This is a quick and condensed version of the Sunday summer Italian-American staple. While I am using 16 ounces of pure canned crab meat in place of of actual crabs, I guarantee you that this dish does not lack flavor, aroma and the overall deliciousness of the real deal.
The trick to doing this condensed version correctly is to use the proper type of canned crab meat. You want to get the full 16 ounce size can of pure crab meat that is sold in the seafood section of the grocery store. The smaller cans of crab meat found near the canned tuna are packed with water, so you are not really getting much for your money with those. You will find a choice of crab meat (special, claw, lump), the lump crab meat being the most expensive. I use the special crab meat and find that it works very well. The lump crab meat, of course, is the tastiest. But there are a lot of flavors going on in this dish, and I feel that the cost of the lump crab is a bit much for what you are using it for in this recipe.
1 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes 1 16-ounce can crab meat 1/4 cup olive oil 1 small onion, diced 3 cloves garlic, minced 1 sprig fresh basil 1 tablespoon Old Bay seasoning 1 tablespoon fresh chopped oregano, or 1/2 tablespoon dried oregano Pinch sea salt, to taste
Add the olive oil to a sauté pan over medium heat. Add the onions, stir until soft and translucent. Add the garlic, stir until aromatic, about 30 seconds to one minute. Add the crushed tomatoes, stir. Add the full sprig of basil, then add the crab meat and stir. Add the Old Bay seasoning, salt and oregano, stir. Cover with lid, let simmer over low heat for 15-20 minutes, spiring occasionally.
Meanwhile, boil a large pot of salted water. Add the pasta of your choice, cook according to directions to al dente stage.
Remove the basil and adjust the taste of the gravy to your liking. Remove the cooked pasta from the pot and place in a large bowl, reserving the pasta water. Top the pasta with the crab gravy. You can add a bit of the reserved pasta water to thin out the gravy if you prefer. Plate it and enjoy!
Saint Patrick’s Day, March 17th, is a day of celebration filled with parades, parties, and lots of fun, food and drink. Right on the heels of this Irish-inspired day of celebration is the Feast of Saint Joseph, which is celebrated on March 19th. Although this day may not be honored with parades, songs and green beer, it is celebrated with one of my all time favorite Italian pastries, Zeppole di San Giuseppe (Saint Joseph’s Cakes).
Zeppole is an Italian cream filled pastry, similar to a cream puff. The cream fillings most often used are chocolate, vanilla, or ricotta. The pastries are usually topped with a candied cherry, and you must not forget the dusting of powdered sugar to finish it off!
The recipe that I’m sharing with you today uses mascarpone cheese in place of the more traditional ricotta. I am a huge fan of mascarpone, which is a soft, spreadable Italian cream cheese. I often crave the creamy texture that is created when mascarpone is folded into home made whipped cream. With the addition of some powdered sugar and vanilla extract for flavoring, and mini chocolate chips for extra fun texture and sweetness, this version of an Italian cream filling can do no wrong.
There are two methods that you can use to shape the pastry. You can pipe the pastry dough with a pastry bag, or you can simply use a tablespoon to scoop out individual dollops of pastry dough. You can make the puffed pastries and the cream filling ahead of time. The puffed pastries will keep well in an air-tight container for 1-2 days. You can also freeze them for a few months. They will defrost at room temperature in about 10 short minutes. The cream filling can also be made ahead of time and will stay well in the fridge for a few days. Just be sure to not assemble the zeppole until you are ready to serve them. You can add the cream with a spoon, spatula or a pastry bag if you have one.
As I mentioned above, these cakes are often topped with a candied cherry. A maraschino cherry fresh out of the jar would also work, but there is something fun and elegant about the candied cherry. While candied cherries are easier to find during the holiday season, I do have a go-to recipe for home made candied cherries, which can be found at the bottom of this post. It’s a fairly simple recipe, which takes about an hour to prepare. But again, the cherry on top is just that….the cherry on top. It’s not necessary, and once you get a taste of this dessert (with or without the cherry), I’m sure you’ll agree that it is a timeless treat.
The pastries, baked for 20-25 minutes, ready to be filled.Maraschino cherries slowly boiling, ready to become candied cherries.
Zeppole di San Giuseppe (Saint Joseph’s Cakes)
Makes 1 Dozen Zeppole
For the pastry: 1/2 cup (or 8 tablespoons) butter 1 cup water 1 pinch salt 1 cup all purpose flour, sifted 4 eggs
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place the butter, water and salt into a sauce pan, bring to a rolling boil. Once the butter has melted, lower heat to medium. Stir in flour and beat vigorously until a dough ball is formed. Transfer the dough ball to a mixing bowl, let cool. Beat the eggs into the dough, one egg at a time, until all eggs have been fully incorporated.
