Bookish & Cookish: Cookbook review

I had heard a lot of positive things about the Canal House cookbooks but had not gotten my hands on one before Canal House Cooking: Pronto! I can see what the fuss was all about. The authors are not just great cooks, but great writers, and the book was really a joy to read. I could almost smell the garlic sizzling and felt like I was being transported, either to Italy or to the Canal House table, depending on the sect5ion. For someone who likes to really read and savor a cookbook, not just jump to the recipes, I think this would be a delightful one for you. From what I understand, the Canal House books usually focus on seasonal cooking, but this one focuses on a cuisine instead: Italian. And wouldn't we all like to be on an Italian getaway? Reading this book will give you a taste of that, and then you can try out the recipes and get another kind of taste!

I was provided an advanced e-copy of this title though NetGalley, courtesy of the publisher. Receiving a copy did not affect my review.

Cookish: What's for dinner?

My boyfriend and I have taken to making our own pizza lately. Here's what we do:

I make my favorite tomato sauce, using whole tomatoes in a can, and add some  pizza seasoning (mostly oregano and basil) and crushed red pepper, and cook it down a little more than I would for pasta sauce and then use an immersion blender to get it smooth.

To make the dough (adapted from rachelraymag.com):
1 tsp honey
1 cup warm water
1 packet yeast
3 cups bread flour (plus more for kneading)
1 3/4 tsp kosher salt
2 tbs oil (plus extra for the bowl)

Stir the honey into the water to dissolve, then stir in yeast and let it sit for 5 mins, until foamy. In a food processor, pulse the flour and salt to mix well, then add the oil and yeast mixture and blend until a ball of dough forms. Next, knead the dough on a floured surface for about 5 minuted (good workout!). Put the dough in a large bowl and toss with a small amount of oil til coated. Cover with plastic wrap and let sit for 1-1 1/2 hours, until doubled in size. punch down the dough, turn out onto a floured surface and cut into quarters. Roll into balls and place in the fridge for 10-48 hours  (I have done less time on occasion), or place in the freezer for longer storage (defrost in fridge overnight). Let come to room temp for 1 hour before stretching into pizzas.

These size dough balls make smallish pizzas,depending upon how thick you like your crust. My bf happily eats a whole one by himself; I usually have a piece or two leftover.

Preheat oven with pizza stone to 500 degrees. Top your pizza as desired (he likes tomato sauce, cheese, and pepperoni; I like olive oil and garlic, sauteed spinach and mushrooms, and cheese). Bake for 8-10 minutes each.

Cookish: What's for dinner?

Eggplant Parm Ravioli

This recipe is adapted from Rachael Ray Magazine.

1 large eggplant (1 1/2 lbs), peeled and coarsely chopped

EVOO

3 cloves garlic, smashed and peeled

salt and pepper

1 1/2 cups shredded Mozzarella cheese

1/3 cup grated or shredded Parmesan cheese, plus more for topping

4 small vine-ripened tomatoes, chopped

fresh or dried basil

12 egg roll wrappers

Put on a large pot of salted water to boil. Put the eggplant in the food process and process until finely chopped. (You may have to do this in batches.) In a large skillet, heat enough olive oil to coat the bottom (1-1 1/2 tbs) over medium high heat. Add one smashed clove of garlic and cook until golden, 1-2 minutes. Remove the clove. Add the eggplant, salt and pepper, and cook, stirring, until browned (about 10 minutes). Remove the eggplant to a bowl to cool for 5 minutes, then add the cheeses to the bowl and mix well. In the skillet add another 1-1 1/2 tbs of olive oil, the tomatoes, salt and pepper. If using dried basil, add it now, and cook about 4 minutes, until tomatoes are softened. (If using fresh basil, add at the end).

Fill each eggroll wrapper with about 2 tbs of the eggplant filling. Wet two sides of the wrapper and fold in half diagonally to make large triangular ravioli. Press out all of the air and seal tightly. Once the water boils, drop in the ravioli in batches. Depending upon the size of the pot, you can probably cook 4-5 at a time. Cook for 3-4 minutes per batch. Fill four bowls with 3 ravioli each and top with tomato sauce and a sprinkle of parm. (You can add a little of the cooking water to the sauce, if you wish, but my tomatoes were juicy enough).

These were really delish! Please give them a try.