Recipe: Shrimp Scampi Pizza

Pizza with shrimp on it reminds me of Montreal. My great grandparents were Quebecois and Montreal has always been a nice weekend getaway for me so I've been to the city many, many times. The city is about as European as you can get in North America and going there is kind of like going very far away, but not traveling all that long to get there. That's a unique feeling. It's been a few years since my last visit and I feel one coming on.

One of the features of Montreal is good food. The city has more than its fair share of great restaurants, cafés and other kinds of eateries. One of my first stops when I'm in town is a wood-fired brick oven pizzeria named "Pizzaiolle". It occupies two floors in a narrow and old victorian building on Rue Crescent. It is a tight fit and the tables are close, but that just adds to the coziness and atmosphere.

My favorite pizza at Pizzaiolle is the #12 of the "Tiziana" whose ingredients are listed as "sauce tomate, crevettes, fromage, ail." Sure, it does have that in it and a few things they don't mention. That big 'ol wood fired brick oven sure doesn't hurt either! In any event it is delicious and I have had many. If you're ever in Montreal, be sure to check out Pizzaiolle, they now have several locations and I'm sure none of them will disappoint you!

My shrimp scampi pizza recipe below is inspired by Pizzaiolle, it is not an homage. Pizzaiolle creates the Tiziana with a thin crust and delicate "baby" shrimp. I opt for something a little more substantial because my pizzas usually have to feed up to 10 guests at a pop. Also, I can't help it, I am an American!

Before we move on to constructing the amazingly delicious Shrimp Scampi Pizza below, allow me to address four primary ingredients that all but guarantees you can make pizza at home that is as good or better than the average local shop. Get used to seeing these important "ingredients" because I am going to add them to every pizza recipe I write on Chop Onions, Boil Water. They are critical to your success.

Cornmeal: Cornmeal's tiny grains act like little ball bearings between flat surfaces. Spread cornmeal on the surface of what you build your pizza on and you'll be able to slide your masterpiece right off it and into your oven. Speaking of what you stretch your dough on, go get yourself a...

Pizza peel: Buy one, construct your pizza on it, use it to put your pizza in the oven, use it to take your pizza out of the oven. Seems like a small thing right? Try it! By the way, when you're using your peel to slide your pizza into your oven make sure your oven contains a...

Pizza Stone: Nothing is going to make your home pizza match or exceed the quality of the store bought stuff more than a pizza stone. Get a thick one and get a big one. I park mine right on the lowest rack of my oven and that is where it stays. It makes all the difference in the world and in no time you'll be pulling pizzas out of your oven that will make the thought of a store-bought pie a less-than-ideal option. The pizza stone is not going to work optimally though unless you...

Preheat your oven: Flat out, no joke, crank her up to 500°F and do that a full 45 minutes before you plan to sprinkle that peel with cornmeal, stretch that dough and then slide that pie onto that stone.

Now let's make a pizza with some giant shrimp on it!

Shrimp Scampi Pizza

2 medium tomatoes (diced and set to drain in a colander)
1 pinch of oregano
1/2 lb. of largeish shrimp (shelled and deveined)
2 Tbs olive oil (and a little more for drizzling)
2 Tbs sweet butter
4 cloves of garlic (chopped)
1 pinch of red pepper flakes
Enough dough for one 16" to 18" pizza.
1/4 cup parmigiano-reggianno cheese (grated)
A good pizza cheese blend (shredded, should contain mozzarella, cheddar and asiago)
1/4 cup of chopped fresh parsley
1/4 cup of chopped fresh basil

Preheat oven to 500°F for 45 minutes to one hour before you plan on cooking the pizza.

Take the drained tomatoes and chop them along with the pinch of oregano. Set aside.

To make the scampi sauce: place a small sauce pan on medium heat. When the pan is hot, add the olive oil and the butter until the butter melts. Add the garlic and the red pepper flakes and sauté for a few minutes. DO NOT LET THE GARLIC BROWN OR IT WILL BE BITTER! Remove from heat and allow to cool a little bit.

When the oven has almost finished preheating, toss the shrimp in the scampi sauce, drain and set the shrimp aside. DO NOT DISCARD THE REMAINING SCAMPI SAUCE!

Stretch a dough ball to a 16" to 18" disc and place it on your cornmealed peel. I'm not going to go into dough stretching here because it is a learned thing and there are a variety of methods each with its proponents, each for good reason. Do a little research and practice a bit. Don't plan on a perfectly round pizza all the time!

With a brush, paint a thin layer of the scampi sauce over the stretched dough.

Add the chopped tomatoes and oregano mix to the scampi sauce and mix in well. Then spread the tomato-scampi sauce mixture evenly over the stretched dough.

