Category Archives: Recipes

Homemade Pasta from La Cucina della Nonna

MOST POPULAR PASTA MAKING CLASS! “HIGHLY RECOMMENDED FOR GROUPS & PARTIES”

Fresh homemade pasta, Easy to make.

Original homemade Pasta Recipe from the kitchen of  Southern Italian Nonnas (Grandmothers) is easy to make and enjoyable to eat! 5 minutes of working the pasta dough and 10 minutes to cut it up; with memories of a wonderful meal that lingers on…. Choose from a variety of  shared Italian Sauces taken from Nonna’s kitchen to compliment your fresh homemade pasta.

Pasta Nest

Pasta Nest

Preparation: 3 minutes for pasta dough. 20 minutes to cut strips.  Pasta can be boiled after it has been hung for 15 minutes then the “Fresh Pasta” should boil for 3 minutes, drain well.  Use a pasta dryer, wooden spoon set up between to jars, or a chair for drying.

INGREDIENTS:

  • 300 grams Semolina Flour (1 1/2 cup)
  • 100 grams flour (1/2 cup)
  • 1 egg (Large)
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1/2 cup warm water (add as needed)
  • (may use  2 small eggs and 1/2 cup water)      

Extra dried pasta can be placed in bag and conserved in refrigerator for 3 days.  If reducing the recipe in half, reduce water to 80 ml  (1/3 and 2 Tbsp).

DIRECTIONS:

In a bowl crack open egg,  set aside empty shell, with a fork beat yolk and egg white until foamy, set aside. In a large mixing bowl add semolina, flour, salt, water and beaten egg, combine with fork and then work the  ingredients together by hand.  (Add additional warm water 1 teaspoon at a time, if pasta ball does not form and is crumbly.)

Remove the pasta ball  from the bowl and continue to knead the dough on a clean table pushing the dough outward with heel of the hand and folding the dough over again, working the dough for about 5  minutes.  The dough will be round, smooth and when indented with your finger tip, gently move back into place by itself.  
Divide the pasta ball into eight parts with a knife and keep covered with plastic wrap as to prevent moisture loss. Can be made and frozen for 2 weeks, then thawed and rolled out. Must be used after 3 days if stored in refrigerator.  

Roll out dough until thin as a dime!

On a large cutting board dust with flour. Begin with one eighth of the pasta mass, roll out flat with a rolling-pin, until the pasta is no thicker than a dime. (If using a pasta machine, dust rollers with flour. Systematically pass the dough through until a final press on number 6.) With a knife cut the rolled out pasta into lengths of 6 inches and about 1/2 inch wide. lightly dust flour onto cut pasta.

Place freshly cut pasta onto back of a chair or onto a pasta rack.

To dry long pasta, try the following suggestion: (always dust with resting point with flour) pasta drying rack, or hang pasta on back of chairs then when half way dried coil pasta onto flour dusted cutting board. Allow to dry for about 60 minutes. Continue process for rest of pasta mass.

Bring a large pan of water (1 quart/liter of water for 100 g of pasta) to a hard boil. Add 1 tablespoon of salt. Add dried pasta. When the pasta floats to the top it is done, about 3 minutes depending on the thickness. Place colander into sink. Poor water and cooked pasta into into colander.

Serve your favorite  Italian Sauces over cooked pasta. Buon Appetito!

Add favorite sauce to homemade pasta!

Mini-meatball filling for ravioli.

Mini-meatball filling for ravioli.

For Ravioli follow the same steps to making pasta dough. Using two flat sheets of pasta dough rolled  out. One sheet should be slightly wider than the other.
Meat Filling:
1/8 cup olive oil
1/2 onion chopped
1 garlic clove minced
1/2 pound hamburger meat
1/2 tsp salt
1 egg
1 Tbsp Parsley

In a frying pan add oil, onion, garlic, hamburger. Using a wooden spoon break apart the meat while it’s browning. Allow to thoroughly cook. Using a colander empty ingredients from frying pan and allow to drain fluid. Transfer ingredients from colander into a food processor. Add egg salt and parsley, blend on high until meat becomes smooth as a pate`.

Cover meat filling with a second pasta sheet. With a "Crimper" seal and cut pasta squares.

Cover meat filling with a second pasta sheet. With a “Crimper” seal and cut pasta squares.

Flour a cutting board. Lay pasta sheet on floured cutting baord. Place small amounts of meat about 2 inches apart. Place the wider pasta sheet on top of mini-meatballs. Scatter more flour on top of pasta sheet. Seal with fingers, may use a “Crimper” to seal and cut the ravioli.

