February 28, 2010 – 6:20 pm
This is for Will who, after reading my piece on artichoke pizza with caramelized onions, wrote: “Caramelized onions are the best thing that have happened to my burgers since cheese” and “that it takes fooorever”.
Here’s a tip. Start the onions first. While they are caramelizing, move to the rest of the preparations for your meal. You’ve got 30 minutes.
Heat a little olive oil in a heavy bottomed pot (I love Le Creuset for this) , add the sliced or diced onions, quickly sauté over medium high heat for 5 minutes, stirring from time to time. Lower the heat, cover the pot and cook for 25 minutes. Stir from time to time to evenly distibute the browning. Your onions should be deliciously wilted, caramelized to perfection.
Oh, and by the way, Onions are a member of the lily family and have been around since 3000 BCE. They have sulfuric compounds that are known to inhibit cancer. Remember, browning occurs at 300 degrees or more, so refrain from adding liquid which will forestall the browning.
Here are some pics , before, during, after.
February 21, 2010 – 7:27 pm
This past week I had the pleasure of speaking to a group of students in “Using Public Relations as a Marketing Tool” taught by Howard Geltzer at New York University. As I was preparing my presentation I felt compelled to bring real food into an academic environment since my business is about food and culinary travel. Of course, I don’t think Howard expected me to devote time to a tasting. While he was presenting the agenda, I was trying to figure out where I could slip this surprise in without causing too much disruption. I was a guest and Howard was the host, educator and consummate PR man.
Words can be powerful but they are no substitute for the sensory experience of taste and smell. If I was going to talk about my business, Cucina della Terra, a cooking school in Italy, 3000 miles away, I needed to demonstrate how certain foods are distinctive and worthy of a trip to the country of origin.
By the time I reached the classroom I was loaded down with shopping bags filled with napkins, paring knife, parmegiano reggiano, an Argentine reginatto, a 25 year old balsamic vinegar and a highly commercial unaged balsamic, sliced ciabatta, and two bottles of olive oil: one from my own harvest in 2008, and one from Sicily that was unfiltered but with no DOP status, and of course some wet wipes. While everyone else had briefcases and computers slung over their shoulders, I was schlepping shopping bags of food. Talk about feeling like the New York bag lady.
In a very simple way, I created a contrast of tastes.
To a group of students focused on a topic in business, there attention was diverted to thinking about the food in front of them. Packaging became less important than the experience of taste and the quality of what we tasted. Ultimately where our food comes from and how it is produced is far more important. So, the next time you are reaching for a highly publicized product, think about why and for what you are putting your money down - and ask yourself if it’s worth it.
February 13, 2010 – 3:36 pm
Last night was pizza night in school. I’m always wondering how 42 pounds of dough will turn out in the hands of 16 eager students. Miraculously, with instruction on technique and good ingredients, my students are a changed bunch. I’m always eager to learn why they’re here in the first place, other than they love to eat pizza. Many tell me that their forays with dough have been dismal failures. Whether they purchased frozens doughs from whole foods, trader joes their local supermarkets, or they made the dough from a recipe, the complaints are unanimous: too sticky, too thick, not good. For me, I empathize with their failures while I ‘m confident that by the end of class they will leave with an understanding that no visual on you tube or in a cookbook would alleviate. And that is a satisfaction that is incomparable. So, for those of you who love to eat pizza and want desperately to create a great tasting version in your own kitchen, don’t give up. It’s possible to make it in your own kitchen with a few great ingredients, a calibrated oven, pizza stone and great technique.
Saluti
