Creamy Tomato Sauce with Prawns

I tried to stay way from writing on my blog during our trip to Europe, but as it turns out, I just can’t do it. I miss it too much. Developing, testing, tweaking and writing recipes are now part of my everyday life ever since gourmetcubicle launched back in April. It does, however, feel refreshing not to do the cooking for a while, but instead just enjoying that of others. It’s great being on a food journey where I don’t have to care about shopping for ingredients, cooking, taking photos, and documenting recipes, but instead just relaxing, finding inspiration, discovering new flavors and thinking about how to integrate them into my dishes.

Roni and I are on a vacation around Eastern Europe and even though we’ve been here for less than a week, it has been very eventful. The trip started not so great when we found out that our flight from Austin to Chicago was delayed to the point that there was no way we would catch our connection to Berlin, where we had planned a full day layover to explore the city. I was already dreaming of the delicious Turkish doner kebabs that you can buy from street vendors and the crispy pork knuckles they serve with sauerkraut and potatoes in the traditional beer gardens. Both of us were pretty disappointed to say the least, but we did a great job at not letting that ruin the start of the trip

The good news about this whole re-routing was that we arrived to Budapest a half day earlier than planned. That meant more time to introduce Roni to the great city of Budapest. Budapest is amazing- beautiful architecture, great food, lots of friendly people and of course old friends. We stayed at the home of Erika and Pista along with their three daughters. They are Roni’s childhood friends, or rather her Hungarian family, as she likes to call them. They did everything in their power to give us the famous Hungarian hospitality and abundance. Erika cooked traditional Hungarian dishes every day and baked amazing cakes, which made Roni very happy. Every morning she prepared platters of cheeses, cured meats and homemade jams. We had bowls of fresh grapes, pears, apples and plums for snacks. We all dined together every night sharing our travel stories and childhood memories. Hearing the girls talk about how they used to break the child lock on the cable box to watch Tales from the Crypt, shave their arms to their parents’ horror, and play games involving eating disgusting concoctions of toothpaste, salsa, mustard and any other condiment they could find was very entertaining. The image that Roni had always painted of her young self was that of a shy and innocent little girl so these stories added a new insight into her childhood. Great times filled with laughter and joy!

Budapest is a must-see in Europe. The city, the people and the food are all top notch. A few years ago the Hungarian food scene had a revival and the fine dining culture has since blossomed. Good food always existed in Hungary, but it was mainly based on hearty Hungarian staples like pörkölt, paprikás, roasts, goulash and creamy soups. Beer, wine and the national spirit, pálinka, were the preferred drinks, with whiskey coke being considered a cocktail. The pride that Hungarians have in their food significantly slowed down the development of quality and affordable ethnic restaurants. But things have started to change, and I think this has to do with all the foreigners who have moved to Budapest and brought new interesting ingredients and flavors with them. Budapest has become a bit of a melting pot where Mexican, Asian, Indian, and Russian dishes have made their way into the otherwise very conservative cuisine here.

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As far as Italian cuisine is concerned, I think it’s the most widespread of all cuisines around the globe. I haven’t been to a country that didn’t have at least one Italian restaurant. It doesn’t matter if you’re in Hungary, Singapore, Peru or Japan, you’ll most likely find a pasta Bolognese or Carbonara to eat. i think that the main reason for that is that Italian dishes are filling and easy to make, not to mention how delicious they are. You don’t have to be a kitchen-guru to be able to prepare a simple Cacio e pepe or Spaghetti Pomorodo.

As for today’s recipe, this Creamy Tomato Sauce with Prawns is one of those easy to make Italian dishes that will leave your dinner guests impressed.  In half an hour you can fix an easy, healthy and flavorful sauce that is infinitely better than that canned salty artificially flavored junk that you find in stores. Some of them may taste good, but once you take a look at the list of ingredients you’ll be shocked by the amount of sugar (or rather, corn syrup) and salt they contain. By making your own pasta you are in control of the ingredients. You know exactly how much of each ingredient goes into it and you can adjust them to your own taste. Enjoy!

