Easy Recipe for Bruchetta, Pasta and Pizza.

Years ago, in an old, cozy restaurant in Cleveland's Little Italy my family was served this savory tomato, garlic basil dip with our bread instead of the traditional olive oil and balsamic for dipping.  We've all had this topping baked onto bread but never as a dip with fresh bread.  Since then Mom has perfected her own method that's in high demand at all our family events.

It is ridiculously easy to make and very customizable to your own taste.
Plus, it's vegan and healthy, so it's ideal to take to a potluck for everyone to enjoy.  And, it's so versatile:

A topping or dip for fresh, crusty bread

Toss with pasta and chill, or saute with pasta for a hot or cold dish perfect for Summer dining.

Make traditional bruchetta or pizzas: place bread or English muffins under  a low broiler  or toaster oven for 2 minutes or until desired tostieness, add toppings, broil for another 2-3 minutes .  Or, quick for the kids, toast English muffins in toaster, add topping or toppings, microwave 30 seconds.

Fresh tomatoes would work well, I'm guessing, but we've never had it that way.  It looks like I may have a bumper crop of Romas this year, so I'm going to try making this with fresh and then update this post.


Before you start, Mom wanted to make sure I gave a few tips:

This is flavor-packed with lots of garlic.  If you think it may be too strong to your liking, start out with half the garlic and herbs.  This has to marinate for at least a day, so you can always add more seasoning later, marinate again, then taste.

Re-purposed spaghetti sauce jars work well.  This recipe makes a little under 32 ounces.  Two 16oz jars should do it.


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two 32oz cans of diced or petite diced tomatoes (tomatoes with Italian seasoning work great, but not necessary)

One full head of garlic, cloves peeled

2 cups fresh basil leaves

1/4 to 1/2 bunch parsley

1/2 bunch chives or scallions

1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

1/2 teaspoon salt

one heaping teaspoon dry oregano (or 1/2 teaspoon of fresh)

1 1/2 cups of olive oil, extra virgin





Strain tomatoes in colander (Mom saves and freezes the tomato juice for future use in soups and sauces - no wonder they taste so good)












Put peeled garlic cloves and herbs in a food processor to chop

Add to tomatoes and add remaining ingredients.  Stir until combined.

Top off jar with extra olive oil.  Let stand at room temperature overnight.  Refridgerate afterwards.
As you may know, olive oil solidifies when chilled.  Be sure to restore it to room temperature before serving.

The Annual Greek Festival, a Favorite Summer Tradition

I met Maria at auditions for the school play in my Freshman year of high school.  She got a small role and we both volunteered for make-up crew.  The school was doing Dracula so we were excited with the ghoulish creativity we could discover.  We discovered we liked the new wave of British music in the early and mid 80s - Duran Duran, Sting,  New Order, as well as a deep respect for Queen, Pink Floyd, and the 80's U2.  Bod Geldof was our hero; the founder of Band Aid and Live Aid.  We both read his autobiography.  We became good friends quite quickly.

She lived close, so we carpooled for rehearsals.  I'll never forget the first time I was invited into Maria's home.  I knocked on her back door.  Her father opened the door with one hand and held a long, thin, meat carver's knife in the other.  He only had to lean down and over a few inches from where he was in the kitchen to the back door.  He was slicing meat off a large bone which I'd never seen before.

As he opened the door to let me in I said hello.  With a straight, but sincere face, wide eyes and friendly voice, he held out his knife straight to my face with a few chunks of meat, which did smell delicious, and said,

"You like lamb?  Taste.  It's good."

How could I refuse, especially with a knife in front of my face?

Actually, I wasn't that intimidated, with the lamb or Maria's father, especially with his welcoming smile and wide eyes. I  knew I was going to taste something wonderful.  I instantly loved lamb and Greek hospitality.  It reminded me much of the bare-bones sincere hospitality my family gave to long time friends.  Later in high school, her sister and my brother joined the theatre, music and arts crowd as well.  We, with a handful of others backstage became a tight group, often hanging at our house or Maria's house discussing the arts.

Our two high school friends with their kind father, a friend of theirs on Crete, and their beautiful, kind, mother, who makes the best baklava, pastisio and stuffed zucchini blossoms. 2001

Through the years I remember when their mother was making a kitchen full of pans of baklava for the Festival: light, flaky phillo pastry with a walnut and honey filling for the annual festival on Memorial Day Weekend.  I fondly remember helping my friends and their parents pass trunk loads of baklava into the large kitchen packed with volunteers and trays of other Greek delights the night before.

