Tuna Sauce.

image from Zingermans, my favorite source for tinned fish

Everyone is making tuna salad these days.  From NYT's food editors, to my favorite chefs and bloggers. For good reasons, it's cheap and you probably have most of the ingredients in your [quarantine] pantry. Today I'm sharing my favorite way to enjoy that can of tuna, and it doesn't include a salad or a sandwich (although any leftovers would make a damn fine sandwich).

As with most food blogs, there's a back story to this recipe. I could tell you about my favorite neighborhood restaurant in Boston where I first fell in love with Vitello Tonnato, a traditional Italian recipe of cold sliced veal with tuna sauce. Or I might share how I ordered it several times a week while traveling in Italy last fall. My favorite memory of eating Vitello Tonnato is from our last night at Il Pellicano, on the edge of the Argentario coast. The veal was so tender it melted in my mouth, and the sauce was so creamy and elegant that I asked the chef for an extra side of sauce - which I proceeded to dip my bread in, and then finish with a spoon..... You get my point.

I am keenly aware that some people have an issue with veal. And even if you don't, veal isn't the easiest thing to find at a typcial grocer. Thankfully tonnato sauce is just as delicious served with pork. I prefer pork tenderloin, but it is equally as tasty on a chop. I've also been known to smear it on toasted bread as an aperitivo.

tuna sauce on grilled pork tenderloin
photo my own

tuna sauce on toasted sourdough - pairs beautifully w a negroni
(photo my own)

My favorite recipe is from Marcella Hazan, found in the Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking. I've tweaked it a bit for efficiency (store bought mayo is fine ;).

Roast Chicken, my husband's favorite.

 If asked about his favorite meal, my husband would be more than happy to entertain with an ode to roast chicken.  We've celebrated anniversaries and holidays with roast chicken, as well we've enjoyed this simple dish in the middle of the week for no reason at all. I've had so many requests for this recipe over the years, and I'm happy to share "our" roast chicken with you, my dear reader.

There are unlimited resources and recipes for roast chicken, both online and on the cookbook shelf.  Every family has its own method, and ingredients that make their recipe special, but there are a few details, such as temperature, time, and of course the chicken, that remain the same   This is our version.

Cauliflower Revisited

"Cauliflower",  the word alone strikes fear into hearts of most children and even some adults.  We steam it for our waistlines,  dutifully roast it to demonstrate our culinary acumen, but boiling it usually out of the question.  I've always enjoyed cauliflower and find that the delicate taste of steamed florets, accented by just a dash of Maldon sea salt, is one of nature's masterpieces.  So when I came across April Bloomfield's recipe for Cauliflower and Anchovy Orechette in the Wall Street Journal last fall,  I couldn't wait to make it.  It was, and remains absolute perfection (due in no part to my participation).   

But there is more.......This little chicken went to market....and ended up in my roasting pan, along with acorn squash and a vidalia onion.  I had a head of cauliflower in my refrigerator, and upon spotting it, I immediately remembered April's recipe. Except this time, due mostly to a momentary aversion to pasta, I modified. This is so easy, but tastes like hours in the kitchen.