Wiseguy Gravy, bada bing, bada BOOM!

In my constant pursuit of the perfect Italian meal, I keep returning to Italian Sausage.  That flavor of roast pork, spices like fennel seed and oregano, pop like tiny fireworks.  You can buy it hot or mild, I like both, but whatever you do, buy it fresh and buy it from a good Italian deli or food market. Italian sausage from the supermarket just doesn't make the grade.  

   Now ever since The Godfather, Mafia life has become part of the romance of the modern American culture.  For better or worse.  Who can forget Marlin Brando saying 'Make him an offer he can't refuse"? Or Michael in 3-"Just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in!".  And then there's Clemenza making 'the gravy' when the crew has 'gone to the mattresses'.  "You see, you start out with a little bit of oil. Then you fry some garlic. Then you throw in some tomatoes, tomato paste. You fry it--you make sure it doesn't stick. You get it to a boil. You shove in all your sausage and your meatballs, hey? And a little bit o' wine. An' a little bit o' sugar, and that's my trick."   Gravy is what all made men call red tomato sauce.  Its that simple.

   But I make a variation of Clemenza's recipe.  I put some olive oil in a pan, CHrow some gaaaalic in, THEN the sausages and the peppers.  Brown one side and keep turning until they have become a golden brown.  This is done with the heat on medium.  Using the same pan, pour in the tomato sauce, canned tomatoes, tomato paste, wine, salt, sugar, pepper, spices, and bring to a boil.  When it reaches a boil, turn the heat to low, cover, and let simmer until done.  And 'done' is the subjective part.  The longer it cooks, the more the flavor melds.  Be sure to stir with a wooden spoon.  Why a wooden spoon? Because that's what mama mia used.  That's why.  If you want to really simplify things, any quality jar of red sauce can be used and then embellished with salt, sugar, wine etc.   

   You can serve this over any  pasta and try topping with chopped fresh basil.  Any good dry red wine pairs well with this gravy.  

6 Italian sausages

1 large can tomato sauce or 1 bottle sauce like Classico or Trader Joes signature sauces

1/2 8oz can tomato paste

4 or 5 cloves garlic

1 large can stewed tomatoes with juice

olive oil

Fresh oregano, thyme, sage etc  (dried will work) to taste

Salt, pepper, sugar to taste

1 cup red wine

Whole Foods Market

Whole Foods Market is a supermarket chain that specializes in whole, natural, fresh foods.  That is not to say it is a 'natural food market', which brings to mind granola and sprouts.  Whole Foods has a huge selection of meats, fish, cheese, vegetables, and prepared foods.  It has everything a 'regular' supermarket has, it just has it in better quality.  The wonderful aspect about this market is that it harkens back to what made markets good in earlier times.  For instance, if you wanted meat, you would go to the meat market.  For fish, you went to the fish monger and fresh vegetables, you grew yourself or you bought them at street corner stands or from farmers markets.  Whole foods brings this all together in one place.  And it has an urban feel about it, that is, you can find them in the centers of big cities like San Francisco and Los Angeles, Portland.  From 57th street in New York to 23rd and Wilshire in Los Angeles, you can find a Whole Foods.   So for the people who live in the city, they have the best of both worlds, fresh country and sophisticated city.  

   On top of that, Whole Foods chooses the best quality of the meats and produce they sell.  The beef for instance, is either Prime or Choice.  It has the best marbling and is sometimes dry aged.  The steaks are cut thick and the center cut pork chops have a large rib bone that can be cut away and served separate on the plate for a different presentation.  Or they are large enough to be stuffed.  The salmon is fresh Pacific Salmon, not the dyed farm raised variety found in conventional supermarkets.  Their tuna is sushi grade and can actually be eaten raw.  Many of the vegetables are organic.   The cheese is imported or the very best domestic.  Anything from hard rounds of Italian Parmigiano Reggiano to triple creams from France.  Here are 2 cheeses that warrant mention.  

   The first one is Mahon.  Mahon is a Spanish semi-hard cheese.  It comes from the island of Menorca, and is one of a few cow's milk cheeses from Spain. Mahón carries a faint sharpness, and its lemony, salty flavors harken to the rural Mediterranean seascape.  If you close your eyes, you can actually smell the salty air. Its rind contains a hard, crumbly cheddar-like texture and darkens as the wheels age. At its peak, Mahón is tangy, intense and delicious.  You can find a few varieties at Whole Foods.  Serve it on crusty French bread and pair it with a mineraly white or on the other end of the spectrum, a Madeira.  

