Tag Archives: Sicily

Eggplant Pantesca

August 26, 2013

One of my favorite vegetables is eggplant, especially Pantescan eggplant harvested from our garden. This year we also had loads of tomatoes, so some of them are now sun dried. They are an explosion of flavor! We eat them like candy. Now and then I use them in cooking, as in this eggplant dish.

Eggplant Pantesca
Serves 4
24 oz (700 grams) of eggplant
10 pitted olives
6 sun dried tomato halves
20 almonds
7 oz (200 grams) mozzarella
1 cup olive oil
Salt and fresh grounded pepper

Cut the eggplant lengthwise about 4 pieces or into pieces that are a half inch (1.5 cm) thick.
Sprinkle a little salt on both sides and set aside for about 20 minutes to draw out the fluid.
Chop the olives, tomatoes, and almonds coarsely. Cut the mozzarella into small pieces.
Wipe the eggplant patties using a paper towel (so it becomes dry and excess salt disappears). Heat up a frying pan with plenty of olive oil.

Sauté the patties on both sides until golden and soft but without falling into pieces.
Pour more oil in the skillet when needed and season with black pepper.
Remove the patties and place them on a baking sheet.
Sprinkle the olives, sun dried tomatoes and almonds on top of the eggplant. Top with the mozzarella cheese and bake at 440 F (225 C) on the broiler setting for about 2-3 minutes.

Summer fruits

August 11, 2013

Summer is here with it’s all variety of delicious fruits like different types of plums, nectarines and peaches. Juicy and sweet straight from the trees in Favarotta, an area of agriculture here in Pantelleria. We eat the fruit for breakfast and make them into a juicy snack, to enjoy on the hot afternoons by the sea. I can not resist using these fruits in baking. One of may favorite desserts is the following delicious Peach and Almond blondie cake. Serve this cake with coffee and if you want, add a scoop of really good vanilla ice-cream and you have a scrumptious dessert.

Peach and Almond blondie
Makes 8-10 blondies
Cake tin size about 9 x 13 inches (25×35 cm)

Ingredients
9 oz (250 grams) of butter melted
4 eggs
2 1/3 cups (5.5 dl) granulated sugar
2 cup (256 grams) flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 teaspoons vanilla sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon lemon zest
2 Tablespoons lemon juice
3-4 ripe peaches or nectarines
1 ounces (25 grams) almond paste
2 ounces (55 grams) coarsely chopped sweet almonds
1 Tablespoon sugar to sprinkle over at last moment

Method
Preheat the oven at 400 degrees ( 200 C)
Wash the fruit, cut in slices and remove the stone.

In a large bowl mix and whisk together the melted butter, sugar, eggs, flour, baking powder, vanilla sugar, lemon zest and lemon juice into a batter.

Line the bottom of the baking tin with parchment paper, pour in the batter. Next place slices of the peaches/nectarines in on the batter, sprinkle sugar over, grate almond paste grossly and finally sprinkle with almonds.

Bake at 400 degrees (200 C) for about 25-30 minutes.
Let cool down and cut in squares.

This recipe is also published in the Swedish magazine icakuriren summer issue 33/34

Insalata di Polpo, Octopus salad

July 28, 2013

Carlo is always fishing, at this moment Octopus is abundant and he catches a lot. Antipasto served at the bar under the almond trees you will find this delicious octopus salad.

Insalata di Polpo
Serves 8 antipasto plates
Ingredients:
1 1/3 pds (600 grams) octopus (preferably fresh)
2 cloves of garlic
2 cups (473 ml) Extra Virgin Olive Oil
2 cups (473 ml) lemon juice
1 bunch flat-leaf parsley
1 fresh green chili pepper
1 pinch of sea salt
1 carrot (peeled)
2 celery stalks (peeled)
1 lemon (zest removed and juiced)

Marinade:
Place the Extra Virgin Olive Oil into a large bowl and add the following.
Minced and pasted garlic with sea salt, finely chop the green chili, lemon minced zest of lemon and salt.
Wash, peel, and cut the stalks of celery and carrots into uniform small pieces and add to oil mixture

I a large sauce pan filled 3/4 in volume with water. Cover with a lid and turn on high heat and bring to a boil.
Rinse the Octopus and if you want, clean out the head and eyes.
When the water is boiling, insert a fork in your head and dip the Octopus in and out of the water allowing the tentacles to curl upward. When you see this has occurred emerge the Octopus into the water and let simmer at medium heat for 25-30 minutes.
The Octopus texture is chewy, so if you boil it for a few minutes too long it wouldn’t make a difference.