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Creamy Tomato Sauce with Prawns

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Serves 4
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 35-40 minutes

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Ingredients

• 1 lb prawns, peeled and deveined
• 1 tsp black pepper freshly ground
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt
• 2 TBS oil (sunflower, canola or peanut oil)
• 1 TBS unsalted butter
• 1 tsp hot sauce (Cholula or Tobasco)
• 1 leek, finely chopped
• 1 medium shallot, finely chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed and chopped
• 1/2 cup dry white wine
• 1 can (15 oz) diced tomato (preferably San Marzano)
• 2 cups stock (chicken or vegetarian)
• 2 anchovy fillets, optional
• 2 TBS tomato paste
• 1/2 tsp red chili flakes
• 8-10 fresh basil leaves, roughly chopped
• 1 TBS sugar
• 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, freshly grated
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 1-2 tsp fresh lemon juice, optional (or lime)

Instructions

1. Place clean shrimp in a bowl and sprinkle with 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Toss to make sure the shrimp are evenly coated.
2. In a large skillet heat the butter and 1 tablespoon oil over medium high heat. When the butter starts foaming add shrimp and hot sauce. Cook for 3 minutes stirring occasionally to make sure the shrimp cook evenly on each side. 
3. Transfer shrimp to a plate and set aside. 
4. Add the rest of the oil to the pan and heat until the it easily slides across the pan. Add leeks and shallots and cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add garlic and cook for another minute or so.
5. Pour in white wine and cook for 3-5 minutes until the wine starts to evaporate.
6. Add diced tomato and stock and cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
7. Add anchovies, tomato paste, chili flakes, basil and the rest of the salt and pepper to the skillet and reduce the heat to medium-low. Cover with a lid and let it simmer for 15 minutes. Stir occasionally. 
8. Add sugar and parmesan cheese and stir well.
9. Pour in heavy cream and stir. Crank up the heat to medium-high. Bring to a boil (about 1-2 minutes) then immediately remove from the heat. Taste to adjust seasoning.
10. Mix in the shrimp, sprinkle with lemon juice and give it a final stir. Serve with capellini, spaghetti or linguini.

Notes

• Use only the white part of the leek. For instruction on how to clean leek check out my Creamy Leeks with Pan Roasted Chicken recipe.

Homemade Green Pea and Ricotta Ravioli with Creamy Sage Sauce

The best part about being part of Roni’s family is that we often get together for dinners. Food is what brings people together. Great stories and ideas are born at the table. It always makes me happy when Rachel and Rick invite us over for a big ol' family get-together. It reminds me of my family back home. Before my sister and I grew up and moved away from Romania to pursue our dream jobs, every Sunday we had lunch together with my parents. It was either just the four of us or the whole family with grandparents, uncles and cousins once a month or so. Before my grandparents on my father’s side passed away, Sunday family lunches or dinners happened even more often. Sometimes we’d go to Buna for lunch and to Jolika for dinner. It was great because somehow it always turned into a cooking competition between my two amazing grandmothers, Jolika and Buna.

They both cooked good food but each one of them had their own style. Jolika, my Hungarian grandma, loved to cook hearty comfort food. She preferred pork over chicken and used sour cream in basically everything. Her food was the definition of traditional Hungarian cuisine. Buna on the other hand, has a more refined style and doesn’t shy away from fresh vegetables, although sometimes even she can go crazy with the pork and sour cream. I can’t wait for Roni to try Buna’s specialty - Cornmeal Stuffed Cabbage Rolls

A few couple of weeks ago Roni’s family celebrated Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year. Although I don’t really know much about Jewish holidays, I love that I get to learn about Jewish culture and traditions. I think I mentioned it before, but the fact that I was raised in a Catholic/Protestant/Orthodox family makes me a…well, I don’t even know what, but definitely a Christian. Roni being Jewish adds to the already many religious holidays that my family traditionally observes, making the entire month of December a Winter Holiday marathon in our house.

Back to Rosh Hashanah. I decided to make ravioli. Initially I wanted to make a chorizo sauce, but was politely reminded that pork isn’t exactly kosher to eat during Jewish holidays. Which is funny because Roni eats bacon at the same pace at which a fat kid eats candy. There’s a good chance she was probably even eating bacon while telling me not bring pork to Rosh Hashanah. Anyway, being under self-imposed pressure to coming up with something cool, I went through my notes and I found one saying “sage sauce for ravioli - A Chef’s Table”.  I quickly browsed through all the episodes that I watched, even checked the internet, but unfortunately couldn’t find any reference to sage sauce. I'm not sure what made me write that down, but it sounded good.