   The other cheese is Brillat-Savarin, a triple cream brie.  This cheese comes from Normandy and is so delicious.  It is so soft and creamy that it will melt on its own, sitting on a counter, and spreads like butter.  Its flavor is luscious, decadent and slightly mushroomy.  It is one of the richest of cheeses and is the opposite of Mahon.  Whole Foods carries this cheese in small rounds wrapped in paper.  This cheese pairs well with a dry white like a Petit Chablis because the acidity in the wine cuts through the softness of the cheese.  

   Whole Foods also has coffee beans from around the world, pickles in barrels, cooked gourmet food, hearty sandwiches, and a worldly selection of wine and beers.  All of this of course comes with a price but it is money well spent.  If you live in a city that has a Whole Foods Market, have some fun and check one out!  

  If you think this is a good place, awesome!  Hit the 'like' button at the top and let your friends know.

Trout Almondine

There is a certain purity about fresh trout taken from a crystal clear mountain stream.  Recently I was on a small adventure in the Sierras where I fished a creek in a pristine valley and came out with some beautiful Rainbow Trout.  Flashing like silver darts, cold and quick like the rushing streams they live in, Rainbow Trout are just as much a pleasure to catch and look at as they are to eat.  They are called rainbow because of the bands of color running down their flank, much like a rainbow.  These trout are related to Salmon and are sometimes called Salmon Trout.  They are found in all areas of the west, and the Pacific Northwest and are highly sought after by anglers.  And they are very good to eat!  Fresh trout from cold streams are the best for flavor but if you are not a fisherman or you don't have access to a cold stream in the middle of nowhere, the next best choice is finding them whole at a high quality supermarket or meat market.    

   One of the best ways to cook this fish, besides frying them up camp side for breakfast, is Trout Almondine.  This is sautéd trout topped with toasted almonds.  Now trout is a very delicate fish, so care must be taken not to burn it and not to over-power the subtle nutty flavor.  Also the skin is apt to stick on the bottom of the pan, so a non-stick or clean stainless steel pan works the best.  When cooking, take care not to turn the heat up too high and keeping the fish moving helps as well.  Here's how to do it.

2 medium sized Rainbow Trout

1/2 stick butter

1 cup sliced almonds

1 cup flour seasoned with coarse ground pepper and sea salt

1 lemon

4 or 5 sprigs fresh thyme chopped

1/4 cup Italian Parsley

1/2 cup dry white wine

   Trout Almondine is a process composed of 2 steps.  First is the almonds.  Take 1/4 stick butter and melt on half heat.  Add the almonds.  Stir, taking care not to burn the butter.  If butter starts to smoke turn the heat down.  When the almonds have reached a nutty, toasty brown color, remove from pan and place in a bowl.  Dredge the trout in the flour and add the rest of the butter to the pan.  When it begins to bubble, place the fish into the pan and move it around so as to establish a small crust on the bottom of the trout.  This will insure a non-stick crusty skin.  Fry the fish until golden, about 5 minutes and turn, repeating the process.  Place the trout on plates.  Now zest the entire lemon into the pan, cut it, and squeeze the juice of 1/2 into it.  Add the almonds and the wine and perhaps 1 pat of butter.  Begin reducing on medium heat and when cooked for about 3 minutes, add the chopped thyme.  Continue reducing until mixture has thickened.  Pour immediately over the plated trout and top with chopped parsley.  

   A crisp white wine like a French Chablis or Burgundy pairs very well with this dish.  So would a very cold dry Rose.  

Coq Au Vin

   Coq Au Vin is French for chicken in wine.  Its one of those comfort foods that a person might make on a blistery evening that would be served in a room with a crackling fire going.  Or a Spring night with rain in the forecast.  Its also one of those rare chicken dishes that uses red instead of white wine.  It is one of those dishes that is cooked in the oven using a cast iron pan or in my case, a Le Creuset Saucier, a great enameled cast iron pan that looks as good as whatever you may put in it.  