My brother, our group of theatre friends and I enjoyed when Maria and Tina performed their traditional dances they've learned the through their church.  We'd cheer them on, get a juicy grilled souvlaki, sit on the steps of the church and wait until the parents have had their time socializing.  Souvlaki is a skewer  of chunks of pork marinated in lemon, garlic and oregano, grilled to perfection, served on a lightly grilled pita with onions, tomatoes, and tzatziki sauce (yogurt, cucumbers, garlic, lemon and dill).  My husband now looks forward to at least two at the festival and two to take home each year.

Souvlaki: marinated chunks of pork, onions, tomatoes and tzaziki sauce on the side

TheGreek Fests have not been the same without my close high school friends.  The family has since moved back to Crete and are all doing well.  I haven't been able to visit them since October of 2001, so it's been too long.

Greek dancers, like our friends used to do
Click here for a video of the dance!

Until I can see them again someday I make it a point of going to the Greek Fest each year.  I'm happy to say I've shared my tradition with my husband and other friends and family through the years.  I need my Greek food fix, Greek music and dance, and the chance to spend time with family and friends, new and old.

Cousins enjoying gyros

Lots of folks at this Cleveland tradition.  During the festival, everyone is Greek.

The end of one of the indoor food lines

More people!

Not the best photo of the Cleveland Skyline from their parking lot, but you get the idea.

My friends' family's village on Crete.  Accessible only by ferry, as there are no roads or cars in this remote area. 1997

My friend and her grandpa on Crete. 1997

My friend relaxing with a frappe. Crete 1997

Ina Garten's Chicken with 40 Cloves of Garlic and Penzey's Saffron Rice

Ina Garten, or the Barefoot Contessa has such easy recipes in her book, "Barefoot in Paris: Easy French Food You Can Make at Home,"I can actually say that I can cook French food well in my first attempts.  My latest endeavor was a tasty adventure into a garlic lover's dream, Chicken with 40 Cloves of Garlic.

40 cloves may seem like a lot, but since they are slow-roasted, it's the perfect number to achieve that mellow but sweet taste that sinks right into the chicken and makes the sauce memorable for guests at your dinner party.

Best of all, you can make this a day ahead and reheat.

Ina Garten suggests a Moroccan couscous recipe, but both of us prefer rice, so I made a saffron rice recipe from Penzey's Spices.  We thought it was the perfect accompaniment.

Though the garlic is mellow, it's still a LOT of garlic.  I suggest a mint-inspired dessert if you are serving guests.  You can't go wrong with mint chocolate chip ice cream, plain or sundaes.


Ingredients
3 whole heads garlic, about 40 cloves
2 (3 1/2-pound) chickens, cut into eighths
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
2 tablespoons good olive oil
3 tablespoons Cognac, divided
1 1/2 cups dry white wine
1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons heavy cream


Separate the cloves of garlic and drop them into a pot of boiling water for 60 seconds. Drain the garlic and peel. Set aside.

Dry the chicken with paper towels. Season liberally with salt and pepper on both sides. Heat the butter and oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. In batches, saute the chicken in the fat, skin side down first, until nicely browned, about 3 to 5 minutes on each side. Turn with tongs or a spatula; you don't want to pierce the skin with a fork. If the fat is burning, turn the heat down to medium. When a batch is done, transfer it to a plate and continue to saute all the chicken in batches. Remove the last chicken to the plate and add all of the garlic to the pot. Lower the heat and saute for 5 to 10 minutes, turning often, until evenly browned. Add 2 tablespoons of the Cognac and the wine, return to a boil, and scrape the brown bits from the bottom of the pan. Return the chicken to the pot with the juices and sprinkle with the thyme leaves. Cover and simmer over the lowest heat for about 30 minutes, until all the chicken is done.

Remove the chicken to a platter and cover with aluminum foil to keep warm. In a small bowl, whisk together 1/2 cup of the sauce and the flour and then whisk it back into the sauce in the pot. Raise the heat, add the remaining tablespoon of Cognac and the cream, and boil for 3 minutes. Add salt and pepper, to taste; it should be very flavorful because chicken tends to be bland. Pour the sauce and the garlic over the chicken and serve hot

Read more at: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/chicken-with-forty-cloves-of-garlic-recipe/index.html?oc=linkback