Sweet Smashed Peas on Ricotta Toasts

Supposedly if you hang a mirror on a star and then had a telescope strong enough to see the mirror (and you got the mirror up there faster than the speed of light) you could see the past. That is the extent of my physics - a theory that could work but never will.

In the past week I was sure I would finish And the Universe Didn't Blink, have everything ready for the Fringe Festival (news release, postcard, lead line, elevator pitch, waivers, emergency forms - oh - you get it), have the back raspberry garden weeded, clean my house to within an inch of its life all the while cooking sumptuous meals.

What the mirror would reflect is someone staring blankly at the computer screen wondering how to get a mirror to fall from the sky (onstage) without causing a mess, a dirty home and someone spending way too much time rubbing the cat's tummy.  

There were a lot of expectations. My sugar pea plants are teaching me patience. They grow about 1/4 inch every two days (I measure) and so my planned summer risotto with peas and Parmesan would not come from the garden. But from Farmer's Market.

So the yield is a little less than expected. Time to switch gears. I am sure you never have to do that right? Switch gears... order pizza...

And what do you do with teeny-weeny, itsy-bitsy baby sweet peas. Smash em!

I put an almost 1 cup of them in 1 tablespoon of water and microwaved them for ten seconds. I barely needed to do that.

Add a little fresh mint, some salt and pepper (or turn on the heat with a little crushed red pepper), some olive oil and just pour out your frustrations into a mortal and pestle and crush those little babies - but not into a paste. I like them chunky. (Add your own herbs, brighten it with lemon - just smash them.)

Using your favorite bread  (I used an herbed flatbread), smear some ricotta on them and then bake at about 375 degrees F until the ricotta starts to melt. Add the smashed peas and serve.

Proud Italian Cook has a lovely Smashed Peas with Edamame on Ricotta Toasts. Find it here.

Meanwhile, I am still betting on solving all the world's problems by Saturday (no pressure) when I am off to spend a week in lobster-land. I have three more days. It's possible. Just as possible as hanging a mirror on a star.

50 Women Game Changers (in Food) - #27 - Anne Willan - Parmesan Cheese Balls

Anne Willan has been off my radar. As a cookbook author of more than a dozen internationally acclaimed cookbooks that include From My Chateau Kitchen, Cooking with Wine, and the 17-volume, step-by-step, illustrated Look and Cook. For a more detailed listing as well as a blurb on the books, please click here. The pure romanticism in the title From My Chateau Kitchen makes me want to know more.

"An authoritative yet intimate appreciation of both the food and the culture of Burgundy. Interwoven in the text, which presents colorful characters from the depth of rural France are some 300 photographs and 160 recipes from Anne's personal repertoire." You know I want to know the colorful characters. Don't you? Yes, I'd like to know more.

She recently moved to L.A. from her 17-bedroom, 17th century chateau in Burgundy. Quite a life change but Ms. Willan has had many life changes. A daughter from an upper class British famly, she graduated from Cambridge with a Master's Degree in Economics (circa 1959). A chance class at Cordon Bleu in London proved to be a game-changer. She simply fell in love with cooking and although her family disapproved - she pursued it. She went to Paris to pursue her culinary studies and once graduated she put out an ad in the Herald Tribune: "Cordon Bleu cook will give lessons and and cook for dinner parties." There were only six replies but one reply led her to cook at Versaille.  The tale is here and it's a good one.

Parmesan Cheese Balls

Ms. Willan is the real deal. She may hail from Yorkshire but she has been showered with honors and awards from every corner of France as well as in the USA. This is the holiday season and you are likely busy, so I won't list them here - but take a peek if you have a monent - it's inspiring - http://www.lavarenne.com/about.htm.

She may be a French Chef but this recipe is pure Italian. It sings of Parmesan. It's savory, peppery and you really want a nice glass of Prosecco -or at the very least some fine sparkling water to accompany this. The cheese-pepper bites just begged for sparkle. And this is the season of sparkle, isn't it? I found it on The Wednesday Chef and you can read Luisa's description of these savory cheese bites here. Or just make them. Because in the season of sweets, a little savory is most appreciated.  

