Italian Cooking Supply Blog

 

LiliesOriginally uploaded by janisbehan

It may seem basic, but many people don’t know how to set a table.  We all eat out so much that when it comes to setting the table at home we’re left trying to recall if the bread plate goes on the left or right?  If you know, there’s a chance at least one of your guests will not.

In this case a picture is worth a thousand words.  Here are some basic rules.  

1. )Just like in this example, the bread plate is to the left of the fork. 

2.) Forks go in the order you eat to the left of the plate.  If there is more than one, the fork on the outside is for the first course.

3.) Knives to the right of the plate.

4.) Spoons to the right of knives.

5.) Glasses above the knife.  

The rules are not as formal as they used to be.  You can try putting the napkin in the middle of the plate or under the forks.  You can also bring additional silver for the dessert course or place it above the plate.     

At your next party, serve cheese as an appetizer. It’s easy, requires no cooking and almost everyone likes one kind of cheese or another.

Cheese is the perfect easy appetizer because you can buy it in advance and if you like you don’t even have to slice it. You can serve it with cheese knives and let guests serve themselves.

When serving cheese it’s important to choose a selection with variety - one nutty, one creamy, one salty and one hard. You understand the basic idea.

Here are some specific ideas for combinations: Saint Nectaire (creamy), Gruyere (nutty), Maytag Blue (salty), Bruchette De Banon (goat cheese) and Dry California Jack (hard). I tried these after reading Nicole Aloni’s Secrets from a Caterer’s Kitchen. Another combination recommended in this book is Huntsman (creamy cheddar), Emmentaler (nutty), Chevre (mild) and Brie de Meaux (pungent).

I recently read an article in O Magazine that really made me think. It was about a woman who wanted to have friends over for dinner, but didn’t cook. I personally love to entertain AND I love to cook but even I can’t imagine trying to pull off the feast she set out to prepare - homemade gnochi. Why put yourself through that. If you are someone who likes to entertain, don’t ruin it by trying to do something you can only undertake once every few years because it is so stressful and time consuming.

I am very at ease having guests over any day of the week as long as I know in advance. The key to fun entertaining for you and the guest is to always plan so that you can do 90% of the work before anyone arrives and stick to a theme. A theme can carry you a long way where cooking can not, if cooking isn’t your thing. More on this later.

Let’s take the first step - plan. You don’t even really have to cook to entertain. There are plenty of menus that don’t require firing up the skillet or an oven. A wine and cheese party is a perfect example. All you need is someone to suggest the wines (if you’re as unskilled at picking wines as I am) and a selection of cheese, crackers, olives, rolled meats, bruschette and sliced fruit. None of this requires cooking, just shopping and chopping.

Cooking or no-cooking there are a few basics that you need to plan: 1.) how many people , 2.) the menu , 3.) the drinks, and 4.) what to serve the food and drinks on and in.
How many people - I let the number of people dictate the type of menu when I entertain. More people usually equals more work so I have to make my menu simpler. There are certain dishes that are easier to prepare in bulk vs. individually. If I have more than 6 people I focus my menu on things that can be prepared group style.

For example, I love making chicken breasts stuffed with goat cheese and ham, but this dish is too time consuming to make for lots of people. It can be made ahead, but pounding more than a few chicken breasts is too much work for me (and despite what they say on the food network, I haven’t found a butcher who will do this at the mainstream grocery store). For a larger group if I want those same flavors I would do a pasta dish with goat cheese, roasted chicken and asparagus. The same concept carries over into drinks. If I have more people I try to keep the list of options short so that I don’t have to spend the evening as a bartender.

The Menu - It’s important that what you serve goes together. If you serve enchiladas, don’t serve fruit and cheese as an appetizer, serve chips and salsa. That may seem obvious, but I have been to many parties where the food seems to be randomly chosen. Dinners always seem more put together when there is a theme. The theme can carry not just through the menu but into the dishes and linens.

As I said before, the dishes on the menu should be less complicated the more people you are having. Look for future posts with lots of menus from different dinner parties I have had. I like to entertain, even if I make chicken fingers and mac-n-cheese for a dinner party with kids.

Drinks - I am a wine drinker. But for entertaining I believe the drinks should go with the theme. I also believe there shouldn’t be more than two or three choices at most unless it’s a VERY small group. If you’re serving Mexican, for example, wine might not be the best choice. Margaritas and beer suit the menu better and when I say beer I mean just one kind of beer.

What to serve food and drinks on and in - There are so many fun options out there for entertaining that can really pull a dinner party together. Many of them are very inexpensive. I went to a dinner party where the theme and menu were mojitos. There was mojito chicken, mojitos, chips, salsa… The food was nothing fancy, but it was so well done because she carried the Cuban theme through to the dishes, napkins and glasses. The glasses were tall tumblers with a slice of lime wedged over the lip. It was a party where you left thinking, she really knows how to pull off a fun dinner party, even though the cooking was nothing fancy.

For examples, you can pull together an Italian themed party in about 30 minutes if you have an inexpensive set of pasta bowls and some festive appetizer plates. Fettuccini is a fast, delicious meal that takes no time. Add some bread with flavored olive oil served on some cute Italian themed plates and a salad and you’re done.

Stay tuned for more posts with entertaining menus and ideas. Read the rest of this entry »

Pizza is one of the most popular and easy to make foods.  I’ve found that what really makes a pizza great is the crust.  I use the following pizza crust recipe and it beats any pizza I’ve ever eaten. 

