How To Make a Classic Marinara Sauce!

Ingredients:  

• Italian Extra virgin olive oil
• 5 Garlic cloves (smashed)
• 1 whole Italian canned tomatoes(San Marzano tomatoes or any high quality Italian brand!!)
• 2 pinches of sugar 
• Sea salt/ black and white pepper to taste! I love white pepper! It's a secret weapon!  
• A hand full of fresh basil... I put LOTS of basil cause I can't get enough basil! 
• One tea spoon of Greek oregano! 
  

 Step one: 

In a sauce pan on low heat, heat up two big tablespoons of extra-virgin olive oil and add the five smashed garlic cloves to the slightly hot oil then season with a pinch of salt to start.

Cook for about one or two minutes until the garlic starts to slightly caramelize and turn light brown.
Needless to say, the aroma thru out the entire house and entire neighborhood will be intoxicating!!

Step Two: 

Then add the tomatoes in with the garlic and mix them up for a few minutes then add the handful of basil and oregano into the pot cover and let them stew for 30 to 45 minutes on the lowest heat.
make sure to keep mixing every now and then add taste as you go to make sure that you have a good balance between the tomato acidity, salt and the sugar , when needed to your taste! 

Step Three:

After 30 to 45 minutes of low and slow cookin.... pull the pot off the stove and garnish the sauce with another round of that beautiful, fresh basil to add even MORE taste and an elegant aroma to finish!!

Oh and by the way, this is my favorite canned Italian tomato brand!! Look for this bad boy!! 

Final Step :

    

ENJOY and Happy Cooking!! 

How to Make Hummus!!

Hey food lovers!!!

Today, i'm going to show you the magic of the humble chickpea!! Hummus is to the middle east what hamburger is to the United States! Yup, the humble chickpea is that BIG OF a DEAL over there! They take it very seriously and people get very competitive about it!

Hummus is by far one of the cheapest recipes you'll ever make, literally only needing a handful of cheap ingredients but it's by far one of the most difficult recipes to master! Ask anyone who's been to the middle east, ate hummus, fell in LOVE with the humble chickpea and went home to try and replicate it!!

Today, I'm going to catapult your hummus game to brand new level!

How to make my mom's famous Hummus! 

1 pound of dried organic chickpeas(smaller the better!): for this recipe I end up using about HALF of the chickpeas since I save the other half for the Falafel(which I'll share the recipe later!)

1 can of Tahini(ground sesame seeds) paste: you'll probably need about 1/2 cup to 3/4(maybe even 1 whole cup depending on your taste!

Juice of 1 or 2 lemons

Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Sea salt

Paprika

Parsley

1 teaspoon Baking soda

1-2 smashed garlic cloves(if you wish)

Don't forget: Good quality pita bread for dipping!!!

This is my mom's recipe with only 1-2 minor twists I've added which I feel helps take it to another level!

So here we go !!

Step 1: 


Soak the dried, organic chickpeas for about 10 to 14 hours in water.
I wouldn't soak for 24 hours because I feel if soaked for that long, the chickpeas will sometimes start to give out an unpleasant odor which could affect the final product if you go past 18 to 24 hours of soaking!

Also, I soak the chickpeas in a large pot of water and place the pot in the fridge while they soak!
And I also highly suggest you change the soaking water at least 2 or 3 times during the soaking phase!

Step 2: 


Once the soaking phase is done....
Give the chickpeas one last rinse in clean, cold water before adding to pot!

Time to start cooking down the chickpeas! In a large pot throw in the just rinsed, washed chickpeas and add 1 teaspoon of BAKING SODA and lightly and quickly toss the chickpeas in the pot under MEDIUM HEAT with the 1 teaspoon of baking soda for about 2 minutes...
What you'll notice right away is the BAKING SODA is doing its job …. which is to slowly soften the chickpeas but also remove some of the "husk". After a brief 2 minute toss, now add water to cover the chickpeas in the pot and cover by about 2 or 3 inches of water. Cover the pot with the lid HALF WAY covering the pot and boil the chickpeas on medium-low heat for about 1.5 to 2 hours.


After about 20 to 30 minutes, you should start to see FOAM appear on top of the gently boiling/simmering water... that's normal, so don't freak out! That's the baking soda working its magic... simply skim the foam off the top and discard.

Your goal is skim off as much of the husks that float to the surface as possible!! You don't have to skim All of them off but as many as you can is fine! The more you skim off, the more SMOOTH your hummus will be at the end!

After about 1.5 to 2 hours..... 

The chickpeas should very soft to the point where they squish easily when you press them with your fingers yet still mostly holding their cool roundish shape!!

Note: If you put too much baking soda, they start to disintegrate too much... So keep in mind, 1 teaspoon of baking soda is plenty!

Scoop out 1 cup of the left-over cooking liquid and 1 cup of the boiled chickpeas and set aside for now! 

Drain the chickpeas on a strainer and let it hang out on the kitchen counter while you get ready for the GRINDING PHASE! 

Step 3: 

The Grinding phase: 

In a food processor or Vitamix(which is what I use)….. place 4 or 5 ice-cubes... YES!! I said Ice-cubes at the bottom of the food processor... 

Ice cubes plays a KEY ROLE in the science of Hummus(google it!!) …. 

