Pasta with Oyster Mushrooms and Spinach

Happy Mardi Gras!

These beautiful fresh oyster mushrooms are from the local farmers market. I used a little bit of soy sauce for seasoning, which makes this simple Mediterranean dish extraordinary. It was yummy :)

Pastitsio

Pastitsio is one of the most popular dishes in Greece. Also this is one of my most favorite Greek dishes. I always wanted to try to cook this. But each time I decided, my husband, who is native to Greece, stopped me. He thought it was very difficult --almost impossible-- for me, non-Greek, to cook this traditional Greek / Mediterranean food. Um, my challenging sprit became awake.

When we found various goat meats (shoulder, chop and ground etc.) in the local farmers market, we were excited. Then, I suggested making pastitsio. He was too excited to say “No” to me. So he immediately agreed on me making pastitsio. Luckily I also found bucatini, pasta used for pastitsio.

I admit that it was very time consuming and a little bit tricky. But it was defiantly worthwhile. I made it in a big oven pan so that we could enjoy three times or more Unfortunately it lasted less than three times. Indeed, our appetites were more enormous than I thought.

Ingredients:
1 lb ground beef, lamb or goat
1 large onion, finely chopped
2-3 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
4 large rip tomatoes, diced
2 tablespoons of tomato paste
1 cup of red wine
¼ cup of flat-leave flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
1 bay leaf
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
A pinch of cinnamon
1 lb of bucatini (According to Wikipedia: a thick spaghetti-like pasta with a hole running through the center. Please refer to my picture of bucatini)
1 cup and 3 tablespoons of grated Parmesan cheese1 cup of extra virgin olive oil

Béchamel sauce:
½ cup of butter
½ cup of all-purpose flour
3 cups of milk
3 eggs, beaten
1 teaspoon of nutmeg powder
2 tablespoons of lemon juice
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup of grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:
1. Heat the 3 tablespoons of olive oil in a fry pan and fry the chopped onion and garlic until they become translucent. Add the ground beef (lamb or goat) and cook till well done.
2. Add the tomatoes and tomato paste and stir them well. Add the white wine and bay leaf. Stir the mixture well.
3. Season the mixture with salt, freshly ground pepper, and cinnamon. Simmer for 30-40 minutes. Turn off the heat and add the parsley and cover the pan.
4. For béchamel sauce: Heat the butter on another pan. Place the butter and let it melt completely. Add flour and mix with butter well. Add the milk little by little. Stir and simmer on low heat until the mixture is thickened.
5. Turn off the heat and add the eggs, lemon juice, nutmeg, salt, black pepper and Parmesan cheese. Mix them well.
6. Boil water in a large pot and cook the bucatini in the pot for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente. Drain the bucatini well. Toss them with 2 to 3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil.
7. Preheat the oven to 350 F degrees.
8. Pour the ½ of extra virgin olive oil. Place half of the bucatini and make a layer on the large oven pan. Sprinkle the ½ cup of grated Parmesan cheese. Pour and spread the tomato mixture. Next, place the rest of the bucatini and make a layer. Again, sprinkle the ½ cup of grated Parmesan cheese. Pour the béchamel sauce and spread evenly over the top. Pour the rest of the extra olive oil. Sprinkle the 3 tablespoons of shredded Parmesan cheese.
9. Bake it in the oven for 50 to 60 minutes until the top is brown.

Black Spaghetti with Sun-Dried Tomato Paste

“There are numerous ghost stories in Louisiana”, said Patricia, who is native to New Orleans. Old plantation houses, massive oak trees with hanging Spanish moss, heavy fog over mysterious swamps and sudden rain are Louisiana’s familiar sights. They are already creepy enough. But Patricia continued, “one day, one of my girlfriends visited an old plantation house as a guest. She arrived late so the owner of the plantation house briefly greeted her and took her to a room. Then she heard rain started falling. Also she heard children started playing in the hallway. Next day, she politely mentioned to the owner about that incident. The owner was wondering and said there was no child living or invited there. As a matter of fact, she was the only guest the owner had at that day.”

The other day, my husband was startled at me eating this incredible black spaghetti with sun-dried tomato paste. He said it was peculiar. It was scarier than Patricia’s story. This black color came from natural squid ink. I love the aroma. Unfortunately, it is very difficult to obtain fresh squid ink in Louisiana. But I found this spaghetti made with squid ink. It has a slight flavor of squid ink, which is irresistible.

I made sun-dried tomato paste to mix with this black spaghetti. This paste can also be used as a spread on crispy bread. Adding parmesan cheese and chopped fresh basil leaves enhances the delicious flavor of this paste and any pasta. Also this dish may give you a perfect frightening presentation for Halloween.

