My daughter, Ella, just contributed one of our favorite family recipes to her preschool’s annual cookbook. One of the secrets to this delicious but simple dish is to keep the water used for boiling the cauliflower for cooking the pasta.  For those who might be scared off by the sometimes fishy flavor of anchovies, you will be pleasantly surprised by this delightful dish.

Ingredients:

• 16 oz. of bucatini pasta (you can substitute spaghetti if you can’t find bucatini)
• 1 cauliflower cut into florets
• 4 anchovy fillets
• 2 oz. tomato puree
• 4 oz. raisins and pine nuts
• 1 chopped onion
• 2 tablespoons of finely chopped Italian parsley (much better taste than regular parsley)
• the cauliflower cooking water
• 6 oz. of Olio Taibi Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• salt and pepper to taste

Cooking Instructions:

Soak raisins in hot water to plump. Wash and cut the cauliflower into florets, then boil in a pot. Using a strainer, drain and reserve the cooking water. In a saucepan, brown the onion and the anchovy fillets in the oil. Add the raisins, pine nuts, tomato puree and the boiled cauliflower.  Pour in a few ladles of the cauliflower cooking water and cook, mashing the cauliflower with a wooden spoon until creamy. Salt and pepper to taste. Cook the pasta for about 8 minutes in the the cauliflower water. Drain and mix with the cauliflower sauce and half the parsley. Leave to rest for a while and serve warm. Sprinkle the other half of the parsley on top of each portion right before serving.

Variation: use powdered saffron in place of the tomato puree.

Curious note: in Sicily, the name of this recipe is “Pasta coi broccoli”. In fact, we refer to cauliflower as “broccoli” and we refer to broccoli as “sparacello”.

 Enjoy this super-short video snippet from “Il Commissario Montalbano” tv series (in Italian), where the Sicilian inspector is annoyed by receiving a phone call while he is enjoying his “pasta coi broccoli”.

Clare Ferguson’s Olive Oil: Cooking, Exploring, Enjoying, a book I recently discovered at Whole Foods Market, is a great guide that outlines the process of making olive oil and then takes the reader on a tour through the various countries that grow olives and produce olive oil. Of Sicily, she writes:

It was the Ancient Greeks who originally introduced the olive tree to the Italians and it is in the Western Greek colonies of Southern Italy and Sicily, after all, where the best-preserved Greek ruins are to be found and some of the finest olive oil is produced.

She also defines the various labeling terms, providing the consumer with important advice on how to choose a good oil. Ferguson is very familiar with olive oil’s health benefits, and writes:

The Healthy Oil: Olive oil is one of the most delicious and natural of all lipids (fats) and an absolute health bonus. By choosing the lower grades you deprive yourself of some of the health benefits.

She also includes a recipe section that covers sauces, salads, appetizers, main dishes and desserts from all over the Mediterranean. Some of the highlights include a vegetable fritto misto, which is a popular Italian vegetable side dish that consists of mixed vegetables battered and deep fried, and a delicious recipe for focaccia. To all the health zealots, Ferguson notes:

…minimal oil is absorbed if the temperatures are right and, in any case, olive oil does not degrade at high frying temperatures: a bonus since most other oils are damaged in this treatment.

Overall, Ferguson’s book includes great information about how and where olive oil is produced as well as some very tasty ways to use it. Buon appetito!

Our friends at Oldways, a think tank that promotes healthy eating, drinking and lifestyles, have designated the month of May as “Mediterranean Month.” Well-known for their advocacy work around the health benefits of the Mediterranean Diet, Oldways has outlined a number of ways to get involved and eat Mediterranean, including:

1) A Recipe Contest: share your favorite recipe using at least two Mediterranean Diet ingredients;

2) Mediterranean Menu Ideas: a sample menu for seven days of breakfasts, lunches and dinners;

3) Budget Friendly Recipes and Shopping Tips: suggestions on how to save money at the grocery store and over a dozen inexpensive recipes; and

4) Calendar Tips: tips for how to enjoy Mediterranean Month each day of May.

Although there are only a few days in May left, we encourage you to consider every month as Mediterranean month. So get out there and eat Mediterranean! Buon appetito!

Photo by Chef Percaso

This is one of my favorite Sicilian pasta recipes. Trapani is a city on Sicily’s western tip that is famous for its seafood and gourmet sea salt.  As you’ll see, there are only a few ingredients in this dish and the preparation is quite simple, but the outcome is delicious! Serve with a green salad, some warm bread and a dipping plate of Olio Taibi extra virgin olive oil and you’ll be eating just like my family in Montaperto.

Ingredients:

• 4 tbsp Olio Taibi Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 4 large tomatoes
• 4 cloves of garlic
• 6-12 leaves fresh basil (6 to be chopped and 6 to set aside for garnish)
• sea salt and pepper to taste
• 1 lb spaghetti

Cooking Instructions:

Bring a pot of hot water to boil and then turn off heat. Place the fresh tomatoes into hot water for 1-2 minutes (this will make their skins easier to remove). Peel the tomatoes, cut them into quarters and remove the seeds. Dice the skinless and seedless tomatoes into 1/2 inch cubes. Finely chop the garlic and basil and combine into a bowl with the tomatoes. Add olive oil, salt and pepper and marinate for 2-4 hours. In a large pot, boil water for the pasta. Follow the cooking instructions for the spaghetti (always indicated on the box or package), drain, and mix with the marinated sauce. Garnish with a leaf or two of basil. Buon appetito!