Posted by The Serious Eats Team, May 10, 2008 at 9:00 AM
Adapted from Italian Grill by Mario Batali.
You can make your own pizza dough (here's a great recipe) or ask a local pizzeria if it would be willing to sell you some. You might also try your grocery store for premade pizza dough.
Ingredients
2 large garlic heads
Pizza dough
Flour, for rolling
2 cups grated young or semisoft provolone
1 1/2 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary
1 bunch scallions, thinly sliced
Procedure
1. Preheat grill. Meanwhile, slice garlic about 1/4 inch down from top of heads so that cloves are exposed. Wrap each head in foil, and transfer to a 350°F oven. Roast garlic about an hour, or until cloves are very soft. Remove garlic from oven, let cool, and then squeeze out the cloves. Mash them with a fork.
2. Divide dough into 2 pieces. With a floured rolling pin, roll each piece into a 12-by-7-inch rectangle that's about 1/4 inch thick.
3. Place one dough rectangle on grill; cook until bottom is golden brown, about 1 1/2 minutes. Flip dough; continue cooking on other side until golden, about 2 more minutes. Transfer dough to cutting board. Repeat with remaining dough rectangle.
4. Let dough cool about 2 minutes. Use a serrated knife and cut it in half horizontally, creating, essentially, a large sandwich. Spread one half of each bread with the garlic paste, then sprinkle the rosemary over it. Place provolone on the other halves; sprinkle those with scallions. Sandwich the halves together; wrap each with foil, and grill, flipping once, until focaccina are hot and cheese is melted, 5 to 6 minutes.
5. Unwrap, cut into 1 1/2-inch-wide strips, and serve immediately.
Posted by Robin Bellinger, April 25, 2008 at 12:45 PM
Since the thought of another pile of paper to manage makes me cringe, I don’t keep a file of recipe clippings for the future. I can’t remember, then, what prompted me to pull this recipe from Mark Bittman’s column in the New York Times a few years ago, but some part of me must have known that his baked ziti would become my most popular dish.
Unsophisticated and absurdly easy to whip up, baked ziti presents difficulty only to those of us who have trouble managing our greed. Since the measurements are so round, I don’t even have to check the recipe before I go to the store: 1 pound sausage, 1 pound pasta, 1 pound cheese, 1 can tomatoes. It freezes beautifully, which makes it the nicest of emergency dinners for nights when you’re too busy to cook but want something nicer than a tangle of sad pad thai.
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Posted by Lucy Baker, April 22, 2008 at 3:30 PM
Sometimes a few simple ingredients come together to create something spectacular. The individual elements compliment each other so well that, when combined, the results are so delicious they border on magical. Think bacon and eggs; chocolate and strawberries; hot dogs, ketchup, and mustard.
To my mind, few dishes are as effortlessly flawless as a classic caprese salad composed of tart tomatoes, creamy mozzarella, and fragrant basil. And while I wouldn't normally mess with perfection, I was intrigued by a recipe in the May issue of Bon Appetit that replaced the tomatoes with slices of fresh mango, and added radicchio to the mix.
A caprese salad with tropical and bitter flavors? I had to try it out for this week's magazine recipe review.
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Posted by Lucy Baker, March 18, 2008 at 2:15 PM
When I have a craving for a really decadent dish—macaroni and cheese, say, or rice pudding—I prefer to make it for myself as opposed to ordering it in a restaurant. This is for two reasons: first, I think that rich, comforting foods are best enjoyed at home; second, when I am the cook, I am in control of the specific ingredients and the portion sizes. The end result is, I believe, always a little bit healthier.
For this week's magazine recipe review I made the orecchiette carbonara with leeks from the April issue of Bon Appétit. Spaghetti carbonara is something I would never eat out, for fear of popping a button off my pants in public. There is just no way to tell how much butter, oil, and bacon fat is being used. I was drawn to the version in Bon Appétit because it didn't use heavy cream (unlike some less traditional carbonaras), and because it called for fresh, seasonal leeks. Also, I happened to have a lot of eggs on hand.
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Posted by Robin Bellinger, March 7, 2008 at 1:30 PM
The main reason I don’t have parties very often is that I’m one of those compulsive people who allows planning to spin out of control. I end up with five times as much food as I need but still stressed out because I didn’t manage to bake my own saltines and infuse my own vodka. It’s wiser, I know, to do fewer things better, which is why everyone should have the recipe for the Lee Brothers’ cheese straws.
These are not what I would call cheese straws, which in my experience are crispy and flaky and sometimes don’t taste cheesy enough; these are more like cheese shortbread—rich, crumbly, full of cheese, and, best of all, spicy. Growing up in Houston I knew one lady who always had crackers very like these on hand for visitors. She made hers with Tabasco and called them cheese cookies. Whatever you call them, they are addictive and a snap to make, which I guess could be considered either a good or a bad combination. If you eat them all up before your company arrives you might even have time to make another batch, at least if your abandon your plans to, say, make a miniature croquembouche for each guest, which, let's face it, probably wasn't the greatest idea anyway.