Ingredients:
Sun-dried tomato paste:
1/2 cup of sun-dried tomatoes
1-2 olive oil marinated set of anchovies
6 black olives
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
A pinch of chili pepper
¼ cup of extra virgin olive oil

1 lb of black spaghetti
2-3 cloves of finely chopped garlic
¼ cup of chopped fresh basil leaves
Extra virgin olive oil
Parmesan cheese

Directions:
1. Soak the sun-dried tomatoes in water for 30-40 minutes. Drain them and transfer to a food processor. Do not discard the water.
2. Add the anchovies, black olives without their seeds and extra virgin olive oil. Process the mixture until it becomes smooth. Season it with salt, black pepper and chili pepper.
3. Meanwhile, boil water in a large pot and cook the spaghetti in the pot for 8 to 10 minutes or al dente. Drain the spaghetti well. Toss them with 2 to 3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil.
4. Heat 3-4 tbsp of olive oil in a large fry pan. Fry the garlic until sizzling. Add the spaghetti and sun-dried tomato paste. Mix them well. Turn off the heat and add the basil leaves. Stir them well.
5. Transfer them into saving plates. Sprinkle a lot of parmesan cheese. Serve with crispy bread!

Eggplants in Tomato Sauce (Melanzane a fungetiello)

It was a cozy neighborhood restaurant in my parents’ hometown where I first tasted eggplants in tomato sauce (Melanzane a fungetiello). I found out very recently that this restaurant is one of the first Italian restaurants in whole Japan, if not the very first one. Mr. Abela from Sicily, Italy, found the restaurant in 1946 and since then “Amore Abela” (as the restaurant is called) has been successfully run by the Abela family.

At this historical restaurant, I had very delicious spaghetti with eggplants in tomato sauce for the first time. It was more than two decades ago but I still clearly recall the little surprise I felt about the combination of eggplants and tomato sauce. Our family had never thought that they could turn out so well with each other on top of pasta. After that, pasta with eggplants in tomato sauce became one of our family’s favorite dishes.

When I recently found small eggplants in the local farmers’ market, I immediately recalled my favorite dish, pasta with eggplants in tomato sauce, and decided to cook this dish. I added fresh mozzarella cheese to enhance the tasty flavor of eggplants, tomato sauce and basil leaves. You should try it too. Buon appetito!

Ingredients (4-5 servings):
7-10 small eggplants
1 finely chopped onion
3 cloves of garlic
3 cups of finely chopped tomatoes
2 tablespoons of tomato paste
½ cup of fresh basil leaves
8 oz. fresh mozzarella cheese
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Extra virgin olive oil
1 lb linguine

Directions:
1. Wash the eggplants and slice them. Place them in a large bowl and add water to cover the sliced eggplants. Add a pinch of salt. Leave them for about 15 to 30 minutes.
2. Heat 3-4 tbsp of olive oil in a large fry pan. Place the eggplants, finely chopped onion and garlic in the pan and fry them well until the eggplants become soft and onion becomes transparent.
3. Add the chopped tomatoes and tomato paste. Simmer them for 15 to 20 minutes.
4. Slice the mozzarella cheese. Chop the basil leaves.
5. Add the mozzarella cheese and chopped basil on the top of the sauce and turn off the heat. Cover the pan and leave it for 5 to 10 minutes until the sliced mozzarella cheese melts.
6. Boil water in a large pot and cook the linguine in the pot for 8 to 10 minutes or al dente. Drain the linguine well. Toss them with 2 to 3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil.
7. Transfer the serving plates and pour the sauce. Serve with pieces of crispy bread! Buon appetito!

Linguine in Pesto Sauce

Basil, whose name comes from the Greek word for “king,” is one of the most essential herbs in Mediterranean cousin. However, the origin of this herb is none of the Mediterranean countries. According to Wikipedia, “Basil is originally native to Iran, India and other tropical regions of Asia, having been cultivated there for more than 5,000 years.” No wonder that this herb is used in many dishes from India, Thai and Vietnamese cousins.
In fact, basil was brought by Alexander the Great during his expedition to India.

Recently, there are many kinds of basil seeds and plants available in stores. Yet, my most favorite basil is sweet and aromatic Genovese basil from Genoa region in Italy. This basil reminds me of summer and this simple, yet, delicious pesto sauce.

Pesto is not only tasty but also very healthy food. Basil is high in vitamin K, which helps a body absorb calcium and other beneficial minerals to improve the bones. Parmesan and Romano cheese are excellent sources of calcium. In addition, pine nuts are rich in Vitamin B1 and B3.

