Archive

ITALIAN RECIPES

Fresh String Beans

Fried String Beans

Ingredients:

10 ounces (250 g) string beans, tips snapped off
Salt
Flour
2 eggs, beaten
Breadcrumbs
Oil for frying
The Sweet And Sour Sauce
3/4 cup vinegar
3/4 cup water
5 amaretti
2 ounces (50 g) day old bread, crusts stripped and discarded, and the crumb crumbled
1 tablespoon sugar
Salt & pepper
A pinch of powdered cinnamon
2 ounces (50 g) minced candied citron peel
2 ounces (50 g) raisins
2 ounces (50 g) shredded almonds

Preparation:

To make the string beans:
Blanch the beans in lightly salted water, drain them, and pat them dry. Dredge them in the flour, dip them in the egg, dredge them in bread crumbs, and fry them in hot oil until golden, before draining them on absorbent paper.

Mr. Cavalcanti suggest you also use other vegetables, for example celery sticks and zucchini sliced lengthwise, blanching them too and then flouring them.

To make the Sweet and Sour Sauce:
Bring the water and vinegar to a boil and add the amaretti and the bread crumb to it, together with the cinnamon. Season with salt and pepper and let the mixture cook, adding more water as needed to keep it from drying out.

After about 10 minutes add the peel, raisins, and almonds. Continue cooking over a low flame until the sauce is fairly dense and well amalgamated, and at this point taste it to see if more sugar or vinegar is necessary.
Serve it either hot or cold, with fried foods or hard boiled eggs.
Serves 4.

Genovese Style String Bean

Ingredients:

2 pounds (900 g) string beans, tips trimmed
2 tablespoons freshly minced parsley
1 clove garlic, minced
4 salted anchovies, rinsed and boned
4 tablespoons olive oil
1/4 cup unsalted butter (you can also simply increase the oil to a half cup)
Salt and pepper

Preparation:

Blanch the beans in abundant salted water, drain them, and set them aside.
Heat the oil or oil and butter in a pan and sauté the herbs and the anchovies, stirring everything around until the anchovies dissolve, and then add the beans and cook briefly over a brisk flame, stirring to coat them with the sauce. Check seasoning and serve.
Serves 6.

Roman style String Beans, Barely Cooked

Ingredients:

About 2 1/4 pounds (1 k) string beans, tips trimmed
1/4 pound plum tomatoes, blanched, peeled, seeded and chopped
1/2 cup olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 a hot pepper, shredded
2/3 cup dry white wine
Salt

Preparation:

To make basic string beans Roman style, sauté a thinly sliced onion in lard or olive oil, and then it has browned add chopped blanched peeled seeded tomatoes, and continue cooking.
When the sauce is ready stir in the blanched beans and season everything well with salt, pepper, and minced parsley. Cook a minute or two more (don't overcook), and the string beans are ready.
Serves 6.

String Bean and Tuna Salad Recipe

Ingredients:

1 1/4 pounds (500 g) string beans, tips trimmed and cooked in lightly salted water
10 ounces (250 g) tuna packed in oil, either thinly sliced or crumbled
The juice of a lemon
Olive oil
Salt & pepper to taste

Preparation:

Drain he cooked beans and run them under cold water to cool them, then transfer them to a salad bowl and combine them with the tuna.
Season the mixture with the remaining ingredients, chill lightly, and serve.
Serves 4.

Beef & String Bean Stew

Ingredients:

2 1/4 pounds (1 k) stew beef, gristle removed, and cubed
2 1/4 pounds (1 k) string beans
A carrot or two, peeled and cut into rounds
An onion, chopped
1 cup (250 ml) tomato sauce, or a 1-pound (400 g) can of tomatoes
Salt and pepper to taste
1/4 cup (60 ml) olive oil
A half cup dry red wine

Preparation:

Heat the olive oil in a pot and add the chopped onions; cook until they have become translucent, taking care lest they burn, and then add the meat; continue cooking, stirring, until the meat is browned on all sides.

Add the wine if you're including it, and continue cooking until it has evaporated. Add the carrot and the tomato, season to taste, and simmer over a low flame, covered, for about an hour.
Add the string beans and continue cooking for another half hour or until all is fork- tender. Check seasoning, and serve.
Serves 4-6.

Buon appetito!

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