This makes one 18″ medium thickness crust: 
1.  ) Mix  together:     1 tbsp of active yeast,
                                 3/4 cups warm water,
                                 1 TBSP + 1 tsp olive oil
Let mixture stand until yeast softens

2.)  Place in mixing bowl:   1 1/2 cups flour,
                                        1 1/4 tsp of salt

3.) Add yeast mixture and stir together with wooden spoon until thoroughly blended. 

4.) Add 3/4 cup flour and knead until dough is smooth.

5.) Place dough in a bowl that has been coated with a bit of oil so it can rise easily.  Cover the bowl with cloth and let it rise for 1 1/2 to 2 hours. 

If you have a mixer with a dough hook, you can use it.  Otherwise, your can do it just as fast with your hands on a smooth surface. 

After the dough rises, punch it down.  It’s time to start preheating the oven because it takes a while to get up to 550 degrees. 

Roll the dough out into a circle, it’s easier if you start the shape using your hands to press the dough out. 

If you’re using a peel and pizza stone be sure to put some cornmeal under the crust so that it will slide off easily. 

Once the dough is rolled out, top it with your favorite marinara.  You can buy it or make it.  I make mine easy with one 28 oz can of  crushed tomatoes with a clove of garlic and 1/2 tsp of dried oregano.   

Top the pizza with your favorite cheese and whatever toppings you like.  I like to use Mozzarella, Fontina and Parmesan. 

Bake for 8-10 minutes or until crust is browned.  The crust is measurably better if you cook it on a pizza stone. 

Enjoy! 

As David Bach says in several of his books, all of us have something small that we spend money on every day that has the potential to add up over time.  For some people it is a Latte at Starbucks.  It starts out as $3 per day, which adds up to $21 per week and before you know it you’ve spent $1,092 per year. 

For me it was a cappuccino.  I looked for an inexpensive, easy way to make them myself.  I discovered for $30 and 5 minutes a day I could make my own and they taste even better.  That’s less time than it takes me to drive to get one and wait in line. 

Here’s what I learned.  First, I didn’t bother with the expensive, counter-top-hogging electric makers.  You can make espresso right on the stove top in a matter of minutes and it isn’t any harder than boiling water.  To use a stove top espresso maker just fill the bottom with water, put espresso in the middle chamber and put it on the stove.  The hot water is forced up through the grounds into the top chamber and you’re done.  Turn the flame down when the water begins to push into the top chamber.  You’ll know it is finished when the top chamber is full and steam begins to emerge. 

While that is heating up you froth some milk.  Sounds hard, but it is no more difficult than stirring a cup if you purchase a milk frother, which is a very small batter-powered contraption.  You just pour some milk in a pitcher or glass, turn it on and stir.  You’ll find that the lower fat milk froths up even better than whole milk. 

It takes about as long for the milk to froth as it does for the water to boil up for your espresso, literally 5 minutes.  From there you just pour the espresso in a cup, put some milk on top and you’ve got cappuccino.   A dash of cinnamon makes it even better.

Cleanup is easy, too.  You just rinse the frother in soapy water.  It can’t be fully submerged because it has batteries at the top.  Depending on what material your espresso pot is made of, it can either be put in the dishwasher or hand washed.  Stainless steel is usually dishwasher safe. 

Not many stores carry Chantal cookware anymore, except for the teapot.  Chantal manufactures a complete line of cookware in Germany.  It used to be a staple at Williams Sonoma along with Caphalon, All-Clad and Le Creuset, and at every other gourmet cooking store.  Somewhere along the way the brand fell out of favor, maybe because it isn’t expensive enough to compete with the All-Clads of the gourmet world. 

I think the brand deserves a second look.  I’ve been using it for almost 20 years and it’s still going strong and looks great.  The best news is it’s inexpensive.  You can get a 7-piece set (which really means 4 pans with lids) for just $249.00.  This set includes the most basic sizes and shapes that will pretty much cover most of what you want to cook. The set includes a 2 qt. saucepan with lid, 3 qt. saucepan with lid, 6 qt. dutch oven with lid and 10″ skillet.

The cookware is made of solid steel with an enamel coating.  This combination has several advantages over the other more expensive brands.   The carbon steel core heats fast and evenly all the way up the sides.  The enamel coating is non-porous so it won’t interact with food and can go from freezer to oven.  The enamel also has naturally stick-resistant properties, which means you can use less fat.   The lids are made of tempered glass and almost impossible to break.

How many of you have used a “non-stick” pan for a few years only to find that the “non-stick” coating begins to chip away (and possibly into your scrambled eggs).   The other alternatives, stainless steel and aluminum, are impossible to clean up and require LOTS of fat to keep the food from sticking.  The enamel isn’t non-stick, but it is the perfect middle ground.  It doesn’t require as much fat when you’re cooking as stainless and doesn’t chip away over time.    

Why the 7-piece set is a deal - The 2 qt. saucepan and the 10″ skillet are the workhorses that you will use every day from heating up soup to sauteing chicken.  The 3 qt. saucepan is what you need for slightly bigger jobs like making a mornay sauce for your mac-n-cheese, or steaming vegetables.  Yes, I did say steam.  Despite what the food network and William Sonoma want you to think, you don’t need a separate pan to steam things.  There are these wonderful inserts that hold your food up out of the water at a fraction of the cost.  The dutch oven is for big jobs like pot roast, soup or a large pot of pasta.   

You can buy the 7 piece Chanta cookware set here online for $249.00.

I highly recommend Chantal cookware.  It’s the perfect combination of high quality, endurance and low-maintenance.