Are You Ready for Pronto?

Back in the summer, I had my yearly trek to the National Hamburger Festival in Akron.  It was there that I tried the Green Machine food truck's Italian Burger.  It was by far my winner that year.  It was delish!  Sundried tomato, balsamic caramelized onion, pesto aioli, smoked provolone and prosciutto on top of an Angus beef burger with lettuce and fresh tomato.  Seriously, what's not to love?  It probably sounds like too much, but it wasn't.  In fact, here it is...

Oh yes, look at that beauty!  I was hard pressed not to order it when I went to Pronto, the brick and mortar restaurant that was once the Green Machine.  It was on the menu.  But having had it once, I wanted to try something else.  And I'm also trying to be healthier so a burger and all those extras was probably not the best idea.

But before I get to ahead of myself, Pronto is located at 223 East Highland Road, in Macedonia, OH 44056, where Fat Casual BBQ was once located.  They are open Tuesday thru Saturday for lunch and dinner, closed Sunday and Monday.  It's small and quaint and only seats about 35 tops.  There is even an in house bakery for all the desserts.  The restaurant is billed at Modern Italian American Cuisine and to be honest, the lunch menu doesn't reflect that much.  Which is not a complaint, because the food was damn good.  I haven't been there for dinner, but the menu for dinner does have more Italian fare.  Chef Scott Wnek studied in Bologna, Italy so I can see that there is an Italian flair, just not exclusively Italian food.

I decided on the Vegetarian Sandwich, which was roasted eggplant and roasted tomatoes, arugula, balsamic reduction and garlic herbed goat cheese.  Simple, done well and delicious.  It was to be served with fresh cut fries and pesto aioli dipping sauce.  I asked for a side salad instead and for a small extra price, it was no problem.  It's that pesky healthier eating I mentioned earlier that made me do it!  

The man went with the Cuban.  A little bit of a different take, but a Cuban none the less.  Ham, dijon mayo, pickles, swiss cheese, moho sauce and pulled pork.

He got the fries and while it definitely looked like other plates that went by had a lot more fries, he was ultimately satisfied with the amount he had.  And that pesto aioli?  Fugget about it!!!  That's the stuff right there!  I took a bite of the sandwich and it was pretty damn good.  I liked mine better, but he said the same thing... he liked his better :)

And because the man has a sweet tooth, and there is an in house bakery, he had to try some dessert.   Yeah thanks, I did mention I was trying to eat healthier!  After speaking with our waiter, he went over to the bakery counter to scope out his choices.  He came back with not one, but two desserts!  A pecan bar and a lemon bar.  That probably sounds kind of dull but both were anything but dull.  I mean, come on... look at this thing of beauty!  It's a pecan bar dipped in chocolate!

Rich, nutty, buttery and Oh. My. God!!!  So incredible and the price was right at $1.99 (which was also the price of the lemon bar).  It was so good.  I had one bite.  OK, maybe two.  But I was good!   And the lemon bar did not disappoint.  It was tart and sweet, but not too sweet.  With a buttery crust and luscious filling.  Again, I only had a bite, or two, but loved both!

I think it's safe to say I'll be going back to Pronto!

Edited 3/7/14 - And go back we did!  A week later.  It was just as good as the first trip.  Want to know what we had?  Of course you do!

 

The first week we were given a coupon for a free soup with the purchase of an entree.  This week I was thrilled that the soup of the day was Butternut Squash Bisque.  Oh it's one of my faves and this was one terrific version.  There was a hint of nutmeg and finely chopped walnuts on the top.  *sigh*

 

The man decided he could not resist and had to get the Italian Burger that we had at the Burger Festival.  Can you even stand it??

 It sounds like a lot going on, but it is marvelous and does not detract from the deliciousness of the angus beef.  It has sundried tomato pesto aioli, smoked mozzarella, basil pesto aioli, crispy prosciutto, balsamic glaze and arugula.  It's served with fresh cut fries with basil pesto aioli and he was much more pleased with the amount of fries he got this time.  

