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 As
a winery with an Italian heritage, our philosophy of winedrinking has a
European bent. Fratelli Perata wines begin in the fields of Paso Robles,
where vines are nurtured.
The
wines are carefully aged, in barrels chosen specifically for each variety
of wine.
So it is with food. Fast food, fast wine. How soon we forget them both. In homage of those wonderful keepers of the old ways, who have wine with dinner, with food of which memories are made, or at least a good, crusty bread and cheese, here’s to you. Salute! We'll add new recipes, so check back! Appetizers Muffaletto
Soups Baked
Pork and Bean Soup with Herbs
Salads Salad
with Fratelli Perata Verjus & Candied Walnuts
Main Courses Lasagna
"Baia Bianca"
Sides Caramelized
Shallot Potatoes
Desserts Carol's
Cranberry-Almond Biscotti
Miscellaneous Fratelli
Perata BBQ Dry Rub
Buon Amici Club Dinner Recipes The
Inaugural
Buon' Amici Wine Club Dinner Recipes
Appetizers Our Tre Sorelle is named after our daughters, who are individuals in their own right. Variations to the theme are a good thing, keeping life vital and fun. Here is an alternative to muffaletto; an olive based recipe with the spiciness to refresh your appetite. A food processor makes easy work of this. The rich peppery flavors work well with the Tre Sorelle. 2 cups
Kalamata olives, pitted
Pit olives if necessary: place on board, squash with edge of large knife, remove pit. Place in food processor. Add drained capers, garlic. Whirl quickly until all are chopped, as in a large mince. Place
in jar or container to age. Add ¼ to ½ teaspoon Thyme, stir,
and top with olive oil.
This
is an easy to handle finger-food that tastes really good with red wine,
especially Merlot. It takes lots of eggs so we make it in the spring, but
it’s good any time of year.
Set the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit 2 cups
flour
Make the dough: Sift the flour and salt into a small mound on a flour surface. Add 2 eggs and work the flour with your fingers until the flour is all absorbed, adding 1 egg if it’s very stiff (depends on the humidity). Knead until elastic, and then roll this into a thin sheet. This will be about a 14” circle. Grease a baking sheet with olive oil or Pam, place the sheet on it, centering the dough knowing that you’ll be folding it in half. Make the Filling: Lightly beat the remaining eggs, add both cheeses. Pour onto ½ of the dough, spread, leaving ½” edge. Fold one side of the dough over to form a semicircle, completely covering the filling. Seal the edges firmly with a fork to prevent leaks. Bake about 30 minutes. The Fiadone should be golden brown. Cut into 1 inch strips when cold, serve with red wine. Sometimes simpler is better. After an amazing pasta dish with intricate flavors, a straightforward piece of meat is best. And then the meal could end with some fabulous chocolate creation! These mushrooms are very easy to prepare, yet add that extra element that seductively makes the meat fabulous. Hey, if the famous food websites can give a recipe for boiling water, you can really show off with this one! 2 pounds
mushrooms, your choice, not too large buttons are fine
Slice clean mushroom thinly and place in skillet with olive oil and butter. Saute over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until mushrooms are soft. Softly
stir in garlic, warm, and then add salt and pepper to taste.
Fratelli Perata BBQ Mushroom Caps In case you need an excuse to drink the 1999 Sangiovese, here's another evening BBQ pairing that will have your friends asking for more: more Sangiovese, more BBQ. Make these the day ahead, cover, and refrigerate. Put on the grill when guests begin to arrive. 2-pounds
Italian medium hot sausage (Sam's Deli in Fresno has great sausage)
Remove the sausage from casings, sauté with ½ cup wine until just cooked, breaking into very small pieces while stirring. Drain fat, set aside to cool. Mix softened cream cheese and Parmigiano Reggiano together, and then mix in beaten egg. Mix cheese mixture with cooled cooked sausage. Spritz mushroom caps with red wine, fill with sausage, about 1 tablespoon each. Place on platter, cover, and refrigerate. To BBQ: place cap filling side up directly over medium hot coals. Cook approximately 5 to 10 minutes, or until mushroom and cooked through and sausage is warm. Serve warm off the BBQ with Sangiovese. Parmigiano Marries Cabernet Appetizer This is an easy recipe for the busy Holidays. Reminding us of the fondue craze of the 1960’s, it is easier and with no drips! Because of the salt from the cheese and the cloves, it is a perfect match for Cabernet Sauvignon. This recipe can be doubled or halved as desired. Like wine, the better the ingredients you start with, the better the end product. Freshly grated cheese is terrific, but pre-grated in a jar is ok in a pinch. 2 cups
grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese
2 loaves
baguettes, sliced crosswise into silver dollar shapes
In a saucepan on top of the stove, pour half and half. Then with the heat on medium low, slowly add the grated cheese, stirring to melt with each addition. When uniformly melted, add the garlic and cloves. Stir well and allow to cool off the burner. When cool, place the baguette slices on a cookie sheet, brush with olive oil, toast quickly on one side in a 400-degree oven. To serve, spread cheese mixture on baguette slice. If the cheese seems too thick to spread, add a little half and half. This is a Perata tradition, served with any red wine, over crusty French bread. It is our most requested recipe. As an appetizer it can stand with good bread, added to Foccacia with salami and cheese it makes a great lunch. This is particularly good with Sangiovese and Nebbiolo, as their higher acidity balances well with the rich olive oil, and the olive and garlic flavors. Ripe
and green olives, pitted, no pimientos, in equal amounts
Mince
the olives, garlic and bell pepper, place in a container that has a lid.