Since my basil pants are big enough to be harvested, I decided to make lots of pesto sauce. It can be tossed with pasta or used as spread on crispy bread. Also pesto goes well with meat and fish. It can be stored in a refrigerator up to a several days.

Ingredients (4-5 Servings):
3 bunch of fresh basil leaves
1/3 cup pine nuts
½ grated Parmesan or Romano cheese
3 cloves of garlic
A pinch of salt
½ cup extra virgin olive oil
1 lb linguine

Directions:
1. Wash the basil leaves and drain them well.
2. Add all of the ingredients in the blender or food processor to grind them until they become creamy.
3. Boil water in a large pot and cook the linguine for 8 to 10 minutes or al dente.

4. Toss and mix the linguine with the pesto sauce. Serve with a piece of crispy bread!

Lamp with Orzo in a Clay Pot (Youvetsi)

In Greece lamp with orzo in a clay pot is often served on Sunday, which is the special day of the week among Greek Orthodox Christians. I usually cook this dish on a special occasion too. This month I made this dish twice for serving two of my good friends.

One of them is my new friend, Akiko, who is a professional nutritionist and recently moved to the USA from Japan. She is also an expert on Japanese cooking. Her ideas and tips about cooking are always fun and useful. Also her professional advice regarding diet and many kinds of food products are very valuable.

Since Mediterranean cuisine is totally new to Akiko, I decided to cook this special dish for our lunch. Unlike her tiny figure, she ate up the big portion of a lamb chop, Greek salad that I additionally made, and a big piece of crispy ciabatta bread. She congratulated my cooking and enjoyed my dishes very much.

Therefore, when Peter, who is a good friend of mine from New York City, decided to visit me in Louisiana in the middle of June, I immediately chosen to cook lamb with orzo in a clay pot, too. He is a gourmet, coffee lover and also good cook. Furthermore, his parents and sister are amazing cooks. Their creative table settings and fabulous ways to present food are incredible and astonish me any time I visit them.

Thanks to the tender and juicy lamb chops and ripe tomatoes, I was glad that Peter liked this dish very much.

Two food experts plus my husband, who is a native Mediterranean and foodie, applaud this dish. Thus, I proudly recommend you to try for your special events.

I already decided to cook this dish for my next guest and I started thinking what I am going to cook when Akiko and Peter visit me next time.

Ingredients:
4 pieces of lamb chops
1 finely chopped onion
3-4 cloves of garlic
3 cups chopped ripe tomatoes
2 tbsp tomato paste
1 and 1/2 cups of red wine
1 lb orzo
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
A pinch of cloves
1/3-1/2 cup Ground Parmesan cheese
Extra virgin olive oil

Directions:
1. Season the lamb chops with salt and black pepper.
2. Heat 3-4 tbsp of olive oil in a large fry pan. Place the finely chopped onion and garlic in the pan and fry them for 3-4 minutes. Add the lamb chops and fry them till the surfaces of the lamb chops become slightly brown and crispy.
3. Add the chopped tomatoes and tomato paste. Add 1/2 cup of the red wine. Season with salt, black pepper and a pinch of clove. Simmer them for 30 to 40 minutes.
4. Transfer them into a large clay pot.
5. Preheat the oven to 370 F degrees. Bake the clay pot for about 20 minutes.
6. Add the orzo, 1 cup of the red wine and about 1/3 cup of extra virgin olive oil. Note that the orzo should be covered with the lamb chops and sauce.
7. Bake in the clay pot for 15 minutes. Sprinkle the ground Parmesan cheese when it is almost done.
8. Bake them for another 5 minutes. Transfer them into serving plates.

Meatballs in Tomato Sauce

I hate Stelios, who was one of my husband’s high school classmates in Greece and he is still a good friend of my husband. Stelios is very pleasant to be with and I am always happy to see and talk to him. However, I have a reason to hate him.

When I was still living in New York City, Stelios visited my husband in Louisiana. During that time, he cooked spaghetti for my husband.
“It was mindboggling, “ my husband said.
“He boiled the spaghetti for nearly 20 minutes and it became just like the one I used to have when I was in Greece. It was so good!” He congratulated Stelios for his spaghetti. Since then he calls overcooked spaghetti, the “Stelios’ spaghetti.” This has impressed my husband very much but has made my life so difficult.

