Pasta Puttanesca

There aren’t many foods that I dislike but I recently discovered one: capers. The little buds are painstakingly harvested by hand so they seemed like something really special and delicious. I made some spaghetti puttanesca as my first caper dish and surprisingly, I couldn’t stand the taste of them. I can’t explain why I don’t like them, they just taste very alien to me. So if you’re like me and don’t like capers (but I may be alone in this), you can easily omit them from the recipe. But don't let me put you off capers, since many if not most people love them. One day I will give capers another chance, perhaps it's an acquired taste.

Puttanesca is a simple and very flavorful dish with plenty of healthy ingredients so it’s perfect for this month’s "Heart of the Matter" theme, pasta. Tomatoes are a great source of lycopene, a powerful antioxidant, and other compounds that help prevent cancer and heart disease. Studies have shown that the volatile oils in parsley inhibit tumor growth in animals and also neutralize harmful carcinogens. Olives are also a good source of monosaturated fats, omega-3 fatty acids, and vitamins A, C, and E. There is no meat, cream, butter, or cheese in this dish. Another way to make pasta even healthier is to sneak in some whole wheat pasta (Ronzoni is the best brand). I can get away with about 1 part whole wheat to 3 parts regular pasta before Steven notices a difference but I'm slowly trying to add more and more.

Spaghetti Puttanesca
Adapted from Cook’s Illustrated

2 garlic cloves
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes or substitute cayenne but use less (1/8 to 1/4 tsp)
2 tsp minced anchovies, about 4 – 5 fillets (or you can press the fillets through a garlic press)
1 14 oz. can of diced tomatoes, drained and reserve 1/4 C of the juice
1 Tbsp capers or more to taste, rinsed
1/4 C Kalamata olives, chopped
1 Tbsp olive oil
2 Tbsp minced parsley
8 oz. pasta of your choice
salt

Start by boiling water for the pasta. Start cooking the sauce when you add the pasta and salt to the boiling water.

Mix the minced garlic with a scant tablespoon of water. Add the garlic, anchovies, red pepper flakes to olive oil in a skillet and heat the mixture over medium heat. Cook until the garlic is fragrant and slightly blond but not brown, about 2 minutes. Add the drained tomatoes and simmer until it slightly thickens, about 8 minutes.

Drain the pasta when cooked.

Stir the olives, capers, and parsley into the sauce and toss with the pasta. If the mixture looks too dry, add in some of the reserved tomato juice. This dish is already salty enough from the olives and anchovies. Parmesan is not used to garnish this pasta.

Serves 2

Be sure to check the round up later this month at Ilva’s blog Lucullian Delights for more heart healthy pasta dishes.
Previous Heart of the Matter rounds for other great recipes.

Gnocchi

After I read “Heat,"I wanted to pack up my bags, fly to Italy, and learn the techniques passed down from generation to generation for authetic Italian dishes. A girl can dream right? Gnocchi is one dish I wanted to learn how to make. I have never had a really good gnocchi but they’re rumored to be little pillows as light as a cloud that melt in your mouth.

I didn’t expect much to come out of my first attempt because gnocchi is something that takes a long time to get right. There are many factors that can affect the gnocchi. It's easy for them to become chewy and dense but recipes have many tips to help prevent this. Potatoes should be baked rather than boiled to minimize the amount of liquid they absorb. I learned from Elise that older potatoes are drier and better for gnocchi. Although, many recipes call for an egg, it can also contribute to dense gnocchi so eggs should be avoided. You should use as little flour as possible to bring the dough together but enough so the dough isn’t sticky. Knead as lightly and as little as possible, the more you knead, the stickier and denser the dough becomes and the more flour you will have to incorporate. That's a lot to keep in mind for something that only requires 2 ingredients. Oy!

Since gnocchi are so light, they are best accompanied by a light sauce with some (I like a generous amount) grated Parmesan on top. A classic sauce is one of browned butter and sage. A smooth tomato sauce is another good pairing with gnocchi. Gnocchi can be frozen on a tray then in a zipper lock bag and keep for 1 month.

Potato Gnocchi
Adapted from Cook’s Illustrated

2 lbs Russet potatoes, about 4 – 5, washed
1 1/4 C AP flour (you may need to use up to 1 1/2)
1/2 tsp of salt

Poke holes all over the potatoes and bake the potatoes at 400°F until you can pierce them easily with a skewer or knife and feel no resistance, about 45 minutes to an hour. Be sure to bake the potatoes long enough so they lose as much moisture as possible.