The light handed may try to use a food processor, but this easily may turn
to mush so be careful.
Top it all with olive oil, cover with airtight lid. Put in refrigerator overnight. To serve, drain most of the olive oil and bring to room temperature. Here is an appetizer that is fast, looks good, tastes great and will surpise your guests. The method is this: think of clam chowder in a bread bowl. Here we use a 20-ounce brie as the bread round, and add porcini. 1-20
ounce round brie
Choose the small odd-shaped dried porcini that are at the bottom of the bag when you've taken out the larger pieces for fancier dishes. Or use a combination of shitake and porcini. Soak for 20 minutes in water. Remove, rinse off any grit you feel, chop fine with a sharp knife so it's not mushy. While the mushrooms rehydrate, unwrap the brie. With a tableknife, scrape and discard the papery covering from the entire outside of the brie. With a sharp knife, carefully cut a “lid” from one flat side of the brie, like cutting the top from a pumpkin. Leave only ½ inch border around the edge. Slide the knife under the lid and cut it away from the cheese inside. Set aside. With
a spoon, scoop out the cheese inside the brie, leaving an even ½
inch shell. Take care not to gouge the shell. Put the scooped out cheese
in a microwave bowl, cook on high for approximately 20 seconds, until soft,
but not runny. Too long and the oily ooze begins. With a fork, work the
brie until smooth, then add the chopped porcini until uniformly mixed.
To
serve, place unwrapped cheese cut side down, allow to warm to room temperature.
Serve with baguette or crostini, along with a glass of Mafalda.
Salads ½
pound Italian Fontina, diced to bite-size
Never
met a recipe with roasted bell peppers that I didn't like. (Ok, one, but
that's it). We still have peppers in the garden Nov 1, 2007. And since
it's 80 degrees today, calm winds, no fires on the horizon, we can grill
the peppers until blistery and blackened. Put in a paper bag to cool. Remove
and peel. Cut these marvels into strips, discarding seeds and stems.
Make a dressing of the mustard, olive oil, cream. Toss
with fontina mixture, cover and chill at least 2 hours. Salt and pepper
if necessary. Serve with Tre Sorelle.
Main Courses Our mother’s home village is in Southern Italy, a beautiful place called Belmonte di Sanno. The cooking style there is greatly different than Northern Italy, where our father is from. Out of deference to her husband, she cooked Genovese style while our father was alive. But over the years, recipes crept out from her past. The recipes her mother gave her that she made just ‘off the cuff’ are surprisingly good. We are the richer for this heritage. You might hesitate to make this dish, looking at these ingredients. You will find that the final flavors do indeed become more than parts. So get adventurous, come to Italy! This recipe needs a big wine to prepare it and to drink along with it. The 1997 Nebbiolo is just the answer here. And again, here is the marriage of north (the wine) and south (the food). 6-boneless pork chops Sauce:
Put all the sauce ingredients except the chocolate in a saucepan. Bring to a boil, then simmer about 10 minutes, or until the fruit is very soft. Cool, remove the bay leaves, put in food processor, and whirl until almost smooth. Return to pan, add chocolate, and stir until melted. Keep warm. If too thick, add a little more wine. Meanwhile, sauté pork chops in a small amount of olive oil in a sauté pan. Brown the chops on both sides, and then simmer approximately 15 minutes. To be sure, use a meat thermometer to 140 degrees. To serve, plate the pork chops and drizzle the sauce over them. Be sure to serve a 1997 Nebbiolo from Fratelli Perata We don't eat curry very often, but with the 2002 Zinfandel, things might change. This is a spicy wine and stands up nicely to a spicy curry dish. This isn't an authentic Indian recipe at all, but the flavors all work together and it's great for the occasional curry diner. This is an in-the-oven casserole, easier than meatballs, but don't make it on a very warm day. The curry and the wine will warm you enough, if the kitchen temperatures haven't. 1-pound
ground lamb
Pare
the eggplant, chop, and salt with ½ teaspoon salt. Let sit until
eggplant weeps, then drain. Combine balance of ingredients with the drained
eggplant. Place in oiled 8x8 inch Pyrex, cover with foil, and bake at 350
degrees for 45 minutes. Remove foil and bake 5 to 10 minutes longer to
brown.
