Cacio e Pepe

Italian food can be brilliant in its simplicity. That is when the finest ingredients shine. Take Italian spaghetti, sharp Pecorino Romano, smooth Grana Padana cheese and toss it together with coarsely, fresh ground pepper to create the sublime. Cacio e Pepe, simply pasta with cheese and pepper, is found on many menus in Rome. This can be deeply satisfying when started with tender, sweet vine ripened melon wrapped in thinly sliced, salty prosciutto. Finished with a gelato it is transporting. Or by itself, it's just simply delicious. I'll take it either way. It is a dish that chefs are measured by and stirs up heated discussions on nuances of the few ingredients. Some will never add butter and some will use only one type of cheese. Most agree on the method of preparation making a velvety sauce with the cheese and a little bit of pasta water. You can leave those variations up to personal taste. The important thing is to add the right amount of the pasta water to have the cheese turn into a sauce that just coats the pasta and no more. Use your favorite extra virgin olive oil. Right now I using an olive oil that I got in an open market in Rome. It is right around the corner from our hotel in a small piazza and is a market by morning and filled with tables by day and evening for dining. I take a short cut and skirt through a narrow opening by this ancient column.The olive oil has no label and only has a metal bottle cap to seal it. I don't think there is a middle man involved, it's straight from the countryside. The closer to the grower you are, the closer you are to your food. And this dish is like a close, warm hug. Buon Appetito!

Cacio e Pepe

8 ounces Italian spaghetti
1/2 cup grated Grana Padana cheese
1/2 cup grated Pecorino Romano cheese
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1-2 tablespoons butter
2 teaspoons coarsely grated black pepper
pasta water
freshly grated cheese for serving

Boil the pasta until 2 minutes before it is al dente. It will cook a little further in the skillet. While the pasta is cooking, add the olive oil to a large skillet and heat over medium heat. Add the pepper and stir for about a minute or less, until the oils release from the pepper. Turn off heat and drain pasta, reserving about 1/2 cup of the pasta water. Add the cooked pasta into the skillet, being careful since the oil and water will spatter. Toss together and then add the cheese while still tossing. Gradually add pasta water a tablespoon at a time to make a light sauce that just coats the pasta, and no more. Finish by tossing the pasta with 1-2 tablespoons butter. The cheese is salty, but salt to taste if you want more. Divide into 4 pasta bowls and top with freshly grated cheese and even more pepper, if you want.

Serves 4.
Now, if I only had a little gelato!
Cutting board by Ann at Thibeault's Table.

Roasted Red Pepper Dip

This is almost as easy as it gets. And if you use jarred roasted red peppers, you could almost make it blindfolded. My friend and fellow stew, Dee, gave the recipe to me along with her Tapanade recipe. This red pepper dip is a little sweet, a little hot and sour and a lot good! It's bright red color is like a smile, and served with crunchy veggies it is a healthy snack. Dee's recipe calls for more sugar than I added, but I like the balance of less sugar. As I was reaching for the red pepper flakes in the cupboard, I first saw chili pepper olive oil, and so added a dash of that instead. I made this for a get together and wished I'd made more. It's just as delicious as it is easy.

Roasted Red Pepper Dip

1 1/2 cups roasted red peppers (without the skin)
1/8 teaspoon distilled cider vinegar
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/2 teaspoon cornstarch

Put all of the ingredients in the bowl of a food processor and pulse until almost smooth. Transfer to a saucepan and simmer for 5 minutes. Cool and serve.

Makes 1 1/2 cups.
Store in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

Linguine with Tomatoes, Basil...and Balance

In yoga practice when you lean to the left and then to the right, you always come back to center and pause for physical and mental balance. Maintaining the same balance in life isn't always that easy. Sometimes we just need to stop and let life find it's own center....to temper adventure with contemplation....friends and family with solitude....work with stillness....black with white. I did just that with my break, and now I'm back! The power of nature helps. We are reminded that the center between black and white is not gray, but a shade of blush pink from a flower or the blue green of an impending wave of the ocean. I'm lucky that the beach is just 2 minutes away and Mother Nature's bounty is in my own backyard. I can pick my tomatoes and basil in the stillness of the morning and mix with ingredients that don't need any further attention than to mingle with one another. And what partners better with tomatoes and basil than pasta? Add extra virgin olive oil, garlic and cheese to this super easy sauce and it just doesn't get any better. The heat of the freshly cooked pasta melts the cheese and melds the flavors with just a simple stirring. This pasta dish is beach food, as my friend Nancy calls it. You can be at the beach all day and come home welcomed by the savory aromas, boil the pasta, toss with the awaiting mixture and now you have dinner....a perfectly balanced dinner in all ways.

