Recipes from:
The Mirisola Family
New Summer 2008 Recipe:
An easy and fun summertime recipe that I use often:
Boil some fresh whole-wheat pasta. While the pasta is 'boil-boiling, toil and troubling'... blend some fresh basil, freshly pressed garlic, and some freshly ground pepper with some Mirisola in a sauce pan (remember, with a robust oil "less is more" - don't use too much.)
Warm it up, but don't let it get to the smoke point.
When the pasta and the sauce are ready, blend in some fresh Mozzarella di Bufala, and
some fresh, chopped, ripe tomatoes.
Toss and serve!
I enjoy this with a green salad, and a bottle of slightly cooled, young Valpolicella or Beaujolais.
A few of Edwige Mirisola’s favorite recipes and a note about the use of this olive oil:
There is only one olive oil in Signora Mirisola’s pantry, her family’s own, and it serves every purpose an oil can serve. She uses it when she bakes, grills, roasts, sautés … whatever. Unfortunately, in North America, our access to this beautiful oil is somewhat more limited than Signora Mirisola’s, so we necessarily must exercise a bit of discretion in its use. But that’s okay. The spectacular character-istics of the Mirisola oil (or any fine extra virgin oil, for that matter) truly can only be savored when the oil has not been subjected to the high heat that cooking requires. For most cooking purposes a lesser quality, lighter olive oil will work just fine. The Mirisola oil is, in essence, a condiment, and we strongly recommend that it be used as such. Eat it on your bread or drizzle it over some perfectly fresh, lightly grilled vegetables. It’s an ancient taste, pure and robust.
Signora Mirisola was happy to share the following simple recipes in which the oil is used to its best advantage.
Patatas
- 10-12 small thin-skinned white or red potatoes, scrubbed (the smaller the potatoes
the better; if you find very small potatoes, use more of them)
- fresh ground black pepper
- salt
- Mirisola extra virgin olive oil
Boil potatoes in plenty of water for 10-15 minutes
or until potatoes are easily pierced with a fork but are not
so soft that they begin to fall apart. Remove from water and
allow to cool for a few minutes. When cool enough to handle,
cut in half lengthwise and coat each half with a little bit of
oil. Place cut side down on a baking sheet. Sprinkle with salt
and a few generous grinds of pepper. Place under the broiler
for about 10 minutes or until the skin just begins to brown.
Remove from broiler and turn each piece cut side up. Salt and
pepper the cut side as you did the other. Place under the broiler
for another 10-15 minutes or until cut surface is nicely browned
and begins to puff. Remove from broiler and drizzle generously
with olive oil. Add more salt and pepper if desired. Serve while
still warm (though these are good cold, too).
Serves 4
Bruschette
- 4 slices crusty Italian or French bread. Slices should
be about 1 inch thick
- 1 medium ripe firm tomato chopped to very small dice
- 8 anchovy filets
(Italian anchovies packed in olive oil and red pepper flakes are best if you can
find them)
- 10-15 fresh basil leaves chopped fine
- 3-4 large garlic cloves, peeled
- salt
Cut bread slices in two equal halves and toast lightly on both sides until just crisp. Rub each piece vigorously all over with a garlic clove making sure that most of the garlic remains on the bread. Then, take an anchovy filet in your fingers and rub it into the upper surface of each piece. Place a little of the chopped tomato on the bread, and top with a pinch of chopped basil and a little salt. Place the assembled bruschette on a baking sheet and place under the broiler for about 5 minutes or until the basil wilts and the tomato is just warm. Remove from broiler and drizzle generously with olive oil. Serve at once.
Insalata
- 4 or 5 oranges, peeled, with all soft white underpeel removed, and sliced crosswise
into thin, flat discs (use blood oranges if you can get them - otherwise, substitute
any variety of sweet orange)
- 1 small red onion, peeled and sliced crosswise into thin flat discs
- 1 dozen or so oil-cured black olives
- 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes or to taste
- salt to taste
(salt flakes work best if you can get them, but coarse crystals will work well
also)
- Mirisola extra virgin olive oil
Arrange orange slices on a large flat plate or serving
dish. Artfully arrange the onion slices and olives over the oranges.
Sprinkle salad with red pepper flakes and salt. Drizzle olive
oil generously over all.
Serves 4
Bucatini allo Positano
1 cup Mirisola extra virgin olive oil
2 ounces anchovies
3 large onions (I use 2 red onions and 1 sweet white onion), shredded or finely
chopped
1 box bucatini pasta or ziti pasta
Freshly grated parmigiano-reggiano cheese
Heat olive oil in large skillet and add anchovies. Mash anchovies until anchovies dissolve into oil. Add shredded or finely chopped onions and sauté until translucent, approximately 10 minutes. Put mixture into baking dish and bake in preheated 325 degree oven for 1 hour. Remove from oven and pour over cooked pasta. Sprinkle with freshly grated parmigiano-reggiano cheese and serve immediately.
BUCATINI or ZITI PASTA:
The original recipe was made with small pieces of bucatini pasta. Sometimes that is hard to find but ziti pasta is in almost every grocery store. Place pasta
in boiling salted water and cook for approximately 8-10 minutes, until al dente. Serve with a glass of Latah Creek Sangiovese, Merlot or Cabernet Sauvignon!