Archive for the 'Italian' Category

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Anne Burrell’s Crostini of Chicken Liver Pâté with Balsamic Onions

Published by Gastronomer on October 7, 2011 in Appetizer, Italian and Recipe. 2 Comments

After spending much of the summer traveling here, there, and everywhere, I finally reunited with my neglected kitchen this past week. It’s hard to believe that the last time we spent any sort of meaningful time together was back in June while baking The Astronomer’s birthday cake!

Three months away from the stove definitely effected my cooking instincts, but fortunately, these Crostini of Chicken Liver Pâté with Balsamic Onions went off without a hitch. I have Chef Anne Burrell to thank for that.

This recipe comes from her debut cookbook Cook Like a Rock Star. I received an advance copy a few weeks ago and flipped straight to the “Piccolini (a.k.a. my small nibbles)” section. I am the type of eater that tires easily of a main course and instead prefers to graze on punchy little bites, so it was awesome to see an entire chapter devoted to my favorite types of dishes.

Ever since my chicken liver pâté awakening at Pizzeria Mozza (recipe here), I’ve been borderline obsessed with the stuff. Chef Anne’s version is super smooth and packs a wallop thanks to the anchovies, capers, and garlic. The Astronomer wasn’t too keen on the pâté’s pronounced livery essence, but I didn’t mind the least bit. In fact, I think I’ve developed quite a taste for liver these days. The balsamic onions offer a bright and tangy counterpoint to the assertive spread.

For balsamic onions

Olive oil
2 large onions, sliced
Salt
1 cup balsamic vinegar

For chicken liver pâté

Olive oil
2 to 3 anchovy fillets
2 tablespoons capers
2 cloves garlic, smashed
1 pound chicken livers, cleaned and rinsed
1 cup white wine
1 baguette, cut in to 1/2-inch slices, toasted or grilled

Prepare balsamic onions

Coat a large saute pan with olive oil and add the onions. Season the onions with salt and bring the pan to a medium-high heat. Cover and sweat the onions for 15 to 20 minutes. Add the balsamic and cook for another 20 to 25 minutes or until the balsamic is syrupy. Use right away, or place in airtight jar and store in the refrigerator until ready to use.

Prepare chicken liver pâté

Coat a large saute pan with olive oil and add the anchovies, capers and garlic. Bring to medium heat and saute until the anchovies have dissolved.

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Bay Cities Italian Deli & Bakery – Los Angeles (Santa Monica)

Published by Gastronomer on August 15, 2011 in Deli, Italian, Los Angeles, Restaurant Review and Santa Monica. 12 Comments

After spending Sunday afternoon watching “The Never Ending Story” with 80 diehard Weezer fans, I stepped out of the theater feeling positively hungry. It turns out that fantastical stories populated by a cast of strange characters bring on the pangs like you wouldn’t believe.

I remembered seeing Bay Cities Italian Deli & Bakery when we exited off the highway and couldn’t think of a better time than the present to finally experience “The Godmother.” Cue the singing angels…

The hype surrounding The Godmother is nothing short of tremendous. Its legion of passionate fans endure long lines, nightmarish parking, and gruff customer service for the pleasure found between two slices of hefty Italian bread.

When The Astronomer and I arrived at the market slash deli sometime past four o’clock, we made our way through the sizable crowd hovering around the counter to grab a numbered ticket. One Godmother sandwich with “the works” was in my hands within fifteen minutes.

All of the picnic tables along the L-shaped patio were occupied, so The Astronomer and I dug in on our feet over a slab of concrete railing.

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Eataly – New York City

Published by Gastronomer on August 2, 2011 in Italian, Markets and New York City. 10 Comments

Before departing New York City for the temperate pastures of Los Angeles, The Astronomer, Cousin Jackie, and I grabbed a quick lunch at Eataly. The Italian food hall, which is modeled after the original Eataly in Turin, boasts 36,500 square feet of gustatory and sensory pleasure.

The folks behind this temple of Italian food are none other than restaurateurs Joseph Bastianich and Mario Batali. Man, these guys sure have their fingers on the pulse when it comes to feeding the masses all things Italian.

