Pasta, Rice, Grains, and Dried Beans
I well remember, when I was in my early years, a fascinating Italian restaurant we discovered in the lower downtown streets of Portland, which catered to a rather large portion of the Italian population of the city. It was not a fancy place; there was oilcloth on the tables; you just went in for dinner, sat down, and started, perhaps, with some fresh vegetables or something else that would take the place of an antipasto. Then would be served the most enormous platter—for four or five people—of freshly cooked pasta that was riddled with good fresh tomatoes in season or perhaps with a mixture of herbs or perhaps in winter with a meat sauce that was worthy of a good home cook. That and some really good Italian bread and a salad all came to fifty cents, and we used, to rush back there as often as possible to revel in the comfort that only good pasta can give. But now, pasta has grown up and is exceedingly chic. Homemade pasta, fresh pasta made and sold in shops, the many intriguing shapes of dry pasta—all are appearing with increasing frequency on American tables, and today people go out of their way to find good Italian restaurants. It’s rather a joyous thing to see the appreciation of something as warming as good pasta can be. Pasta can be served in so many, many ways—it can be served with a sauce containing brains, it can be served with butter and cheese, it can be sauced with fish and shellfish, it can be tossed with herbs or merely with garlic and oil heated together (but never burned!), and it can be served as hot pasta with a cold sauce. Here I’ve tried to give you quite a variety of recipes that I myself have found (sometimes with the help of my classes) to be the most rewarding. There’s a delicious and unusual one with sardines, fennel, and cream; there’s a pasta with pesto; and there’s a number of preparations that are away from the norm, such as one served with eggs mollet—eggs cooked between the soft and hard stage—that you crush on fresh-cooked pasta, and then add some cheese. I really love pasta, and when I have it, I consider it a main course, so I have gauged the amounts these recipes serve accordingly—½ pound of pasta for 2 people and 1 cup of sauce. If you serve pasta as a first course, you won’t need such generous amounts.
While pasta popularity soars these days, it seems to me that grains are still a bit neglected. I see more and more delicious rice dishes around, like pilafs and risottos and sometimes Oriental fried rice. But it’s only lately that people have begun to take an interest in polenta and couscous and kasha. Barley, especially, which used to turn up only in soup, has a different bite from the other grains, and lends itself to wonderful casserole dishes, with almonds or mushrooms, for instance, that I have always liked to serve with meat or fish. Cornmeal, and its Italian and Rumanian cousins, polenta and mamaliga, have a hearty consistency that lends itself to molding, slicing, and saucing, or to forming in little cakes to be crisped and browned in butter—lovely with grilled chicken—and the flavor is a natural for plenty of butter and cream and cheese. Buckwheat, or kasha, we’ve always known as a flour for pancakes and muffins; but the cracked grains have a fine rich color and a nutty flavor that takes well to mushrooms or to cheese or to whatever sauce accompanies your meat.
Somehow I always think of the wide world of dried beans along with grains, yet beans have a somewhat more velvety quality—perhaps due to their higher protein content. I delight in all kinds of beans and often lunch on sautéed lentils with onions and parsley, perhaps with a bit of thyme or another herb, and then just a salad. We can cook beans in far more ways than just baking them Boston-style with molasses. Giant limas, for instance, make an untraditional but excellent cassoulet; white kidney beans are good in a salad as well as in hot dishes—I like them with cognac perfuming their full flavor. Black beans aren’t just for soup; they make a first-rate casserole, which you serve piping hot with very cold sour cream, along with sausages or a steak. Chickpeas are becoming a standard item at do-it-yourself salad bars, but I don’t like their leathery skins. Instead I purée them (as I do many other beans), give them a whiff of Madeira, and serve them as a smooth, savory dish that intrigues guests. There is something both earthy and exotic about the various bean flavors, and they’re so nourishing and satisfying that people seem to be turning toward them, more and more, as important in menu planning, often for the most substantial part of a good meal.
All along I’ve intended this chapter as my contribution to what I see as a sensible and promising change in our cooking and eating patterns. I love meat and poultry and fish, but their former place as centerpieces ought to be shared by the delicious, economical, healthy dishes I’m giving you here; and this broadening of our culinary minds seems to me the coming thing.
PASTA, RICE, GRAINS, AND DRIED BEANS
Homemade pasta
hand method
food-processor method
spinach pasta
tomato pasta
rich egg pasta
rolling and cutting pasta
cooking homemade pasta
Cooking commercial dry pastas
Curried beef and tomato sauce
Virginia ham, spinach, and rosemary sauce
Braised onion sauce
Sardine and fennel sauce
Raisin and pine nut sauce
with anchovies
with dry figs
Pesto
with walnuts
with parsley
Diet pesto
Light tomato sauce
Mussel and tomato sauce
clam and tomato sauce
Ham and tomato sauce
with beef or veal
with chicken or turkey
with brains
Fresh tomato and duxelles sauce
Brain sauce
with meat
with lasagne
Prosciutto, peas, and cream sauce
Pasta with eggs mollet
Pasta with spinach and mushrooms
with Parmesan cheese
Pasta with beans
Pasta asciutta rustica
Spätzle
with heavy cream
Rice with cheese
green rice
with herbs
with nuts
saffron-flavored rice
Rice with onions and pine nuts
Oriental fried rice
Rice pilaf
with nuts and raisins
with peas
with green chilies
Risotto
alla milanese
with white truffles
with shellfish
with raw shrimp
with chicken
with asparagus
with green beans or peas
with cherry tomatoes
Paella
Basic wild rice
with green onions and pine nuts
with duck or goose fat and mushrooms
with ham
with walnuts
with bacon and onion
with duxelles
Barley and mushroom casserole
with almonds
with celery and water chestnuts
with chicken gizzards
Kasha
with mushrooms
with sautéed giblets
Sautéed hominy with cream
Hominy casserole
Couscous
sauce piquante
Cornmeal
Polenta with sausages
with fontina cheese
with spinach
with salt cod
polenta cakes
Cornmeal gnocchi
Cornmeal soufflé
with Parmesan cheese
with whole-kernel corn
Corn-chili soufflé
White beans with cognac
with ham and sausage
White bean purée
puréed cannellini with Madeira
Cassoulet
Cassoulet with limas
with cooked lamb
with roasted duck legs
with cooked pork and lamb
Cassoulet with codfish
Kidney beans with sausages
with cheese and bacon
Nevada chili beans
cowpuncher beans
Chickpea purée
with Madeira
Lentils
Buttered lentils
sautéed
herbed
puréed
Braised lentils with lamb
Pasta
If I could afford the calories, I’m sure I could eat pasta three times a day. Give me a plate of fettuccine with nothing more than sweet butter, grated Parmesan cheese, and a grind of black pepper, or a little olive oil and garlic, and I’m happy. I happen not to be a great lover of baked pasta dishes. I’ll leave lasagne to those who like it. To me it is an overcooked and messy dish.
After years of making pasta by arduous hand rolling or with a hand-cranked pasta machine, my life was completely revolutionized by the advent of the electric pasta machine, a joy and a boon to anyone who loves pasta as I do, because it makes the whole process a breeze and is fun to operate. I make the dough in the food processor, then roll and cut it with the pasta machine, and I can have fresh, tender pasta on the table in a miraculous thirty minutes.
I also find it great fun to make colored pasta, using spinach, tomato paste, and egg yolks, and then mix the cooked pastas in different color combinations.
Homemade Pasta
Makes 2 servings
1½ cups all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon salt
2 whole eggs
1 tablespoon olive oil (for food processor method)
HAND METHOD: Put the flour on a wooden board or counter top, add the salt, make a well in the center, and break the eggs into it. Do not add any oil. With a fork work the flour into the eggs until well amalgamated, then knead by hand until you have a smooth ball of dough.
Follow the procedure given below for the food processor method for dividing, flattening, and shaping.
FOOD PROCESSOR METHOD: Put the metal chopping blade in place in the food processor beaker. Add the flour, salt, and oil to the beaker and process for 8 to 10 seconds. Add the eggs and process about 15 seconds, or until the dough is pliable but not damp or sticky. If it seems too sticky, sprinkle with 1 or 2 tablespoons flour and process for an additional 6 to 8 seconds. If it feels too dry, sprinkle with a few drops of water and process to blend well.
Turn out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead with the heel of your hand for 3 to 5 minutes until it forms a smooth, compact ball of dough. Divide the dough into two equal pieces and cover one with a dish towel to keep it soft and pliable until needed. Flatten and shape the second piece of dough into a compact disk, ready for rolling, see below.
Spinach Pasta, Using Processor. To the flour, salt, and olive oil in the beaker add ½ pound fresh spinach, blanched 2 minutes, drained, and squeezed dry. Process about 2 minutes, until well blended. Add 1 whole egg and process an additional 8 to 10 seconds, until desired texture is reached.
Spinach Pasta, Hand Method. Follow directions for basic pasta starting with 1 cup of flour. Add ½ pound fresh spinach, wilted, squeezed dry, and finely chopped. Work more flour in as needed until you have a smooth ball of dough.
Tomato Pasta, Using Processor. To the flour, salt, and olive oil in the beaker add 2 tablespoons tomato paste. Process 8 to 10 seconds. Then add enough beaten whole egg (about 1½ eggs) to bind the dough, and process until desired texture is reached.
