Something Italian...ish

I'm really bad at keeping up with things. This blog is an obvious example. Lame, I know. So to apologize to any regular readers or checker-uppers on my blog, I give you: ....something Italian. I don't know what the heck to call it. I'll have to think about it and come back to edit the title later when I have been given Divine Foodie Inspiration.

Anywaaaaaaay...this is what happens when the fridge contents get low, I didn't get to Market this weekend, and I celebrated last night by doing a jig because I found an extra pack of 2 chicken legs and thighs in the freezer, hiding very sneakily under a rather large ice pack from the chiropractor. Sigh.

On a side note, I had an interesting "debate" (well, a 50-some comment-long debate on a link post a friend put up on her facebook page) this weekend about organic vs. nonorganic foods and whether organic is nutritionally superior to conventionally grown items. This got me brainstorming of other "food musings" that I need to blog about...as my blog subtitle so boldly proclaims, yet I have done none...more sighing. So check back for more posts, interspersed between other recipe posts, regarding my thoughts on foodie things and different brands that I enjoy and why.

Okay, back to recipe. By now you know I blabber on.

Ingredients:

2 chicken legs and thighs, cooked off and torn apart into small pieces (do whatever you like - poach/boil or bake off - whatever is easier for you. I baked.)
1/2 box of spaghetti or other long pasta that you prefer
3 small tomatoes, finely chopped (eh I keep the seeds in. No biggie.)
2 smallish zucchini, in thin ribbons (use a veggie peeler to go down the length of it so you get long, thin slices. Stack them and cut in half lengthwise.)
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 shallot, minced (sweet onion will work okay too, just use a walnut-sized wedge and mince)
olive oil and butter to saute (eh...1 tblsp of butter and I guess 3 times around pan with the EVOO - gotta have enough, you're lubing a half box of pasta.)
salt
fresh-ground pepper
Italian seasoning (use liberally. whatever strikes your fancy. at least 1 tsp.)
1/2-1 cup of grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese (again, however cheesy you like it)
splash or 2 of heavy cream (optional - I like it though, makes a cohesive sauce)
2 heaping tblsp. of tomato paste
ladle full of pasta water

If you have any fresh herbs, like oregano, basil, or marjoram, feel free to substitute for the dried; you'll need to use more fresh than you would dried. Also, since you're using pasta water in the pan sauce, time the start of your saute with cooking the pasta; they will be done around the same time.

Directions: Make sure you use a large, deep saute pan. ***

Cook pasta according to box directions. While pasta is cooking, add oil and butter to saute pan on medium heat. When pan is coated, add shallot, garlic, herbs, chicken, zucchini and tomato, and saute for about 5-6 minutes, or until tender (do not brown anything). Stir in a ladle-full of pasta water and the tomato paste, salt and pepper to taste, and if desired the cream. Add pasta straight from the boiling water (shake off some of the water) and parm cheese, and toss to heat and coat for another 1-2 minutes to incorporate everything and distribute throughout the dish. Serve immediately, in a big pasta bowl, and if desired sprinkle the top with some more cheese. Voila! Enjoy.

Spaghetti & Meatballs

You're getting a 2-for-1 on this post :)

I get the hankering for spaghetti and meatballs sometimes and not for the jarred crap - I must make my own. The last vestiges of winter have fallen away to spring, but my tummy is barely holding onto a losing battle to the liter fare that comes with lighter weather, and so I indulged it. Custer's last stand, if you will. If there was such a thing as past lives, I would have been a humble tomato. I am like a crack whore trying to get her next fix when it comes to all things tomato (especially when they're ripe in summer); a complete tomato addict. Making your own sauce and meatballs is a bit laborious and so I try to fit it in once or twice in the spring before summer comes and my kitchen becomes unbearable with the heat from the stove and oven. It's not something you want to do in small quantities, so stick with the amounts I give below to make it worth your time and effort. This is one of those "the way to your man's heart is through his stomach" recipes, I kid you not. My husband practically moans while eating this.