Now feast your eyes on this!!   This was a special of the day and is not on the regular menu.  It's the Beef Tenderloin Salad.  Yes, salad.   Inside this glorious tower of decadence is arugula dressed in a balsamic dressing with a perfectly rare (but served cold) slice of beef tenderloin, one in each onion ring.  It also has sliced grape tomatoes, horseradish cream and balsamic reduction.  This was incredible!

And because the man always has to have dessert, he went over to the bakery counter again to check things out. This week he opted for the big ginger cookie (served warm and scrumptious!).

 

And the big chocolate chip cookie with an Oreo in the middle.  Also served warm.  It was melty and yummy and so comforting.  

Check out Pronto... I promise you won't be sorry!

Muffaletta This Pal

Just the word Muffaletta makes my mouth water... that combination of good crusty Italian bread, olives and garlic and herbs and cheese and capicola and ham and and ..... ohhhhhh ecstasy!   I love it, love it all, crave it, want it right now.   But as I strive for healthier living, I needed to find a way to have all those amazing flavors and still be kinda healthy... sort of.  Maybe.  I could be fooling myself here, but go with it, don't harsh my buzz.

Pasta salad.  Why not?  Just substitute the deliciously fatty Italian meats, for pasta.  Sacrilege you say!?  Try it first!

I first took a red bell pepper and roasted it off.  You can do this on a grill, in a broiler, on a stove top, in a freakin toaster oven if you want.  Just do it.  Don't buy it.  It's cheaper and tastes better when it's done fresh.  After that's done, give them a chop and toss them in your big bowl that will hold all your ingredients.  Now come the olives.  I only used one kind and Muffaletta generally has several, but when you're talking Kalamata, why mess with a good thing.  I would bathe in Kalamata's if I could.  Wow, a Kalamata olive bath.  That's something to aspire to.  Anyway, yeah... as I shake myself out of my reverie, add a big amount...a cup?  two cups?  Use your judgment, of Kalamata olives, chopped.

From there, I added the fresh mozzarella.  Now I suppose if you must, you can add a lesser motz, but why would you want to?  Soft, creamy, yummy fresh mozzarella!   Don't be an idiot.  Fresh is best, make this your mantra.

Cut in cubes, and add to the olives and peppers.  And then, ahhhh a bounty from my garden.  Chives, basil, Italian parsley, tomatoes, tomatoes and more tomatoes! 

What you see here are a couple San Marzano's, a couple Green Zebra (did you honestly expect me not to have zebra tomatoes?) and 16 Black Cherry's.  I only used the Black Cherry's (and the herbs) for the salad.  The rest will be used in something else or just eaten with some extra virgin olive oil and that crusty Italian bread I mentioned earlier.

So, 16 Black Cherry's.... true, I'm sure most of you don't have a giant 6 foot tall Black Cherry tomato plant in your yard, but if you do, use them!  If not, another fresh tomato would be fine, or as a last resort, grape or cherry tomatoes from the grocery.  And then pile on the herbs.  Don't be shy, add them to where you may even think it's too much.  It won't be, trust me.

A pound of whatever pasta you like is needed here.  You can use anything.  Don't feel confined to using tri-color rotini or whatever most pasta salads are made from.  I did use a tri-color farfalle because I had it on hand, but you can use anything ... penne, cavatappi, orzo, whatever.  And now the dressing.  I use my standard 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar to 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil, salt and pepper to taste and that's it.  There is so much good stuff in this salad, but it's also big so you may need more dressing.  Probably not a full double recipe but more.  Season as you go of course, but there is no need to be aggressive with the salt, the olives add a lot.

Enjoy the hell out of it... make it often!  Buon Cibo mia Amici

Summertime is Corn Time

I recently delved into my very first grilled corn. Seems strange that I never have and I don't really have a reason. But I got a bee in my bonnet to do it, and do it I did dammit! So after making my corn purchase at Szalay's Farm Market in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio I was ready to do it. I got advice from several different people on how to do it several different ways, so as I always do, I took what I liked out of that advice and then winged it.  First, look at this gorgeous corn! Szalays' does it right!I've never once been disappointed. The yellow/white corn combo is winner.

