Spicy Pasta alla Norma

From Cook with Confidence

Serves 4 to 6

Like so many of us, I travel to eat. Often while traveling, I try a new dish that I immediately know I have to re-create when back in my home kitchen. Enter pasta alla Norma. This is my riff on a traditional Sicilian pasta named after the opera Norma, written by Vincent Bellini, a native of the ancient port city Catania. While this pasta is typically vegetarian, with lots of robust flavor contributed by the capers and garlic, I take mine up a notch with hot Italian sausage. If you prefer a vegetarian pasta, just omit the sausage. Easy-peasy. Finally, perfectly salty sheep’s milk pecorino Romano is the necessary finishing touch to take this dish into the stratosphere.

INGREDIENTS

• 2 medium eggplants, cut into ½-inch cubes
• Sea salt
• 2 to 4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 pound hot Italian sausage, casing removed and shaped into small meatballs
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh basil stems
• ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1 tablespoon capers
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
• 1 tablespoon lemon zest
• 1 can (28 ounces) crushed tomatoes
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 1 pound dried casarecce pasta
• ½ cup finely chopped fresh basil
• ½ cup pecorino Romano cheese, plus more for serving

METHOD

Place a colander in the sink, add the eggplant, sprinkle generously with salt, and toss. Let sit for 20 minutes, rinse well, and pat dry with paper towel. Set aside.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a rolling boil.

Heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil in a large, high-sided skillet over medium heat. When the oil is hot, add the sausage meatballs and cook, turning the meatballs with a spoon, until golden on all sides, about 5 minutes (the meatballs will not be cooked through but will finish cooking in the sauce). With a slotted spoon, transfer the meatballs to a plate, leaving the fat in the skillet.

Working in batches, add some of the eggplant to the skillet and fry, stirring every few minutes, until golden brown on all sides, about 5 to 8 minutes. Transfer to a plate and repeat until all of the eggplant has been fried, adding some of the remaining oil to the skillet if necessary.

When all of the eggplant has been fried, add the garlic, basil stems, and red pepper flakes to the skillet. Cook for 1 minute, stirring often. Stir in the capers, tomato paste, and oregano and cook 1 more minute. Add the vinegar, lemon zest, and tomatoes, and season with a nice pinch of salt and pepper. Return the sausage meatballs and eggplant to the skillet, bring to a simmer, and cook until thick and glossy, about 20 minutes.

While the sauce is simmering, cook the pasta according to package directions until al dente. Drain, reserving ½ cup of the pasta water, and return the pasta to the pot. Add the sauce mixture to the pasta, along with the reserved pasta water, chopped basil, and pecorino. Stir vigorously to coat the pasta with the sauce. Season to taste with salt and pepper, and serve immediately.

Sriracha Maple Salmon with Avocado Pineapple Salsa

From Cook with Confidence

Serves 4 to 6

I adore this recipe! This salmon has an irresistible balance of spicy and sweet, much like teriyaki, and is topped with a fresh, bright pineapple salsa (though, if you want to streamline the recipe, the fish is brilliant on its own, too). Note that the fish needs to marinate for at least 8 hours, so plan ahead. It’s well worth the wait.

INGREDIENTS

For the salmon

• ¼ cup pure maple syrup
• 3 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
• 1 tablespoon sriracha
• 1 tablespoon sesame oil
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
• Zest of 1 lime
• 1 skin-on salmon fillet (about 3 pounds)

For the salsa

• 1 small pineapple, peeled, cored, and sliced into rounds
• 1 large ripe avocado, peeled, cored, and diced
• ½ cup finely chopped red onion
• ¼ cup finely chopped fresh cilantro, plus more for garnish
• 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice
• 1½ teaspoons apple cider vinegar
• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

For serving

• 1 teaspoon toasted sesame seeds
• 1 lime, cut into wedges

METHOD

Prepare the Salmon: In a medium bowl, combine the syrup, soy sauce, vinegar, sriracha, sesame oil, garlic, ginger, and lime zest, and mix well. Place the salmon in an extra-large resealable freezer bag (or high-sided dish), and pour over the marinade. Close the bag (or cover the dish with plastic wrap) and refrigerate for 6 to 8 hours, turning the bag every few hours, to let the marinade work its magic. If using a high-sided dish, flip the fish every few hours.

Prepare a grill for indirect, medium-high heat cooking (see Notes on Grilling, page 187), or preheat the oven to 400°F. If baking in the oven, line a baking sheet with foil.

If grilling, remove the fish from the marinade, reserve the marinade, and lay the salmon, skin side down, on the cooler side of the grill grate and cover the grill. Cook, uncovering the grill every few minutes to brush the flesh side of the fish with some of the reserved marinade. After about 20 minutes, poke the salmon with the tip of a sharp knife. If it easily flakes, the fish is ready; if it seems underdone, cook for 5 minutes more and check again.