Sprinkle a little of the basil and parsley evenly over the pizza (reserve most of the basil and parsley for when the pizza comes out of the oven).

Sprinkle the parmigiano-reggiano evenly over the the pizza.

Distribute the shrimp evenly over the pizza.

Distribute the shredded cheese blend over the pizza. When doing this it is important to remember to keep most of the cheese out of the middle of the pizza. As it melts it will tend to gather toward the middle anyway.

Place the pizza in the oven until the bottom is slightly browned and the cheese is bubbly (8 to 12 minutes). Remove, add additional basil and parsley to taste, drizzle with some olive oil, allow to cool for about 5 minutes, slice and and serve.

This is eye-rolling-behind-your-head pizza kiddies! It's like shrimp xanax!

Recipe: (Don't Let Your) Meatloaf

MEATLOAF! MEEEEEEATLOAF! Meatloaf, one of the pillars of the church of American comfort foods. Meatloaf! Utter that word in a roomful of men and eyebrows will raise, heads will cock and attention will be gathered as if you just threw a bait fish on a beach full of seagulls.

Say it with me: MEATLOAF.

Doesn't that create warm images of comfort and home?

Do you think I'm kidding, or making too much about it? Well I'm not. Meatloaf is to the American middle class what corned beef and cabbage is to the Irish! It's what the taco is to the Mexicans! Spam musubi to Hawaii! It's what haggis is to the Scottish. Well no, okay, not haggis. I don't think there are a lot of things anyone can relate to haggis. Anyway, I just mean to say it is a much loved dish by those familiar with it. As evidence I offer a few comments on the dish from some friends I contacted regarding it:

"Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm meatloaf, I don't know what to say beyond that. What else can you say about meatloaf? Meatloaf is the best." -Andy F.

"Meatloaf? Yeah, I love meatloaf." -Dave L.

"I've had some pretty damn good meatloaf!" -Dave Z.

Like any popular dish the variations are as numerous as the assortment of ingredients available and the various regions in which it is prepared. I won't try to spark a debate or encourage any angry communiques by expressing a preference or preaching superiority. Hell, the gravy alone will raise the ire and spark a rabid debate among true connoisseurs who express a preference! Instead I will offer you ONE of my favorite recipes for a great meatloaf that is as female friendly as it is male friendly.

If you want to do this middle class and old school serve it up with INSTANT mashed potatoes and canned kernel corn for sides! Always, always, always make far more than you need for meatloaf sandwiches for days afterward!

(Don't Let Your) Meatloaf

2 lbs of ground beef (Sometimes I use ground turkey, sue me!)
1 cup of canned tomato sauce
2 slices of wheat bread (cut into cubes, about 1-1/2 cups)
1 medium onion (chopped)
1 roasted red pepper (diced)
1 large egg
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp fresh ground black pepper

Gravy

2 cups of canned tomato sauce
1 cup of water
1/2 cup cider vinegar
1/2 cup yellow mustard
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1 Tbs Worcestershire sauce

Preheat the oven to 350° F.

In a large bowl beat the egg and then combine the ground meat, 1 cup of tomato sauce, onion, bread cubes, roasted red pepper, Worcestershire sauce, salt and black pepper. Blend with your hands until everything is just evenly combined and distributed. Don't over do it!

In a 5" x 9" roasting pan (or similar) form the mixture into a slightly domed loaf and place in the center of the oven.

While the meatloaf begins to bake, place a saucepan over a medium flame and in it whisk together the water, vinegar, brown sugar, mustard and the tomato sauce. Bring the sauce to a boil and reduce to a simmer and continue to simmer whisking frequently, until thickened. Remove from heat.

After the meatloaf has been baking for 10-15 minutes, spoon some of the gravy over the top of it and continue baking the meatloaf. Around the half hour mark, spoon a little more gravy over the meatloaf again. Depending on your tastes you can do this several more times. Reserve most of the gravy to top your meatloaf when you serve it.

The meatloaf is finished when a thermometer placed in the middle of the thickest part registers at least 160°F. Remove it from the oven and let it stand 10 minutes. During this time reheat the gravy. Serve the meatloaf topped with gravy.

Recipe: Barbecued Smoked Chicken Pizza

When I order pizza, either dining out or ordering in to my home, it is often Barbecue Chicken Pizza. I've had it from a lot of different pizzerias in a lot of different places and well, as far as I'm concerned, I'm a discerning expert. I will tell you that the two best places I've ever had it were from "Not Your Average Joe's" and "Bertucci's" - both chain restaurants. You can still get it from "Not Your Average Joe's" but it is not as good as it used to be because they've changed some ingredients to save money (tsk, tsk). Bertucci's no longer offer theirs because they are trying to be a different kind of restaurant than the one that everyone fell in love with (tsk, tsk).

