Al Frutti Di Mare Food

FRUTTI DI MARE

Steps:

• Place a large pot of water on to boil for pasta. When it boils, add salt and pasta and cook angel hair to al dente.
• Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat, saute shallots and garlic with crushed pepper 2 or 3 minutes, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon. Add wine and reduce 1 minute. Raise the heat a bit. Add crushed tomatoes and bring sauce to a bubble. Season sauce with salt and pepper. Add clams and mussels and cover the pan. Steam until shells open, about 5 minutes. Remove any unopened shells. Add shrimp to sauce and cook until just firm, 3 minutes.
• Add parsley and basil to the sauce and shake the pan to incorporate it. Adjust seasonings, to taste.
• Combine drained pasta with a few ladles of sauce and pile pasta into shallow platters or bowls. Top with arranged mixed seafood and sauce. Serve with warm, crusty bread for dipping.

LINGUINE AI FRUTTI DI MARE

Steps:

• Boil water in a large pot. Heat oil in a large sauté pan over medium heat. Cook garlic until it sizzles. Add red pepper flakes to taste; cook 1 minute. Add wine and clams; cover. Raise heat to medium-high; cook 5 minutes. Add linguine to boiling water. Cook until al dente. Uncover sauté pan; simmer 1 minute more. Add tomato sauce. Season with salt and pepper. Add rest of seafood. Cook, stirring, until clams and mussels open, about 3 minutes. Toss with linguine. Add parsley; toss. Divide among 4 bowls.

RISOTTO AI FRUTTI DI MARE

Steps:

• Soak mussels, clams, and shrimp in separate bowls of salted cold water for 1 hour. Drain. Clean and devein shrimp, reserving heads and shells.
• Combine shrimp heads and shells, 2 quarts water, tomato, quartered onion, carrot, and celery in a large pot; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer until flavors combine, 40 minutes to 1 hour. Season with salt and pepper.
• Strain stock through a fine-mesh sieve, discarding solids. Keep warm over low heat.
• Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add chopped onion; cook and stir until softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in rice until translucent and coated with oil, 2 to 3 minutes. Increase heat to medium-high; pour in 1 cup white wine. Simmer until alcohol has evaporated, about 3 minutes.
• Reduce heat to medium and stir in 1 ladle of stock until rice has absorbed the liquid. Repeat with remaining stock, stirring after each addition, until rice is creamy and almost tender, about 15 minutes.
• Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add 1 clove garlic and cook until golden, 1 to 2 minutes. Add mussels and 1/2 cup white wine; cover and cook until mussels open, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat; discard garlic and any mussels that did not open. Remove shells and keep mussels warm. Strain cooking liquid through a fine-mesh sieve into a bowl.
• Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in the same saucepan over medium heat. Add 1 clove garlic and cook until golden, 1 to 2 minutes. Add clams and 1/2 cup white wine; cover and cook until opened, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat; discard garlic and any clams that did not open. Remove shells and keep clams warm. Strain cooking liquid through a fine-mesh sieve into a bowl.
• Heat remaining olive oil in the same saucepan. Add 1 clove garlic and shrimp; cook and stir until shrimp turn pink, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat and discard garlic.
• Pour some of the mussel and clam cooking water over the rice; cook for 3 to 5 minutes more. Remove rice from heat. Fold in mussels, clams, and shrimp. Sprinkle parsley on top. Let stand before serving, about 5 minutes.

LINGUINE AI FRUTTI DI MARE (LINGUINE WITH FRUIT OF THE SEA)

Steps:

• Boil water in a large pot.
• Heat oil in a large pan over medium heat, and sauté garlic until it sizzles.
• Add red pepper flakes to taste; cook 1 minute.
• Add wine and clams (in shell or from can, after rinsing); cover. Increase heat to med-high; cook 5 minutes.
• Now it's time to boil the linguine! Cook until al dente. Uncover sauté pan; simmer 1 minute more.
• Add tomato sauce. Season with salt and pepper.
• Add shrimp, calamari, scallops, and mussels (if using). Cook, stirring, until clams and mussels open, about 3 minutes. Toss with linguine. Add parsley; toss.
• Serve very hot!

SEAFOOD RISOTTO (RISOTTO AI FRUITTI DI MARE)

Steps:

• 1. In a small saucepan, warm the fish or vegetable stock. Keep warm.
• 2. In a large saucepan over moderately low heat, warm the olive oil. Add 1 tablespoon of the butter and the onion, and sauté, stirring occasionally, until tender (there should be no color), about 5 minutes. Add the rice and toast lightly for 1 minute without letting the rice or onion take on any color.
• 3. Add the wine and cook until almost completely absorbed. Add most of the stock (it should come about 1/2 inch above the rice) and bring to a simmer. Cook the risotto, stirring occasionally, until the rice has absorbed some of the liquid, about 8 minutes.
• 4. Add the clams, mussels, squid, scallops, and tomatoes, and continue cooking, stirring occasionally, until the seafood is cooked and the rice is al dente, about 6 minutes more. As the rice continues to absorb the liquid, add more as needed.
• 5. Remove the risotto from the heat and add the parsley, garlic, brandy, olive oil, Parmigiano-Reggiano, if using, and the remaining 2 tablespoons butter. Stir well to release the starches and make the risotto creamy. Season to taste with salt and pepper, and serve immediately.

SPAGHETTI AI FRUTTI DI MARE

Steps:

• Prepare the octopus:
• Put octopus in a pressure cooker with water, bay leaf, and 1/2 teaspoon salt and seal pressure cooker with lid, then cook at high pressure according to manufacturer's instructions 10 minutes.
• Put pressure cooker in sink (do not remove lid) and run cold water over lid until pressure goes down completely. Remove lid. Transfer octopus to a cutting board, reserving 1/2 cup cooking liquid. Cut off and discard head, then cut tentacles into 1-inch pieces.
• Prepare the tomato sauce:
• Simmer tomatoes with their juice, basil, and olive oil in a heavy medium saucepan over medium heat, uncovered, stirring and mashing tomatoes occasionally, until thick and reduced to about 3/4 cup, 20 to 25 minutes.
• Prepare the basil puree:
• Puree basil, olive oil, butter, and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a blender, scraping down side as necessary, until smooth. Transfer to a small bowl.
• Prepare the pasta and seafood:
• Cook spaghetti in a pasta pot of boiling salted water (3 tablespoons salt for 6 quarts water) until 'al dente'.
• Meanwhile, puree garlic and olive oil in cleaned blender until smooth.
• Heat a dry 12-inch heavy skillet (not nonstick) over high heat until hot, 2 to 3 minutes. Add olive oil mixture, then immediately add octopus, shrimp, and mussels and saute, stirring occasionally, until shrimp are browned on edges and mussels begin to open, 2 to 3 minutes.
• Add tomato sauce and reserved octopus-cooking liquid and cook, stirring, until mussels just open wide and shrimp are just cooked through, about 2 minutes more (discard any unopened mussels). Season with salt and pepper.
• Drain pasta and return to pot.
• Add squid to hot seafood in skillet, stirring to combine, then add to hot pasta and toss to combine (squid will cook as it is being tossed). Serve drizzled with all of basil puree.
• Notes: If you do not have a pressure cooker, octopus can be simmered in a 4-quart pot with bay leaf, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 4 cups water, covered, turning occasionally, until tender, 1 to 1 and 1/2 hours.
• Octopus can be cooked 1 day ahead and chilled, uncovered, until cool, then covered.
• Tomato sauce can be made 1 day ahead and chilled, covered.