All Posts By: NANCY DeLUCIA REAL

For the Italian cook, food ingredients from a working kitchen are never wasted or thrown out. While growing up, I watched my Nonna use whatever she found in her pantry – a pasta package that was partially used. She’d break up raw spaghetti, linguine or fettuccine into small pieces. After cooking the broken pasta, she combined it with chickpeas and tomato sauce. We called this comfort food pasta e ceci.

You can make this in minutes and call it Pasta with Chick Peas! If you want to feel like you’re standing on the Italian peninsula, then combine a few long pasta varieties (in leftover packages) and cook them all together in one pot.

Prep time: 15 to 20 minutes
Serves: 4 to 6

Ingredients:
1 pound spaghetti, linguine or fettuccine, broken into 3/4 to 1-inch pieces
3/4 teaspoon salt
One 16-ounce can chickpeas (garbanzos), drained, rinsed & drained again
2 to 3 cups pre-made tomato sauce

Directions:
1. Bring a 4 to 6-quart saucepot of water to a boil.

2. Add the pasta and salt to the boiling water.

3. Cook the pasta according to package directions or until it is al dente (crunchy-tender), about 8 to 10 minutes.

4. When pasta is cooked, drain it in a colander.

5. Add the pasta back to the sauce pot; stir in 1-1/2 cups tomato sauce and the drained chickpeas.

6. Stir and heat through.

7. Serve in individual bowls. Ask guests to add grated Parmigiano Reggiano or Pecorino Romano cheese to their pasta with chickpeas.

Note: Enjoy this dish with a favorite Chardonnay (white) or Chianti (red) wine.
Text and Photograph ©2017 Nancy DeLucia Real

Many of you have asked which restaurant serves authentic Italian foods such as the ones I’ve taught in my culinary courses. My latest discovery is in Montreal – Du Boucher à la Table/La Grotte des Fromages (From Butcher to Table). It is a cheese and meat deli that has now become a trattoria. It lets you BYOB without charging a corkage fee. This eatery has cool people, great southern Italian foods and a staff that rocks!

To start with, the butcher shop next door supplies the restaurant with homemade sausages, salami and prosciutto.

Keep in mind that Montreal, Quebec is home to two waves of Southern Italian immigrants. Some arrived at the turn of the 20th-century – my grandfather of the region of Molise was part of this group. The second wave, including my Neapolitan father, arrived in the 1950’s.

The succeeding generations of Italians have cherished the foods they were raised with. One of these dishes is orecchiette with rapini and sausage. At Boucher, prime extra virgin olive oil, homemade sausage and rapini coat each bite of pasta. It doesn’t get more comforting than this on a cold February evening!

Even non-meat eaters can enjoy the feast here. The tuna tartare is melt-in-your-mouth fresh. No chewing is necessary.

For you carnivores, the stinco di agnello is lamb shank braised in a demi-glaze sauce. A gentle touch of the fork, and the meat falls right off the bone.

When I tasted the rack of lamb, I was astounded by the fact that it didn’t have that gamey odor. So I asked Boucher’s manager Dominic, “How do you manage to get that lamb odor out of this exquisite meat?” He responded, “Quebec sheep graze by the Atlantic Ocean. The ocean’s salt evaporation permeates the grass. In turn, the grass’s salt results in tender and odor-free meat.”

After our feast fit for a king, Johnny gave us a tour of the butcher shop next door. Notice the 45-day old aged beef that he’s pointing at!

Boucher also carries fine gourmet foods. The Sicilian sea salts are flavored with chili peppers, fennel and more.

Of all the honey varieties imported from Italy, my favorite was the eucalyptus honey.

Many thanks to All at Du Boucher a la Table and to Dominic who always ensures a fine dining experience!

We loved this place so much that we went back three times!

Du Boucher a la Table – La Grotte des Fromages
4919 Rue Jarry E, Saint-Léonard, QC H1R 1Y1
Tel. 514.321.3733
Text & Photographs ©2017 Nancy DeLucia Real

Red is the color of passion, don’t you agree? This pudding gets its rich color from natural, red raspberries. Enjoy this recipe as a Valentine’s Day dessert or treat. Have fun!

Prep time: 15 to 20 minutes
Serves: 6 to 8 (1/2-cup servings)

Ingredients:
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
¼ cup rice flour
1/3 cup ground raw slivered almonds
2/3 cup granulated, unbleached white sugar
2-1/2 cups milk (2% milk fat) or almond milk (unsweetened)
1 to 1-1/2 teaspoons rosewater
12 ounces (2-1/2 to 3 cups) fresh raspberries – set 8 raspberries aside for garnish
8 fresh mint leaf sprigs

Directions:
1. Stir the cinnamon, rice flour, ground almonds and sugar together in a 4-quart saucepot.

2. Gradually pour the milk (a little at a time) and 1 teapoon rosewater into the saucepot, constantly stirring with a wooden spoon.

3. Bring milk mixture to a boil and simmer for 3 minutes or until it thickens slightly.

4. At this point, stir the fruit into the milk pudding. The fruit should partially disintegrate as it cooks.

5. Cook the pudding on low heat for about 2 minutes, stirring constantly, until the fruit has added color to the mixture.

6. At this point, taste pudding and adjust rosewater level, if needed.

7. After 2 minutes, transfer the pudding to a glass or porcelain bowl and cover it with plastic wrap (this will prevent forming a skin).

