Fettuccine ricche alla emiliana

Fettuccine with Cream and Tomato Sauce

My Dad makes this delicious pasta dish some time between Christmas and New Year every year. Over the years my Dad has modified it quite a bit as a concession to the heart, because he wants it to make your heart happy, your stomach happy and in turn that makes for a happy Dad. Also, who uses 5 eggs in pasta anymore or 3 sticks of butter or whole cream? It’s a wonderful holiday tradition and it wouldn’t be a holiday visit without this scrumptious meal.

Finished Fettuccine dish

This is the original recipe with the modifications [noted].

Dough

1 pound sifted flour

5 eggs [2-3 eggs]

1 teaspoon oil

pinch of salt

Or substitute a similar dry egg pasta.

Sauce

1 1/2 cups butter [1/2 cup or 1 stick]

6 ounce peeled tomatoes, drained [if whole, broken up or canned diced tomatoes]

Salt and pepper

2 ounces green peas, boiled [1/2 cup]

2 ounces sweet pepper, roasted, peeled, cut in strips [from a jar work just as well]

1/4 pound prosciutto (fat and lean), chopped

1/2 cup cream [half and half rather than whole cream]

1 cup of grated Parmesan [or combination of asiago, romano, parmesan]

Preparation:

Dough:

Heap 1 pound of sifted flour on a suitable work surface. Whip 2-3 eggs with a few drops of oil and a teaspoon of salt. Pour the mixture into a well, scooped out of the mound of sifted flour. Kneading manually, bring the flour to the center and continue until the dough reaches a fairly consistent texture. [Add small amounts of warm water as the dough gets dry during the kneading process, this makes up for the extra 2 eggs that we left out.] Dampen a white kitchen towel with warm water , wrap the dough in it and allow to rest for 30 minutes. Roll and cut the dough into 1/2 inch wide strips. [This can be done ahead of time. We use a pasta maker which makes this a fairly efficient process.]

The pasta maker at work

Pasta drying

Sauce:

Melt half the butter in a pan, add the tomatoes seasoned with a little salt and pepper, and simmer for 8 minutes. Add the peas, the sweet pepper strips, and the ham, and cook together for two minutes; remove from heat and keep warm.

Putting it all together

Cook the pasta in lightly salted boiling water, drain when al dente and transfer to a warmed serving dish. Then, in layers, pour over the cream, half the Parmesan, the remaining butter in softened lumps, and, finally, the tomato sauce. Allow to stand a few moments, mix, and serve on warmed plates; pass the remaining Parmesan at the table.

Layer cheese, butter, sauce on fettuccine

Serves 6-8

Copyright © 1972, Luigi Carnacina Presents: Italian Home Cooking

Georgia waiting and watching underfoot

Chili con Carne

This slow cooker Chili con Carne* recipe has been popular, so time to post it. I’ve made a number of modifications and it’s a little different every time I make it. I usually cut things in half because I have a smaller slow cooker. [I’ll add my own comments along the way.]

Chili con Carne

Works in slow cookers from 3 1/2 to 6 quarts

Ingredients

1/3 cup all-purpose flour

1 tsp salt

2 lbs trimmed stewing beef, cut into 1-inch cubes [Or 1 lb for a smaller recipe]

2 onions, finely chopped

4 cloves garlic, minced

1 tbsp dried oregano leaves, crumbled [Substitute basil if you don’t like oregano]

1  cinnamon stick [First time I made this I didn’t have cinnamon sticks so I used nutmeg]

1 tsp cracked black peppercorns

2 tbsp cumin seeds, toasted [I don’t usually have cumin seeds, so I add powdered cumin]

1 cup beef stock

1 cup lager or pilsner beer [Just use the whole bottle]

2 cans red kidney beans, rinsed, drained [1 can works for my smaller recipe]

1 tbsp ancho chili powder or 1/2 tsp cayenne dissolved in 2 tbsp lime juice [I use juice of a whole lime]

