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Gnoccho Fritto con Affetati

My mother taught me at a very young age how to eat and still maintain the integrity of one’s lipstick.  So when Signor Morandi served me my first plate of gnoccho fritto, and I picked up a knife and fork, you can imagine his expression.  He patiently showed me how to fold it, proving that the integrity of his gnocchi far outweighed the integrity of my lipstick.  

Gnoccho Fritto con Affetati - literally translated: knot or lump fried with salami.  

The more detailed translation: Small squares of dough that puff into light, hollow, airy pillows when deep-fried.  The crust is thin, golden and cracker-like, with a little give that consents to folding without crumbling.  These gnocchi are usually topped right out of the hot fat with thinly-sliced cured meats (prosciutto, prosciutto cotto and various salamis), which are then folded like a sandwich and eaten warm.  The heat slightly melds the fat-laced prosciutto with the warm pastry -- it’s quite a rich textural experience.

Not always getting great results with other recipes, I experimented a while and created a recipe I love.  It’s not for the faint-hearted, even with olive oil replacing the lard.  But, it’s a very easy process.  And good news for those who don’t have the best of luck with yeast-risen projects, gnoccho fritto is rolled and fried - no unforgiving rising sequence or rebellious gluten.  Just remember to leave the flatware in the drawer, gnoccho fritto tastes better folded over, plus, you don’t lose your salami.  

 

Easy Pulled Pork Sandwich - In the Spirit of North Carolina

‘Cue is the great sacrament of our people.  No transubstantiation required.  It are what we are.

--North Carolinians

Barbeque is a subject of intense interest and loyalties in North Carolina, a subject about which everyone thinks they’re right and that everyone else wouldn’t know a decent plate of ‘cue from a cue ball.  

-- Dennis Rogers

 

The previous post encouraged culinary cheating -- a quicker, easier way to create traditional, complex dishes.  An inappropriate term?  Well, the language may be somewhat unrefined, but it’s accurate and the idea is solid.  However you say it, it’s much better than gastronomic abstinence.  Trying an easier version of a classic dish may not look or taste completely authentic, but it’ll still be delicious, and give a real sense of accomplishment.  And, wishing hard won’t get you a pulled pork sandwich.

North Carolina BBQ is serious cuisine with well-guarded secrets and highly debated, detailed methods.  The proper way means the whole pig, flavorful rubs, getting the wood to the perfect temperature, keeping the wood at the perfect temperature, gradually adding more ashed-over wood, spritzing down flare-ups, slowly cooking with indirect heat for hours & hours until the pork is so tender, it falls off the bone as the fork comes into proximity.  Real North Carolina ‘cue is the South’s magnum opus.  ‘Cueing a whole hog isn’t a beginner’s project, but with determination, and a few smaller projects under your belt, it can be done.

Easy Kansas City BBQ Ribs

Sure, I condone cheating.  If it’s between cheating a little and never attempting a dish because “the proper way” is too difficult or time consuming, I have no problem with shortcutting it.  The result may not be completely authentic, but at the very least, it’ll be a pretty tasty interpretation.

Case in point: Kansas City BBQ ribs -- rubbing, marinating, getting the wood to the perfect temperature, keeping the wood at the perfect temperature, gradually adding more ashed-over wood, slowly cooking the ribs with indirect heat for 5-6 hours, apple juice spritzing at regular intervals, slathering both sides with rich, tomatoey molasses sauce until the meat is so tender, it falls off the bone as the fork comes into proximity.  My God!  True KC ribs are undeniably sumptuous, and will cause some serious finger licking; but authentically recreating such a masterpiece is not easy and isn’t done by many.

I figured out how to get really tender, flavorful ribs with that lovely inherent smokiness, but without staying up all night holding a juice-filled spray bottle.  The method: rub it, smoke it, braise it and glaze it -- that’s it.  Plus, if the rubbing & smoking are done the first day, then braising & glazing the next; not only do the tasks seem more manageable, but, the rub & smoke permeate the meat more fully.  

Southern Buttermilk Biscuits

Buttermilk biscuits.  The Kid calls them “tasty little bastards.”  I should probably reign in his profanity, but he’s right -- they are tasty little bastards.  Hot from the oven and slathered with butter & honey -- what more do you need on a Thursday night?  Maybe ham.

Fried Chicken & Domaine Ste. Michelle 2002 Luxe Sparkling

My husband says I’m trying to kill him.  Mmhmm ... he’s a pussy.  No one gets out of this life alive, and there are worse ways to die than by gustatory ecstasy.  Not that fried chicken is gustatory ecstasy per se, but a tasty, farm-raised chicken, well-seasoned and perfectly fried, served with a chilled glass of really good Champagne, is fairly close to the pinnacle.  Now, if the same (now perfectly chilled) chicken is quietly plucked from the fridge around midnight and served in the dark with a really good Champagne and a movie ... well, I think that’s the actual definition of gustatory ecstasy.  I could be wrong -- you can look it up.

