Looking for a simple and delicious weeknight salad? Well, this time of year with all the comfort foods that we share at our table, sometimes it’s nice to have a light, crisp and refreshing salad to accompany our meal. And, with citrus fruits are their peak, mixed in with freshly shaved fennel slices, my ”Fennel and Orange Salad” will certainly be a welcome addition at your table during these winter months. Buon appetito!

FENNEL AND ORANGE SALAD

Insalata di Finocchi ed Agrumi

Serves 6

2 pounds fresh fennel, trimmed and sliced into thin shavings

4 large oranges

1 cup oil-cured black olives, pitted and sliced in half (or quarters, if large)

6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil or to taste

2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice or to taste

1 teaspoon coarse sea salt, or to taste

Freshly ground black pepper to taste

……………….

Shave the fennel and drop the slices into ice water to crisp.

 With a sharp, thin bladed knife, trim the orange and cut out the sections of pure fruit (called supremes) as follows:

First slice off the top (stem) and bottom ends of one orange; shave off the peel and all of the white bitter pith, so only the fruity flesh is showing.

Slice into the center of the orange, running the blade along each of the thin membranes that hold the fruit sections, so the sliver fruit is released-let these fall into a bowl. Peel and cut out the fruit sections from all the oranges: you should have about 4 cups of segments. (After the fruit is removed, squeeze out the juice from the empty membranes and enjoy it!).

Dress, toss and serve.

Drain the fennel slices and pat dry on paper towels. Pile them in a large bowl with the orange segments and sliced olives and toss together lightly.

Sprinkle 1/2 teaspoon salt on top, grind on some black pepper and drizzle the olive oil all over-toss again. Spoon the lemon juice over and toss. Taste; add more of any dressing component your salad needs and give it another tossing.   

Arrange portions of the salad in nice mounds on plates and serve.

Hope you enjoy!

Lidia, the 5 grandchildren and 1 very big turkey....

From Left to Right: Lorenzo, Olivia, Miles, Lidia, Ethan and Julia

Lidia, "Grandma Erminia" and the Grandkids...

From Left to Right: Lorenzo, Olivia, Miles, Lidia, “Grandma Erminia,” Julia and Ethan…

Join Lidia on Facebook and get your fill of fun behind-the-scenes photos, stories, video clips, and recipes of Lidia’s time out on the road promoting her newest cookbook, “Lidia Cooks from the Heart of Italy.”

Become a fan of Lidia on Facebook, and share along on the journey with Lidia, her family and friends.

Come meet Lidia at Central Market  in Houston, Texas on November 2nd between 2pm - 4pm.

Get your copy of Lidia’s newest cookbook, “Lidia Cooks from the Heart of Italy”  signed
and taste some delicious Bastianich wines.

CENTRAL MARKET
3815 Westheimer Road
Houston, TX 77027
(713) 386.1700

Think “Chocolate Alternative”

Can you guess what this is?

Think that it can be used as an alternative for chocolate!

Tune into CREATE this Saturday, October 10th for an exciting all-day marathon of Lidia’s Italy.

Don’t miss out on watching your favorite episodes!

For a complete marathon episode schedule, click here.

Cavatelli con Pancetta e Cavolfiore

 Makes 6 servings

Simply delicious........

……….

What you’ll need:

Salt
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
Three ¼-inch slices pancetta (about 8 ounces), cut into 1 x ¼ x ¼-inch sticks (about 1 ½ cups)
1 pound dried cavatelli, cavatappi or shells
2 medium onions, diced ½ inch (about 2 cups)
½ head cauliflower, stalks removed, florets cut into ½-inch pieces (about 3 cups)
Crushed red pepper
1 ½ cups hot chicken stock
¼ cup chopped fresh Italian parsley
¼ cup fine dry breadcrumbs, or as needed

……….

What to do:

Bring 6 quarts of salted water to a boil in an 8-quart pot over high heat.

Heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the pancetta and cook, stirring occasionally, until the pancetta has rendered some of it s fat and is lightly browned but still soft in the center, about 4 minutes. Don’t overcook the pancetta.

Stir the cavatelli into the boiling water. Return to a boil, stirring frequently. Cook the pasta, semi-covered, stirring occasionally, until done, about 10 minutes.

Stir the onion into the skillet and cook until barely wilted, about 2 minutes. Stir in the cauliflower and cook, stirring occasionally, until the cauliflower is wilted and begins to brown, about 4 minutes. Season lightly with salt and a little crushed red pepper.

Pour the chicken stock into the skillet, bring to a boil and lower the heat so the sauce is at a lively simmer. Cook until the vegetables are tender and the liquid is reduced by about one-half, about 5 minutes.

If the skillet is large enough to accommodate the sauce and pasta, fish the pasta out of the boiling water with a large wire skimmer and drop it directly into sauce in the skillet. If not, drain the pasta, return it to the pot and pour in the sauce. Bring the sauce and pasta to a boil, tossing and stirring to coat the pasta. Check the seasoning, adding salt if necessary. Stir the breadcrumbs, parsley and remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil into the pot. Cook, stirring and tossing the pasta until the sauce is lightly thickened. Serve at once.

LIDIA BASTIANICH

at Becco Restaurant!!

Wednesday, October 21st, 2009 at 7:00pm

We’re extremely excited to announce the release of Lidia Bastianich’s
newest cookbook, LIDIA COOKS FROM THE HEART OF ITALY!!

This dinner will feature Lidia’s favorite & most culturally diverse
recipes from twelve regions of Italy.

In celebration of this new release Becco is hosting a five course dinner highlighting Chef Gallagher’s picks from this cookbook.  Help honor the “First Lady of Italian Cooking” by attending this exciting event!!

$175 per person (all inclusive)

* Please note that the cookbook is NOT included in this price. Cookbook sold separately!

To PRE-ORDER “Lidia Cooks from the Heart of Italy,” click here.

Becco Restaurant
355 West 46^th Street
New York, NY 10036
212.397.7597

That being said, Lidia is already hard at work filming the next 26 episodes- to complete the 52-episode series- and is currently in Italy filming. We just wrapped the in-studio shoot- which takes place in her home kitchen- and was it fun! It is always such a wonderful experience to learn from Lidia, and to be a part of this show, and work with all the talented professionals involved, is just a gift.

So to check out some fun, candid clips that I shot while filming in-studio, just click here.

And, here are some photos taken while Lidia and crew film throughout southern Italy. Hope you enjoy!

……………………………..

Trabocchi in Abruzzo----traditional fishing huts built on stilts.....

A festive affair.....

Sound and camera capturing footage...

Linda Somma and crew at work....

The crew navigating the streets....