Coronado Concert in the Park: Puglia, Italy

One of these days, I'll make it to Italy, and France, and Spain, and all the fabulous places that inspire our Concert in the Park themes! In the meantime, I will accept the joy in reading about regional cuisines and attempting to replicate some of the recipes in my kitchen.  I'm successful most of the time (although I get frustrated tracking down ingredients), but sometimes I crash and burn when it comes to baking. I'm not a very good baker.

The weekend started off well with my first idea...

Orecchiette alle cime di rapa is a traditional pasta dish from Puglia - ear-shaped pasta tossed with pork sausage, broccoli rabe, garlic, red pepper flakes, and grated Pecorino Romano or Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese. You had me at PASTA. Actually, I've made this dish before. However, when I saw my man Tyler's version, with littleneck clams tossed into the mix, I was all over it.

I thought it would be a little tricky executing this dish tableside, at the park, especially with the clams, so I decided to do a test run on Saturday evening. I made half recipe and savored every bite. However, BFF Holli was also thinking along the same lines, and planning on making her version of orecchiette alle cime di rapa for the park, so I switched gears and decided to concentrate on my dessert...that's when it got ugly...

Pasticciotto is a mini short crust pastry/pie filled with pastry cream. I didn't have the oval-shaped molds for these little pies, so I decided to try using my mini muffin pan to make 24 mini Pasticciotto...

I even tracked down a tub of LARD to make the perfect crust. But the dough was crumbly and falling apart as I tried to press it into the muffin tin.  I became increasingly frustrated and threw in the towel before the muffin tin made it to the oven. I managed to salvage enough dough and pastry cream to throw together a few mini tarts. Surprisingly, they came out quite nice with the incredibly flaky, lardy crust and rich vanilla bean pastry cream studded with Maraschino cherries. Watch this video if you want to learn the correct method, but try to ignore the music that sounds like it should go with a porn movie...

When all was said and done, this was one of those concerts that turned out just perfect (I never know who is going to show up and what dishes will make it to the picnic table). We had the right number of people, a nice balance of dishes, great weather, fun music...it was just another beautiful, relaxing, summer evening at the park!

Saturday Night Test Run with Tyler's
Orecchiette with Broccoli Rabe, Clams and Sweet Italian Sausage

Mary and Bryan Kicking off Concert with
The Star Spangled Banner 

Holli's orecchiette alle cime di rapa

Dusting with Parmigiano-Reggiano

Kelley, Holli and Michele

Nina & Alec plating their gorgeous platter of Stracciatella di burrata,
slow-roasted roma tomatoes with garlic and thyme, and fried eggplant
breaded in panko, garnished with basil 

LOVED THIS!

Kelley's Chickpeas with Tomatoes and Carrots

Our other Kellee, who shared a lovely antipasti platter

When I decided to abandon my orecchiette alle cime di rapa with clams, and after my dessert kind of flopped, I threw together a last-minute Puglia SeaCake - one of my savory cheesecakes - with hot Italian sausage, clams, broccoli rabe, garlic, red pepper flakes, cream cheese, sour cream, and Parmesan cheese, served with toasted baguette slices. Another keeper!

Another SeaCake Flavor Combo - SeaCake Puglia!

In addition to her chickpea, tomato and carrot salad, Kelley also made this gorgeous Torta Caprese — Flourless Chocolate Almond Torte. She cracked me up when she said she was started sipping on some of the liqueur used in the torte, just before noon, as she was trying to get through all of the steps. That's when hubby Bryan wandered into the kitchen and asked what the heck she was doing?!!

Kelley was worried the torta would be too dry inside, but it was quite the opposite...very moist and decadent.

 Torta Caprese

Sonoma was proud to present her favorite orange cake from The Silver Spoon for Children: Favorite Italian Recipes. She used a gluten-free flour and it tasted incredibly yummy.

Sonoma's Orange Cake

Cute Girlie Girls

I made Kai pose with one of my Pasticciotto Tarts

Good food, wine, and friends!

We're off to another fabulous summer in Coronado! Stay tuned...

Italian Master Class with Chef Suzette Gresham: Swordfish Salad with Roasted Onion and Tomatoes

Today I photographed two of the San Diego Bay Wine & Food Festival cooking classes. The first was the Italian Master Class with Chef Suzette Gresham-Tognetti and Italian wine expert Giancarlo Paterlini, both of the famed Acquerello in San Francisco. Together, their passion and knowledge has earned Acquerello a Michelin star every year since 2007.

