It is that time once again, Mardi Gras season.  It is time to break out the beads, the gumbo and the King Cake.  Every year our special friends throw a huge party to celebrate Mardi Gras.  They go all out with the decorations and the food.  We have been going to their party for years. […]

Not much to say here other than this is a wonderfully moist chocolate cake with layers of rich ganache and topped with frosting.  I am eating the last piece right now as I blog. INGREDIENTSCake- 227g cake flour- 65g cocoa- 1 1/2 tsp baking soda- 3…

Farfalle (bowtie) pasta and rapini with Italian Walnut Sauce

I don’t know why I haven’t shared this sauce before- it’s so luscious, creamy and so easy and quick to make.  It is a specialty of the region of Italy where my paternal grandmother’s family originated– Liguria, a north-western Italian province that includes the Italian Riviera and the city of Genoa. Evidently, its origins are ancient. According to one of my uncles, my grandmother’s family (who emigrated to Peru in the 1800’s) came from the towns of Chiavari, Rapallo and Moneglia. I don’t know much else about them, unfortunately.  All I know is that her maiden name was Roncagliolo and her mother’s was Guerrini.

I love the description in Laura Schenone’s wonderful book about Ligurian food, “The Lost Ravioli Recipes of Hoboken: A Search for Food and Family“.  (It’s not just a cookbook– it’s a wonderful read!) The author writes:
“The story begins at Genoa’s port, with its ancient layers, its grittiness, its eye towards the Mediterranean Sea.  here we cross paths with Greek, ancient Roman and Arab worlds during much earlier eras of globalization.  Olives, wine, and wheat traveled along these water routes. Migrations began and ended…But the story also begins in the mountains, with ancient Ligurian people who were here thousands of years agom allied not with the water but with wood and stone. It’s a story of steepness and difficulty, of chestnuts and mushrooms and gathered greens…”

This recipe, though lightened up (no olive oil or pine nuts) and made vegan, I think retains the character of the original.  It is delicious served over ravioli stuffed with greens, or a simple dish of cooked linguine or tagliatelle.  This time I used farfalle (bowtie pasta) and added chopped cooked rapini (broccoli rabe), which adds a nice slightly bitter note to contrast with the creamy nut sauce, and reminds me of my foremothers gathering wild greens in the hills beyond Genoa. I hope you enjoy it!

Printable Copy

BRYANNA’S VEGAN SALSA DI NOCI (CREAMY ITALIAN WALNUT SAUCE)  
(GF and can be soy-free)
Servings: 4
Yield: 2 cups sauce

This is enough sauce for about 12 oz. pasta, plus 1 1/2 to 2 cups of cooked, well-drained vegetables. It’s a modern, lighter version of a very ancient Ligurian sauce to serve on pasta or stuffed pasta (pansotti, or “potbellied” ravioli). Very simple to make! This is a slightly updated version of the recipe in my vegan Italian cookbook “Nonna’s Italian Kitchen”.
NOTE: Traditionally, no pepper is used in this sauce.

3/4 cups chopped walnuts
2 cups soy milk or nut milk
1 tsp vegan chicken-style broth powder or paste
1 small clove garlic, crushed
1/4 tsp freshly-ground nutmeg
2 Tbs GoVeggie Soy Parmesan substitute or walnut-based Parma! or homemade walnut-based alternate
salt to taste (about 1/2 tsp.) 

TO SERVE: More of the same vegan Parmesan sub of your preference to sprinkle on top of the pasta

Heat an 8″ cast iron skillet, or other heavy skillet, over high heat. Add the walnuts and reduce the heat to medium. Toast the walnuts, stirring frequently and watching them constantly, until they turn color a shade and smell toasty. Remove them from the pan.

Combine the milk, broth powder or paste, garlic, and walnuts in a blender and blend until smooth. Pour into a heavy 1 qt. or 1.5 qt saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat and keep at a low boil until it has reduced somewhat and thickened to a sauce consistency. Remove from the heat and add the nutmeg,  optional herbs, if using and the Soy Parmesan (or alternate).

Taste for salt (pepper is not traditional in this sauce). Heat gently before serving with cooked, drained pasta (see text above), alone or with cooked vegetables, such as chopped cooked rapini (broccoli rabe).

 Nutrition Facts (for the sauce only) 
Nutrition (per serving): 212.6 calories; 65{ae720e0b436026f867bfa0c31185c2252a138f27e85f5f152ec5acc1c10a8cc9} calories from fat; 16.3g total fat; 0.0mg cholesterol; 240.6mg sodium; 224.8mg potassium; 9.0g carbohydrates; 2.5g fiber; 2.8g sugar; 6.5g net carbs; 8.2g protein.

Enjoy!

 by Sarah Albonesi  WHAT IS SPECIESISM?  The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines speciesism as “prejudice or discrimination based on species; especially discrimination against animals,” or “the assumption of human superiority on which speciesism is based.” In other words, just as sexism is discrimination against someone of a different sex, and racism is discrimination against someone of a […]

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First Lady’s Nutrition Labeling Announcement Expected To Anger Industry:

First lady Michelle Obama is slated to announce the most sweeping update to nutrition labeling on food packages in more than two decades on Thursday — and Americans are in for a reality check about how many calories and how much sugar they are consuming.

Food policy experts say the bold announcement is expected to anger the food industry. Mandating that food companies list exactly how much sugar they add to products on the nutrition label, for example, is a thorny issue that is likely to rile up fierce food and beverage industry opposition in the coming weeks.