Classic tomato sauce

Ingredients:

2Kg of San Marzano Tomatoes (Roma/Plum tomatoes)
1 onion
2 cloves of Garlic
1 Carrot
1 stick of celery
1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 cup of basil leafs or a tbsp dried oregano

1st step:
-Wash and cut a X on the bottom of the tomatoes. (This will help to peel easy the skin);
-In a boiling pot with just water, add the tomatoes for about 1 minute;
-Take the tomatoes out and peel them.

2nd step:
-Cut the tomatoes in half and take the seeds out.

3rd step:
-Using a blender, make all the tomatoes into a juice (if you would like a chunky sauce, juice a half and cut the other tomatoes in pieces);
-Using a big pot, cook the tomatoes with 1/4 cup of olive oil until reduces at list 1/3 of the pan.
-In another pan, sauté the garlic, onion, celery and carrots with 1/4 cup of olive oil. Add to the sauce and let cook for at list 30 minutes;

Eggplant alla Parmiggiana

1kg eggplant sliced
3 cups tomato sauce
1 cup grated Parmiggiano cheese
Salt & Pepper
Basil, Oregano, Thyme.
Olive oil

Grill the eggplants in olive oil. After the eggplant is grilled, make layers like a lasagna.

Eggplant-Cheese-Tomato-Eggplant-Cheese-Tomato

Bake for about 30 minutes in 350F.

Stuffed Zucchini

1/2 cup of ground beef/pork mixed 

Zucchini

1/2 cup bread crumbs

2 cloves of garlic minced

2 cups tomato sauce

1/2 cup green olives

1/4 cup roasted almonds

1/2 cup parmiggiano

3 tbsp minced mint

1 tsp oregano

fresh mozzarella balls

1. Cook and stir the ground beef in a skillet over medium heat until the meat is browned, breaking the beef up into crumbles as it cooks, about 10 minutes. Drain off excess fat, and transfer the beef into a mixing bowl. Slice the zucchini in half the long way, and use a spoon to scoop out the flesh, leaving a 1/2-inch thick shell all around the zucchini. Chop the scooped-out zucchini flesh, and add to mixing bowl. Stir in the bread crumbs, garlic, tomato sauce, almonds, olives, and Parmiggiano; mix the stuffing well. Lightly stuff both halves of the zucchini with the meat mixture. Place the zucchini halves into a baking dish, and cover tightly with foil.
2. Bake in the preheated oven for 45 minutes, remove from oven, and remove the foil. Add some sliced mozzarella cheese over each zucchini half. Move an oven rack to within 6 inches of the oven broiler's heat source, turn on the broiler, and broil the zucchini until the mozzarella cheese is browned and bubbling, about 5 minutes

Baked chicken with limes, cilantro and coconut milk

1 whole chicken, cut in pieces
4 tbsp coconut oil or palm oil
5 limes, 3 sliced and 2 juiced
5 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 cup cashews
1/2 cup coconut milk
1 tablespoon chopped ginger
Chopped cilantro
Crushed red peppers
Salt & pepper

In a baking dish combine all the ingredients together. Using your hands or a big spoon, mix all the ingredients very well. Place the chicken skin facing up, so you have a tender and moist chicken. Bake in 210C/400F for about 30 minutes or until the chicken is brown. Serve with cassava rice or anything you like.

Tip: leave the whole dish marinating overnight. The next day the dish will taste much better.

Lucas's Sun Dried Tomatoes

Ingredients:

20 ripe roma tomatoes (San Marzano) <----This is the Italian name of the tomato

Salt
Sugar
Oregano
Olive Oil
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
Garlic (optional)
Rosemary (optional)

Wash and cut the tomatoes in half. Put the tomatoes in a tray facing up and sprinkle salt, sugar and oregano on top. Turn in oven on at the temperature of 50C 120F. Bake for two hours (turn off the oven) and let rest for 8 hours, move the tomatoes around the tray and take the water excess off. Bake for another 2 hours and let rest again... Repeat the process until the tomato is completely dry.

In a bowl, put all the tomatoes in gently and hydrate your tomato with balsamic vinegar.  Leave the tomatoes to dry again, this time just in a hot oven that is off.  Place the tomatoes in a jar and cover with olive oil.  Optionally you can add garlic, rosemary, pepper etc...  Make sure everything is clean and do not touch the inside content with your bare fingers (use a fork or spoon to get the tomatoes out).

How long it last!?
- You will have the sundries tomatoes for years if you keep them under the olive oil, if they go bad is easy to recognize because it will taste horrible!

Meatballs with Balsamic sauce

For the meatballs
1/2kg or 1 pound minced pork
1/2Kg or 1 pound minced veal

2 cloves of garlic, minced
1/2 tea spoon nutmeg
1/2 cup bread crumbs
1/3 cup milk
1/4 cup of parsley
Zest of one lemon
Olive oil
Salt & Pepper to taste

Mix all ingredients in a large bowl by hand.

Use your bare hands for best results.

Roll meatballs to about the size of a golf ball

Bake it for about 20 minutes.

For the Sauce

1 cup heavy cream

2/3 cup balsamic

1 tsp tarragon dry or fresh

Remove the meatballs from the pan you bake it on it. Put the pan in high heat and add the balsamic and mix it. Reduce heat and add the tarragon. Then add cream and turn off the heat. Add the meatballs on the sauce and serve it.

Basic Chocolate truffles

            280g good-quality dark chocolate, 70% cocoa solids

            284ml double cream

            50g unsalted butter

          

Method

.    Chop the chocolate and tip into a large bowl. Put the cream and butter into a saucepan and heat gently until the butter melts and the cream reaches simmering point. Remove from heat, then pour over the chocolate. Stir the chocolate and cream together until you have a smooth mixture. Add any flavourings to the truffle mix at this stage (divide the mixture between bowls and mix in liqueurs or other flavourings, a tsp at a time, to taste. Try bourbon, Grand Marnier, coconut rum or the zest and juice of an orange), or leave plain. Cool and chill for at least 4 hrs.

