Minestrone is the Italian word for vegetable soup. Vegetables are cut in small pieces, and to make it tastier a soffritto is added. Soffritto is the base for a lot of Italian dishes. It consists of a small amount of vegetables, thinly chopped and saute in few spoons of olive oil or butter. The vegetables vary from recipe to recipe but the two classics are of onions, carrots and celery for dishes like the ragù alla bolognese, and butter and onions for risotto dishes.

I usually prefer to consume my vegetable soup pureed, and in this case it’s called passato di verdura (pureed vegetable soup). When I saw this recipe on Sale & Pepe Magazine (February 2010), I didn’t think twice and I made it right away. This dish is a complete meal and has all the nutrients you need. The quantity of vegetables and legumes is well balanced and neither of them has an overpowers the complete dish.

I love to make earthy minestrone during the winter season when it’s cold and humid outside. When I’m feeling cold and just want something warm. I imagine you too have those days when you would like to be wrapped in a warm blanket all day. This is a comfort food that makes me feel cuddled and cozy and I hope it’ll do the same for you. Let me know if you try it.

For the recipe I used ditalini rigati but you can choose the shape of pasta you prefer. This dish can also be gluten free. Just substitute regular wheat pasta with your gluten free pasta. If you want to enrich your minestrone and don’t waste a single gram of your Parmigiano the crust can be added to the boiling minestrone. Scrape the outer part of the crust with a knife before adding it to the soup. It will become a chewy and extremely flavorful surprise in your minestrone.
I like to savor my minestrone with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil and a dust freshly grated black pepper.

Minestrone: food for the soul

Ingredients:

7 oz. squash
1 leek
1 carrot
3-4 leaves savoy cabbage
1 zucchini
2 medium potatoes
3.5 oz. Swiss chard leaves
Parmigiano crust (optional)
7 oz. dry borlotti beans (cranberry beans) soaked overnight
5 oz. ditalini rigati pasta*

For the soffritto:
2 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
1 garlic clove minced
1 shallot thinly sliced
2 Tbsp. finely chopped parsley
3-4 basil leaves finely chopped
3 whole canned tomatoes

Preparation:

Prepare the soffritto before the vegetables. In a nonstick skillet heat up 2 Tablespoons olive oil then add the chopped parsley, basil, celery, the garlic, the shallot and saute for 5 minutes. Add 3 canned tomatoes cut in small pieces and cook for 10 more minutes. Set aside.
Cut in cubes the squash, the potatoes, carrot and zucchini. Slice the leek, savoy cabbage and the Swiss chard leaves. Put all the cut vegetables in a pan and add about 2 quarts water. Season with a big pinch of salt and bring it to a boil. When the vegetables start to boil add the soffritto to the soup and combine well.
Add the beans to the vegetables and cook for 2 hours more. If you have your crust of Parmigiano you can add it after one hour the minestrone is cooking. At the end add 5 oz. ditalini rigati pasta and cook for 10 more minutes or according to directions.
I usually serve it with a drizzle of olive oil and a sprinkle of black pepper.

Notes:
* For a gluten free dish substitute the ditalini pasta with a gluten free pasta of your choice, better a small shape.

…………”Little pot, stop,” and it stopped cooking, and anyone who wished to return to the town had to eat his way back.

Sweet Porridge by Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm

Sweet Porridge is one of my child’s favorite tales and he keeps asking me to tell him the story again and again and again, you know how children are when they like something. Anyway he enjoyed the story but he was interested in the sweet millet porridge too. He kept asking me to prepare him sweet porridge or pappa dolce as we call it in Italian. He knew what millet is because I cook it often,  but I never made a sweet version of it so I decided to try one. We used the magic pot to cook it and when the porridge was ready I forgot what to say to make it stop. I kept trying different phrases and my son had his eyes and mouth wide open and then big smile came across his face when he realized that the sweet porridge might reach our neighbors house so they could have a taste of it too. I finally remembered the right phrase and the pot stopped cooking and we enjoyed it together. He actually enjoyed it so much that he keeps asking me to cook it again.

I prepared sweet millet porridge for dinner, but by sweet it doesn’t actually mean that I used sugar as milk is already sweet on its own, but this preparation can be modified according to your taste and preferences. I served it for dinner but it can be eaten for breakfast or lunch as well. I also added raisins and pine nuts to enrich the dish or you can keep it simple. It will be good either way.
Sweet millet porridge reminds me of my riso e latte so I suppose it’s going to be added to our family comfort food dish list.