Sergio, Chef Gesham, Jack Persinger

For her first dish, Chef Gesham prepared swordfish using a method she calls leaching. The method was used in Italy, years ago, by fisherman hoping to preserve a portion of their catch. A pot of cold water, 2 sliced lemons, 1 sliced onion, and 3-4 tablespoons of salt is brought to a boil. The heavily salted water is an attempt to mimic the seawater that was used on board the fishing vessels, and it helps to leach out any impurities and acts to sanitize the fish.

Once the water has come to a boil, the heat is turned off and the swordfish goes in the water for about 5 minutes, or until about 75% cooked. A bit of olive oil goes into the bottom of a container that will hold the fish in a tightly confined manner, followed by the swordfish and 2 1/2 - 3 cups more olive oil, enough to completely cover the fish. The fish is allowed to cool in the uncovered container of oil. Once completely cooled, it is ready to be served. Chef Gesham served it with roasted Roma tomatoes and roasted red onion slices, and a small parsley and olive salad.

Plated for the class attendees

For the camera - Classic presentation

A more modern presentation is achieved with smaller pieces of swordfish, with a small mound of roasted onion underneath one or two pieces, pureed roasted tomato added to the plate with a squirt bottle or brush, dots of parsley oil or parsley mayonnaise, micro herbs, and lemon zest.

For the camera - Modern presentation

The second dish was Tuscan White Beans with Sage, from Great Vegetarian Cooking Under Pressure, by Loma J. Sass. The cannellini beans were prepared very simply, and in a pressure cooker, with only a small amount of sauteed garlic, dried sage, and olive oil added to the water. Once cooked, she added another tablespoon of olive oil and salt and freshly ground pepper to taste.

The second cooking class was called Southwestern Holiday Showstoppers, with Tiffany Vickers Davis, the Test Kitchen Manager of Cooking Light Magazine. I'll tell you about that one in another post. 

Here We Go Again! Coronado Concerts in the Park - Campania

When I was preparing my marinated seafood salad for Challenge Campania, the culinary theme for the first Concert in the Park of the season, I posted a photo on Newf in My Soup's Facebook wall of my grilled octopus and another of the finished salad. Carmen's comment regarding my first attempt at preparing octopus struck home as I sat down to write this post:

"There's a saying in the writer's world ... 'finishing a story is like putting an octopus to bed.' 

In other words, there will always be loose pieces - meaning:

You MUST avert your eyes from the stubborn loose appendages to see the glory of the work.

Press on. Your blog is a sight for sore eyes! We need you.

Put the need for perfection to sleep."

Those stubborn loose appendages really do get in the way of my writing. It takes me forever to get a blog post started because I want it to be creative, funny, interesting, and ... perfect.  I don't like just posting a recipe and photos - I want to be able to tell a story and share a little piece of my life with each post. It's easier to do that with these Concert in the Park posts because our intimate group of friends and family look forward to the summer season when we can all gather at the park and share the fruits of our labor in the kitchen while we visit, eat, drink wine and listen to music. I try to take as many photos as possible and hope the photos help tell the story - although I didn't do a very good job this week and need to get more people and band shots next time! What a great way to end the weekend!

I can't believe we are embarking on our 6th summer season of culinary-themed Concerts in the Park! I never know how many people are going to show up each Sunday, but we've definitely grown and it's always exciting to see new faces. Jim and Holli have become very close friends of mine over the past year. Holli could hardly restrain her enthusiasm for the first concert, so we met at the park extra early to set up the tables, relax in the sun, sip on margaritas, and take it all in.

If you've followed our group, you know we choose a particular ingredient, country, region, or something inspired by the band as our theme. Holli chose Campania because they travel to the region often to visit some of Jim's family. I was all for it because I love Italian food and have been wanting to make a marinated seafood salad with octopus.

