Raspale... Crispelle... Screppelle... Frittelle. Will the real Italian Fried Dough please come forward.

 

Maybe its regional, without doing research, my guess is that it is.  I grew up with fried dough being call Raspale.  My Nonni (sorry husband, we called her that, not Nonna) made them two ways- one with an anchovy inside and one with cinnamon sugar on the outside.  Her dough was always made with potatoes.  My mother tried to get the recipe from her but she would never relinquish it, such was the way with Nonni.  Sigh.  Really.  Why do people do this, their recipes die with them.  What a shame.  Anyways for years, my mother ad-libbed the recipe.  Kind of figured it out.  She never wrote down a recipe like this because it was just kind of ad things based on experience and skill. She had asked me many times to find a recipe with potatoes in the dough,  I did find a German dough called Fashnacts.  This was the closest we came to finding the recipe.  Until now.  I found a recipe that works really well.  I like it but I definitely will add more flour next time as it was a bit too loose to shape, 

My Mom always shaped hers like a rectangle then she would count a list int he rectangle and turn an end into the slit.  Making a sort of twist.  The anchovy ones were more like a small torpedo.  Geesh we had to tell the difference because who would want to eat an anchovy one?  Well, I do now. I love anchovies now.  

This recipe is definitely a winner.  It's very light.  Light meaning airy not low calorie.  Ha its definitely not low calorie.  It's a treat to be sure.  Generally it is done around Christmas but with all the eating the last thing I want to do is make them at Christmas so I think it will be a yearly treat at Easter.  

My daughter use to work at a pizzeria and insisted I do thing in a certain way like they did them.  She wanted to me to shake them in a plastic bag with confectioners.  No to the plastic bag and no to he confectioners.  She wanted me to shape them in a certain way.  No, just no.  It wasn't just about the product.  It was about treating those childhood memories I had and my Mom's way.  As long as I am alive and I am making them, this is how I will do it.  Thank you very much dear daughter.  Some things in a kitchen are not always about efficiency but rather about out sentimental ties to process and form. And my husband backed me as he enjoyed them the same way as a child.  So we both got to take a walk down a culinary memory lane.

Love you Mom, you were the best cook!  Miss you so much.

RASPALE

2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast

1/4 cup luke warm water

4 cups AP flour (more to get right consistency)

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup about 2 medium potatoes, mashed well 

1 1/2 cups water

oil for frying, I used peanut oil

Combine sugar with 1/4 cup water.  Sprinkle in yeast and stir.  Let sit until foamy.

In a stand mixer, combine flour, salt, water, mashed potatoes and finally yeast water. Keep mixing.  Add tablespoons of flour to the batter until you get the right consistency. You want it to be pretty hydrated but able to form into shapes*. 

Heat oil to about 350 to 375 degrees.  place in hot oil the formed dough.  You do not want your oil too hot or you dough think as it will cook too fast on the outside and be doughy on the inside.   Once you remove from hot oil roll in cinnamon sugar.

Cinnamon sugar:  1 cup sugar and 1 tablespoon cinnamon.  Or to taste.

*If you don't care about form and will just plop blobs of dough into hot oil then it is okay if it is a bit more hydrated.

Calamari

 

Its tradition that we have calamari every year at Christmas time.  Nearly every year, I mess it up. Sometimes I nail it but most often its soggy.  Its not for my lack of trying.  I finally nailed it, with the right way yesterday and had to put it in writing so I remember what I did last year.  Its taken from a video on You Tube but I tweaked it and made it my own.

2 cups flour

1 cup cornstarch

1 generous tablespoons mixed Italian seasoning

1 teaspoon pepper

1 tablespoon garlic powder

Mix dry ingredients together, set aside

Make sure you fry in a low sided pan.  I used my braising pan.  If the sides are too high it will get soggy because I think it traps in some moisture.  Not sure but did not work.  I tried high sides to help prevent grease from going all over.  It wasn't worth it.  

3 inches of oil.  I used peanut oil, which has a high smoke point.  

Soaking liquid

1 cup milk or buttermilk.  I used whole milk

2 eggs

Rinse and cut tubes into rings.  Drain.  Place in soaking liquid.

Get dry ingredients together in separate bowl.  

Dip calamari into dry ingredients and then place in hot oil.  350 F  fry for about a minutes.  Remove and drain on cooling rack or paper towels.  Keep in 200 F oven while cooking all of it.  I do about 7 1/2 pounds at Christmas.  Its a lot of frying, a total labor of love.

Kimchi

 

KIMCHI

1 regular size head napa cabbage

10 scallions, sliced thinly

1/4 cup sea salt or kosher salt

1 head of garlic

1 inch ginger knob, grated

1 teaspoon sugar

2 tablespoons fish sauce

4 tablespoons Gochugaru, Korean red pepper flakes

1. Cut Napa cabbage into bite sized pieces.  Sprinkle with salt, tossing with your hands to work salt into the cabbage.  Set aside, covered for 2-4 hours.

