Just wanted to say a quick hello from New Orleans. So far everything's been really delicious (like this wonderful gumbo and etouffee trio I enjoyed at M Bistro), and the chefs I've chatted with report no problems keeping up with their customer's Gulf seafood cravings.
Catches are being tracked using GPS to ensure they're coming from unaffected areas, and in addition, random samples are being taken twice a day to add another level of protection. As M Bistro's Chef Matt Murphy said, "We want people to know it's never been safer to eat seafood in New Orleans, than it is right now."
So, ironically, due to the post-spill scrutiny, visitors to New Orleans may actually be enjoying some of the safest seafood in the country. Stay tuned for more information about the trip when I return. Now, it's time to go do some more "investigating."
Just a quick post to let you know Michele and I are heading to New Orleans for a 3-day press trip to cover the Great American Seafood Cookoff. Unfortunately, we're stuck at LAX enduring a 6-hour delay, but with any luck we will be arrive to NOLA sometime late tonight (well, actually early this morning!) Stay tuned for more!
I've decided to determine the length of my blog posts by the beauty of the recipe displayed therein. It's a very logical system. If a recipe produces a batch of stunningly beautiful photos, then I'll write a long, wordy post (including gratuitous name-dropping and self-serving anecdotes) to give the reader plenty of time to soak it all in.
However, if the recipe looks like this Sausage, Potato, and Zucchini Stew, then the shorter the post, the better – a couple of short sentences and on to the video. They say beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but not in this case. Visually, this is truly dreadful. It's a good thing this vegetable stew is so easy, nutritious, and delicious!
I used a spicy, garlicky andouille sausage here, but any spicy link will do. We've covered the glut of late summer zucchini before on this blog, and this is another great remedy. Well, I've subjected you to this grotesque image long enough, so I'll mercifully end the post. Enjoy!
Ingredients: 1 tablespoons olive oil 1 pound spicy smoked sausage 1 onion, chopped 6 zucchini, cut in 2-inch pieces 1 1/2 pound small Yukon gold potatoes, cut same size as zucchini 1 quart vegetable or chicken broth water as needed salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste 1 bay leaf few springs of fresh thyme 1 tablespoon sliced fresh chives (and/or any fresh herb) handful of "sweet 100" cherry tomatoes *some crusty bread wouldn't be a bad idea
I knew today's video recipe was called Italian Wedding Soup because it's traditionally served at weddings, but I wanted to find out why this soup, with these ingredients in particular, was chosen.
I had a few theories. I figured the greens probably represented money, and symbolized hopes that the bride and groom would enjoy a prosperous union. The soup's signature mini-meatballs were a tougher nut to crack.
How could taking large, virile, normal-size meatballs and shrinking them down to dainty little shriveled dumplings serve as a metaphor for marriage? I just don't see a connection. Well, come to find out (according to two reliable sources; Wikipedia, and my friend and fellow About.com Guide, Kyle) the name has nothing to do with people getting married.
Apparently, what we Italian-Americans from the northeast call Italian Wedding Soup is actually a misinterpretation of an Italian soup called, "minestra maritata," which basically means "married soup." The "married" refers to the delicious pairing of the greens and meat, and not the ritual of marriage.
So, the soup ended up being a sort of self-fulfilling prophecy. What better choice for a first course at your Italian-American wedding reception than something called Italian Wedding Soup?
That should give you enough soup-related cocktail party conversation material for a while. Whether you fondly remember this from weddings past, or you've never had it or heard about it before, I really hope you give it a try. Enjoy!
Ingredients: 1 quart beef broth 1 quart chicken broth Note: A little more or little less broth will not affect the recipe 1/3 cup pastina or other tiny pasta 1 bunch kale salt and pepper to taste For the meatballs: 1 1/4 pound beef 1 egg 2 cloves garlic 1/4 cup cream 1 cup fresh breadcrumbs 2 tbsp fresh parsley 1/2 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano 1 1/2 tsp salt 1/2 tsp fresh black pepper
Just wanted to say a quick hello from New Orleans. So far everything's been really delicious (like this wonderful gumbo and etouffee trio I enjoyed at M Bistro), and the chefs I've chatted with report no problems keeping up with their customer's Gulf seafood cravings.
