The Maine Italian

Pictured above is a "Real Italian" from Amato's sandwich shop in Maine. The Maine "Italian" is one of those few remaining true regional foods.

It's claimed that a man named Amato created this sandwich about 100 years ago, selling them to fellow immigrants working the docks in Portland.

I'm sure it has evolved over the years, but today's standard version, same as when I moved to Portland 30 years ago, consists of:

a very soft bun
a thin layer of boiled ham (I'll bet Mr. Amato used salami)
a thin layer of mild provolone
onions
sour pickle spears
tomato wedges
green pepper slices
black olive halves
salt, pepper, oil

One thing that makes it very different from most subs is that there is a lot more vegetable matter than meat and cheese. Its simplicity is its elegance and appeal.

The Italian pictured above -- which I order sans olives -- was enjoyed on a sunny Saturday afternoon at Crescent Beach in Cape Elizabeth, just down the road from an Amato's location in Scarborough.

Molto Mario

In New York on business, I was with a colleague who went to high school with chef Mario Batali. He contacted Mario to get a reservation at his flagship restaurant, Babbo.

This was an amazing meal, and thanks to my friend Dan, three of us were treated to Mario's company during dinner and some great extras he served us.

Every element of every dish was exquisite, each new flavor a revelation, beginning with bruschetta topped with chick peas. Then Mario brought us two plates of salume, each with six or more types of cured meats. One plate had his creations and the other his father's. Mario's included a delicious salad of carmelized onions, Cipolle Modenese.



Armandino Batali's Mole
Antipasti we ordered were: Marinated Fresh Anchovies with Watermelon Radishes and Lobster Oil, Grilled Octopus with "Borlotti Marinati" and Spicy Limoncello Vinaigrette, and
Roasted Beet Salad with Ricotta Salata. Mario also brought us mozzerella with tomatoes and basil. This was not your everyday insalata caprese. The cheese was the most tender and flavorful ever, and there were several varieties of basil. Mario topped this with his own olive oil.

For our Primo, we shared Beef Cheek Ravioli. But since we had been talking with Mario about how gnocchi tended to be heavy "bombs", he insisted we try his, which were light as a feather.

For our Secondi, Dan and I each had Brasato ai Borolo (melt in your mouth braised beef). Charlie had a signature dish, Spicy Two-Minute Calamari Sicilian Lifeguard Style. Evidently a particularly "spicy" lifeguard was Mario's inspiration. These were accompanied by wine from Mario's vineyard in Italy.

A selection of digestives was followed by espresso and Chocolate Hazelnut Cake, Warm Blueberry Crostata, an assortment of Gelati and Sorbetti, and raspberries and figs over mascarpone.

It was fun to listen to Mario and Dan catching up after nearly 30 years while enjoying the meal of a lifetime.

Toasted Ravioli

This is a St. Louis specialty that is said to have originated at Charlie Gitto's restaurant there. I'd never had it, but decided to make it for a party. The recipe I found on the web said to just defrost frozen ravioli, bread and fry, but my testing showed that I had to partially cook the ravioli first. As this is labor intensive, I prepared it a couple of hours ahead and then reheated. I was afraid the ravioli would be chewy, but they were fine. Reviews of the final product were very positive.

Toasted Ravioli

1 pound frozen cheese ravioli
2 tablespoons milk
1 egg
1 cup fine bread crumbs, seasoned to taste with dried oregano, parsely and garlic powder
vegetable oil
1 cup marinara sauce
grated parmesan or romano

Boil ravioli for about half the time called for on the package. Drain and spread out on cookie sheets to cool. Pat dry with paper towels.

Beat together milk and egg in a shallow bowl. Season breadcrumbs and place in a shallow bowl. Dip each ravioli into egg mixture and coat with crumbs.

In a heavy 3-quart saucepan or deep frying pan, heat 2 inches of oil to 350 degrees.

Fry ravioli, about 6 at a time, in hot oil for 1 minute per side or until golden. Drain on paper towels. Arrange on cookie sheets and keep warm in a 300 degree oven while frying the rest, or cover with foil and reheat a little later.

Heat sauce. Serve as a starter: place 4-5 ravioli on a small plate with a dollop of sauce in the middle for dipping. Sprinkle cheese on top.

Abruzzo

I used to be married into a wonderful Italian family. My mother-in-law, Maria, was from a town in Abruzzo called Capestrano, among the Appennine mountains about 70 miles northeast of Rome. I left the marriage as friends with all, and my ex happily provided some of her mom's recipes.

The following two make a good combination for dinner, but we used to have the soup alone as a main dish. I often make the lasagna for company or parties, and it's always a winner. This past weekend I made a caesar style salad from Alton Brown's recipe, and it was a perfect accompaniment. I skipped the croutons as we had more than enough starches, so there was some puddling in the salad bowl, but nobody minded. I also found it needed more of the kosher salt than he calls for.


Minestrone recipe

2 carrots, sliced
1 stalk celery, chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
1 can dark red kidney beans
1 large white potato, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 – 3 stewed tomatoes (optional)
2 handfuls, elbow macaroni

Put all ingredients except macaroni in a 5-quart pot. Add 3-4 quarts water, 2 tbsp. olive oil, salt, pepper and parsley (fresh if you have it) to taste. The less water added, the thicker the soup.

Bring to boil and simmer uncovered for 1 hour. Add macaroni, bring to boil, and continue boiling until the elbows are done. If possible, let it sit for 15 minuts before serving. It's great the next day too.


Maria's Abruzzese Lasagna recipe

2 lbs ricotta
1 lb mozzerella, grated (or buy already shredded)
1 cup grated romano or parmesan
4 large eggs
1 lb lasagna noodles
4 cups tomato sauce

Preheat oven to 375º

In a large bowl, mix the three cheeses and the eggs together well.

Cook the lasagna noodles (see notes).

In a 13" x 9" pan (preferably glass), spread a little sauce on the bottom, then cover with four noodles slighly overlapped. Divide the cheese mixture into fourths, with one "fourth" a little smaller than the others.

Spoon one quarter of the mixture onto the noodles and pour one quarter of the remaining sauce on top. Mix the sauce into the cheese with your fingers and spread evenly.

Add three more layers of noodles, cheese and sauce in the same way. Thus, on top you'll have the last, smaller portion of cheese with sauce. Make sure the top layer of noodles is well covered with the mixture. On some layers, you may need an extra piece of noodle across one short end of the pan to fully fill out the layer -- just make sure not to run out of noodles.

Place lasagna in the oven and a cookie sheet on a rack below the lasagna in case of spillover.

Bake for 45 minutes, and let rest for 30 minutes before serving. Serves 10.

Notes:

I prefer whole milk ricotta and mozzerella, but you can use part-skim.

I do not care for "no-boil" noodles. The trick with regular noodles is not to overcook them -- boil until supple, about 6 minutes -- and then lay out in a single layer on cookie sheets to cool.

I've found this recipe works fine with very meaty sauces, and with marinara or chunky vegetarian sauces.

Leftovers taste great, and you can also freeze individual servings.