Garlic Aioli
1 large egg
3 garlic cloves minced fine
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon red wine vinegar
½ teaspoon kosher salt plus more to taste
Fresh ground pepper
½ to ¾ cup olive (or other vegetable) oil
Make sure all ingredients are at room temp. Wisk egg yolk, garlic mustard, lemon juice, vinegar, and ½ teaspoon salt with few grinds of fresh pepper until combined. Slowly drizzle oil into mixture, initially a few drops at a time, whisking constantly until it emulsifies. Add oil slowly in a stream whisking constantly until mixture thickens. Adjust seasonings
Mushrooms Stuffed with Riccota
One dozen mushroom caps, more if small
1 cup well-drained ricotta
¼ cup dried breadcrumbs
¼ cup grated pecorino cheese
2 teaspoons fresh mint leaves, chopped
2 teaspoons fresh parsley, chopped
2 teaspoons fresh basil leaves, chopped
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
Ground black pepper to taste
Preheat the oven at 400F. Remove stems from mushrooms and quickly rinse under water. Drain well. Set aside.
Mix the remaining ingredients until all blended.
Coat a baking dish with some olive oil. Sprinkle the mushroom caps with salt. Stuff each cap with one to two tablespoons of ricotta filling, depending on size. Place the stuffed mushroom caps inside the baking dish right next to each other. Drizzle with olive oil. Bake at 400 F for 20 minutes for large caps, 15 minutes for small caps.
Cold Sautéed Trout in Orange Marinade
3 trout, heads and tails on, cleaned.
½ cup olive oil
½ cup or less all purpose flour spread on a dish or paper
2 tablespoons finely chopped yellow onion
1 cup dry white Italian Vermouth
2 tablespoons chopped orange peel
½ cup freshly squeezed orange juice
Juice of 1 lemon
1 tablespoon salt
1 ½ tablespoons chopped parsely
Fresh pepper
Wash trout and pat dry thoroughly.
Heat oil in skillet over medium heat. When hot dip trout lightly in flour (shake off excess) and put into skillet. Do this one at a time depending on size of skillet heat. Add flour just before putting fish in skillet.
Brown on one side and then the other – about 5 minutes for the first side and 4 minutes for the second. Transfer fish to deep dish that can hold all three in a single layer.
Using a very sharp knife make 2-3 diagonal cuts into the skin of both sides of each fish. Try not to tear into the flesh.
Put chopped onion in skillet used to fry the fish and sauté over medium heat until pale gold. Add vermouth, orange peel and let boil for 15 -20 seconds. Stir and add orange juice and lemon juice, salt and pepper. Let everything bubble for about 30 seconds while stirring. Add chopped parsley, stir and few times and add mixture over the trout.
Let fish soak in marinade for 6 hours at room temp and then refrigerate. Serve the following day at the earliest.
Mushroom and Potato Soup
1.5 pounds Yukon gold potatoes, cut in small cubes, about 3/8 inch by 1/2 inch
3 tablespoons Extra virgin olive oil plus more for drizzling
3/4 pound fresh porcini mushrooms (expensive and hard to get, I used other wild mushrooms like chanterelles)
Sprig of fresh thyme
3 cups or more Vegetable broth or chicken broth (I used chicken infused with dried procini mushrooms and simmered with carrots, onion and celery)
Salt and black pepper
In a small pot, warm up three tablespoons of olive oil. Add the cubed potatoes. Stir to coat and then add two cups of hot vegetable broth. Simmer until the potatoes are cooked and soft, about 20 minutes. In the meantime, cut the porcini mushrooms into small cubes including the stems. In a 10 inch skillet place 4 tablespoons of olive oil. Set over high heat add the mushrooms and a sprig of thyme . Add more olive oil if dry. Saute quickly until the mushrooms are soft. Add salt and pepper to taste. Remove from heat. Once the potatoes are soft stir and press against the side of the pot to smash some of them. Add the mushrooms to the potatoes and another ladle of broth. Let them cook together until the potatoes are soft enough that some start breaking apart, about 5 minutes. Stir and smash enough potatoes against the side of the pot to make a thick creamy soup. Add more broth if the soup is too thick. To serve, place a couple of ladles of the soup in a bowl and add a swirl of extra virgin olive oil. Add a few croutons on top of the soup, if desired.
Roman Style Braised Chicken with Roasted Peppers
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 four pound chicken cut into 8 pieces, breasts halved – or an equivalent number of cut up chicken parts, skin on.
4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
½ teaspoon crushed red pepper
1 cup dry white wine
2 ½ pounds tomatoes, peeled, and coarsely chopped
1 each red, yellow and green bell pepper
Salt and Pepper
Bread for serving
In large casserole heat olive oil until shimmering. Add half the chicken to the casserole and season with salt and pepper. Cook over moderately high heat, stirring occasionally until evenly browned – about 6 minutes. Transfer chicken to platter and repeat process with remaining chicken.
Add the garlic and the crushed red pepper to the casserole and cook over moderate heat until garlic is golden – about 1 minute. Add the wine and boil over high heat until reduced to ¼ cup – about 3 minutes. Add tomatoes along with chicken and accumulated juices to casserole, cover and braise chicken over low heat until breast is cooked through – about 25 minutes. Remove breasts to warmed platter and continue cooking until other parts cooked through – about 15 minutes longer (this is less of an issue if using precut parts).
Meanwhile roast the peppers and remove skin, core and seeds, and cut into 1inch strips
After removing chicken, boil sauce at high heat until reduced by 1/3 – about 10 minutes. Return chicken to casserole, add peppers and bring to a simmer over moderate heat. Season with salt and pepper and serve with bread.
Cheese with Honey and toasted pine nuts
Small wedge of fresh creamy goat cheese
Small wedge of cow’s milk cheese (Cow Girl’s Creamery Red Hawk)
8-10 teaspoons Honey of choice (wildflower) – needs to be fluid
3-4 tablespoons of pine nuts
Toast pine nuts in pan over low to medium heat until just starting to color gold and put aside
Plate cheeses, and put about 2 teaspoons honey over each piece of cheese. The amount of honey depends on how strong the flavors are. Add pine nuts on top. If honey has crystallized, heat briefly in microwave to make it a smooth liquid.