"Gravy" and Homemade Gnocchi

Good Morning Everyone!

Well, it's Sunday and it's cooking day!  I've decided I am going to make gravy today.  I found some really nice country style pork ribs with lots of dark meat.  Between the meatballs and the pork ribs, it's going to be a yummy gravy!  Now, here's the problem, I don't measure anything when I'm making it.  I learned as a child with my grandmother.  It was a conversation like this:

Nanna:  hand me the salt, now watch
Shell:  handed the salt and watched
Nanna:  hand me the pepper, now watch
Shell:  handed the pepper and watched
Nanna:  chop the parsley, 2 handfuls
Shell:  chopped the parsley
Nanna:  peel the garlic and crush it
Shell:  how many?
Nanna:  let me see them, ok, give me 3

Ok, so you can imagine what it was like in the kitchen, I watched and learned.  I will attempt to tell you how to make a good gravy and please don't be mad if I don't give you exact measurements!  Gravy is all about your taste.  However, the key is using quality tomatoes.  I use San Marzano tomatoes.  My hubby bought me 2 cases of imported ones for Christmas.  They are called La Bella and you can find them in specialty Italian shops.  They are not acidic and make an excellent gravy.  If you find your gravy is acidic, just add a little sugar to balance out the acid, not too much though!  Unless you like it sweet.  Oh, I forgot "gravy = tomato sauce".  Remember, I'm from South Philly and that's what we call it!


Here we go:

Brown your meat first whether it be sausage, a piece of pork, a piece of beef, meatballs, or any combination of all
Drain most of the oil from the pan, keep about 2 tablespoons.
Add 1 can of tomato paste, the small little cans, stir lifting all of the browned goodness from the bottom.  The key is when the paste gets "black", it's done.

In another pot, depending on how much you are making, which size you use, remember, you need to add the meat and be able to stir.  For this size a 6 to 8 quart pot will work. 

Add about 2 tablespoons of olive oil
1 large chopped onion (small chop)  medium onion for a smaller gravy
1 or 2 cloves of garlic, chopped fine (depends on your taste buds)
saute until softened (the onion will basically melt by the end)
Add 3 (28oz) cans crushed tomatoes - NOT the ones in a heavy sauce, just plain crushed tomatoes, unseasoned.  You can also use whole tomatoes.  If you do, you must crush them in a bowl first or if you don't want to use your hands, put them in a blender until crushed.
Add about 1/2 dozen basil leaves ripped into pieces.  If you don't have fresh basil, use about a tablespoon of dried
Add about a handful of fresh, chopped, flat leaf parsley.  If you don't have fresh, use about 2 tablespoons of dried
Salt and Pepper to taste
Let this begin to simmer, add in your tomato paste mixture
Simmer for about a 1/2 hour
Add your meat to the gravy and any juices from the dish
Simmer on medium low heat for about 2 or 3 hours.  The meat must be cooked fully.

My grandmother used to say, "the gravy's done when the oil rises to the top".  However, that's not entirely true because the oil will rise after about an hour.  So, keep stirring (from the bottom so it doesn't stick), keep the sauce on medium-low, stir the oil back in and when the sauce has a little darker look and you don't taste raw tomato, then it's done!


I need to explain the need for tomato paste and "how many cans you gonna make" meaning.......Tomato paste gives the gravy body, makes it thick.  If you use more than 3 cans, like 4 or 5 to make a big gravy, you'll need 2 cans of paste.  As a kid, when discussing making gravy, the question always was "how many cans??"  Funny how we knew exactly what that meant!  If you want a really thick gravy, use more paste.  If you want a thinner gravy or no thickness at all (like in Italy), do not use any.  Just use some of the tomatoes to sop up the browned meat goodness in that pan.  Please keep in mind, this is not a gravy from Italy, it's rather a morphed gravy from the immigrants who settled here.  They used the items that were available in America and made the style we know today. 

And, for a little insight into Italian Americans in South Philly, most people only like their "mother's or grandmother's" gravy, no one else's!  It's a family thing, a specific taste you grew up with as a child.  My favorite is what I've taught you above, it's the Bilotta family recipe.  Now, please don't get the idea that all of the descendants of the Bilotta family can make this gravy yummy.....to the contrary.  I had some Aunts and Cousins who could cook and some that couldn't, including my mother.  Her gravy was not "nanny's", trust me!!!!!   She could make other things, just not that.