Homemade ravioli may sound scary to some and I’m not going to lie to you and say it’s easy, because it’s not. But it’s not rocket science either. It’s easier than baking for sure. So why would you make it, you may ask? Because it’s rewarding and fun to make, not to mention, that it tastes a thousand times better than store-bought ravioli. It’s like tasting a good craft beer after drinking Bud Light your whole life (crazy Americans with your light beers). If you are concerned about the amount of butter and cream the sauce contains just sprinkle it with a good olive oil, sea salt and fresh cracked pepper instead. The subtle taste of the lemon zest and the tart juice will bring that refreshing element to this creamy meal. Buon appetito!

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Homemade Green Pea and Ricotta Ravioli with Creamy Sage Sauce

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Serves 4-6 people (about 30-35 ravioli)
Prep time: 60 minutes
Cook time: 30 minutes
Inactive time: 25 minutes

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Ingredients

Pasta Dough (same as for Tagliatelle)

• 1/2 lb "00" flour 
• 2 whole eggs, pasture raised
• 2 egg yolks, pasture raised
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 TBS olive oil, extra-virgin
• 1/2 cup "00" flour, for kneading and rolling
• 1 TBS salt, for cooking the ravioli

Filling

• 10 oz ricotta cheese
• 1/2 TBS fresh lemon zest (1/2 medium sized lemon)
• 3 tsp fresh lemon juice (1/2 medium sized lemon)
• 1 cup green peas (fresh or frozen)
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt
• 1/2 tsp ground white pepper
• 1/4 cup freshly grated parmesan
• 1 1/2 TBS fresh basil leaves, finely chopped (about 8-10 basil leaves)

Creamy Sage Sauce

• 5 TBS butter
• 20 fresh sage leaves
• 1/2 cup dry white wine (must be dry)
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp ground white pepper
• 3 tsp lemon juice (1/2 medium sized lemon)
• 1 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 3 tsp lemon juice (1/2 medium sized lemon)
• 1/4 cup parmesan cheese
• 1/2 cup pasta water
• freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Instructions

1. Start with the pasta. In the center of your work station (preferably a large wooden cutting board) pile up a half pound of flour. Keep the rest nearby.  Make a “well" in the center and pour in the eggs and the yolks. Add salt and one tablespoon olive oil and beat the mixture lightly with a fork. Using your fingertips, gradually start incorporating the flour into the egg mixture. Gradually work the dough together until all the flour is mixed in. The dough should be sticky to touch (not to your fingers) and it should hold together. Depending on the size of the eggs, you may need to hydrate your dough if it is too dry by adding a few teaspoons of water.
2. Knead the dough using the palms of your hand, until the dough becomes smooth and elastic, about 5 minutes. Make a ball out of the dough, sprinkle flour, wrap ball in plastic, and let it rest in the refrigerator for at least half an hour.
3. While the dough is resting prepare the filling. In a medium bowl mix all the ingredients for the filling. Using a wooden spoon or a spatula stir until all ingredients are well combined. Cover bowl with a plastic wrap and refrigerate.
4. Remove the dough from the refrigerator and divide it in 4-5 equal parts. Slightly drizzle water over a kitchen towel and cover the small dough balls. You will work with one at a time, so the damp towel will keep them from drying out. 
5. Take the first piece of dough, flatten it with your hands so that it is 1-inch thick and sprinkle with a little flour on both sides. Using a pasta maker, roll out the dough. Start with the thickest setting and work your way to setting number 6. (1.5 mm)
6. To stretch the pasta into a sheet, roll it through the pasta maker on the rest of the settings, going down one level at a time (from thick to thin), rolling it through about 2 or 3 times on each level. The more you run it through the machine, the silkier your pasta will be. If the dough starts sticking at any point, sprinkle flour on it. 
7. Once you have your sheet of pasta finished, cut into 2.5-3 inch-wide strips if using a ravioli stamp. If you opt to use a cutter instead of a stamp, leave the sheet as is for now because you will fold it over the filling in the next step.
8. Place a tablespoon of filling one inch apart from each other along the center of a dough strip if using a stamp, or over the lower half of your pasta sheet if using the folding method. Brush with water the second strip or top half of the dough to moisten it. It will help with sealing the ravioli.
9. Gently pat the dough down around the filling to make sure that they aren't any air pockets and the ravioli is sealed. 
10. Firmly press ravioli stamp until it cuts through the dough. If using ravioli cutter, cut into even squares. Place the ravioli on parchment paper and sprinkle with flour. Repeat process until you finish the rest of the dough.
11. Bring a large pot of water and one tablespoon salt to a boil over medium-high heat.
12. While the water comes to a boil, prepare the creamy sage sauce. In a large deep skillet melt butter over medium-high heat. When completely melted add sage leaves and fry them for about 1 minute until the butter and sage leaves turn brown. Immediately add white wine and stir. Season with salt and pepper and cook for 4-5 minutes. 
13. Pour in the cream, stir and bring again to a boil, about 2 more minutes. Add lemon juice and parmesan cheese and stir well. Reduce the heat to low and let it simmer while you cook the ravioli. Stir occasionally to make sure the sauce doesn't burn.
14. When the water in the pot starts boiling place ravioli in the water and cook for 3-5 minutes depending on the thickness of the pasta you used. When cut, the ravioli should show no starchy line in the middle. 
15. Using a sieve or a slotted spoon transfer the the ravioli from the pan to the creamy the sage sauce. When all the pasta is cooked and in the skillet, scoop half cup pasta water and pour it in the skillet. Dispose the rest of the pasta water.
16. Crank up the heat to medium. Toss well until all the ravioli is coated in the creamy sauce. Bring to a boil and remove from the heat, about 2-3 minutes. Taste the sauce and adjust seasoning.