Let octopus cool and cut into bite sized pieces.
Mix the Octopus into the bowl of marinade, taste and adjust if you need more salt.
Let the salad to stand and marinate for a few hours but if you don’t have this time, it will becomes delicious nonetheless.

Just before serving, chopped the parsley and mix it in.

Tomatoes everywhere!

July 22, 2013

2 Replies

This year we are really lucky with our crop of tomatoes! We planted them into the soil this spring in two week intervals where during this gap, in May we experienced the last thunderstorms and the wind damaged some of them. This event caused us to be afraid that we would be without tomatoes this summer so we planted more. Beginning one month ago, we have been harvesting full boxes every week, different kinds. This small cherry tomatoes are my favorite, kissed by the sun and sweet as strawberries. This time of year we have a lot off guests in the garden and the favorite selection for antipasto in The Almond Bar is our Bruschetta Pantesca. The mix of the sweet tomatoes with the salty Capers are just divine, when served with a glass of Prosecco you’ll make someone happy!

Bruschetta Pantesca
The recipe is for approximately 20 to 25 bite sized bruschetta (you might want to double the recipe for they disappear as fast as you make them!)

Initial preparations; preheat oven to 400F (200C), then place one, or two bottles of prosecco on ice!

Ingredients:
20-25 small slices of Italian white bread
1 clove garlic (peeled)
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 pound (400-500 g) cherry tomatoes
1 Tablespoon Capperi di Pantelleria, rinsed and soaked
3 Tablespoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil
5 filets of anchovies in oil (drained)
2-3 teaspoons of Origano di Pantelleria
pinch of sugar to taste
salt and pepper to taste

Sprinkle on top to finish:
1 teaspoon dried Origano di Pantelleria (dried oregano) which is harvested in June and use the teaspoon for the entire recipe not one Bruschetta

Method:
Rinse and divide the tomatoes, (core them if not using cherry tomatoes) and cut them into small dices.

Cut each anchovy in 5 parts mix together with tomatoes, oil, sugar, capers and basil .
Season with salt and pepper.Preheat the oven on 400 F (200 C) grades.

Slice bread into thin disks and brush a little olive oil on each bread slice place on a oven tray and toast until golden, about 5 min. When toasted remove from the oven and rub the toasted bread slices with the garlic clove just to provide the taste, then, set a side.

Just before serving, ad a spoon or two of the tomato mix on each bread slice, sprinkle with some oregano. Next arrange on a platter. Set glasses and napkins out on the serving table along with the prosecco in a ice bucket pop the cork and start making people happy!

Capperi di Pantelleria http://shop.underthealmondtree.com/
Origano di Pantelleria http://shop.underthealmondtree.com/
Dinnerplate from http://newkamman.com/

Apricots in rum and honey syrup

July 16, 2013

2 Replies

This week I went to see Centesimo and Anita, a couple that are devoting their life to farming in Scauri. Their land is full of fruit trees, the gave me and my friend Ines a full basket of peaches, prunes and this lovely apricots. For dessert that evening I made apricots in Rum, it was easy to make and the flavors really blended well together.

Apricots in rum and honey syrup
Serves 4
Ingredients
12 ripe apricots (washed)
1/2 cup (1.2 dl) caster (super fine) sugar
5 Tablespoon honey
1 cup (2.4 dl) rum ( both light and dark works)
1 vanilla bean, split and seeds scraped from within the pod and added into the rum
8-10 mint leaves, finely sliced
12 pistacchio nuts, coarsely chopped
Optional: 4 Tablespoon whipped cream

Method
Wash and cut the apricots in halves and peel the stone.
In a saucepan melt together rum, honey, sugar and vanilla and let it reduce by half, to become a syrup. Lower the heat and add the apricots few at a time to slightly simmer and to be coated by the liquid for about 3-5 minutes.

Do not over fill the pan add just enough apricots into the pan using a slotted spoon to turn and coat them in the syrup remove into a bowl, then place into the pan the next round of apricots. When complete allow the apricots to cool down in the bowl pour remaining syrup over them. Once cooled separate the syrup and apricots, strain the syrup through a sieve and cover the apricots.

Serve the apricots in a cocktail glass or similar glass bowl, 4 apricot halves for each portion, with a couple of tablespoons of the syrup, sprinkle some mint and pistachio nuts, if you desire as a garnish and top off with some whipped cream.

