Recipe Course: Appetizers & Snacks

Italian Herb Chicken Tenders

  • Preheat oven to 350°F. Pour olive oil into 13- x 9-inch casserole dish; stir in basil, rosemary, oregano, garlic and red pepper flakes. Season with salt, and pepper to taste. Add chicken, turning to coat well.
  • Bake, uncovered, for 10 to 12 minutes or until chicken is cooked through. Serve hot.

 

Recipe provided by Chef Mary Ann Esposito

Individual Lemon Olive Oil Cakes with Berry Sauce

  • Preheat oven to 350°.
  • Grease oversize muffin cups with olive oil. Mix together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt; set aside.
  • Using electric mixer, beat egg whites until fluffy; set aside. In separate bowl, beat egg yolks with sugar for 2 or 3 minutes or until ribbons form when beaters are lifted; stir in flour mixture, sour cream and olive oil. Stir in lemon juice and vanilla. Fold in egg whites in three additions, until a few white streaks are still remaining (do not overmix).
  • Pour batter into muffin cups; bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Let cool in pan on rack for 10 minutes; remove from pan.
  • Meanwhile, in blender or food processor, combine berries with icing sugar; purée until smooth. Drizzle over warm cakes.

Hummus Vegetable Dip

  • In blender or food processor, place chickpeas, lemon juice, 1/4 cup water, tahini, olive oil, garlic and cumin; process until mixture is thick and creamy.
  • Season to taste with salt, pepper, and hot pepper sauce (if using). Adjust consistency with additional lemon juice or water if desired.
  • Transfer to serving bowl. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour before serving. Serve with vegetables and pita bread; garnish with olives (if using), and drizzle with additional olive oil if desired.

Grilled Sausage-Stuffed Zucchini

  • Prepare charcoal or gas grill for indirect cooking, firing briquettes or lighting gas on one side of grid only.
  • Cut zucchini in half lengthwise; using spoon, scoop out seeds and discard. Rub zucchini lightly with olive oil; set aside.
  • Remove casings from sausage; using fork or your hands, mix together sausage, tomatoes, bread crumbs, garlic and 1/2 cup cheese. Spoon sausage mixture into zucchini, patting down evenly to ends; sprinkle with remaining cheese, patting down to help cheese adhere.
  • Place zucchini directly on greased grill, on side away from hot briquettes or burner; close lid and grill for about 30 minutes or until nicely browned. Let stand for 10 minutes.

 

Tip: To bake Sausage-Stuffed Zucchini in the oven: Preheat oven to 400°F. Arrange zucchini on large greased baking sheet; cover and bake for 30 minutes or until nicely browned. Let stand for 10 minutes.

 

Recipe Provided by Chef Sharon Sanders

Gazpacho

  • In large bowl, combine tomato juice, tomatoes, green pepper, cucumber, celery, green onions, vinegar, olive oil, parsley, garlic and salt.
  • Cover; refrigerate for several hours or overnight.
  • Season with pepper or hot pepper sauce to taste (if using).
  • Serve cold.

Fresh Tomato Soup

  • Heat olive oil in large saucepan set over medium-high heat; cook onion and garlic, stirring, for about 5 minutes or until onion is tender.
  • Stir in flour; cook, stirring constantly, for 3 minutes. Pour in chicken stock and bring to boil, stirring, until thickened. Add tomatoes, thyme and basil. Reduce heat to low; simmer for 10 minutes. Remove from heat.
  • Using immersion blender, blender or food processor, and being careful not to splash, pulse tomato mixture until smooth, adding additional chicken stock if necessary to reach desired consistency. Return to saucepan over low heat; simmer until heated through. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
  • Ladle soup into bowls. Garnish with lemon zest and drizzle with olive oil (if using).

 

Provided by Chef Jim Coleman

Fresh Citrus Fruit Salad

Arrange slices of oranges and grapefruit on a serving platter; sprinkle with olives and garlic. Drizzle with olive oil. Season with pepper to taste.

Flank Steak Carpaccio-Style with Spinach and Shaved Parmesan

  • Place steak and vinegar in 13- x 9-inch glass or ceramic pan; turn to coat evenly. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate, turning occasionally, for at least 1 hour.
  • Preheat grill; grease grate well. Remove steak from marinade. Grill steak for 8 minutes per side or until instant-read thermometer temperature registers 145°F when inserted into thickest part. Transfer to cutting board with well to catch juices; let stand for 5 minutes.
  • Meanwhile, place spinach on dinner plates or large serving platter. Cut steak into thin slices diagonally; arrange over spinach. Drizzle with collected meat juices. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Drizzle with oil. Cut shavings from Parmesan cheese and scatter over top. Serve with bread on the side.

 

Tip: Instead of barbecuing, the flank steak can be broiled for about 8 minutes on each side if desired.

 

Recipe Provided by Chef Sharon Sanders

Filippo’s Favorite Sicilian Meatballs

  • Combine bread crumbs and milk in small bowl; let stand until bread crumbs are well moistened. Mix in pork, eggs, Pecorino cheese, raisins, pistachios, parsley, lemon zest and garlic; season with salt. Form into 8 slightly flattened meatballs.
  • Heat olive oil over medium heat; cook meatballs, turning once and browning well on both sides for about 15 minutes or until internal temperature reaches 160°F.

Filippo Berio’s Traditional Cannoli

  • In large bowl, sift together all-purpose and cake-and-pastry flours, sugar and cinnamon. Add 1/2 cup port wine, 2 beaten eggs and vanilla; blend with pastry blender or fork, adding up to 1/4 cup more of the port wine if needed, until mixture can be formed into a ball. Knead by hand for about 10 minutes (or use electric mixer) until smooth and stiff.
  • Cover dough and refrigerate for 2 hours. Roll out one-third of the dough until very thin. Using small plate as a template, cut dough into 4-inch rounds. Wrap each cannoli tube with 1 round; seal edges by brushing with beaten egg.
  • In skillet large enough to hold 1 cannoli tube lengthwise, heat 2 cups of olive oil over medium-high heat until temperature reaches 350°F or until small piece of cannoli dough quickly floats to the top when dropped in. Cook each cannoli in the oil, turning, until golden brown on all sides; drain on paper towels. Remove tubes carefully; repeat with remaining rounds.

Filling: Mix together ricotta, amaretto, 3 tbsp icing sugar, lemon zest, chocolate chips, almonds and cinnamon; fill cannoli. Sprinkle cannoli with extra icing sugar.

Tips:

• If you like, you can use an equivalent amount of sugar substitute instead of sugar.

• You will need several metal cannoli tubes (available in kitchen supply stores) to make the cannoli.

Recipe provided by Jim Coleman, Executive Chef of Normandy Farm and Coleman Restaurant