Whore sauce?

Puttanesca is an Italian sauce, whose name indicates that it was made "in the style of the whore". The sauce basically got it's name because, it was believed that cheating women didn't have time to cook properly and therefore, needed to make a quick meal for their husbands.


Well, at least the "quick" part is true. To make it, literally takes five minutes. It is extremely flavourful and trying it will leave you wanting more.

You will require the following ingredients:
- approximately 1 1/2 to 2 cups of puréed or chopped tomatoes
- 2 tablespoons of olive oil
- peperoncino or red chili flakes (to taste)
- 2 large cloves of garlic (finely minced)
- 1/2 teaspoon of anchovy paste (or chopped anchovies)
- a generous tablespoon of dried oregano
- a handful of chopped and pitted black olives (I used Kalamata this particular time)

Capers can also be used in this recipe. (By the way, they are not fish.) I basically use them if I have them.

Begin with placing the olive oil, peperoncino and garlic in a pan on high heat. Let the garlic turn a light golden brown.

At that point, add your anchovy paste.

You may proceed to add the olives and capers and coat them with the hot oil. The last few steps should have taken you approximately 2-3 minutes, as you don't want your ingredients to burn (especially the garlic).

Finally, add the puréed tomatoes and oregano and give it a quick stir. The heat of the pan and the hot ingredients will, within seconds, turn the mixture into a sauce.

Presto! You're done!

The puttanesca will be a spicy and hot mixture of wonderful Mediterranean ingredients. It is great with:
- your favourite pasta
- seafood (e.g. shrimp, scallops, scampi, calamari, octopus, etc.)
- used as a dip with bread
- over vegetables


Thanks to A.V. for providing me with her mother's recipe. Mille grazie!


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Carbonara au gras de canard

Carbonara is a tasty sauce served with pasta. It is normally out of reach for me, as the traditional recipe calls for the use of pancetta or bacon. As I do not eat pork or pork products, I have often wondered how I could create this dish without sacrificing its base flavour.


My solution was to use a combination of duck fat and bresaola. (This is by no means a healthy meal. It is all about full flavour!)


For this recipe, you will require the following ingredients:


Pasta.

Any pasta will do. To change it up, I decided to use a corn pasta made by La Veneziane. These pasta noodles taste great and are gluten-free.

Approximately 1/4 cup-1/2 cup grated, dry cheese. I decided to use Romano, but you can easily use parmigiano or perocino instead.

Approximately 1 tablespoon of minced garlic.

Two eggs beaten.

Some duck fat. (Also have some olive oil at hand.)

A handful of shredded bresaola. (For my entry regarding bresaola, please click here.)

Cook your pasta according to the directions to make it al dente. You may decide to cook your pasta slightly in advance. If you do, feel free to drizzle a little olive oil over it, so that it doesn't dry out.

In a pan, melt some duck fat with some olive oil.

Add in your minced garlic and let it brown slightly.

Now add your shredded bresaola and let it crisp up in the hot pan.

When your pasta is ready, drain it and add it to the pan. A little bit of pasta water in the pan is okay and will actually help with the sauce.

Give the pasta a quick turn in the hot pan, so that it becomes coated with the oils.

Remove the pan from the heat and add the eggs and cheese. Fold it in quickly, but do not let it cook.

Serve immediately and enjoy this hearty, rich and savory dish.

I'm sure you'll love it!

Le beurre et l'argent du beurre

The French really know their food. They are renowned for their amazing culinary arts and creations. One of my favourite French dishes is a French pasta.

For this dish, you will need a mixture of Portobello and white button mushrooms.

Side Note: I have heard of people not washing their mushrooms and cleaning them simply by brushing off the dirt. I think that is absolutely disgusting. I wash my mushrooms just before use and they always turn out properly!

Chop your washed mushrooms thoroughly and sauté them with a little bit of olive oil, sea salt, freshly-cracked black pepper, oregano and chili flakes (optional). You will need more mushrooms than you think, so don't be afraid to fill your pan generously. Also, you really do not need much oil for this process.


Hint: To help your mushrooms release their water, cover the pot at the beginning of the cooking process, so that the steam produced will quicken their cooking.

Once cooked, your sautéed mushrooms should look like the picture below. You want to leave some liquid in the pan, as you will use some of it in the dish.

Next comes the butter. Remember that this is French fare. Therefore, butter is a requirement and not a choice. I prefer to use salted butter for this part.


Take a good knob of butter and slowly melt it in a pot. We are creating a "beurre noisette", which literally means hazelnut butter.

The butter will quickly melt and look like the picture below. Do not stop here! We are browning butter and not just melting it. Save this version for your popcorn.

Slowly, the butter will start to develop a brownish color with some small grainy bits. The beurre noisette is going to provide a nutty and more complex flavour to the recipe.

Finally, it's time for the pasta. You want to purchase an egg-based lasagna sheet-type pasta. This pasta has a wonderful golden color and a heavy texture.

Boil the pasta in salted water and according to the directions to make it al dente, or firm to the tooth.


Hint: Add a little olive oil or butter to the water, before putting in your pasta, to prevent it from sticking together.


Take one sheet of pasta on a plate.

Place a layer of the sautéed mushrooms on top.

Cover the mushrooms with another layer of pasta.

Now drizzle a little beurre noisette on the top layer and garnish with a few mushrooms.

You will die after eating this! (In a good way.)