Without dissecting each and every barbecued chicken pizza I've ever had, allow me to give you the basics of a great one. It's not rocket science, and like all good things, it's simple. You're going to need good ingredients. I've always loved smoked chicken, it is flavorful and holds its juices well, even when frozen, so it was a no brainer that it was my choice for this pizza. Secondly, you're going to want a good barbecue sauce. You can make your own or use your favorite. I like Sweet Baby Ray's Original so that's what I use. Another important ingredient is onions. I've had it with red onions, white onions and green onions in a various states of doneness. They are all good, but in the end I chose caramelized onions. Sure, they take longer, but nothing compares to them on barbecue chicken pizza. Like all pizza, the cheese is important so I've outlined a blend below. It's all pretty simple but after twelve minutes in the oven, it's a slice of heaven! (sorry Mystic Pizza!)

Before we get to the brass tacks of the Barbecued Smoked Chicken Pizza recipe below, allow me to address four primary ingredients that all but guarantees you can make pizza at home that is as good or better than the average local shop. Get used to seeing these important "ingredients" because I am going to add them to every pizza recipe I write on Chop Onions, Boil Water. They are critical to your success.

Cornmeal: Cornmeal's tiny grains act like little ball bearings between flat surfaces. Spread cornmeal on the surface of what you build your pizza on and you'll be able to slide your masterpiece right off it and into your oven. Speaking of what you stretch your dough on, go get yourself a...

Pizza peel: Buy one, construct your pizza on it, use it to put your pizza in the oven, use it to take your pizza out of the oven. Seems like a small thing right? Try it! By the way, when you're using your peel to slide your pizza into your oven make sure your oven contains a...

Pizza Stone: Nothing is going to make your home pizza match or exceed the quality of the store bought stuff more than a pizza stone. Get a thick one and get a big one. I park mine right on the lowest rack of my oven and that is where it stays. It makes all the difference in the world and in no time you'll be pulling pizzas out of your oven that will make the thought of a store-bought pie a less-than-ideal option. The pizza stone is not going to work optimally though unless you...

Preheat your oven: Flat out, no joke, crank her up to 500°F and do that a full 45 minutes before you plan to sprinkle that peel with cornmeal, stretch that dough and then slide that pie onto that stone.

Now onto a truly easy and delicious pizza that you can make at home!

Barbecued Smoked Chicken Pizza

3/4 to 1 lb. of smoked chicken (shredded) or as a substitute you can use cooked and shredded chicken seasoned with a little Liquid Smoke.
2 medium onions (sliced thinly and slow caramelized and allowed to cool)
Enough pizza dough for one 16" to 18" pizza.
Olive oil (some for prepping the dough, some for drizzling after the pizza is done.
Your favorite barbecue sauce
1/2 cup of basil (julienned/chopped)
1/4 cup parmigiano-reggiano cheese (grated)

A good pizza cheese blend (shredded, be sure it at least contains mozzarella, cheddar and asiago).

Preheat oven to 500°F for 45 minutes to one hour before you plan on cooking the pizza.

Stretch a dough ball to a 16" to 18" disc and place it on your cornmealed peel. I'm not going to go into dough stretching here because it is a learned thing and there are a variety of methods each with its proponents, each for good reason. Do a little research and practice a bit. Don't plan on a perfectly round pizza all the time!

Brush a thin layer of olive oil over the surface of the stretched dough.

Spread a thin layer OR make a spiral of barbecue sauce over the stretched dough.

Sprinkle some of the basil evenly over the pizza (reserve most of the basil for when the pizza comes out of the oven).

Distribute the caramelized onions over the pizza.

Sprinkle the parmigiano-reggiano over the the pizza.

Distribute the shredded, smoked chicken over the pizza.

Distribute the shredded cheese blend over the pizza. When doing this it is important to remember to keep most of the cheese out of the middle of the pizza. As it melts it will tend to gather toward the middle anyway.

Place the pizza in the oven until the bottom is slightly browned and the cheese is bubbly (8 to 12 minutes). Remove, add additional basil to taste, drizzle with some olive oil, allow to cool for about 5 minutes, slice and and serve.

Mmmmmmmmmmmmm, mmmmmmmmmmm good, this is one of the reasons my wife still keeps me around!

Recipe: Nantucket-Style Arrabiatta with Mussels and Linguica

I love Nantucket, it is one of my favorite islands and given my proximity to it that makes me fortunate. Amongst the island hoppers that visit the Massachusetts Islands there are basically two kinds of people: those who prefer Nantucket and those who prefer Martha's Vineyard. I won't go into the "hows", "whys" and "what fors" because it is just a matter of vibe and lifestyle. I'll just say again, I'm a Nantucket guy.

