Feast of the Seven Fishes Blog | Italian Christmas, Italian Food, Cooking, Recipes and Traditions

Grilled Polenta with sausage and peppers in tomato sauce recipe

Okay, so it's not fish.  But when our pals Kevin Sansalone and Jay Rogers showed up at the Feast of the Seven Fishes Festival serving grilled polenta we begged them to share - and they were kind enough to do so...here's Kevin:

Grilled Polenta with sausage and peppers in tomato sauce recipe

Ingredients

• 2 c. cornmeal
• 6 1/2 to 7 1/2 c. water
• 1 tbs salt
• 1 tbs butter

Instructions

Bring water to boil add salt.  Reduce water to simmer.  Stream cornmeal
slowly into simmering water.  Simmer stirring constantly for 20 minutes.
Add butter and stir until melted.  Pour onto platter or board, let cool, cut
into serving pieces and grill until grill marks form on each side.
Alternatively, it can be poured/spooned into individual plates and eaten
hot.  In ether event before eating,  spoon a desired amount of sauce,
peppers and sausage (below) onto polenta and sprinkle with grated Romano
cheese or Parmesan cheese if desired.

Sauce, peppers and sausage

• 1 quart tomato sauce
• 1 small onion chopped
• 1 clove garlic minced
• Olive oil
• Salt to taste

Saute onion and garlic in olive oil till golden in a 3 quart sauce pan.  Add
sauce to pan. Rinse can or jar with 1/2 c water and add to pan.    Add 1 lb
cooked  medium hot sausage cut into bite size rounds with all or some of the
cooking juices from sausage.

Simmer for 3/4 to 1 hour until sauce is reduced.

Add 1 pint peppers and sauce- Oliverio/ Demus style (hot, medium or mixed)
heat peppers through.  Correct salt to taste.

Serve hot over polenta.
 

Tiella Recipe

Tiella is a very special dish to me. When I was about 15, it was the first recipe my aunt taught me to cook. It is also the fist meal I cooked for my husband when we were dating. The dish is very popular among Italians in North Central West Virginia and a great way to use up all those fresh summer veggies from the garden. Supposedly, the word "tiella"(like so many Italian recipes) means pan, and was the type of pan used to cook the casserole. A vegetarian version can also be made by omitting the meat and is just as good! I make the vegetarian version for Christmas Eve and put stuffed calamari on top!

Ingredients

• 1 pound ground beef
• 1 pound ground sausage
• 1 large can tomato sauce
• ¼ cup water
• 5 par boiled potatoes, peeled and sliced (if using red potatoes, I leave the skin on)
• 1 large onion
• 2 cloves garlic
• 3 medium zucchini, sliced same size as potatoes
• 2 cups bread crumbs
• 1-2 cups grated cheese
• 3 tablespoons fresh basil and parsley chopped
• Salt /pepper to taste
• Olive oil

Instructions

Brown the meat in a skillet. Pour tomato sauce and water over meat mixture and let simmer about 15-20 min. Parboil potatoes. In another pan sauté the onions and garlic in olive oil and set aside. In a separate bowl combine the fresh bread crumbs with the grated cheese, parsley, basil, salt and ground black pepper. In a pan or Dutch oven (I use my Le Creuset dutch oven) cover the bottom of the pan with the meat sauce, and then add a layer of potatoes, zucchini, onions and top w/ bread crumb mixture. Just like making lasagna repeat another layer and pour any extra sauce over the top, sprinkle the top w/ bread crumb mixture. Drizzle w/ olive oil and bake at 350 for 45 minuets or until veggies are tender!

Baccala / Salted Cod Salad Recipe

Are you looking for an interesting way to cook cod? How about Shannon's favorite Baccala salad. Enjoy,

Ingredients

• 1 ½ Pound of Baccala (cooked and shredded)
• 1 Cup Red and Green Peppers (cured in vinegar)
• 1 Cup Celery
• 1 Cup Celery leaves
• 1 Cup Black Olives
• 3 Cloves of Garlic
• 10 Leaves or 2 Tbs of Fresh Basil
• ¾ Cup Olive Oil

Instructions

Cook Baccala for four minutes in boiling water, cool and shred. Combine with red and green peppers, celery, celery leaves, black olives and garlic that have been finely chopped. Sprinkle with coarse black pepper, chopped fresh basil and drizzle with olive oil. Refrigerate on a platter covered until cold or when ready to serve.

Photo Credit

Spicy Mussles Recipe

Photo Credit

With all that cold weather all over the place, here's a yummy recipe to warm you up. Shannon's favorite mussles recipe.