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Posted by Adam Kuban, March 5, 2008 at 6:30 PM
Today's recipe from this week's featured cookbook, Panini Express, veers away from the ham of the last two days and heads straight to vegetarian territory with Artichoke, Oven-Roasted Tomato, and Goat Cheese Panini. Although tomatoes aren't in season as I write this, oven-roasting those you do find this time of year can help concentrate their flavor, sweetening them enough to play against the other flavors in this pressed sandwich.
But that's not what we did. We didn't have four or five hours to roast tomatoes today, so we subbed in jarred sun-dried tomatoes. We also didn't want to buy an entire bunch of basil just for one tablespoon's worth, so we subbed in some greens we had growing in the office AeroGarden.
Win 'Panini Express'
If you're just now tuning in, you should note that we're giving away five (5) copies of this book here on Serious Eats this week. More details on that here.
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Posted by Ed Levine, February 14, 2008 at 10:00 AM
Cheese fondue is good any day of the year as far as I'm concerned, but it's particularly and deliciously appropriate for Valentine's Day. It's creamy, tangy, and crazy good. It's easy to make, and it's the ultimate interactive food. We've made this recipe in my house any number of times, and it's always turned out great. We adapted it from Steven Jenkin's terrific book, Cheese Primer
.
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Posted by Nick Kindelsperger, February 13, 2008 at 4:15 PM
Most of my experience with tossing raw eggs on pasta revolves around pasta carbonara, one of my very favorite meals. I eat it a lot. Because it requires only some eggs, bacon, and pasta, it is my go-to meal when the fridge is running low. What makes it great is not just the ingredients, but how they are added. When tossed in at the last minute that raw egg yolk lovingly coats every strand of pasta in a perfect, luscious sauce. When I saw this recipe I got very excited—here was another recipe that added the egg at the end. What kind of wonders would it hold?
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Posted by Ed Levine, February 10, 2008 at 8:00 AM
Adapted from At Home: Two Chefs Cook for Family and Friends by Mark Peel and Nancy Silverton. Think of this dish as a delicious savory pudding instead of a soufflé. It's easy to make, much sturdier than it sounds, and utterly delicious.
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Posted by Adam Kuban, February 9, 2008 at 7:00 PM
Each Saturday evening we bring you a Sunday Supper recipe. Why Saturday? So you have time to shop and prepare for tomorrow, of course!
I only discovered the Silver Palate Cookbook after joining Ed Levine here at Serious Eats. He recommended it early on as indispensible. But it wasn't until the 25th Anniversary Edition came out that I actually picked up a copy. And now, whenever I'm at a loss for dinner or want to beef up my recipe repertoire, I turn to it.
One of my favorite quick and easy recipes from it is this one for Tortellini with Gorgonzola Cream Sauce. I actually haven't made it in quite a while, but Jamie Forrest's recent blue cheese dip post—and the fact that he stopped by Serious Eats HQ with samples of it (thanks, Jamie!)—has me hankerin' for this pasta dish again.
The book's authors recommend it as either a first course or light main, and I generally make it as a main, accompanied by a simple salad and some good oven-warmed crusty bread. It makes enough for six servings, which is too much for one or two, so if you find yourself with leftovers after making it tomorrow night, you'll have a couple lunches or dinners for next week.
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Posted by Robin Bellinger, February 8, 2008 at 11:30 AM
This week UPI reported that sales of boxed macaroni and cheese increased by 10% in 2007 (story via Jezebel). Furthermore, “half of the country's children will feast on macaroni and cheese at some point during the next two weeks.” Wow! This news will be welcomed by my sister, whose favorite way to tease me about my efforts to buy organic and/or responsible groceries is to describe what she’ll feed her hypothetical nieces and nephews when they come to visit her someday—Kraft Macaroni and Cheese, Cheetos, doughnuts, soft drinks—and how much they’ll love her for it. She’s 27, the same age I was when I made a pot of Kraft Mac & Cheese on a lark and realized I had finally outgrown it. The blue box had served me well during my first few years in New York, but my experiments with homemade macaroni and cheese eventually robbed it of its appeal.
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Posted by Jamie Forrest, February 1, 2008 at 11:00 AM
Try out this blue cheese dip recipe after reading my associated post: The Best Blue Cheese For the Ultimate Super Bowl Blue Cheese Dip.
The Ultimate Super Bowl Blue Cheese Dip
Adapted from Saveur, Issue #31
- makes about 2 cups -
Ingredients
8 oz. cream cheese
1/2 c. heavy cream
1/2 c. sour cream (or a strained yogurt like Labneh)
1/4 lb. Mountain Gorgonzola (a.k.a. Naturale), or other cow's milk blue
2 scallions, finely chopped
Procedure
Gently beat together the cream cheese, the heavy cream, and the sour cream. (I used a food processor, but only pulsed it briefly; you could probably also use an electric mixer on a slow speed.) Add the crumbled cheese and the scallions and stir to mix, making sure to keep some of the crumbles intact.