2. Wash and drain cabbage to wash off salt. Place in colander and let drain for 15 minutes.

3.  Make seasonings.  Mix together garlic paste, sugar, ginger, salt, fish sauce and red pepper flakes.

4. Combine spices with cabbage, massaging it all into the cabbage.

5. Pack into jar, you want liquid to be covering the cabbage.  Cover, letting some air in.  I like to use a paper towel and a rubber band to hold it in place.  Place in dark area for 1 to 5 days.  Place jar into cookie sheet or square pan as it will overflow. Make sure your press it down so it continues to remain under the brine.

6.  After that refrigerate and enjoy.  It will continue to ferment.  The longer it sits the more funky it gets. Embrace the funk, its good for your gut.

Grand Mariner Cranberry Sauce

Its almost time for Thanksgiving.  One of my favorite meals of the year.  Its so epic.  I know not everyone goes crazy over turkey but I love it. I always do Alton Brown's brined turkey recipe.  Comes out moist and delicious and we all love it.  I like to do the cranberry sauce ahead of time and freeze it.  One less thing to do when there are a thousand other things to do.

Grand Marnier Cranberry Sauce

24 ounces cranberries
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup Grand Marnier
2 teaspoons orange zest


1.  Zest oranges. Set aside.

2.  Cook cranberries and zest until cranberries have mostly broken down. 

3.  Add sugar and Grand Marnier and cook five minutes more.

Niçoise Salad

If you eat eggs you can add them in.  This is a delicious salad with or without eggs. The dressing is makes everything come together.  Something about mustard and potatoes!

Niçoise Salad

Serves 2 with enough dressing for another time. Or another salad. :)

10 olives 
1 cup green beans, halved
2 cups small potatoes, chunked
3 cups mixed salad leaves
10 cherry tomatoes, halved
4 small cucumbers, chunked
1 ripe avocado, diced
2 tablespoons capers

dressing:
3 tbsp white wine vinegar 
½ tsp salt
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
1 tsp wholegrain mustard
1 tbsp maple syrup
5 tbsp olive oil 
an assortment of fresh herbs, parsley, basil, dill

Toss it all together.

Asian Style Eggplant

 

I threw some vegetables together that needed some attention. I was excited that it actually worked.  I love it.  I went right out and bought more eggplant from the farmers market.  going to the farmers market for me now is like a kid going to the candy store.  I go crazy and often go a little overboard but we end up eating all of it.

Asian Style Eggplant 

3 small eggplants, chopped in 1 inch dice

2 green bell peppers, chopped in 1 inch dice

1 onion, chopped in 1 inch dice

1 Chile, chopped fine

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 teaspoon salt

Sauce

3 tablespoons broad bean paste

1 tablespoon sesame oil

2 tablespoons soy sauce

1/2 white pepper 

1/2 teaspoon red chili flakes

1 tablespoons maple syrup

1 clove garlic, minced

2 tablespoons tapioca powder

1/4 cup water

Sauté the bell pepper and onion and chili and olive oil for 10 minutes. Add chopped eggplant and cover. Continue to cook for 10 to 15 minutes until eggplant is wilted.

Make sauce while waiting for the bell pepper for the eggplant to cook when just about done add and sauce until thick. Serve with basil over top.

Deconstructed Sushi Bowl

 

This is one of my faves when I am wanting some Asian flavors.  Most ingredients are available in the Winter so its easy to have then. But with some summer fresh cucumbers, its the BOMB!

DECONSTRUCTED SUSHI BOWL

2 to 3 cups mixed greens

1/2 cup purple cabbage

1/2 cup chopped green onions

1 cup cucumbers

1 cup rice

1 avocado, chopped

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1/4 cup pickled ginger ****

1/4 teaspoon wasabi

1 tablespoon soy sauce

2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar

1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil

1 tablespoon sesame seeds

**** make your own pickled ginger. 

Pickled Ginger

9 to 10 ounces ginger

⅓ cup plus 1 ½ cups sugar

2 teaspoons fine sea salt, or 1 ½ tablespoons kosher salt

⅔ cup rice vinegar

Peel ginger and cut into super thin slices, use a mandoline or very sharp knife. Cut across the grain and aim for nearly see-through pieces.

Transfer the ginger to a saucepan or heatproof bowl. Toss with the 1 ½ tablespoons of sugar and salt. Set aside for 30 minutes to reduce its harshness.

About 10 minutes before the ginger finishes mellowing out, bring a kettle of water to a boil. When the ginger is done, pour the just-boiled water over the ginger. Use enough water to cover the ginger. Gently stir and let sit for 20 seconds to further reduce the harshness. Dump into a mesh strainer. Don’t rinse. Shake a few times to expel water, then transfer into a 2-cup capacity glass jar.

In a saucepan, bring the mixture of sugar and vinegar to a boil. Stir once or twice to dissolve the sugar. Remove from the heat and pour into the jar of ginger.

Push down with chopsticks or a spoon to submerge. Cool, uncovered, then cap and refrigerate.