Meatballs

Ingredients:

3 lb of ground meats (I use 2 of pork and 1 of beef, but feel free to use whatever combination you desire)
1/2 of a 4-oz. can of tomato paste
1/2 jar of sun-dried tomato pesto (substitute 1/3 c. or so of regular sun-dried tomatoes in olive oil that you have whizzed in the food processor)
3 large eggs, slightly beaten
3-4 tblsp. Italian seasoning
1-2 tblsp. red pepper flakes (optional)
1 cup + of homemade bread crumbs*
palmful of salt


*breadcrumbs - I get bags of homemade seasoned croutons at the local Italian bakery that they make from leftover bread that didn't sell, and then I pop them in my food processor and freeze the crumbs. I don't ever touch store-bought cans of "breadcrumbs" because the ingredient list is a paragraph long and contains soy products, which I avoid like the plague if I can help it.

Mix up your meat well if you're using more than one kind, but don't over-mix or it will get tough. Combine the tomato products, eggs, and seasonings in one bowl and pour over the meat mixture, working thoroughly into the meat. Add the breadcrumbs, starting with 1 cup. If your mixture still seems too wet, add another 1/4 cup or so until the mix feels stiffer but not too dry. Roll meatballs just slightly smaller than a 50-cent piece and place on lightly oiled cookie sheets (I use half sheet jelly roll pans with the lip so they don't roll off). I can usually get about 85 meatballs out of this recipe.

Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for about 35-40 minutes per tray of meatballs.

Spaghetti Sauce

Can I say how much I love my own sauce? This may sound weird, but I could drink it...

Ingredients:

4 28-oz. cans of Muir Glen fire-roasted ground tomatoes (or whatever brand crushed)
1 28-oz. can of Muir Glen chunky tomato sauce (it's plain)
1 4-oz. can of Muir Glen tomato paste + the leftover half can used for meatballs
Remainder of jar of sun-dried tomato pesto (or 1/4 or 1/3 c. processed s.d. tomatoes)
5 large peeled carrots, trimmed, roughly chopped
1/2 lg Spanish onion, roughly chopped
5 garlic cloves, peeled
2 1/4 in.-thick slices of pancetta*
2 palmfuls of freshly ground fennel seed (use a mortar and pestle)
3 palmfuls of Italian seasoning
1 cup whole milk
half stick (4 oz.) butter
2 tblsp. olive oil
sugar to taste
salt to taste
red pepper flakes (optional)

Finely dice the pancetta and render in 8 qt. stockpot with the olive oil. Process chopped carrots and garlic to a pulp, and add to pot once pancetta fat has rendered, stirring to coat with fat and oil. Add chopped onion and stir again, cooking for a few minutes until translucent. Add tomato paste, sun-dried tomato pesto, Italian seasoning, fennel, and pepper flakes if desired. Stir well to incorporate and cook for another 2 minutes. Add all crushed/ground tomatoes and plain tomato sauce to pot and stir well. Use an immersion (hand-held stick) blender to puree everything in the pot. Add butter and milk, stir. Add salt and sugar to taste, stir well. Cover pot and let simmer for at least an hour (you can simmer longer if you add some meatballs to further flavor it).

With the sugar, I like my sauce slightly on the sweet side (thanks Grandma). It takes away a lot of the acidity and "canned" taste of tomatoes...and I just think it tastes better. I usually will stick my hand in my big sugar container, grab a handful or two, and throw it in the pot and stir. I check again in a little bit to see if I need to add more (sometimes I do, just depends on the tomatoes). Once I have it sweet enough but it tastes like it might be just missing something, I add the salt to taste to finish it off (start out with a teaspoon). You can add anything else you might want, or more of the seasonings above (sometimes I do add a little more).

*If you don't have pancetta, don't worry about it; you can simply omit, but sub in an extra 2 tblsp. of EVOO.

Serve over spaghetti or buccatini (large spaghetti that are hollow), and top with good grated parmegiano-reggiano cheese. The leftover meatballs can be stored in air-tight containers in the freezer, and the leftover sauce in quart containers in the freezer.

Enjoy!