The Recipe

Source: The Lutèce Cookbook by André Soltner

2 pounds red beets
salt
1 tablespoon vinegar
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
pepper, fresh ground
3 garlic cloves, peeled, green germs removed, and chopped fine
2 tablespoons chopped chives, or chopped parsley
3/4 cup heavy cream

Wash the beets. Put them in a pot and cover them with water. (The pot should not be full. There should be at least 1 inch between the surface of the water and the top of the pot.) Add 1/2 tablespoon of salt and the vinegar. Bring to the boil, cover, and cook at a slow boil until tender–about 1 to 1 1/2 hours. The beets are ready when a knife goes into them easily.

Set the pan aside and let the beets cool in the water. It is best not to refrigerate them.

Remove the skins, and pull off the roots and stems of the beets with your fingers. Cut the beets in 1/8-inch slices.

In a skillet, heat the butter. Add the beets. Add salt and pepper to taste. Sauté for 8 minutes. Add the garlic and sauté for 2 minutes more.

Add 1 tablespoon of the chives (or parsley) and the cream. Bring to the boil, and simmer for a few minutes. Put the beets on a plate, and sprinkle them with the remaining chives (or parsley). Serve hot.

The Recipe

Source: Second Helpings from Union Square Cafe (The garnish for a roasted lobster dish)

2 tablespoons butter
1/3 cup finely chopped shallots
1/4 teaspoon Aleppo pepper
1 pound chanterelle mushrooms, stems trimmed, cleaned, and split lengthwise
freshly ground black pepper
1 1/2 cups corn kernels (from about 2 ears of corn)
kosher salt
2 tablespoons bourbon
1/4 cup white wine
2 teaspoons chopped fresh tarragon

Heat the butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the shallots and Aleppo pepper and cook for 30 seconds, stirring. Stir in the chanterelles and 1/8 teaspoon black pepper, cook until the chanterelles are softened but not browned, about 3 minutes. Add the corn, 1 teaspoon salt, and the bourbon, and reduce until dry. Add the wine and reduce until almost dry. Add the tarragon, and season with salt and black pepper. Serve immediately.

The Recipe

Source: The Lutèce Cookbook by André Soltner

1/2 cup olive oil
3 medium onions, peeled and sliced
2 pounds tomatoes–the tomatoes must be ripe
1 bouquet garni
3 garlic cloves, peeled, green germs removed, and chopped fine
salt
pepper, fresh ground
2 pounds small eggplants, unpeeled
3 garlic cloves, peeled, green germs removed, and cut into thin slivers

In a skillet, heat half the oil. Gently saute the onions until they are soft. Do not brown.

Cut a conical plug from the stem end of each tomato and discard. Blanch the tomatoes in boiling water for 10 seconds, drain them under cold water, and peel off the skins. Cut the tomatoes in half, squeeze out and discard the juices and seeds, and chop the pulp fine.

Add the tomatoes to the onions. Add the bouquet garni, the chopped garlic (but not the garlic that is cut in thin slivers), salt, and pepper. Bring the skillet to the boil, and cook gently for 15 minutes.

Slice the eggplant, from end to end, in 3/4-inch-thick slices. Stick the thin slivers of garlic into the surfaces of the slices of eggplant.

Preheat the oven to 300.

Oil an ovenproof gratin dish with some of the olive oil. Salt the gratin dish. Arrange the slices of eggplant in the dish and cover them with the tomato-and-onion mixture. Sprinkle the remaining olive oil over the top.

Put the gratin dish in the preheated oven, uncovered, for 45 minutes. Serve hot.

The Recipe

Source: Cucina del Sole: A Celebration of Southern Italian Cooking by Nancy Harmon Jenkins:

2 medium yellow onions, halved and thinly sliced
1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 medium potatoes, peeled and sliced or cut into chunks
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
6 sweet peppers, preferably red and yellow
1 pound ripe fresh tomatoes, diced, or 1 cup chopped drained canned plum tomatoes
1 fresh or dried red chili, or more to taste

Combine the onions and olive oil in a skillet large enough to hold all the ingredients and set over medium-low heat. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions start to soften, then stir in the potatoes along with salt and pepper to taste and continue cooking and stirring for about 10 minutes, until the potatoes are tender enough to pierce with the point of a knife.

Meanwhile, peel the sweet peppers, using a vegetable peeler to remove the thin filament on the outside. Cut the peppers into long, inch-wide strips.

Add the pepper strips to the pan, stirring carefully to mix well without breaking up the potatoes. Cook for about 15 minutes, or until the peppers are beginning to soften, then stir in the tomatoes. (Note that because the peppers are raw, they will take longer to soften than roasted peppers would.) Cut the fresh chili in half, discard most of the seeds and white membrane, cut it into very thin slices, and add to the pan; if using dried chili, break it shaking out and discarding most of the seeds (which is where a lot of the heat is located) and crumble into the pan. Stir once more and cook for another 15 minutes, until the tomato sauce is thick and all the vegetables are very soft. If there is still a lot of liquid in the pan, raise the heat and boil rapidly until the liquid is reduced to a syrupy sauce.

Remove from the heat and serve immediately. Peperonata is also often served at room temperature.

