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| At the Philadelphia Flower Show |
That afternoon, back in Memphis, I went to the Today Show site, downloaded the recipes, and went to the grocery store. The download conveniently included a grocery list, thank you very much. Unfortunately, the person who transcribed the recipes into this download missed a couple of things, so I had to find the original recipe and fill in come. Minor problem, which I've fixed below. I didn't do the meatballs as we had a class that night. We went to Fino's and had their delicious meatball sub!
The grocery list is at the end of the post.
Lidia Bastianich Marinara Recipe
(makes 6 cups)
- Heat the oil in a 2 to 3-quart non-reactive saucepan over medium heat. Whack the garlic with the flat side of a knife, add it to the oil and cook until lightly browned.
- Crush the tomatoes by hand or pass through a vegetable mill, slide the crushed tomatoes and their liquid into the oil, bring to a boil and season lightly with salt and crushed red pepper. Lower the heat so the sauce is at a lively simmer and cook, breaking up the tomatoes with a whisk or spoon, until the sauce is chunky and thick, about 20 minutes. Stir in the basil about 5 minutes before the sauce is finished. Taste the sauce and season with salt and red pepper if necessary.
- Remove garlic cloves, let cool and store in pint and quart containers, mark the containers with date and name of sauce before freezing. It will keep well in the freezer for 1 to 2 months.
Ingredients:
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
8 garlic cloves, peeled
2- 35 oz cans of Italian plum tomatoes (preferably San
Marzano)
Crushed red pepper to taste
10 fresh basil leaves
1 teaspoon salt
Directions:
Lidia Bastianich Skillet Gratinate Of Mushrooms and Chicken Recipe
Ingredients:
- 2 pounds skinless boneless chicken breasts or chicken tenders
- 12 large Shiitake mushrooms
- 1 cup flour, or more, for dredging
- 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil or more if needed
- 1/2 teaspoon salt, or more to taste
For sauce:
- 3 tablespoons soft butter
- 1 cup Marinara Sauce
- 1 cup white wine
- 6 fresh sage leaves
- 3/4 cup grated Grana Padano cheese
- 1 cup hot simple vegetable broth or stock, if needed
Directions:
- Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 425 degrees.
- If the chicken breasts are whole, cut them in half. Trim off any bits of fat, skin or tendon. Flatten each breast half with a mallet to an even thickness, about 3/4-inch.
- Trim the stem and wash the mushrooms caps and pat them dry.
- Put 3 tablespoons of the olive oil into the skillet and set it over medium heat.
- Toss the mushroom caps in flour to coat well, pat off any excess and lay them into the pan. Keep the heat moderate and let the pieces caramelize slowly for about 4 minutes. Turn when the edges are nicely browned on the underside; fry for about 2 minutes on the second side. With a slotted spatula, lift the mushrooms to a plate or tray with paper towels and salt lightly. Fry the remaining mushroom caps in the same way and salt them.
- When the mushrooms are done, turn off the heat but leave all the oil in the skillet.
- You should have at least 2 tablespoons of olive oil in the skillet. Add 1 tablespoon of the butter and set the pan over low-medium heat.
- Salt the chicken pieces lightly, flop them in the dredging flour to coat on both sides, and pat off excess. When the butter is just beginning to sizzle, arrange all six cutlets in the pan. Cook them gently for a minute and a half, and then turn them over: they should be very lightly colored, with no browning.
- Maintain the gentle cooking while you assemble the gratinate.
- Sprinkle the chicken again with salt (using 1/2 teaspoon total for the dish).
- Spread a heaping tablespoon of marinara sauce on top of each cutlet.
- Arrange the mushroom caps on top of the sauced chicken, use 2 mushroom caps per piece of chicken.
- Now raise the heat a bit and begin to develop the sauce:
- Drop the remaining butter, in small pieces, in between the layered cutlets.
- After a few seconds, pour in 2/3 cup of the wine around the cutlets and let it heat briefly, 10 to 20 seconds.
- Spoon the rest of the cup of marinara sauce into the pan (not on the chicken).
- Bring to a simmer, and then drop the sage into the sauce all around the pan.
- Give the pan a gentle shake, or two, to mix and emulsify the sauce ingredients.
- Finally, sprinkle two tablespoons of grated cheese evenly over each mushroom-topped mound.
- At this point, the sauce should be about 1/3-inch deep in your pan or even higher, coming well up the sides of the chicken cutlets. If not, pour in the rest of the wine and as much hot water or stock as necessary. Raise the heat again to bring the pan sauce to a simmer.
Finishing in the Oven:
- When the sauce is simmering, place the skillet in the oven. (Put the handle in front and the food in the back).
- Bake for about 10 minutes-and have thick pot holders or dry towels in hand before you touch the handle or the skillet!-then open the oven and check the pan.
- Right on the rack; give the skillet another gentle shake. There should still be plenty of sauce and the cheese should be lightly colored. If the sauce appears syrupy, or close to evaporating, add more herb water, stock, tomato sauce or wine to raise the level.