Linguine with Tomatoes and Basil
(Adapted from The Silver Palate Cookbook)

4 large ripe tomatoes, cut into 1/2 inch cubes*
1 pound Brie cheese, rind removed, and torn into irregular pieces
1 cup cleaned fresh basil leaves, cut into strips
3 cloves garlic, peeled and finely minced
1 cup plus 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
2 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
dash of cayenne
1 1/2 pounds linguine
freshly grated Parmesan cheese
*I used the equivalent of a combination of red plum, Park's Whopper, Black Prince and yellow cherry tomatoes.

Combine the tomatoes, Brie, basil, garlic, 1 cup olive oil, 1/2 teaspoon salt and the peppers in a large serving bowl. Prepare at least 2 hours before serving and set aside, covered, at room temperature.Bring 6 quarts water to a boil in a large pot. Add 1 tablespoon olive oil and remaining salt. Add the linguine and boil until tender but firm, 8 to 10 minutes.

Drain pasta and immediately toss with the tomato mixture. Serve at once, adjusting salt and pepper to taste. Top with the freshly grated Parmesan cheese.

Serves 4-6.

Crab Cakes With Piment D'espelette Alioi

Gingerbread, sugar cookies, truffles, scones slathered in butter and jam...oh my! I want seafood now. And the only cake I want is a crab cake :-) I think they'll be a perfect way to ring in 2010. I actually can't believe we are entering a new decade in what still seems like a new century. 2010 sounds too much like a year that you would enter in a time machine and not with the clink of Champagne glasses. Alas, the future is now and there is no time like the present to celebrate the day. These crab cakes are great as appetizers, a light meal or for brunch. I prefer mine to be made with top quality crab, with as little filler as possible so that the true star shines through. I was able to get some really fresh crab meat from Whole Foods, but fresh crab meat is available in large food stores in most areas. My favorite recipe comes from Tyler Florence who I have a huge foodie crush on. He just knows how to take a dish and give it his own flavor. His version is simply made and goes perfectly with a Champagne toast. I made an Piment D'espelette Alioi that I created with some experimentation. I used the piment d'espelette that I bought at a Paris food market this fall. To make the sauce quickly, I used prepared olive oil mayonnaise (for ease and also to not use raw egg yolks), piment d'espelette*, garlic, Dijon mustard and lemon juice. This comes together in a snap and any leftover is good on just about anything! For an Asian sauce, I also want to try some chili sauces that Ju, at The Little Teochew and Zurin, from Cherry on a Cake have brought to us. Take a peek at their posts, I'm sure you'll be delighted.

However you ring in the New Year, whether it is quietly at home or at a large party celebration, I wish you the very best for a safe, happy and healthy 2010. Happy New Year! Ching-Ching!!
Crab Cakes
(Adapted from "Tyler's Ultimate", by Tyler Florence)

Extra-virgin olive oil
1 onion, finely minced
2 garlic cloves, finely minced
1 pound jumbo lump crab meat
1 1/2 cups fresh bread crumbs (made from 3 or 4 slices of white bread with the crusts removed)
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
1 large egg white
juice of 1 lime
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro, plus whole leaves for garnish
Kosher salt and ground black pepper

Over medium heat, lightly cover the bottom of a frying pan with olive oil. Add the onions and garlic and cook for 5-7 minutes, until the onion gets somewhat caramelized. Put that into a bowl and fold in the crab meat, bread crumbs,mayonnaise,egg white, lime juice, and cilantro, mixing until just well blended. Season with salt and pepper. Shape the mixture into 6 fat crab cakes. Put them on a plate and put them into the refrigerator to chill.

In a large sautè pan, just cover the bottom with olive oil and heat over medium heat. Add the crab cakes and cook for about 4 minutes on each side, or until they are nice and crisp. Loosely cover if they need more time to cook in the center.
Piment D'espelette Alioi

1 cup good quality olive oil mayonnaise
1 teaspoon, or more to taste, piment d'espelette**
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
3-4 garlic cloves, peeled and finely minced
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
olive oil
*piment d'espelette is a mild chili pepper from the French Basque area of France. It has a mildly hot and slightly sweet round flavor.
**Ground cayenne pepper may be substituted, just use about half of the amount.

Into the mayonnaise, mix the pepper, lemon juice, minced garlic, and Dijon mustard. Stir to mix well. Drizzle in a small amount of olive oil to reach the consistency you prefer. Refrigerate until serving.

Makes one cup.

Piment D'espelette Aioli recipe click here.
Crab Cake recipe click here.