Rich Egg Pasta, Using Processor. This recipe from my good friend Jim Nassikas, director of the Stanford Court Hotel in San Francisco, makes a very tender pasta with a deep yellow color. Process the flour, salt, and oil for 8 to 10 seconds, as before. Then add 6 egg yolks and process about 15 seconds, or until dough is of desired consistency. If it seems too sticky, sprinkle with 1 or 2 tablespoons flour and process for an additional 6 to 8 seconds.
Rolling and Cutting Pasta
Start running the flattened piece of dough through the kneading rollers, set at number 6. Do this about half a dozen times, each time folding over the strip that emerges before putting it through again, so it gets a thorough kneading. As the strip gets longer and thinner, fold it over two or three times and keep on rolling until it looks and feels silky and supple.
Now lower the gauge for each successive rolling, from 6 to 5, 4, 3, and finally 2 or 1, until you achieve the thinness you like. The final setting will give the dough an almost translucent paper thinness. I usually like 2 as the last setting for my pasta. The thinner the pasta, the tenderer it will be. You will find that as the pasta gets thinner and thinner it gets longer and longer, so you will have to cut it in half when it gets too long to put through the machine easily. When you have finished rolling, keep the pasta strips moist on a damp towel while you change over to the cutting rollers. There are two. One cuts the pasta into fettuccine ¼ inch wide, the other cuts it ⅛ inch wide for very fine fettuccine. Use the thickness you prefer, according to the sauce you are going to use. I find the wider size better for heavier sauces, the thinner for very light ones.
As you feed the pasta strip into the cutting roller, put your hand on the other side to catch the long strings and toss them lightly with flour so they won’t stick together. Either cook the pasta right away or, after flouring, drape the strings over a broom handle supported between two chair backs, or lay them flat on a lightly floured board and leave to dry for 5 minutes.
Cooking Homemade Pasta
If you are going to cook the pasta without drying, the water should be boiling before you start cutting the dough. Put 4 quarts water in an 8-quart pot, season with 3 tablespoons coarse salt, cover the pot, and bring the water to a rapid, rolling boil. Uncover, drop in the pasta, cover until the water returns to a rolling boil, then remove the cover and cook the pasta until it is firm to the bite (al dente). Start testing by removing a strand and tasting after 10 seconds. The cooking time depends on whether the pasta is fresh or dried, but it will be less than 2 minutes. Never overcook pasta. The minute it is done, drain it in a colander, and either return it to the pan and toss it with the hot sauce of your choice or put it on serving plates, add the sauce, and toss. For a selection of sauces, see pages 279–285.
Sauces for Pasta
Any of the following sauces can be used with homemade or commercial pasta and will be sufficient for 4 servings, or 1 pound uncooked dry pasta, unless otherwise noted.
Cooking Commercial Dry Pastas
For commercial pasta, follow the cooking method given above, but start testing after the pasta has boiled for 6 minutes. According to the brand, type, and thickness, commercial dry pastas will need different cooking times, and you can only tell when the pasta is done to your liking by testing and tasting. Do not overcook. Pasta should always be served al dente. I like to toss pasta and sauce with two forks. I find the strands stay separate and are more evenly coated.
Curried Beef and Tomato Sauce
I’m not usually fond of tomato sauce on pasta, but this is an exception. With the ground beef and spicy flavors, the sauce should be thick.
Makes 4 servings
¼ pound (1 stick) unsalted butter
3½ cups (1-pound 12-ounce can) tomato purée
3½ cups (1-pound 12-ounce can) whole-pack tomatoes
1 large yellow onion, peeled and roughly sliced
2 whole dried hot red peppers
1 whole garlic clove, peeled
2½ tablespoons curry powder
1 tablespoon turmeric
2 tablespoons peanut oil
1 pound lean ground beef
Melt the butter in a deep, heavy saucepan. Add the tomato purée, whole tomatoes, sliced onion, red peppers, garlic, curry powder, and turmeric. Simmer uncovered for about 1 hour, stirring occasionally. Remove the peppers.
Heat the oil until hot in a large, heavy skillet. Add the ground beef and sauté over medium-high heat until the meat loses its raw color and is lightly browned. Then stir the meat into the hot tomato sauce and remove from the heat.
Cook and drain 12 ounces spinach pasta (see page 277) or other pasta of your choice. Return to the hot cooking pot, add the sauce, and toss with 2 forks. Serve at once.
Virginia Ham, Spinach, and Rosemary Sauce
Makes 4 servings
½ pound Virginia ham, cut into 1½-inch cubes
½ pound fresh spinach, blanched and squeezed dry
2 tablespoons fresh rosemary
¼ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
¼ cup chicken stock, as needed
Put the cubed ham, wilted spinach, rosemary, nutmeg, and mustard into the work bowl of a food processor, with the metal blade in place. Process for about 30 seconds, turning the processor on and off, until the mixture is coarsely chopped. Scrape down the bowl with a rubber spatula and continue to process the mixture into a thick, smooth paste. With the motor running, add chicken stock through the feed tube until the mixture becomes a thick sauce. (This may be made in a blender, if you don’t have a food processor.)
Put drained cooked tomato pasta or plain pasta (see page 276) into a heated serving bowl, top with the sauce, and toss with 2 forks. Serve at once.
Braised Onion Sauce
Makes 4 servings
½ cup butter
1½ pounds yellow onions, peeled and sliced ⅜ inch thick
1 tablespoon sugar
¼ cup Madeira
Parmesan cheese
Melt the butter in a skillet, add the onion, and cook, covered, over medium heat until soft and transparent. Uncover, stir in the sugar, reduce the heat, and cook gently until brown, about 1 hour. Stir in the Madeira and cook 2 minutes.
Toss the sauce with drained cooked pasta, preferably tomato pasta (see page 277), spaghetti, or macaroni. Serve at once with grated Parmesan cheese.
Sardine and Fennel Sauce
Makes 4 servings
1 tablespoon butter
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 garlic cloves, chopped
2 heads of fennel, cut into julienne strips
Salt, freshly ground black pepper
¼ cup chopped fennel tops
½ cup chopped Italian parsley
2 cans large French sardines, packed in oil, coarsely chopped
Heat the butter and oil in a sauté pan. Add the garlic and fennel strips and sauté until lightly brown. Cover. Simmer for 3 to 4 minutes. Remove cover and add salt, pepper, fennel tops, and parsley. Toss well. Add the chopped sardines and heat through.
Makes 4 servings
4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
¾ cup olive oil
½ cup pine nuts
½ cup raisins
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
⅓ cup chopped Italian parsley
Heat the garlic in the olive oil over low heat. When warm, pour the oil over cooked, drained pasta, add the pine nuts and raisins, and toss well. Add pepper to taste and sprinkle with the parsley. Toss again and serve at once.
Raisin and Pine Nut Sauce with Anchovies. Add 10 finely chopped anchovy fillets to the pasta and proceed as above.
Raisin and Pine Nut Sauce with Dry Figs. Instead of anchovies add coarsely chopped dry figs to the pasta and proceed as above.
Pesto
A sensational and highly popular pasta sauce that requires quantities of fresh basil. Make it in summer when this great herb flourishes and huge bunches can be bought for next to nothing in Italian markets. Pesto will keep well in the refrigerator in an airtight container if you pour about ½ inch of olive oil on top as a seal. It can also be frozen in meal-size batches, about ½ cup for each pound of pasta. You don’t have to confine pesto to pasta, either. Stir it into a risotto (see page 291) or cooked rice; use it on gnocchi, potatoes, sautéed shrimp; in tomato sauce, minestrone, a vinaigrette for tomatoes; or mix it into shredded sautéed zucchini. It is one of the most blissful ways to use basil ever invented. Originally pesto was made the hard way, in a mortar and pestle, but I find a food processor or blender (the latter gives a finer consistency) ideal instruments.
Makes 4 servings
4 cups fresh basil leaves
3 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
½ cup pine nuts
½ cup Italian parsley
½ to 1 cup olive oil
1 teaspoon salt
½ cup grated Pecorino or Parmesan cheese (or a mixture of the two)
Put the basil, garlic, pine nuts, parsley, ½ cup oil, and salt in a blender or food processor, and process or blend the mixture, adding more oil if necessary, to make a smooth paste. Then add the cheese and process or blend again. (If you are going to freeze the pesto, don’t add the nuts or cheese; they should be blended with the pesto just before you use it.) Allow ½ cup pesto for 4 servings of pasta—1 pound. Dilute it with about 2 tablespoons of the hot water in which the pasta was cooked before tossing with the cooked pasta.
Pesto with Walnuts. Use ½ cup walnuts instead of the pine nuts. Omit the cheese.
Pesto with Parsley. When fresh basil is unavailable, use 3 cups Italian parsley with the garlic, nuts, cheese, and oil. Mix as before.
NOTE: To keep basil, gather the leaves in season, process with just enough oil to make an unctuous paste, then freeze it to add to a dressing for tomatoes, pasta sauces, or any dish where you crave the flavor of fresh basil.
