Tomato Sauce....the REAL deal

This is THE quintessential classic Italian tomato sauce. Taught to me by a chef who is Italian!
Simple is best when it comes to this recipe and that is hard for me to do. I always want to add flavours I love and pile them high and in excess. With ethnic cooking that can work okay but with this you don't want to mess with the best. And this was pure, divine, tomato goodness.

28 oz can of whole tomatoes run through a food mill, de-seeded
2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
Quality tomato paste (one from Italy)
2 large basil leaves torn
1 small onion, finely diced (about 1/2 a cup)
4 tablespoons olive oil
Pasta - Barilla is a great Italian brand and found almost everywhere

There are some major elements that can make or break this sauce.

1) You need whole tomatoes and make sure you check the label to make sure there is no salt or citric acid. That means the tomatoes were picked before they were ripe and you are not compromising flavour.
2) The tomatoes need to be run through a sieve or food mill which is the best method as you still get chunks of tomato then. You need to remove the seeds. The seeds become bitter once cooked and you don't want that!
3) Make sure you take your time sauteing the onion and garlic as you don't want them to burn--another bitter taste you don't want any of.

Saute onions in olive oil in a medium saucepan until golden. Add garlic and saute until soft. Do not brown or burn. Add tomato paste and saute gently for 4 minutes.

Add tomato puree and simmer for 20-30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Season and stir in basil and fresh olive oil.

I added some chili's and prawns and roasted tomatoes because I just couldn't stop myself. A glass of Pinot Noir went exceptionally well with the light, tart and sweet tomatoes.

Spinach, Garlic & Basil Spaghetti

Al dente people. No other way. Over cooked pasta has it's place...in prison and lunch school cafeterias. If you like it like that then by all means....but if you want to do it the Italian way (and who doesn't???) then you want it with a slight resistance before consumption.
This recipe is simple, fast, easy, tasty. Enough said.

Good quality dry spaghetti, like Barilla. Enough for 4 portions. About the size of a dime when held together
6 large handfuls of spinach leaves
3 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
6 basil leaves torn
2-3 tablespoons olive oil
4 tablespoons fresh Parmesan
Salt and pepper to taste

Servings: 4

Bring a large pot of boiling water to boil (at least 4-6 litres) with 1 tablespoon of salt. When boiling add spaghetti.

In a medium frying pan on low heat add 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Add garlic and saute until opaque, careful not to burn. Add spinach and cook until wilted. Add basil and remove from heat.

Once spaghetti is cooked return spinach mixture to heat and add spaghetti and toss until coated. Add remaining olive oil if needed and season with salt and pepper. Plate and top with a tablespoon of Parmesan.

Recipe: Grilled Prawns with Garlic Lemon Butter

Sometimes simple is best. Roasted garlic, butter and lemon. Easy. The hardest part is getting the prawns off the barbeque just at the right time. You want them cooked but not over-cooked and this can be the difference of 15 seconds. So the minute you don't see any grey left, remove ASAP. They should take approximately 2 minutes.

16-20 large prawns
1/4 cup softened butter
1 lemon juiced
1 head of roasted garlic (1/2 hour in oven at 400 degrees, or until soft)
Rock salt
Pepper

Mix the butter, lemon juice and garlic in a bowl until you have a soft paste. Rinse prawns, peel and massage butter mixture in so each prawn has generous coating.

Turn on barbeque and bring to 400-450 degrees.

Place on hot barbeque and grill 2 minutes or until they are no longer grey.

Recipe: Baby Artichoke 3 Way

These sumptious little morsels called out to me from Sunshine Market on Commercial. $5.99 for 2 pounds? That is like finding an edible pot of gold! We headed back to Maria's pad and bbq'd and steamed them up. I did the full artichokes back in the day but now babies are the only way I roll. The grown ups just don't compare once you've gone young. Less green toughness, more delicous sunshine centre. We devoured these in a baby artichoke orgy of 3 different sauces. I asked Maria to pick her fave but she said they all were good in their own way.
Preperation:
Rinse artichokes well in a large pot of water. Snap off the lower petals until you reach the yellow-green core. Use a knife and cut off the top half inch of the Baby Artichoke, or just below the green tips of the petals. Trim the stems and all remaining dark-green areas from the base. Immediately soak the prepared Baby Artichokes in water with either two tablespoons of vinegar or lemon juice ,until you are ready to cook with them as this prevents them from going brown.
You can cook these up 3 ways too.
Steaming: Arrange Baby Artichokes in a steamer insert or basket in a pot deep enough to keep the Baby Artichokes above water. Cover tightly and steam over rapid boiling water (making sure to maintain the water level), until Baby Artichokes are tender. Depending on size and quantity of Baby Artichokes, steaming time can range from 15 to 20 minutes. Lift out carefully and drain.
Grilling: This adds those a smoky flavor and those lovely charcoaled grill marks. However they still need to be pre-cooked. I boiled mine for approx. 8 minutes. Once boiled cut in half and brush them with olive oil before grilling. Grill for 3-5 minutes.
Boiling: Add to a pot of salted and water. Pot should be full enough so when submersed all artichokes are covered. Boil 8-10 minutes or until you can stick a knife in and artichokes are tender.

Lemon Aioli
2 garlic cloves, minced (I prefer in a food processor)
1 cup mayonaise (light or regular)
1 teaspoon lemon rind
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon salt
Pepper to taste

Yield 1 cup

Combine all of the above in food processor until smooth.
Can be kept in the fridge for up to 7 days.










Pesto Vinaigrette
1 cup fresh basil
2 cups fresh flat leaf parsley
2 cloves of garlic
1/2 cup olive oil
1 tablespoon white or red wine vingear
1/2 tablespoon Dijon mustard

Yield 1 cup

In a food processor pulse garlic until finely minced. Add basil and parsley along with 1/4 cup of oil, vinegar and mustard. Blend. Add more olive oil until you reach desired consistency which should be thicker than a dressing but lighter than a traditional pesto. NOTE: I added feta, caper berries and olives to take it up a notch but just with the pesto was more than enough.
Can be kept in the fridge for up to 7 days.


Roasted Red Pepper Sauce
2 to 3 medium red peppers
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 teaspoon vegetable oil
1/4 cup olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste

Yield 1 cup

Place peppers under an oven broiler. Once the skin has blackened rotate to other side of the peppers and continue until the entire pepper is charred. Remove from oven and place in a bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let sit for approx. 20 minutes and once you can touch them remove the charred skin to reveal the soft flesh. Discard seeds and stem. Place in a food processor and puree.
In a small saucepan on medium heat add vegetable oil and fry garlic until soft. Add to red pepper purée. Add remaining olive oil and refrigerate.
Can keep up to 10 days in the fridge.

Recipe: Chipotle Aioli with Lime or Lemon

Chipotle. This adds instant kick to anything. I know it has been used and abused but call me a chipotle-beater as I still haven't had enough and will put it in everything. Check out my chipotle mayo/aioli. This is a serious staple in my fridge as it will save anything from being boring. Use it as a dip, put it on fish (fish tacos--yes, yes, yes!), on sweet potatoes, coleslaw--endless possiblilities.

1 cup loosely packed cilantro
1/2 or 1 chipotle pepper in adobo sauce
1 clove of garlic
1 cup regular or light mayonnaise
1/4 cup sour cream or more mayonnaise
1/4 cup feta (optional)
1/2 a teaspoon lime or lemon zest
1 tablespoon lime or lemon juice

Yield approx: 1 1/2 cup

In a food processor pulse garlic until fine. Add cilantro, pulse until blended. Add the remaining ingredients, until well blended. Keeps in fridge for 7-10 days.