Lamb dishes are very Italian, and very different from what Carol grew up with in Seattle in a Norwegian neighborhood. Lamb has a bad reputation of being very strongly flavored. It cried out for the mint jelly to mask the poor old lamb. Lately, lamb, imported or domestic, is from younger animals and has a delicate flavor. Still lamb, but at least it doesn't chase you around the table anymore. Choose lamb chops that are from the rib, or at least from the loin, that are approximately 1" thick. Increase or decrease cooking time accordingly. 4-lamb
chops
Roughly chop the garlic and mushrooms. Place in a sauté pan with 2 tablespoons olive oil and sauté until soft. Add the wine and continue cooking over low heat until wine almost evaporates. Set aside. Trim the fat from the lamb chops. Throw a bit into a sauté pan large enough to fit the 4 lamb chops. Sear both sides of the chops in the fat, then lower heat and finish cooking, approximately ten minutes. More for a more cooked chop, a meat thermometer is a really good idea. Slide
the garlic/mushroom mixture into the lamb chop pan, add salt and pepper
to taste, warm together for about 5 minutes, or until the juices from the
mushrooms mix well with the juices from the lamb chops. Garnish with rosemary
sprigs.
Lasagna
"Baia Bianca"
1 lb.
Bay scallops
Preheat oven to 300 degrees F. Cook pasta 4 minutes in salted boiling water with a drop of oil to keep the sheets from sticking together. Drain and cool in cold water. Spread on a cloth to dry. Saute scallops with half the butter and brandy for 3 minutes. Drain and save the juice. For the sauce, melt the remaining butter in a heavy pan. Add flour and stir over very low heat. Cook a little. In another pot, boil the half and half, the juice of the scallops, lobster base, white pepper and red onion. Discard the onion and add the cooked butter and flour. Return the pan to low heat and stir the sauce until it comes to a boil. Simmer for 2 to 3 minutes. Strain the sauce through a fine chinois (sieve) and finally stir the chopped basil into the sauce. Layer the ingredients in a shallow baking dish, starting with the sauce. Follow with the pasta layer, then sprinkle liberally with the scallops, mozarella and parmesan cheese. Cover with more sauce and another layer of pasta and so on. Bake 45 minutes. Preparation
time: 2 hours
Warm up the house some weekend. The preparation time is not long, but the cooking time is. One
good
beef rump roast
With this type of dish, amounts are not super-critical. The larger the roast, the more vegetables. For a 3 pound roast, use 3 carrots, 2 celery sticks, 1 small brown onion. For larger roasts, or to your taste, adjust the rest of the ingredients accordingly. Make a mire poix of the carrots, celery, onion. That is, dice very small, put in frying pan with about 3 Tablespoons olive oil, cook over medium heat until the onion is clear. Place vegetables with garlic in the bottom of a roasting pan. Brown roast on all sides, put in roasting pan. Add a fifth of red wine. The rule of thumb is the better the red, the better the roast, but don’t overdo it. However, don’t add the $1.99 red and think there will much to it. Add 1/2 cup olive oil. Yes, we are going to smother this roast Add 2 to 3 cloves minced garlic. Cook 275 for approximately four hours in covered roasting pan. Turn once, halfway through. The roast will shrink. Don’t despair, it will be fork tender so carefully remove it from the roasting pan to serve. Cut thick slices. This is very rich so what looks like a little serving is very filling. Strain juice in pan, serve juice on side. Serve with garlic mashed potatoes and a big green salad. Cabernet
Sauvignon or Merlot wants to be poured with this. Since this is an Italian
recipe, try a big Nebbiolo too
The brothers’ maternal side of the family comes from Belmonte di Sanno, south of Campobasso, in Italy. That region uses a lot of lamb. When she was growing up, her parents brought the tradition of lamb to California with them. Here is an adaptation of her mother’s recipe. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. 1 4-5
pound boneless leg of lamb
