By Maria Filice • December 30, 2009 Whether it’s food prep or a relationship, it’s all in the timing! Let me explain.
When you are planning your meal, think about the timing factor. Always prepare the foods that take the longest first. That way, when your pasta is al dente, the sauce should also be ready. Have you ever had overcooked pasta? It’s a disaster!
Fish, for example, should be prepared and served immediately. Now of course it depends on how the fish is prepared. The easiest to prepare ahead of time are seafood salads. And when it comes to timing, salmon is the perfect fish: it doesn’t have to be warm when eaten unless it’s grilled…
Food for thought: always keep a timer if you lose track of time!
Speaking of timing………Wishing you and yours a Happy New Year!
By Maria Filice • December 23, 2009 
I’m not a searologist, but check out my lamb chops—now that’s a sear! Did you ever wonder how to make the sear marks on your tasty meats, fish, or poultry? It’s very important that the grill or pan surface exceeds 300°F (150°C), which means setting the knob at medium-high. Even more critical is that the meat surface is DRY, or else the searing will not happen! And do NOT flip the chops before three minutes. That’s the time when the grill marks begin making their mark (no pun intended).
I patted dry my lamb legs on paper towels before I placed them on my favorite iron grill and drizzled them with extra virgin olive oil, rosemary pleats, and fresh lemon. The searing appearance looks very appetizing, don’t you agree? Would love hear your comments!
By Maria Filice • December 16, 2009 
How many times have you thought to yourself, “I swear that I followed exactly what the recipe called for. Why didn’t the cake rise? How could I have burned the biscotti?” (I’ll get to the biscotti in a minute.) You were sure that you followed the recipe. You bought exactly what the recipe required, with no deviation whatsoever. But when you took a step back to figure out what the heck happened, did it ever occur to you that it might be your oven?What I mean is, all ovens are different. Some models are gas, some are electric, and they’re made by different manufacturers. Are all cars alike?
When I was testing recipes for my book, I always had more of a challenge with the desserts, which I categorized as “high maintenance.” I ended up making a couple of batches before I figured out that the oven temperature was off, and that I needed to spend a few minutes making sure that the biscotti logs (for example) were getting the right amount of heat. Once I understood my oven a little better, it became easier.
Nobody tells you these things, but I promise that I will share with you all that I know!
By Maria Filice • December 2, 2009 
Now that’s a cauliflower! I was so proud of my purchase: any size for the same price! I brought my prize cauliflower home and weighed it…five pounds!
Then I said to myself, “Who’s going to eat this? I’m going to be away all next week.” Sound familiar? I cut enough for the week and planned to eat it either raw or steamed (who me). The rest went into the freezer.
Here are a few “cauli-maria” tips:
1. Remove all of the outer leaves of the cauliflower.
2. Fill a large pot with water and place the pot on the stovetop at medium/high. Add about 2 tbsp. of salt (or to your salt preference).
3. Cut the cauliflower into separate florets of about 2 inches, or of a size that you prefer. Trim and peal the stems.
4. Wash the florets thoroughly in cold water.
5. Add the cauliflower florets to the boiling water, place a lid on top, and cook for one minute.
6. Strain the cauliflower florets and immediately place them in a bowl of ice water to stop the cooking process. Leave them there for one minute.
7. Drain the cauliflower florets and gently dry them off with paper towels.
8. Zip them into freezer bags and label them with the date. They’ll be good for six months.
If you have the time and the space, you can store cauliflower for up to three weeks by hanging them upside down and mist-spraying them with water every day. Just gave the family another reason to hang something else in the cantina!
By Maria Filice • November 4, 2009 Congratulations to me! My first blog ……..
I’m going to share with you some experiences I had in the kitchen as I am preparing to publish my first cookbook “Breaking Bread in L’Aquila” pub date: April/2010. I am not a trained chef but learned first hand from the best – my grandmother, mother and my aunts. I’m first generation Italian (Calabrese) and got great “authentic tips” by watching them in action “no measuring cups or recipes!”
I also cook intuitively, by way of feel, mood, cravings and what’s in the pantry or refrigerator. Unfortunately, desserts are another story. Desserts are much more precise and accurate. Not to mention that for me, I work on one dessert recipe at a time instead of multi tasking on a few recipes (making pasta, sauce, salad all at once) – sound familiar?
To give you an example, I made amaretti biscotti over the weekend. My mother makes the best amaretti but do you think there’s an accurate measurement? Getting the recipe from my mother is like listening to a George Carlin monologue on “stuff.” In my monologue, it’s about “the cup.”
“Ma, what “cup” measurement are you referring to when I am measuring the flour”?
Her reply; “scoop the cup” (the blue mug) and make sure it’s really full on top, like a dome”. I understood as I tried to visualize ……When I measured with the “cup” description, I then put the flour in a bowl, and then took my measuring cup to measure – it would then yield to approximately 1 ½ cups. Before I can start baking, I spent about an hour writing down the recipe and re-measuring as the measuring “audit cop,” I then made the amaretti.
Can you relate?
Anyway, I think they came out fantastic, what do you think?
![cookies+for+blog[1]](https://foodandfate.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/11/cookies+for+blog1.jpg)
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