SPEZZATINO DI MANZO-ITALIAN BEEF STEW

Everyone has some kind of stew. Canadians make a good stew with stewing beef and large vegetables. The Irish stew uses lamb.
My favourite stew is the way I learnt from ny region- Ciociaria in Italy.

INGREDIENTS

Meat- some tender beef. Can be stewing beef or round steak. 1 lb- 2.2 kg or more depending on the number of people to be served.
Celery- 1 stalk.
Carrot- 1.
Onion-1.
Garlic.
Olive Oil-EVOO.
Bay leaf.
Salt, pepper.
Red Wine.

Remember if serving a large crowd, just up the number of each ingredient.

You can make Italian stew with a good cut of veal with the same ingredients. However, use white wine.

DIRECTIONS

Dice a garlic bud or 2 and fry with a spoon of olive oil in the pot.

Thinly dice the carrot, onion and celery.



Cut up the meat into small bite size pieces. Saute in the fried garlic.

Add the thinly diced onion, celery, onion. Actually doing all this work, makes me think that Italian cooks must have a lot of time on their hands as it takes time to dice thinly with a knife!

Add 1/2 cup of red wine.

Add a Bay Leaf.

Salt, pepper to taste.

Let simmer in the covered pot for 2-3 hours. Check and stir the ingredients often. 

For you modern cooks, it can be cooked in your slow cooker or crock pot. 

The simmering lets the meat tenderize while cooking. 

Before you start to serve any stew make sure to remove the bay leaf. Many people have choked on it as it does not tenderize or fall apart.

I like to serve the stew on top of some mashed potatoes or you can serve the stew or spezzatino on its own.

Making this dish reminded me of my childhood. We used to have a bay leaf tree- actually it was a bush- on our driveway at our house in Italy. It seemed bigger because I was smaller. I remember we had a chestnut tree and some rosemary and oliander bushes too. Cooking can sure bring back memories.  I could not find a picture of the bushes but did round up some pictures of me near the house and another with my cousins in a field of flowers.



HOW TO MAKE HOMEMADE LASAGNA ALLA GRANPA ADOLFO

Although lasagna is not my favourite pasta dish, I make it at the request of my family. For my grandsons's baptism parties a couple of years ago, Granpa made the lasagna. Recently, to help out my busy working daughters and a friend, there were a couple of busy weekends in February and March making several pans of lasagna for them. Of course, for the faint of heart you can buy ready made frozen ones or some markets have ones ready to cook. This dish uses a lot of pots, dishes and really messes the kitchen from one end to another. Good thing I have my assistant Barb for clean-up!

There is nothing more tasty than those fresh from the kitchen of any Italian cook.

It is always a good idea to make several pans as this is a very time consuming dish. So with the ingredients gage the number of ingredient portions by the size of a big pan or smaller pans you are using.

INGREDIENTS

 Homemade egg noodle pasta ( eggs, flour, salt to taste).( See my blog on making this item). For the busy cook you can buy the packaged ready for oven strips. Homemade is better.

Ragu Sauce ( see my blog on making this sauce).

Eggs- 6-12 or more depending on the number of pans you are making.

Mozzarella cheese- 1 or 2 packages. Or if you prefer ricotta cheese 1 or 2 containers. Or like some Canadians who use cottage cheese 1 or 2 containers- I would never make a lasagna with it! My preference is always the mozzarella cheese.

Ground beef- 1/2 to 2 lbs- depending on the number of pans.

Bechamel Sauce- milk, flour and 1 spoon or two of ragu sauce for colour.

Salt, pepper to taste.

Garlic cloves- diced to add to the meat or even sprinkle if wanted on the layers.

Parmesean Cheese.

Use your glass pans or there are good tin foil ones at any market or especially your nearest dollar store. Then when giving to another household there is no need to return the pan!

DIRECTIONS

You can make all the ingredients in one day if you chose.

