Grandmas Dandelion Sauce Food

PASTA CACIO E PEPE WITH DANDELION (CICORIA AKA CHICORY)

Steps:

• Wash and sort the dandelion leaves and rinse well, but don't dry them. Chop the leaves into pieces.
• Heat about 1/4 cup (2 oz) of water to boiling in a small, lidded pot. Add the dandelion and cover to steam for a few minutes, turning the leaves a few times. Make sure the water doesn't completely evaporate, and cook tender leaves for about 6 to 7 minutes, longer for tougher leaves.
• Remove from heat and drain if there's any water left in the bottom, then squeeze the rest of the water from the greens. Place in a small food processor with a few pinches of salt, and purée.
• Cook the pasta according to the directions on the package, except use less water than usual. It's important to have lots of starch for this dish.
• Put the extra virgin olive oil and a small amount of the pasta water into a non-stick skillet, or wok, without turning on the burner. Add the grated cheese and pepper.
• Add the pasta using a pasta fork (do not drain the pasta in a colander), and begin stirring the pasta with a wooden fork off the heat. If heat is used, you will end up with clumps of cheese on the pasta. (See my video from my lesson in Italy HERE.)
• Continue to add water as necessary until a sauce begins to form on the pasta. Loreto (who taught me how to make this dish) says that sometimes the simplest dishes are the most difficult. If this step is not done correctly, the sauce won't turn out as it should.
• Now add the puréed dandelion and mix well.
• You can add a little at a time to see how much you like. This is definitely a flexible recipe. If you only use half of the dandelion, freeze the other half for another time.
• Serve immediately.

DANDELION DRESSING

Steps:

• Fry bacon in a large skillet set over medium heat until crisp. Remove from the pan and drain on paper towels. Reserve about 3 tablespoons of the drippings in the skillet.
• In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, sugar, salt, mayonnaise, and cider vinegar. Set aside. Heat the bacon grease in the skillet over medium heat. Whisk in the flour until smooth. Cook, stirring constantly, until the flour is browned, about 10 minutes.
• Gradually whisk in the milk so that no lumps form and bring to a boil while stirring constantly. Pour a little hot milk into the egg mixture, whisking constantly; transfer egg mixture to the skillet. Crumble the bacon into the skillet and add the dandelion greens. Cook and stir just until the greens are wilted and heated through.

GRANDMA'S DANDELION SAUCE

Steps:

• 1. Fry bacon crisp, remove bacon from skillet drain on paper towels, crumble bacon and set aside.
• 2. In a small bowl mix together remaining ingredients, except bacon. Slowly pour into bacon drippings in the skillet, stirring constantly over medium heat. Just before serving add crumbled bacon.
• 3. Note: If sauce seems to thick add a little cream or milk.

GRANDMA'S SUNDAY SAUCE

Steps:

• Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a pot and cook pork ribs until browned, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a plate. Cook sausages until browned, about 5 minutes. Transfer to the same plate as the ribs.
• Drain off some of the excess fat. Reduce heat to medium-low and pour in remaining olive oil. Add onion and 1/2 teaspoon salt; cook and stir until translucent, about 5 minutes. Stir in garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute; make sure not to burn. Pour in 1/2 of the red wine and scrape up any browned bits off the bottom of the pan.
• Add tomato paste, oregano, and red pepper flakes. Stir until paste starts to darken, about 2 minutes. Stir in remaining red wine and water.
• Add tomatoes and their juices, crushing by hand as you add them to the pot. Season with basil, remaining salt, and pepper. Bring to a boil; reduce heat to a low simmer. Taste and add sugar if sauce is too acidic.
• Return ribs to the pot. Simmer, partially covered, adding more liquid if needed, for at least 2 hours. Add sausages back to the pot for the last 45 minutes of cooking. Add fresh basil during the last 15 minutes of cooking. Discard bones before serving.

SALMON WITH DANDELION SAUCE

Steps:

• Rinse the dandelion greens and discard any tough stems. Drain, shred finely and set aside.
• Heat 2 tablespoons of the butter and vinegar in a saucepan until the butter melts. Add the dandelion greens and cover. Cook, stirring occasionally, until wilted, about 30 seconds. Set aside.
• Meanwhile, put the broth into a saucepan and cook down over relatively high heat until reduced to about 1/2 cup. Add the cream and return to a boil. Let cook over moderately high heat about 5 minutes. Swirl in the remaining 2 tablespoons butter and remove from the heat. Add salt and pepper to taste. Blend the sauce with the dandelion mixture.
• Heat the clarified butter in a skillet large enough to hold the salmon pieces in one layer without crowding. When quite hot, cook salmon pieces about 1 1/2 minutes over fairly high heat on one side. Turn carefully and cook for about 1 1/2 minutes on the second side.
• Spoon equal portions of the dandelion sauce onto the middle of six hot plates. Put one salmon piece in the center of each serving. Top each salmon piece with a teaspoon of caviar and serve.

ITALIAN-STYLE SWISS CHARD

Steps:

• Wash the Swiss chard and cut into 1 inch strips. Separate the thick and tough stalk sections from the upper leafy strips.
• Bring the water and 1 tablespoon of salt to a boil in a large saucepan.
• Cook the stalk sections in the salted boiling water for 2 minutes. Stir in the leafy strips and cook until the leaves are wilted and the stalks are fork tender, about 6 minutes. Drain and set aside.
• Heat the olive oil, garlic, and red pepper flakes in a large skillet over medium heat until aromatic, about 3 minutes. Add the drained Swiss chard, cook and stir for 2 minutes; season with salt to taste.

MARINARA SAUCE AKA "GRANDMA'S SAUCE"

Steps:

• Brown sausage in separate pan.
• Garlic press the garlic (or mince) and brown in the olive oil in a large pot. When brown, add sliced onion and cook until slightly translucent.
• Add tomatoe paste to onion mixture and mix thoroughly. Add crushed tomatoes, basil, salt, pepper and water and stir well.
• Finally, add sausage (and/or meatballs--see my other recipe) and bring to light boil.
• Once boiling, decrease heat to simmer and cover . Cook on simmer for 3-4 hours stirring occassionly.
• If you can't wait the full 3-4 hours add a dash of sugar and it equals about 1 hour of cooking time.
• Add red wine during the last 30 minutes of cooking.
• Suggestion: Serve over pasta with grated parmesan, salad, and bread -- .