1 jalapeno pepper or chipotle pepper in adobo sauce, minced [I’m not a fan of really spicy, so I may just leave these out]

2 poblano or Anaheim chiles or green bell peppers, diced [I like Hungarian or Red peppers, not Green]

Garnishes [I rarely have these around]

Finely chopped cilantro

Sour Cream

Chopped red onion

Roasted red pepper strips

Preparation

1. In a resealable plastic bag, combine flour and salt. Add beef and toss until evenly coated, discarding excess flour mixture. In a skillet, heat 1 tbsp of the oil over medium-high heat for 30 seconds. Add beef, in batches, and cook, stirring, adding more oil as necessary, until browned, about 4 minutes per batch. Transfer to slow cooker stoneware.

2. Reduce heat to medium. Add onions to pan and cook, stirring, until softened, about 3 minutes. Add garlic, oregano, cinnamon stick, peppercorns and toasted cumin and cook stirring, for 1 minute. Add stock and bring to a boil. Transfer to slow cooker stoneware. Add beer and beans and stir well.

3. Cover and cook on Low for 8 to 10 hours or on  High for 4 to 5 hours, until beef is tender. Add chili powder solution, jalapeno pepper and poblano peppers and stir well. Cover and cook on High for 20-30 minutes, until fresh peppers are tender. Discard cinnamon stick. Serve with garnishes of your choice.

* From “The Healthy Slow Cooker” by Judith Finlayson © 2006 Judith Finlayson

Zeppole

Another  holiday food treat, Zeppole, a fried Italian Donut. It may take a bit of fiddling to get the oil temperature right, but eating these piping hot is a gastronomical delight. Enjoy!

Zeppole (Italian Donuts)

Ingredients:
2 eggs
1 c flour
2 tsp baking powder
1½ tsp sugar
½ lb ricotta (1 cup)
¼ tsp vanilla
dash of salt
1 qt oil for frying
confectioners sugar
honey

Preparation:
Beat eggs until foamy. Add other ingredients (but not oil). Batter is sticky. Heat oil to 375°F. Divide batter into 4 portions.  Use spoon to pick up small portion. Push into hot oil with another spoon. Fry until golden brown. Remove and drain on brown paper.  Sprinkle with sifted confectioners sugar and honey.
Note: zeppole will turn in hot oil.

–Origin unknown, could be based on Grandma’s old recipe

Zeppole sprinkled with Confectioners Sugar and drizzled with Honey

 

Rum Balls

Another holiday favorite! Rum Balls

32 Vanilla wafers

1 cup pecans

2 tbsp cocoa

1/4 cup white corn syrup

1/4 cup rum

confectioners’ sugar

Blender chop the Vanilla wafers, place crumbs in large bowl. Blender chop the pecans, add to crumbs and add cocoa, syrup and rum and mix well. Coat hands with confectioners’ sugar and roll mixture into balls. Refrigerate for at least  1 hour, then roll in confectioners’ sugar. You may need to re-coat with confectioners’ sugar if you don’t eat them right away.

– from Oster Kitchen Center Cookbook ©1980

Chocolate Chinese Noodle Cookies

It’s that time of year! The weather gets colder and holidays abound. I get to make one of my holiday dessert specialties, Chocolate Chinese Noodle Cookies. These cookies are super easy, I can’t even remember where I first saw the recipe. But since then, I’ve learned others have done variations on the theme. Some people call them Birds Nests. But they are super delicious and easy and quite the crowd pleaser. Enjoy!

Chocolate Chinese Noodle Cookies

1 bag of chocolate chips

1 bag of butterscotch chips

Chinese noodles

Spanish Peanuts or any other nut you like

Place both bags of chips in a microwave safe bowl. Heat for 2 minutes, check consistency to see if they are melted. Microwave for another minute or until you can stir the chips and they melt together. Add Chinese noodles and peanuts until all are coated with the melted chips. Add more or less depending on the consistency you desire. If you want lots of cookies, add more. Drop onto wax paper and let cool. They will harden into a cookie that’s more like candy. Yum!