When I make this gravy, each and every time, I go back to my childhood of those fun days in the kitchen.  Nanny and I used to laugh and laugh.  We had so much fun in the kitchen.  She taught me how to cook, bake (not that I bake anymore), clean and how to use every pot in the kitchen!  Well, that lesson I learned how to clean as I go.  Oh, what a mess I'd have to clean up!  But, the lessons learned were well worth the effort of cleaning the kitchen as a youngster.  I guess you're wondering how old I was when I began the learning process???  I was 8.  Yes, 8 years old.  The life lessons learned were priceless and are carried with me until this day.

Ok folks, enjoy!!!!!    I'll be making meatballs too and probably homemade gnocchi.  The meatball recipe, I have no idea how to tell you how much of anything since I don't measure.  But, I can give you the gnocchi recipe.  Here it is:

4 large Idaho potatoes  (about 2 1/4 pounds)
salt
2 large eggs
dash of white pepper
3 cups all purpose flour, as needed

boil the potatoes until fork tender, about 40 mins.  remove from the water, let stand until cool to enough to handle, but not cold.  The hotter they are, the fluffier they will be through the ricer.  Peel the skins and rice the potatoes.  Spread them out in a thin layer to expose enough of their surface to the air.

On your work surface, preferably a cool one, gather your potatoes into a well.  Beat the eggs, salt and pepper and pour into the well.  Work the potatoes and eggs together with both hands, gradually adding as much flour as necessary to form a firm, but moist dough.  Stop frequently as you mix to scrape up the dough that sticks to the work surface, your hands, and reincorporate into the dough. 

NOTE:  forming the dough should not take more than 10 minutes from start to end!!!!!  The longer the work your dough, the more flour you'll need, the heavier the gnocchi will be.    As you work the dough, dust it and your hands and the work surface LIGHTLY with flour as soon as the dough begins to feel sticky.

Cut your dough into equal portions (about 6), sprinkle each portion with a touch of flour.  Roll the dough in your hands into a rope about 1 inch thick, then cup the rope into approx 1 inch pieces.  You can make them smaller if you'd like, or larger.  Again, it's all about taste buds!   Put the formed pieces on a lightly floured cookie sheet.  You can make as much as you want for a meal OR all of them.  If you decide to do all of the dough at once, you must freeze them individually.  This can be tough if your freezer will not accommodate a cookie sheet.

What I do is make enough for a meal, then lightly flour the remaining portions and freeze them.  I use freezer bags.  When you want them again, just take your portions out of the freezer, take them out of the bag immediately, place on a lightly floured surface to thaw.  Then make your ropes, cut and cook!


Ok folks, all of this typing is making me hungry!  Time for breakfast!!   Enjoy and please let me know how everything turns out!!!!!

Good Morning and Happy Friday!

I've been thinking about what to cook this weekend and have decided it's time to make gravy again.  Gravy meaning sauce.  You see, I'm from Philly and here we call spaghetti sauce, gravy.  Ok, so that being said, it's time.  Once you make gravy, no matter how much you make, it's the same amount of work.  So, what I do is make a lot so I have it for other meals.  It freezes well, so no problem there.  I also make my own pasta.  Not all the shapes out there, just linguini, tagliatelle, papardelle, gnocchi, spaghetti.  I have an old fashioned manual pasta machine and a quitarra.  I love to make it, for me, it's fun and relaxing.  (ok, you can say it, I know I'm weird!!)  I even have a wooden drying rack for the "strings".  I don't make any of the tubular pasta, no need.  Boxed is fine.  The best part of homemades is the taste and freshness.  If I do make them, I will definitely post the recipe.  Homemade gnocchi are the absolute best though!  If made right, they are light and have a great taste.  The ones you can buy in the stores "sink", another words, too heavy.  This means the dough is worked too much and has too much flour.  I'll explain when I post the recipe.


For now, it's time to finish my second cup of coffee, gather my lunch together and get ready for work.  I have a long day ahead of me and need a haircut desparately!  I'll be back to the blog this weekend.  See you soon!!!

For those of you who follow me on Facebook, it's that time again:  Sunday's menu!  Today it's Italian Pot Roast and what I call Smothered Chicken.  Here are the recipes.  They are easy to prepare and basically you don't have to "watch" these cook.



Italian Pot Roast

Seasoning Rub:
salt
pepper
sage
rosemary

2 to 3 tablespoons olive oil (enough to coat the bottom of the pot)
3 lb chuck roast or shoulder (cheap meat as I call it)
1 1/2 cups red wine
2 onions (medium to large)
2 celery stalks
2 carrots
28 oz can chopped tomatoes
2 large cloves garlic


Make your seasoning rub.  If you use dried sage and rosemary, be careful of the amounts because they are stronger tasting than fresh.  I use fresh sage and rosemary, chopped fine.  Mix it well.

