Recipes / Food - Drink

[beppe]

This recipe shows a very common use of anchovies in the Italian and Provençal way of cooking. I am talking of fillets of anchovies under oil commonly sold in small tins (about 50 gr) or of anchovies under salt (the smaller tin has about 500 gr. of anchovies in it: i keep both sort as I use frequently the tasty fish). The use is as a flavor enhancer.

Ingredients (2 to 3 servings)
1 pound green beans, trimmed
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 teaspoon lightly packed lemon zest
1 teaspoon rinsed and finely chopped cured anchovies (about 2 fillets)
1 medium shallot, thinly sliced
1/2 cup thinly sliced cured pitted black olives
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

Directions
Bring a medium pot of heavily salted water to a boil over high heat. Prepare a water bath by filling a bowl halfway with ice water.

Once water boils, add green beans until cooked but still firm, about 4 minutes. Place in ice water bath until cool. Drain and shake off excess water.

In a medium nonreactive bowl, thoroughly mix olive oil, juice, zest, and anchovies; season well with salt and pepper. Add green beans, shallot, olives, and parsley, and mix well; taste, adjust seasoning as needed. Salad can be served immediately though flavor improves as it sits.

Bold: What a nice trick. It helps to keep the freshly cooked beens firm and with their color. To me cooking is these little caring details that make the difference, expecially with fresh ingredients.

She is using shallots, which is very elegant. I might change the aroma of the dish, just by lightly scraping a clove of garlic along the bowl before setting up the salad.




Source

[SameOldStory]

Maybe I missed it, but has anyone covered fish sticks?

I mean, errr, ah. I mean it's not as fancy as Beppe's stuff, but I like um.

[beppe]

Originally Posted by SameOldStory

Maybe I missed it, but has anyone covered fish sticks?

I mean, errr, ah. I mean it's not as fancy as Beppe's stuff, but I like um.

]

What are those contraptions that the fine Ukrainian looking lady, just out of the deer hunter is holding erected near the tomatoes that she is hiding under her polo shirt ?

Ah, I forgot. It was said in a kind, slow, quiet, clear voice. And i kept making body motions saying please, thank you, do not take offence, ah ah, unscrutable, ah ah

[badgoodDeb]

Huh. And here I always thought "the only good anchovy is a dead anchovy".

Oh wait. They *are* dead, aren't they?? Still not gonna happen in *MY* kitchen!

[WT Sharpe]

Originally Posted by badgoodDeb

Huh. And here I always thought "the only good anchovy is a dead anchovy".

Oh wait. They *are* dead, aren't they?? Still not gonna happen in *MY* kitchen!

Once in a great while I order a pizza with anchovies. It's delicious, but then I don't need another fix for about six months.

Someone at work once gave me a tin of caviar. Being the classy kind of guy I am, I used it as a pizza topping. It tasted like anchovies.

Have I mentioned that pizza is nature's most nearly perfect food?

[kindlekitten]

Originally Posted by WT Sharpe

Once in a great while I order a pizza with anchovies. It's delicious, but then I don't need another fix for about six months.

Someone at work once gave me a tin of caviar. Being the classy kind of guy I am, I used it as a pizza topping. It tasted like anchovies.

Have I mentioned that pizza is nature's most nearly perfect food?

we used to keep a little container of anchovies in the freezer for my Dad to put on pizza.

I lurves me some caviar!

[BenG]

The only time I eat anchovies is when I make spaghetti alla puttanesca, maybe 2 or 3 times a month.

[kindlekitten]

Originally Posted by BenG

The only time I eat anchovies is when I make spaghetti alla puttanesca, maybe 2 or 3 times a month.

*only* ha!

[Pito Loco]

Canadian coffee

Ingredients
1/4 c. Maple syrup; pure
1/2 c. Rye whiskey
3 c. Coffee; hot, black, double strength
TOPPING: 3/4 c. Whipping cream
4 Tsp. Maple syrup; pure

Directions
Topping: Whip cream with maple syrup just up until soft mounds; set aside. Divide maple syrup and whiskey among 4 warmed heat proof glass mugs or goblets. Pour in coffee to 1 inch of top; spoon topping over coffee. Decorate with tiny Canadian flags if desired.

MAKES: 4 Servings

[Ea]

When I recently made Beppe's recipe for Bagna Cauda, which includes anchovies, I was a little overwhelmed by the taste (to put it mildly) - but as I learned later I used the wrong kind of anchovies (ersatz, and pickled too), and I probably didn't quite understand the instructions on how to eat it either....

I've now been able to get hold of real anchovies, preserved in oil, and recently I made the following nice and easy recipe that is also bagna cauda, but made and served in s slightly different manner, and that was a very positive experience.

Anchovies seem to me to be a great way of adding umami flavour, but should be either used sparingly or with ingredients with enough oomph to challenge its strong flavour.

Broccoli bagna cauda with pasta - 2 persons

250-300 gram broccoli, cut in small/bite-size pieces
3-4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1-2 anchovie fillets (salted and cleaned or the kind in oil)
a dash of chili flakes or a little fresh, finely chopped chili
2-3 tablespoon olive oil
½-1 dl /50-100 ml / 1/4-½ cup white wine or Noilly Prat
pasta for two, f.ex. fusilli or conchiglie
fresh parmesan, coarsely shredded, 1-2 handful
fresh basil

Cut broccoli and steam in microwave until crisp-tender.

Boil pasta in lightly salted water.

While it's boiling, simmer garlic, anchovies and chili in olive oil a few minutes (garlic musn't burn). Stir it so the anchovies dissolve.

Add wine and let the alcohol evaporate.

Add broccoli and heat through.

Add pasta.