Open the lamb so it is laying flat. Using a sharp knife cut slits on both sides of the lamb about ¾” long, about a dozen cuts. Mix the rosemary, parsley and garlic together, push about half of this mixture into the slits on the outside (when it is re-rolled) of the lamb. Mix the rest of the herbs with the Prosciutto, push into the slits on the inside (boned side) of the lamb. Roll back up and secure with cooking string. Brown in roasting pan on top of stove with olive oil. When completely browned, cover, and put all in oven. Bake at least 2 hours. You need a thermometer to test for doneness. Some like their lamb pink, some more done, and the size of the roast really varies. It is best to use a thermometer, cook to 140 degrees for safety, 130 degrees for more rare. Remove from oven, let rest 10 minutes. Remove string, slice in not too thin pieces and serve. The
roast will be permeated with herbs and garlic. This will pair extremely
well with either the Tre Sorelle or the Merlot, or if you have to have
Cabernet, that works too.
Fratelli Perata BBQ Pork Tenderloin A smoky pork tenderloin is just right to offset the silky smoky Cabernet Franc. Since the underlying flavor of the wine is cherry, here is a cherry sauce to highlight both the meat and the wine. 3-pound
pork tenderloin
Mix sugar in vinegar and wine, add cinnamon stick, and simmer cherries in liquid until softened. Prepare tenderloin for BBQ, removing any excess fat. Brush with olive oil, BBQ over medium coals until meat thermometer shows 165 degrees (recommended safe temperature). This is about 15-20 minutes. Note: this is safe meat handling practice; it is also pretty well done. For our taste this is overdone. So use your own judgment. Slice tenderloin, drizzle with cherry sauce (cinnamon stick removed), leaving lots of cherries on the plate. Serve with Cabernet Franc. Serving
note: this can be served immediately with a warm sauce. It can also be
sliced and refrigerated in the sauce overnight and served either cold or
warmed. Also, this can be used as a marinade instead of a sauce, if you
want a more delicate presentation of the cherry influence: prepare sauce,
place uncooked tenderloin in sauce, and marinate, refrigerated, overnight.
Drain, pat dry, oil, BBQ as above. Do not re-use marinade.
One of Mama's favorite dishes was Risotto. She thought it was easy. Well, it is easier than making polenta, because after an hour, polenta gets pretty hard to stir. Mama was small but she was strong. When I make this dish now, I still use a wooden spoon when first adding the rice, but then I use a StirChef (motorized stirring to free you from the stove) to finish the stirring with the stock. Mama liked full flavored dishes and here is one she showed me as a young bride: 2 ounces
dried porcini mushrooms
Soak mushrooms in water until softened, and then rinse to remove any dirt particles. Chop with a sharp knife into small pieces. In a large skillet, brown onion over medium temperature until translucent and softened. Add rice; stir until the rice turns from white to opaque, approximately 5 minutes. Add ½ cup chicken stock. Stir until liquid is absorbed. Repeat the addition/absorption of stock until the rice is creamy, probably using most of the stock. Keep alert that the rice doesn't get too soft, mushy. Add mushrooms, basil, and garlic with final addition of stock. Add butter, Parmigiano Reggiano, mix vigorously, and then mix in spinach leaves and pancetta.. Cover, let stand 5 minutes only. Serve with toasted walnuts. With
a large glass of Fratelli Perata Syrah give the cook a Salut!
Life should have spice and here is a little additional spice for you. The brothers' parents were from different parts of Italy. The winemakers, their father's family, were from the North, their mother's family were from south of Roma. Northern Italian sauce is different from Southern Italian sauces. These are cooked on the stovetop for at least 2 hours to reduce liquids and make a deep, dark sauce. His mother's sauces were fresh tasting, cooked barely 20 minutes. This is the basic sauce for pasta, polenta, and lasagne. It is best prepared the day before it is used. 1 pound
roast, chuck is good for flavor OR 1 pound mushrooms of your choice, Portobello
etc
Cut the roast or mushrooms into small pieces, put in a heavy saucepan with about 2 T olive oil. Add chopped onion and over medium-high heat, brown the meat, stirring often. Cook until a nice crust on the meat develops or until the mushrooms and onion are very soft and browned. Do not skip this step! My
mother-in-law would add the garlic at the beginning. I add it after to
avoid scorching it.