Diet Pesto
This is a version of pesto that I worked out when I was put on a low-calorie, salt-free diet and therefore always experimenting with ways to make more palatable dishes. While it is not the normal mixture of basil, parsley, pine nuts, garlic, oil, salt, and cheese, it was most satisfying to the palate, proving that if the seasonings are right, you don’t miss the salt.
Makes 2 servings
2 cups fresh basil leaves
4 large garlic cloves, coarsely chopped
1 tablespoon lemon juice
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
3 tablespoons unsalted margarine
Put the basil, garlic, lemon juice, and pepper in a food processor or blender, and process or blend until the leaves are quite finely chopped, then add the margarine and blend to a smooth paste. Allow ½ cup diet pesto for 4 servings of pasta.
Light Tomato Sauce
For pasta, I like a very simple, fresh-tasting tomato sauce that is cooked very quickly, rather than a heavy sauce that smothers the texture and taste of delicate pasta. This tomato sauce can be used alone, just with grated cheese, or in any of the following recipes.
Makes 4 servings
28-ounce can whole Redpack tomatoes in thick purée
2 small onions, sliced
Salt, freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 teaspoon dried basil (optional)
4 tablespoons butter
Cook the tomatoes, onions, and seasonings over medium-high heat for 20 minutes, stirring frequently and breaking up the tomatoes, until liquid is reduced. Stir in the butter. Strain. Or purée the sauce in a food processor or blender, in which case you will have 3 cups of sauce. Ladle on top of each serving of pasta.
Mussel and Tomato Sauce
Makes 4 servings
1½ cups finely chopped steamed mussels
2 garlic cloves, chopped fine
1½ cups light tomato sauce (see preceding recipe)
3 tablespoons chopped Italian parsley
2 tablespoons olive oil
Combine the mussels, garlic, tomato sauce, and parsley, and heat through. Save ¼ cup cooking water from the cooked pasta. Put the pasta in a skillet with the oil, the mussel sauce, and 3 or 4 tablespoons of the cooking water. Stir gently with 2 forks over medium heat for 4 minutes, until well blended.
Clam and Tomato Sauce. Substitute chopped steamed clams or chopped canned clams for the mussels.
Ham and Tomato Sauce
Makes about 4 to 5 servings
1 cup ground cooked country ham
1½ cups light tomato sauce (see page 282)
¼ cup grated Romano cheese
Combine the ham and tomato sauce and heat through. Add cooked pasta and toss. Add cheese and cook over very low heat for 2 minutes. Serve with additional grated cheese.
Beef (or Veal) and Tomato Sauce. Substitute cooked ground beef (or veal) for the ham.
Chicken (or Turkey) and Tomato Sauce. Substitute cooked ground chicken (or turkey) for the ham.
Brains and Tomato Sauce. Blanch and clean 1 pair brains (see directions on page 449). Purée brains in a food processor, blender, or food mill. Combine with 2 cups light tomato sauce (see page 282) and heat through. Add cooked pasta, toss, and cook in sauce for 1 minute. Serve with grated Parmesan cheese.
Fresh Tomato and Duxelles Sauce
Makes 4 servings
2½ pounds fresh ripe tomatoes, peeled, seeded, and coarsely chopped
4 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons duxelles (see page 535)
1 cup coarsely cut green onions, with tops included
Sauté the tomatoes quickly in the butter until just heated through. Stir in the duxelles and cook 1 minute. Spoon the sauce over cooked pasta, preferably fettuccine or rich egg pasta. Toss. Sprinkle with the green onions. Serve with grated Parmesan cheese.
Brain Sauce
The puréed brains give this pasta sauce a lovely velvety texture. If you have a food processor, use it to purée the brains and grind the meat. Otherwise purée the brains by rubbing them through a sieve or whirling in a blender and put the meat through the meat grinder.
Makes 4 servings
1 pair brains, blanched and cleaned, then puréed
2 cups tomato sauce (see page 534)
Salt, freshly ground black pepper
1 pound freshly cooked pasta
Parmesan cheese
After blanching and cleaning the brains according to directions on page 449, purée them, either by putting them in a food processor or blender or by putting through a food mill. Combine with the tomato sauce and heat through in a large pan, adjust seasoning, and add the drained hot pasta. Cook the pasta with the sauce for about 1 minute before serving with a bowl of grated Parmesan cheese.
With Meat. Add ¾ cup ground cold meat to the sauce. This may be veal, beef, chicken, or turkey.
Lasagne with Brain Sauce. Use 1 pound cooked lasagne and spread brain sauce between layers. Top with mozzarella.
Prosciutto, Peas, and Cream Sauce
Makes 4 to 5 servings
1¼ cups heavy cream
½ pound prosciutto, thinly sliced and cut in 1-inch strips
1 cup frozen peas, thawed in boiling water
2 egg yolks, lightly beaten
Grated Gruyère cheese
Cook the cream over low heat in a flameproof serving dish or shallow enameled cast-iron gratin pan until slightly reduced. Add the prosciutto and peas. Stir until mixture is warm and cream thickened. Turn heat to low, add 12 ounces freshly cooked fettuccine or similar pasta and toss. Add egg yolks and toss until pasta is coated with the sauce. Serve with grated Gruyère cheese.
Pasta with Eggs Mollet
For this you need the very fine fettuccine, ⅛ inch thick. Both this and the eggs mollet should be cooked at the same time, so they are very hot.
Makes 4 servings
8 large eggs
12 ounces freshly cooked fine fettuccine
2 tablespoons butter
¾ cup grated Parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons finely chopped Italian parsley
Freshly ground black pepper
Prick the rounded ends of the eggs, bring them to a boil in water to cover, and boil for exactly 3½ minutes (the yolks must remain soft and runny, but the whites should be firm enough to be peeled). Immediately plunge eggs into cold water and peel them carefully, keeping them whole.
Toss the fettuccine with the butter and divide among 4 individual serving plates. Sprinkle each serving with 3 tablespoons grated cheese and top with 2 hot shelled eggs. Sprinkle with a little chopped parsley. Each diner should break the eggs and mix with his own pasta at table. Add freshly ground pepper to taste.
Pasta with Spinach and Mushrooms
This is an exception to my negative feeling about baked pasta dishes, perhaps because it is light and delicate and no more than heated through.
Makes 4 servings
2 pounds spinach, cooked, puréed, and mixed with butter and cream (see page 173)
1 pound mushroom caps
7 tablespoons butter
Salt, freshly ground black pepper
½ pound pasta
1 tablespoon fresh tarragon, or 2 teaspoons dried
Prepare the spinach purée and season it well. Sauté the mushrooms in 6 tablespoons of the butter and add salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste. Boil the pasta until just tender. Drain well and arrange in a well-buttered casserole. Top with the puréed spinach, dot with the remaining tablespoon of butter, and cover with the sautéed mushrooms, sprinkled with tarragon. Cover the casserole with a sheet of foil and bake in a 350° oven for 15 to 20 minutes, or until thoroughly heated through. Remove foil and let brown on top a few minutes.
Pasta with Spinach, Mushrooms, and Parmesan Cheese. Slice and sauté the mushrooms. Toss the cooked, drained noodles with 3 to 4 tablespoons olive oil, and place in the casserole. Cover with the spinach purée, sprinkle with freshly grated Parmesan cheese, top with the sautéed mushrooms, and sprinkle with buttered crumbs and additional Parmesan. Cover with foil and bake as above, then brown on top.
Pasta with Beans
Makes 8 servings
3 cloves garlic, chopped
2 large onions, finely chopped
2 medium-size carrots, finely chopped
¼ pound bacon, finely chopped
2 tablespoons dried basil leaves
1 cup parsley, chopped
1 teaspoon oregano
¼ cup olive oil
3 large tomatoes, peeled, seeded, and chopped
½ cup chicken or beef broth
1 tablespoon salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
4 cups cooked or canned cannellini beans or cooked pea beans (use 1 cup dried beans and cook according to directions on page 303)
1 pound elbow macaroni
4 tablespoons butter
Grated Parmesan cheese
Chopped parsley
Sauté the garlic, onion, carrot, bacon, basil leaves, parsley, and oregano in the olive oil in a large pot until limp. Add the tomatoes, broth, salt, and pepper. Cover the pot, and simmer the mixture slowly, stirring, for about 10 minutes, or until all the vegetables are tender. Add the cooked or canned beans, and simmer very slowly for another 20 to 30 minutes.
Cook the macaroni in plenty of boiling salted water to the al dente stage. Melt the butter, add the drained pasta, and toss lightly with ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese. Combine with the bean mixture and serve sprinkled liberally with parsley. Pass additional grated cheese.
Pasta Asciutta Rustica
This recipe is one I took from an Italian magazine some twenty years ago and have always loved for its hearty, stick-to-the-ribs quality.