Caramelized red onion tart

June 29, 2013

At the beginning of March my friend Dallas gave me a bunch of his father’s onion plants. The other morning, four months later, we picked these lovely big red onions. Carlo made onion braids to hang in the kitchen and I made an onion tart.

Caramelized red onion tart
Serves 6 as appetizers or make bite sized pieces as a cocktail snack for 6 people
Ingredients
5 large red onions about (500 grams)
2 cloves of garlic
1/4 cup (0.6 dl) olive oil
1 bay leaf
3 Tablespoons balsamic vinegar
3 Tablespoons granulated sugar
1 teaspoon Origano di Pantelleria (oregano)
Salt and pepper
9-10 oz (275 grams) of puff pastry
12 black olives (preferably oven or sun dried)
2 Tablespoons of Capers from Pantelleria ( rinsed and drained) http://shop.underthealmondtree.com/
6 anchovy filets
1 egg for brushing the pastry edges

Method
Cut the onion in thin rings or slices, chop the garlic finely and saute in a hot skillet with the olive oil. When the onions have softened, add the balsamic vinegar, sugar, bay leaf and half of the oregano.
Let the onions simmer on lower heat so that the sugar will caramelize.
Season with salt and pepper

Cut the anchovies into smaller pieces.

Place the puff pastry on nonstick oven paper, spread the caramelized red onion mix. Add olives, capers and the pieces of anchovies and fold up an edge of the pastry and brush with the beaten egg.

Bake at 400 F (200 C) for about 10 min.
Sprinkle some extra Origano di Pantelleria (oregano) just before serving

My dear and beautiful friend Lisa is visiting from Sweden, so this week we celebrated with many aperitivo gatherings- hors d’oeuvres in the garden.
This recipe is a perfect cocktail snack or can be served as an appetizer.

Sunny Aperol

May 24, 2013

This week we had days of stormy weather in Pantelleria, today it’s seems to have calm down and there is hope for a summer is coming. While we wait for the weather to get warmer my friends and I are going to sip on these Sunny Aperol this late afternoon in Almond Bar. Please join us in spirit if not in person!
Salute!

Ingredients
4-6 ice cubes
2 ounce (6 cl) Aperol
2 ounce (6 cl) orange juice (freshly squeezed is prefered)
Prosecco
Garnish: 1 slice of orange and a mint twig

Method
In a highball glass or similar add ice cubes, Aperol and orange juice, mix using a cocktail spoon
Fill up with Prosecco and garnish. Serve right away!

Lavender biscotti with chocolate

May 21, 2013

A few months months ago the lavender started to bloom here in Pantelleria. Hills become suddenly covered with blue lavender flowers. Their scent is so pure and soothing. I couldn’t resist picking a lot of these adorable flowers and made lavender sugar. It’s really a simple thing- you just mix sugar and lavender flowers, they can be fresh or dried. For every 3 1/2 ounces (100 gram) of sugar use 2 Tablespoons of lavender. Mix sugar and flowers and store in a large clean jar. Seal the jar and shake every couple of days, the sugar will be ready in a week. Mine has been waiting for months and this week I used some of it to make biscotti.

Lavender biscotti with chocolate

Ingredients:
1 cup of Almond raw (150 gram)
1 cup of lavender sugar (2,4 dl)
2 eggs
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 cup flour (4,8 dl)
1 dark chocolate bar of about 3 1/2 oz (100gr)

Method:
Chop the almond roughly, mix with the lavender sugar, salt and the egg. Mix the baking powder with the flour and stir in half of this with the batter. Cut the chocolate bar in rough chunks and mix in, then add the rest of the flour. Divide the dough in two halves and roll each half of the dough into a long shape for about 10 inches long (25 cm) and 2 inches (5 cm) wide.

Bake in the oven at 350 F (180 C) for a 15 -20 minutes on baking tray with baking paper. Cut the biscotti sideways and dry them in oven at 200 F (100 C) for about 60 minutes.

Let them stay overnight for drying on the baking tray or other, before you put them in a can or a box. Its important that they have dried properly before storing.

Spaghetti frutti di mare

April 28, 2013

This dish features a selection of our native seafood which literally hangs out on the coastal cliffs here in Pantelleria. What you see in the photo below is a little mollusk called Patelle in the local dialect. Limpet in English, it lives on the rocks by the sea. As the tide shifts, it’s easy to pluck them from the rocks. The other shell, is a sea snail called Babbaluci in Sicilian and the bright red anemones (Beadlet) are Pomodori di Mare. Together these create a flavorful Frutti di mare pasta sauce. It’s important to cook with the shells attached as they add to create a beautiful broth of the sea flavoring the sauce.
Enjoy this pasta with a glass of dry white wine.