Insalata di Mare - Marinated Seafood Salad

I've never prepared octopus before, but I've enjoyed it lately in a few salads at local restaurants. There are several variations of insalata di mare, using various combinations of seafood, vegetables and herbs, all simply marinated in olive oil and lemon juice. I found Bobby Flay's Marinated Seafood Salad to be most appealing, but I made a few changes. I liked that the seafood was simmered in a pot of water, white wine, lemon juice, peppercorns, garlic cloves, and bay leaves. Bobby uses octopus, shrimp, calamari and lump crab. I used octopus, shrimp, calamari, scallops and mussels. I stayed with julienned carrots, onions and celery (I've also seen bell peppers and fennel). Bobby uses orange juice and orange segments, but I wanted more lemon and used half orange juice and half lemon juice and thinly sliced lemon for garnish. I added a bit more chopped parsley and garlic and a few tablespoons of red wine vinegar.

I felt Bobby's instructions about preparing the octopus were a bit lacking, so I consulted a few other recipes and watched a few videos to figure out how to prepare it. I bought a whole, cleaned octopus which was about 2 lbs. They come frozen, but thaw quickly by placing the bag in a sink full of cold water. The octopus simmers for about an hour and then the pan is removed from the heat and the octopus is allowed to cool in the broth. After it cooled, I cut off the tentacles and discarded the head (you can cut up the head and use that too, but I just wanted the tentacles for the salad). Bobby didn't mention anything about the head. Some recipes tell you to cut off the purple skin and suckers from the tentacles, but I think that is a matter of personal preference. I did remove most of the skin, which I understand adds a bit more chewiness, and I sliced off some of the larger suckers. I marinated the tentacles in olive oil, chopped garlic and parsley, grilled them in a grill pan for about 10 minutes, sliced them, and tossed in with the rest of the seafood and marinade. Although the octopus is a little bit chewy, I loved the texture, flavor and color it added to this beautiful summer salad.

Also, I cooked the shrimp and calamari together in the broth for about 3 minutes, but I did not let them cool in the broth because I felt they would be overcooked. I transferred some of the broth to another pan to steam the mussels.

Cherries as Olives are from Jose Andres' Made in Spain cookbook and I've made them before, but couldn't resist making some for concert since it's cherry season.

Cherries as Olives 

Holli went all out with three of Jim's cherished family recipes: Braciole, simmered in and served with top secret DeLauro Three-Day Sauce, and Pasta e Fagioli. 

Braciole Preparation (photos by Holli)

For the braciole, Holli stuffed and rolled beautiful flank steak with garlic, parsley, red pepper flakes, grated Romano, pancetta, pignoli nuts, and baby spinach.  The rolls are tied, browned in a skillet, and simmered in sauce for about four hours. This was heavenly...and the sauce, OMG! She warned me not to even try asking for the recipe; she had to date Jim for three years before he shared it.

DeLauro Braciole

While the pasta e fagioli was warming up on the portable stove, we dug into Kai's selection of pizzas - Pizza Margherita, Mushroom & Truffle Oil, and Artichoke.  I recently made some Neopolitan pizzas featured in Saveur, here.

Pizza!

Kai's Pizza Margherita

Carmen is always able to find the most interesting recipes, like this Molded Tomato Bread Salad. Slicing it reveals layers of bread, red and yellow tomatoes, and arugula - dressed with a garlic and herb  vinaigrette - all molded together in a loaf pan weighted down by a brick overnight.

Carmen's Molded Tomato Bread Salad

As the sun went down and the park became quite chilly, we were all happy to have a bowl of hot pasta e fagioli!

Jim refilling the Pasta e Fagioli bowl

Another winning DeLauro recipe, this version of "pasta and beans" also includes new potatoes and prosciutto (you can find the recipe on Holli's friend's blog, here).

Pasta e Fagioli 

Pammy, also known as our "salad queen" departed from her norm and shared this Neapolitan Potato Pie, which paired nicely as a side to the braciole. Inside, you'll find creamy mashed potatoes, diced ham, parsley, and four cheeses!

Gatto di Patate (Neapolitan Potato Pie)

In addition to all of the above, we nibbled on Kelley and Bryan's Tomato Bruschetta and Caprese on a Stick, and Sandra's  Italian Sandwiches. For dessert, mom suggested and I made Lidia Bastianich's Tiramisu al Limoncello (Limoncello Tiramisu). I added a thin layer of limoncello whipped cream to the top and garnished with fresh strawberries, raspberries and a drizzle of Strawberry Pomegranate Sauce featured on the cover of this month's Fine Cooking.

Sparks & Kellee

Ma che vuoi?