When the potatoes can be handled, peel or cut them in half and scoop out the flesh. Put the potatoes through a ricer. A potato ricer is ideal because it keeps the potato fluffy so I might go out and buy one for next time. Alternatively, you can gently break and fluff up the potatoes up with a fork. I read that you can push it through the back of a fine mesh sieve but that didn’t work for me. Smitten Kitchen’s Deb used a grater to grate the potatoes. I have to try this sometime because it sounds like a great idea. Spread the riced potatoes over a baking sheet or large cutting board to allow the potato to dry out some more.

First sprinkle 1 1/4 C of flour and the salt over the riced potatoes, then bring the dough together and gently knead a little until smooth. You only want to incorporate the flour with the potatoes. If the dough is sticky add more flour, up to 1 1/2 C total (I misread this and thought it said additional... oops that's a lot of flour). Be careful not to overwork the dough, the more you knead the stickier the dough will get and the more flour you will end up incorporating (a mistake I made).

Have a pot of simmering water ready. Break off a piece of the dough and form into a gnocchi. Cook this test piece to gauge if you need to add more flour to the dough. The gnocchi is ready when it floats. If it tastes mushy, work in another 2 Tbsp to 1/4 C of flour. It's better to try a piece of the gnocchi than ruin an entire batch.

To make the gnocchi, roll a portion of the dough into a log about 3/4-in diameter and cut into 3/4-in pieces. Roll the piece down the tines of a fork. The grooves from the tines and the indentation from your finger will hold the sauce.

Simmer the gnocchi until they float, about 1 1/2 to 2 minutes (3 minutes for frozen). Serve with sauce and grated parmesan.


I still haven't gotten the hang of rolling them down the tines part. My gnocchi were a bit dense and chewy, probably because I kneaded too much and added way too much flour. It was still fun so I’ll try again soon.

Links:
Elise’s simple recipe for potato gnocchi
Deb is smitten with gnocchi

Campanelle with Italian Sausage, Sun-dried Tomatoes, and Broccoli

If I could pick an official pasta for Spring, it would be Campanelle. Shaped like a dainty bell or flower, campanelle is Italian for “little bell” or it is also called gigli meaning “lilies." Not only is it pretty but it's a very functional pasta because the funnel-like shape is perfect for holding a little smidgen of sauce. I'm sure it'd also be lovely for pasta salads because it is just too cute!

I love spontaneously created dishes that turn out surprisingly well. Last night the original plan was to eat leftovers but Steven announced that he wanted pasta. Being the accommodating cook that I am, I poked around in the fridge and we tried to pull together a decent pasta dish. The other day he mentioned how he really liked the sun-dried tomatoes we had, so I got those out of the fridge. Then I gathered a crown of broccoli along with the remainder of some roasted garlic. I dug out some Italian sausages from the freezer and defrosted two. What started out as a random hodgepodge of casually thrown together ingredients transformed into a delicious pasta dish.

I added just a tiny bit of balsamic vinegar at the end to brighten up the flavors and it worked really well. Fresh herbs would have made this dish even better but the Italian herb blend is always a staple in my pantry.

Campanelle with Italian Sausage, Sun-dried Tomatoes, and Broccoli

2 Italian sausages
1 broccoli crown, cut into small florets (about 2 cups)
2 Tbsp sun-dried tomatoes, rinsed of excess oil and minced
3 cloves roasted garlic, pureed or minced (can use regular garlic)
2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1/4 tsp Italian herb blend (fresh herbs would be better)
salt and pepper
1 tsp balsamic vinegar
1/2 C grated Parmesan
8 oz. campanelle

Cut the broccoli crown into small bite size florets. The remaining stem pieces can be cut into small matchstick pieces and cooked with the florets. I like to peel off the outer fibrous layer.

Remove the Italian sausage from the casing. Heat a skillet over medium high heat and brown the sausages, breaking the sausages into small bite size pieces. Lower the heat to medium and fully cook the sausage pieces. Remove and drain on a paper towel lined plate.

Meanwhile, boil a pot of water, and cook campanelle to al dente. Drain when finished.

Wipe the skillet clean, return to stovetop over medium heat, and add 2 Tbsp of extra virgin olive oil. Add broccoli florets, sun-dried tomatoes, roasted garlic, herbs, salt and pepper and saute for about 1 minute. Then add Italian sausage and a tablespoon of water and cook until broccoli is at desired tenderness. Add drained pasta and toss everything together. If the pasta looks too dry add a bit of water, about 1 Tbsp, to loosen it up.

Off heat, drizzle the balsamic vinegar over the pasta and toss to distribute evenly. Add half of the grated parmesan to mix into the pasta then use the remainder to top the pasta.

Serves 2

Links:

This will be my entry for Presto Pasta Night. Be sure to check out this week's roundup on Friday.