Generoso Rolls A Mean Braciola!

Braciola is a variance on the Italian dish known as Involtini. In Italy, Involtini are thin slices of pork, chicken, or beef that are rolled with Parmesan or Romano, usually held together with a toothpick, broiled and are served as the second course in a traditional meal. As I was taught in the more Southern Italian/US version which is like Involtini except we lose the toothpick for an bondage-master’s Saturday night supply of twine as we would drop our Involtini into our Sunday’s ragu, where it would be slowed cooked for many many hours. What comes out is a tender, almost flakey beef entree that I serve with pasta; In this case, Orecchiette, which is dearest Lily’s favorite.

You will need the following ingredients for the braciola and the ragu: One pound of flank steak, cooking twine, five cloves of garlic, one cup of ground romano, three ounces of provolone cheese, one cup of white wine, one cup of unseasoned bread crumbs, two cans of crushed tomatoes, salt, pepper, olive oil, a small bunch of fresh parsley, one pound of Italian sweet sausage. As always we hope that you enjoy this recipe and do let us know how you do with your attempt . Love, Generoso and Lily!

Music: 2 Legendes, S. 175 by Franz Liszt.

Lily’s Fabulous Cha Lua (Vietnamese Bologna)

Have you ever eaten a “House Special” Banh Mi and wondered what was the pale bologna-esque meat filling your delicious sandwich? Well, that’s cha lua!

Lily grew up eating cha regularly in its steamed and fried form, often with a piece of bread on one side of the plate and a huge chunk of cha on the other. This week, she shows you how to make this delicious pork treat!

She’ll show you how to make the pork paste, how to steam it in banana leaves, and how to fry it into golden patties.

Cha is great with a little bit of rice, a piece of bread, or all alone! It keeps in the fridge too, so it is good to have on hand for a quick meal or late night snack (Lily and Generoso actually made small sandwiches while writing this post).

Enjoy!

Music by Gustav Mahler, Songs of A Wayfarer.

Generoso’s Fiendishly Delicious Chicken Scarpariello! (Shoemaker’s Chicken)

Today, we will teach you how to make Chicken Scarpariello (Shoemaker’s Chicken) Truthfully, I have absolutely no idea why it’s called this or the origins of this incredibly bad for you dish. What I will say is that the final product, a creamy mix that has sausage, chicken and artichoke hearts was so delicious but heavy, that it knocked Lily and I out for about an hour. If done correctly, the whole dish should take you about an hour but we really feel that it is worth it.

You will need the following: 2 pounds of chicken breast, 1 pound of Italian sausage (we used our local butcher’s Calabrese sausage for this as it’s a bit more firm but harder to find), three medium sized potatoes, one cup of chicken stock, a tablespoon of butter, two cups of white flour, six ounces of artichoke hearts, a lemon, rosemary, salt, pepper, onion powder, and olive oil.

You can put this on top of a light pasta if you are insane but trust me, you really want to avoid making this dish any heavier than it is. Let us know how yours came out. Love, Generoso and Lily!

Music:Niccolò Paganini’s Violin Concerto No. 1, Op. 6

Hey, it’s the week of Lunar New Year! Let’s Celebrate with Banh To!

Lily has the fondest memories of Banh To. To her, it was always a crispy, chewy treat that arrived in her grandmother’s home the week before Lunar New Year. It was also a delicious snack only she and her grandmother enjoyed, so the pans of Banh To were always devoured by the two of them together before, during, and after the New Year’s celebrations.

This year is the year of the goat, Lily’s zodiac year, and to celebrate, she decided to make her own Banh To, especially since she has not been able to find it, since she no longer lives in a Vietnamese concentrated city.

In this week’s video, she’ll show you how to make Banh To and fry it up for Lunar New Year. It takes some time to cook, but the cooking time allows you to spend more time with your loved ones on this major holiday. Enjoy!

Music by Felix Mendelssohn’s Piano Concerto No. 2 in D minor, Op. 40.

Generoso’s Dangerously Fatty and Delicious, Neapolitan Sausage Soup!

I wait for the coldest and snowiest days of the year to make this soup, a blend of small and large flavors with a whole lot of fat to keep you going through the wintry mess. Though no cream is added, you will find this to be a savory and creamy soup that I hope you will enjoy despite the rather unhealthy ingredients 🙂

You will need: One pound of sweet Italian sausage, four strips of bacon, one sweet onion, one leek, two large potatoes, ten ounces of kale, one box of vegetable stock, salt, pepper, olive oil, four cloves of garlic and shredded Parmesan. Enjoy and let me know how yours turned out!