Pastry / Pasta Crimper can be found in most stores and has a double wheel that allows for sealing and cutting of the dough.

Set ravioli aside on another floured cutting board and allow to dry. Maybe cooked 15 minutes after preparation or if waiting to dry, turn every 30 minutes. Ravioli may dry also on floured cutting board in refrigerator. Ravioli may then be bagged and place in freezer. Fresh ravioli can be stored in refrigerator 3 days after preparation or stored in freezer for 2 weeks.

Cheese Filling:
1/2 pound Ricotta
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
1/4 cup Italian bread crumbs

Combine all ingredients and follow same steps for meat ravioli.

Meat Ravioli with favorite s

Meat Ravioli with favorite sauce.

Stuffed Calamari Salad

Stuffed Calamari Salad

Stuffed Calamari is ideal for summer time eating! A delectable dish layered with potatoes, olives, onions and tomatoes. It is easily prepared in 10 minutes, cooked/ baked in 20 minutes and can be reheated. Serves 4-6.

Or serve Grilled Calamari .

INGREDIENTS

  • 1 Egg
  • 1/2 cup Milk
  • 2 cups diced Bread (ciabatta/tuscan)
  • 2 Garlic Cloves  peeled and minced
  • 1 Tablespoon chopped Parsley
  • 1/2 teaspoon Salt
  • 2 large Potato peeled and sliced in thin rounds, toss with 1/8 tsp salt
  • 1 medium size Onion peeled and sliced in rounds
  • 1 Tomato sliced in large chunks
  • 2 Tomatoes sliced in rounds
  • 6-12 olives
  • 1 Tablespoon capers (optional)
  • 1 pound Calamari Squid
  • 1/8 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
  • 1/4 cup water
  • Mix Green Salad of choice
  • Olive Oil and Lemon to drizzle on salad

PREPARATION

Fill each Calamari with prepared stuffing.

Pre-heat oven at 375 F
Rinse calamari and set aside in a colander. In a large mixing bowl crack 1 egg and discard the shell; with a fork beat the egg for 30 seconds. Add milk to the egg, combine with fork. Place into egg/milk mixture the bread, garlic, parsley salt;  using a spoon, incorporate all ingredients. Set the stuffing aside.

Align Calamari onto potato lined baking pan.

Layer bottom of the pan with potato slices.

Begin filling each calamari by opening the white cylinder meat and fill each calamari 3/4 full with the stuffing. After filling the calamari insert a tomato chunk to close off calamari and    set each one on top of the potato slices, side by side. Distribute any remaining stuffing around the line calamari.

Layered Stuffed Calamari

Add olives and capers around the calamari. Layer onion rings and tomato slices on top of calamari. Drizzle olive oil over entire dish. Distribute water evenly over the food. Cover dish with tinfoil and place pan into the center of the oven, allow to bake for 15 minutes. Uncover dish and turn temperature to broil and broil for 5 minutes. When the potatoes are fork tender the Stuffed Calamari is ready to serve and eat.

Place a Green Salad onto plates, drizzle olive oil and spray half a lemon on salad. Lastly, serve the Stuffed Calamari onto the salad. BUON APPETITO!

By: Kimberly Crocker-Scardicchio

Pesto with optional Sunflower Seeds

Simply ingredients for a delectable pesto sauce.

Freshly Chopped Basil carries over a summer flavor into early fall! Add Pesto to your favorite Pasta, Soup, use as a Sandwich Spread, added into a Cheese Ball, or on a baguette as an appetizer. Very easy to assemble and make; less than 10 minutes to prepare and enjoy!

Pesto will leave you wanting MORE! Serves 6 people.  This recipe allows for an Optional 1/4 cup of  Roasted Sunflower seeds, Pine Nuts, or Walnuts for a nuttier flavor.

LET’S BEGIN:  Fill pasta pan with water and place on burner set at high to boil.

Use a Food Processor for quickest preparation. Set to chop then blend. OR a cutting board with a half moon, OR mortar.

Homemade Pesto and Pasta

INGREDIENTS
2 cups Basil Leaves (Stores now sells containers or you can buy a plant. Remove and wash leaves.)
1 large single garlic clove
(optional 1/2 cup Pine Nuts or Walnuts)
1/2 -3/4 cup Olive Oil (Extra Virgin)
1/2 tsp salt and pepper
1/2 cup grated Parmesan Cheese
1/2 cup Pecorino Cheese
Extra Virgin Olive Oil to Drizzle over Pasta and Pesto
1 cup Parmesan Cheese to top off Pasta dishes.
A few small springs of basil set aside for presentation.

