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ITALIAN RECIPES

Capperi! Or, Capers!

Caper Crostini

Ingredients:

1/2 cup less one tablespoon pickled capers
1/2 cup powdered sugar (without vanilla)
2 tablespoons raisins
3 tablespoons pine nuts
1 ounce prosciutto
2 tablespoons candied citron

Preparation:

Coarsely mince the capers and the raisins, dice the prosciutto, cut the pine nuts into thirds widthwise, and mince the candied citron.

Set a small pot on the fire with a heaping teaspoon of flour and two teaspoons of the sugar. Cook the mixture till it turns nutty brown, then add a half cup of water and a teaspoon of vinegar; cook, stirring, until the lumps have disappeared, and then add the remaining ingredients one at a time.

Boil the mixture for ten minutes, and taste it to see if the sweet and sour flavor is to your liking. I haven't specified the amount of vinegar because vinegar can vary greatly in strength.While the mixture is still hot, spread it on thin slices of bread that have been either fried in good oil, or simply toasted.
These crostini can also be served cold at mid meal to stimulate the appetites of your diners. English style bread is best for these crostini.

Once the mixture is ready, spread it on thinly sliced bread. Tuscan bakeries make special crostini loaves whose outlines match those of the suits of playing cards. Elegant, but a baguette will work as well. Serve the crostini as an antipasto, with a crisp white wine.

Spaghetti with Strombolian Capers

Ingredients:

13 ounces (325 g) spaghetti
2/3 cup (6 ounces, or 150 g) tomato sauce
8 green olives
4 salted anchovies
2 fresh hot peppers
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons salted capers (pickled won't do here)
1/2 cup dry white wine
1/4 cup olive oil
Salt

Preparation:

Set a pot of pasta water to boil.
Rinse the anchovies and open them to remove the spines; trim the fins, tails and heads, and set the fillets aside. Set the capers to soak in a bowl of warm water.
Peel and mince the garlic, discarding any green heart the cloves may have. Seed, rib, and shred the hot peppers. Pit the olives.

Drain and pat the capers dry, combine them with the other ingredients mentioned so far, and dice the mixture. Heat the oil in a large skillet and sauté the caper mixture, stirring constantly, for 2-3 minutes.

Add the wine and cook until it has evaporated completely, then add the tomato sauce and 2 ladles of hot water. Cover, reduce the flame to a simmer, and cook for about an hour, stirring often and adding more water if the sauce begins to dry out.

Cook the pasta in abundant salted water, drain it when it is al dente, toss it in the sauce in the skillet, and serve. Cheese will not be necessary.

Potatoes with Capers

Ingredients:

2 1/4 pounds (1 k) potatoes
An onion, thinly sliced
5 ounces (125 g) pancetta, diced
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 tablespoon freshly minced rosemary leaves
2 1/2 ounces (60 g) salted capers, well rinsed and patted dry

Preparation:

Boil the potatoes in salted water until a skewer goes through them easily, then peel and dice them. Set a large pan on the fire, melt the butter, add the onion and the pancetta, and sauté, covered, over a low flame for about 10 minutes.
Stir in the rosemary and the potatoes, and mix well; continue cooking for about 5 minutes over a slightly brisker flame, adding the capers a minute or so before everything is done. Serve hot.

Vitello Tonnato

Ingredients:

2 1/4 pounds(1 k) boned veal, cut from the rump.
3/4 pound (320 g) tuna packed in oil
3 eggs
6 salted anchovies (the canned variety, sold by delicatessens)
A handful of pickled capers
1/2 cup (approx.) olive oil
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
A bottle of dry white wine
The juice of a lemon
A rib of celery, thinly sliced crosswise
A few leaves of sage
2 bay leaves
3 cloves (some people omit these)
Salt
A few more perfect capers, some lemon slices, and sprigs of parsley for garnishing

Preparation:

Put the meat in a bowl with the bay leaves, cloves, sage and celery, and pour the wine over it. Cover and marinate in the refrigerator for 24 hours, turning the meat occasionally. The next day place the meat in a Dutch oven. Strain the wine and add it to the meat, then add enough water to cover.

Lightly salt the pot and simmer the meat for an hour. In the meantime, wash, scale and bone the anchovies. When the hour is up add them to the pot and continue boiling for another half hour; the liquid should be reduced by half.

Hard boil the eggs, run them under cold water, peel them, and extract the yolks (you can discard or fill the whites as you prefer). Rinse, squeeze dry, and mince the capers.
When the meat is fork-tender remove it from the pot and strain the broth into a bowl. Transfer the fish filets to a clean strainer and press them through it, together with the tuna and the yolks, into another bowl.

Stir in the minced capers, the vinegar, the lemon juice and the olive oil, and then dilute the sauce to your taste with some of the reserved broth.
When the veal has cooled slice it finely and lay the slices out on one or more platters (you want just one layer). Spread the sauce over the meat, garnish the platters with the lemon slices, capers and parsley. Cover them with plastic wrap and chill them in the refrigerator before serving.

Buon appetito!

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