and transfer to
a plate. Add another tablespoon of the olive oil to the pan. Add the garlic,
rosemary, sage, and juniper and sauté over gentle heat for 1 minute. Add the
wine and the water and stir. Simmer to evaporate, about 2 minutes. Return the
ribs to the skillet and add salt and pepper, cover tightly. Simmer over gentlest
possible heat until tender, about 1 1/2 hours.
About 15 minutes before the meat is cooked, in a separate skillet, warm the
remaining tablespoons of olive oil over low heat. Add the onion and smoked ham
and sauté, stirring occasionally, until soft and translucent, about 3 minutes.
Stir in the sauerkraut and sauté for about 2 minutes to heat through. Transfer
to a large serving platter.
When the ribs are ready, transfer them to the bed of sauerkraut. There sound be
about 1 1/4 cups of meat juices in the pan. If there is less, add water to the
skillet, up to 1/4 cup, and bring to a boil. Strain the juices through a
fine-mesh sieve and pour over the meat.
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