Finished Pesto

PREPARATION

Freshly chopped herbs and garlic done by knife or half moon.

With Processer “Set to OFF” add basil leaves and garlic clove ( If opting to use nuts you may add them in at this point). Begin to “CHOP” leaves and garlic (nuts) for about 30 seconds. (Same for assembly with half moon or mortar.)

Set processor  to “PUREE” and through spout of machine slowly add HALF of olive oil. (If making by hand and incorporate cheese, spices and oil with a fork) Allow processor to work. Set oil aside. Add Salt and Pepper. Slowly add cheese, alternating with olive oil. Allow to BLEND together for about 1 minute. Set aside or cover and store in the refrigerator.

Pesto made with the mortar brings the oils from the herbs to the sauce.

Add pasta of choice to BOILING water. Add 2 Tbsp salt. Allow pasta to boil for 1 minute
less of indicated time. (If box indicates boil 8 minutes, then boil for 7 minutes to achieve “al dente” and allow pasta to “absorb pesto”.) Drain water from cooked pasta. Rinse pasta with cold water for 10 seconds; (RECOMMENDED RINSE ONLY for this pasta dish), so that the cheese in the pesto will not coagulate to the pasta.

Place pasta in a large serving dish.  Add prepared 1/2 cup Pesto for 4 individuals . With two forks toss pasta and pesto together until pasta is dressed in pesto. (Additional pesto for more flavor!)

Serve into individual dishes. Drizzle a small amount of Extra Virgin Olive Oil over pasta and top off with desired cheese. Place basil spring on top of prepared pasta for presentation.

By: Kimberly Crocker-Scardicchio

Vegetable Couscous

Easy to make vegetable couscous. Serve with Lemon Leaf Chicken Wrap . Serves 4.      20 minutes preparation.

  • 2 cups water
  • 1/2 tsp salt for boiling water 1/2 tsp salt for vegetables
  • 1  cup Couscous
  • 1/4 c. olive oil
  • 1 pat butter
  • 1/4 onion peeled and diced
  • 1 garlic clove minced
  • 1/2 cup each; diced eggplant, zucchini, carrot, red pepper or tomato
  • 1 Tbsp chopped parsley
  • Basil leaves to garnish

Couscous alle verdure

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Fill a  large pan with 270 ml (2 cups) water.  When water boils add 1/2 tsp of salt.  Add 1 cup (200 grams) of couscous. .
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Stir couscous, reduce heat to medium low and cover,  allow to simmer for 2 minutes.   Place 2 tsp of butter into pan along with 1 Tbsp of olive oil.  Allow to simmer another 2 minutes.  Remove lid from pan, turn off heat and fluff couscous with fork.
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Wash, dry and dice: eggplant, zucchini, carrot, onion and red pepper or tomato.
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In a skillet on medium heat add 2 T olive oil, garlic and vegetables. Season with 1/2 tsp salt. Saute for 10 minutes. couscous_verd_6_ric.jpg
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Combine vegetables and parsley leaves with couscous. Present with leaves of basil on side of dish.

Zucchini and Carrot Side Dish

A perfect pairing of two vegetables! Zucchini is high in Vitamin B6,2,1 Vitamin C, A and minerals. While carrots carry the load in carotenoids with recent research also linking critical phytonutrients Falcarinol and Falcarindiol to inhibiting the growth of intestinal and colon cancer cells, making it a power house vegetable! Enjoy this wonderful side dish weekly or daily and see how you can improve your health.

Zucchini and Carrots maybe prepared together or separately. Maybe served over: Rice, Quinoa, Couscous, or Pasta.

Sliced Carrots and Zucchini for saute`

An easy side dish to prepare that takes little time to prepare and full of nutrients. Establish healthier individual standards and enjoy this dish served warm or cold. The recipe can be used for a”Zucchini” or “Carrot” only dish.

Ingredients

  • 2 Garlic Cloves minced
  • 1/4 cup olive oil
  • 3 Carrots, thinly sliced rounds

  • Chopped Garlic and Parsley

  • 3 Zucchini, thinly sliced rounds
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1 Tbsp Fresh Parsley chopped

Saute vegetables in pan

Directions:

Place skillet on low-heat, add olive oil and garlic, allow to heat for 4 minutes. Add in sliced carrots and saute` for 4 minutes. Place Zucchini into skillet and add salt. Using a wooden spoon integrate vegetables together, simmering for about 5 minutes.  Add parsley into carrots and zucchini.

By: Kim Crocker-Scardicchio

Research: