Proud Italian Cook

Summer Entertaining Ideas

June 12, 2014 by Marie 11 Comments

Summertime entertaining is in full bloom with backyard barbeques, pool parties and endless celebrations. Here’s just a few of my tried and true recipes that I make quite often during the summer and have always been a hit with friends and family.

Impress your guests with some Grilled Calamari, I buy mine already cleaned so all you have to do is marinate it in olive oil, lemon juice, lemon zest, garlic, parsley, oregano, salt and pepper. When you’re ready to grill it, place it into a grill basket so it’s easy to toss around to achieve a nice char, it only takes about 5 minutes with the gas burners on high.

Grilled Clams with Tomato, Wine and Sausage Sauce, I would say this is a terrific dish for Father’s Day, it’s a manly meal, messy and good, just serve some crusty bread to soak up that luscious sauce! Did you know you can cook lobster on the grill? Well you can and it tastes amazing! I always remove the lobster meat this way, it’s full proof, then all you have to do is brush your lobster down with a mixture of garlic and butter or olive oil, sprinkle paprika on top then place shell side down with the lobster meat perched on top directly on the grill, cook on medium until opaque, so delicious!

How about a Seafood Boil, it’s casual eating where every thing is placed in front of you and all that is needed is some cold wine and good conversation!

Anything planked is fine by me, salmon, cheese, vegetables, shrimp, you name it, I’ve done it and posted it here on my blog. The smokey wood flavor that comes from the boards enhance everything you place on it. Here’s another favorite of mine, Prosciutto Wrapped Scallops. Who doesn’t like Beer Can Chicken, it always comes out so moist on the inside and crispy on the outside, it never fails!

How about some pork? You can’t go wrong with Italian sausage, ribs or chops. But maybe you’re in the mood for some shish kabobs complete with the veggies, all you’ll need is a salad or two on the side and your meal is complete! Nine times out of ten at every big party I always serve Sausage and Peppers and Baked Mostaccioli, you got to have some pasta, and besides it feeds a ton of people! We’re artichoke obsessed in my family and these Grilled Artichokes always go so fast, they’re easy to make, it’s a nice light summertime version.

Make an impression with a beautiful round platter filled with thin cut Zucchini Carpaccio, sprinkled with freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano, a great way to use up all your garden zucchini and a pretty impressive looking side dish. Grilled Veggie Pizza, Oh My! I have two words for you. Make It! Next time you have to bring something to a party, bring this! Orzo with Grilled Shrimp and Feta, the flavor combination is out of this world good. I get asked to make this all the time.

INGREDIENTS

Grilled shrimp (marinate the shrimp in lemon peel, lemon juice, olive oil, crushed garlic, and a pinch of red pepper flakes, then grill)

Cooked orzo pasta

Diced and seeded English cucumber

Diced red onion

Crumbled feta

Grape tomatoes, halved

Kalamata olives

Lemon zest

Mint, parsley, oregano

Make a vinaigrette by whisking 3 parts good olive oil to 1 part fresh squeezed lemon juice, add 1 crushed garlic clove, salt and pepper. Taste it to your liking either adding more or less. Place all ingredients in a bowl, adding all the herbs, more feta, (make sure it’s in small crumbles) pour your vinaigrette over all the ingredients, taste it and make sure you have enough of everything! Adjust it to your liking.

Garnish with lemon slices. Note: This was a huge catering pan, I used 3lbs. of cooked orzo and 2 lbs of medium shrimp, the rest of the ingredients I just judged until I thought I had enough, look at it and taste as you go!

And lastly you have to have some kind of dessert, my friend Debbie makes the best good old fashioned Lemon Bars, a combination of buttery shortbread and tangy, bright lemon. They’re irresistible and get devoured! She’s happy to share her recipe with you below.

And finally, this Grape Salad, people go bonkers over it, there won’t be one grape left in the bowl, trust me!

Happy Entertaining!

Deb's Lemon Bars

Ingredients

FOR CRUST
2 sticks of unsalted butter at room temp
2 cups flour
1 cup, powdered sugar
pinch of salt
FOR THE TOPPING
4 eggs
2 cups, granulated sugar
6 tablespoons, fresh lemon juice ( a must!)

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350, mix crust ingredients and pat into a 9 x 13 ungreased pan, spread to corners. I do this with my fork and fingers.
Cook for 15 - 20 minutes, while it's cooking make the topping.
Mix the topping together and pour carefully over the baked crust and bake for additional 25 minutes.
Cut with a sharp knife after it has cooled and then dust with powdered sugar.
Note from Marie:( I added lemon zest for garnish, totally optional )

11 Comments Filed Under: Desserts, Party Foods, Summer Tagged: grilled shrimp orzo

Blossom Onions Grilled and Planked with Red Pepper Aioli

June 4, 2014 by Marie 24 Comments

You know those famous bloomin onions that are battered, deep fried, loaded with calories and sodium? Well here’s my version, it’s seasoned with fresh and dried herbs, olive oil and grated romano cheese, then they’re placed on a plank, grilled and served with a red pepper aioli sauce for dipping.

You can serve this as an appetizer or a side at any of your cookouts, it’s way healthier, the flavors taste amazing, and it has a great presentation.

First you have to select large sweet onions, I chose vidalia onions for this recipe, nice big ones. Next, you have to figure out how to cut the onions properly, I didn’t know how to do that until I did a little research on Google and found this step by step process, it was very helpful, easy to do ( with a sharp knife) and worked out perfectly.