   Coq Au Vin is one of the most famous French recipes and hails from Burgundy.  "Coq" of course means literally 'rooster', but chicken will suffice.  It truly is such a savory dish but it demands a bit of preparation.  Here's what you'll need and how to do it!  And no, unlike the French peasants, you won't have to go out back, grab a rooster and chop his head off.  This is the simpler way.  

2 cups full bodied red wine like a Cotes-Du-Rhone or a hearty Merlot or Bordeaux

2 carrots chopped

1 chopped onion

3 celery stocks chopped

fresh thyme

2 bay leaves

4 chicken thighs

1 1/2 cup pearl onions

1/2 stick butter

1 cup mushrooms quartered

4 slices bacon

1 large shallot

1 large clove garlic

   Put the first 6 ingredients along with the chicken in a large pot, stir and marinate overnight.  Yes, like I said, it does 'take some preparation'.  

   Boil the pearl onions in a pot of salted water for about 3 minutes.  Using half the butter, put in the cast iron pan and sauté the pearl onions, mushrooms, garlic  and shallot for about 10 minutes.  Remove to a plate or bowl.  Add the bacon to the same pan and sauté until done-however you may like your bacon.  

   Using slotted spoon, transfer the  chicken from the marinade to a strainer.  Put the marinade aside after straining and discarding the vegetables. Pat the chicken dry with paper towels and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in same skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and sauté in the oil and bacon drippings until its skin is brown, turning once, about 10 minutes.

  Now add the marinade, bacon, mushrooms, garlic and shallot to the chicken and pour some more of the wine over it all.  Combine flour and remaining 2 butter in small bowl. Whisk into the cooking dish.  Sauté on medium heat for about 1/2 and hour.  Serve with white rice or over noodles.  

   This dish is somewhat complicated but oh so good!  And it lends itself to improvisation so don't be afraid to experiment and change the order and you may want to bake it as well.  40 minutes at 350 degrees.  Pairs well with a hearty Burgundy.  Enjoy!

Reduction Sauces, What They Are and How To Make Them

   A reduction sauce is simple what the name implies-reduction.  It is an elegant way to make use of all those delicious pan drippings from a pan grilled steak or a sautéd chicken breast.  It is adding liquid and reducing it by heat so as to concentrate the flavors and infuse those scrumptious flavors in the pan you may have previously thrown away.  A reduction sauce is NOT a gravy.  It is a sauce.  The difference is a thickening of the flavor without thickening the sauce itself.  

   A reduction sauce can be made with wine, vinegar, milk, cream, stock and can be sweet or savory. One thing to keep in mind, if you are making a savory sauce, do not add extra salt until the end.  The reason being that the concentration of the flavor usually makes it salty enough.  Also in the choice of wine, the best should always be used-what you drink, you cook with.  In the Urban Cookbook, there is no such thing as 'cooking wine', there is only wine.  

   There are basic steps to making a classic reduction sauce, and they are always the same.  Remove whatever meat or vegetable you have sautéd.  Add about twice as much liquid you would want in your sauce.  Turn the heat on high.  Now you must stir and continue stirring while at the same time scraping the bottom of the pan to loosen the crispy bits of flavor.  Continue to stir until the sauce is reduced by half.  At the very end, you might add butter or lemon to balance whatever it is you are going for.  Butter smooths it out and lemon sharpens it.  Strain the sauce and serve hot.  Here is a recipe for a wine reduction sauce to serve over steak.

1" thick strip steak or tri tip

1 shallot

olive oil

2 cups red wine

1 tablespoon butter

   Pour enough olive oil into the pan to keep the steak from sticking.  Peel and chop the shallot.  Put heat on high until the oil begins to smoke.  Season the steak with coarse sea salt and coarse ground black pepper.  Add the steak.  Cook each side twice for 3 minutes.  After the first turn, add the chopped shallots.  Make sure to stir the shallots so they don't burn.  Remove the steak.  Add the wine.  Continue to stir and scrap the bottom of the pan to loosen the crusty flavor and the shallots.  When almost reduced by half, add butter.  Continue reducing until reduced by half.  Plate the steak.  Strain the sauce and pour hot over steak.  Enjoy!  Serve with that beautiful red you have used in your PERFECT reduction sauce!  

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