It's a small island and very picturesque, the sidewalks are brick and many of the streets are still cobblestone. There are no Subways, Kentucky Fried Chickens, McDonald's or Burger Kings. In fact, if you removed the cars and delivery trucks you'd see little obvious evidence of the modern world outside of electricity.

It's not an inexpensive place, though anyone who spends a lot of time on islands will know that is just part of the economics of bringing goods to market there. The other reason is because of the kind of tourists who visit Nantucket, the well-heeled and famous. This keeps things like dining out a little on the expensive side. That's not to say that deals can't be found or had, they can, it just means you have to look a little harder.

One of those deals was not the place where I first had the dish to the right. It was at the end of the 2005 season and my wife and I wandered into an Italian place about a 15 minute walk from our hotel. The staff were friendly enough but the food was not remarkable, in fact the appetizer was disappointing considering its promise and price. I need not mention the establishment's name because they went out of business early next season.

To their credit they did give me the idea for the recipe I offer here. I liked their concept better than their product, and I knew I could pull it off better. For one, it is a simple recipe and secondly, I probably get better linguica than they do. Done well, it is a hearty and tasty meal that certainly has "Southern New England" written all over it even though it is an obvious Italian-Portuguese fusion. Go figure! Anyway, it is mild to very spicy (your choice) and very tasty and was a big hit the first time I sprung it on dinner guests. Serve it with a nice red wine and some crusty bread with sweet butter. In my area I'm lucky enough to get fresh pao secos, a popular Portuguese roll which is the perfect bread for this dish.

Nantucket-Style Arrabiatta with Mussels and Linguica

Prepare the marinara recipe found here.
1 lb. of linguini
1 lbs of linguica cut into slices
1 large clove of garlic (sliced thin)
1-2 Tbs of butter
2 lbs of mussels (washed, scrubbed and debearded)
1/4 to 2 tsp red pepper flakes (as mild or as hot as you like it).
Salt and Pepper to taste

In a very large pan, prepare the marinara recipe, let it simmer for an hour.

When the marinara has been simmering for 45 minutes, set a large pan of water to cook the linguini in the normal way.

While the pasta water is set to boil and the marinara sauce is simmering, place the sliced linguica in a skillet and fry until firm and cooked through. Remove from pan and reserve 3 Tbs of the fat/oil.

Add the linguica, linguica oil, sliced garlic and the red pepper flakes to the marinara sauce and continue simmering.

As the pasta water comes to a boil, add the cleaned mussels to the marinara sauce. Do not stir them in. Cover the pan and continue simmering until all the mussels open wide. Remove any mussels that do not open.

When the linguini is done, drain and toss with butter. Set aside.

Remove the mussel, linguica and sauce mixture from the heat and transfer to a large serving bowl. Toss together to blend and distribute the mussels and sauce evenly. Serve over the cooked pasta garnished with some fresh basil. Offer with a crusty bread.

Recipe: Pizza Margherita

I make a lot of different kinds of pizza at my house. In fact I build social events around big pizza nights when I prepare old favorites and new experiments, (THIS WILL BE OBVIOUS BY THE COPIOUS AMOUNT OF COMMENTS THAT MY GRATEFUL FRIENDS AND FAMILY WILL LEAVE BELOW IF THEY EVER WANT TO BE AT A PIZZA NIGHT AGAIN!). Summer squash and black pepper, Coney Island hot dog, BBQ chicken, CHOURICO, roasted red pepper, shrimp scampi and buffalo chicken are a few of the more popular kinds that come out of the oven on those nights. I'm even thinking about a potato pizza and a mussel and linguica arrabiata pizza next time out. Keep an open mind people!

Traditionally, I try to always start pizza night with pizza Margherita. It's a purist's pizza and if you use the freshest and best ingredients, and you combine them perfectly, eating it is almost a religious experience. Don't be fooled by the simplicity of its ingredients and preparation, this is a transcendent food experience if it is done right.

I'll get into the magical ingredients and the mystical preparation of Pizza Margherita below, but before that allow me to address four primary ingredients to every pizza that all but guarantees that you can make pizza at home that is as good or better than the average local shop. Get used to seeing these important "ingredients" because I am going to add them to every pizza recipe I write on Chop Onions, Boil Water. They are critical to your success.

Cornmeal: Cornmeal's tiny grains act like little ball bearings between flat surfaces. Spread cornmeal on the surface of what you build your pizza on and you'll be able to slide your masterpiece right off it and into your oven. Speaking of what you stretch your dough on, go get yourself a...