Note:
if you have an abundance of tomatoes, parboil them to remove the skin,
do a rough chop, and throw them in to replace the canned stuff. Stir well
and reduce heat to a simmer.
Add salt to taste. It
should be very thick. Remove from heat and cool immediately. Refrigerate
overnight. Reheat over low heat when ready to use.
Sides With a nod to the new Paso Robles LaBellaSera's restaurant, Enoteca, here is a wonderful flavor addition to winter meals. We were lucky enough to pair their Sea Bass with these potatoes and a basalmic-pancetta sauce with our new Petite Sirah. Ah, life is good. 1 pound
shallots 1 pound potatoes, Yukon or russet
Caramelize
the shallots: melt butter with olive oil in a large skillet. Add sugar
and peeled and diced shallots. Brown over medium heat, stirring often to
keep the shallots coated. Add basalmic vinegar and continue cooking until
shallots are soft, caramelized and smell wonderful.
Piemontese Chestnuts alla Famiglia Perata 1 pound
chestnuts
You can make this a family event and roast the chestnuts yourself, or make a run to Trader Joe's and pick up the frozen, already cooked chestnuts that are pretty high quality. To roast: cut the skin on the chestnuts with a sharp knife at the pointed end. Bring to a boil in a saucepan of cold water. Remove from heat, peel tough outer skin off. Drip dry in strainer, peel off inner skin. Or, cook frozen chestnuts per package directions, cool, peel. Chop celery stalk. Note: Don't feel that this isn't enough celery. It is enough to flavor the delicate chestnuts. In a saucepan, from above, place whole chestnuts, celery, wine and stir in beef base. Cover with water if necessary and cook gently until chestnuts are soft. Remove from heat, add sage and salt. Serve, strained, on the side with chicken, or in a bowl with the broth. Either way, it is absolutely terrific with the Syrah. It will remind you a turkey stuffing and all that is right. Desserts Perata Girls Triple Chocolate Cake This cake can masquerade as a fudgy brownie. It is very rich and very easy to make since we start with a cake mix. The girls can make this in a snap, so go for it. They eat it with milk; we think Zinfandel goes just fine. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit 1 boxed
chocolate cake mix, (can be chocolate fudge)
Spray with Pam, or similar product, 1 Bundt pan or use 2 loaf pans In mixing bowl, put cake mix, pudding mix, water, oil and eggs. Beat on low speed 1 minute to incorporate the dry ingredients. Beat on medium speed 1 more minute, until smooth. Add chocolate chips and mix on low just enough to distribute throughout the dough. Pour into prepared pan(s), bake 55 minutes for Bundt, 45-50 for loaf pans. Toothpick will come out clean when done (don’t count the chocolate chip that sticks to it!) Allow
to cool in pan on wire rack. When cool, invert pan to serving dish, dust
with powdered sugar if desired. Slice thickly.
Carol's Cranberry-Almond Biscotti The annual March Zinfandel Festival in Paso Robles finds Fratelli Perata serving our new Zinfandel with warm cranberry-almond biscotti. While the wine is certainly vintage Fratelli Perata with ripe fruit and black pepper, bramble flavors, the biscotti are a new generation favorite. This recipe features dried cranberry for a crisp berry flavor, and almonds that complement ripe Zinfandel fruit. Not baked to a rock-hard finish, these biscotti are terrific for all ages. 2 1/4
cups flour (280g)
Preheat oven to 325 degrees Farenheit. In a medium bowl, mix the dry ingredients. In the bowl of a mixer, whisk the eggs and extracts. Add the dry ingredients to the eggs and mix with mixer until just combined. Add nuts and cranberries and mix until incorporated. Note: the size of the eggs makes a big difference. The dough needs to be relatively stiff to work. Add some more flour if needed. If you need a lot more flour, add some sugar as well). More about eggs: Eggs are sized by the dozen, 27 oz for Extra Large, 24 oz. for Large. In the end, if weighing everything very precisely we've found that 5 66gram eggs works very well in a double batch. On a well floured baking sheet make the dough into 2 logs about 14" long and 1 1/2" wide each. (Note that the baking sheet doesn't really need oil if the logs get enough flour.) Bake the logs at 325 degrees Farenheit for 30 min. Remove from the oven and cut the logs into1/2" pieces. Reduce oven heat to 300 degrees Farenheit. Stand the pieces on end on the baking sheet and bake at 300 degrees for 16 1/2 minutes. Preparation hints: Dough can be refrigerated or frozen, in fact when brought back to a workable temperature, its actually easier to deal with; before it gets too warm and sticky. You can flour the bottom of the "log" more effectively. If the log sticks after the first baking, just let it cool a bit and carefully pry up with a spatula. A "bakers bench knife" is useful for cutting the cookies. For big batches, a large, powerful 5qt. stand mixer can do a double batch. Each log comes out to be about 500 grams. Variation:
substitute blueberries for the cranberries. Be careful about blending it
in, though. Done wrong, it ends up looking kinda gray (but still tastes
great).
