Posts tagged ‘kale’

Cetara anchovies from the Amalfi coast

I bet that many of you have an unfair prejudice against anchovies. I lay blame for this at the door of ’80s sitcoms.  “Hold the anchovies” was a frequent and unfortunate punch line each time some study-hall-fatigued-teen or dad-left-to-his-own-devices decided to give in and order the pizza with everything on it. But, wait!! Hold the anchovies!!!! (Cue laugh track.) I grew up loving anchovies, never realizing that they were the same instrument of horror that Charles would never allow on his pizza while he was in charge. In my house, we ordered pizza with alici, or aleech, to be true to our Neaopolitan accent.  At some point, my brother took to calling them hairy fish, but only as a greater term of endearment.

Anchovies are a small saltwater fish related to herring. While they can be bought fresh, they are most usually found brined, packed in sea salt, and cured. They are cheap and easy to find. A good place to start is with the nicer jarred anchovy fillets in gourmet markets like Fairway or Whole Foods.  If you’re a committed anchovy lover, you should buy the imported ones that come in large vats of salted, umami goodness. My pantry is always stocked with a few tins of anchovy fillets in olive oil, found in any grocery store or bodega, usually next to the canned tuna. If you’re still a little hesitant, consider a few of these ideas:

• Anchovies and greens. Sautee broccoli rabe, kale, or chard with a few fillets. I start my pan with a splash of olive oil, red pepper flakes, and two fillets. They disappear into the oil and leave their flavor behind. Throw in your greens, still wet from being washed to make a little steam, stir, cover, and let them cook down. If you already love the flavor, add a few more anchovies toward the end of cooking and let them fall apart all over your greens. Escarole, nutmeg and anchovies are a heavenly combination as I learned while in Anchovies and pasta sauce. Anchovies create a fantastic base for an al’ olio pasta sauce. Get the olive oil, pepper flakes, and ‘chovies going in the same way as you would for your greens. After your pasta is cooked, throw it in to your pan along with a cup of the pasta water and let it all cook together on low heat for 3-5 minutes. You can also throw in a small can of chickpeas, white beans, or a bunch of spinach leaves. Puttanesca sauce—tomatoes, hot pepper, anchovies, and capers—couldn’t be simpler. As the legend goes, prostitutes throw it together quickly because they don’t have much time in between customers.
• Anchovies and chicken sausage. Once again, anchovies serve as your flavorful base. Chicken sausage is low-fat, inexpensive, but kinda eh in flavor. Brown the sausages in a base of olive oil and anchovies and you’ll have something altogether different and wonderful. Add in chopped white cabbage, a dry white wine, salt, pepper, and you’ll have a hearty, satisfying dinner that will be an even better lunch tomorrow.
• Anchovies and pizza. If I’m ordering a good ol’ New York pie from your average pizzeria, I’ll put my own anchovies on top. I don’t like how the pizza oven dries out the oil. Yet, some like them drier. On most pizza menus in Italy, a pizza napoletana has anchovies, black olives, and blobs of mozzarella cheese.
• Anchovy paste and toast. Warning: this is for severe salt fiends like myself. Anchovy paste is sold in tubes in most grocery stores. Often it’s near the pasta sauces, rather than with the canned anchovies. My favorite light breakfast is two slices of rye toast with light layer of butter, and a light layer of anchovy paste. Breakfast of champions!

OK, I have had beans on my mind since watching the “Tiger Woods fart video” more times than I care to admit. I saw (heard) it live during the Buick Open but thought I might have been mistaken. Anyway, back to beans. I’m craving a good “beans and greens” recipe. Got any?

Well, last week, when I was looking through Bistro Cooking at Home, I happened upon a Sweet-and-Sour Cabbage recipe that looks like it would adapt well to all the chard, kale, and shell beans that are taking over the greenmarkets right now. It seems like a tasty dish that will help me make the tastebud transition from summer to fall — let’s try it, shall we?

Sweet-and-Sour Beans and Greens

• 1 1/2 cups fresh cranberry or romano/borlotti beans (out of the pods, of course)
• 1 tbsp vegetable or grapeseed oil
• 2 slices of bacon, cut into lardons
• 4-6 cups (approximately 2 bunches) kale or chard, de-stemmed (if you’re using chard, chop the stems into lardon-sized pieces, but compost the kale stems if that’s the green you’re going with)
• 1 yellow onion, diced
• 1/2 tsp caraway seeds
• 1 tbsp sugar
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 1/2 cup red wine
• 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
• 3/4 cup chicken broth, with more on reserve
• 1 tbsp chopped flat-leaf parsley

Bring a pot of water to a boil and simmer the beans until tender, about 10 minutes. Drain and reserve.

Pour the oil into a large saute pan or Dutch oven and saute the bacon over medium heat for about 5 minutes, until the fat starts to render. Add the chard stems (if using) and the onion and cook for 5-7 more minutes until they soften.

Add the kale/chard leaves, caraway seeds, sugar, salt, and pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until the greens are fully wilted and reduced, about 10 minutes. You may need to do this in batches based on the size of your pan; first add one bunch of leaves, wilt slightly, then add all the spices, wilt more, then add the rest of the leaves.

Add the beans, red wine, vinegar, and chicken broth. Cover and simmer for 10-15 minutes until the liquid is nearly all absorbed, stirring occasionally. Add more chicken broth or water if it starts to look too dry. Remove from heat and stir in the parsley.

Casey is feeling unloved and will resort to only eating Lean Cuisine and Healthy Choice meals unless you send her some questions. So get something over to Ask Casey at caseyATgoodfoodstoriesDOTcom. or else!