Pizza peel: Buy one, construct your pizza on it, use it to put your pizza in the oven, use it to take your pizza out of the oven. Seems like a small thing right? Try it! By the way, when you're using your peel to slide your pizza into your oven make sure your oven contains a...

Pizza Stone: Nothing is going to make your home pizza match or exceed the quality of the store bought stuff more than a pizza stone. Get a thick one and get a big one. I park mine right on the lowest rack of my oven and that is where it stays. It makes all the difference in the world and in no time you'll be pulling pizzas out of your oven that will make the thought of a store-bought pie a less-than-ideal option. The pizza stone is not going to work optimally though unless you...

Preheat your oven: Flat out, no joke, crank her up to 500°F and do that a full 45 minutes before you plan to sprinkle that peel with cornmeal, stretch that dough and then slide that pie onto that stone.

In the recipe below I specify grape tomatoes, I think they are superior on Pizza Margherita. You can substitute any tomatoes you like but should stay with meatier tomatoes that aren't too juicy. If the only tomatoes you can get are very juicy, dice them and allow then to drain well before crushing them for your sauce because soggy pizza sucks! Also, you'll notice I offer some leeway regarding the amount of mozzarella, basil and oregano you add to your pizza. Some people like it cheesier, some folks love oregano, some people (me) like a lot of basil. A LOT of basil.

In the end, you are going to have your own Pizza Margherita, fine-tuned to your taste and preference and when has that not been a good thing?

Enjoy!

Pizza Margherita

Enough pizza dough for 2 -16" to 18" pizzas
1 cup grape tomatoes (crushed)
3 Tbs Olive oil
3-5 pinches of oregano
Salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup of whole grape tomatoes
1/2 cup of basil (julienned/chopped)
1/2 cup parmigiano-reggiano cheese (grated)
1/2 to 1 lb. of fresh mozzarella de buffalo* (sliced into 1/8" to 1/4" slices)
2 pitted kalamata olives

Preheat oven to 500°F for 45 minutes to one hour before you plan on cooking the pizza.

To the crushed grape tomatoes add olive oil, a pinch of oregano and salt and pepper to taste, mix well to make a slightly chunky sauce. Set aside and let flavors blend while you prepare other ingredients.

Stretch one of the dough balls to a 16" to 18" disc and place it on your cornmealed peel. I'm not going to go into dough stretching here because it is a learned thing and there are a variety of methods each with its proponents, each for good reason. Do a little research and practice a bit. Don't plan on a perfectly round pizza all the time!

Divide the tomato sauce and spread half of it over the stretched dough.

Sprinkle a pinch of the oregano over the pizza.

Sprinkle some of the basil evenly over the pizza (reserve most of the basil for when the pizzas comes out of the oven).

Take half the reserved whole grape tomatoes and squish them in your hand and distribute them over the pizza.

Sprinkle half the parmigiano-reggiano over the the pizza.

Evenly distribute 1/2 the sliced mozzarella over the pizza.

Place one of the kalamata olives in the center of the pizza (yeah, I stole this from Bertucci's because I like it. I think they've since punked out and no longer do it).

Place the pizza in the oven until the bottom is slightly browned and the cheese is bubbly (8 to 10 minutes). Remove, add additional basil and oregano to taste, drizzle with some olive oil, allow to cool for about 5 minutes, slice and and serve.

*This is the mozzarella that is formed in balls that are in water. It doesn't have to be buffalo milk mozzarella but that is authentic. You cannot make authentic Pizza Margherita with deli-style or shredded packaged "mozzarella". Save that stuff for regular pizza.

Recipe: Creton (Pork Paté or Gorton)

For years I didn't know how to spell the title of the recipe below. Sure, I may have eaten it my entire life and even pronounced its French name near perfectly at a young age, but I never knew how to spell it. Apparently, neither did the commercial manufacturers of the stuff in my region. The closest they ever got was "gorton" which while kind of phonetic is wrong nonetheless. In fact I walked on God's green earth for about 40 years before I happened upon the correct spelling.

I was sitting in a popular Montreal breakfast diner one morning with several friends. Most were new to the city so those among us that had been before were helping with the items on the menu pointing out favorites, etc. Then someone came across "creton" and we were all stymied. We puzzled over it for a few moments and then took the next logical step and asked the waitress.

"What is this?" I asked pointing to the word in the menu.
"It is creton" she answered "a kind of pork paté."
"AH!" we all answered after hearing it in French. "We know creton!"