Once you cut the onions properly the whole thing will blossom out just like a flower with petals, the more wedges cut into the onions the prettier it will look, that’s why you need to use large ones.

Then it’s all about the seasonings you choose and you’re ready to go, use your favorites. Of course I made my onions Italian style, dusting with the dry first and then garnishing with the fresh. You can do spicy Cajun ,Mexican stlye, whatever sounds good to you, but always finishing the onions off with a generous drizzle of olive oil all over.

Do all your oiling and seasoning prior to placing on the plank to avoid flare ups, but it’s still a good idea to have a spray bottle filled with water near the grill just in case.

I wanted to try planking my onions and using a hickory board this time, but you can certainly make this without a plank by simply wrapping the onion in heavy duty foil and placing the bundles straight on the grill for around 30 minutes or so, towards the end open up the foil so it gets golden on top.

Sometimes grilling planks can be hard to find especially when you want to try different wood flavors besides cedar, here’s a great online source.

I cooked mine low and slow until the petals pulled off easily, it took about an hour, but the smell was intoxicating, I don’t have to tell you how good grilled onions smell, you can just imagine!

A quick red pepper aioli is delicious for dipping as you’re sipping a nice cold drink by your side. Enjoy!

Blossom Onions Grilled and Planked with Red Pepper Aioli

Ingredients

Large sweet onions, like Vadalia's
1 large grilling plank, cedar, hickory, maple, etc. soaked for over 2 hours ( I could fit 3 onions on mine but plank sizes vary).
Italian seasoning blend, dry
grated romano or parmesan cheese
granulated garlic
paprika
olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
fresh herbs for garnish
FOR THE RED PEPPER AIOLI
1 cup of roasted red peppers, either made yourself or a good jarred one that has been drained and patted dry well
¾ cup of good organic mayonnaise
1 crushed garlic clove
salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

Prepare your onions by cutting ½ inch off the stem end, then peel all the skin off.
Place onion cut side down, then ½ inch from the ROOT make a downward cut straight to your cutting board.
Repeat to make four evenly spaced cuts around the onion.
Continue slicing evenly between sections until you have 16 evenly spaced cuts.
Turn the onion over and separate the petals.
on foil ( for easy clean up) sprinkle your onions with the Italian seasoning mix, salt and pepper and grated cheese.
Finish by generously drizzling olive oil all over.
Place on plank, if using.
Have grill heated on low and cook until petals pull off easily and our soft and tender. About 1 hour.
Garnish with fresh basil and parsley.
FOR THE AIOLI
Place all the ingredients into a food processor until well blended.

24 Comments Filed Under: Appetizers, Side Dishes, Vegetables Tagged: blossom onions, grilled onions, grilling planks, Outdoor Gourmet, planked onions, planked vegetables

Shaved Spring Vegetables with Garden Herbs

May 29, 2014 by Marie 14 Comments

Paper thin slices of shaved raw vegetables makes up this light, bright salad that has tons of color and crunch, it’s the perfect springtime and summer side! Imagine a piece of grilled fish served along side this salad, it just screams healthy and good for you!

This recipe is specifically related to spring but it can be easily adapted by using fresh summer, fall or winter vegetables as well.

What is a must for this recipe is the use of a mandolin, that’s the only way you will achieve thin and delicate slices, if you don’t have a mandolin I highly recommend getting one, I’m surprised how many times I use mine and it was very reasonably priced.

I actually just recently tasted this salad at one of my favorite restaurants in Chicago, Quartino, where small plates of freshly made Italian food is served and meant to be shared, this was one of the things we ordered and it was delicious and Chef John Coletta was gracious enough to pass on the recipe.

I got carried away in the produce department as I often do and bought three different colored beets and three different colored carrots but you really don’t need to do that, using just one of each would be fine.

Don’t let eating raw beets scare you, they have a natural sweetness to them in their raw state, along with a nice crunch.

Arugula and fresh garden herbs get tossed into this salad which enhances the flavor of all the shaved vegetables.

Chef Coletta recommends a nice lemon and olive oil dressing for this salad but I was fortunate to receive some wonderful lemon infused extra virgin olive oil from Sorrento, via a wonderful company olio2go, that represents Italy’s finest olive oils. The intense flavor quite frankly, took this salad over the top!

Shaved Spring Vegetables with Garden Herbs

Ingredients

Adapted from Chef John Coletta
1 small bunch of radishes, sliced paper thin
2 small fennel bulbs, sliced paper thin
4 stalks of celery, sliced paper thin
1 yellow, red and orange carrot, peeled, sliced paper thin
1 yellow squash, sliced paper thin
2 small zucchini, sliced paper thin
beets, 1 striped, 1 yellow and 1 red, peeled, sliced paper thin
a generous handful of arugula leaves
4 TBLsp, chives, cut into 1 inch sticks
4 TBLsp, Italian parsley leaves
2TBLsp, fennel tops
4TBLsp celery tops
DRESSING
2 TBLsp fresh lemon juice
6 TBLsp, extra virgin olive oil, (or use lemon infused olive oil as I did.)
sea salt or kosher and ground black pepper, to taste.

Instructions

Wash the vegetables well, peel beets and carrots with a vegetable peeler. Slice and prep all vegetables before, using a mandoline. Place the vegetables, herbs and arugula into a bowl. Drizzle the lemon juice and olive oil onto the vegetables and herbs, toss and season with salt and pepper. Arrange salad on a platter or bowl. Put the dressing on 15 minutes before serving to infuse and soften the vegetables slightly.