Using a pastry bag with a star tip, pipe the dough onto a parchment covered baking sheet in a circular motion. You’re looking to make a donut shape about 3 to 4 inches wide. If you don’t have a pastry bag, you can drop the dough onto the baking sheet one tablespoon at a time (making a solid shaped pastry). You should get 12 individual donut shapes or dough balls. Bake until the dough puffs up and are golden brown on top. About 20-25 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool.
For the Italian cream filling: 2 cups (or 1 pint) heavy whipping cream 1/4 to 1/2 cup confectioner’s sugar (adjust the amount of sweetness to your liking) 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 8 ounces mascarpone cheese 1/2 cup miniature chocolate chips
Combine cream, powdered sugar and vanilla extract in a chilled mixing bowl (the bowl MUST be chilled). Using a hand mixer or a stand mixer, mix together until soft peaks start to form. Continue to mix, adding the mascarpone cheese a little at a time. Adding all of the mascarpone cheese at once will cause splashing. Continue to mix until stiff peaks form. Stir in the chocolate chips. Refrigerate in a container until ready to use.
To assemble: When ready to serve, use a spoon, spatula or a piping bag to fill the center of the donut shaped pastries with the whipped cream. Top with a candies cherry and powdered sugar. For the tablespoon-dropped pastries, cut the pastry in half and fill it with the cream.
This recipe is a fun and easy take on what may be the most traditional autumn dessert of all, the pumpkin pie. These days there are a wide variety of pumpkin related desserts. Everything from traditional pumpkin pie, to pumpkin cheesecakes and pumpkin trifles, to pumpkin bread and biscotti. And of course you need a nice hot cup of pumpkin spiced coffee to accompany your dessert. This recipe brings the classic essence of pumpkin pie, but as a flavorful pumpkin spiced whipped cream tucked into a flaky puff pastry.
Before I get to sharing the ingredients, I thought I would explain the history behind this recipe. It started back in the early spring when I was having a conversation with a very good friend of mine about Saint Joseph’s Cakes. Not only are we both huge fans of this traditional early spiring dessert made of fried dough filled with custard (also known as zeppole), we are also huge fans of pumpkin anything. This led to us agreeing that there should be a pumpkin version of zeppole….and we should jokingly call it a Saint Peter Pumpkin Eater Cake.
Well….if you know me by know, you know that even the silliest food suggestion will often spark an idea for me that needs to be fulfilled. And here we now are, more than a half year later, with a recipe that I am very happy to share. Only I went with a more practical name.
You can make the puffed pastries and the whipped cream ahead of time. The puffed pastries will keep well in an air-tight container for 1-2 days. You can also freeze them for a few months. They will defrost at room temperature in about 10 short minutes. The whipped cream can also be made ahead of time and will stay well in the fridge for a few days. Just be sure to not assemble the cream puffs until you are ready to serve them. You can add the cream with a spoon, spatula or a piping bag if you have one.
Pumpkin Mascarpone Cream Puffs
Makes 1 Dozen Cream Puffs
For the pastry: 1/2 cup butter 1 cup water 1 pinch salt 1 cup all purpose flour, sifted 4 eggs
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place the butter, water and salt into a sauce pan, bring to a rolling boil. Once the butter has melted, lower heat to medium. Stir in flour and beat vigorously until a dough ball is formed. Transfer the dough ball to a mixing bowl, let cool. Beat the eggs into the dough, one egg at a time, until all eggs have been fully incorporated.
Using a pastry bag with a star tip, pipe the dough onto a parchment covered baking sheet in a circular motion. You’re looking to make a donut shape about 6 inches wide. If you don’t have a pastry bag, you can drop the dough onto the baking sheet one tablespoon at a time (making a solid shaped pastry). You should get 12 individual donut shapes or dough balls. Bake until the dough puffs up and are golden brown on top. About 20-25 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool.
For the whipped cream: 2 cups (or 1 pint) heavy whipping cream 1/2 cup confectioner’s sugar 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1-1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice dash cinnamon 1/4 cup mascarpone cheese 1/2 of a 15 ounce can of pumpkin puree
Combine cream, powdered sugar and vanilla extract in a chilled mixing bowl (the bowl MUST be chilled). Using a hand mixer or a stand mixer, mix together until soft peaks start to form. Continue to mix, adding the mascarpone cheese a little at a time. Adding all of the mascarpone cheese at once will cause splashing. Add the pumpkin pie spice and cinnamon and continue to mix until stiff peaks form. Fold in the pumpkin puree. You can adjust the sweetness and spice taste to your liking. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use
To assemble: When ready to serve, slice the puffed pastries open horizontally with a serrated knife. Use a spoon, spatula or a piping bag to fill the pastries with the whipped cream. Top with powdered sugar.
So here’s some exciting news…I’m starting to experiment with quick cooking videos! The key to success is keeping it fresh. While writing for the blog will always be my first passion, I though that some fun video demonstrations would add a little spice to the blog. Below is a video for a delicious dish that works great for breakfast, brunch, lunch…whenever you want it!
Click on the video below to check it out, and please visit my new YouTube page. I am hoping to be sharing more videos with you soon!