8. Set pudding aside to cool on a counter for about one hour. After one hour, transfer the pudding to the refrigerator.

9. Chill the pudding until it is completely cold (about 4 hours or overnight).

10. Divide pudding among 6 to 8 individual bowls. Garnish the pudding with a raspberry and mint leaf sprig.
Text & Photograph ©2017 Nancy DeLucia Real

I’m so glad Tom George, a Cal-Italian-Hungarian restaurant – decided to take its vibe to downtown Los Angeles. One of its owners, George, stated that this LA eatery is one of his newest babies – a distant relation to other restaurants he operates in Budapest, Hungary.

As soon as you walk into Tom George, the “red” ambiance immediately puts a smile on your face.

How can you go wrong with a red bar? Its warmth makes it all the more easy to reach out for one of its signature drinks – the “I Like Hendricks”!

Like? It was more of an immediate love affair with this drink whose name boasts gin, gin, gin – laced with lemonade! I need two more, please.

Wondering, “what’s the Italian here?” For starters, we ordered a pizza that looked like it just arrived from Naples.

Our Pizza Margherita’s crust was authentically wood-fired and topped with sweet tomatoes and fresh basil. The Cal-Italian element is the addition of goat cheese, instead of mozzarella. Neapolitans will definitely frown on this – only because they didn’t think of this innovation!

BTW, the Pizza Margherita was indeed invented in Naples in 1889 by chef Raffaele Esposito of Pizzeria Brandi. It was to honor the visit of Queen Margherita of Savoy, wife of King Umberto I. The pizza’s colors (red, white & green) were inspired by the Italian flag.

Next up – the burrata. And yes, it’s as good as it looks.

If you’re on a no-carbs diet, as I am, the Ahi Tuna with roasted tomatoes (a special request, on my part) is a definite specialty here. It’s so fresh that it melts in your mouth.

While I was enjoying light gourmet fare, I detected a distinct aroma of truffles. Now, this is right after my Hendricks drink and a couple of glasses of wine. Man – I thought I died and went to gastronomy heaven! I barely heard someone saying that gnudi, a Hungarian specialty, are made with ricotta. Tom George serves these smothered in porcini sauce, topped with Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese and black truffles. This dish crowned our food orgy. Don’t these gnudi look scrumptious?

Gnudi are not to be confused with gnocchi, Italian potato dumplings. And, of course, Tom George proudly serves the best goulash you can find anywhere!

Finally, here’s one of the best flourless, chocolate cakes I’ve tasted anywhere.

As for George of Tom George? He’s your warm, Hungarian host who’ll ensure high quality all around, especially with his attentive staff. We were served by Chris and Rosina who were on top of every minute detail. I was definitely wowed!

Note: Last Saturday, we decided to go downtown from LA’s Westside by Metro Rail. We exited at 7th Street Metro Rail Station & walked two blocks to Tom George. Can’t wait to go back to the restaurant by Metro Rail, enjoy my “I Like Hendricks” and not worry about driving!

Tom George
707 South Grand Avenue
Los Angeles, CA. 90017
424.362.6263
tomgeorgela.com

Text & Photograph ©2017 Nancy DeLucia Real

I hope you weren’t thinking of using canned or frozen peas to make a great-tasting pea soup.

With fresh peas and a few more ingredients, you’ll enjoy a great meal in no time. Complement this gourmet soup with rustic French or Italian bread and your favorite wine. Bon appetit!

Prep time:10 minutes
Cook time:15 to 20 minutes
Serves: 2 to 4

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
3/4 cup finely chopped white or brown onion
2 to 3 cups cold water
3 cups fresh, shelled green peas
salt and ground black pepper, to taste
Dash grated nutmeg
1 cube vegetable or chicken bouillon
3 tablespoons heavy whipping cream (optional)
1 carrot, peeled and thinly sliced
2 to 4 fresh mint leaf sprigs

Prepare the Soup:
1. In a 4-quart sauce pot, heat the oil (it should not smoke).

2. When oil is hot, add the chopped onion; stir-fry onion with wooden spoon until it is translucent – about 2 minutes.

3. When onion is translucent, pour in 2 cups of the water and stir in the peas.

4. Bring the soup to a boil.

5. When the soup comes to a boil, add salt, black pepper and nutmeg.

6. Cook the soup on medium-high, making sure it boils, for about 5 minutes.

7. After 5 minutes, add 1 cube vegetable or chicken bouillon; set heat on medium to medium-low and simmer the soup for about 10 minutes or until peas are tender.

8. When peas are tender, taste the soup. If another bouillon cube is needed, you may add it at this point.

9. Set the sauce pot with soup aside on a cold burner.

Puree/Blend the Soup:
1. When soup is lukewarm, transfer one-third of it to a blender.

2. Add cream to soup in blender; blend soup until smooth or slightly lumpy-smooth, per taste.

3. Transfer this first batch of soup to a large glass or porcelain bowl; repeat blending the remaining soup in two more batches.

4. Transfer the last two batches to bowl.

5. Return the blended soup to the sauce pot; bring to a boil.

6. When soup boils, stir in the sliced carrots and cook for 2 minutes.

7. Serve soup immediately; garnish with fresh mint leaf sprig.
Text & Photograph ©2017 Nancy DeLucia Real