Holli made a batch of homemade limoncello last month, but I drank most of mine and had to buy another bottle to have enough for the tiramisu ;-)

Holli's Homemade Limoncello

Marina Grande, Capri, Campania (photo by Holli)

What a fabulous kick-off to the 2103 Concert in the Park season! Thank you to Jim & Holli for choosing the first theme and generously contributing incredible and authentic family dishes!

The Hollywood Stones, a Rolling Stones tribute band, perform this Sunday and our theme is anything inspired by the name Rolling Stones (rolled, stone fruit,... ?) or something inspired by one of their songs. Can't wait to see what everyone comes up with on this one!

Buon appetito!

Pistachio e Mortadella Pizza Wins the Toss

ENO Wine Bar at the Hotel Del Coronado now offers artisan Neapolitan-style pizzas from its new outdoor wood-fired oven. During the course of three visits, I've enjoyed the Margherita, House-Made Veal Meatball, and Salsiccia (fennel sausage, charred broccolini, garlic oil). On Margherita Wednesdays, the classic Margherita pizza is $10.00 - still pretty pricey for a 10-inch-pie. The pizzas normally range from $15.50 to $18.50 and wines by the glass are similarly priced. Granted this is the Del, but JEEZ!

ENO Wine Bar Pizza Margherita

My most recent evening at ENO inspired me to stay home and make the Margherita Pizza featured on the cover of this month's Saveur. The Gold of Naples special feature offers recipes for several delectable pizzas served in Naples' pizzerias. I was most intrigued by the Pistachio e Mortadella, but I also wanted to try the Margherita.

The Naples-style pizza dough must slowly rise in the refrigerator for 48-hours to achieve its deep flavor and tender structure. The Naples-style pizza sauce (Salsa di Pomodoro Fresco) is an uncooked tomato sauce made only with canned San Marzano tomatoes, puree, and salt. Saveur provides picks for Top Tomatoes and Mighty Mozzarellas. Antima Caputo Italian Superfine "00" Farina Flour is also highly recommended (I was able to find it at Bristol Farms, La Jolla).

I purchased all the recommended ingredients, made the dough a few days before, and then made the tomato sauce. For the Pistachio e Mortadella, I prepared the buttery pistachio puree with shelled pistachios, grated Parmesan, olive oil and lemon juice. I couldn't help eating a few spoonfuls as is!

Mise en Place for both pizzas

First onto the pizza stone was the Pistachio e Mortadella. After pressing and then stretching the dough to the proper size and thickness, it is gently schmeared with the luscious pistachio puree (more like a paste), followed by quartered pieces of mortadella, slices of mozzarella, grated pecorino romano, fresh basil leaves, and a drizzle of olive oil.

The recipe says to preheat the pizza stone under the broiler for 30 minutes, slide the pizza onto the stone, and broil for 3-4 minutes. I preheated the stone in a 500 degree oven, baked the pizza for 5-7 minutes and then broiled the top for 1-2 minutes. This is definitely a keeper!

The Margherita pizza would have been great if I listened to my gut before adding 2 tablespoons of salt to the tomatoes. Always listen to your gut - I should know better by now! The sauce was much too salty and I didn't enjoy the pizza. I commented on the Saveur recipe online and noticed the salt quantity has now been changed to "according to taste." I will add a few more cans of crushed tomatoes to my salty sauce, freeze it, and save it for a future spaghetti or pizza sauce.

Saveur's Neapolitan Dinner Party Menu sounds fabulous and includes the recipe for the Pistachio e Mortadella, which should have been the cover recipe.

Around Town: Il Fornaio Festa Regionale Menu - Toscana

Now through October 14, Il Fornaio explores the Tuscan region of Italy with a flavorful Festa Regionale menu featuring the dishes of this most famous region recognized for its wine as well as its cuisine. Chef-Partner Vicente Mendoza, who pursues his passion for authentic Italian cooking at Il Forniao's Manhattan Beach restaurant, created this special menu based on his tour of Toscana with Executive Chef Maurizio Mazzon.

“I truly enjoyed working closely with Maurizio on this menu – particularly the seafood and pasta dishes which were inspired by meals we enjoyed while traveling together across Toscana. The Insalata di Farro e Fave is a tribute to his favorite place in Toscana, the city of Florence...the salad has a little of everything in it and represents what cuisine in Firenze is all about.”