Creton (kind of sounds like "KrrrAW-tohn" or "GAH-taw") is a food most people with Quebecois parents or grandparents may remember growing up in my area. It is a mildly spiced pork paté spread that used to be popular and via nostalgia is gaining in popularity again. It is used at breakfast on toast and with mustard in sandwiches for lunch. Some people will use it with breadcrumbs to stuff a turkey and I'm sure there are other uses.

It's not healthfood by any stretch of the imaginaton, but it is much loved. In fact when I told my mother I had begun experimenting with it she was quite pleased. "I remember my mother's creton." she said, "It was so good on toast for breakfast."

Mom got her much loved creton on toast the very next morning. It's good stuff and simple to make. If you like French meat pies or devilled ham, give it a shot. I prefer mine on bread with mustard. It's damn yummy and makes me feel like I'm 9 years old again, running into my parents apartment to wolf down a sandwich before rejoining my friends outside.

Creton

1 pound ground pork
2 Tbs bacon fat
1 medium onion chopped
1 clove garlic chopped
1/8 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp cloves
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
beef stock or whole milk

Place an appropriately-sized sauce pan over medium heat.

When pan is hot, add 1 Tbs bacon fat and gently fry the ground pork until cooked through. While the pork cooks use a fork to keep crumbling it.

Add the onion, garlic, spices, salt and pepper and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions and garlic are soft and translucent.

Lower the heat to a low simmer and continue to cook for about an hour.

If mixture starts to dry out add beef stock or milk to keep it at a very-thick-sauce consistency.

Remove from heat and allow mixture to cool.

If needed add beef stock or whole milk so the mixture seems just spreadable.

Put the mixture in a food processor and process until fine and granular but not pasty.

Place the mixture into a glass or ceramic container and add a small layer of bacon fat over the top to seal and add extra flavor.

Refrigerate until needed. Serve on crackers as a snack, toast for a hearty breakfast or with mustard as a sandwich for lunch.

Recipe: Azorean-Style Pork Cutlets

In 2003 my wife and I were invited by our friend Sherri to travel with her and her family to Sao Miguel, Azores-Portugal. We were to stay with her grandmother and aunts in the tiny village of Lomba de Sao Pedro. I jumped at the chance because my great grandmother was from the same island, and growing up in Fall River, Massachusetts you hear so much about the Azores. How could I not go?

Upon arrival, we were introduced to Sherri's grandmother Maria Elvira and her aunts and then directed to the cozy room we would be staying in. Once settled we made our way to the kitchen which was located at the center of the house. The whole family was there smiling and catching up and we were brought into the conversation. Many times our host inquired whether or not we were hungry or thirsty. At one point sensing our polite protestations Maria Elvira offered in Portuguese: "A casa pequena, mas o cora grande." They are all Portuguese words I knew but I had never heard the phrase before. It means "The house is small, but the heart is big." If this was a promise it was surely kept for I never had such a gracious and generous host. She prepared breakfast and dinner for us on most days, and often encouraged us to take cheese sandwiches with us on our daily trips around the island.

I have noticed that words used to describe bad food and cooking always come easy and are accurate. However, to try and craft words to describe great food is impossible. That is because great food transcends language. Such was the case with Maria Elvira’s cooking. It was great, all of it, and I tried to taste everything she had to offer and often that was quite a lot. Dinner was always a perception/reality kind of thing. You would perceive that you were going to eat Portuguese-style pork cutlets, however in reality, you were going to start with cutlets, then favas would come, then olives, bread, cheese, fish and anything else one of the aunts might walk in with! Pork, fish, beef, chicken, chourico, morcella, eggs, pudding, homemade ice cream. All of it sublime, all of it prepared by 70-something-year-old food magicians in a traditional Portuguese kitchen. We always left the table near bursting. I would walk outside and sit down and then the dessert offerings would come! It is a lucky thing for Portuguese men that they farm and do other active work, or else they would weigh 500lbs! Maria Elvira was not only generous with her food, when I asked how she made things, she was always generous with her recipes and her methods.

My time on Sao Miguel was filled with many fond memories of charming and generous people, great food and the island's beauty. In honor of Maria Elvira, I present my recipe for Azorean Style Pork Cutlets which is based on, but could never be nearly as good as the ones she served us the night before we left for the U.S. She also made sandwiches of the leftovers for our trip home.

Azorean-Style Pork Cutlets

1-1/2 to 2 lbs pork loin (cut into 1/4" cutlets)
2 cups white wine
4-6 cloves garlic (chopped)
2 tsp colorau (or regular paprika)
2 Tbs Portuguese olive oil
2 small bay leaves
1/2 cup shallots (chopped)
1 medium pimenta salgada (chopped)*
1/3 cup parsley chopped

In a large bowl, add the wine, garlic, colorau and bay leaves and mix together well. Add the pork cutlets and marinate 30 to 40 minutes.