Pulse the cubes to break them down a bit... Then add the freshly and recently boiled chickpeas and pulse with the ice cubes for a minute or so.... At this time, it might look like you're messing everything up since the mixture will be kinda "thick" but that's OK!! 

Keep pulsing and processing for 1-2 minutes until the chickpeas start to breakdown more and more.... 

Now it's time to add the Tahini(ground sesame seed paste)…. I buy it from a local halal market! 

Continue grinding the mixture... it's probably gonna be thick and look "not right".... if that happens, add 1/2 of the reserved COOKING LIQUID from earlier to smoothen it out a bit and make the grinding easier! 

At this point, add salt and lemon juice to your taste!! 

Some people love a "lemony/tangy" hummus so add the juice of 1 lemon(if u like very lemony, add another juice of 1 lemon)! 

Some people like garlic in their hummus(I don't and actually many restaurants in middle east don't use garlic in their hummus!)

Play around with the taste and get the hummus to get to what your taste buds like YOUR hummus to taste like.... I like mine somewhat lemony and somewhat "Tahini-y" so I add a little extra of these. 

Keep grinding the mixture until you get a SMOOTH, VELEVETY but not "liquidity" or "watery" mixture... 

One KEY tip, I add and this is where I add my own little twist and I believe gives the hummus an OUSTSANDING SHEEN and FLAVOR!! 

While the mixture is grinding in the food processor, I drizzle about 1/4 cup of high quality extra virgin olive oil into the hummus mixture while it's grinding.... you're basically emulsifying the mixture! 

At this point, take a spoon and take a bit!

Check for salt, check for lemon, check for consistency! 

Once you're fully satisfied with the final taste... it's time to plate!! 

Get artistic!!! 

This is YOUR Hummus!

Have fun with it, make it look presentable and easy on the eyes! 

Use a the back of a spoon and shape the hummus around a plate.... 

Last but definitely NOT least, throw on the remaining chickpeas you set aside from earlier to garnish on top of the hummus!!!

Garnish with chopped parsley, extra virgin olive oil and a few dashes of paprika!!!

Well made hummus like this is seriously ONE OF THE FEW GOOD THINGS IN LIFE!

Eat it with my freshly made pita bread, make it for your loved ones and I promise you they'll be forever thankful you've brought the humble chickpea into your home!!! 

Spaghetti Alla Bolognese

For this divine Bolognese, you'll need: 

1 pound ground beef(15% or 20% fat). 

1 large yellow onion.

2 large carrots.

3 large celery sticks.

1 jar of good tomato sauce(such san marzano tomatoes or your favorite brand).

1 cup of cheery tomatoes.

1 tablespoon tomato paste.

2 parmeseano regianno rinds.

Parmeano Reggiano cheese(the more the better!).

1 table spoon butter.

1 table spoon extra virgin olive oil.

2 cups of beef broth(i used beef bouillons).

Fresh thyme leaves.

1/2 cup of milk. 

Basil and/or Parsley for garnish.

2 bay leaves. 

1/2 tea spoon ground nutmeg.

1/2 cup of good red wine.

1/2 tea spoon of dried oregano.

Garlic cloves.

Ciabata or fresh baguette bread. 

White pepper.

Kosher or sea salt

Good spaghetti brand(dried or fresh, i prefer dry pasta because 'al dente' pasta ROCKS!)  

Optional but highly recommended;  A kick ass Italian red wine, such as Barolo, Barbesco or Chianti to sip on while you're cooking and eating. 

French Onion Soup

Hey fellas! Wanna impress a special lady?  Make her this soup!! (better yet, make it together!) 

Ingredients to make this awesome soup for 2 people: 

4 medium yellow onions(can use red onions too or a combination).

1 Table spoon butter.

1 table spoon extra virgin olive oil.

2 cup fulls of Gruyere cheese(or any good melting cheese you prefer: cheddar for example). 

1/4 cup of good red wine(You can also add cognac if you wanna step it up a notch!)

1 teaspoon of good red white vinegar(this is optional but i like it cause it gives a nice zip). 

To make croutons: you'll need 1 loaf of good crusty country bread like a french baguette or ciabatta). Stale is actually better for this! Great way to use stale bread.

For the broth: I use a 50-50 combination of Beef and Chicken broth made from bouillons. 

Herbs: 3 bay leaves and a few thyme leaves.  

Salt and white pepper. 

Follow the video recipe below and enjoy one of the BEST soups you'll ever eat!!

Cheers!

Best Cocktail on Earth!!

'Oven and Shaker', a local pizza spot in Portland, Oregon gets the credit for this AWESOME cocktail called "The Train Wreck".


I need to make this drink at home, here's the cocktail recipe.

Spanish Garlic Shrimp

For this beautiful, sexy and legendary Spanish tapa dish known in Spain as "Gambas al ajillo", made in under 15 minutes, you'll need:

1 lb Large Shrimp(prawns): (Washed, peeled and deviened).
5 cloves of slivered garlic cloves.
1 cup high quality(preferably Spanish) extra virgin olive oil.
1 teaspoon of spicy fresh red chili(can also use dried chili flakes).
1 cup of fresh Italian parsley.
1 large lemon.
1 tablespoon butter.
Salt and pepper.
A loaf of good crusty country bread or a baguette.

**Optional: A beautiful fruity and buttery white wine, such as Chardonnay to drink with this AMAZING dish! ;-)

Viva Espana!!

.... From my family to yours, cheers!