Makes 6 to 8 servings
½ pound pancetta (Italian bacon), salt pork, or smoked bacon
2 pounds sweet Italian sausages
5 tablespoons olive oil
5 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 leek, cut in small dice
¼ cup chopped parsley
1 carrot, cut in thin rounds
1 turnip, diced
2 teaspoons basil
Salt, freshly ground black pepper to taste
20-ounce can Italian plum tomatoes
2 zucchini, cut in thin slices
4 tablespoons butter
12-ounce can red or white kidney beans, drained and rinsed
½ medium-size cabbage, shredded
1 pound rigatoni
½ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese (more if desired)
Cut the pancetta, salt pork, or smoked bacon into small pieces and cook in a small skillet until the fat is rendered. Remove to absorbent paper towels. Prick the sausages, put in a skillet, and cover with water. Bring to a boil. Pour off the water and either broil the sausages or cook them slowly in the skillet over medium-low heat until nicely browned. Remove to absorbent paper towels. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet. Add the chopped garlic, onion, leek, and parsley, and sauté until limp. Add the carrot, turnip, basil, and seasoning. Sauté gently for 3 to 4 minutes. Add tomatoes, zucchini, and butter, and continue to simmer. Add the sausages, kidney beans, and bacon bits, and taste for seasoning. Add the shredded cabbage. Cover and sauté gently for about 5 minutes, or until the cabbage is tender. Meanwhile, cook rigatoni in boiling salted water until tender. Drain and arrange in a flat baking dish. Pour the sauce over all. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and run under the broiler to brown lightly.
These little free-form bits of dough are a Central European form of pasta that have been in the American cooking repertoire for about two hundred years. Although they have never been as common or as popular as noodles, they are a nice change of pace as a starch to serve with pot roast or a stew, sauced with the gravy. Most cookware shops, especially those specializing in Central European foods and equipment, sell a special tool called a “spätzle sieve.” If you don’t have one of these large-meshed sieves, you can use a colander. The batter can also be spread on a plate or board, pushed to the edge, and then small pieces chopped off with a sharp wet knife and dropped into boiling salted water. Any method that works is acceptable.
Makes 6 servings
2 cups flour
1 teaspoon salt
Pinch of nutmeg
Freshly ground black pepper
2 eggs, lightly beaten
⅔ cup milk
1 to 1½ sticks butter, melted
Mix the flour, salt, nutmeg, ¼ teaspoon pepper, and eggs together, then add enough milk to make a rather stiff batter. Beat well and let the batter stand 1 hour before cooking.
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and force the batter through the spätzle sieve or colander into the water (it helps if you place wax paper on top of the batter to help push it through the colander). Boil the spätzle 6 to 8 minutes, until just tender but still firm. Drain and run hot or cold water over them. To serve, reheat in the melted butter and add a goodly amount of freshly ground black pepper.
Spätzle with Heavy Cream. Drain the spätzle and add them to about 1 cup heavy cream, reduced, and butter seasoned with a pinch of nutmeg and grated cheese to taste. Garnish with chopped parsley.
Rice
Rice has the unique ability of being able to enter into every course of a meal, from soup through dessert, although I personally am no lover of rice pudding or other rice desserts. Too many people look on rice as a substitute for potatoes, which it isn’t. It’s a bed that needs to be blanketed with flavor. I would never serve plain boiled rice with steaks, chops, or roast meats, although a good pilaf or rice sautéed with pine nuts and onion is another story. Boiled rice needs savory additions, like butter and cheese, fresh herbs, or the sauce from a stew or ragout, before it can be admitted to the company of meat. You’ll find detailed basic recipes for boiled long-grain rice and steamed converted rice in Theory & Practice, page 46.
Rice with Cheese
Makes 4 to 6 servings
1½ cups long-grain Carolina rice
4 quarts water
1 tablespoon salt
¼ cup melted butter
½ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
¼ cup grated Cheddar or Gruyère cheese (optional)
To cook the rice, bring to a rapid boil 4 quarts water seasoned with 1 tablespoon salt. Throw in the rice in small handfuls, making sure the water continues to boil. Boil rapidly for 15 minutes, uncovered, then drain. Do not overcook. The rice should be fluffy but firm to the bite. This will give you about 4½ cups cooked rice. Toss with the butter and cheeses.
Green Rice. Boil and drain the rice as above. Combine it with ¼ cup melted butter or olive oil, ½ cup finely chopped parsley, and ½ cup chopped chives or green onions (scallions).
Rice with Herbs. For the chives or onions in the Green Rice, substitute ¼ cup chopped tarragon, basil, or coriander.
Rice with Nuts. Combine the cooked rice with ½ to 1 cup toasted and coarsely chopped nuts (almonds, walnuts, filberts, or pecans) and ½ cup melted butter.
Saffron-Flavored Rice. Crush ¼ teaspoon saffron fronds in a mortar and pestle. Blend with a tablespoon of water or dry white wine, and add to the pot while the rice is cooking. Toss lightly with a fork.
Rice with Onions and Pine Nuts
This piquant Middle East version of rice is something I like to serve with roast or broiled butterflied leg of lamb or roast or broiled chicken.
½ cup olive oil
1 cup finely chopped onion
1 cup pine nuts
1 teaspoon paprika
¼ teaspoon Tabasco
4½ cups hot cooked rice
About 1 teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
¼ cup chopped parsley
3 pimientos, chopped
Heat the oil in a saucepan, add the onion, pine nuts, paprika, and Tabasco, and sauté lightly for 6 to 8 minutes, being careful not to let the onion brown. Add the hot rice and toss thoroughly with 2 forks. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Garnish with the parsley and pimiento.
Oriental Fried Rice
Makes 6 servings
2 to 4 tablespoons peanut or corn oil
4 cups cooked rice
4 tablespoons shredded green onion, or scallions
¼ cup chopped sautéed mushrooms
½ to ¾ cup shredded Virginia or country ham, or small pieces of roast pork or chicken
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 eggs
GARNISH: Shredded green onions, or scallions, slivered toasted almonds, or fresh coriander leaves
Heat the oil in a skillet, add the rice, and cook about 5 minutes, shaking the pan and tossing the rice with a fork until heated through. Add the green onion, mushrooms and meat, and toss with the fork. Combine the soy sauce and the eggs and stir into the rice, off the heat, tossing with the fork until the eggs are set. Remove to a hot serving dish and garnish with green onions, almonds or fresh coriander.
Rice Pilaf
The Middle Eastern pilaf, usually served here with kebabs or chicken, is a more flavorful version of rice, as it is first cooked in butter with onion. Vary the liquid according to the food the pilaf will accompany—chicken stock for poultry, beef stock for beef shashlik, fish stock for fish—or just use plain water. Bulghur (cracked wheat) may be cooked in the same way (see Theory & Practice, page 49).
4 tablespoons butter or olive oil, or a mixture of the two
¼ cup finely chopped onion
1 cup long-grain rice, preferably Carolina
2 cups boiling stock or water
Salt, freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons melted butter
1 tablespoon chopped parsley
Heat the butter or oil in a heavy 1½-quart casserole, preferably enameled cast iron, which retains the heat well. Add the onion and cook, stirring, until soft and translucent. Add the rice and cook over low heat, stirring, until the grains are lightly coated with oil and have lost their raw color, about 3 minutes. Add stock or water, stir, and season to taste. The amount of salt and pepper depends on the liquid you use and the seasoning in the stock. Bring to a boil, cover, and bake in a 350° oven until all the liquid is absorbed and the rice tender, about 20 to 25 minutes, or cook on top of the stove over very low heat. Remove from the heat, fluff up the rice with 2 forks, mix with melted butter, and sprinkle with parsley.
Rice Pilaf with Nuts and Raisins. Top the cooked rice with ¾ cup toasted almonds and ½ cup raisins plumped in ½ cup dry white wine. Replace the parsley with a little chopped fresh mint or coriander. Serve with roast lamb or kebabs.
Rice Pilaf with Peas. Toss 2 cups small fresh, or frozen and thawed, green peas in 3 tablespoons butter until heated through. Season to taste and toss well with the rice, using 2 forks. A little chopped fresh mint may be sprinkled on top instead of parsley. Serve with veal, chicken, or lamb.
Rice Pilaf with Green Chilies. Mix ½ cup chopped canned green chilies into the pilaf. Sprinkle with chopped fresh coriander.
Risotto
There is almost no limit to what can be done with risotto, the Italian rice dish for which you will find a more detailed recipe in Theory & Practice (pages 47–49). Vegetables add a pleasing crunchiness to the creamy rice, a spoonful or two of pesto gives a lovely flavor and color, and any kind or combination of shellfish is heaven. Or you can stir raw ingredients such as slivers of chicken breast, tiny shrimp, or cut-up shrimp, garden peas, or asparagus tips into the rice during the final cooking stage. The heat will be sufficient to cook them through. Risotto heaped with chicken livers sautéed gently in butter, seasoned, and flavored with a little Madeira or Marsala, is a great favorite with some people, but not with me; chicken livers are one of the few foods I really dislike.
Makes 4 servings
6 tablespoons butter
1 small onion, finely chopped
1½ cups short-grain Italian Arborio rice or long-grain Carolina rice
3 to 4 cups simmering homemade chicken or beef stock
½ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
Melt 2 tablespoons butter in a heavy skillet, add the onion, and sauté, stirring, until soft and golden. Add 2 more tablespoons butter and, when melted, mix in the rice, stirring until the grains are well coated. Add 1 cup hot stock, stir in well, and let it cook down over medium heat. Continue to add stock, cup by cup, letting it cook away after each addition and stirring now and then to prevent the rice from sticking to the pan. Add only as much stock as the rice can absorb. It should be creamy and tender, but still firm to the bite. Cooking time should be between 25 and 30 minutes. Stir well during the final cooking. Stir the remaining butter and cheese into the cooked rice and serve immediately.
Risotto alla Milanese. Use beef stock for the cooking liquid and add ½ teaspoon saffron, dissolved in 1 cup of the hot stock, during the last 15 minutes of cooking time. About 2 minutes before the risotto is done, mix in 4 to 5 tablespoons lightly poached beef marrow. This is the traditional accompaniment to Ossi Buchi (see page 416).
Risotto with White Truffles. Garnish the top of the cooked risotto with thin shavings of fresh white truffles. (These are in season late in the year and are madly expensive, but worth the splurge.)
Risotto with Shellfish. Cook 1 chopped garlic clove with the onion, and use fish stock (see page 530) as the cooking liquid. Heat 2 cups cooked shellfish (steamed clams or mussels, poached bay scallops, shrimp, or lobster, alone or in any combination of your choice) in 4 tablespoons butter. Season to taste and mix into the cooked risotto with 3 tablespoons chopped parsley. Omit the cheese.
Risotto with Raw Shrimp. Use fish stock as the cooking liquid. Stir 2 cups tiny raw peeled shrimp (or larger shrimp, cut in pieces) into the risotto 5 minutes before the end of the cooking time. Add 3 tablespoons chopped parsley. Omit the cheese.
Risotto with Chicken. Cut enough skinned and boned raw chicken breasts into strips about 2 inches long and ¼ inch wide to make 1½ cups. Stir into the risotto (made with chicken broth) 10 minutes before the end of the cooking time.
Risotto with Asparagus. Briefly cook 2 pounds asparagus (it should still be crisp) and cut off the tips (the remaining asparagus can be puréed for soup). Stir the asparagus tips into the risotto 3 to 4 minutes before the end of the cooking time. Add ½ cup additional melted butter.
Risotto with Green Beans or Peas. Stir 1½ cups quickly cooked and buttered crisp green beans, cut in pieces, or 2 cups buttered cooked green peas (if very young and fresh, they may be left raw) into the cooked risotto. Or use a combination of the two.
Risotto with Cherry Tomatoes. When cooking the onion, add 1 chopped garlic clove. Stir 1½ cups steamed, peeled cherry tomatoes (see page 185) into the cooked risotto, along with a few leaves of fresh basil, chopped, if available.
Paella
I find meaty, inexpensive chicken legs are excellent for paella. Chorizo, the smoked and dried hot Spanish sausage, is traditional in this dish, but if you can’t find it you can substitute Italian pepperoni or the hot Italian pork sausages, poached for 5 minutes in water to cover to draw out the fat.
Makes 4 servings
½ cup flour
8 chicken legs, separated into thighs and drumsticks
6 tablespoons peanut oil
24 clams, well scrubbed
24 mussels, well scrubbed
1 cup dry white wine
2 garlic cloves, unpeeled
1 large or 2 medium-size onions, chopped fine
3 cloves garlic, chopped fine
3 cups long-grain or converted rice
1 generous pinch of saffron soaked in 2 tablespoons dry white wine
Salt, freshly ground black pepper
Chicken broth or water, heated to boiling
3 chorizo or pepperoni sausages, or 4 or 5 poached hot Italian sausages, sliced ½ inch thick
1 cup peeled, seeded, and chopped fresh tomatoes, or drained and chopped canned Italian plum tomatoes
12 raw shrimp, unpeeled
½ package frozen peas, thawed in boiling water and drained
4-ounce jar pimientos, drained, sliced, and warmed
Lightly flour the chicken drumsticks and thighs. Heat the oil in a large, heavy skillet. Add the chicken pieces and brown on all sides, then reduce the heat and continue to cook until the chicken is tender, about 20 minutes. Remove to a platter and keep warm.
In separate pans, steam the clams and mussels in white wine with the garlic cloves just until the shells open, being sure to discard any that do not. Drain the clams and mussels, reserving the broth.
Add the onions and garlic, chopped fine, to the pan in which the chicken was cooked, and sauté, stirring, until soft and golden. Add the rice and cook, stirring, until it turns translucent. Add the saffron and the reserved clam and mussel broths to the rice, and season to taste with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat, and simmer the rice until the liquid has been absorbed and the rice is almost done, adding chicken stock or water if the liquid cooks away too fast. Add the sausages and tomatoes and mix into the rice. Cook another 5 minutes. Add the shrimp to the rice and cook 3–4 minutes, or until they turn pink. Add the peas, stirring them into the rice, then arrange the chicken pieces and the opened clams and mussels on top of the rice. Garnish with warmed pimiento strips and serve immediately.
Wild Rice
Because this grain of an aquatic grass that grows wild in shallow water has to be harvested by hand from a canoe, it has always been a scarce luxury item. Fortunately, because of cultivation processes developed over the last twenty-five or thirty years, there are now wild rice paddies throughout the Great Lakes area, and the grain is more widely available. I find the cultivated wild rice to be an excellent product, with grains of a regular size and good flavor. While many people are at a loss as to how to cook wild rice, it is a simple process, but remember that if you are going to use the cooked rice in a stuffing or casserole it will require less cooking time.
Basic Wild Rice
Makes 4 servings
1 cup raw wild rice
3 cups water
Salt, freshly ground black pepper
⅓ to ½ cup melted butter
First, wash the rice in running water until the water runs clear. Bring 3 cups water to a rapid boil in a saucepan, and add salt to taste. Add the wild rice, and bring the water back to a full boil. Stir the rice with a fork, reduce the heat to a low simmer, cover the pan, and cook the rice until the grains puff open and the white interiors show, about 20 minutes. I like it slightly al dente, with a bite to it. Drain the rice, add the melted butter, and toss well with a fork. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Wild Rice with Green Onions and Pine Nuts. After seasoning, toss the rice with ½ cup finely sliced green onion, or scallion, and ½ cup toasted pine nuts and sprinkle with 1 tablespoon chopped parsley.
Wild Rice with Duck or Goose Fat and Mushrooms. If you are serving the wild rice with roast duck or goose, use the rendered fat instead of butter, and mix in 1 cup sautéed sliced mushrooms.
Wild Rice with Ham. Add about ½ cup finely diced country or Virginia ham, with the ham fat, instead of butter. Just before serving, add freshly chopped parsley or chives.
Wild Rice with Walnuts. Add ½ cup finely chopped walnuts or black walnuts to the cooked rice.
Wild Rice with Bacon and Onion. Toss with the melted butter, ½ cup crisp bacon, crumbled, and ½ cup sautéed onion.
Wild Rice with Duxelles. Add ½ cup duxelles (see page 535) when tossing the wild rice.
Barley and Mushroom Casserole
I’m very fond of the nutty quality of barley, a much-neglected grain, and often serve it with poultry or game instead of the much more expensive wild rice.
Makes 6 servings
¾ cup (12 tablespoons) butter
½ pound firm white mushrooms, cleaned and sliced
2 medium-size onions, coarsely chopped
1½ cups pearl barley
3 cups chicken stock (approximately)
Salt
Melt 4 tablespoons of the butter in a skillet and sauté the mushrooms for 4 minutes. Remove from the pan and set aside. Melt the remaining butter and sauté the onions until they are soft and wilted. Add the barley and stir over medium heat until the barley becomes beautifully brown—this is important as it improves the flavor and texture. Return the mushrooms to the pan, mix well with the barley, place the mixture in a 2-quart casserole, and add 1½ cups chicken stock. Cover and cook in a 350° oven for 30 minutes. Add the remaining 1½ cups stock and cook 30 minutes longer, adding salt if necessary (this will depend on the seasoning of the stock). If the mixture seems too dry, add a little more stock. The barley should be tender but not mushy.
Barley Casserole with Almonds. Add ½ cup finely slivered almonds toasted in butter to the barley just before serving.
Barley Casserole with Celery and Water Chestnuts. Add ¼ cup finely chopped celery and ¼ cup thinly sliced water chestnuts to the barley mixture for the last 2 minutes of cooking, and season the broth with a dash of soy sauce. Serve topped with chopped parsley. This is good with broiled teriyaki chicken (see Theory & Practice, page 115), or steak.
Barley Casserole with Chicken Gizzards. Cook 4 chicken gizzards in part of the stock you will use for the casserole. Slice the gizzards thin and stir them into the barley just before serving.
Kasha (Buckwheat Groats)
Every once in a while I get a craving for kasha. The crunchiness of the groats makes a nice contrast to foods with a very soft texture, like chicken breasts in a creamy sauce.
Makes 4 servings
1 cup buckwheat groats
1 egg
2 cups boiling beef stock
Salt
4 tablespoons butter or rendered chicken fat
Put the buckwheat groats in a preheated frying pan or an electric skillet. Add an egg and stir vigorously over high heat. When each grain is separate, add the stock and salt to taste. Cover the pan, lower the heat, and steam the groats for 30 minutes, then stir in the butter or chicken fat.
Kasha with Mushrooms. Mix ½ cup sautéed sliced mushrooms into the cooked kasha.
Kasha with Sautéed Giblets. Mix ½ cup sautéed chopped chicken gizzards, hearts, and livers into the cooked kasha.