- Bake for another 8 to 10 minutes, until the chicken is fully cooked and tender and the gratinate top is deeply and evenly browned. If the cheese layer still appears too light, raise the heat in the oven as high as possible (turn on the broiler if it is top-mounted) and bake briefly until it is as dark and crispy as you like.
- Carefully remove the skillet from the oven, handling it with plenty of thick cloths. I carry it right to the dining table where it makes a beautiful presentation. While on the table, leave the cloths covering the hot handle. With a large, angled spatula, lift one portion of chicken and mushroom gratinate onto a dinner plate, then spoon over some of the sauce.
Ingredients:
- 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 garlic cloves, sliced
- 2 cups of Marinara sauce
- 1 bunch scallions, trimmed and chopped
- 1 medium zucchini, cut in 2-by-1/2-inch strips
- 1 red, 1 yellow bell pepper, cut in 2-by-1/2-inch strips
- 1 cup of defrosted peas or fava beans
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 1/2 pounds large shrimp, peeled and deveined
- 1/2 cup loosely packed basil leaves, shredded
Directions:
- In a large Dutch oven over medium heat, add olive oil. When oil is hot, add garlic. Let the garlic sizzle a minute, then add the peppers. Cook and stir until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the marinara, bring to a simmer and cook until slightly thickened, about five minutes.
- Add the scallions, peas or fava bean and salt. Bring to a simmer and cook another five minutes, then stir in the shrimp. Simmer until shrimp are pink and just cooked through, about three to four minutes. Stir in the basil and serve over steamed rice.
Baked rigatoni and zucchini
Ingredients:
- For marinara sauce: Heat the oil in a 2 to 3-quart non-reactive
saucepan over medium heat. Whack the garlic with the flat side of a knife, add
it to the oil and cook until lightly browned.
- Crush the tomatoes by hand or pass through a vegetable mill,
slide the crushed tomatoes and their liquid into the oil, bring to a boil and
season lightly with salt and crushed red pepper. Lower the heat so the sauce is
at a lively simmer and cook, breaking up the tomatoes with a whisk or spoon,
until the sauce is chunky and thick, about 20 minutes. Stir in the basil about
5 minutes before the sauce is finished. Taste the sauce and season with salt
and red pepper if necessary.
- Remove garlic cloves, let cool and store in pint and quart
containers, mark the containers with date and name of sauce before freezing. It
will keep well in the freezer for 1 to 2 months.
- For baked rigatoni: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Bring
a large pot of salted water to boil for pasta. In a large skillet, heat the
olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and cook until it begins to soften,
about 5 minutes. Add the zucchini, and
cook until zucchini begins to soften, another 5 minutes.
- Add the Marinara sauce to the skillet. Bring the sauce to a boil and simmer just
until the sauce thickens, about 8 to 10 minutes, but don't let the zucchini
begin to fall apart.
- Meanwhile, cook the rigatoni until al dente, a few minutes
shy of the package directions. Drain the
pasta and toss in the skillet with the tomato sauce and basil. Butter a 9-by-13-inch baking dish. In a medium bowl toss together the 2 grated cheeses. Spread half the pasta and sauce in the baking
dish and top with half the cheese. Layer
the remaining pasta and sauce, then the remaining cheese. Bake uncovered until browned and bubbly,
about 20 minutes.
Serving Size
Lidia Bastianich Meatballs Recipe
Ingredients:
- 1 medium carrot, coarsely chopped
- 2 stalks celery, coarsely chopped
- 1 medium onion, coarsely chopped
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 pound ground pork
- 1 pound ground veal
- 2 large eggs, beaten
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1⁄2 cup chopped fresh parsley
- 2 cups bread crumbs
- 1 tablespoon kosher salt
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
- Combine the carrot, celery and onion in a food processor, pulsing to make a fine-textured paste or pestata. Scrape the pestata into a large bowl, and add the three meats, eggs, oregano, parsley, bread crumbs and salt, mixing with your hands to combine well. Roll the meat into golf-ball-sized balls, and place on baking sheets lined with parchment paper. Bake the meatballs until browned all over, about 18 to 20 minutes.
Use in spaghetti, for meatball subs, etc. Freezes well.
Grocery list:
Extra virgin olive oil
Unsalted butter
Salt
2 large eggs
8 oz Muenster or Taleggio cheese
2 c grated Grana Padano cheese
2 lbs skinless boneless chicken breasts or chicken tenders
1 1/2 pounds large shrimp, peeled, deveined
1 pound ground beef
1 pound ground pork
1 pound ground veal
Rice
Flour
Bread crumbs
1 c vegetable broth or stock
1 c white wine
Garlic
12 Shiitaki mushrooms
Bunch scallions
3 zucchini
Red, yellow bell pepper
Carrot
Celery
2 onions
Frozen peas or fava beans
Fresh basil leaves
Dried oregano
Fresh parsley
Fresh sage leaves
Crushed red pepper
2 35-oz cans of Italian plum tomatoes
1 lb rigatoni
Sandwich rolls