Pfefferneuse, Peppernotter, Peppernuts There are many different elements in a Cabernet that are interesting. Foremost is the cherry structure, and sometimes a eucalyptus flavor wafts through. In the background on occasion are the spices of clove and cinnamon. This is a Norwegian cookie recipe Carol grew up with. When the Peppernotter are baked, the house fills with spice. The Cabernet, which of course you drank with dinner, holds you in that special embrace. The cookies sweeten the embrace while adding a little spice to the experience. Enjoy! 1/3-cup
butter
Preheat oven to 350 deg. F. Cream butter until fluffy and gradually add sugar. Beat in eggs thoroughly. Stir in fruit. Sift flour with remaining ingredients except the almond extract. Add to fruit mixture and stir in almond extract. Blend thoroughly. Shape
into 1-inch balls, place on greased and floured cookie sheets. Chill overnight.
Bake 15 minutes, until browned. Mix 1 cup-powdered sugar with 1 to 2 tablespoons
lemon juice. Brush cookies while warm.
Miscellaneous The BBQ season is upon us with early warm temperatures. And with BBQ, it's nice to get the meat on the grill easily, and focus your attention on other things, like what wine to drink. Our favorite BBQ seasoning is a dry rub. It makes the meat taste great, plus it is quick. Make up a batch and keep it in a large old spice jar. Then, when the mood strikes, by the time the BBQ is ready for the meat, the meat is ready for the BBQ. A red wine works well with a tri-tip or sirloin steak and this rub. With lots of garlic in this rub, we recommend pairing it with the Bambino Grande. Our fun-loving grandfather, Bambino Diorio, would want you to sip this wine while enjoying an easy meal and the company of friends Make a quick trip to a Smart and Final store near you for the source of the ingredients: Diamond
Crystal Kosher salt 2 ½ cups
Carefully
combine the ingredients to thoroughly mix. Keep in an airtight container.
There's still time to find good Eggplant at your Farmer's Market, if not your own backyard garden. This access to fresh produce was especially important to our family, as evidenced by brother Joe's current vegetable garden. Fresh, good ingredients are the basis needed for the best foods. Follow a good family recipe, and then add a great wine like the Tre Sorelle. What a life. For this recipe, you will also need a good spaghetti sauce. 1 large
eggplant
Peel the eggplant, then cut into very thin slices, approximately 1/8 inch thick, yielding 12 slices. Don't worry about salting and rinsing the slices unless you have really old eggplant, which you shouldn't use anyway. Using 3 of the eggs, ½ of the Romano cheese, ¼ tsp salt and the water, mix together in a shallow dish. Put flour in a separate dish. Coat each eggplant slice in the flour, then the egg mixture, shaking off excess. In a large skillet, use approximately ¼ inch olive oil to cook the eggplant until browned on each side, slice by slice until all are done. Drain on paper towels. More olive oil may be needed. Finely chop the spinach, combine with ricotta and the rest of the Romano, the last egg and salt. Blend just until combined. Slice mozzarella into 12 thin slices (same amount as eggplant slices). Place 1 cup of your own or favorite other spaghetti sauce in 9 inch square baking dish. On each eggplant slice, place 2 T cheese mixture at one end. Roll tightly and place in baking dish, end flaps facing down. Repeat until all slices are used or someone will snitch a slice of eggplant while you're not looking. Top with remaining sauce, then the mozzarella slices. Bake
at 325 degrees for 45 to 50 minutes uncovered. Serve while hot with good
salad and the Tre Sorelle.
