Creating Italian meals can be easy on time and wallet
I haven’t had the opportunity to travel much in my lifetime
– a recent trip to San Antonio, Texas is the farthest I’ve been
in years – but one place I’ve always wanted to go is Italy.
Aside from the fact that it’s rumored to be one of the most
romantic countries in the world, there is a lot about Italy I find
attractive. While I’m not much of a camper, I love nature, and the
pictures of Italy’s hillsides and coastlines are breathtaking.
Cities such as Venice and Rome are full of gorgeous old buildings
and tons of history, and I’d love to visit the ruins of Pompeii and
gaze upon Mt. Vesuvius. And George Clooney has a home there, a
definite plus.
Creating Italian meals can be easy on time and wallet
I haven’t had the opportunity to travel much in my lifetime – a recent trip to San Antonio, Texas is the farthest I’ve been in years – but one place I’ve always wanted to go is Italy.
Aside from the fact that it’s rumored to be one of the most romantic countries in the world, there is a lot about Italy I find attractive. While I’m not much of a camper, I love nature, and the pictures of Italy’s hillsides and coastlines are breathtaking. Cities such as Venice and Rome are full of gorgeous old buildings and tons of history, and I’d love to visit the ruins of Pompeii and gaze upon Mt. Vesuvius. And George Clooney has a home there, a definite plus.
But between you and me, one of the best reasons to visit Italy is the food.
I love Italian food – an ideal date would include dinner at an excellent Italian restaurant, in case anyone’s interested. And I think the way Italians feel about their food is incredible – things like pizza crust, San Marzano tomatoes and balsamic vinegars must meet strict, specific standards to be considered authentic.
It’s more than just the food, however; it’s the way Italians cook their food, lovingly and with the freshest ingredients available. Italian families show their love for each other in every dish they prepare. In movies and books, Italians cooks are almost always depicted as being surrounded by family and friends ready and willing to chop vegetables or slice bread and meals are eaten at a table where conversation is shared instead of around a television. I tend to chop a lot of veggies alone.
I love to read cookbooks and cooking magazines, and on a recent trip to Nob Hill a brightly colored magazine caught my eye. Put out by Better Homes and Gardens, the cover of “Ultimate Italian” features a photo of Tiramisu, my favorite dessert. The cover also lists sections such as “super-sauced pastas” and “Jamie Oliver’s must try pizzas” but what really prompted me to buy the $10 magazine were two smaller headlines at the bottom: “Fast food, Italian-style” and “20+ family dinners under $10.”
As a single mom on a tight budget, any healthy meal I can make for 10 bucks or less is a good thing. And I often can’t start dinner preparations until after 5 p.m., so fast is good, also. Add in the fact that the dishes are twists on traditional Italian favorites featuring mostly fresh ingredients and lots of flavor and really, how could you go wrong?
So this past weekend we ate Italian, choosing dishes from the “piatti espressi” or quick dishes section of the magazine. We tried a ravioli skillet lasagna which was not only considered quick but made the under $10 category, as did the fast chicken fettucine recipe we plan to try at a later date. On Sunday we had sausage and polenta with a balsamic vinaigrette. And next weekend, we’re going to try four-cheese linquine with prosciutto.
We made sure to have plenty of chewy, rustic breads on hand to sop up sauces and juices, and we paired the ravioli with a fresh salad made with romaine, arugula and endive as well as fresh basil and Kalamata olives. While I wanted to try my hand at the Tiramisu, we settled for fresh fruit as a dessert instead. And since we recently moved in with my mother, I’m now cooking for seven, so I doubled all the recipes and they turned out just fine. As reprinted the recipes will make four servings. Buon appetito!
Ravioli Skillet Lasagna
2 c. tomato-based pasta sauce (we used Nob Hill Trading Co.’s Sicilian Gravy with Chianti pasta sauce)
1/3 c. water
1 9 oz. package refrigerated meat-filled ravioli
1 egg, slightly beaten
1 15 oz. container ricotta cheese
1/4 c. grated Parmesan or Romano cheese
1 10 oz. package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and well drained
additional grated Parmesan or Romano cheese
Preheat broiler. In a 10-inch broiler-proof skillet, combine pasta sauce and water. Bring to a boil. Stir in ravioli. Cover and cook over medium heat for 5 minutes or until ravioli are nearly tender, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking.
In a medium bowl combine egg, ricotta cheese and the 1/4 c. Parmesan cheese. Dot the ravioli mixture with small amounts of spinach. Top with spoonfuls of ricotta mixture.
Cover and cook over low heat for about 10 minutes. Broil 4 to 5 inches from heat for 5 minutes or until top is lightly browned. Sprinkle each serving with remaining grated cheese.
Sausage and Polenta with Balsamic Vinaigrette
½ of a 16 oz. tube refrigerated cooked polenta
1 tbsp. olive oil
4 uncooked sweet Italian sausage links each cut into 4 pieces
½ c. apple juice
1/4 c. balsamic vinegar (check out “Ultimate Italian” for a history on balsamic vinegars)
2 tbsp. snipped dried tomatoes (not oil packed)
1 8 oz. package mixed salad greens
1/4 c. pine nuts, toasted
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Cut polenta into 1/4-inch thick slices, then cut each slice in half. Brush polenta with oil. Arrange in a single layer in a shallow baking pan. Bake about 15 minutes or until lightly browned, turning once.
In a large skillet, cook sausage over medium heat for 5 minutes, turning occasionally to brown evenly. Remove from skillet. Drain off fat, wiping skillet with paper towel.
Return sausage to skillet; add apple juice, balsamic vinegar and dried tomatoes. Bring to a boil; reduce heat. Cover and simmer for 10 minutes or until sausage is no longer pink.
To serve, divide salad greens among four dinner plates. Arrange polenta and sausage next to greens. Drizzle balsamic mixture over food, sprinkle with nuts.
Four-Cheese Linguine with Prosciutto
1 c. shredded Swiss cheese
1 c. shredded Fontina cheese
1 c. crumbled Gorgonzola cheese
1/4 c. finely shredded Parmesan cheese
2 tbsp. flour
2 c. whipping cream
8 oz. thinly sliced prosciutto, coarsely chopped
1 1/4 c. dried linguine
milk (optional)
For sauce: In a large saucepan, combine cheeses; sprinkle with flour and toss gently to coat. Stir in whipping cream and prosciutto. Cook and stir over medium heat just until mixture comes to a boil.
Meanwhile, in a 6-quart pot, cook linguine according to package directions; drain. Return to pot. Pour sauce over linguine; stir gently to coat. If desired, thin with a little milk.