The Sparkling Wine:

Luxe is luxe.  It’s decadent, creamy and toasty with an almost warm lemon exuberance to it -- at least that’s what it tastes like tonight.  The lovely synergy between sparkling wine and fried food is the refreshing, palate-cleansing bubbles that cut through the dish’s richness.  I want to believe it clears the richness right out of the arteries too, but I can’t prove that.  You could look it up though.  

Lasagne alla Bolognese

 

(Reading the following quote with a Tony-Shalhoub-Italian accent is both more effective & entertaining.) 

“You will love this place.  Bologna is... is sad, a little.  The city is old.  No, old is nice... but is dark.  But the food, anyway, oh!  They make there a dish called, listen, Lah-sahn-nya... boh-loh-NYEH-zeh... Lasagne Bolognese -- you can’t believe how good this is.  And when my uncle, in Rome, at his restaurant, when he make this... Uuuugh!  You eat and then you go and... uuuuugh!  You kill yourself!  You have to kill yourself.  After you eat this, you can’t live!” 

--Big Night (1996) 

Nary a more enthusiastic description of Lasagne Bolognese was ever spoken. Layers of hand-rolled pasta encasing rich, meaty ragù, creamy, nutmegged béchamel, Parmigiano-Reggiano, and perfumed basil leaves. Lasagne Bolognese is pure love in a Pyrex dish. It’s poetic, really. But, obviously, don’t “kill yourself” -- even if the motivation is simply to stick around for leftovers.

Ratatouille & Chateau Ste. Michelle 2006 Nelly’s Garden Dry Rose

Ratatouille is never as good as it is right now. It’s the epitomical late-summer dish. Each ingredient is at its peak -- eggplant, peppers, basil, tomatoes, summer squash.

I became addicted to it in culinary school. While stewing all those vegetables for hours, I wondered if the French had finally screwed one up. Nay. My mouth had an epiphany. Before then, I don’t believe I’d ever experienced such a symphonic meld of beautiful flavors that somehow still allowed each ingredient its character.

Crab & Prawn Potstickers with Chipotle Crema and Ginger Martinis

Mixologists are the new hotties of the food world; and when they & restaurant chefs work symbiotically, we are all rewarded with fabulous, mind-blowing cocktail pairings.

Mixing cocktails is actually quite easy and gives you control of the overall flavor, thus, the overall pairing. Just decide on a dish, devise a flavor that goes well with it, use that as the cocktail's main flavor profile, and then play with the subtleties -- secondary flavors, acidity, sweetness, bitterness, etc.

Dreaming up food & cocktail pairings is pretty fun, then experimenting with flavors and textures is -- well, when you nail it, it can be extremely satisfying.

For my last dinner party I served shrimp & crab potstickers. I wanted a matching cocktail with simple, clean, refreshing flavors. Lemon really sings with seafood, fresh ginger went with the Asian theme, and both flavors are clean and refreshing. I tinkered around with a ginger martini recipe I found online, then added Lime Perrier for texture and to reduce the alcohol level, and lemon verbena to put it over the edge. I gave the combo a test run and that was it -- that was the match -- it was just the flavor profile I was looking for.

Crab & Prawn Potstickers with Chipotle-Lime Crema
(If memory serves, pretty close to what I did the other night -- and it made about 40)

BBQ Ribs 101 - Low & Slow

The best method for BBQ pork ribs is low & slow. I was a bit skeptical when reading this recipe -- I didn’t think unattended coals would stay hot enough for three hours to cook anything, but it works like a charm. The brilliant testers over at Cook’s Illustrated also wrap the finished ribs in foil and then a brown paper bag. The Kid made these himself (set his I-Phone alarm for every rib-flip). His great, big hungry friends thought they were just the best ribs ever. (I thought so too!)

1. Toast homemade or store-bought spice rub in pan over medium heat until fragrant, about 20 seconds.

Charcoal Grilling 101

There’s nothing like meat cooking on fire. The smell is intoxicating; the taste is carnal; the experience is so prehistoric and hedonistic. I love anything cooked on an open flame. It’s hot. And it’s easy. Here’s the Kid demonstrating the entire ritual:

Charcoal Grills:
Fancy grills don’t make food taste better - it’s the fire that counts. We get great results from a regular “daddy-o patio” bowl on sticks. (Next year -- a fire pit.) However, in this and other cases, size does matter. If you often grill for large groups, perhaps a large grill would work best; but if it’s just you and a few others, a small or medium grill will suit just fine-- plus, you’ll save money on both the grill and charcoal.

What Kind of Charcoal?
Briquettes burn longer; charcoal burns hotter.