Mama's Lentil Soup with Prosciutto Cold weather, hot soup. Great bread and a great wine is all you need. Mama loved this soup. We made the wine to pair with it, and named it for Mama, Mafalda. 1 pound
Lentils
Rinse
and soak the lentils overnight. Cut the prosciutto end into thumbnail-sized
cubes. Be sure to include the fatty skin. .In a skillet with olive
oil, fry the pieces lightly. Put the drained pieces in a stockpot, retain
the oil to fry the vegetables. Chop the onion, carrot and celery, then
fry in the same skillet until softened but not browned. Put all, including
oil in stockpot.
Serve hot with a really good bread and a salad. Personal Notes: I don't typically soak the lentils; I don't usually plan ahead that well and I don't see the soup suffers. Ask your deli if they have the ends of the Prosciutto, about 5” long, that are left over after the nice large slices are sold. You'll get all the flavor at a greatly reduced cost. You could also substitute ham and/or hambone, or even a good Italian sausage. Drink the Mafalda wine with this. It has a large amount of Cabernet Franc in the blend, which works well with the Prosciutto. Make
a toast to Mamas everywhere, and enjoy.
Mama's Thanksgiving Turkey Stuffing Thanksgiving with Mama was a family event. One aspect that made it especially nice was the blending of Northern Italian (Papa's Ravioli) and Central Italian (Mama's Turkey Stuffing) cooking. Generally, Mama cooked how her husband wanted, in the style of the Genovese. We all made the ravioli and sauce from scratch, together, Northern style. But the turkey stuffing was from Mama's family. It is a main course in itself, great at the main dinner, if you have room, and better for the late night sandwich, or the next day. 1 ½
pound ground round
Combine ground round and sausage. Soak bread in water, then squeeze out as much water as possible. Add to meats, then add Parmesan, onion, garlic, salt and parsley, mixing with hands. Then add eggs and mix all ingredients well. I suppose one could use a Kitchen-Aide these days, but this is always done by hand. Stuff turkey loosely, bake as per safe food handling requires. When done, remove stuffing with large spoon. Slice before serving. Pairs
well with most red wines. At Thanksgiving, we like it with the Tre Sorelle.
After all, it's all about family.
Carol's mother's Scandinavian heritage shown through during the Holidays. Friends and family of all ages stopped by frequently. If they arrived unannounced, so much better the surprise of the reunion. Mom's traditional cookies were always abundantly available, ready for guests at any hour. While she typically paired her cookies with fresh coffee, we find these spicy Leckerli work well with Cabernet. They need to be made early, to have a couple weeks to ripen, or soften ½
c sugar
Combine sugar and honey in saucepan, bring to boiling over low heat. Remove from heat, add spices and peels which have been cut into small pieces. Dissolve soda in cold water and add to spice mixture. Add grated lemon rind, almonds and flour. Knead until well blended. These are very stiff, so do this by hand if you value your mixer. Roll dough on floured board into rectangular sheet ½ inch thick. Place on cookie sheet lined with heavy waxed paper. Bake in moderate oven, 325 degrees, about 30 minutes. While leckerli is still warm, spread with syrup made with ½ c sugar and ¼ cup water, heated until it spins a thread, 238 degrees on a candy thermometer. Cut leckerli into small diamonds. When
cold, pack in tin boxes to ripen. These will be very hard, and soften in
about 2 weeks.
Here is a basic recipe to keep in your memory bank. Remember, if you're going to put a sauce on a really good cut of meat, or if you're going to make a memorable meal. DON”T use leftover, non-descript wine in this sauce. It provides a basic flavor, so the better the wine, the better the sauce. It seems like a waste of a good bottle, and we, admittedly, have a lot of good wine to make this with, but you will do yourself a disservice to go cheap here. Depth of flavor is good for cooking as for wine. Start all layers of flavor with a basic mirepoix: 2 carrots
Cut off ends of carrots and peel. Cut into matchsticks. Pull strings from celery stalks, chop. Peel onion and chop Put
2 Tablespoons olive oil in a skillet. Over medium heat, stirring occasionally,
cook carrots, celery and onion until start to brown, about 10 minutes.
Add garlic, cook a couple minutes to remove the “raw” taste. Add wine of
your choice. Reduce to a simmer, let reduce about 1 hour. Strain
out veggies, add thyme. Return to simmer. Look to end up with 1 cup of
sauce. Add salt and fresh ground pepper.
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