Wish you all a great week.
Anna

Spaghetti frutti di mare
Serves 4

Ingredients
1 medium pot with lid filled with water
1 teaspon sea salt
1lb ( 450 gram) spaghetti
1 large saute sauce pan
1 Tablespoon olive oil
2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
1/2 teaspoon dried chili flakes
4 lbs (1.8 kilo) mixed shellfish and seafood (be sure to examine the seafood and give it a rinse to clean it off prior)
1/2 cup (1.2 dl) white wine
3 cups (7.1 dl) tomato sauce
Salt and white pepper to taste
1/4 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley, coarsely chopped

Method
Place medium sized pot filled with water one teaspoon of sea salt and lid on top onto the large burner turn on the heat and bring to a rolling boil. Place your large saute pan over medium heat add olive oil. Add the garlic into a pan have a wooden spoon handy and stir the garlic it will turn to a light white color, add the dried chili flakes, stir again, add the seafood and the wine. Let simmer together so as to allow the shells and the seafood to lend their essence to the sauce. Add the tomato sauce, salt and pepper to taste. When the pot of water for the pasta is boiling cook the spaghetti according to the instructions on package. When the pasta is cooked to the texture you desire, strain from the water using a colander. Add pasta to the sauce and mix. Portion the pasta onto plats, sprinkle the parsley over the top for garnish.

Foccacia alla Pantesca

April 19, 2013

Ever since I first tried the capers (capperi) from Pantelleria I’ve been totally addicted to them. My friends in Sweden and New York that cook obsess over them. Now and then I receive messages saying: please send more Capers! Yesterday I got an urgent note from my sister with a picture of an empty caper bag to illustrate the desperation.
In New York I could find other Sicilian capers, which are really good, but simply do not compare to the Pantescan capers… It’s the simple reality that this little island grows the best capers there are to find. Amazing how one little flower bud preserved in sea salt gives so much flavor. Last weekend we had great weather and we hung out with friends all Sunday in the tiny fishing village of Gadir. All of us made two or three dishes to bring for a pot luck picnic. One off my contributions was this foccacia bread. It is perfect for a buffet or picnic.
Wish you all a great weekend/ Anna

Focaccia alla Pantesca
Serves 10
Ingredients for the dough:
25 gram fresh yeast
3 cups (7.2 dl) all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1 cup (2.4 dl) luke warm water ideally no warmer then body temperature
1/2 (1.2 dl) cup olive oil

1/4 cup olive oil for the baking tin.

Ingredients for toppings for the Foccacia:
1/2 medium sized red onion cored and sliced
1 Tablespoon salt cured capers from Pantelleria
1 teaspoon oregano from Pantelleria
1 sprig fresh rosemary
1/4 cup(0.6 dl) olive oil
1 teaspoon sea salt flakes (I used Maldon)

Method:
Crumble the yeast in a mixing bowl and mix with lukewarm water and sugar. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and set aside in a warm place or in the sunlight for 15 minutes. This is called blooming the yeast

Once yeast has bloomed add olive oil to the mixture and begin adding flour at 1 cup at a time and working the mixture into a dough. The dough should come together and the bowl should have no flour sticking to the sides. Next on a clean flat surface sprinkle some flour and place the dough on top and knead the dough for 15 minutes.

Place the dough back into an olive oil coated bowl cover with a clean cotton kitchen towel place back in the sun or a warm place and allow the dough to rise to double its size should take about 40 minutes. Preheat the oven to 400 F ( 200 C) degrees.

Take out an oven tray or baking tin, brush the bottom and edges with olive oil and sprinkle some salt flakes, don’t be skimpy on the olive oil use a 1/4 cup ( 0.6 dl)

Place the dough into the tray or baking tin shaping the dough to the size of the pan. Next place the onion slices, rosemary, capers, oregano and drizzle some more olive oil over. Cover with a clean towel and place the pan in a warm place or the sun and allow to rise a second time for about 30 minutes.

Bake in the oven until golden for about 10 -12 minutes.

To buy capers and oregano from Pantelleria go to http://shop.underthealmondtree.com/products ships to all Europe and US adresses.

Read more about the love for capers from Pantelleria at my friends Amy and Peters blog http://flourishnourishinpantelleria.blogspot.it/2011/07/great-caper.html

Under the Almond Tree

A Swede cooking in Pantelleria