Eat Together, Make Life Delicious...

My great grandmother Sebastiana used to make this dish when there was stale bread in the house. She shredded it up to resemble breadcrumbs. This trick is an inexpensive way to add flavor and texture to pasta, an old Sicilian trick that we still use today. My aunt Paola uses store-bought breadcrumbs. Either homemade or store-bought breadcrumbs: whichever you prefer.

If you like this technique you can also include a few of these ingredients listed to dress up the dish: sautéed thinly sliced garlic cloves, finely chopped parsley, shredded Parmesan cheese, roasted thinly sliced cauliflower, your favorite cooked seafood, sautéed asparagus, diced roasted eggplant, finely diced cherry tomatoes, to name a few.

Spaghetti with Toasted Breadcrumbs
makes 4 servings

1 pound pasta, such as spaghetti, cooked according to manufacturer’s directions
1 tablespoon kosher salt
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 heaping cup day-old bread, shredded into breadcrumbs (use a food processor if you have one)

Prepare the pasta according to the manufacturer’s directions. Add one tablespoon of salt to the pasta water. Cook, drain, and drizzle it with 1 tablespoon of olive oil.

Meanwhile prepare the toasted breadcrumbs. Heat a large sauté pan over medium-high heat. When the pan is hot add in the breadcrumbs and lightly sauté them for about 4 minutes, or until golden brown. Move them around the pan so they don’t burn. Reduce the heat to low and add in 1 tablespoon of olive oil to moisten the crumbs and transfer them to a deep bowl.

Plate the spaghetti and lightly coat it with the toasted breadcrumb mixture and serve. To dress up this dish, consider adding some of the optional items from the head note.

Labels: Pasta, Sicilian family recipes, Spaghetti with Toasted Breadcrumbs

I love Country style Bruschetta, it is one of my favorite things to eat and prepare. It's easy and also so delicious.

Recently I traveled to Sicily to visit my uncle Giuseppe in Militello Val di Catania where he threw a huge party in the country. The actual location was just outside of town and smack in the middle of his orange and olive groves. To start the party, fresh bread was sliced then toasted on an open grill. It was then set out along side a variety of toppings such as pesto, olive oil and mint, pistachio mash, minced cherry tomatoes, salsa tartufo, olive oil and red pepper flakes, artichoke mash, olive paste, just to name a few.


I love to mix and match, and my favorite combination was a neat mixture of olive oil and freshly chopped mint topped with a sprinkle of finely chopped cherry tomatoes.

To prepare, pour some very green olive oil on a plate and add in a handful of freshly chopped mint and a sprinkle of salt. Mix with a spoon to make sure it is all well combined. Let it sit to steep. Meanwhile mince a handful of cherry tomatoes. Now grill the bread. Slice the bread about 1-inch thick and place it on a grill and lightly toast it on both sides. When it is hot, remove the bread and place it face down into the olive oil and mint mixture. Pick it up and place it on a plate and then sprinkle it with the chopped tomatoes. Now simply sit back and enjoy! Other great combinations are:

Parsley, Red Pepper Flakes & Olive Oil
Basil, Parmesan, & Olive Oil
Mince Marinaded Artichokes & Olive Oil
Sundried Tomatoes & Olive Oil
Pimentos & Olive Oil
Mashed Pistachio & Olive Oil



Other amazing Sicilian food:

Labels: Bruschetta, cherry tomato, Country style Bruschetta, mint, olive oil, Sicilian family recipes

Making Cannolis is quite labor intensive, this recipe from start to finish can take up to two hours. However, if you are looking to serve something really special, this is the recipe to turn to: it's guaranteed to win applause, for flavor and originality. Most people have only eaten cannolis from restaurants and pastries shops making homemade cannolis a wonderful treat.

One of the tricks I discovered to great cannolis is making sure the dough is penny-thin. To do this, I highly recommend using a pasta machine instead of a rolling pin.

Another really important trick is to never wrap the cannoli dough too tightly around the metal cannoli tubes; when it’s too tight, after frying it is quite difficult to remove.

Sicilian Cannoli
makes about 3 dozen shells

For the shells:
2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 pinch table salt
½ teaspoon cinnamon
3 tablespoons olive oil
¾ cup Marsala Wine
Vegetable oil
Olive oil spray

For the filling:
4 cups fresh ricotta
1 cup confectioner’s sugar
4 heaping tablespoons chocolate chips, plus another tablespoon if making for kids
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Optional: 1 teaspoon orange of lemon zest, finely chopped candied citron


To seal the shells:
1 egg white, beaten

For garnish:
Finely chopped (shelled) unsalted pistachios
Confectioners’ sugar for dusting

Make the shells: in a standing mixer with the paddle attachment, combine the flour, sugar, salt, cinnamon, and mix the ingredients on low speed until they are well blended. Add in the olive oil and the Marsala Wine and turn the speed up to medium and mix until a dough is formed, this should take just a few minutes. Transfer the dough to a well floured surface and knead it until it is smooth. This kneading process will take about 15 minutes. Cover the dough in plastic wrap and let it rest for 30 minutes at room temperature.

Meanwhile prepare the filling: In a standing mixer, with the whip attachment, combine the ricotta and sugar. Whip the ricotta until it becomes smooth and fluffy. Reduce the speed to low and add in the chocolate chips and vanilla extract. Mix until everything is well combined. Transfer the ricotta into a large piping back or leave it in the bowl and place it in the refrigerator.