The humongous space was crammed with people of all stripes during lunchtime, which made navigating the various restaurants and stands less pleasurable than I would have liked. While I don’t mind standing elbow to elbow with strangers on the subways and streets, I’d much rather not have to fight for my lunch.

Our initial plan was to dine at La Pizza & La Pasta, but the hour-long wait didn’t fit into our schedules. Instead, we dined picnic style on various meats, cheeses, and breads that we procured throughout the market. My favorite stop was at the cured meat stand. The man behind the counter was knowledgeable, opinionated, and offered up plenty of samples to guide our taste buds.

The cheese counter was equally robust, with over 400 varieties of regional Italian cheeses.

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Del Posto – New York City

Published by Gastronomer on July 18, 2011 in Fine Dining, Italian, New York City and Restaurant Review. 8 Comments

My grandma once remarked (in Vietnamese, of course) that in New York City, money is spent as freely as water. From dining to shopping to transportation to entertainment, it’s dangerously easy to drop some serious change exploring and reveling in everything the city has to offer. While bargains may not be the norm in these here parts, there are still some great values to be had.

Take for instance lunch at Del Posto, Chef Mario Batali and restauranteur Joseph Bastianich‘s four-star Italian restaurant. Dinner here starts at $115, but a three-course lunch complete with amuses and mignardises can be had for just $29. Now, that’s a deal that even my penny pinching Bà Ngoại would approve.

The Astronomer and I lunched here the afternoon following our feast at Eleven Madison Park. We were seated at a table fit for four in the center of the dining room. The crowd of lunching ladies and powwowing business types spoke mostly in hushed tones, adding to the formal ambiance that I found too stuffy for this time of day.

After placing our orders, a server brought over a trio of amuse bouches. There were lobster and caviar finger sandwiches, a tomato soup with bread crumbs around the rim, and small bundles of sauerkraut wrapped in speck ham. All three bites were perfectly nice, but none were particularly wow inducing.

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Scott Conant’s Spaghetti with Tomato and Basil

Published by Gastronomer on June 5, 2011 in Italian, Pasta + Rice and Recipe. 17 Comments

After perusing my recent post about brunching at Scarpetta, my brother emailed me a recipe for Chef Scott Conant’s famous spaghetti. Unlike the fussy versions I’d previously seen across the Internet, this one was noticeably simpler and even called for fewer than ten ingredients.

Published in New York Magazine in 2003, this recipe is originally from the kitchen of L’Impero, where Chef Conant cooked before opening Scarpetta. Due to the straightforward nature of the ingredients and instructions, I was skeptical that it would be able to recreate the true majesty of the original dish. My brother assured me that he had prepared it himself and that the results were identical to the plate of noodles once dished up at L’Impero and now Scarpetta.

I remained a skeptic up until the moment when the sauce began to come together. As I crushed the fresh tomatoes, melding them with the scorching olive oil, the smells and flavors wafting in the air were wholly familiar. Once I added in the basil, butter, and Parmigiano-Reggiano, and saw how tightly the chunky sauce clung to the strands of spaghetti, I knew for certain that my brother had not led me astray.

“He’s getting a roundness of flavor and nuance of sweetness that amount to pure Mediterranean bliss,” waxed Frank Bruni about the spaghetti in his three-star review of Scarpetta in 2008. This recipe captures the bliss that Mr. Bruni spoke of, as well as a subtle richness and gentle tanginess. It’s definitely the real deal.

1⁄2 cup plus 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
30 fresh plum tomatoes, peeled and seeded [See "How to Peel Tomatoes" tutorial]
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon red-pepper flakes
1 1⁄2 pounds dried spaghetti
1 tablespoon butter
24 basil leaves, cut into a fine chiffonade
1⁄4 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano

Add the olive oil to a pan and heat until it begins to smoke lightly. Add the tomatoes, 1 teaspoon of salt, 1/2 teaspoon of pepper, and the red-pepper flakes.

This step can get messy, especially when the tomatoes hit the oil, so use a lid to shield yourself and the stove top. Remove the lid once the tomatoes have settled into the heat.

Crush the tomatoes with a potato masher, or a wire whisk, to release all their liquid. Cook for 25 minutes over medium to medium-high heat, until the tomatoes form a semi-chunky sauce.

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