Summer 2006 > SUMMER SALADS

Gather your friends, pour a few light drinks, put out a summer salad and enjoy Ferragosto.

BELLINI – This typical Venetian aperitivo was first invented at Harry’s Bar in 1948. Although it has become one of the most popular summer drinks in America, once you have had a fresh white peach in Italy, you can understand why it is difficult to really duplicate this drink in America. White peach puree can be very hard to find in this country and fresh peach puree seems to create a drink that “foams up”. Although nothing like the original, I most often substitute Peach Grappa.

5 oz. Prosecco
1 oz. white peach puree (or Peach grappa)

Pour the peach puree (or peach grappa) into a champagne flute, add the Prosecco.

Variations: Mango, strawberries, apricot, raspberry, and most any sweet fruit puree can be substituted.

SPRITZ - This delightful low alcohol, slightly bitter aperitivo is served in every bar in Venice. It’s origin goes back to the 19th century when the Austrian soldiers occupied Venice and finding the wine too strong for them, asked to have it diluted with water.

1/3 Prosecco (Italian sparkling dry white wine)
1/3 Aperol
1/3 sparkling water

Pour into a tall glass (with or without ice) and garnish with a slice of orange

N.B. Campari can be substituted for Aperol and garnished with an olive.

SUMMER SALADS -- When the days are hot and sultry, you don’t want to spend too long cooking over a hot stove. All of these recipes can be prepared ahead of time, so that you can linger with friends under a shady pergola, enjoying the abundance of the season’s produce.

INSALATA DI GRANO ESTIVA

Although rice salads are a very popular, light and healthful summer dish in Italy, I prefer to substitute cooked wheatberries, farro or barley for the rice. The ingredients may be varied so just let the best produce in the market or your leftovers, be your guiding influence. It should be colorful, aromatic and a bit piccante.

1 1/2 C long grain rice, barley, wheatberries or farro
1 red, yellow or green pepper, seeded,
     white membranes removed, and diced 1/3 in
1 small zucchini, diced
2 carrots, shredded
1/2 C finely chopped red onion
2 ears of corn, shucked, cooked, shave the kernels off the cob for the salad
1/4 C each parsley, basil and mint, chopped
S & P
1/2 C OO
1/4 C lemon juice or white wine vinegar

optional: 1/4 lb cooked ham, prosciutto, or speck, cut into thin strips
1/2 C olives, green or black, pitted and sliced

Cook the rice/barley/wheatberries/farro in a large amount of salted water until tender. Drain thoroughly. If a bit wet, place in a large oven pan and dry out in the oven on low heat. Stir frequently with a fork. Place in a large bowl and add the prepared vegetables, herbs, (prosciutto, and olives if using) while the grains are still warm so they absorb the flavors from the other ingredients.

Whisk together the OO and vinegar or lemon juice. Pour over the salad, and season with S & P to taste. Let the salad rest at least 1 hour before serving to let the flavors come together. If you need to chill the salad, always be sure that you let it come back to room temperature before serving.

Serve on a bed of lettuce leaves, or use as a filling for large, ripe beefsteak tomatoes. Alternatively, just serve straight from a pretty serving bowl.

INSALATA FRUTTI DI MARE

This fragrant summer salad can be made a day or two in advance. Traditionally composed only of shellfish, its ingredients may vary as long as the seafood is very fresh. Most importantly do not overcook the seafood.

2 lbs mussels, scrubbed and beards removed
2 lbs clams (little necks or small soft shell steamers), scrubbed
1 lb shrimp
1 lb squid, cleaned, bodies cut into neat strips or rings, tentacles left whole
1/2 lb scallops, tough side muscles removed
1 lemon, cut in half
coarsely chopped garlic for cooking mussels and clams
white wine

5 garlic cloves, cut in half
1 C OO
1/2 C lemon juice, or more to taste
1/4 C chopped Italian parsley
S & P
lemon wedges
salad greens

Mussels: Rinse, debeard and place in a large skillet with a bit of OO, coarsely chopped garlic and a splash of white wine. Cover the pan and bring to a high heat until the mussels have opened. Remove from the heat; take the meat out of the shells. Discard the shells and any that have remained closed.

Clams: Cook the clams using the same method as the mussels.

Shrimp, squid and scallops: In a large pot of boiling salted water seasoned with the cut lemon, blanch the shrimp, squid and scallops separately just until done. Shrimp will take about 1-3 min depending on their size; squid just until it turns opaque, not more than 2 or 3 minutes and scallops until they become opaque, 30 seconds to 1 minute. As you remove each type of seafood from the cooking water, plunge it immediately into a bowl of ice water to stop the cooking process. Drain the cooled seafood and combine in a large bowl. Add the reserved mussels and clams.

Dressing: Whisk the OO and lemon juice together and add the garlic and parsley; season to taste with S & P. Add the dressing to the shellfish and mix well. Cover with plastic wrap and marinate for at least 2 hours in the refrigerator. Remove the garlic before serving. Adjust the seasoning, adding more OO or lemon juice if needed.

Serve on a large platter, piled onto salad greens and garnished with lemon slices.

Variations: to make a more colorful salad add thinly sliced celery, red and yellow pepper and onion (soaked in cold water for 30 min, drain and pat dry).

Not a salad but one of the very best ways to enjoy a bounty of summer vegetables. I love to make this on the weekend, as it will keep for several days in the refrigerator (and flavors improve). It is usually served as an antipasto or side dish, but when I’ve had a tough day and don’t feel like cooking -there’s dinner, with bread to soak up the juices, a glass of red wine, then cheese and a piece of fresh fruit ... summer heaven!

PASTICCIO DI VERDURA
CIANFOTTA (CIAMBOTTA) NAPOLETANA
TJELLA DI VERDURE

There is limitless variety to this Southern Italian vegetable dish. In Naples it would be cooked on top of the stove and called Cianfotta; in Puglia the name "Tjella" is dialect for any kind of cooking pan; in Sicily Pasticcio. It can be cooked on top of the stove like a ratatouille or baked in the oven until most of the juices have been absorbed. The vegetables may vary according to availability.

boiling potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/4 inch slices
ripe plum tomatoes, sliced
red or yellow peppers, cored and quartered
zucchini, cut into 1/2 inch slices
eggplant, stemmed, cut into 1/2 inch slices,
       sprinkle with salt, allow to drain for about 1hr.
onions, peeled and sliced lengthwise
garlic, chopped
peperoncino
S & P
OO
oregano

Preheat the oven to 375°F.

Lightly oil a baking dish with high sides. Layer the vegetables with half the tomatoes on the bottom and the remaining half on the top. Between the vegetable layers sprinkle with S & P, garlic, peperoncino, oregano and OO. Cover the dish with tin foil and bake for about 1-2 hrs. Remove the foil toward the end of the cooking to allow the liquid to evaporate and the top to lightly brown.

Serve hot, warm or at room temperature.

Variations:
(1) Add anchovy fillets, drained and cut into pieces and green Sicilian olives, pitted and cut into pieces.
(2) Substitute basil or mint for oregano.
(3) Top the dish with bread crumbs and a good handful of grated Pecorino Romano cheese