Hominy, corn steamed with lye to remove the seed germ and swell the kernels, is one of those traditional American foods I remember with much nostalgia from my childhood. The hominy vendor used to come down our street twice a week with big tins of whole fresh hominy. Whole fresh hominy is difficult to find these days, but you can buy hominy in cans, and that’s what I use when I get a craving for it with my fried chicken, roast pork, duck, or turkey.
Sautéed Hominy with Cream
Makes 4 to 6 servings
Two 1-pound 12-ounce cans whole hominy
6 tablespoons butter
Salt, freshly ground black pepper
⅓ to ½ cup heavy cream
1 tablespoon chopped parsley
Drain the hominy and rinse it well. Melt the butter in a saucepan, add the hominy, and heat it through, shaking the pan and tossing the kernels gently so they don’t break up. Season well with salt and plenty of pepper—pepper greatly enhances hominy. When heated through, add the cream and let it just cook down and blend. Taste for seasoning, adding more pepper, if necessary. Put the hominy in a serving dish and sprinkle it with parsley.
Hominy Casserole
I adore this combination of hominy, chilies, and sour cream, and serve it with barbecued or broiled meats.
Makes 4 to 6 servings
Two 1-pound 12-ounce cans hominy, drained and rinsed
Salt, freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 cup sour cream
1 cup peeled green chilies, finely chopped
2 tablespoons butter
¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese
Butter a deep casserole and arrange a layer of hominy in the bottom, sprinkling it liberally with salt and pepper. Cover with some of the sour cream and sprinkle with chilies. Repeat this process, sprinkling each layer of hominy with salt and pepper, until the hominy, sour cream, and chilies are used, making sure that the top layer is hominy.
Dot with butter and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Bake in a preheated 350° oven for 20 to 25 minutes.
Couscous
Couscous, the national dish of Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia, is great party food. Arranged on a big platter, it looks inviting, feeds a lot of people economically, and is fun to eat. There isn’t much meat in the dish, which is usually only part of a North African meal, so I like to serve it with chicken cooked in the Moroccan style, with pickled lemons and olives (see page 322), or spiced lamb kebabs (see Theory & Practice, page 123).
The traditional cooker for couscous is a couscousier, a piece of equipment with a deep bottom and a perforated top in which the couscous, a tiny semolina grain, steams over spicy, aromatic broth. (You can substitute an 8-quart cooking pot over which a colander will fit.)
Couscous grain is sold in Middle Eastern and specialty food shops. Be careful not to buy the instant variety; you need the regular, long-cooking type.
Makes 8 servings
COUSCOUS
2 pounds neck or shoulder of lamb, cut into 1½-inch cubes
2 large onions, thinly sliced
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon turmeric
2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
¾ cup vegetable oil
8 tablespoons butter
Pinch of saffron
1½ pounds (4 cups) long-cooking couscous
6 carrots, scraped and quartered
4 turnips, peeled and quartered
4 potatoes, peeled and quartered
3 teaspoons salt
3 medium-size zucchini, cut in thick slices
20-ounce can chickpeas, drained and rinsed, or about 2 cups
¼ cup raisins
Start the couscous about 2 hours before serving time. Put the lamb, onions, ginger, turmeric, pepper, ½ cup oil, 4 tablespoons butter, and saffron in the bottom of a couscousier or an 8-quart pot and add enough water to come 2 inches above the ingredients. Bring to a rapid boil.
Line the steamer top of the couscousier or the colander with a triple thickness of cheesecloth (this prevents the tiny grains from falling through), put in the couscous, place over the boiling mixture, and either cover with the lid of the couscousier or wrap aluminum foil tightly over the colander and the edges of the pot to keep the steam from escaping. Steam for 1 hour, then remove the steamer section and run cold water over the puffed-up couscous for 2 or 3 minutes, breaking up the lumps with your fingers. Set aside to drain.
Add to the bottom of the pot the carrots, turnips, and potatoes. Cover and cook 20 minutes. Meanwhile, turn the drained couscous into a big bowl and mix in the remaining ¼ cup oil and the salt with your fingers. Replace the couscous in the cheesecloth-lined steamer. Add the zucchini, chickpeas, and raisins to the stew in the bottom of the pot, replace the steamer over the stew and steam for another 15 to 20 minutes. Then transfer the hot couscous to a bowl and mix in the remaining 4 tablespoons butter.
To serve, mound the couscous on a very large platter. Make a well in the center and put about 2 cups of the drained lamb and vegetables into it. Serve the rest of the meat and vegetables in another dish, the broth from the stew in a large bowl, and sauce piquante in a small bowl. The accompanying chicken or kebabs should be served separately.
SAUCE PIQUANTE (Red Pepper Sauce)
2 or 3 hot red chili peppers
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 garlic clove, crushed
1 teaspoon Tabasco
¼ cup finely ground walnuts
Combine all the above ingredients in a blender or food processor and blend to a paste.
NOTE: Leftover couscous may be resteamed and served like pilaf, with any of the additions given for pilaf (see pages 290–291), or with chopped, cooked prunes and sautéed apple slices. Or serve it cold as a salad, mixed like tabbouleh (see Theory & Practice, page 337), with chopped green onions or scallions, chopped parsley, mint, lemon juice, oil, salt, and chopped tomato.
Cornmeal
To my mind, the greatest derivative of corn is cornmeal, a grain that is too often overlooked, except in the South, where it is practically a way of life. The finest, most flavorful cornmeal is the water-ground, which can be bought in health-food stores or specialty food shops or ordered by mail from small mills across the country.
I have always loved cornmeal mush cooled in a pan, sliced, and sautéed in butter or bacon fat and eaten for breakfast with maple syrup or preserves. I remember when I first went to Europe I discovered that Italian polenta was like cornmeal mush, although in Italy it is made rather differently, in a heavy pot, with the cornmeal added to simmering water in a thin, continuous stream and stirred constantly. I have my own way of making it, which I find much simpler. The earthiness of polenta gives it a great affinity for simple, tasty foods like sausages and salt cod.
Polenta with Sausages
Makes 6 servings
1½ cups cornmeal
4½ cups cold water
1 teaspoon salt
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
¾ cup grated Parmesan cheese
1½ pounds hot Italian sausages
2 cups tomato sauce (see page 534)
Put the cornmeal and 1 cup water in the top part of a double boiler and mix well. Bring the rest of the water to a boil in a saucepan, stir it into the cornmeal, and cook over direct, very low heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture comes to a boil. Add the salt. Put enough water in the bottom of the double boiler to come just below the top part. Cover the top of the double boiler, place it over the water simmering in the bottom, and steam the cornmeal for 1 hour. Stir in the butter and ½ cup of the grated cheese.
Prick the sausages, place them in a skillet with water to cover, and bring the water to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer the sausages for 12 minutes. Drain them thoroughly, then brown them slowly on all sides over medium-low heat.
Oil a baking dish and pour in the cooked cornmeal or polenta. Top with the sausages. Bake in a 375° oven for 15 minutes, then spoon ¾ cup tomato sauce over the top and sprinkle with the remaining ¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese. Serve with the remaining tomato sauce and additional grated cheese.
Polenta with Fontina Cheese. Pour the polenta into an oiled baking dish, top with 1 cup shredded fontina cheese, and place under a hot broiler until the cheese is melted.
Polenta with Spinach. Cook 2 packages frozen spinach or 2 pounds fresh, drain well, chop fine, and blend with 1 chopped garlic clove, the juice of ½ lemon, 4 tablespoons olive oil, and salt to taste. Place in the bottom of an oiled baking dish, top with the polenta, dot with butter, sprinkle with grated Parmesan cheese and bake in a 375° oven for 15 to 20 minutes, or until delicately browned. A great accompaniment to roast beef, pork, or veal.
Polenta with Salt Cod. Cook 2 pounds salt cod according to directions for poached codfish (see page 243). Pour the polenta into an oiled baking dish or casserole and top with the codfish. Cover with 3 cups thick tomato sauce, sprinkle with grated Parmesan cheese, and glaze the top under a hot broiler.
Polenta Cakes. Pour the polenta mixture into a buttered dish and spread out 1½ inches thick. Cut into 3-inch squares and dredge in grated Parmesan or Gruyère cheese. Put in a buttered baking dish and bake in a 375° oven until polenta is delicately brown and cheese is melted. Serve with roast veal, pork, or other types of roasts.
Cornmeal Gnocchi
These gnocchi are, I admit, somewhat fattening, but I adore their soul-satisfying flavor and texture. Here I use the Italian method of making the basic polenta, but instead of water I prefer milk, which gives a more delicate result.
Makes 6 servings
5 cups milk or water (or a combination of water and evaporated milk)
1¼ cups coarse cornmeal
1 teaspoon salt
½ cup melted butter
¼ cup freshly grated Parmesan or Romano cheese
Bring the milk or other liquid to a boil in a heavy pan, taking care not to let it scorch. While it is boiling, gradually cascade the cornmeal into the liquid in a thin stream, stirring constantly until the polenta thickens, heaves, and bubbles. Stir well to make sure there are no lurking lumps. Remove from the heat, stir in the salt, then pour into a jelly-roll pan, and leave until cold. Cut into rounds with a 1½- to 2-inch cutter, and arrange the rounds in a baking dish, with the edges overlapping slightly. Pour the melted butter over them, sprinkle with cheese, and bake in a 350° oven for 10 to 15 minutes, or until they are hot, soaked with butter, and slightly browned on top. Serve as a first course or as an accompaniment to meat.
