In the kitchen with Mila Furman
This segment is produced with and sponsored by Alessi & Caputo's Fresh Market.
For our "In the Kitchen" segment we send our cooks out to shop - to create a dish that they love! Today's theme - Italian Thanksgiving!
We're "In the Kitchen" with private chef, and food expert from girlandthekitchen.com, Mila Furman!
We followed Mila as she shopped at the Caputo's Fresh Market in Carol Stream to see what ingredients she wanted to use for her thanksgiving spread.
Visit the Alessi website for all the Alessi products.
Alessi and Caputo's Fresh Market have a surprise for our viewing audience. Until 2 a.m. tomorrow, go to the main page of windycitylive.com, click on promotions and go to the WCL Grocery Instant Win contest for your chance at winning one of these great prizes:
-$20 gift certificate to Caputo's Fresh Market
-$90 Alessi gift box
And you can opt in for a free package of Alessi Avocado Toast Seasoning Grinder.
Visit the Caputo's Fresh Market website for a location near you.
Mila's recipes:
Apple Crostata
INGREDIENTS
Crust
1 cup butter (cold)
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 ounces ice water (may need more if dough does not come together)
Filling
3 Granny Smith apples peeled and sliced
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup butter
3/4 teaspoon cinnamon
tsp lemon zest
tsp orange juice
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1 tablespoon cornstarch dissolved in 1 tablespoon water
heavy cream optional
INSTRUCTIONS
1. Dough:
2. With a knife, cut the butter into 1/4 cubes and keep cold.
3. Mix flour, sugar and salt together in the food processor.
4. Add the butter to the dry ingredients in the food processor.
5. Pulse or mix briefly, until butter is in small pieces, the size of peas.
6. Add the ice water and mix. Stop before it is a solid mass.
7. NOTE: It is better to be a little crumbly.
8. Press the dough together and form into one large ball. Wrap in plastic wrap.
9. Refrigerate at least one hour.
10.
Filling
1. In large sauté pan, melt butter until foaming and add sugar. Cook about 5 minutes over medium heat until light brown. Add the apples.
2. Cook until apples are slightly soft, and add spices and zest - mixing well with a rubber spatula or wooden spoon.
3. Add the cornstarch and mix well, cooking one minute.
4. Remove filling and cool completely.
Assembly
1. Place parchment paper on a baking sheet.
2. Cut the crostata dough into 4 equal balls.
3. Roll out the dough with a rolling pin into about a 9 inch circle.
4. Place the rolled out dough onto the baking sheets lined with parchment paper
5. Using an ice cream scoop, fill with 4-1/2 OZ. apple filling.
6. Fold the dough onto the filling creating a rustic looking flower.
7. Place into refrigerator for 30 minutes.
Baking
1. Brush the crust of the crostatas with heavy cream.
2. Sprinkle crust with crystallized sugar
3. Bake in preheated 350 degree oven until brown and crisped (about 35-40 minutes).
Green Beans Gremolata
1 pound French green beans, trimmed
2 teaspoons minced garlic (2 cloves)
1 tablespoon grated lemon zest (2 lemons)
3 tablespoons minced fresh flat-leaf parsley
3 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons toasted pine nuts (optional)
2 tablespoons good olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the green beans and blanch them for 2 to 3 minutes, until tender but still crisp. Drain the beans in a colander and immediately put them into a bowl of ice water to stop the cooking and preserve their bright green color.
For the gremolata, toss the garlic, lemon zest, parsley, Parmesan, and pine nuts in a small bowl and set aside.
When ready to serve, heat the olive oil in a large sauté pan over medium-high heat. Drain the beans and pat them dry. Add the beans to the pan and sauté, turning frequently, for 2 minutes, until coated with olive oil and heated through. Off the heat, add the gremolata and toss well. Sprinkle with 3/4 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper and serve hot.
Creamy Mashed potatoes
Roasted garlic
20 cloves of garlic
Enough olive oil to cover garlic
Sat and pepper
INSTRUCTIONS for roasted garlic
1. Preheat oven to 350-degrees
2. Take garlic cloves and put them in a deep oven proof container.
3. Drizzle olive oil into the bottom of your pan. It can be a frying pan or an old pie pan. I chose to use my meatloaf pan. Add enough olive oil to cover garlic. Sprinkle with salt and pepper
4. Cover pan with foil and place into the oven for 30-35 minutes or until a knife goes into the garlic smoothly.
INGREDIENTS for mashed potatoes
5 pounds red potatoes
1 stick of butter
1 cup of heavy cream
salt and pepper to season
INSTRUCTIONS
1. Boil potatoes until they are fork tender.
2. In a small saucepan, melt the butter with the heavy cream on a low flame; keep warm.
3. Strain the potatoes so that there is not water left.
4. For the actual mashing process, I have found that using a food mill is by far the most effective way to get the creamiest mashed potatoes, with minimal effort. If you do not have a food mill then use a smasher or a mixer if you have it.
5. Add half of the butter mixture to the potatoes. Combine and see the consistency. Add in more butter and cream if necessary. I like mine super creamy so I added it all in. Just add it in a bit at a time so the potatoes get a chance to absorb the liquids.
6. Add in roasted garlic and about 3 tablespoons of the roasted garlic oil. THIS IS YOUR FLAVOR!
7. Taste and season :)
Alessi Porcini and Burtternut Squash Risotto
1 package of Alessi porcini risotto
1 cup of butternut squash
2 tablespoons fresh sage, finely chopped
1 cup grated Parmesan
2 tablespoons lemon zest
A pinch of finely grated nutmeg
Olive oil for roasting
Salt and pepper to season
Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
Cook the risotto according to package instructions.
Place butternut squash into an oven proof pan and drizzle with olive oil, salt and pepper. Roast until tender and lightly brown, about 15-20 min.
Once the risotto is done, turn the heat down to low, add in squash, Parmesan, nutmeg and zest.
Combine all the ingredients and season to taste.
Serve with extra zest and safe on top if desired.
