Text 5653, 135 rader
Skriven 2006-09-19 21:40:00 av JIM WELLER (1:123/140)
     Kommentar till en text av DAVE SACERDOTE
Ärende: Weggies 251
===================
 -=> Quoting Dave Sacerdote to Dale Shipp <=-

 ML> I can't understand people who just have
 ML> to have hamburgers when the ground beef is $3/lb and can't
 ML> wait until it's $1.79.
 
 DSh> Having a large freezer helps.

 DS> Mmmf.  I prefer to wander into the store and see what's on sale
 DS> and/or markdown.  Can't see the point in storing a lot of meat
 DS> in the freezer to get freezer burned/forgotten/whatever when there
 DS> are so many deals out there at any given time. YMMV. :)

You get better deals and more often than I do. So I will stock up on
specials but am careful not to overdo the fresh stuff and rotate the
frozen stuff so that nothing gets lost on the bottom of the chest. Case
in point were the $1 sirloins I picked up in Aug. They're all used up
now. The only old thing in the freezer is a single turkey from last Dec.
It is double bagged and still in good shape.

MMMMM-----Meal-Master - formatted by MMCONV  2.10

     Title: Panzanella, American-Style
Categories: Italian, Salads, Bread, Vegetables, Cheese
  Servings: 4

    1/2    loaf of firm Italian bread
    (8 ounces or so), cut into
    slices
      2    ripe tomatoes, sliced
      1 md red onion, thinly sliced
      1 md cucumber, peeled and sliced
      1 c  cheese, sliced or shredded
    (fresh mozzarella, cheddar,
    feta and/or blue)
      2    ribs celery, coarsely
    chopped
      1    head of butter lettuce,
    shredded (or Boston, red
    leaf or  anything except
    iceberg)
     12    fresh basil leaves
    few sprigs of thyme
    1/2 c  red wine vinegar
    3/4 c  olive oil
    1/2 c  grated Parmesan cheese

Bread is central to the Italian table - good crusty bread with a
delicately white center. So are fresh vegetables. Vinegar. Oil. Herbs.
Tomatoes. Let's look at a very simple beginning and then we'll talk
about complicating it. You have to understand that there's no real
recipe for this. Change the balance of ingredients to suit yourself.
And, by the way, this is wonderful picnic food. It won't work as well
with American-style supermarket bread. That becomes soggy much too
quickly. Slightly stale Italian bread will retain some good texture even
though moistened. Maybe half-inch or three-quarter-inch thick slices.
Traditional Italian panzanella breaks up the bread and uses it as an
ingredient in a tossed salad. This is an adaptation my grandparents made
nearly a century ago of their old country classic.

Basic American Panzanella

Lay out bread slices to form a single layer in the bottom of a rounded
bowl. Top that with slices of tomato. Then onion and cucumber. Scatter
some celery around. Scatter some lettuce. Cheese. Trickle a little of
the vinegar and oil over top. Add a layer of bread slices. Scatter basil
and thyme leaves. Add tomatoes and repeat with as many layers as the
materials permit. Trickle remaining vinegar over top. A good finish it
to cover the salad with slices of bread. Cover with plastic wrap and
press down to compress the salad. A plate or small tray is good. Put a
weight on it and let it sit for an hour or so. Invert out onto a platter
or tray, sprinkle with grated Parmesan cheese and cut into wedges. A
simplified version could be done by simply cutting all the ingredients
into even-sized cubes. It doesn't look anywhere near as pretty, but it
eats well enough. Put everything in a large bowl and toss. Let sit for
about a half hour. Taste and see if it needs anything. Maybe more
vinegar or more oil or a grating of pepper.

Tip: if it's not moist enough to suit you, add a bit of tomato juice.
That's all there is to the basic salad. Let's look at variations
that change the final effect but still preserve the same rustic spirit.

The Bread: French bread will work well. Some of the newly available
artisan breads. Cut it into cubes. Or, tear it roughly into chunks for a
different visual approach. Strips. Thin slices. Some people make
croutons for this salad out of the breads they choose. Either of two
ways: cut the bread into cubes and toss it with melted butter or olive
oil to which you add a bit of seasoning. Basil, garlic, oregano, thyme,
maybe. Spread out on a tray and bake at 350 F until lightly browned.

Way number two: Cut into cubes and deep fry in 365 F (or so) oil just
until lightly browned. Let them cool and continue as in the recipe
above.

Tomatoes: Use the ripest, juiciest ones you can find. Roma and other
plum tomatoes don't have enough juice for my tastes. Mix the varieties.
A good red one and a pretty yellow or orange one look nice together and
offer different flavors.

Things to add: bell peppers, chopped or sliced - mix the colors for eye
appeal. Fresh zucchini strips - just a few. Hot peppers for the
venturesome. Olives - black, green or any combination of them. Mixed
pickled vegetables - like the Italian giardiniera that's in the
supermarkets. A tablespoon of capers to give that marvelous
salty-vinegary-herbal flavor. You can dress it up with some more
substantial things. Add a can of good, oil-packed tuna that you've
partially drained. Better yet would be to add some cold fish left over
from dinner. Shrimp, scallops, leftover lobster. That last was a joke.
Who ever heard of leftover lobster? Chicken strips from last night's
roast chicken. Or from last night's fried chicken. The breading will
change the basic flavor of the salad and it will sing with the new
seasonings. Strips of roast beef or venison. Shreds of a baked pork
tenderloin. Left over lamb chunks. I'm going to whisper this so the
purists don't hear it - pepperoni, salami, any kind of well-seasoned,
cooked (or preserved) meats like that. This isn't traditional, but it's
still in the spirit, don't you think? And, oh, it's pronounced
pahn-zah-nel-lah. Dazzle your friends with the word and even more with
the dish. Buon appetito, as they say in Italy.

From: Bob Pastorio To: Foodwine@listserve

MMMMM-------------------------------------------------

Jim
      
... Most Americans are pitifully ignorant of geography. This was clearly
demonstrated recently when the Gallup Organization sent its pollsters to
Chicago to ask randomly selected residents if they could name at least
three of the six major continents. The results were shocking: Most of
the pollsters never found Chicago.


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