Long time ago, one of my Italian friends taught me how to boil spaghetti. First, boil plenty of water in a big pot. Add a pinch of salt. Then, coil a bunch of spaghetti and release them at once in the pot. In order to boil them the spaghetti evenly, stir them from time to time and cook for about 10 minutes or until it is “al dente” (which is Italian for having it a little bit hard on the inside). I thought this was the Mediterranean standard to boil spaghetti for a long time and more importantly, I like the “al dente” spaghetti very much.

Since Stelios made spaghetti, my spaghetti preparation became very complicated. I have to take out half of the spaghetti what I boil after about 10 minutes, and them continue to cook the rest for my husband for more than 10 minutes.

Meatballs in tomato sauce are excellent with spaghetti. However, since cooking spaghetti for my husband and myself gives me a lot of work, one day I served them with steamed rice. It went very well with meatballs in tomato sauce. Also pilaf (butter fried rice) goes well with them.

Maybe I should appreciate Stelios instead of hating him. He was the one who gave me an incredible opportunity for me to try steamed rice and pilaf with meatballs in tomato sauce, which are excellent combinations after all!

Ingredients:
Olive oil for frying

Meatballs (about 20 to 25 meatballs):

1 lb ground beef

½ cup panko (bread crumbs)

1 finely chopped onion2 cloves of garlic

¼ cup finely chopped flat leaf parsley

¼ cup finely chopped mint

1 egg

½ cup red wine

1 teaspoon salt

Freshly ground black pepper

A pinch of cumin and cinnamon

Lemon juice
½ cup all-purpose flour

Tomato Sauce:
3 cups chopped ripe tomatoes
1 finely chopped onion
3 cloves of chopped garlic
2 tbsp tomato paste

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions:
1. Place all of the ingredients except all-purpose flour for meatballs in a large bowl. Mix them well. Leave the mixture for 10 to 15 minutes in room temperature.
2. Break off pieces of the mixture and make small meatballs. Coat the meatballs with the all-purpose flour.
3. Heat the olive oil in a fry pan and fry the meatballs until they are well done. Take out the meatballs from the pan.
4. Using the same pan, heat the olive oil and fry the chopped onion and garlic for tomato sauce till the onion becomes translucent.
5. Add the chopped tomato and tomato paste. Season with salt and black pepper. Occasionally stir and cook them for 5 to 10 minutes.
6. Add the meatballs and continuously cook for 20 to 30 minutes.
7. Serve over rice/pilaf or pasta!

Pasta with Clam and Tomato Sauce

When I had the most delicious pasta with clam and tomato sauce, it was cold early spring in Venice. I was a poor college student and traveling Europe for about a month with one of my girlfriends. Unfortunately she became sick when we arrived Italy. We found a cheap but clean and cozy hotel in Bologna. Then she decided to take a break for a few days and I chose to travel alone. I took a train and headed for Venice, which had been my dream.

I still remember the amazing sight suddenly appearing on front of my eyes while the train was approaching to Santa Lucia Station. I was so excited to be there and decided to absorb the city as much as possible. After getting off the train and stepped out of the station, I ran to cross the bridge, Ponte Tre Ponti. I walked narrow streets to see the people’s lives. I went to a few museums and stores selling beautiful Venetian art pieces. Every moment and every sight enormously fascinated me.

When I realized it was time for me to go back, I also felt starving. Then I recognized I skipped lunch. I was missing one of the most important factors of Italy, FOOD! I jumped to a small restaurant, which looked a cheap Italian fast food restaurant for tourists. At that time I had the most amazing pasta with clam and tomato sauce. I was young with an empty pocket but full of energy and dreams. Maybe I was hungry for anything. Since then, I have been to Italy, again, and many Italian restaurants around the world. However, the dish I had in Venice at that day has been still the tastiest pasta dish I have ever had.


Ingredients:
1 lb fresh clams with shells
1 lb pasta (I used large conchiglie)
1 chopped onion
2-3 chopped tomatoes
½ cup white wine
2-3 cloves of garlic
1 tbsp tomato paste
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Extra virgin olive oil

Directions:
1. Wash the clams very well. Place the clam in a large pot. Add 1 cup of water. Cover and bring to a boil. After boiling, lower the heat and simmer for 5 minutes. Remove the clams from the pan. If the clam is not open, discard it. Strain the water and keep it aside.
2. Boil water in a large pot and cook the pasta for 8 to 10 minutes or al dente.
3. Heat the olive oil and the garlic in a large pot and fry the onion until it becomes transparent. Add the tomatoes and fry them for 3 to 5 minutes. Add the wine and tomato paste. Season with salt and pepper and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes.
4. Add the pasta and clams in the tomato mixture. Add ½ cup of the water from 1.
Stir and simmer for 3 minutes. Serve hot!