Notes

• When making the dough, make sure that you don't use cold eggs straight from the refrigerator. Let them sit at room temperature at least 10 minutes prior to using them.
• When using the pasta maker, run the dough through the largest setting at least 4-5 times, folding it in half after each roll.
• For more restaurant-like thin ravioli work your way up to setting 7. Number 7 will yield a very thin sheet (about 1.3 mm) making it more delicate to work with. On the up side, the time it will take to cook will be less (2-3 minutes).
• Folding the sheets in half is a quicker method than cutting the sheets into strips. I got used to the strips method, but either will work fine.

Creamy Leeks with Pan Roasted Chicken

When I started this blog I made a calendar where I mapped out the posts for the next few months. Although I'm not quite a planner, I really wanted to make this blog happen, so I had to set myself up for success.

I knew that cooking would not be a problem- that's how I relax after a long day at work and I'd do it anyway. What was scary was the commitment itself- the commitment of taking pictures while cooking, writing down the recipes and following them (instead of just winging it like I usually do), processing the pictures and last but not least, the scariest of all, writing. No matter how confident you feel about understanding and speaking a foreign language, the idea that you're committing to writing in it is intimidating.

Fortunately, I've always loved challenges and I'm adventurous and stubborn enough to think that it is indeed a good idea. Truth to be told, I do have an amazing editor/taste tester to help me.

I post two recipes a week: a simple one, like a breakfast, a brunch or a quick bite, and a second one that's more elaborate and time-consuming. There is a logic to the order in which I post as well, but the problem is that, more often than not, I derail from my own masterplan. I always find good reasons to- let it be my mood, the weather or the delivered veggie box from my the local CSA. 

The ice cubes are homemade chicken stock that I freeze in an ice maker tray. Whenever I need some stock I just pop a few out.

This week was the weather. Initially, I wanted to transition to less hearty meals and more seasonal, lighter dishes like pastas, salads and such. Then the weather started playing tricks on me. Usually May in Austin is already unbearably hot, but for some reason this year it's been very mild and rainy. It’s been raining seemingly nonstop for weeks now. The flash flood alerts on my phone won't stop giving me a heart attack when they go off at random times.

The weather, combined with the leeks that I found in the weekly delivery, made me choose this recipe. I've done this dish several times before, but somehow it always manages to surprise me with its taste. 

When you're roasting the chicken you can go with different aromatic herbs if rosemary doesn't cut it for you. I personally would have used tarragon had my neighbor grown that instead of rosemary. Sometimes I take my dog on a walk with the intention of picking a few branches just to keep the otherwise invasive rosemary population under control. I may be renting, but I care about our neighborhood!

The situation with the green couscous was completely different, though. I had parsley from the CSA and my little herb garden started producing herbs to my surprise. They have to survive the weather and hurricane Popsi (a.k.a. the dog). The mint, sage, oregano and chives all came from there.

The inspiration for this side dish was Jacques Pepin's green couscous. Roni did the mistake of getting me the full edition DVD of Essential Pepin as a birthday gift last year. Ever since, I don't cook with 90's Euro techno music blasting in the background, but with Pepin telling stories with his cute French accent. Aww, I guess I'm getting softer as I grow older.