I always look forward to the beginning of each month, when the new Festa Regionale menu is unveiled. This week, we dined on the patio during sunset and enjoyed a leisurely wine pairing dinner prepared by Chef Giorgio and his culinary team.

Our first course, a rustic Italian bread and tomato salad called Panzanella, showcases the last hurrah of the season's heirloom tomatoes, with cubes of bread, cucumber, red onion, celery and fresh basil, tossed with red wine vinegar and Tuscan extra-virgin olive oil. The Panzanella was paired with Vermentino, Poggio al Tesoro Solosole 2011, a vibrant, medium-bodied dry white with zesty acidity and enticing aromas and flavors of peach, apricot and ripe melon.

Two additional first course options are Pancotto alla Contadina, Tuscan kale soup with cannellini beans and toasted ciabatta bread, or Insalata di Farro e Fave, a fava bean and farro salad with asparagus, baby arugula, Belgian endive, yellow pear tomatoes and lemon-olive oil vinaigrette, topped with boschetto tartufato cheese.

Panzanella

It is most definitely worth straying from your diet to try the Mezzelune Cacio e Pere, half-moon ravioli filled with grilled pears, mozzarella and Parmigiano, topped with asparagus-crescenza cream sauce and sprinkled with toasted walnuts. We loved this dish with the Vernaccia di San Gimignano, La Lastra, 2011 - Among the first DOCG white wines, this benchmark Vernaccia from the hillside town of San Gimignano is crisp and delicate with a floral fragrance and flavor of almonds. 

Also tempting is the Pappardelle di Castagne, fresh chestnut pasta with Italian sausage, porcini mushrooms, tomatoes, crushed red pepper and Trebbiano wine, or the Crespelle alla Fiorentina, homemade crepes filled with organic spinach and ricotta cheese, and baked in the oven with bechamel sauce, porcini mushrooms and pecorino cheese.

Mezzelune Cacio e Pere

We surely could have stopped after salad and pasta, but the night was young and the wine was flowing. The Pollo al Mattone alla Diavola is a partially deboned half chicken marinated with herbs and peperoncino, grilled under a brick, and served with Tuscan salad and roasted Yukon Gold potatoes. Also appealing is Cacciucco Seafood Soup with clams, mussels, whitefish, cod, wild shrimp and calamari, served with Tuscan fettunta bread. The chicken pairs well with Rosso di Montalcino, Col d’Orcia, 2010. This full-bodied, supple and rich red is another great example of the versatility of Sangiovese. It is brimming with earthy aromas and cherry, violet and vanilla flavors. It is complex and harmonious with smooth supple tannins and a soft, velvety finish. 

Pollo al Mattone alla Diavola

Always save room for sweets! The Meringata alla Fiorentina is a traditional Florentine-style meringue cake with whipped cream, amaretto and chocolate.

Meringata alla Fiorentina

A three-course Taste of Toscana tasting menu is offered for $29.99. Toscana and Sangiovese Wine Flights are also available. You can see the full Toscana menu here.

The view from Il Fornaio, Coronado

Related Links:

Barefoot Contessa's recipe and video for Panzanella

William Sonoma's recipe for Pear and Pecorino Ravioli with Walnuts

Fine Cooking's recipe for Tuscan Grilled Chicken under a Brick
Los Angeles Times recipe for Meringata alla Fiorentina

Puppies and Pasta

My puppy, and pasta coated in Mario Batali's Ragu Bolognese - two comforts that helped me get through another week of drama with a certain man acting like an immature boy. Trapper and I are pounding the pavement in Coronado in search of our own little cottage or bungalow so we can get moved, lick our wounds and start anew. Single again at 50...oh boy! I think I'll stay away from Match.com this time ;-)

Ragu Bolognese is a ragu made of layers and layers of flavors. Ragu Bolognese is made differently by every single grandmother, or mother, or daughter, or son who learns about it. It is delicious and it is absolutely the building block of some of the greatest dishes in all of Emilia–Romagna. - Mario Batali

I spent Sunday in the kitchen, preparing a double batch of Mario's ragu bolognese and a carrot cake for Mom's birthday. Both turned out fabulous, if I do say so myself. There are a few versions of Mario's bolognese out there, on Food Network.com, Epicurious.com, and a YouTube via a Wine Spectator video of Mario himself in the kitchen. The versions vary slightly in the quantities of ingredients and cooking times/methods. Pancetta is used in place of ground beef in the Food Network version I followed, but it's a little more expensive to go that route, especially when making a double batch requiring 2 lbs of ground veal and 1/2 lb. pancetta. The Epicurious version is closest to Mario's version on the video, but varies in some of the the cooking times/methods.

