Sauteed Broccoli with Olive Oil and Garlic

Found myself with a head of broccoli for lunch. Marcella suggests boiling and sauteeing it with garlic and parsley.

I was a little confused by Marcella's instructions. Did she mean that the head should be cut into parts in the stem, or should I have just cut into the stem? Common sense dictated the head should be cut up so that's what I did.

I boiled it for about 5 minutes. Health gurus would say steam rather than boil, but history shows they don't have a clue about things so I ignored that.

Neil Perry just takes the boiled vegetable and puts salt, pepper and olive on it.

I was concerned about the amount of garlic called for. This is uncharacteristic. Perhaps I let it sautee for two long, but I don't think so. It was just too much garlic, for me.

I enjoyed it for lunch. However, I am quite content with the Neil Perry approach. I don't think it needs the extra sauteeing. And the garlic is a bit heavy.

Fricasseed Chicken Abruzzi Style with Rosemary, White Wine, Cherry Tomatoes, and Olives

This is my favourite Hazan dish so far. In fact I think it's my favourite dish that I can cook.

I've enjoyed it for a couple of years. It is so simple, and so easy, and yet so delicious when done right. You need to make sure you have the right pan for these fricasseed dishes (heavy), and the best free range chicken, olives, rosemary and garlic you can find.

After a few goes you won't need to look at the recipe at all.

I particularly love mopping up the juices (goodness) with some crusty bread, and having a bite of cherry tomato, olive and chicken all at once.

When serving for guests I make this a second course which follows a pasta and precedes fruit.

It's from Marcella Cucina.

Veal slices topped with prosciutto and sage

I snuck ahead a generation to Giuliano Hazan in How to Cook Italian. I've never cooked with butter and sage before, and like the idea of scaloppine.

Anyway, this little piggy came together like a dream. It only took about 15 minutes. I didn't bother whacking the meat first, as it already seemed pretty thin.

I'll be cooking this one again for sure.

Mayonnaise

I'd love to make my own mayo successfully. I've tried a few times by hand using olive oil. Perhaps too strong a flavour. Marcella says use vegetable oil and the blender. Neil Perry says not to believe her, and to use virgin and extra virgin olive oil and whip by hand.

I tried Marcella's.

It tasted ok (not great) but didn't come together from a thickness perspective. It was runny like thin gravy. I put in an extra egg yoke but to no avail. Any tips on this one? Obviously I've done something wrong.

Marcella says commercial mayos are "beneath discussion" and I believe her. But how to make the real stuff properly?

Spaghettini with Fresh Tomatoes and Basil

I knew if I kept going I'd have some success. This is another recipe from 30 Minute Pasta.

I thought the recipe was off to a good start when it called for a lot of tomatoes (more than the other pasta recipes from this book). Rather than peel with the peeler, I crossed them on the bottom and put them in hot water until their skins were easily peeled.

Lots of garlic. I was alarmed. Then I read Guiliano's reassurance that I shouldn't be alarmed.

Basil, but not too much, added at the end.

"It tastes like a dream", was my first comment. Things continued from there.

30 Minute Pasta comes through with the goods yet again. This is going into my stash. Using fresh tomatoes is completely different to using canned.

Spaghetti alla puttanesca

I seem to be drifting a little from Essentials. Tonight I tried Spaghetti alla puttanesca - Whore's Pasta, from 30 Minute Pasta. I've wanted to make this one for a while.

The sauce was promising, although I fear anchovies. Perhaps my problem was I mixed the full 440g of pasta into the sauce, and it was spread to thin.

Either way it didn't really work for me, and goes in the flop category. Perhaps I should try again from Marcella's Essentials and return to the source.

Pot Roast Braised with Butternut Squash (Pumpkin)

This is a recipe from Every Night Italian. I've wanted to make it a while.

Australians don't have the pot-roast tradition of the Americans, French and Italian. We roast our beef like the English. And it does taste good.

Nonetheless I wanted to try this one out. I do like Butternut Pumpkin. And love a beef stew, properly cooked.

Unfortunately this recipe did not fly for me. My chuck beef was a little stringy, and the pumpkin tasted like, well, beef.

I won't be cooking it again. I'm not sure if I failed in the execution or if this is what it is supposed to taste like.

I'll give the Alice Waters pot roast a try. Or indeed, Marcella's.