Place a large, deep pan on medium-high meat. Add olive oil. When oil begins to smoke, brown the sides of each cutlet and set aside to keep warm.

Add the chopped shallots to the pan and simmer until they begin to brown lightly.

Increase the heat to high and immediately add the marinade to the pan to deglaze it.

Adjust heat until the mix is at a high simmer. Add 1/2 the pimenta salgada and a 1/3 of the chopped parsley.

Continue simmering the sauce until it is thick and rich. Remove the bay leaves.

Reintroduce the meat and coat it well in the sauce as it warms.

Remove from heat and let sit for about 5 minutes.

Plate with the gravy spooned over it and garnished with chopped parsley. Pair it with rice or potatoes or serve it in rolls as a sandwich. Offer the remaining pimenta salgada on the table so your guests can use it to season the cutlets to their own taste.

*If you cannot find pimenta salgada and do not want to make your own, use pickled red pepper instead and be sure to include salt to the recipe.

Recipe: Pimenta Salgada (Portuguese Salted Peppers)

Pimenta salgada are the lynch pin in Portuguese-style steak sandwiches and other dishes. For me and many others, if they are not in there, you're just having a mildly spicy steak sandwich that you can get anywhere. They have a salty and unique flavor that makes the dish what it is. Because of that unique flavor I also use them in several other Portuguese recipes and I am sure they will infiltrate more.

Here in the good old South Coast of Massachusetts city of Fall River, we have a large Azorean-Portuguese community. It is so large in fact that many Azoreans consider Fall River to be the tenth island in the Azores chain! Because of that large Portuguese population we have immediate access to a great deal of good Portuguese food and ingredients. From staples like the spicy chourico and linguica sausages and bolos levedos sweet buns to more exotic things like fresh Azorean seafoods and hard-to-find spices.

One of the harder to find items is pimenta salgada. You won't find it in most local grocers. Only the most "Portuguese" of the Portuguese stores carry it. I don't think that is because it is rare or unpopular but instead, I think it is because most people who use it in their cooking prefer to make it themselves. One of those people is my friend Karen (family name: Lima) who learned how to make it from her mother. When I asked her for instructions on how to prepare it she didn't hesitate to offer them up.

So, for my friends from far away who may or may not have have had Portuguese food, or better yet: Portuguese-style steak sandwiches, and who want to create them at home using my recipes and others, you are now just a short process and fourteen days away from being able to do it in your own kitchens! I have other great recipes that use these unique peppers coming in the near future. Thank you Karen for your generosity!

Pimenta Salgada (Portuguese Salted Peppers)

Red Finger Peppers (hot or sweet peppers 6" to 8" long)
Coarse Sea Salt
A suitably large and deep, lidded glass or ceramic container (red ceramic is traditional).

Carefully wash all the peppers and blot them dry.

Cut off the top of pepper, be careful not to remove the seeds.*

Fill each pepper with sea salt and carefully layer them in the glass/ceramic container.

As you complete each layer of peppers, place a layer of salt over it before starting a new layer.

Continue until you fill the container or run out of peppers.

Cover and place in a cool dark place.

The pimenta salgada are typically ready in about 2 weeks.

You can expect the peppers to give up a great deal of their moisture and it may eventually cover the peppers, this is normal. It is also normal for pimenta salgada to darken and soften over time. It requires no refrigeration.

*There is an alternative method in which you halve and deseed each pepper. Then you layer them in the container and cover each layer with salt. I've used them both ways.

Recipe: Academica/Caravela-Style Portuguese Steak Sandwiches 2010

Way back in November of 2008, I posted the first recipe for Portuguese-style steak sandwiches on Chop Onions, Boil Water. In that entry I recounted my first experiences with that type of sandwich at a Fall River, Massachusetts restaurant called "The Academica". I went on to explain how my friend Dave Leboeuf had, observed how the locally-famous (now internationally famous, right Kiwis?) sandwiches were made, and how he tinkered in his home kitchen until he came up with a good version. I took his version and tuned it to my personal tastes (admittedly, not much tuning needed thanks to Dave's work) and created my own recipe. This all took place a year or two before I ever posted the recipe online. If you're interested in that Portuguese steak sandwich recipe, just click here.

Since that time, the Portuguese steak sandwich situation in Fall River, Massachusetts has gotten a little "complex". It seems that a while back the cooks at the Academica restaurant decided to open their own place and did so, right on the side of the Academica! They named their new restaurant "The Caravela Family Restaurant" and proceeded to create the same sandwiches and other dishes that they did at the Academica. Today, each place has its adherents and I'm sure they have good personal reasons for which restaurant they patronize. I have my favorite and that's where I take my out-of-town guests and they love it too. Hell, I've even heard there may have been a split at the Caravela and there could be a third contender for the best Portuguese-style steak sandwich in Fall River, Massachusetts.