I pulled off the outer layers of the husk and all the inner silks, leaving just the inner, lighter colored husks on the corn. Then soaked the ears in a big bowl of water with about 3/4 cup of sugar. So about a gallon or so of water to the sugar. I let them soak for half an hour.

While they soaked, with about 10 minutes or so left, I got the grilled heated up. The inner husks did not cover the corn completely but that was fine with me, I wanted some of the char marks on it. So on the grill they went!

The first (and well, maybe the only mistake) I made during this process was that at first, I did not close the lid of my grill. I rarely do this, so I didn't think to do it this time. But when I went out for the first turn, I could see that the husks were charring and the corn itself still looked very raw. The lid needs to be closed to seal in the heat and cook the corn more evenly. After I realized this, it was smooth sailing. I turned it several times in the cooking process. All totaled, it was probably about 15-20 minutes, with a turn every 5.

While the corn was cooking, I prepared a big salad with lettuce, herbs and scallions from my garden.  Tomatoes aren't quite ready yet.  With croutons and some nice Havarti cheese, with a similar balsamic vinaigrette, it was a refreshing yet hearty salad.
 

I also decided to make a Romano cheese and sage (from the garden again) butter.  I happen to really love the taste of sage on corn, but that may not be your thing.  So try chives, or thyme if you prefer.  Once the corn was done, I peeled off what was left of the husks.  They did get pretty burnt up, but the corn did not.

Then a slather of Romano sage butter, and it was time to sink our teeth in!  Delish!!!

If you've never tried grilling your corn, I highly recommend it!  

Tortellini Salad Not Your Everday Pasta Salad

I think it's a very good possibility that I like tortellini better cold than I do hot.  Maybe that's because whenever I buy it, my mind doesn't go directly towards thinking of what kind of sauce I can use on it for a dinner creation.  My mind goes more in the direction of... what can I put with this to make a delicious salad?  Do I want a vinaigrette?   Do I want a creamy Caesar type dressing?  What kind of vegetables would be good with it?

I decided that tomatoes, broccoli and loads and loads of mint from my ever abundant mint patch in my yard with a lemon vinaigrette sounded good.  So, cook your tortellini according to package instructions.  You do not want to overcook it or let it get mushy.   It should be al dente.  And be sure to salt your water liberally.

While the tortellini are cooking, cut up your veggies.  For one pound of tortellini, I used one container of grape tomatoes, cut in quarters.

For the broccoli, I used half of one whole head.  I cut it up pretty small, using only the florets.  The stems and other half of the broccoli you can keep and use for something else.  Or hell, load it up!  It's not going to hurt anything.

And then the mint.  Now I have a huge mint patch in my yard.  But if you don't, and would rather use something like basil, by all means, go for it.  I used a lot.  And I do mean a lot!!!

After washing it and pulling the leaves off the stems, I cut it into ribbons, more commonly referred to as chiffonade.  It probably ended up being close to a cup of fresh mint after all was said and done.  Do you think that sounds overpowering?  It wasn't!

Now for the dressing.  I decided that a lemon vinaigrette would be perfect.  It's not heavy and lemon brings out the best in everything I think.  It's very simple to make too.  You need 1/4 cup of freshly squeezed lemon juice.  DO NOT listen to Sandra Lee and use that bottled stuff.  It's not the same, it's not good and just blech.  You also need 1/2 cup of extra virgin olive oil, 1 Tablespoon of Dijon mustard, and salt and pepper to taste.  Whisk this together and mix it with your drained and cooled tortellini and veggies.  If you want to finely chopped shallots or garlic to the dressing, that's an excellent addition.  Stir the salad gently, so as not to break up the pasta.  And if you want even more lemon, add the zest too!   Play with it, have fun with and enjoy it! 

I Finally Made It!

Back in 2006, my family went on a vacation to Charleston, SC. You may remember a little discussion about this trip when I blogged peach pie (mmm peach pie). During that trip, we went to a restaurant. I can't remember the name but it was near Fort Sumpter. Anyway, at this restaurant I had a Grilled Romaine salad. It was so good, and I said back then that I would make this when I got home. Well I never did but it was always in the back of my mind.