This soufflé is a good accompaniment to braised dishes or roasts.
Makes 4 to 6 servings
1 cup milk
¾ cup cornmeal
2 tablespoons butter
1 teaspoon salt
4 eggs, separated
Put the milk in a saucepan and bring to a simmer. Gradually add the cornmeal and cook, stirring constantly, until thickened. Add the butter and salt and mix well. Stir in the egg yolks and set aside. Whisk the egg whites until they reach the soft-peak stage. Stir a good spoonful of the egg whites into the cornmeal mixture to soften it slightly, then fold in the remaining egg whites. Pour the soufflé mixture into a buttered 2-quart soufflé dish and bake in a preheated 400° oven for 25 minutes. Serve with melted butter or a sauce.
Cornmeal Soufflé with Parmesan Cheese. Omit the salt and add ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese to the cornmeal mixture.
Cornmeal Soufflé with Whole-Kernel Corn. Add ½ cup whole-kernel corn to the cornmeal mixture.
Corn-Chili Soufflé
This is one of my all-time favorite cornmeal dishes. The whole-kernel corn gives it an interesting texture, and the spicy ingredients complement the flavors. I like to serve this with pork dishes.
Makes 6 servings
1 cup cornmeal
17-ounce can whole-kernel corn, drained
1 cup milk
6 eggs, separated
1½ teaspoons chili powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 cup stuffed olives, chopped
1 green chili, finely chopped
1½ cups crisp bacon pieces
¾ cup grated Parmesan cheese
Soak the cornmeal and the corn in the milk, then heat the mixture until it’s at the thickening stage (just about at the boiling point), stirring it very well with a heavy whisk. Off the heat, stir in the egg yolks, seasonings, baking powder, olives, and green chili, mixing thoroughly. Add the bacon pieces and cheese. Stir well until thoroughly integrated. Preheat the oven to 375°.
Beat the egg whites until stiff but not dry. Fold about one-fourth the whites into the corn mixture very thoroughly. Add the remaining whites and stir and fold until no white shows. Pour into a well-buttered 2-quart baking dish or soufflé dish. Bake for about 35 minutes.
White Beans with Cognac
Makes 6 servings
1 pound (2 cups) dry white beans (pea, navy, or Great Northern)
1 garlic clove
1 onion, stuck with 2 cloves
1 bay leaf
1 sprig fresh thyme or ¼ teaspoon dried
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 small onion, chopped
2 cups tomato purée
¼ cup finely chopped parsley
2 teaspoons salt
⅓ cup cognac
Cover the beans with cold water, bring to a boil, cook 2 minutes, then remove from the heat and let stand, covered, 1 hour. Add the garlic, whole onion, bay leaf, and thyme. Bring to a boil, cover, reduce the heat, and simmer until tender, about 2 hours. Drain, reserving the liquid. Discard the onion, bay leaf, and thyme sprig (the garlic will have disintegrated).
Melt the butter in a large skillet and sauté the chopped onion until soft. Add the tomato purée, parsley, salt, cognac, and 1 cup liquid from the beans. Simmer 30 minutes, then mix with the beans, correct seasoning, and reheat in a casserole. Serve with lamb or almost any broiled meat.
White Beans with Ham and Sausage. Add 1 cup diced cooked ham and 1 pound cooked sausages to the beans and sauce. Correct the seasoning. Bake in a casserole in a 325° oven until just bubbling. Serve as a hearty main dish.
White Bean Purée
Makes 6 servings
1 pound (2 cups) dry white beans (pea, navy, Great Northern, or cannellini)
4 garlic cloves
1 onion, stuck with 2 cloves
1 bay leaf
Salt, freshly ground black pepper
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
¾ cup heavy cream
Chopped parsley for garnish
Cook the beans with the garlic, onion, bay leaf, and 1 teaspoon pepper according to directions for White Beans with Cognac (see preceding recipe). Drain. Discard the bay leaf and cloves. Purée the beans with the onion and garlic, then beat in the butter, cream, and salt and pepper to taste. Reheat and garnish with chopped parsley. Serve with roast lamb or other roast or broiled meats.
Puréed Cannellini with Madeira. Use 4 twenty-ounce cans of cannellini beans, drained and rinsed, instead of cooked beans. Purée the cannellini, then combine with ½ cup butter, ⅔ cup heavy cream, ½ cup Madeira, and salt, pepper, and nutmeg to taste. Heat, stirring constantly, in a heavy saucepan.
Cassoulet
There are many versions of cassoulet, all monumentally substantial. This version, one of the best I’ve ever eaten, was originated by a fine cook of an independent turn of mind, a Frenchwoman who had lived for many years in this country and adapted the recipes of her native land to the local ingredients. You can vary this recipe by adding roast or preserved goose or crisp roast duck, or you can make it with just lamb and sausages, omitting the pork, or leave out the tomato paste and add more garlic.
Makes 10 to 12 servings
2 pounds dry white beans
1 onion, stuck with 2 cloves
8 to 10 garlic cloves
1 bay leaf
1 pig’s foot, split
Salt, freshly ground black pepper
½ leg of lamb (about 3½ pounds)
3 pounds pork loin or shoulder
2 cups red wine
1 saucisson à l’ail (garlic sausage), cotechino, or kielbasa
1½ teaspoons crumbled thyme
2 tablespoons tomato paste
6 strips salt pork, cut thin
1 cup bread crumbs
Soak and then cook the beans with the onion, 4 garlic cloves, bay leaf, and pig’s foot according to directions for White Beans with Cognac (see page 303), adding 1 tablespoon salt halfway through the cooking.
While the beans are cooking, salt and pepper the lamb and pork and roast in a 325° oven for 1½ hours, basting from time to time with 1½ cups of the red wine. Let the meats cool and chill in the roasting pan until the fat congeals on the pan juices and can be skimmed off. Reserve the juices. Cut the meats into 2-inch cubes and reserve.
Poach the sausage in water to cover for 35 to 40 minutes, then drain and slice ½ inch thick. Finely chop the remaining garlic cloves and mix with the thyme and 1 teaspoon pepper.
When the beans are cooked, drain them, reserving the liquid. Remove the bay leaf, onion, and pig’s foot. Cut the skin and meat from the pig’s foot and reserve. Put a layer of the beans in a large earthenware or enameled cast-iron casserole and sprinkle with some of the garlic mixture, cubed meats, meat from the pig’s foot, and sausages. Continue making layers until all these ingredients are used, ending with beans. Combine the reserved pan juices with the bean liquid, ½ cup red wine, and the tomato paste. Pour enough of this liquid over the cassoulet to reach almost to the top layer of beans. Top the cassoulet with salt pork slices and cover tightly with foil. Bake in a 350° oven for 1 hour, then remove the foil and sprinkle bread crumbs on top. Bake 1 hour more, or until the liquid is absorbed, the top is glazed and the crumbs browned. If too much liquid is absorbed during the first hour of cooking, add more. Serve the cassoulet with crusty bread and a hearty red wine.
Cassoulet with Limas
Makes 6 servings
1 pound large dry lima beans
1 onion stuck with 2 cloves
2 teaspoons salt
8 cloves garlic
4 or 5 slices salt pork or bacon cut ⅜ inch thick
1 cup chopped onion
1 pound Italian sausage (sweet or hot), poached for 2 minutes and drained
¼ cup chopped fresh basil or 2 teaspoons dry basil
¼ cup chopped parsley
2 hot red peppers or ½ teaspoon Tabasco
¾ cup fresh bread crumbs (preferably pumpernickel or whole wheat)
Put the beans, onion stuck with cloves, salt, and 5 cloves garlic in a 4-quart saucepan. Cover with water by 1 inch and bring to a boil. Boil for 10 minutes. Turn off the heat and let rest for 1 hour. Cook until tender. Drain and reserve the liquid.
Fry the salt pork or bacon until crisp. Remove and cut into cubes. Sauté 3 cloves garlic and the chopped onion in the bacon fat until translucent.
In a 2-quart baking dish arrange layers of beans, salt pork, onion and garlic mixture, sausage, herbs, and red peppers or Tabasco. Add reserved liquid from the beans to come two-thirds the way up. Cover. Bake at 350° for 1 to 1½ hours. If the liquid evaporates, add more. Remove cover and for the last 15 minutes of cooking sprinkle with bread crumbs. Serve at once, or it may be reheated and served the following day.
Cassoulet with Limas and Cooked Lamb. Instead of salt pork add 1½ cups diced cooked lamb and use ⅔ cup sliced kielbasa sausage.
Cassoulet with Limas and Roasted Duck Legs. Use roast duck legs and thighs and sliced garlic sausage.
Cassoulet with Limas and Cooked Pork and Lamb. Use 1 cup each cooked diced pork and lamb. A few slices of sausage may be added as well.
