Cooking and Recipes IV, Hosted by Oiseau

Say green in Italian
Aug. 23, 2006. 06:18 AM
AMY PATAKI
DINING IN

"Grill guy, your salsa verde is breaking up. You've got too much oil in it, and the plate is too hot. Replate."

Mario Batali in Heat, by Bill Buford

Long before Torontonians were turned on to salsa and chips, there was another kind of salsa: the Italian kind.

Unlike its fiery Mexican cousins, salsa verde ("green sauce" in Italian) is a rare and subtle emulsion of fresh herbs, olive oil and aromatics. So rare, in fact, that its recent appearance at Toronto restaurant Gooderham House left the waiter unsure of how to describe it.

"Hmmm. Salsa verde is just a fancier way of saying it's the same salsa you get with Mexican food, but greener," he said.

Wrong. It certainly is green, thanks to copious amounts of parsley, but is similar to Latin food only in name. Salsa verde gets its depth from such oh-so Italian ingredients as pungent anchovies and briny capers, the whole brightened with lemon juice or vinegar and bound by good quality extra-virgin olive oil. When finished — it takes just five minutes in a blender or food processor — the sauce is excellent with boiled meat (a Piedmontese habit) or grilled fish.

Don't make salsa verde unless your herbs are fresh. Those with overflowing gardens will appreciate the variation below, in which two zucchini substitute for some of the herbs. The result is both lively and silky, perfect for tossing with spaghetti or serving with grilled shrimp.

Zucchini Salsa Verde

Sauce will keep, covered, in fridge about 1 week.

2 small zucchini (about 12 oz/350 g)

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

Salt to taste + 1/4 tsp

1/3 cup each: tightly packed mint, tightly packed Italian parsley

1/2 tsp lemon zest

2 tsp lemon juice

1 tbsp capers, drained

1 clove garlic, chopped

1 anchovy fillet or 1/2 tsp anchovy paste

1/4 tsp dijon mustard

1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper

Light grill or preheat broiler to high. Cut zucchini lengthwise into 1/4-inch thick slices. Brush with 1 tablespoon oil and sprinkle with salt to taste. Grill or broil zucchini until soft and lightly browned, about 7 minutes, turning halfway. Cool briefly. Cut slices crosswise into 1/2-inch pieces.

Transfer zucchini to food processor. Add mint, parsley, lemon zest and juice, capers, garlic, anchovy, dijon, pepper and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Pulse to chop 6 times. With machine running, add remaining oil in thin stream until sauce is smooth.

Serve at room temperature.

Makes 6 servings.

Well Zoe, I sure hope you informed your friend, potatoes don't ripen after they are taken out of the soil. Unfortunately many grocery stores try to pass these inferior spuds onto the unknowing customer.

You know I think you have a great idea with this book, however I have sort of been working along the same lines in regards to making a cooking book for my grands, who all live out of state, and I don't get to see often. So much I want to pass down, that I got from my Grandma and Mom. That is a treasure worth passing on.

If you enjoy cooking, you never stop picking up new ideas and implementing them into your cooking style. I love the TV food network, a gold mine for new ideas and new recipes.

I am old enough to be here-lol-but all are welcome- and I still will call up my Mom and ask her about a certain dish. So I guess my best advice to a novice cook, is to stay close with family always, and then they are tickled when you call with a question about a dish of theirs, that you just loved.

A good cook is more inclined to share when complimented! Eke all you can from those more knowledgeable. It's a win-win situation.

A good pantry stocked with the basics helps a novice cook too. Like I told our youngest daughter when she recently moved away, always keep eggs, milk, butter, flour,potatoes, and bread on hand.

I made sure she knows how to fry eggs, scramble eggs, so she'll never starve, she can always make eggs and toast. Mashed potatoes, potato pancakes, plain old fried potatoes. You can go to go McDonald's one time or eat for a week on two dozen eggs, butter and a loaf of bread!

Have a jar of mayo and a container of mustard, well then there is egg salad, deviled eggs, potato salad. Stretching the food budget, comes with time. You can buy any ready made food your stomach desires nowadays with enough money in your pocket.

But the food you desire with your heart, well ask Nanny, Grandma, Aunt Sadie, before she forgets the recipe.

Morning All! Thanks to Patsyvee for sending this great recipe to me.

CHICKEN BREAST RECIPE

I saw this picture for a lemon breast chicken that looked really good. I thought I would share it with others who are forced into the kitchen several times a week. Anyway, here it is:
Ingredients 1 whole chicken (weight is dependent on how many servings are required)
1 large lemon, cut into halves
sprig of rosemary
salt and pepper to taste
butter or olive oil, whichever you prefer

Heat oven to 350 degrees

Rub butter or oil over the skin of the chicken until it is completely coated. Take a knife and gently separate the skin from the breast meat; slide lemon halves under the skin with the peel side up. This way the juice from the lemon will coat the breast.
Season skin of chicken to your preference; place sprig of rosemary into the chicken.
Cover and place in oven for 30-45 minutes. Remove cover and continue to roast until juices run clear, basting every 15-20 minutes, depending on size of the bird.

If you've followed these steps correctly, your chicken should look like the one in the picture. Bon Appetit!

Hope you are going somewhere special this evening to celebrate or better yet having friends and family over- with them bringing the food and drinks. Forget the "Shireley Temples" tonight, enjoy some good wine with dinner! Happy Happy Birthday!

NON alcoholic Summer drinks

I had one the other day in a Thai restaurant with thin strips of beef over warm lettuce. It had cashews and noodles and all kinds of goodies. Yum