 I like to prepare the egg noodle pasta the previous day. Kneading it well and leaving it in a ball in a bowl in the fridge.

I also like to prepare the ragu sauce the previous day so it is done and ready to go when I want to make the lasagna.

Many cooks will prepare everything in one day. I like to do things in stages.
 
The day you are making the dish, be ready for the process. If needed have a coffee to drink while working.

Boil the eggs in a pot until done. Remove shells when cooled. Chop into little pieces. Set aside

Cook the ground meat in oil with some garlic and parsley added to taste. When finished cooking, drain the oil and pat with a paper towel to remove as much of the grease. My mother used to make the ground beef into little balls which is more time consuming. I just cook the meat quickly- less work, same taste. Set aside.

Of course you can be boiling the eggs and cooking the meat at the same time.

Grate the mozzarella cheese into a bowl. Set aside.

I have my helper Barb who often helps with the chopping of the eggs and grating of the cheese.

Have the number of pans whether glass or tin foil, ready to go on your counter. Have the dishes of prepared items close to the pans. When you start to layer, everything should be handy.

Have your pasta maker on the counter and your bowl of egg noodle ready to shape into long strips of pasta.

In a large pot, fill with water and let it start to boil.

Put some of the ragu sauce in the bottom of each pan.

As you shape the pasta into long strips, put them in the boiling water. You can make several before you start to boil them. As with any noodle pasta the cooking time is very fast.

On the bottom of each pan, put the egg noodle strips.

Now the layering- a meat layer and some sauce, top with egg noodle strip fresh from the water.

If you cook too many strips and place them on top of each other, they may stick together. So it is better to cook, then layer one or two at a time. If the strips are the length of your pan it makes them easier to layer. So make sure you have the strips the length of your pans.

An egg layer- top with egg noodle strip. You can add some sauce to each layer

A cheese layer- top with egg noodle strip.

It's your lasagna so if you want to mix the egg and cheese in one layer, it is okay.

Depending on the depth of your pan you will determine the number of layers needed.

You are very busy taking the cooked noodles from the hot water and layering. So do be careful to use tongs or other kitchen utensils and not to burn yourself.

The lasagna is layered. Put egg noodle strips on top with enough sauce to coat the top and add parmesean cheese.

Recently I started to make a bechamel sauce- put some milk, a little flour in  a pot and boil-  about 10 minutes, stirring constantly until a little brown, add a spoon or two of the sauce to give colour. Now add to the layered lasagna.

I find it makes the lasagna  moister. I used to find others' lasagna a little dry. So now I have my own touch to add to the dish.

Cook at 375 degrees for 45 minutes. I place the pans in the middle of the oven so as not to burn the bottom.

One big pan for a special party or several small pans for several homes or meals, lasagna is always popular. One useful hint- let the lasagna sit before serving. You can serve straight from the oven but if you allow it to sit the ingredients come together better.

If in smaller pans or even one serving portions, you can freeze it for another day.

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THE WEDDING SOUP

This is another version of soup that uses the basic broth. So is your basic broth made?

When I was growing up in Italy and after moving to Canada we did not call it The Wedding Soup." On one of our many family trips when we took my mother to Florida there was a funny moment at a restaurant where we stopped to eat. Mamma ordered this soup. Barb asked her- Mamma, this looks like the soup you make? What do you call it as you do not call it wedding soup? Mamma replied-No,  I call it The Sunday Soup! Barb asked why? Mamma said because it is the soup we make on Sunday!"

Again can be substituted for a pasta dish with this soup dish.

Hopefully you have been grocery shopping and bought fresh escarola for this soup. Remember the green vegetables are good for you.

There is more preparation needed than some other soups.

INGREDIENTS

Basic broth.
Escarola- 1 bunch.
Ground beef.
Garlic clove.
Salt, pepper.

DIRECTIONS

Clean and boil the escarola.