Serve sprinkled with parmesan and basil.


Source

[Ea]

Originally Posted by beppe

This recipe shows a very common use of anchovies in the Italian and Provençal way of cooking. I am talking of fillets of anchovies under oil commonly sold in small tins (about 50 gr) or of anchovies under salt (the smaller tin has about 500 gr. of anchovies in it: i keep both sort as I use frequently the tasty fish). The use is as a flavor enhancer.

...

Looks like an interesting recipe, Beppe. The suggestion of slicing the olives thinly honestly makes me much more comfortable about using them

[beppe]

Originally Posted by Ea

Looks like an interesting recipe, Beppe. The suggestion of slicing the olives thinly honestly makes me much more comfortable about using them

thank you Ea, the season is almost finished for fresh string beans here.
It is a simplified version of the Salade Nicoise that has all those ingredients that get Northerners nervous. Now I just found out that olives also evocate aversion. Ah Ah. For me the best are those stuffed with anchovies, I mean for drinks.

Spoiler:

Niçoise salad (French pronunciation: [niˈswaz]), sometimes referred to as Salade Niçoise or insalata nizzarda, is a mixed salad consisting of various vegetables topped with tuna and anchovy. It is a specialty of the Côte d'Azur named for the city of Nice.
The salad or "salade" is displayed on a flat plate or platter and arranged on a bed of lettuce. Ripe tomato wedges, halved boiled new potatoes, steamed green bean, wedges of hard-cooked eggs, are topped with canned tuna (tinned in oil), and Niçoise olives. Finally the salad is garnished with tinned anchovies. The salad is served with vinaigrette.
The original version of the salad always included raw red peppers, shallots, and artichoke hearts, never potatoes. The French, especially in the Nice area, will clearly state no cooked vegetables are to be used. "[...]la salade Niçoise ne contient pas de légumes cuits."[citation needed]
Rumors suggest the famous choreographer Balanchine may have influenced the creation of this dish during his tenure in Monte Carlo. Others claim it is a Provençal dish.[citation needed] This salad was made famous in America by "the French Chef", Julia Child.[citation needed]
Salade Niçoise and its ingredients are often debated by purists. A common debate is the use of lettuce, which differs from village to village.

[Ea]

Originally Posted by beppe

thank you Ea, the season is almost finished for fresh string beans here.

Same here, but if I hurry, I might find fresh green beans yet.

Originally Posted by beppe

It is a simplified version of the Salade Nicoise that has all those ingredients that get Northerners nervous. Now I just found out that olives also evocate aversion. Ah Ah. For me the best are those stuffed with anchovies, I mean for drinks.

Hm. Olives stuffed with anchovies make me even more nervous... I think I need a drink

Originally Posted by beppe

Spoiler:

Niçoise salad (French pronunciation: [niˈswaz]), sometimes referred to as Salade Niçoise or insalata nizzarda, is a mixed salad consisting of various vegetables topped with tuna and anchovy. It is a specialty of the Côte d'Azur named for the city of Nice.
The salad or "salade" is displayed on a flat plate or platter and arranged on a bed of lettuce. Ripe tomato wedges, halved boiled new potatoes, steamed green bean, wedges of hard-cooked eggs, are topped with canned tuna (tinned in oil), and Niçoise olives. Finally the salad is garnished with tinned anchovies. The salad is served with vinaigrette.
The original version of the salad always included raw red peppers, shallots, and artichoke hearts, never potatoes. The French, especially in the Nice area, will clearly state no cooked vegetables are to be used. "[...]la salade Niçoise ne contient pas de légumes cuits."[citation needed]
Rumors suggest the famous choreographer Balanchine may have influenced the creation of this dish during his tenure in Monte Carlo. Others claim it is a Provençal dish.[citation needed] This salad was made famous in America by "the French Chef", Julia Child.[citation needed]
Salade Niçoise and its ingredients are often debated by purists. A common debate is the use of lettuce, which differs from village to village.

Interesting - thank you. Though I seem to recognise certain elements in the text that leads me to guess you have found this text elsewhere.... Beppe, as a man of letters that I think you are, one would assume you are aware of citation technique, etc. and would know how to reference materials from other sources Tch, tch...

[beppe]

Originally Posted by Ea

Same here, but if I hurry, I might find fresh green beans yet.

I would make an addition to the salad: few slices of Parmesan, i think that in Danemark you have those cheese slicers for all season. Or Grana Padano, or one of your excellent demi-hard ones. After the seasoning...

Hm. Olives stuffed with anchovies make me even more nervous... I think I need a drink

A Campari wants his twin brother. I do this trick: take an olive, cautiously work the pit, transfer it outside, get a large chip or two, get the flavors well mixed, then Campari does its job. Remember that they go out the way they got in. So the pit has to be handled carefully.

Interesting - thank you. Though I seem to recognise certain elements in the text that leads me to guess you have found this text elsewhere.... Beppe, as a man of letters one would assume you are aware of citation technique, etc. and would know how to reference materials from other sources Tch, tch...

Ea, you got me with the hand still wet of Wikipedia. *I* need a drink now.

[astrangerhere]

Made a loaf this morning, made hot panini for lunch with it this afternoon. Works in every bread machine I've ever tried.

* 1 cup warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
* 2 tablespoons white sugar
* 1 (.25 ounce) package bread machine yeast
* 1/4 cup vegetable oil
* 3 cups bread flour
* 1.5 teaspoon salt


Directions

Place the water, sugar and yeast in the pan of the bread machine (no matter what your bread machine instructions are). Let the yeast dissolve and foam for 10 minutes. Add the oil, flour and salt to the yeast. Select Basic or White Bread setting, and press Start.