The Recipe

Source: The Silver Spoon

5 eggplants, thickly sliced
2 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, chopped
1 pound 2 ounces ripe plum tomatoes, peeled, seeded and chopped
1 fresh flat-leaf parsley sprig, chopped
1 garlic clove, chopped
2 eggs
juice of 1 lemon, strained
salt and pepper

Place the eggplant slices in a colander, sprinkle with salt and let drain for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, ,melt the butter with the oil in a pan, add the onion and cook over low heat, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes. Rinse the eggplants, pat dry and add to the pan, then add the tomatoes, parsley and garlic and season with salt and pepper. Mix well and cook over medium heat for about 15 minutes or until the eggplants are tender. Remove the pan from the heat. Beat the eggs with the lemon juice and pour over the eggplant mixture. Stir rapidly so that the egg does not scramble but coats the mixture like a cream. Transfer the fricassée to a warm serving dish and serve immediately.

The Recipe

Source: Saveur Magazine

(Makes about 2 quarts)

4 cups fresh corn kernels
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 small red onion, minced
1 jalapeño, stemmed, seeded, and minced
1/2 green bell pepper, cored, seeded, and minced
1/2 red bell pepper, cored, seeded, and minced
2 cups apple cider vinegar
3 tbsp. dark brown sugar
1 tbsp. kosher salt
1/2 tsp. dried mustard powder
1/2 tsp. ground turmeric
juice of 1 lime

Combine corn, garlic, onions, jalapeños, and peppers in a bowl. Divide corn mixture evenly between 2 one-quart glass jars with tight-fitting lids. Combine vinegar, sugar, salt, mustard, turmeric, and 1 cup water in a 4-qt. saucepan. Bring to a boil over high heat; stir until sugar and salt dissolve. Remove pan from heat; stir in lime juice. Pour vinegar mixture over corn; seal jars. Let cool. Refrigerate for up to 2 weeks.

The Recipe

Source: Modern French Cooking for the American Kitchen by Wolfgang Puck

12 to 15 baby zucchini, approximately 1 pound
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 branches basil leaves, removed from stems and cut into fine julienne
3 ripe medium tomatoes, peeled, seeded, diced, and drained
salt
freshly ground pepper
1/2 medium onion, minced (optional)

Cut the zucchini into 1/4-inch slices or 1/4-inch cubes.

Heat the olive oil in a large saute pan. Add the zucchini, garlic, basil, and tomatoes. Over high heat, cook until the zucchini is tender.

Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve hot or cold.

If using the onion, saute briefly in the hot olive oil before adding the remaining ingredients.

The recipe

Source: Cucina del Sole: A Celebration of Southern Italian Cooking by Nancy Harmon Jenkins

1 ½ pounds broccoli rabe (rapini), or 1 pound cauliflower or broccoli
1 medium red onion, thinly sliced
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus a little more oil if using cheese
1 dried red chili, crumbled
sea salt
15 to 20 cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
15 to 20 black olives, pitted and coarsely chopped
1/3 cup grated hard aged cheese: pecorino, caciocavallo, or parmigiano reggiano (optional)

Rinse and trim the broccoli rabe and discard any yellow or wilted leaves. Cut into 2-inch lengths. If you’re using broccoli or cauliflower, rinse and cut into florets.

Combine the onion with the olive oil in a pan that will not suffer when put under the broiler. Set over medium-low heat. As the onions start to sizzle, add the chili and salt to taste. Stir in the vegetable pieces, halved tomatoes, and black olives. Add about ¼ cup boiling water, then cover the pan, lower the heat, and cook for about 10 minutes. Check the vegetables for tenderness, piercing the thick parts with the point of a knife. If they need to cook a little longer, you may wish to add a little more boiling water to keep the vegetables from scorching.

Meanwhile, if you’re using the cheese topping, turn the broiler on to high. When the vegetables are done, sprinkle the cheese over the top, dribble on a little more olive oil, and run under the broiler just long enough to melt the cheese. Remove and serve immediately.

The Recipe

Source: The Babbo Cookbook by Mario Batali

4 shallots, trimmed and peeled
2 tablespoons plus ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 head of escarole, cored and roughly chopped

Preheat the oven to 400 F. Drizzle the shallots with 2 tablespoons of the olive oil, season with salt and pepper, and place in a small roasting pan. Roast until very soft and golden brown, about 25 minutes. Remove from the oven and, when cool enough to handle, cut each shallot in half. Do not worry if the shallots start to come apart a little.

In a 12- to 14-inch saute pan, heat the remaining ¼ cup of olive oil over high heat. Add the escarole and shallots and saute over high heat until tender, about 7 minutes. Season with salt and pepper and serve immediately.

The Recipe

Source: From Biba’s Italian Kitchen by Biba Caggiano

1 ½ pounds green beans, the smallest you can find
3-4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 anchovy fillets, chopped
1 tablespoon minced sun-dried tomatoes
salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Snap off both ends of the beans and wash them under cold running water. Bring a medium-size saucepan half full of salted water to a boil over medium heat. Add the beans and cook, uncovered, until tender but still a bit crunchy, 2 to 4 minutes, depending on size. Drain and immediately plunge the beans in a large bowl of ice water to stop the cooking and to set their green color. Drain and set aside.

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the garlic, anchovies, and sun-dried tomatoes. Stir for about 1 minute, making sure not to let the garlic turn too dark. Add the green beans, season with salt and pepper, and stir just long enough to heat the beans through, 1 to 2 minutes. Taste and adjust the seasoning, and serve.