Mario Batali's Ragu Bolognese

Mario demonstrates preparation of his Ragu Bolognese in this Wine Spectator video on YouTube. I've summarized the steps below, but it's very helpful to watch, especially to see how brown he allows the meat to become before adding the tomato paste. I would have never taken it to this level without watching this first.

Video Notes: 
This isn't a sauce to make if you're in a hurry if you want to make it the correct way. The recipe begins with the use of lipids, a combination of extra virgin olive oil and butter, which will give the sauce a velvety texture. The next layer is the mirepoix (carrot, celery, onion and garlic). You want to sweat the vegetables without allowing them to brown or discolor (if they discolor, you should throw them out and start over). Next is the meat - a combination of veal, pork and ground beef. The meat is cooked for quite some time, over a slightly lower heat, to render off all the fat and allow the meat to brown. After about 45 minutes, you will be able to hear a crackling noise in the pan telling you the meat is no longer braising or boiling. At that point, using a wooden spoon, move around all those brown, sticky bits stuck to the bottom of the pan, which add another layer of flavor. Next, add the tomato paste. This is probably the single most important cooking step - allowing the tomato paste to cook with the meat slowly, for about 30 minutes, allowing it to caramelize and intensify the sweetness of the tomato flavor. The bottom of the pan will be slightly scorched, but that's what you want. The addition of the milk at this point will act as a deglaze. It will take about 45 minutes for the milk to totally evaporate. Following evaporation of the milk, add a relatively dry white wine and reduce until evaporated and the alcohol has cooked off. At this point, turn the heat down to low and cover the pan so the liquid doesn't cook off and the sauce doesn't become too thick. After about an hour, taste the ragu for seasoning.

Mario Batali's Ragu Bolognese

Slightly adapted from Wine Spectator video, Food Network and Epicurious

Serves 4-6

Ingredients:

5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

3 tablespoons butter

3 medium carrots, finely diced

1 medium onion, diced

3 ribs celery, finely diced

4 cloves garlic, sliced

3/4 pound veal, ground

3/4 pound pork, ground

3/4 pound beef, ground (ground chuck)

6 ounces tomato paste

1 cup milk

1 cup dry white wine

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Cooked pasta

Parmigiano-Reggiano, for grating

Preparation:

In a 6 to 8-quart, heavy-bottomed saucepan, heat the olive oil and butter over medium heat. Add the onions, celery, carrot and garlic and sweat over medium heat until the vegetables are translucent and soft, but not browned, about 15 minutes. Add the veal, pork, and beef and stir into the vegetables. Lower the heat slightly and cook, Continue cooking, stirring occasionally to keep the meat from sticking together, until well-browned and all the fat has cooked off, about 45 minutes to 1 hour. Add the tomato paste, stir to incorporate, and cook slowly for about 30 minutes. Add the milk, stir and scrape up any browned bits off the bottom of the pan, and allow to simmer another 45 minutes. Add the wine, simmer about 10 minutes until reduced, decrease the heat to low, cover, and simmer for another hour. Season with salt and pepper, to taste, and remove from the heat.

When ready to serve, transfer the pasta directly out of the boiling water into the saucepan with the appropriate amount of the hot ragu bolognese, and toss so that the pasta is evenly coated. Serve with freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano.

Tagliatelle alla Bolognese - Mom's Birthday Dinner on her balcony

Leftover sauce can be frozen for 2 months.

Strozzapreti alla Bolognese - Leftover bolognese with a handful of pasta a few nights later

My other comfort - Trapper at 9 months

Trapper with Mr. Platypus

Coronado Concerts in the Park: Grandma Maroni's Meatballs for Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives

Jim and Carmen hosted Sunday's Concert in the Park with The Mar Dels, a well-known San Diego nostalgia band that performs dynamic renditions of the best music from the 50's - 70's. We all agreed 50's diner food would be a fun culinary theme to pair with the music, and we certainly made up for any calories saved during our healthier Mushrooms, Flowers and Weeds theme a few weeks ago.