Why a new recipe you ask? Because, as good as the original one was, it was never perfect. Something about it was always just a little less than authentic and that sent me to thinking about it.

Now, Dave had seen the whole process, he'd seen the ingredients, so why couldn't we absolutely nail it in our home kitchens? I talked to him about it a couple of times and we came to the conclusion that it must have something to do with the repeated cooking. The Academica and the Caravela produce hundreds of steak sandwiches everyday. We figured that the remnants of each steak: the juices, garlic and seasonings are allowed to collect and simmer on that grill over the course of the day, and that somehow effects the final flavor of the steak. In the end this ended up being easy to test because Dave is the president of a social organization and he often cooks some of their large dinners. For a few of those dinners, he decided to create his version of Academica sandwiches and he confirmed that the steaks that came off the stove later in the night tasted more authentic than the ones that were prepared earlier.

After some thought about Dave's experiences I created a work around to avoid having to prepare hundreds of steaks for hours to get the right flavor. I discovered that if you slowly cook some of the ingredients in a separate pan before you cook your steak you be able to recreate what happens on the stoves of these restaurants. It takes a little time, but it is easy and makes a huge difference in the flavor.

Another thing I noticed about the Academica and the Caravela's steak sandwiches were the peppers that came inside each one. They were denser, saltier and not nearly as juicy as the ordinary pickled peppers available in the market. I searched the local markets for similar peppers and tried a variety of them and while the resulting sandwiches were always good, the peppers were never really right. Finally, I asked my Azorean friend Sandy to call her mom and describe the peppers that were in the Portuguese sandwiches. Her mother recognized the description and informed us that they were called "Pimenta Salgada" (salted peppers), she also directed me to the local markets where I could find them. I did find them, and PRESTO they were the real deal. Props to her mom as well because she also gave me a generous amount of them after I had inquired.

The resulting steak sandwiches were, and still are the best that have come out of my home. My wife, who is as big a fan of Portuguese-style steak sandwiches as anyone has pronounced them as better than either restaurant. Yeah, I know... my mom says I'm very handsome as well.

Academica/Caravela-Style Portuguese Steak Sandwiches 2010

2 Tbs olive oil
2 Tbs butter
1 head of garlic (all cloves picked off, peeled and lightly crushed)
Frank's Hot Sauce® or Texas Pete's Hot Sauce®
Steak, not too thick, cubed steak works well. It should be 1/4" to 3/8" thick.
1 cup of dry white wine or beef broth
Stick-style sandwich bread
Pimenta Salgada (Portuguese salted peppers)*
Salt to taste

In a small saucepan or skillet, add 1 Tbs olive oil, butter and a splash of the hot sauce. Place it over a low flame, when the butter is done foaming add all the garlic and allow it to cook SLOWLY until the garlic darkens, softens and just begins to caramelize. Be sure not to burn the mix. I usually start this part of the recipe an hour before I begin cooking the steak. Go LOW with the heat and SLOW with the cooking and you'll be fine.

Season each steak and then tenderize the meat using grid side of a tenderizing hammer. Just a quick going over, don't mash it into goo!

When you notice the oil, butter and garlic mixture close to finishing, preheat a large, deep skillet over a medium-high flame.

Add the remaining olive oil, when it begins to shimmer, add the steaks one to two at a time to the pan.

Brush on a little hot sauce to the top of steaks while cooking.

When steaks are nicely browned on one side, turn them over, brush on a little more hot sauce and cook until browned on both sides.

As each steak finishes cooking, remove it to a covered plate to keep it warm while you continue cooking the others.

When all the steaks are done cooling, raise the heat to high. When pan is hot, add the wine/beef broth and deglaze the pan by scraping it with a wooden spoon while the wine or broth simmers.

Add the garlic, oil, butter mixture to the simmering sauce and continue simmering until sauce becomes thick.

Remove from heat, add the steaks and any drippings to the sauce being sure that each steak is well-coated. Cover the pan to keep steaks and sauce warm while you prepare the sandwiches.

Slice the bread, add the sauce soaked steak, be sure to get some garlic in there. Top with a slice or two of pimenta salgada and serve with french fries.

*Pimenta salgada can be purchased at Portuguese grocery and specialty shops. They are very salty, you may want to rinse them in fresh water or soak them in water during the cooking time to cut the saltiness. If you don't have them in your area don't worry, I'll be posting a recipe for making your own in the next few days.