Using a heavy pot, min 6 quarts, heat the oil over medium high heat.  Pat the meat dry.  Rub your meat, all sides.  When the oil is hot, sear your meat on all sides.  After a good crusting, take the meat out, place it on a plate.   If you haven't done so yet, slice your onions, dice your carrots and celery, chop your garlic.  While doing this turn down the oil so it will not burn. When you're done, turn up the oil until hot again.   If you've done it while the meat has been searing or beforehand, then add the onions to the oil.  Stir them, they'll start to soften and the little bits of meat sear on the bottom will come up.  Then add the celery carrots and garlic.  Stir until the veggies begin to soften, then add your wine and tomatoes.  Bring this to a boil and boil off the taste of alcohol, between 5 to 10 mins.  Then put in your meat and the juices from the dish, bring to a boil again.  Once boiling, reduce heat to medium low, cover and put on the back burner for about 3 to 4 hours or until the meat is fork tender.   At the end of cooking, if you need a little salt for the flavor to pop, add some - but only at the end.  You can also bake it on 300 if you want, although I've never tried that.    I plan to serve this with rice, but mashed potatoes would work, or egg noodles too.    Enjoy!!!!!




Smothered Chicken

Chicken Thighs or Legs or Backs or Wings (anything with a bone)
salt
pepper
paprika
2 tablespoons oil (any kind)
1 medium onion diced
1 stalk celery, sliced thin
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 cup milk

Pat the chicken dry, then season both sides with salt, pepper, paprika.  Heat the oil in a heavy frying pan (I use my "black" fry pan - cast iron) and brown the chicken on both sides.  While this is browning, dice the onion and slice the celery thin.  After the chicken is browned on both sides, add the celery and onion to the pan. Scatter it around for a bit, letting the onion get the flavors of the oil from the browning chicken.  Add the mushroom soup and milk.  Mix well in the pan.  When it starts to boil, lower the heat to medium low, spoon some mixture over the chicken for good flavoring, cover and cook until the chicken is done approximately an hour for meaty thighs.  For me, if the meat isn't moving away from the bone, I use a meat thermometer to test.  Boned chicken is done at 180 degrees.  Enjoy!!!!!


I hope you like these two recipes, let me know!    Thank you for reading this post!

continuation...........

Cup #2 is almost done.  My wonderful hubby is now making breakfast.  If he has a specialty, that's it.  He's learning to cook and makes a mean Swiss Steak along with fabulous hamburgers, Chicken Paprikash and baked pierogies.  I love it when he cooks, makes me feel so good.  And, he's told me to leave him out of this.  I can't, period.  I do like to help, but don't want to get in the way.  Speaking of which, when I have company, I always feel bad when people want to help and I say no.  I just enjoy their company with me in the kitchen. The kitchen is a working kitchen, like a galley kitchen with 2 entrances.   So, since I feel bad, I find something they can do like chopping onions or other veggies, stirring the pot while I clean up, or just something else.  I have fun when I'm in the kitchen, sometimes I wonder why?  I guess it's because growing up, I learned to cook from my grandmother and a lot of my best memories are when we were cooking or baking.  I can tell some stories and probably one day I will.  I'll stop here for now and think about what great stories to tell AND what I'm going to make this weekend that I can share with you.

It's snowing! Time for comfort food!!!

Finally, winter is here.  I love the snow, especially on saturdays.    It's snowed about 3 inches overnight, began to sleet, now snowing again.  It's supposed to turn to rain later today, but I hope it doesn't.  Today will be a good day to make some homemade chicken soup or some other comfort, feel good and warm, food.

I plan to use this blog to post about cooking.  So many of us work full-time and don't have time to make wonderful meals for our families.  So, I cook on the weekends.  I do post my menus to facebook, and so many folks have asked for recipes.  Let's face it, I'm Italian and grew up learning to cook from my granmother, Nanna, and she just "showed" me how to do it.  I don't measure.  But, I try to estimate so when I give out my recipes, the food will come out good.

So, since I haven't decided on this weekend's cooking ventures yet, I'll be back.  I need a second cup of coffee right now.  Stay tuned!


Oh, one thing I forgot to mention, Lidia Bastianich is my idol.  I watch her shows, then say to my husband, I'm going in to make that and I do!  I have her cookbooks, been to Eataly in NY and 3 of her restaurants.  A couple of months ago she was in Trenton for a show and we went.  I got to meet her in person and shake her hand!  I was a 52 yr old kid!!!!! 

Ok, enough for now, time for cup #2.