My Tuscan Trattoria

Have you ever wanted to go somewhere, just for the food? Last weekend, I felt a trip to the Tuscan region of Italy was in order.

I can blame it all on those tomatoes we grew. In Italian, the word would be abondante, which means abundance or plentiful.  Indeed.

I confess that occasionally we travel to a foreign country just for the food. Ironically, we never leave home….we use our food, our palate, and the power of suggestion to transport us. And we have fun doing this. Some of the best cuisines can come straight from the backyard vegetable garden and the kitchen pantry, and so Saturday, our journey to Tuscany began.

I transformed our kitchen into my Tuscan Trattoria.

The Tuscans are known for their use of fresh seasonal foods and high quality olive oil pressed from the olives grown on their local olive trees.

The Tuscan pantry is filled with locally gathered sage, rosemary, thyme, oregano, chestnuts, pecorino cheese, and beans. Yes, the Tuscans are bean-eaters, or as the Italians would say, mangiafagioli. So when I turned our kitchen into a Tuscan Trattoria with the recipe below, I needed to go no further than to our own vegetable garden and the kitchen pantry to find cannelini beans, spices, olive oil, and into the garden for onion, herbs, and freshly picked sweet cherry-type tomatoes. And from the refrigerator, I grabbed the Italian cheeses. I am not Italian, the foods rate highly with me and many of the ingredients for a Tuscan meal are already here.

The Tuscan cuisine is about robust, simple foods — hearty foods that fill you and satisfy you. No one walks away from a Tuscan meal hungry. And then there are the wines, most notable are the Chianti wines.

So, Saturday we travelled to the Tuscan region of Italy. The baked Tuscan Beans with Cheeses and Tomato Ragu filled the house with the aroma of bubbling Parmigiano-Reggiano and Pecorino cheeses. Sitting down at our home-based trattoria with a bottle of Chianti and our private Tuscan meal, we enjoyed our feast.

My Saturday night Tuscan trattoria served up a wonderfully aromatic entree with a salad and Rustic Italian Bread. A simple Tuscan biscotti ended our Tuscan adventure.

I was soooo there. Did you get the postcard?

Here is my Tuscan recipe to share with you. Buon appetito!

Tuscan Beans with Cheeses and Tomato Ragu

Ingredients

• 2 cans 15-oz cannellini beans (or Great Northern), rinsed
• 3 pints cherry or grape tomatoes (about 1 1/2 pound, divided)
• 1 ½ cups juiced tomatoes (puree in processor)
• 1 small onion, finely chopped
• 1 -2 stalks of celery, finely diced
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon fennel seed
• 4-5 sprigs fresh thyme
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup grated fresh Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
• ½ cup grated fresh Pecorino cheese
• 1/4 teaspoon oregano

Preparation

Preheat oven to 400°F.

Rinse 2 cans of cannellini beans thoroughly, then drain in colander.

Halve 1 cup small cherry/grape tomatoes lengthwise and set aside. Pulse remaining tomatoes in a food processor until almost smooth.

Cook onion, celery, fennel seed, and garlic in oil and 1 tablespoon butter in a large heavy skillet, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 5 minutes. Salt and pepper to taste.

Add pureed tomatoes and sprigs of thyme to the softened onion mixture in skillet. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until liquid is slightly reduced and thickened, about 10 minutes. Add beans and stir to blend well. Cook an additional 5-10 minutes, until liquid has reduced more and beans have absorbed liquid.

Transfer to a shallow baking dish. Sprinkle evenly with freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, then arrange tomato halves over top (cut side up). Grate ½ cup Pecorino cheese and add to top of casserole. Sprinkle with 1/4 teaspoon oregano.

Cover and bake about 30 minutes or until liquid is reduced. Remove dish from oven and allow to stand, covered, 10 minutes before serving (beans will continue to absorb liquid).

Makes 4 servings.

Note: The beautiful photographs from the Tuscan region are attributed to a family friend, Michael Zullo, who is retired and living a life of international travel and exploration. Thank you so much!

Cheese & Greens Casserole

Got greens? I’ve made this casserole many, many times, especially when the garden provides us with so many wonderful greens.

I have also made this casserole with early spring-picked Dandelion greens and Land Cress.

Cheese & Greens Casserole

A delicious and filling three-cheese casserole made with greens.

This casserole uses Parmesan, Mozzarella, and Ricotta cheese. The greens used in this casserole can be spinach, turnip greens, chard, beet greens, collard greens, cress, kale, mustard greens, a mix of greens.

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 pounds greens, washed and trimmed (turnip greens, chard, kale, mustard greens, chard, turnip greens, collard greens, foraged greens, or a mix of greens)
• salt and black pepper
• 1 1/2 cups chicken or vegetable broth, divided
• 1 cup half-and-half
• 4 tablespoons butter
• 1/4 cup flour
• 1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1/2 cup ricotta cheese (whole milk or part skim)
• 3 tablespoons dry bread crumbs
• 4-6 ounces Mozzarella cheese, shredded, about 1 cup

Preparation

Preheat oven to 375-degrees.