Finishing preparing the shells: split the dough into 4 parts. The trick in creating great cannolis is making the dough thin enough. If you have a pasta machine, this is by far the best way. If not, the dough can be rolled it out by hand. Put the dough through the pasta machine on the widest setting and continue to pass it through, each time on a narrower setting until the dough is as thin as a penny, so quite thin. Lay the dough back on to the work surface and cut out rounds with a 3-inch cookie cutter. Collect all the leftover scraps and continue passing the dough through the machine until it is all done.

Meanwhile, heat the oil in a heavy saucepot over medium heat. The oil should come up about 4 inches on the pot sides. Using a candy thermometer, heat the oil until it reaches 380 degrees.

While the oil is heating up, lightly spray the metal cannoli tubes with olive oil spray. Wrap the rounds around a 4-inch cannoli tube, sealing it with a little of the egg white. You’ll have to press the dough together where it meets to make sure it stays sealed during the frying process. Carefully place the cannoli tube into the oil and fry for about 1 minute or until golden. Using a wire basket or tongs, scoop out the cannoli tube from the oil and transfer it to a paper-towel lined plate. Make sure to drain the oil before taking it out of the pot. Let the cannolis cool slightly and carefully slide the cannoli off the cannoli tubes. If the cannolis stick at all, it may mean you are wrapping them too tightly. Wrap them snuggly but not too tight. Repeat this until all the cannolis are fried. Most pots have enough space to do 3 cannolis at a time. If the pot is large enough to do more, go ahead, but I recommend not overcrowding.

Once all the cannolis are done frying and cool to the touch, fill them with the ricotta. I prefer to use a piping bag to make sure I get the very center, but if you don’t have one, use a knife instead. Plate the cannolis and sprinkle the ricotta with the optional pistachios, and everything with the optional dusting of confections sugar.

Labels: cannolis, Challenging Desserts, Sicilian family recipes

Last year we traveled to Sicily to visit my grandmother's home town of Militello va di Cantania. While we were in Sicily, we had some of the best pizza in a small pizzeria off the main drag in a town called Sciacca. You might have heard of this coastal town for its proximity to the temples and sulfur baths.

After dining with locals, drinking a little wine, and chatting with the owners, the kids were surprised with a nutella pizza for dessert. I had only heard about nutella pizza before and was more than happy to give it a try. As a kid I loved nutella but it had been years and as a grown up I was limiting my sweet intake but I have to admit, after one bite I was a fan again. Nutella pizza is out of this world. I especially like the two tone flavored nutella, it's a dessert that cannot be beat regardless of your age.

If you want to prepare some of your own nutella pizza, follow the recipe below or use frozen pizza dough instead. I don't bother letting my pizza dough rise, but if you have the time, let the dough rise for one hour before preparing the pizza. It does make it more fluffy and light.

Nutella Pizza
makes 2 large nutella pizzas

1 cup warm water (110° F)
1 teaspoon yeast
1 teaspoon olive oil
½ teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons sugar
2½ cups unbleached all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
olive oil spray
Nutella

Preheat the oven to 400F with the oven rack set in the middle of the oven.

In a mixture fitted with a dough hook, combine the warm water and the yeast. Whisk it with a fork and let is sit for a minute to bubble. Add in the olive oil, salt, sugar, and flour and mix at medium low speed until the dough starts to form. Once it forms, turn the dough out on to a floured surface (About 1 tablespoon) and knead it for 5 minutes. If the dough is too wet and sticky add a little bit more flour, but don't over do it. When the dough is soft and supple, cut it in half. If you don't plan to prepare two pizzas, just one, wrap one of the dough balls in plastic wrap and place it in the freezer for another time.

On a well-floured surface roll out the dough until it is anywhere between ¼-inch thick to ½-thick and resembles a very flat pancake or pizza crust!

Spray a large sheet pan with olive oil spray and transfer the dough onto a sheet pan and place it in the oven to bake for 10 minutes.

The pizza dough will start to cook and turn golden. After 10 minutes remove it from the oven and generously and carefully spread nutella all over the pizza leaving a ½-wide ring. Place the pizza back into the oven and bake for another 10 minutes or until the crust is golden and done to your liking. Slice up the nutella pizza and serve immediately with plenty of napkins!

Labels: Easy Desserts, Nutella, pizza, Sicilian family recipes

My mother's family comes from Militello va di Cantania in Sicily so growing up meant meatballs and sauce most weekends. My grandmother Josephine Concetta taught me how to cook this dish years ago when I was little but refused to put the recipe to paper. Josey believed that great family recipes were best passed down by word of mouth. Which meant, to learn the recipe, you had to take the time to learn it from someone. After filming this video with my mom to recreate my grandmother's meatball and sauce, I tend to agree.

Meatballs and Sauce is a great dish to prepare in large batches. It freezes and thaws quite well and will lasts up to about 6 months in the freezer. I suggest serving meatballs and sauce over spaghetti with a little grated Parmesan and it also makes excellent meatball subs. Just make sure to sprinkle the meatballs and bread with a little mozzarella cheese.

Labels: Comfort Food, italian food, meatballs and sauce, Sicilian family recipes