Sweet millet porridge

2 cups hulled millet
2 quarts whole milk
a pinch of sea salt
2 tsp. honey (optional)
1/2 1 tsp. natural vanilla extract
1/4 cup organic raisins with no sugar added, soften in lukewarm water for 20 minutes
pine nuts for topping

Wash the millet until the water runs out clear. Put it in a pot and toast it for about 4-5 minutes mixing it with a wooden spoon. When toasted add the milk previously warmed up with the vanilla, cover it and let it simmer at low heat for about 20 minutes then mix it and cook it uncovered until the millet becomes soft and creamy.
Mix in the honey, raisins and cook for a few more minutes. Top the millet porridge with pine nuts and serve.
Remember the magic word to stop the pot otherwise you’ll end up with a neighborhood full of porridge.

]]> http://www.notonlypizza.com/2009/01/19/sweet-millet-porridge-by-brothers-grimm/feed/ 0 http://www.notonlypizza.com/2008/10/26/fried-focaccine-focaccine-fritte/ http://www.notonlypizza.com/2008/10/26/fried-focaccine-focaccine-fritte/#comments Sun, 26 Oct 2008 08:01:08 +0000 Patty http://www.notonlypizza.com/?p=252 Continue reading →]]>

Fried focaccine (little focaccia) is a recipe that I invented when I was about 10 years old only to find out years later that it actually is a recipe. Unfortunately I forgot the name so you have to call it by the name I used  when I was little. There are other similar preparations some add eggs some add baking powder, they’re more famous than this basic recipe but I still love this one best.

The whole thing started from my great love for fried zucchini flowers, if I could I would have eaten them every day. I used to experiment in the kitchen in the afternoons when my mom was outside. I prepared this simple batter, the same for fried zucchini flowers, I fried it giving the “focaccine” a nice and round shape.
I remember the house getting full of smoke from the small pieces of batter that can break away from the focaccine and burn if you don’t remove them not to mention the strong smell of fried oil. If you try to make them open the window before you start and don’t leave the oil without batter otherwise it will burn right away. Once my parents discovered my culinary adventures they allowed my to prepare them for the family. Not a lot of them but the right dose to be satisfied.

You can prepare the batter with your kids, it’s really a fun experience but you should be the one frying them.

Here’s the simple preparation:

Fried Focaccine
This dish is an appetizer it can be served with cold cuts such as prosciutto cotto or crudo (ham and cured ham), mortadella, salami etc. I personally love to eat them alone.

Ingredients:
1 cup unbleached all purpose flour
3/4 cups water
salt to taste
extra virgin olive oil for frying

It makes 8 focaccine

In a bowl mix the flour and the water using a fork until smooth. In the meantime warm up the oil in a skillet. The quantity of oil will vary from the size of your skillet but you have to cover the bottom of the pan well. I usually use a drop of batter to check if the oil is ready. When it fries it’s time to start. I use about 2 Tbsp. of batter for each focaccina, I add one spoon at the time and then I flatten them. Fry them until golden, about 4 minutes per side . Place them on a paper towel and sprinkle them with salt. When you are done frying, to prevent the hot oil from burning and stinking up your house, turn it off and put a piece of dry bread in the oil.

Place them on a serving dish and serve them together with an other dish arranged with thin slices of ham, salami or mortadella you choose what you prefer. Don’t let them cool they’re good when they’re warm.

Fall has definitely arrived and my desire for warmer dishes is increasing. I especially need what I call, “comfort food” which in this moment means some particular dishes that I used to eat when I was a child. I started to think about those times and I came out with so many dishes that I had almost forgotten. I’m sure I wouldn’t eat some of them anymore, but all of them them brought back some nice memories.

One of my favorite dishes was, and still is, Riso e latte, rice and milk. When my sister and I wanted to feel “cuddled” we asked my mom to prepare us Riso e latte. We always followed the same ritual before eating it  we used to pour it in our bowls and let it sit until it firmed up a bit and the milk would form a thin film over the top.  I can tell you it was hard to wait because we wanted to taste it so bad and it was difficult to resist that long but we always did it. Lately I started to prepare it for my own child and he’s definitely one of the Riso e latte clan too.

My mom used to add water to the milk because she didn’t want it to be too fat but we always preferred it made with whole milk, it has a richer flavor. You can use whole milk or 2% milk, goat milk is also fine. Well I hope this dish can make you feel cuddled and protected as it does it for me, here’s the recipe:

Riso e Latte

1 lb. Vialone nano or arborio rice
8 cups whole cow milk
sea salt
freshly grated Parmesan cheese to sprinkle on top

Serves: 4 to 6

Salt the milk warm it up in a pot until it starts to boil then add the rice. Let it simmer at low temperature, mixing frequently with a wooden spoon to keep the rice from sticking to the bottom of the pot. While cooking if it gets too dry add  milk a little bit at the time. When the rice is cooked and the liquid almost absorbed put it in the plates, sprinkle some Parmesan on top and let it sit until firmer, then you can eat it. I like it firmer like a risotto  but if you prefer it more liquid it’s up to you to add more milk during the process. The rice has to be creamy but not overcooked.