With the ground beef, add some finely diced garlic clove, salt, pepper to taste. Mix with your clean hands. Now roll into little thumb size balls. You can fry them in a pan with some oil or I now put them on a cookie sheet in the oven to cook. Reduces the grease- saving calories too.

Cut up the escarola into bite size pieces after boiling and cooling. Put aside.

Boil some basic broth in the amount needed for the number of people that are eating. Turn it off.

Add the little meatballs and escarola into the broth.

Some cooks use less escarola, I like mine with plenty so it serves as another vegetable portion to the meal.

Ladle soup into bowls and serve.

Add parmesean cheese to taste.

If you having a dinner party, it is nice first dish after the antipasto plate.

A HEARTY SOUP SOOTHES THE SOUL-LA ZUPPA PER L'ANIMA

I love to make soups. Of course, I love to eat a good soup. Today I am starting with one kind of soup- la zuppa. It is the basic chicken broth. Every chef or cook always has the basic stock as a staple that can be used in different menu plans. I will be blogging about different soups in the future that involve more preparation.

A real Italian cook from the Ciociaria area would use an old chicken hen which gets boiled for 2-3 hours. I just use the North American speed-fast method , i.e. using a chicken leg with thigh.

This soup can be made for one meal or a larger batch for several meals. I usually make a larger batch for at least 3 meals. Modern cooks can use a slow cooker or crock pot. I still use a saucepan on the stove.
 
STOCK CHICKEN BROTH

INGREDIENTS ( use 1 each or more depending on the batch wanted)

1 or more chicken legs with thighs.

Saucepan that can accomodate 20 cups( 5 litres ) of water. Using a big pot is better so there is less chance of boiling over.

1- 3 carrots.

1- 3 onions.

1- 3 celery stalks.

1- 3 tomatoes- frozen ones, take off the skin- from your summer stock. Or a fresh tomato. Actually tomatoes are optional.

Parsley to taste.

Garlic cloves. 1-3 peeled and left whole.

Salt, pepper to taste.

DIRECTIONS

Water in the saucepan or large pot. Turn on to boil

Add chicken.

Clean carotts and leave whole adding to water.

Skin onions and leaves whole adding to water.

Add tomotoes.

Parsley whole or grounded.

Salt and pepper.
 
After bringing to broth to the boil, turn down heat.

Let broth simmer for at least an hour or even longer.

When all the ingredients are cooked, remove them to a separate plate with just the broth remaining.

The chicken and vegetables can be eaten separately. The boiled chicken tastes good with a little salt.

A BASIC SOUP

Use a portion of the broth. Keep in a separate pot.

Boil and cook your favourite soup pasta. Like baby shells, tubetti.

Salt to taste.

Some Italians like to use the egg noodle- tagliatelle for their soup.

Once cooked, drain and add to the broth for a quick soup. Add parmesean cheese if desired.


STRACCIATELLA

This is a flavourful soup when you do not want a pasta dish with dinner. Or you just want some light eating.

Put a portion of broth in a pot and bring to a boil. A nice quick mid-week dish. See you are using that extra batch you made.

While waiting for the broth to boil, beat 1-3 eggs with parmesean cheese. Depending again on how many portions you want.

Add the mixture to the boiling broth, stirring to break it up to distribute in the broth.

When it is in little clumps, it is done. It does not take very long. For the harried after work cook, looking good.

Serve in bowls and each person can add additional parmesean cheese as a topper. A fresh bun or crunchy Italian bread and the soup also make a good combo.

ITALIAN RISOTTO

Using the basic broth cook the portion of rice you want for dinner in some broth. The rice absorbs the taste and the liquid is boiled down.
Cook the rice to the texture you desire. I like a little al dente while Barb always likes any pasta or rice to be a bit "mushy". I still think al dente is better.

Added Notes- A good soup simmering in the house is so wonderful to smell. The aroma reminds me of my mother and the many times she made soup- la zuppa per la famiglia!