Spice (11 page)

10.
Fill the dough with the sweet potato mixture. Make one last layer of 3 by repeating the same process of nuts and layered sheets. Place the dough on top of the sweet potato filling and fold the overlaying edges over on top so that the pie is completely covered.

11.
Brush the top with oil and sprinkle the remaining nuts on top.

12.
Bake the pie for 40 to 45 minutes, until puffy and golden brown.

13.
Cut the pie into slices and dust with more powdered sugar. Serve the bisteeya warm or at room temperature.

Grilled Mushroom Banderilla

Banderilla
is Spanish for “little skewer,” and the grilled mushrooms make a perfect
tapas
or snack. The mushrooms are first marinated in saffron, onion, and garlic, and then they are ready to grill.

Mushrooms’ availability will vary, and it is best to use them when they are in season. Mushrooms are foraged in the fall, and this dish lends itself to that time of year. My two top choices for mushrooms for this recipe are chanterelles or hen of the woods. Their piney, herbal qualities go well with saffron. Otherwise, cultivated oyster mushrooms, which are now widely available, make a good substitute at other times of the year.

This dish is especially good when paired with Garlic and Almond Soup (page 338), another delicious fall treat. It also works well as tapas, served with toasted almonds, and is excellent with Celery Root Skordalia (page 341).

Try serving it with a chilled Fino sherry or a light-bodied, low-tannin red wine, like tempranillo from Rioja.

S
ERVES
4

½ pound chanterelle or hen of the woods mushrooms, or 12 oyster mushrooms

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

½ small white onion, finely minced

1 rib celery, peeled and finely minced

2 teaspoons finely minced garlic (about 2 cloves)

1 pinch (about 12 threads) saffron

1 tablespoon tomato paste

½ cup white wine

4 sprigs fresh thyme, leaves only, finely chopped (optional)

Juice of ½ lemon

Salt and pepper to taste

m8 bamboo skewers

1.
Clean the mushrooms with a towel and trim the dry, dirty stems. Avoid washing them if possible, because they absorb too much water.

2.
In a medium skillet over medium-low heat, cook 1 tablespoon of the olive oil, the onion, celery, garlic, and saffron. Cook until the onions soften, 5 to 6 minutes. Do not brown the onions.

3.
Stir in the tomato paste, wine, mushrooms, and thyme and simmer on low heat for about 15 minutes, until the wine and liquid that the mushrooms release while cooking has reduced and glazed the mushrooms. Stir in the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil and the lemon juice. Season well with salt and pepper. Cool and set aside.

4.
Prepare a charcoal grill (Grilling Tips, page 100).

5.
While your grill is heating, divide the mushrooms evenly among the skewers: about 6 chanterelles or hen of the woods mushrooms, or 3 oyster mushrooms to a skewer.

6.
You’ll know that the grill is hot enough to use when the charcoal has turned from red and black to gray. Place the skewers on the edges of the grill, not directly over the fire, and sear the mushrooms for 3 to 4 minutes on each side. The mushrooms should be golden and crispy and smoky in flavor.

7.
Serve the mushrooms warm.

Spicy Fideos with Chickpeas, Vanilla, and Saffron

Fideos
is a Spanish pasta, made from little pieces of broken vermicelli, that is toasted and then cooked in a rich broth. The pasta absorbs the broth flavor and retains the starch, forming a creamy consistency.

Arabs brought fideos to Spain, along with the custom of toasting the pasta. Turks toast their ravioli, called
manti
, and add toasted vermicelli pieces to pilafs.

I once demonstrated how to make this dish at a conference in Rome, sponsored by Barilla Pasta and Oldways Preservation and Trust, called “Pasta Fights Back.” The conference included doctors, scientists, nutritionists, and a handful of chefs, who were all trying to inform the media that dried pasta (made from durum wheat) is a good carbohydrate and not a bad one. In essence, we were attempting to stop the sweeping Atkins crash diet before we all get diseased, fatty livers. The audience was full of Italians, who gasped as I started to crush the vermicelli into little pieces. Italians never crush pasta, and they always boil it in plenty of water, to remove a lot of its starch. I demonstrated this way of cooking pasta as if it were rice in a pilaf. They were skeptical, but once they tried it, they loved it.

This little pasta dish is packed with flavor and is great with lots of cooked greens like Swiss chard or spinach. Traditionally, Spanish fideos is made with fish and is cooked in a highly flavored fish broth and then finished with a homemade garlic mayonnaise to make it extra creamy. Here’s my vegetarian version, which is now a signature dish at Oleana. You can make the broth days ahead of time and freeze it.

Pair this vegetarian pasta dish with an Italian Barbera that is spicy, rich, and slightly smoky.

S
ERVES
6

1 cup dried chickpeas, soaked overnight

1 tablespoon salt plus more to taste

½ pound angel hair pasta coils, preferably De Cecco brand

1 tablespoon canola oil

1 large onion, roughly chopped

1 carrot, washed and roughly chopped

2 tablespoons peeled and smashed garlic (about 6 cloves)

1 bay leaf

1 teaspoon saffron

1/3 vanilla bean

1 teaspoon ground coriander

1 teaspoon fennel seeds, finely ground in a coffee grinder (see page 72)

4 ancho chilies, stemmed and most of the seeds removed (about 1 cup)

4 cups chopped, canned tomatoes with juice (28-ounce can)

1 tablespoon cocoa powder

8 cups water or vegetable stock

Pepper to taste

1 large bunch Swiss chard, washed, stems removed, and leaves very finely sliced (about 1/8 inch) ½ cup extra-virgin olive oil

¼ cup Lemon Aioli (page 50)

1.
Preheat the oven to 375°F.