Cassoulet with Codfish
Makes 4 to 6 servings
1 pound dry lima beans
4 ounces salt pork with the skin, in 1 piece
½ cup finely chopped onion
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 cup peeled, seeded, chopped, squeezed-dry tomatoes
4 cups chicken or veal stock
1 ham hock
1 bay leaf
1 whole clove
1 dried red pepper
¼ teaspoon nutmeg
1 tablespoon honey
¾ pound salt cod, soaked in cold water overnight, skinned and boned
8 Finn Crisp crackers
4 sprigs marjoram or ½ teaspoon dry marjoram
4 sprigs thyme or ½ teaspoon dry thyme
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
Soak the beans overnight in cold water to generously cover; drain.
Score the salt pork on the fat side but leave in one piece. Place in a large saucepan, skin side up, over low heat. When about half the fat has rendered, add the onion and garlic. Sauté until transparent. Add the tomato paste and stir until well blended. Stir in the drained beans, chopped tomato, and stock, and add the ham hock. Add the bay leaf, clove, dried pepper, nutmeg, and honey.
Bring the liquid to a boil, lower the heat, and cover tightly. Cook very slowly until the beans are soft, about 1½ hours. Discard the salt pork and red pepper.
Poach the codfish in water for about 5 minutes, or until flaky. Drain. Pull the fish apart with your fingers or 2 forks. Stir the fish into the beans. Mix well and pour into a 12-inch baking dish.
Break up the crackers with your fingers or rolling pin so you have coarse pieces. Mix with the marjoram and thyme. Spread over the bean mixture and dot with butter. Bake in a preheated 350° oven for 45 minutes or until the top is crusty.
Kidney Beans with Sausages
Makes 6 servings
1 pound (2 cups) dry kidney beans
2 kielbasa (Polish garlic sausage)
2 cups red wine
1 cup finely chopped onion
Salt, freshly ground black pepper
6 strips of bacon
Chopped parsley
Cover the beans with water, bring to a boil, and cook 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and let stand, covered, 1 hour. Then simmer them until tender, about 45 minutes to 1 hour. Drain.
While the beans are cooking, combine the sausages, wine, and onion in a skillet and poach the sausages in this mixture for 25 to 30 minutes, seasoning to taste with salt and pepper (do not season heavily, as the wine will be reduced and this intensifies the seasoning). Remove the sausages and cut into 1½-inch slices. Reduce the wine and onion mixture by two-thirds over high heat.
Arrange layers of beans and sausages in a baking dish, ending with beans. Pour the reduced wine over them. Cover the top with bacon and bake in a 350° oven until the bacon is crisp and the bean mixture bubbly, about 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and serve sprinkled with chopped parsley.
Black Beans with Sour Cream
Makes 12 to 16 servings
2 pounds dry black beans
1 onion, sliced
1 bay leaf
Sprig of thyme
2 ribs celery
3 or 4 sprigs parsley
1 ham bone, ¼ cup diced salt pork, ¼ cup olive oil, or ¼ cup bacon fat
Salt
Dash of Tabasco
½ cup Jamaica rum
Sour cream
Put the beans in a pan with water to cover by 1 inch, bring to a boil, boil 2 minutes, remove from heat, and let stand, covered, 1 hour. Add the onion, bay leaf, thyme, celery, parsley. Add ham bone, if you have one. Otherwise use salt pork, olive oil, or bacon fat. Cook until the beans are tender, about 1½ hours; add salt to taste and a dash of Tabasco. Fish out and discard bay leaf, vegetables, and ham bone. Put the beans and their liquid in a casserole, add the rum, correct seasoning, and bake at 350° until well heated, about 20 minutes. Serve with cold sour cream. This dish goes extremely well with charcoal-grilled ham steak or with grilled sausages.
Black Beans with Cheese and Bacon. Sprinkle the finished dish with grated cheese and strips of bacon.
Nevada Chili Beans
This spicy Southwestern dish is made with the pale pink, brown-speckled pinto beans common to the Western states and Mexico (they were dubbed “pinto,” Spanish for “paint,” because of the coloring). Pinto beans grow in a very dry climate and so take longer to cook than some of the other dried legumes. They may be substituted in bean casseroles in place of white beans or red kidney beans.
Makes 8 servings
1 pound (2 cups) dry pinto beans
¼ pound salt pork, cut in small pieces
2 cups chopped onion
3 cloves garlic, chopped fine
½ teaspoon oregano
Pinch of ground cumin
2 cups tomato purée
3 tablespoons chili powder
Salt, freshly ground black pepper
Put the beans in a saucepan, cover with water, bring to a boil, boil 2 minutes, remove from heat, and let stand, covered, 1 hour. Return to the heat and simmer very slowly until they are not quite cooked, still a bit bitey, approximately 1 to 1½ hours.
Cook the salt pork in a large skillet until fat is rendered and pork crisp. Add the onion and garlic and sauté until soft, then add the oregano, a healthy pinch of cumin, tomato purée, and chili powder. Season to taste with salt and pepper and bring to a boil. Add the beans with their liquid, reduce heat, and simmer for 45 minutes. Taste for seasoning, adding more chili powder or salt if you want it spicier or saltier. Serve with old-fashioned soda crackers or tortillas and beer.
Cowpuncher Beans. Add 1 pound diced cooked pork and 1 pound diced cooked beef to the finished dish.
To me a chickpea needs to be puréed. I do not find the tough skins particularly pleasing to the bite or the palate. Puréed, they have a smooth, mealy texture that lends itself to a variety of flavorings. A chickpea purée makes a welcome change from the usual starch or grain with pork and various other meats and poultry, including the Thanksgiving turkey and especially game birds. If you don’t want to go to the trouble of cooking dried chickpeas, the canned serve very well.
Makes 8 servings
3 one-pound cans chickpeas or 6 cups cooked chickpeas (see page 546)
6 tablespoons butter
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
Salt, freshly ground black pepper
½ cup (approximately) heavy cream
If using canned chickpeas, drain them and rinse well under running water. Purée in a blender, food mill, or food processor. Put the purée in a heavy pan with the butter, garlic, salt and pepper to taste, and heat through, adding enough heavy cream to give a consistency like mashed potatoes. Stir constantly to make sure it does not stick.
Chickpea Purée with Madeira. Omit the garlic. Season with ¼ teaspoon mace and add ¼ cup Madeira.
Lentils
Lentils are a highly nutritious, satisfying, and economical legume with a flavor that I find more distinctive than that of many of the beans. There are several different kinds of lentils and they vary in size and color from the tiny red Egyptian lentils and the very small green ones from the Auvergne, in France, to the larger brown ones from Oregon or Washington, which are what you find packaged in supermarkets. They require no presoaking and are processed for quick cooking.
Makes 6 servings
3 cups quick-cooking lentils
1 onion, stuck with 2 cloves
1 bay leaf
1 tablespoon salt
½ cup melted butter
¼ teaspoon mace
¼ teaspoon ground ginger
Put the lentils in a pan, cover with water, add the onion and bay leaf and simmer until just tender, about 25 to 30 minutes, adding the salt after the lentils have cooked for 15 minutes. Drain well. Remove bay leaf and onion. Toss the lentils with the butter and spices and correct seasoning. Serve with roast pork, chicken, duck, or game.
Sautéed Lentils. Sauté quickly in ⅓ cup olive oil and 4 tablespoons bacon fat with 1 cup finely cut green onions, 1 cup crisp bacon bits, and ½ cup chopped parsley, tossing everything well together.
Herbed Lentils. Add 2 finely chopped garlic cloves, 4 tablespoons fruity olive oil, ¼ cup chopped parsley, ½ teaspoon thyme and fresh chervil to taste.
Puréed Lentils. Remove the cloves from the onion and discard. Purée the lentils with the onions and stir in the butter, ½ cup heavy cream, and spices and correct seasoning. Reheat. If you wish a fine purée you may put the purée through a fine sieve.
Braised Lentils with Lamb
Makes 6 servings
1 pound lentils
1 onion stuck with 2 cloves
1 bay leaf
Salt
1 shoulder of lamb about 4 to 4½ pounds, boned and tied after most of the fat is removed (lamb shanks may be used)
2 garlic cloves
Freshly ground black pepper
3 medium onions, peeled and thinly sliced
1 teaspoon rosemary
1 cup dry red wine
¼ cup chopped parsley
Soak the lentils overnight, unless they are the quick-cooking variety, in which case follow the directions on the package. Add the onion, bay leaf, and salt, and bring to a boil. Simmer till tender but still on the firm side—they will be recooked later. Pique the lamb shoulder with slivers of garlic, and rub it well with pepper. Place the lamb on a broiling pan and brown on all sides under the broiler until it has a nice golden color. Remove from the broiler and put the meat and the fat from the broiling pan into a braising pan, add the onions and rosemary and let them cook with the meat for 4 or 5 minutes over rather brisk heat. Reduce the heat, cover the pan, and cook about 4 minutes. Add the wine, cover, and simmer 1 hour. Add the lentils and a little of their liquid or add additional red wine. Continue slow cooking until the lamb is tender—½ to 1 hour. Salt to taste. The meat should not be brown and stringy but should still have a faint touch of pink in it.
Transfer the lamb to a hot platter. Drain the lentils, reserving the pan juices. Arrange the lentils around the lamb and sprinkle generously with chopped parsley. Serve the pan juices apart. A brisk salad and a bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon would go well with this dish.