If baking, remove the fish from the marinade, and place skin side down on the prepared baking sheet. Brush some of the marinade all over the top, then transfer to the oven. Cook for about 20 minutes, and then poke the salmon with the tip of a sharp knife. If it easily flakes, the fish is ready; if it seems underdone, cook for 5 minutes more and check again.

Make the Salsa: Place the pineapple rounds on the hot side of the grill and cook, turning as needed with tongs, until lightly charred on both sides. Transfer to a cutting board, chop into small pieces, and transfer to a bowl. Alternatively, if making this recipe in the comfort of your warm kitchen, char the pineapple in a skillet for a few minutes, until slightly blackened on all sides.

Add the avocado, onion, and cilantro to the bowl with the pineapple. Squeeze in the lime juice, add the vinegar, and season with salt and pepper. Toss gently to combine, and season to taste with additional salt and pepper.

Using two large spatulas, carefully transfer the salmon from the grill (or the baking sheet, if you baked it). Garnish with some cilantro and sesame seeds, and serve with the salsa and lime wedges alongside.

Cooking Note: Fillets of salmon typically contain pin bones, which should be removed before you cook the fish. To do so, turn a medium mixing bowl upside down and lay the fillet of fish over the bowl, skin side down (this causes the ends of the pin bones to pop out, making them more visible and easier to remove). Use your fingertips to locate the pin bones and, with a pair of tweezers, grab hold of the end of the pin bone and pull firmly to remove. Repeat until you’ve removed all the bones.

Chicken Fricot

From Cook with Confidence

Serves 6

Chicken fricot is happiness in a bowl. This Acadian version of chicken and dumplings is the height of cold-weather comfort food. Though I’m not Acadian myself, I’ve had the privilege to grow up alongside that incredible community. This is a humble, nostalgia-packed recipe that folks from my part of the world enjoy when feeling a tad under the weather, when a nor’easter rears its wintery head, or when we just want a taste of home. My version steers slightly away from the original, adding garlic and lemon, and will become part of your recipe repertoire for years to come.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 whole chicken (about 3½ to 4 pounds) or 2 bone-in chicken drumsticks, 2 bone-in chicken thighs, and 2 bone-in chicken breasts, halved crosswise
• Sea salt
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 large white onion, diced
• 4 large carrots, peeled and diced
• 3 celery stalks, diced
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 6 cups chicken stock, homemade (page 200) or store-bought
• 6 cups water
• 1½ tablespoons summer savory, divided
• 2 pounds russet potatoes, scrubbed and diced
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• ½ tablespoon lemon zest
• Chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley, for garnish

Cooking Note: This recipe freezes perfectly, and I always have a batch or two at the ready in case a cold unexpectedly strikes. Make just the chicken stew, let cool to room temperature, and transfer to plastic freezer storage bags. When you’re ready to eat the stew, thaw the chicken mixture and bring to a simmer, and then make the dumplings and add them to the simmering stew. It’s more economical to begin with a whole chicken and butcher it into 8 pieces (save the back for chicken stock—see page 200), though if you prefer you can also buy chicken pieces.

METHOD

Cut the chicken into 8 pieces (see Cooking Note), and season all over with salt.

Heat a large Dutch oven or pot over medium heat and melt the butter. When the butter has melted, and working in batches as necessary, add the chicken pieces skin side down and cook until the skin is golden brown, 7 to 8 minutes. Flip and continue cooking until a beautiful sunshine color develops on the second side, 3 to 4 minutes. With tongs, transfer the chicken to a rimmed plate.

Add the onions, carrots, and celery to the pot, season with a pinch of salt, and cook until softened and translucent, about 6 to 8 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook for 45 seconds, until fragrant.

Add the stock, water, chicken, 1 tablespoon of the summer savory, and a pinch of salt, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium, and cook until the chicken is tender, about 30 to 35 minutes. Add the potatoes, and continue cooking for about 12 to 15 minutes, or until the potatoes are just fork-tender. Remove from the heat.

Using a slotted spoon, remove the chicken and transfer to a cutting board. When cool enough to handle, shred the meat with 2 forks, discarding the skin and bones, and then return the meat to the broth. Skim and discard the fat on top of the broth. Taste and adjust the seasoning as necessary, adding more salt or pepper.

In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, the remaining ½ tablespoon of the summer savory, and lemon zest, season with salt, and mix well. While constantly stirring, gradually add about ½ to ¾ cup of water to the flour mixture until the dough comes together.

Return the chicken stew to the stove and bring to a simmer over medium heat. When simmering, drop tablespoon-sized portions of the dough into the fricot, cover, and cook for 7 minutes, or until the little dough balls are cooked through.

Divide your fricot into individual bowls, garnish with parsley, and enter a wonderful world of Acadian comfort.