Parmesan Cheese Balls Ingredients

1-1/2 cups flour

1 cup freshly-shredded Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese (only freshly shredded)

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon white pepper

1/2 teaspoon dry mustard (I wouldn't be afraid to add a tad more)

1/2 cup melted butter

1. In a food processor, mix the flour, Parmesan, salt, pepper and dry mustard. Add the butter and work it in using the pulse button so the mixture forms crumbs. Press a few crumbs together with your fingers.(Luisa notes that if it is sticky, add 2 to 3 tablespoons more flour - mine wasn't - mine was crumbly.)

2. Butter a baking sheet. Turn the crumbs into a bowl, press them into balls 1 inch in diameter and place them on the baking sheet. Chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes. I (obviously did not get round balls - but they were credible - just a bit crumbly - but then - oven-magic happened and they baked perfectly.)

3. Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Bake the cheese balls until lightly browned, 25-30 minutes - check after 25 minutes) They keep well in an airtight container, or they can be frozen.

I got 24 Parmesan balls out of this recipe..

And yes, 'tis the season of sparkle and sweet. But don't forget savory and sophisticated. Add a little French flair to your table and check out what the other bloggers are doing for Week 27 of Gourmet Game Changers. And if you want to join in the fun, e-mail Mary at  One Perfect Bite. Mary started this delectable journey. 

Val - More Than Burnt Toast, Joanne - Eats Well With Others, Taryn - Have Kitchen Will Feed

Susan - The Spice Garden, Claudia - A Seasonal Cook in Turkey, Heather - girlichef,

Miranda - Mangoes and Chutney, Jeanette - Healthy Living, April - Abby Sweets

Katie - Making Michael Pollan Proud, Mary - One Perfect Bite, Kathleen - Bake Away with Me

Viola - The Life is Good Kitchen, Sue - The View from Great Island, Barbara - Movable Feasts

Kathleen - Gonna Want Seconds, Amy - Beloved Green, Linda - Ciao Chow Linda

Linda A - There and Back Again, Martha - Lines from Linderhof, Nancy - Picadillo

Mireya - My Healthy Eating Habits, Veronica - My Catholic Kitchen

Annie - Most Lovely Things

Tuna-Potato Pâté

So here it is two days before Thanksgiving and I am posting a recipe that really doesn't have a "wow" factor. In fact - it's downright humble. But it is - fun. Remember fun? For my daughter, "fun food" is preparing "puppy chow" and settling down with a blanket, a cat and Gilmore Girls. For her mother, it's curling up on the sofa with Italian cookbooks while mindlessly munching on comfort - comfort being this tuna-potato pâté.

The recipe hails from Mary Ann Esposito's Ciao Italia in Tuscany. She calls it Pate di Tonno alla Maria Pia - Maria Pia's Tuna Pate. Maria Pia fashions a fish out of the mashed potato-tuna mixture and then adds homemade mayonnaise as scales on top. She even fashions a fishy-face with capers and parsley! She will then serve it simply with a salad or spring peas.

But since it has been established that I am a great lazybones - especially days before Thanksgiving, I simply dumped the mixture - with a little (store-bought) mayonnaise added into a loaf pan and forgot about it. For three days. As more grocery shopping got done, the pate was relegated to the cavernous back of the fridge - in danger of disappearing forever.

I like it. In fact, everyone liked it. Loved it. "What's in it?" I wanted to make up stuff - an exotic oil, a magical spice. But I confessed, "Mashed potatoes, tuna, mayonnaise and some capers." And my family just nodded their heads as another cracker was spread and eaten.

It's the perfect Sunday appetizer - easy-going: a little tang, a little salt and a whole bunch of smooth. Comfort food with a wee bit of attitude. This can be made days in advance and then trotted out at your whimsy. This will be on the "I'm not hungry, I'll just pick" table this holiday season during marathon baking sessions.

Ingredients
4 medium-sized cooked potatoes, cooled and peeled (about 1-3/4 pounds)
12-ounce can tuna packed in olive oil (Use a nice Italian tuna)
2 tablespoons capers in salt, rinsed
pinch sea salt
1/4-1/3 cup good mayonnaise

Preparation (I love this prep)
Combine all in a large bowl, mixing well. Lightly spray a loaf pan and put mixture in it. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate about six hours or up to three (or more!) days. When ready to serve, simply unmold onto a plate. Serve with breads or crackers. I liked the arugula and thinly sliced radishes with it. The pate is mellow and a little peppery and crunchy bite was welcome. I might even add a dab of tuna on top of the pate.