Butter a 1 1/2-quart baking dish.

Prepare greens: (Note: If you are using frozen greens, simply defrost the greens and skip this step.) Rinse greens and shake off excess water. Cut out any undesirable center ribs, if necessary. Trim stems or cut stems off, depending on the greens and stem quality.

Chop greens: Cut into 2-inch or 3-inch sections.

Precook greens: In a large skillet with 1/2 cup of chicken broth, cook the greens over low heat, stirring the greens as they begin to wilt and cook. Then cover the skillet and braise the greens until tender. Pour off any liquid left in the skillet, then season the greens with salt and pepper. Transfer cooked greens to a bowl and set aside.

Melt 4 tablespoons butter in the skillet over low heat. Add ¼ cup flour and cook, making a roux, stirring for about one minute. Slowly add the remaining 1 cup of broth into the roux, then add 1 cup half-and-half into the butter-broth mixture. Stir this mixture over medium heat until the sauce is smooth and thickened.

When sauce is thickened, whisk in the grated Parmesan and Ricotta cheeses.

Stir the greens into the cheese sauce and blend.

Pour the mixture into the prepared baking dish. Sprinkle with the bread crumbs, then add grated Mozzarella cheese for a top layer.

Bake for 20-30 minutes, or until the sauce is bubbling and the mozzarella is melted and lightly browned. Serve immediately.

Manicotti

Manicotti

We love Italian foods, especially those with a tomato-meat sauce! This recipe I developed has been a staple for our family.
MEAT SAUCE
1 pound ground beef
1 pound sausage
1 onion, diced
1 clove garlic, crushed
1/2 cup mushrooms, sliced
1 teaspoon olive oil
28 ounce can crushed tomatoes, or 2 quarts canned tomatoes
14 ounce can stewed tomatoes, or 1 additional quart canned tomatoes
1 teaspoon oregano
1/2 teaspoon fennel
salt and ground pepper to taste

CHEESE FILLING
16 ounces ricotta cheese or cottage cheese
4 cups Mozarrella cheese, grated
1 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
2 eggs, beaten
1 tablespoon dried parsley

TOPPING
1 cup Mozarrella cheese, grated
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, grated

PASTA

1 box manicotti shells (about 16 shells)

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In large skillet, brown ground beef and sausage. Drain fat and remove cooked meat to baking dish or bowl.

In same skillet, saute onion, garlic, and mushrooms in 1 teaspoon olive oil for several minutes until tender. Add tomatoes and herbs. Return cooked ground beef and sausage to skillet.
Stir all ingredients well and slowly simmer, covered, for 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, prepare cheese filling: In medium bowl, combine all cheeses with beaten eggs and parsley. Set aside.

While sauce is simmering, cook manicotti shells by following instructions on package. Drain cooked manicotti and rinse in cold water.

Lightly grease 13″ x 9″ baking dish. Spread 1 cup meat sauce evenly on bottom of baking dish.
Stuff each manicotti shell with cheese filling. Arrange cheese-filled manicotti shells in baking dish.
When all manicotti shells have been placed in baking dish, spoon remaining meat sauce over entire casserole, covering
stuffed manicotti. Top with 1 cup of Mozzarella cheese and 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese.

Bake covered in 350-degree oven for 45 minutes. Remove cover and cook additional 10-15 minutes or until cheeses are lightly browned.
(This casserole can be prepared ahead of time and refrigerated.)
Serves 4-6.

Mexican Layered Casserole

Mexican Layered Casserole

• 1 pound ground beef, browned and drained
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 medium green pepper, chopped
• 4 cups tomatoes, chopped
• 2 teaspoons chili powder
• 1/2 teaspoon cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon oregano
• 1 teaspoon salt
• Hot peppers to taste (habanero, jalapeno, etc)

• Tortillas
• 1 pound Monterrey Jack or Cheddar cheese, shredded
• 1 cup beans, cooked (or refried beans)
• 1-2 cups corn (optional

Brown ground beef in large pan (or electric skillet); drain. Add onion and green pepper, cook 5 minutes or until tender.

Add tomatoes and spices; stir to blend thoroughly. Cook low for 30 minutes.

To assemble casserole:
Preheat oven to 350-degrees. Use 2 quart round casserole dish. Place 3/4 cup beef-onion-tomato mixture in bottom of casserole, and top with tortilla.
Add another 3/4 cup beef-onion-tomato mixture, thin layer of beans (and corn if choosing to use this vegetable too), and top with shredded cheese.

Continue with layers (tortilla, beef-onion-tomato mixture, beans, then cheese), and top with remaining beef-onion-tomato mixture and shredded cheese.

Bake uncovered for about 30 minutes or until cheese is lightly browned and bubbling.
Cut into sections and serve.

Serves 4-6.