(The Tucci Table, page 41)
Felicity's Cheat Aioli
(The Tucci Table, page 219)
Linguine With Angry Lobster
(The Tucci Cookbook, page 156)
Puntarella Salad With Anchovy Dressing
(The Tucci Table, page 27)
We’re back!!
We look forward to continuing our culinary journey and hope that you join us along the way!!!!
When we completed American Dad back in May of 2017, we never would have guessed that eighteen months would pass before taking on another Tucci challenge. During that time, Dan and Michelle moved to Sarasota, Florida, began new jobs, and built a new home.
A few months later, Tom and Tam finished their renovations in Nashville, sold their home, and moved to Longboat Key, Florida. The move would bring them closer to both of their daughters, Michelle and Laura … and potentially enable us to continue with our Tucci cooking project.
So why not?!
So why not?!
We continue our culinary journey … new recipes, new city, and new kitchen. We’re glad you have rejoined us in sunny Florida!
Michelle and Tom
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We decided to go 'all-out' on our first Tucci meal in a year and a half … Puntarella Salad with Anchovy Dressing, Fried Calamari with Felicity's Cheat Aioli, and Linguini with 'Angry Lobster.’
We remembered some basics, such as studying the recipes in advance, 'mise en place' (everything in its place), and synchronizing our preparation so that each dish is finished at the same time. We were excited to 'put ourselves through the test' again.
So we assembled our shopping list and enthusiastically trekked to the brand-new Whole Foods Market on University Parkway.
So we assembled our shopping list and enthusiastically trekked to the brand-new Whole Foods Market on University Parkway.
Wow, were we disappointed! They had no live lobster and no fresh squid, which seemed slightly ridiculous considering that we were in Florida, one of the 'Seafood Capitals of the World'! In addition, the produce manager had never heard of puntarella, and guessed that it was some type of mushroom.
In fact, this store seemed to have only half the inventory of the Whole Foods Market that we regularly frequented in Green Hills (Nashville).
In fact, this store seemed to have only half the inventory of the Whole Foods Market that we regularly frequented in Green Hills (Nashville).
Michelle called Fresh Market and Morton’s Gourmet Market. No fresh lobster or calamari either. We called the nearest Publix Supermarket and secured one live lobster. They were able to locate two more live lobsters at their Longboat Key store, however. Tam picked them up before coming over to Michelle and Dan’s house.
Sadly, nobody else in Sarasota had puntarella either. Our online database for professional chefs suggested that arugula and/or dandelion greens could be substituted for puntarella. All three are known for their inherent bitter flavor. We bought the dandelion because it had a firmer structure, more similar to photos of puntarella we had seen.
So our first lesson in Florida was indeed a bitter one: Living in Nashville spoiled us. There were so many great food markets, providing a virtually endless selection of sophisticated ingredients in the Music City. Sarasota is very different. It became clear, based on today’s results, that gourmet cooking down here will likely involve a high degree of ingredient substitution.
We unpacked our supplies, cleared, and cleaned Michelle’s kitchen counters in preparation for the onslaught. We were able to acquire fresh calamari ‘tubes’, as well as some frozen squid tentacles, and they were immediately cleaned, cut, and placed in a bowl. They were then soaked in whole milk to ’soften the flesh.'
Likewise, once we trimmed off the the outer leaves of the dandelion greens, we split the spines into three-to-four inch long 'matchstick' strips and soaked them in ice water to wash-out some of the bitterness. Both the squid and the greens were set aside for two hours while we made other preparations.
Likewise, once we trimmed off the the outer leaves of the dandelion greens, we split the spines into three-to-four inch long 'matchstick' strips and soaked them in ice water to wash-out some of the bitterness. Both the squid and the greens were set aside for two hours while we made other preparations.
We could have taken the easy way out and bought linguini noodles … but no … Michelle demanded that we make them from scratch. There would be no shortcuts!! She used a mixer with dough hook to combine flour, egg, salt, and olive oil into a baseball-sized dough ball that we wrapped in plastic wrap and set aside to rest for thirty minutes. We were gratified to know that our previous experience making pasta enabled us to do this like pros, making fine adjustments to come up with perfect results!
Sister Laura joined Michelle during this slack-time, mincing garlic for Felicity’s Cheat Aioli. This simple dip was whipped up in mere minutes by hand-blending mayonnaise, fresh garlic, and Himalayan sea salt. It was covered and set aside for use with the fried calamari. Then Michelle and Laura cut lemon wedges to serve with it as well.
The pasta ball was now ready. We attached a ‘flat’ pasta attachment to our KitchenAid mixer and after several passes, eventually pressed the pasta into two five-foot long, six-inch wide, paper-thin sheets. They were cut into shorter (12 to 14 inch) pieces and run through a ‘spaghetti' attachment. The result was a perfect batch of noodles! They were set aside to dry on floured kitchen towels until needed.
Next up: Fried Calamari. Tom filled a deep sauté pan with vegetable oil and turned the heat up to medium-high, keeping a fire extinguisher nearby. Without a professional deep-fryer, this ‘open-pan’ method of deep-frying can be intimidating. The milk-soaked squid was dredged through a seasoned flour mix and deposited carefully in the hot oil. With Laura delicately placing the squid in the pan, each piece of calamari was fried individually for roughly two minutes, until perfectly-colored, and then removed.
Laura’s friend, Alex, provided some important deep-frying expertise during this process. We placed the pieces on paper towels to drain excess oil. Michelle then positioned them in a presentation dish, with fresh-ground salt, pepper, and garnish to taste. The calamari was served with the aioli as an appetizer, accompanied with 2017 Staete Landt Duchess Sauvignon Blanc ... and it was outstanding!!
So far, so good!!
Michelle and Laura then turned their attention to the puntarella (dandelion) salad. While the greens were drained and dried, the salad dressing was made by chopping and then grinding eight anchovy filets, along with garlic, olive oil, and fresh lemon juice with a mortar and pestle until it became emulsified into a thin, almost-translucent dressing. It was poured over the greens and immediately served. The result was a crisp, fresh salad that, according to the recipe, balanced both sweet and bitter flavors.
But to be honest … it was pretty dang bitter!! Maybe puntarella would have been better.
The grand finale was the the Linguini with ‘Angry Lobster.’ We pulled the three live lobsters from the refrigerator. Michelle was determined to kill them humanely. Alex found a YouTube video that demonstrated how to use a chef’s knife to split the shell through the center of the back, then down and forward through the head. She used Tom's super-sharp chef knife to accomplish this before dropping them in the boiling water.
After sixteen minutes in the pot, Tom pulled the shellfish, removed and chopped the meat, and placed it in a bowl.
Into a large pan, Michelle poured olive oil and added shallots. After infusing the oil with the shallots, she added chopped parsley, basil, and red pepper flakes. These aromatics, along with a half cup of 2017 Mulderbosch Sauvignon Blanc and a cup of chopped tomatoes, were stirred into a mixture that released a magnificent fragrance throughout the house. The lobster meat was introduced into the pan and again stirred.
Meanwhile, the fragile, dried pasta was dropped into the remaining boiling water and removed (after a quick two minutes). The al dente pasta was drained and lightly tossed into the saute pan. It was immediately pulled from the heat, and plated. Stanley Tucci recommended using the empty lobster tail shells in the presentation, to add color. We did this, adding extra lobster meat and basil garnish on top. We served the main course with a fantastic 2016 Shafer Red Shoulder Ranch Chardonnay.
OMG!!
What a terrific way to begin again!! Even though our knife skills may have gotten a little rusty, the sabbatical certainly did not affect our enthusiasm and desire to learn!! It's great to be back!!