Ingredients
3 pounds of mussels-scrubbed, bearded and rinsed

2 cups dry white wine

1/4 cup olive oil

2-4 cloves garlic-crushed

4  anchovy fillets
 ½ or more teaspoon hot pepper flakes

1 teaspoon vinegar

2 tablespoons of parsley-chopped

Instructions
In a large pot, bring the wine to a simmer. Garlic lovers may choose to add a couple minced cloves of garlic at this time. Add the mussels, cover and cook until all mussels have opened, up to around 5 minutes. Remove mussels and increase the heat until the liquid reduces about 5 minutes. In a large sauté pan, over medium heat the olive oil and add the garlic cook until soften but not burn. Add the anchovies and hot pepper flakes (more than a ½ teaspoon if you dare) and stir. Add the mussels, and the reduced liquid they were cooked in along with vinegar and simmer 1 to 2 minutes. Remove from heat and place in a large serving bowl – mussels may taste even better if you attempt to keep them warm. Garnish with fresh parsley. The mussels can be served immediately with a few hunks of good Italian bread or chilled for a few hours and served later.

Tiramisu Recipe by Shannon

Photo Credit

Now that the Holiday season has passed, it's time to start posting some of Shannon's favorite recipes again. Let's start with a great Italian dessert - Tiramisu. Enjoy.

Ingredients

• 1 Pound of Mascarpone Cheese
• 1/2 Cup of Sugar
• 4-5 Tablespoons of Kahlua
• 1 ½ Cups of Heavy Whipping Cream
• 1 Large Pack of Lady Fingers
• 1 -2 Cups Strong Brewed Coffee
• 1 Tablespoon of Vanilla
• 2 Egg Whites
• 1 Dark Chocolate Bar

Instructions

In a large bowl mix together the mascarpone, ¼ cup sugar, and egg whites until a smooth consistency is achieved. In a chilled bowl add the heavy whipping cream, vanilla and remaining ¼ cup of sugar. Beat until soft peaks form and it becomes whipped cream. Fold the cheese mixture into the whipped cream mixture. In another bowl add the Kahlua to the coffee. Dip the ladyfingers quickly in the coffee mixture (do not soak as they will become soggy), and the place the cookies in rows in a cake pan. Spread a layer of mascarpone/cream mixture across the ladyfingers. Shave chocolate mixture over that layer and repeat steps (sort of like making lasagna) until all the ingredients have been used. Shave chocolate over the top layer and make some curls. Cover and chill over night.

Please comment if there any recipes that you'd like to see on our blog. Also, if you have a favorite Tiramisu (or any recipe for that matter), send it along and we'll share it with our community.

How To Make Focaccia Bread

Photo Credit goes to: http://flickr.com/photos/avlxyz/2145110663/

HeraldNet made an interesting point in one of their online stories. Why buy Focaccia in a supermarket when you can easily make it yourself at home. Here's the recipe for what is called Easy Italian Herb Focaccia.

• 31/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 envelope Fleischmann's RapidRise Yeast
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil, divided
• 12/3 cups warm (120-130 degrees) water
• 2 tablespoons shredded fresh Parmesan cheese
• 1 tablespoon Italian herb seasoning

Mix flour, undissolved yeast, sugar and salt in a large bowl. Add 2 tablespoons of the olive oil and water, stirring until well mixed. Spread dough into a greased 9-by-13-inch baking pan. Cover.

Let dough rise until doubled, about 30 minutes. Poke multiple holes into the dough, using the handle of a wooden spoon. Drizzle remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil over dough, then sprinkle with the Parmesan cheese and Italian herb seasoning. Cover.

Let dough rise again for an additional 15 minutes while the oven preheats to 375 degrees.

Uncover and bake 30 to 35 minutes, until lightly browned. Cool slightly and cut into slices; serve warm. If desired, serve with additional olive oil for dipping.

How to cook the Feast of the Seven Fishes for under $80

Today the Early Show Saturday Edition challenged its "Chef on a Shoestring" Dave Pasternack to prepare the traditional Feast of the Seven Fishes dinner on a budget of only $80. Here are some of the dishes that Dave,  executive chef and owner of the New York restaurant Esca and co-author of  The Young Man and the Sea: Recipes and Crispy Fish Tales from Esca, cooked up:

Baccala Salad

Baked Clams

Sicilian-Style Swordfish

Collard Greens and Cannellini Beans

Seafood Linguine

Affogato

Click here to see the recipes behind Dave's work.  And for those of you more visually inclined, here's a video of the CBS segment.

Here is how Dave did, budgetwise.

Baccala Salad:
salt cod $9.99
yellow onion .28
leek $1.99
celery $1.99
white wine $4.95
apple .89
lemon .67
fingerling potatoes $2.99
scallion .79
parsley .79
TOTAL = $25.33

Baked Clams:
little neck clams $4.29
horseradish $2.00
bread crumbs $1.19
lemon .59
TOTAL = $8.07

Sicilian-Style Swordfish:
Swordfish $10.99
Lemons .59
TOTAL = $11.58

Collard Greens:
collard greens .99
cannellini Beans .79
ham hock $2.29
TOTAL = $4.07

Seafood Linguine:
linguine .99
pancetta $4.49
dried red chilies $2.25
shrimp $4.00
mussels $1.49
scallops $3.50
lobster $7.95
clam juice $1.29
garlic .39
TOTAL = $26.35

Affogato:
espresso powder $1.99
gelato or ice cream $1.99
TOTAL = $3.98

TOTAL COST = $79.38!