*I would use three potatoes next time - as I like tuna and would like the pate to be more tuna-intense.

The original recipe from Mary Ann Esposito can be found here. 

For those celebrating Thanksgiving, I wish you a gracious and grateful Thanksgiving. And to those not in "Thanksgiving-mode," I hope you have a lovely weekend of breaking bread with laughter and love. 

Ricotta Sformato

I think my New Year's resolution will be to make every Sformato recipe I can find. This recipe came via Deborah Mele who was trying to recreate the ricotta sformato she had at Il Cibreo in Florence. It's a warm, pliable, gentle mass of cheese. I decided it's perfect as an appetizer, as a savory dessert, a light meal with a salad and I may have it for breakfast tomorrow. Cheese and an egg? Sounds like breakfast to me.

Il Cibreo (or rather it's lower-priced trattoria - which is not low-priced, mind you - just lower-priced!) was on my radar thanks to research, Bon Appetit, guidebooks and Ciao Chow Linda. I know that Paul and I blow in the wind when it comes to our meals - so if it worked out - we would go there. And if we were elsewhere and hungry - we would miss it. As it turns out, it was a mere three blocks from our pensione. And when we walked there expecting a wait, we were immediately shown to the last table - and then the line formed outside. Serendipity. We had climbed the Duomo, climbed the Piazalle Michelangelo and were ready to eat. A sampling:

Tomato gelee. That is in my past and my future. When the tomatoes return.

"You will not soon forget their polenta," wrote Ciao Chow Linda when she recommended the trattoria. And I haven't.  I am consumed by it. And if I could go back in time, this is the baby food I would feed my children. Enriched cream puddles - I have never had a softer or purer polenta.

"It's all pureed!" exclaimed my husband and indeed a lot of it is - or rather most of it is molecular gastronomy. Herbs, cheeses, unbearable softness whipped into a sweet purity with nuance that I will always try to create.There is a tale that a mother came in with her infant and while dining tried to feed her infant some baby food and the baby would have none of it. Chef Fabio Picchi (the chef behind Il Cibreo and its offsprings) added some just-grated Parmesan and a dab of olive oil and the infant lapped up the food with gusto!

Veal "meatloaf" studded with pistachios and served with a warming mayonnaise. It really wasn't a meatloaf - it was a sumptuous pate.

Much has been said about the fact that Chef Fabio Picchi doesn't serve pasta. As if it was a badge of honor - but the reality is - the kitchen was too small. When he first started out 30 years ago, his kitchen was not large enough to accommodate huge vats of boiling water - not with all the Tuscan cuisine he wanted to create. So he put pasta on the back-burner and found that he was gaining a reputation for not having pasta. He decided not to mess with fate and has kept pasta off the menu ever since. Pasta is not on the menu - but Tuscany is.

Chocolate covered coffee mousse. Simple. Pure. Decadence.

Now to return to the Ricotta Sformato. I do get to things in my circular fashion. I did mine in ramekins and halved the recipe because there are presently two of us at home (Paul is in Italy) and I would be in great danger of eating all the extra. The recipe posted serves 6. 

Ricotta Sformato Ingredients
1-1/2 cups ricotta cheese (do not use low-fat)
1/2 cup freshly-grated Parmesan Cheese
1 large egg
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 tablespoons minced basil (I used arugula - it was fresher than the overgrown basil I saw)
salt and pepper to taste

To serve: Tomato sauce and basil or butter and parmigiano-reggiano

I am thinking that next time - and there will be a next time - possibly on Thanksgiving - I will add some mascarpone to make it even richer.

Ricotta Sformato Preparation

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Beat all ingredients in a large bowl until creamy. Put in oiled baking pan (a loaf pan is good) or in 4-6 ramekins and bake 25-30 minutes. (The ramekins will take about 22-25 minutes). Remove from oven and let sit for 15 minutes. It's important that they "set."

To serve:

Invert ramekins or baking pan onto baking sheet. If using a loaf pan, slice into six pieces. Put a dollop of melted butter and some freshly-grated Parmesan on top and broil for 2-3 minutes until the top is lightly browned. Or simply place on dishes and add a few teaspoons of tomato sauce and basil and serve.