.    To shape the truffles, dip a melon baller in hot water and scoop up balls of the mixture, then drop the truffles onto greaseproof paper. Or lightly coat your hands in flavourless oil (such as sunflower) and roll the truffles between your palms. You could also use a piping bag to pipe rounds onto greaseproof paper.

.    Coat your truffles immediately after shaping. Tip toppings into a bowl and gently roll the truffles until evenly coated, then chill on greaseproof paper. Try: crushed, shelled pistachio nuts; lightly toasted desiccated coconut; or roll a truffle flavoured with orange zest and juice in cocoa powder. To coat in chocolate, line a baking tray with greaseproof paper. Melt 100g milk, dark or white chocolate for 10 truffles. Allow chocolate to cool slightly. With a fork, pick up one truffle at a time and hold over the bowl of melted chocolate. Spoon the chocolate over the truffle until well-coated. Place on the baking tray, then chill.

Store in the fridge in an airtight container for 3 days, or freeze for up to a month. Defrost in the fridge overnight. To give as presents, place 8-10 truffles in individual foil or paper cases inside small, lined boxes tied with ribbon. Keep in the fridge until you’re ready to give them.

Traditional Lasagne alla Bolognese

Traditional Lasagne alla Bolognese

Ingredients

Ragu Bolognese:

5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

3 tablespoons butter

1 carrot, finely, diced

1 medium onion, diced

1 rib celery, finely diced

1 clove garlic, sliced
2 bayleafs

500g veal, ground

500g pork, ground

1/4 pound pancetta or slab bacon, ground

1 tube tomato paste

1 cup milk

1 cup dry white wine

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Parmigiano-Reggiano, for grating

Lasagna al Forno:

4 extra-large eggs

6 ounces frozen chopped spinach, defrosted and squeezed very dry and chopped very fine

3 1/2 to 4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour, plus 1/2 cup for dusting the work surface

1/2 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil

Besciamella:

5 tablespoons butter

4 tablespoons flour

3 cups milk

2 teaspoons salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

8 ounces Parmigiano-Reggiano, for grating

Directions

For the ragu bolognese:

In a 6 to 8-quart, heavy-bottomed saucepan, heat the olive oil and butter over medium heat. Add the carrots, pancetta, onions, celery, and garlic and sweat over medium heat until the vegetables are translucent and soft but not browned, about 10 to 15 minutes. Add the bayleaf, veal and pork and stir into the vegetables. Add the meat over high heat, stirring to keep the meat from sticking together until browned. Add the tomato paste, milk, and wine and simmer over medium-low heat for 1 to 1 1/2 hours. Season with salt and pepper, to taste, and remove from the heat.

For the lasagna al forno:

Combine eggs and spinach. Mound 3 1/2 cups of the flour in the center of a large wooden cutting board. Make a well in the middle of the flour and add the egg and spinach mixture and the olive oil. Using a fork, beat together the spinach, eggs and oil and begin to incorporate the flour, starting with the inner rim of the well.

As you expand the well, keep pushing the flour up from the base of the mound to retain the well shape. The dough will come together when half of the flour is incorporated.

Start kneading the dough with both hands, using the palms of your hands. Once you have a cohesive mass, remove the dough from the board and scrape up and discard any leftover bits. Lightly reflour the board and continue kneading for 6 more minutes. The dough should be elastic and a little sticky. Wrap the dough in plastic and allow to rest for 30 minutes at room temperature. Divide the dough into 3 equal portions and roll each out to the thin setting on a pasta rolling machine. If you are using a Marcato machine number 7.

For the besciamella:

In a medium saucepan, heat butter until melted. Add flour and stir until smooth. Over medium heat, cook until light golden brown, about 6 to 7 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat milk in separate pan until just about to boil. Add milk to butter mixture 1 cup at a time, whisking continuously until very smooth and bring to a boil. Cook 30 seconds and remove from heat. Season with salt and nutmeg and set aside.

For assembly: Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. In a lasagna pan, assemble the lasagne, beginning with a layer of ragu, a sprinkling of grated Parmigiano, a layer of pasta, a layer of bechamel, a layer of ragu, a sprinkling of grated Parmigiano etc. until all sauce and pasta are used up. The top layer should be pasta with bechamel over it. Top the lasagne with grated Parmigiano-Reggiano and bake in the oven for 30 to 45 minutes, until the edges are browned and the sauces are bubbling. Remove and allow to cool for 30 minutes before slicing.

Squid Ink Risotto

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 large onion, finely chopped

3 cloves garlic, finely chopped

2 cups arborio or carnaroli rice

1 cup dry white wine

6 cups shrimp stock, clam stock or vegetable stock

2 tablespoons squid ink

1/2 pound squid, cut into 1/4-inch rings

1/4 cup finely chopped flat leaf parsley
1 lemon, for juice and zesting 

Salt and freshly ground pepper

1. Heat olive oil in medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onions and garlic and saute until soft.

2. Add the rice and mix to coat with the oil and cook for 2 minutes. Raise the heat to high, add the wine and cook until all the liquid has evaporated.

3. Place the stock and the squid ink in a large saucepan over high heat and stir to combine. Begin adding the hot squid stock 1 1/2 cups at a time and cook until the liquid is absorbed. Continue until the stock is gone and the rice is al dente.

4. Add the squid, and juice from one lemon and cook for 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in the parsley and season with salt and pepper to taste. Zest lemon on the top before serving.