Proud Italian Cook

La Bomba, A Spicy Condimento

November 19, 2009 by Marie 27 Comments

This condiment with a kick is great to have readily available in your frig at all times. Perfect when friends or family stop by and you need a quick appetizer or just something little to munch on. Other ways to use this spicy condiment is to toss it in with some pasta, slather it on your favorite sandwich, use it as a side, or a topping on pizza.

How can you go wrong with eggplant, fennel, roasted red peppers, onions, artichoke hearts, mushrooms and olives? The slight heat in the background is from a touch of cayenne and smoked paprika. The combination is so good together! The worse part of this recipe is that all your vegetables need to be finely diced, a little time consuming, but worth it. I would recommend making a large amount, why you might ask? Because this is another addicting little treat!

By the way, those pita chips I made go great with this!

This recipe comes from the book Earth to Table, I’m giving you the recipe from the book but I quadrupled mine and added more olive oil to the finished product, and a touch more heat.

Here’s the Ingredients:

2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

2 cups eggplant, finely diced (1 medium-large)

1 ½ cups fennel root, finely diced (1 small or ½ large bulb)

¾ cup roasted red peppers, finely diced ( I roasted my own)

¾ cup white onion, finely diced (1 large)

½ cup green olives, drained, pitted and finely diced

½ cup artichoke hearts, finely diced (I used frozen, defrosted, and added more)

2)½ cup fresh cremini mushrooms, finely diced

3 large cloves garlic, minced

¼ tsp cayenne pepper

¼ tsp smoked paprika

2 tbsp sherry vinegar

Salt & freshly ground black pepper to taste

½ cup fresh flat leaf/Italian parsley, chopped

In a large skillet saute in the olive oil all veggies until slightly softened, then add your cayenne and smoked paprika. Cool down all your veggies on a large baking sheet. When cooled, place in a bowl and add the vinegar, salt and pepper to taste, adjust your heat and toss in your parsley. I drizzled in more olive oil before I place it all in an airtight container and refrigerated it. This will last a good week.

Also wonderful with a nice chunk of crusty bread, and don’t forget to pour a glass of cold wine along side it!

Have a nice weekend and Buon Appetito!!

27 Comments Filed Under: Appetizers Tagged: holiday appetizer, la bomba, spicy condiment

Rosemary & Olive Oil Pita Chips with Tuscan White Bean Dip

November 16, 2009 by Marie 35 Comments

This is a fantastic appetizer that you might want to bring to one of your upcoming holiday parties. It feeds a crowd, it won’t break the bank, it’s easy to do, and it tastes amazing! Another nice bonus is that the chips can be made way in advance.

I’m warning you these chips are addictive, you won’t want to move very far away from them. This is my friend Jean’s recipe, the first time she made this she could hardly pry us all away to move on to the next course, in fact, we would have been very happy to continue munching on these.

The pita chips are nice and crunchy and flavored with extra virgin olive oil, a hint of rosemary and kosher salt.

The best way to store them is in a cookie tin between sheets of wax paper. They will stay crunchy and delicious for up to 3 weeks! I would recommend to make a bunch, you’ll be glad you did, as they would be great with lots of other dips or condiments you might be making. In fact I have an upcoming post for another use for these, so stay tuned!

Here’s the recipe: (Thanks Jean!)

First thing you do is soak some dried rosemary ( not fresh) in a bowl of extra virgin olive oil, you’ll be using this mixture for brushing on the pita’s. Let it soak for a good hour or so.

**1 15oz can of drained and rinsed cannellini beans.

**1/4 cup of fresh Italian parsley

**2T fresh lemon juice along with and the grated lemon peel of one lemon

**1 garlic clove

**salt and pepper

**1/3 cup of olive oil

Put everything in a food processor and stream in the olive oil until nice and creamy. So easy!

For the pita chips, buy a bag of fresh pita’s, take each pita and cut them into long strips, you should get six to 8 strips per pita. Now snip off the tips to square them off, and separate. After separation you should have around 16 individual chips then per pita. ( see why I say it makes a ton!) Brush each strip with the rosemary olive oil mixture on the rough side of the pita, the inner side, place on a baking sheet, sprinkle with kosher salt and bake in a 400F oven for about 7-8 minutes, or until golden brown. Let them cool on a rack, then place them in your cookie tin for storage.

NOTE: I would suggest not to put any rosemary in the dip at all, just the parsley, otherwise it would be too overpowering, the freshness of the zest, lemon juice, parsley and garlic is a great compliment. Feel free to double, triple, or whatever the recipe. I made 8 bags of pita with 6 cans of beans for my son and DIL’s baby shower!!!

Buon Appetito!!

35 Comments Filed Under: Appetizers, Party Foods Tagged: appetizer, party appetizers, pita chips, white bean dip

Apple Pear Crisp and Pocket Pies!

November 10, 2009 by Marie 22 Comments

A warm and bubbly crisp pulled out of the oven is one of those classic comfort desserts that is hard to resist! A great alternative to a homemade apple pie, a crisp is something that can be whipped up in a moments time and before you know it the aroma of fresh baked fruit and cinnamon is enticing your senses!

I decided to use a combination of apples and pears, but feel free to use any kind of stone fruit or even berries. Here’s the recipe:

Recipe adapted from Bon Appetit

Topping:
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup dark brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) chilled unsalted butter, cut into cubes
1 cup old-fashioned oats
1/2 cup of toasted sliced almonds
1/4 cup of diced crystallized ginger

Filling:
1/2 cup sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
4 pound mixture of apples and pears (6 to 7 large), peeled, cored, cut into 1/2-inch cubes (about 6 cups)

For the Topping:

Whisk first 4 dry ingredients in medium bowl. Add butter. Working quickly so butter does not soften, rub with fingertips until moist clumps form. Stir in oats, almonds, and ginger. Chill while preparing filling.

For the Filling:
Preheat oven to 350F. Whisk first 4 dry ingredients in large bowl. Add apples and pears and toss, now transfer your fruit mixture to a buttered baking dish. Sprinkle the topping over pear and apple mixture.
Bake until topping is crisp and golden brown and juices are bubbling, about 50 minutes. Serve warm as is or along side a scoop of vanilla ice cream or some fresh whipped cream! Enjoy!

I picked up these cute little pocket pie molds from Williams Sonoma not to long ago with the intention of doing this with my granddaughter. This past Sunday we made pocket pies together.

Just your basic apple pie filling, apples, cinnamon, butter and a little flour to thicken it all, we even used refrigerated pie dough, nothing fancy it was just fun doing it together. You could be really creative with all different kinds of fillings and maybe even making some savory ones.

We used the apple and pumpkin shapes but they also have heart and star molds too. Wouldn’t these be cute as gifts wrapped in cellophane bags and tied with raffia? ( I’m getting so crafty!)