If you won't be able to get a hold of the same herbs as mentioned in the recipe, worry not! Replace them with what you like or what you have on hand. Whether it's thyme, basil, spinach or kale, it makes no difference. The point is to make the couscous more interesting and pleasant aesthetically by adding extra flavor to the rather bland semolina. Enjoy!

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Creamy Leeks with Pan Roasted Chicken

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Serves 4-6
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 60 minutes

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Ingredients

Creamy Leeks and Pan Roasted Chicken

• 4 large leeks
• 6 cloves garlic, crushed
• 1 sprig fresh thyme, oregano or tarragon
• 2 sprigs rosemary
• 4 cups chicken stock
• 1 tsp black pepper, freshly ground
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt
• 2 lbs chicken with skin and bones (thighs and drums)
• 1/2 black pepper, freshly ground
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt
• 2 TBS peanut oil (or canola, or sunflower seed oil)
• 2 TBS butter
• 1 sprig fresh thyme, oregano or tarragon
• 1 sprigs rosemary
• 1/2 cup dry white wine
• 1/2 black pepper, freshly ground
• salt, to taste
• 1 cup heavy cream

Green Couscous

• 1/2 cup parsley, roughly chopped
• 6 mint leaves
• 1 sprig oregano
• 3-4 sage leaves
• 1/4 cup chives
• 1 clove garlic, crushed
• 1/4 cup stock, saved from the braised leeks (or 2-3 TBS hot water)
• 1 cup instant couscous
• 1/2 tsp black pepper, freshly ground
• salt, to taste
• 1 cup boiling water
• 1 TBS butter

Instructions

Creamy Leeks and Pan Roasted Chicken

1. Preheat oven to 425F (220C).
2. Clean each leek by cutting off the dark green woody leaves and the root end. Using a pairing knife slice the leek lengthwise starting from about 1/4 of inch from the root up to the leaves. Rotate the leek, and slice it again starting from the root. Fan the leeks open and place them under cold running water. Rinse out any dirt or sand until the leeks are clean.
3. Place leeks,  garlic cloves, thyme, oregano or tarragon, two sprigs of rosemary and chicken broth in a deep oven proof skillet. Season with freshly ground pepper and a pinch of salt.
4. When the oven heated up, put the skillet in and cook for 30 minutes. Check after 15 minutes and stir leeks so that the ones that aren't completely covered by the stock don't burn.
5. In the meantime, pat the chicken dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper.
6. Heat up oil in a heavy cast iron skillet at medium-high heat. When the oil is shimmering, place the chicken pieces in the pan with the skin side down and brown for about 6-8 minutes. Flip the chicken on the other side and repeat the browning process. 
7. Reduce the heat to medium and cook the chicken on the un-browned sides for about 5 minutes total.
8. Add butter, crushed garlic and aromatic herbs (rosemary, thyme or tarragon) and baste occasionally for 3-5 minutes on each side. Check the temperature of the chicken. At this point it should be at around 130-140F (55-60C). 
9. Remove the chicken from the skillet and cover with aluminum foil until the leeks are ready.
10. Deglaze the pan in which you roasted the chicken by pouring in white wine. Sprinkle with a pinch of fresh ground pepper an cook for about 3 minutes. Add the cream and cook for another 3-4 minutes until the sauce thickens.
11. Remove pan of leeks from the oven. Remove half of the stock that is left. Make sure you're not discarding it as you're going to use it for the couscous.
12. Mix in the chicken with its juices and the cream sauce. Stir well until the meat is covered in leeks and the white sauce. Taste and adjust seasoning to your liking.
13. Put the chicken back in the oven for about 10 minutes. 
14. While the chicken is in the oven prepare the couscous. 

Green Couscous

1. Put herbs, garlic and the stock you saved from the braised leeks in a food processor. If you don't have it just, add 2-3 TBS hot water. Puree the herbs until the paste becomes smooth.
2. Pour the herb paste into a medium bowl then add couscous, black pepper and a pinch of salt. Mix well until the couscous is well coated. 
3. Add hot water, mix and cover for about 10 minutes. 
4. Remove cover and add in butter while the couscous is still hot, mixing it thoroughly. Season with more salt to your liking.
5. Serve couscous with the leeks, chicken and french baguette (for dipping). 

Notes

• Do not overload the skillet with chicken. You risk reducing the heat in the pan to the point where the chicken will not brown and will become greasy. Instead, work in batches if you have to.