Although I nicknamed this week's theme Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives after Guy Fieri's Food Network Show, I consulted Bobby Flay's Throwdown cookbook, based on another popular Food Network show, and came up with Spaghetti and Meatballs for my diner dish. 

In the Meatball Throwdown episode, Bobby's mission is to challenge Italian superstar Mike Maroni and his award-winning meatballs, a recipe handed down to him from his grandmother. Customers of Maroni's in Northport, NY buy pots of them...500 - 600 pots of meatballs a week of takeout to bring home to their own tables. Mama Mia,  that's a lot of meatballs!

It was no big surprise Grandma Maroni's Meatballs easily won the Throwndown against Irishman Flay's meatballs. Both the meatballs and the marinara sauce have only a few ingredients and are super easy to prepare. The meatballs are baked in the oven, and the sauce takes a mere 20 minutes of simmering. Key ingredients include ground beef chuck, Pecorino Romano cheese, and lots of garlic, fresh basil and parsley. Bobby's meatballs featured a mixture of ground beef chuck, veal and pork, parsley, and Parmesan cheese.

My preparation of Grandma Maroni's Meatballs

"Unless one of you guys can score me some coon meat, I'll be making baked chicken and gravy from Earline-Edison Broomfield's Davey's Halfway Home - a cafe way out in the woods near my hometown, Decatur, Mississippi. The restaurant looks the same as always and - as you can see from the guest list - several famous people including a few U.S. Presidents have dined there over the years. I'm also making cracklin' corn bread and vinegar pie - so come on, put your dish down on the table - bring on the tuna melts, hot pastrami, casserole and meatloaf and let's all have some supper!" - Carmen

Hostess Carmen

It was a great surprise when Jim and Sam arrived with the most amazing birthday cake for Jim's birthday! Sam decorated it with all sorts of fondant-sculpted diner food and signs, and said it took her 8 hours a day for three days to create the masterpiece. For her first attempt at cake decorating, I'd say she did a marvelous job! We all did our best to polish off the cake, but Jim was giving away pieces at the end of the evening to anyone who wanted some.

Sam (Photo courtesy of Jim)

The amazing Diner Birthday Cake

Jim and Carmen kissing the birthday boy

Carmen and Jim

Sam's design pieces for the cake were so realistic

The aftermath

Carmen's Baked Chicken and Gravy

John came up with Farmhouse Breakfast Deviled Eggs for this week, featuring mini sausage patties, toast, and sausage gravy.

John and his latest deviled egg creation

Adding sausage gravy

Farmhouse Breakfast Deviled Eggs

Grace (photo courtesy of Jim)

Since I doubled the recipes for the meatballs and sauce, there was enough for leftovers the next night.

Mike Maroni's Grandma Maroni's Meatballs
(100-year-old recipe)
Slightly adapted from Bobby Flay's Throwdown
Serves 4

Meatball Ingredients:

1 pound ground chuck
1 1/2 cups grated Pecorino Romano cheese
1 1/4 cups fresh bread crumbs
3 large eggs
1/4 cup whole milk
1/2 cup minced fresh Italian parsley leaves
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil leaves
1/2 small Spanish onion, grated or minced
3 tablespoons minced garlic
Pinch of kosher salt, or to taste

Maroni Sauce Ingredients:

1/3 cup olive oil
12 cloves garlic, finely sliced
1 large Spanish onion, finely diced
2 (28-ounce) cans imported crushed tomatoes
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 large handful fresh basil leaves, thinly sliced (small leaves left whole for garnish)

1 lb. spaghetti, cooked al dente

Meatball Preparation:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a baking sheet with olive oil cooking spray.

Mix all ingredients thoroughly in large bowl. If mixture seems a little loose add more bread crumbs.

Roll meatballs loosely about the size of a golf ball and place on baking sheet. Place into preheated oven for approximately 35 to 40 minutes, until cooked through and lightly browned.

Maroni Sauce Preparation:

While the meatballs are baking, heat the olive oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and cook until sightly browned, about 10 minutes. Add the garlic and red pepper flakes and saute an additional 2-3 minutes. Add the tomatoes, salt, and black pepper. Allow the sauce to come to a simmer and let simmer 20 for about minutes. Remove the sauce from the heat, add the basil, and gently stir. Add the meatballs to the sauce and serve over spaghetti. Garnish with small whole basil leaves. Buon appetito!

Did somebody say leftover meatballs?