Music: Symphonie Fantastique, Op. 14 by Hector Berlioz

Lily’s Shrimp-less Version of Banh Xeo

Banh xeo can be found as an appetizer in most Vietnamese restaurants. Lily has two main memories of Banh Xeo

The giant banh xeo that took up an entire food tray made by a stand in a food court at the Vietnamese market/mall in Houston
The hurried banh xeo made at banh xeo parties where someone was always at the stove churning out the treat and passing it to empty plates

In most translations, banh xeo is called Vietnamese crepe. Sometimes you’ll even see it described as Vietnamese pizza. Regardless of what it is called, banh xeo is a delicious dish perfect for entertaining and sharing. The coconut milk and the mung bean paste in the batter make the banh xeo batter perfectly savory, rich, and the tiniest bit sweet. Paired with lettuce, mint, and fish sauce, each bite of banh xeo has a mix of flavors, textures, and even temperatures.

There’s a good amount of preparation required for this dish, but don’t be intimidated; the cooking time is actually very short. Enjoy!

Music: Symphony no. 2 in Cm, WAB 102 by Anton Bruckner

Generoso Makes The Italian Wedding Soup Happen!

Generoso has been asked on many occasions, “Is Italian wedding soup actually served at weddings?” to which he usually responds, “Not only is Italian wedding soup not served at weddings, it isn’t even Italian in origin!” So, why is Generoso making Italian wedding soup for this week’s blog video? Because it is synonymous in the Fierro house with a snowy day which it is here in Boston. The “wedding” in question comes from the marriage of meat and vegetables, so no people are involved. The tradition of “minestra maritata” (wedding soup) harkens back to the Spanish occupation of Italy as forms of this delicious soup were brought to Italy by the Spaniards, who make their version with a heavy heavy meat base. For our version you will need a bunch of things, escarole (or endive), pork, three eggs, bread crumbs, salt, pepper, flour, one onion, fresh parsley, pecorino romano cheese, four cups of chicken stock. Have fun and let us know how yours turned out! Love from Generoso and Lily. Music: Symphony in Dm by César-Auguste-Jean-Guillaume-Hubert Franck

Lily’s Delicious Xoi Dau Xanh (Sweet Rice with Mung Beans)

Xoi refers to the glutinous sweet rice dish with many forms in Vietnamese cooking. There are savory versions of xoi, and there are sweet versions of xoi. Lily will show you how to make Xoi Dau Xanh, which is a sweet version of xoi with mung beans that she grew up eating for breakfast. Xoi Dau Xanh is served with sesame sugar salt and is perfect when you need a midday snack. This is a super simple recipe that requires little preparation and more passive cooking time depending on the type of steamer you use.

Lily used Korean sweet rice here, but if you find Thai sweet rice, do go for it!

Enjoy! Let us know how it goes!

Music provided by Conradin Kreutzer’s Grand Septet Eb, Op, 62.

Portobello Mushroom and Spring Onion Risotto with Generoso

Inspired by the sensational risotto we ate at Rosso B, a brand new corner pizzeria in Haymarket here in Boston, I decided to make my family’s take on risotto for you this week. Risotto is really a blank canvas and you can make it however you would like. This week, Lily and I found some beautiful spring onions and portobello mushrooms for cheap at Haymarket so that was going to be the basis for this risotto. I also love making it with a pesto base and seafood but I find that the vegetable risotto really brings out the creaminess of the arborio rice, which is the one essential ingredient for our risotto, that and a lot of butter and goat cheese. You will need about 4 cups of vegetable broth, 2 cups of arborio rice, 4 ounces of goat cheese, 1/2 cup of white wine, 2 sticks of butter, 5 gloves of garlic, 1 spring onion, two portobello mushrooms, pepper, salt. Let us know how yours turned out and buona fortuna!

Music is Pictures At An Exhibition by Modest Mussorgsky.

Making Banh Cuon in the Western Kitchen

Banh Cuon is a dish that Lily grew up eating often in restaurants because it required too much effort to make. The best Banh Cuon has a paper thin, chewy wrapper that is created by a stretched out cloth on a large steamer. However, on a few lucky occasions, her grandmother would make it at home, and for this week’s recipe, Lily shows you how to make Banh Cuon with a non-stick pan and a lid.

Banh Cuon is a very general name for rice flour rolls filled with meat. Traditional versions are filled with ground pork and wood ear mushrooms or deep fried scallions, but the filling is completely up to you! Lily’s grandmother actually filled her Banh Cuon with ground pork and crab meat, and some Vietnamese restaurants will even fill them with BBQ pork! This video recipe uses a pork and scallion filling.

Included in this video is a recipe to make a very simple Nuoc Mam (fish sauce for dipping), which is the final serving component of any Banh Cuon dish.

As a warning, the process to make the rolls can be difficult; the rolls should be paper thin, but on the stove, that is not the easiest thing to achieve. It took Lily and Generoso a few tries before we found the method that worked best. Be patient with the first few rolls; they may not be the prettiest, but we promise that they will taste great! Music: Luigi Boccherini’s Cello Concerto no. 9 in Bb, G. 482

LILY & GENEROSO 4EVER!

LILY AND GENEROSO’S VIET-ITALO KITCHEN