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Monday is Columbus Day and as every school child knows, “in 1492, Columbus sailed the ocean blue.”
Although he sailed under the flag of Spain, Christopher Columbus was born in Genoa, Italy.
In his book “The Food of Italy,” the late Waverly Root wrote Genoa is the largest port in the Mediterranean and is a lively thriving area known for all sorts of unique fish dishes, especially cozza pelosa, mussels whose shells are covered with hair.
Genoa also is known for stuffed breast of veal, which my Austrian-born grandmother made on festive occasions and a simple squid dish which any good home cook could easily make.
I do not have any Italian-American friends whose roots are in Genoa. One of the most famous, however, was Frank Sinatra’s mother.
Pesto, which comes from the verb pestare and means “to pound or crush,” is probably Genoa’s most famous contribution to Italian cuisine. I make my own and so do dozens of my friends. I grow basil in my garden and since it is such a strong, sturdy herb, it grows quite tall and wide and provides me with enough fragrant leaves to stock my fridge and freezer with pesto for the long autumn/winter months.
In honor of Columbus Day, here are recipes from Genoa. They form the basis for a complete dinner. Just add a loaf of bread, find a good bottle of wine and enjoy. If you and your guests have room, serve a small green salad as the last course.
Pesto
Ingredients:
3 cups of fresh large basil leaves
1/2 cup of extra-virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons of pine nuts
2 garlic cloves, smashed and peeled
1 teaspoon of kosher salt
1/2 cup of freshly-grated Parmesan
2 tablespoons of freshly-grated Pecorino Romano
3 tablespoons of butter, softened to room temperature
Directions:
Place the first five ingredients in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade. Process on high and stop from time-to-time to scrape down the ingredients from the sides of the bowl.
When the ingredients are well blended, pour them into a bowl. Beat in the two cheeses by hand. Taste and correct, if needed. You may want to add a bit more cheese.
When the cheese is evenly incorporated, beat the butter in by hand. Blend well.
Makes enough pesto for at least six to eight portions of pasta.
Note from Phyllis: I have adapted this recipe from “The Classic Italian Cookbook” by Marcella Hazan. You can use a blender in this recipe. Hazan suggests you add a bit of the hot pasta water to the pesto before serving. Pesto is also good on chicken and fish. The recipe can be easily doubled.
Squid alla Genovese
Ingredients:
1-1/2 pounds whole baby squid, or squid bodies cut into 1-inch pieces, wiped dry with a kitchen towel
Kosher salt and freshly-ground black pepper, to taste
Enough olive oil to coat the bottom of a 12-inch skillet
1 medium onion, diced
2 fat garlic cloves, sliced
1/2 pound of mushrooms of choice, wiped cleaned and sliced
1 15-ounce can of diced tomatoes with their juice
1 cup of dry white wine
1/2 cup of water
Handful of fresh Italian parsley leaves, snipped with scissors
Leaves from 2 large sprigs of fresh rosemary
Directions:
Place the squid in a bowl and add the salt and ground pepper. Gently toss together.
Heat a 12-inch skillet over medium-high. Add the oil, onion, mushrooms and garlic. Lower the heat to medium-high and sauté for about eight minutes. Add the tomatoes, wine and water and blend well. Add the squid and sauté for about three minutes. Add the herbs and stir well to combine.
Serves four to six.
Note from Phyllis: You can use shrimp or scallops in this recipe or a combination of all three. Use 3/4 of a pound each of squid, shrimp and scallops. Some stores sell special contraptions for chopping herbs. Save your money. This is an unnecessary gadget. Italian women simply tear herbs for their dishes. I snip them with a pair of scissors or tear them depending upon my mood. SPR
Contact the South Philly Review at editor@southphillyreview.com.
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