No longer! I saw Romaine hearts in the store for a good price and snapped up with this salad in mind. Romaine hearts have all the outer leaves removed and what you get is all the tender inner leaves, so one whole heart serves one person. Clean the Romaine hearts and split in half but do not remove the core. The core will keep the heart intact on the grill.


Drizzle the halves with olive oil and place on a hot grill.


Don't walk away because this does not take long. After a few minutes turn the hearts and grill the other side.


You want them to be just starting to wilt down and have a some nice char marks. But if you go too far, the leaves will get brittle.

Once it's done, chop up the lettuce and put it in a big bowl. Add your fave salad fixings! I added grape tomatoes and fresh edamame and dressed lightly with olive oil and balsamic vinegar. I think a nice lemon vinaigrette would be good with this too. This salad is a really delicious change of pace from the norm.

Steak Salad Insanity!

I don't usually like to cook steaks indoors. That's why God made grills. But I had a steak in my freezer and it kept calling to me to do something with it. So why not make a salad out with it? So start with a screaming hot cast iron skillet. When the butter does this the second you put it in the pan, then THAT is screaming hot!



That is two Tablespoons of butter and about a Tablespoon of canola oil. Then put in your steak, add salt and pepper.


This goes fast... really fast so don't wonder off and don't start anything else. After 3-4 minutes, turn that steak!


Look at that caramelized yumminess on that steak! The crust! Oh it's perfect. After another 3-4 minutes, take the steak out of the pan, onto a plate and put a foil tent over it to keep it warm while it rests. That is if you want it medium rare. If you want it more well done keep it in the pan another minute on each side. But seriously, why would you want to do that?

While the gorgeous slab of beef rests, it's time to make the salad. I'm not an iceberg kind of gal. I like interest mixes of lots of different lettuce so a spring mix usually does the job.


Then just add whatever you have that you want to put in there. I had some already cut and cleaned cauliflower, so that went in. As well as some radishes, scallions, peppers and croutons.



After tossing and dressing your salad with the dressing of your choice (I use a classic vinaigrette mixture of 1/4 cup vinegar and 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil, salt and pepper) then it's time to slice up your lovely steak. And check out how lovely it is! It came out perfect.




Then put it over the top the salad and oh, enjoy heaven!

My Version of Mediterranean Pasta Salad

This salad is one of several different pasta salads I've come up with through the years, and probably my favorite one. It's got it all. Start with a pound of farfalle (otherwise known as bowtie) pasta. Now be forewarned. If you do make a whole pound of pasta, this salad will feed an army. Cook pasta in salted water to al dente, drain, cool completely. You can toss with a little olive oil while it's cooling if you like, to keep it from sticking together.

Now the good stuff. First up, half a pound of pitted Kalamata olives, sliced.


A whole pint of grape tomatoes (or cherry tomatoes if you like), sliced.


Then a small jar of marinated artichoke hearts. They are usually already sliced, but I slice them in half again. Sometimes even more if it's particularly big.




You will also need a full 9 oz. bag of spinach. I made this before I went to the farmers market so I used the bagged pre-washed spinach.


And then, a 5 oz. container of crumbled Feta cheese.



Now the dressing. This is a very simple Balsamic vinaigrette. The salad is so chock full of flavors you don't need to bog the dressing down with too much. One half cup Balsamic vinegar to one cup of Extra Virgin Olive Oil. This is actually double the amount of dressing I usually make, but this salad is big and needs it. Add salt and pepper to the dressing, to taste. Remember you put olives in this salad so you may not need as much salt as you think.

Mix well and the spinach will start to wilt into the salad.



It's great as a side dish or on it's own. It's fantastic with some grilled chicken added. Feel free to leave out whatever you may not like. If you don't like Feta, try using cubes of mozzarella instead. If you don't like Kalamata's, by all means use an olive you do like. A lemon citronette (lemon juice, Dijon, olive oil) instead of the Balsamic vinaigrette would be delish too. Play with it. It's really really yummy.