Posted by Ed Levine, December 29, 2007 at 9:36 AM
In honor of the superlong holiday weekend and the multiple brunch possibilities contained therein I am going to post the Serious Eats Sunday Brunch recipe suggestion today. I'm a grilled cheese fanatic for breakfast, brunch, lunch, or dinner, so when I came across this Mario Batali recipe for an Italian-style grilled cheese sandwich, Mozzarella in Carozza, I knew what I was going to be making for Will and Vicky sometime this weekend.
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Posted by Nick Kindelsperger, December 17, 2007 at 4:00 PM
Most of my experience with gnocchi is with the potato kind. I do love it, but it takes time. By the time the potatoes have baked, an hour has already gone by. Then you have to let it cool, and then finally set about mixing everything together. But with ricotta gnocchi, you can start with the mixing. It makes this version a perfectly legitimate weeknight meal.
I actually made my own ricotta for the meal, but that certainly isn’t necessary. And while it makes potato gnocchi seem excessive, it comes out just as light and heavenly. A light tomato sauce wouldn’t be bad, nor would a béchamel (which the Silver Spoon recommends). But I just sprinkled with a little more of the Parmesan and called it a day. Oh, and I almost forgot: That’s all because of the spinach, which adds some much needed color, and a depth a flavor that would escape the cheese.
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Posted by Adam Kuban, December 17, 2007 at 2:00 PM
And here's the first of the week's recipes from The Martha Stewart Living Cookbook: The Original Classics
. It's one of my all-time favorites and, in fact, has taken up residence among a coterie of of recipes taped to the back of the cabinet door nearest my stove—though, really, I've made it so often I usually don't need to reference it anymore. If prepared as detailed below, it will serve about 12 people, but I often halve the recipe if I'm not cooking for a crowd—it will still yield more than enough creamy, rich mac and cheese. And, because she says it each time I mention this recipe, the GF says it tastes even better the next day.
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Posted by Ed Levine, November 11, 2007 at 9:39 AM
A fritter is a beautiful thing, no matter who's cooking it. Because even a bad fritter, a crunchy, fried, hunk of batter, is still probably going to be pretty good. Marc Meyer, executive chef-restaurateur of three terrific New York restaurants, Five Points, Cookshop, and Provence, makes truly delicious ricotta fritters for brunch. These babies are supremely crunchy, light, crisp on the outside and meltingly soft on the inside.
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Posted by Ed Levine, November 4, 2007 at 8:50 AM
I was all set to give you a biscuit recipe for today's Sunday Brunch post, but then I happened to read Deb's Smitten Kitchen post on the lemon ricotta pancakes with sauteed apples recipe from Gourmet Magazine in 1991. Yum!
Here's the recipe, complete with Deb's annotation. For Deb's great photos you'll have to click through to her post.
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Posted by Ed Levine, October 14, 2007 at 7:30 AM
This is one of the greatest breakfast or brunch sandwiches ever. If you live in New York or plan on visiting, you can go to 'ino any tine of the day or night, and the skilled toaster-oven cooks there will make one for you. Or you can use this recipe to rustle up one right now in the comfort of your own home (and your own toaster oven).
This Scrambled Egg, Pancetta, and Fontina Bruschetta is adapted from Simple Italian Sandwiches by Jennifer and Jason Denton and Kathryn Kellinger.
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Posted by Alaina Browne, July 23, 2007 at 1:15 PM
Foodstuffs I took for granted growing up in North Carolina include but are not limited to: sweet tea, hush puppies, collard greens, chopped barbecue, and pimento cheese sandwiches. I've only recently learned via the Lee brothers and John T. Edge that our neighbors in South Carolina take pimento cheese to a whole other level with the Pimento Cheese Burger. This recipe from The Lee Bros. Southern Cookbook creates a stiffer spread suitable for grilling thanks to the omission of mayonnaise.
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Posted by Adam Kuban, July 6, 2007 at 1:00 PM
One of the beautiful things about burgerworld is that, despite the legion of fast-food and fast-casual chains out there, regional burger styles have managed to keep a foothold. I've talked before about the cheese-stuffed Jucy Lucy–style burgers in the Twin Cities and the butterburgers of Wisconsin, but today, I'd like to highlight pimento cheese burgers, a specialty in Columbia, South Carolina.
Prior to reading John T. Edge's book Hamburger & Fries, I'd only heard of pimento cheese being served, in the South, on stalks of celery or eaten as the filling of a sandwich. But Mr. Edge ferreted out these delicious-sounding burgers in the Palmetto State.
Here's a recipe, adapted from Mr. Edge's book, that you might want to try this weekend.
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