Smoked Salmon Pizzettes

Recipe from FoodNetwork.com, courtesy Giada De Laurentiis

Ingredients
Flour, for work surface
1 (8-ounce) ball purchased pizza dough
Olive oil, for drizzling
1/4 cup mascarpone cheese, at room temperature
1/4 cup sour cream
2 tablespoons capers, rinsed, drained, coarsely chopped and dried on paper towels
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 ounces smoked salmon, cut into 3/4-inch pieces
1/4 cup chopped fresh chives

Directions
Special equipment: a 2-inch round cookie cutter

Put an oven rack in the center of the oven. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.

On a lightly floured work surface, roll the pizza dough into a 1/4-inch thick round. Using a 2-inch round cookie cutter, cut out 15 circles. Arrange the circles on a heavy baking sheet. Using the tines of a fork, prick the dough all over. Drizzle with olive oil and bake until golden brown, about 7 to 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool for 10 minutes.

In a small bowl, mix together the mascarpone cheese, sour cream and capers until smooth. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Spoon about 1/2 teaspoon of the mascarpone mixture into the center of each pastry round. Top with a piece of smoked salmon and press gently.

Arrange the pizzettes on a platter and sprinkle with chopped chives just before serving.

Sweet Corn Hash

4 ears of fresh sweet corn, shucked/cut off the cob
1/2 lb bacon, small diced
1 shallot, minced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 red onion, small diced
1 cup, tightly packed spinach
kosher salt and fresh cracked black pepper
1/2 Tbsp butter

Blanch the corn kernels in simmering salted water for 10 minutes. Drain.

In a saute pan over medium heat cook the bacon in the butter until some the fat renders. Add the shallot, garlic and onion and saute for 4 minutes. Add the corn and spinach and toss until the spinach is wilted. Season with salt and pepper. Serve hot with crab ravioli, pork chops, chicken, fish, anything you like.

Scarpetta's Spaghetti with Tomato and Basil

from Serious Eats

from Serious Eats

Ingredients
3 ounces spaghetti, high-quality dried or fresh
Salt
6 ounces tomato sauce (recipe follows)
4 large leaves of basil
1/2 tablespoon butter, unsalted
2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
8 ripe plum tomatoes
1/4 of a can San Marzano tomatoes
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Pinch of red chili flakes
Pinch of kosher salt
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
6 cloves garlic, whole
2 stems of basil, leaves on
Pinch of red chili flakes

Note: Vary the ratio of canned to fresh tomatoes according to the season. If fresh, flavorful tomatoes are available, use all fresh; if tomatoes lack some flavor, supplement with canned.

Tomato Sauce
yields 2 cups

1. Place a pot of water on the stove and bring to a boil. Prepare an ice bath by placing ice in a bowl and filling with cold water. Core tomatoes with a paring knife, and discard cores. Score the bottom of each tomato with an "X." When water has come to a boil, place tomatoes in water and leave for 15 seconds, until skin begins to split away. Transfer to ice bath. When cool, peel with paring knife.
2. Cut tomatoes in half lengthwise. Remove seeds with your thumb, and set seeded tomatoes aside. Reserve seeds and excess juices. If using canned tomatoes, seed in the same way.
3. In a new pot, place 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil over medium heat. When the oil is hot, carefully transfer tomatoes to the pot. Add a pinch of salt and chili flakes.
4. Allow the tomatoes to cook for a few minutes until they begin to soften, then smash them with a potato masher. If the consistency is particularly thick, strain excess tomato juices for seeds and add to pot. Allow tomatoes to cook 30 to 45 minutes over medium heat, smashing and stirring occasionally.
5. While the tomatoes are cooking, prepare the basil-garlic oil. Take a small saucepan and place the remaining 1/4 cup of extra virgin olive oil in the pan. Add garlic cloves, basil, and chili flakes. Slowly heat to allow the flavors to transfer to the oil. When the garlic is lightly browned, remove from the heat. Allow to cool for 5 minutes. Strain the oil and combine with the tomato mixture.
6. Remove the sauce from the heat and adjust the seasoning with additional salt, as needed.

Pasta

1. Place a large pot of water on the stove. Heavily season with salt, until it tastes as salty as a broth would. Bring to a boil.
2. Roll basil leaves into a cylinder and thinly cut lengthwise into a chiffonade. Set aside.
3. Cook the spaghetti in the water and remove when it is just shy of al dente—depending on the pasta, 3 minutes for fresh, 10 minutes for dried.
4. While the pasta is cooking, place the sauce into a sauté pan and heat slowly. Allow the sauce to reduce slightly. Add the pasta to the sauté pan along with a bit of pasta water, to add starch and seasoning.
5. Add the pasta to the sauce, and allow to finish cooking, over medium high heat. The sauce should coat the pasta and look cohesive. When you shake the pan, the sauce and pasta should move together.
6. Remove from the heat and add the basil, cheese, butter, and extra virgin olive oil. Toss until well incorporated.
7. Adjust the seasoning and serve immediately.

Roasted Beets With Fresh Mint and Chèvre

From SummerTomato

Ingredients:

1 bunch of beets (3 large), any garden variety
1/2 cup fresh mint leaves, loosely packed
1/4 oz. chèvre, crumbled
Olive oil
Sea salt or kosher salt

Instructions:


Preheat oven to 375.

If the leaves are still on your beets, twist them off leaving enough stem to use as a handle for peeling. If your beet greens are still fresh and springy I recommend cleaning them and cooking them up with some onions and garlic (cook them like spinach). Beet greens are so full of potassium that they are salty to the taste, so be careful with your seasonings because they are easy to over-salt. Both beets and beet greens are extremely good for people with high blood pressure.

Peel your beets using a vegetable peeler and chop evenly into bite-sized cubes. Discard stems. Cubes should be approximately 3/4 to 1 inch on each side. Keep in mind that the larger your pieces the longer they will take to cook.

Add 1-2 tbsp olive oil to beets and toss to coat. Sprinkle beets with salt and place in a single layer in a large Pyrex baking pan. Place in oven on middle rack and roast until beets are tender and have a glazed-like appearance, stirring every 8-10 minutes. Roasting takes approximately 35 minutes.

When beets are finished roasting, transfer them to a large bowl, cover with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator. Chill for at least 30 min, but 45 min to 1 hr is preferable.

5 minutes before the beets are done chilling, stack mint leaves on top of each other and chiffonade them by rolling lengthwise like a cigarette and slicing into thin ribbons. I like to cut the ribbons in half once by making a single cut through the middle of the pile along the vein of the leaves. Discard the stems.

Using a fork, crumble a small amount of chèvre into a small bowl or plate and set aside.

Sprinkle mint onto the beets and stir, leaving a few ribbons for garnish. Adjust salt to taste. Transfer beets and mint to a serving bowl and sprinkle with chèvre and remaining mint. Serve immediately.