Thank You Jane Snow!!!

I have to admit, as a big potato-aholic, I don't really love potato salad. It generally seems like some over cooked potatoes in mayonnaise. Nothing special. I don't even try to make my own because I had a ho hum attitude about it. That was until I read about Jane Snow's Potato Salad with Lemon Herb Dressing in her newsletter. If you don't subscribe to this newsletter, what the heck are you waiting for? Sign up now!

The recipe intrigued me so I decided to give it a try. Oh. My. God. This is the best potato salad ever! I didn't follow the recipe to the letter, mainly because I didn't have everything on hand. But I did a pretty damn yummy version of it, if I do say so myself.

Start out with a good firm potato. I used a type I had on hand called Klondike Rose. They are firm red skin potato with a golden interior. They are pretty excellent potatoes. The recipe calls for eight pounds of potatoes, but since there is only two of us, I decided to go a little smaller and made about five pounds. I should have made the full eight. I peeled them and cut them into bite size pieces. A little bigger than bite size actually. Then boiled them so that they were still firm but thoroughly cooked.


The dressing should go on the potatoes while they are still warm, but not hot. So after draining them, put them in a large bowl and make that dressing. You will need lots of fresh herbs! The recipe calls for sprig of rosemary, several sprigs of thyme, about six basil leaves, about five mint leaves and a small handful of chives. I used a sprig of rosemary, a few sprigs of thyme, some basil, mint and parsley.


In a food processor (or as I used, a mini chopper), place two cloves of garlic and your washed and stemmed herbs to the garlic and process until fine (I used a shallot instead, since I had them). Add one Tablespoon of lemon juice. Since I really love lemon in most anything, I used the juice of one whole lemon. It could end up being about a Tablespoon or more, depending on the size and juiciness of the lemon you're using.



Now the recipe calls for about a quarter of a cup of Parmesan cheese. I actually didn't use this and I had it on hand! I forgot to put it in. It also calls for a Tablespoon of pine nuts to be added to the food processor. I can't afford pine nuts ever, so I left this out. But I did add the 1/2 teaspoon of salt (grey, because I love it!) and the 1/2 cup of olive oil. This should be processed together until the mixture is pureed. Then add 1/2 cup of mayonnaise and process until mixed.



Pour over warm potatoes and gently fold.


Add 1/2 cup of chopped, toasted walnuts and mix well.


Chill for at least an hour before serving. It's insanely good! If there was one thing that could maybe improve on it, I'd say that one thing is bacon!




Recipe:

POTATO SALAD WITH LEMON-HERB DRESSING

• 8 medium potatoes (fist-sized)
• 1/2 cup chopped red onion
• 2 cloves garlic
• 6 fresh basil leaves
• 6 fresh rosemary needles
• Sprig of fresh thyme
• 4 or 5 large mint leaves
• Small handful of chives
• 2 1-inch cubes of fresh Parmesan cheese (or about 1/4 cup fresh grated)
• 1 tbsp.fresh lemon juice
• 1/2 tsp.salt
• 1/2 cup best-quality olive oil
• 1tbsp.pine nuts
• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• Coarse sea salt to taste
• 1/2 cup toasted walnut pieces

Scrub potatoes and boil in water to cover until tender enough to pierce easily with a fork. Drain. When cool enough to handle, peel, cut in halves and cut the halves into 1/4-inch-thick slices. Place in a bowl with the red onion.

While potatoes cook, peel garlic and drop through the tube of a food processor while the motor is running. Add fresh herbs, then Parmesan and process until ingredients are minced fine. Add lemon juice, salt, olive oil and pine nuts and puree. Remove processor lid, add mayonnaise and process until mixed.Pour dressing over warm potato slices and gently fold. There will be too much dressing at first, but the potatoes will eventually absorb it. Season to taste with sea salt.

Cover and chill for at least an hour before serving. Stir in toasted walnut pieces just before serving. Serve chilled or at room temperature, garnished with snipped chives if desired. Makes 4 servings.