At least 90 percent of the time when I cook gnocchi, I sear it first (also known as pre-searing, see table, A Brief Summary of Fire-Driven Cooking Methods, page 40). It’s my preferred way to cook this pasta before I toss it with a sauce or into a salad (seared gnocchi makes an excellent crouton substitute); the combination of a crispy outside and pillowy-soft inside makes it irresistible. In this dish, the shrimp also get pre-seared, with a hint of smokiness from the Kashmiri chilli. The trick to searing in a skillet is to avoid overcrowding the food, or the moisture released will make the food soggy instead of crisp.
This recipe feeds two people well, but you can also stretch it to four if you serve it with a hearty salad such as the Grilled Portobello Mushroom Salad with Pomegranate Vinaigrette (page 68).
A recipe that instantly evokes the warmth of home, this version of the classic Italian dish was taught to me by my friend Diego, who is a shoe designer and a true Neapolitan. He invited me over for dinner one evening; I had been staying in Milan, shooting a television show, and after a long stretch of restaurants and room service, a home-cooked dinner was exactly what I needed. Pasta e fagioli is like the embrace of a friend: with the very first spoonful, you immediately realize how much you missed them.
This dish is wonderful reheated the next day, when it becomes ripassata. To make that, add a little water, olive oil and grated Parmesan and warm the soup gently. When it begins to form a crust, toss it in the pan before serving.
Socca is a beloved street food from Nice made with chickpea flour, water, olive oil, and salt. Cooked in a blazing-hot pizza oven, it develops a thin golden crust while remaining tender and moist inside, similar to the texture of a crêpe. To be true to traditional socca, it’s important for the batter to form into this ultrathin crust and to develop a nice color. Its rustic charm lies in its simplicity— it’s often served on a paper plate, sprinkled generously with cracked black pepper, and enjoyed warm— and it’s as much an experience as a recipe. The process of scraping it from the pan into shards with a spatula or fish slicer in front of your guests is a real crowd-pleaser.
When summer corn is in season and you can’t think of enough ways to enjoy it, make this cold soup. It’s refreshing as a light lunch or the start to a warm-weather dinner of grilled meat or fish. Just remember not to season it until it’s fully chilled, because the temperature really affects what and how you taste. Salty-ass corn is no bueno.
Provoleta, or grilled provolone, is a popular appetizer in Argentina, typically eaten before a meal of grilled meats. Provoleta is also the name of the cheese used for the dish—it’s a low-moisture variety that is designed to be grilled. That being said, provoleta isn’t easy to find in the United States, so grab some run-of-the-mill provolone and cook it in a cast-iron skillet, either on a grill or on the stovetop.
Heck, you can even toss it in a hot oven to heat it up and make it a tad gooey.
I love chimichurri, an herby, vinegary sauce that pairs nicely with the saltiness of provolone, which is usually finished aging right in time for summer. I like to add Castelvetrano olives to my chimichurri for a bit of texture and because, well, I love olives. Feel free to skip them if you don’t feel the same way.
The most vital ingredient of this classic Mallorcan salad is the time you leave it to sit. We have a love in Cyprus for zoumi, which are the juices at the bottom of a salad bowl. Growing up, it took me years to realize that those were the best part of the salad that was on the table at every meal, even on Christmas Day (the acid in a salad helps to cut through richer dishes).
Once we both understood the secret of zoumi, my sister and I would fight over who got them. Absolutely cherish those juices at the bottom of the salad bowl. Go to war for them. Whatever you do, don’t throw them away!
Tuna fishing in Sardinia is a historic tradition. In Carloforte, tuna is still caught according to ancient methods that respect the rhythms of nature and the tuna stocks. The combination of tuna and tomato is commonly found in Mediterranean cuisine and this tonno al pomodoro is a simple but very tasty secondi that is great paired with a seasonal side dish and a glass of Vermentino white wine. I also recommend some nice sourdough bread at the table for a bit of scarpetta, to mop up all of that delicious tomato sauce.
The dish known as gígantes pláki epitomizes traditional Greek food and occupies a place in the hearts of most Greek households. The name comes from the ‘giant’ beans – often butter beans or a variety of extra-large white runner beans called fasólia gígantes – that are baked in a gorgeous chunky tomato stew. For ease, I’m using canned butter beans here, so that all that needs to be made is the hearty sauce to accompany them. I love to top my gígantes pláki with crumbled feta and bake until the cheese is beautifully golden and crispy.
When I crave a little warmth and comfort, I revert to a Greek style of cooking called yiahni, in which you slowly cook seasonal veggies in oil and tomatoes. Forget crunchy vegetables, I want them tender, sweet and delicious. In the summer, I will gently cook fresh flat beans and green beans in lots of garlic, onions and tomatoes; in the winter, I resort to using frozen peas and green beans. Either way, I will eat them with fresh bread and capers. A really nutritious and wholesome meal.
I make this when I want “restaurant pasta,” but am short on time and ingredients. It’s a lovely Italian-inspired meal that you never knew could come from your home kitchen. Using one pot for the broccoli and the pasta makes for a breezy cleanup before bed—almost as simple as ordering in.