Last night, Meg and I ventured over to Punta Dura Northern Italian restaurant on 34th Avenue and 41st Street. I've passed this place many times when I used to live in the neighborhood without going in--and did I miss out.The cuisine was not only fresh, it was interesting and homemade, with very careful and excellent service. I'll go into more details next week, revealing all that I ate but in the meantime, I wanted to whet your appetite...
Send me your favorite Northern Italian recipe and tell me what makes it special (i.e. your grandma makes it, you're famous for it, etc.)
10 lucky winners will be chosen at random to receive (1) $20 gift certificate to Punta Dura.
Send me your recipes by the end of next week, and I'll draw and announce the winners by August 4th - simply write your recipe into the comments section of this post.
Good luck, have fun, and in case you're wondering what that gorgeous berry treat is, it's Punta Dura's Torta Frutti di Bosco. Mmmmm...
Punta Dura - 41-15 34th Avenue, Astoria NY 11103
718.721.2137
R/V/G Train to Steinway Street
www.puntadura.com
I prefer rice over pasta and during the summer, I'm always up for a salad, but still need some carb. So, I 'recreated' this vegetarian rice salad because I don't eat meat (usually, there's ham and swiss cheese inside), so I subbed with some red pepper, mushrooms, and carrots. Just as good I think. Oh, and some chili pepper for a kick!
ReplyDeleteInsalata al Capriccio
Rice Salad Caprice
Ingredients
• Half cup of rice
• Half a red pepper
• Some carrots
• 1 dill pickle
• 1 tsp capers
• 1 small can button mushrooms, drained
• 1/4 cup fresh parsley, minced
• salt & pepper
• red chili pepper
• 1 Tbs dijon mustard
• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• half a lemon
Directions
1. Cook rice (I cook it in my rice cooker)
2. Spread rice on a cookie sheet to cool.
3. Dice up red peppers, pickle, and mushrooms into small cubes.
4. Mix the salt, pepper, mustard, olive oil, parsley, and juice of the lemon. Set this aside.
5. Put the cooled rice in a large mixing bowl.
6. Add the red peppers, pickle, and mushrooms and mix well.
7. Add the dressing and mix well.
8. Let the rice salad rest for a half hour before serving.
Awesome - sounds great, thanks Gar.
ReplyDeleteIt is hard to omitt pasta in any of Italian dishes. In pasta fagiole you definitely cannot.
ReplyDeleteHere is the recipt. I got it from Florence, my ex co-worker. She shared the recipts of her cooking with people that she knew were good cooks. I got it too...haha
Simple and good to the last elbow.
Pasta Fagiole
Ingredients
5 coves of garlic
3 tbs of olive oil
28 oz can of crushed tomatoes
2 chicken buillion cubes
1 cup water
1 tsp of dry oregano
16 oz can of kidney beans
Directions
Saute galic in olive oil. Add crushed tomatoes, buillion cubes, water and oregano. Simmer for 30 mins. Then add kidney beans (all juices). Cook 5 minutes more.
Serv with cooked small elbow pasta.
Thank you for that lovely recipe "Anon." :)
ReplyDeleteActually, my favorite Northern Italian recipe *is* from my great-grandmother. :) It's her risotto.
ReplyDeleteI don't have the recipe, as it's been pasted on the back of my bedroom door in my parents' house since I was 12.
It's a fundamental risotto recipe: arborio rice, stirred faithfully and constantly with saffron and ladles of chicken broth and white wine until tender. A chopped and fried onion (and some chopped fresh mushrooms and parsley) get added at the end. My great-grandmother's recipe included admonitions about where to buy the parmesan from her favorite parts of 1920s-era Italian Denver. ;)
When I married my husband, who's Czech, and we first had "risotto" at his family's house, I was shocked that it was only cooked rice (not arborio) and peas. When I got up enough courage to make my risotto recipe, they liked it immensely...and now eat that, instead!
That sounds absolutely lovely Erin - thank you for sharing. I'd love to try it sometimes.
ReplyDeleteGar and Erin - can you please email me with your mailing addresses? I will send you the $20 gc to Punta Dura. Thanks!
ReplyDeletecritic@foodistanyc.com