Yummy, healthy, easy Italian fare, on a budget
NEW YORK -Chef, restaurateur and cookbook author Marco Canora believes everyone deserves three things from their food: It should be simple, delicious and healthy.
Marco is the chef and co-owner of both Hearth and Terroir in New York.
Marco worked his way up in the culinary world, building his flair for Italian cuisine on both sides of the Atlantic as well as both coasts of the U.S. His independent ventures have earned him accolades from The James Beard Foundation, Travel & Leisure, New York magazine, and The New York Times.
He accepted the "Chef on a Shoestring" challenge from "The Early Show on Saturday Morning" and, as such, sought to make a scrumptious, three-course meal for four on our measly $40 budget.
On the menu:: Warm Cauliflower Salad with Caper Vinaigrette, Chicken Thighs with Olives and Rosemary and a side of polenta, and Coffee Panna Cotta.
The chicken barely beat out its closest competitor in our viewer voting. You get to choose the main course our "Shoestringers" make each week. To vote for next week's entree, click here.
And our "Shoestring" chefs are automatically entered in our "How Low Can You Go?" competition, in which the one with the lowest ingredients cost is asked back to make our year-end holiday feast.
FOOD FACTS
Source: Epicurious.com
Cauliflower: In Mark Twain's words, "cauliflower is nothing but cabbage with a college education." The name of this elegant member of the cabbage family comes from the Latin caulis ("stalk") and floris ("flower"). Cauliflower comes in three basic colors: white (the most popular and readily available), green and purple (a vibrant violet that turns pale green when cooked). All cauliflower is composed of bunches of tiny florets on clusters of stalks. The entire floret portion (called the "curd") is edible. The green leaves at the base are also edible, but take longer to cook and have a stronger flavor than the curd. Cauliflower can be eaten raw or cooked in a number of ways including boiling, baking and sautéing. Whole cauliflower heads may also be cooked in one piece. Cauliflower, which is a cruciferous vegetable, is high in vitamin C and is a fair source of iron.
Caper: The flower bud of a bush native to the Mediterranean and parts of Asia. The small buds are picked, sun-dried and then pickled in a vinegar brine. Capers range in size from the petite nonpareil variety from southern France (considered the finest), to those from Italy, which can be as large as the tip of your little finger. There are also the Spanish-imported stemmed caperberries that are about the size of a cocktail olive. Capers are generally packed in brine but can also be found salted and sold in bulk. Capers should be rinsed before using to remove excess salt. The pungent flavor of capers lends piquancy to many sauces and condiments; they're also used as a garnish for meat and vegetable dishes.
Nicoise olive: Hailing from the Provence region of France (but also grown in Italy and Morocco), this small, oval olive ranges in color from purple-brown to brown-black. Niçoise olives are cured in brine and packed in olive oil. Good specimens have a rich, nutty, mellow flavor.
Panna Cotta: Italian for "cooked cream" panna cotta is a light, silky egg custard, which is often flavored with caramel. It's served cold, accompanied typically with fruit or chocolate sauce.
RECIPES
Warm Cauliflower Salad with Caper Vinaigrette
INGREDIENTS:
For the salad:
1 head cauliflower, separated into small flowers
1 small red onion, thinly sliced
For the vinaigrette:
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
2 tablespoons chopped capers
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
pinch of salt
coarsely ground black pepper
METHOD:
Bring a large pot of water to a boil, season with salt until it tastes like the ocean.
Add sliced red onion to a large mixing bowl. Boil cauliflower to your desired doneness, strain. Add hot cauliflower to mixing bowl. Mix together all ingredients for vinaigrette and dress cauliflower and onion with vinaigrette, salt and pepper to taste. Serve warm or at room temperature. It is important to dress while hot.
For the rest of Marco's recipes, go to Page 2.
Chicken Thighs with Olive Oil and Rosemary
INGREDIENTS:
8 bone-in chicken thighs
4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup dry red wine
1/2 cup red onion
1/4 cup carrot
1/4 cup celery
2 small cloves garlic
2 sprigs rosemary
1/4 cup nicoise olives
1 1/2 cup canned chicken broth (low sodium)
1 tablespoon tomato paste
METHOD:
Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a 12", oven proof, saute pan over high heat, season chicken thighs with salt and pepper and sear them on both sides 1 minute per side. Remove and set aside.
Add red onion, carrot, celery and garlic to a food processor and pulse until finely minced.
Add 2 tablespoons oil to the same pan you seared the chicken, over high heat add minced vegetables and rosemary and saute for 5 minutes, add tomato paste and saute for additional 5 minutes.
Return chicken thighs to the pan, add olives and wine. Cook for 3 minutes. Add chicken stock, put pan in preheated 350°F oven for 1 hour. 1/2 hour covered with foil the other half hour not covered.
Polenta
INGREDIENTS:
3 1/4 cups water
1/2 tablespoon kosher salt
1 cup coarse ground cornmeal
butter
freshly grated Parmigiano
METHOD:
Bring the water to a boil in a large pot over high heat. Add the salt and reduce the heat so the water is just barely simmering. Put the cornmeal in a measuring cup with a spout. Begin pouring it into the water in a slow steady stream while whisking continuously. Whisk until all the cornmeal has been added. Cook the polenta over low heat, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon, until it begins to pull away from the sides of the pot, about 20 minutes. At this point, you can add butter and freshly grated Parmigiano and, if you like, a little chopped rosemary and serve. Or you can spread the polenta on a baking sheet to cool to slice and cook later.
Coffee Panna Cotta
INGREDIENTS:
4 cups heavy cream
2 tablespoons ground coffee
1/2 cup sugar
3 tablespoons water
1 tablespoon powdered gelatin
pinch of cinnamon
METHOD:
Put water into a small bowl and sprinkle gelatin into water, set aside.
In a saucepan combine cream, sugar, coffee and cinnamon, bring to a simmer over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Once mixture comes to a simmer turn off and mix in the gelatin mixture. Strain through a fine meshed strainer.
Pour into molds and refrigerate overnight or minimum 2 hours. Serve with chocolate covered coffee beans.
So, how did Marco do in our "How low Can You Go?" competition?
Cauliflower Salad
cauliflower $2.50
red onion $1.12
capers $1.79
parsley $.99
total $6.40
Chicken Thighs
chicken $5.16
red wine $2.19
red onion $1.12
carrot $1.00
celery $1.99
garlic $.66
rosemary $1.99
olives $.99
chicken broth $1.19
tomato paste $.69
cornmeal $1.99
parmesan cheese $2.99
total $21.96
Coffee Panna Cotta
heavy cream $4.59
coffee $1.69
gelatin $1.69
total $7.97
Grand total: $36.33
That's good enough to top our Leaders Board!:
1.Marco Canora $36.33
Hearth
2. Michael Lomonaco $36.82
Porter House
3.Jesse Schenker $37.87
Recette