FRIED OLIVES

Sicilian cooks bake them until the flesh has softened.  Neapolitans make a pasta sauce out of black ones, tomatoes and anchovies.  Bars will serve bowls of them alongside boozy drinks. Olives.

Grown from regional varietals, Italy's olives differ in color, shape and size.  Some are large and emerald green. Others are peanut-sized and eggplant purple. Olives canned in the U.S. tend to taste like salt -- having been drowned in brine.  Mediterranean olives, though, get cured in herbs, salt and extra virgin olive oil. You can still taste the olive.  

Fried olives are a classic appetizer in central Italy.  Some recipes call for stuffing the olives with grated cheese and prosciutto.  Others keep things simple -- dredging them in breadcrumbs and then frizzling in hot oil.   

INGREDIENTS

* 1.5 - 2 cups pitted green Mediterranean olives

* 2 eggs, whisked

* 3/4 cup of bread crumbs

* 1/4 cup of grated parmigiano or pecorino cheese

* Oil for frying -- olive or sunflower oil

Whisk the 2 eggs in a bowl until frothy.  Pour the breadcrumbs into another bowl. Then, mix the 1/4 cup of grated cheese into the breadcrumbs.  Dip the pitted olives in the egg and then dredge in the cheese-breadcrumb mix. Repeat this process a second time to ensure that the coating sticks to the olives during frying.  

Heat 3 cups (at least) of oil over medium high heat. Use a tall and sturdy stockpot -- this will prevent the oil from splattering on your stove and give you enough depth for frying.  Olive oil begins to burn at 375F. So, if you want to fry in olive oil, be sure it hovers around 350F.  For frying, it is better to use a lower grade -- ahem, cheaper-- olive oil. Keep your extra virgin for another time. (For more on frying, see this New York Times piece).

Using a candy thermometer, test the oil's temperature. When it reaches 350F, it's ready.  Fry the olives in batches until golden brown: 2-4 minutes per batch.  Remove the fried olives to a paper towel.  Serve immediately. Can you eat just one?

PASTA WITH CAULIFLOWER

Cauliflower needs more love.  Americans tend to damn it to side-dish oblivion.  Boiled to a bland mush, cauliflower loses most of its flavor.  Sadder still, what little taste is left then gets entombed in molten cheese sauce.  This recipe aims to lift cauliflower out of its Velveeta-drowned purgatory.

When pan-fried, cauliflower caramelizes.  High heat salvages the florets' crunch, drawing out the sweetness sapped by boiling.  If you hate cauliflower, give this recipe a whirl and see if you still find it icky.

In much of Rome, the cavolfiore romanesco is a comical and common sight.  Looking like a mad botanist's creation, it's sort of broccoli and sort of cauliflower. Bright green, the romanesco variety first emerged in Italy during the 1600s.  Its texture is spongy like cauliflower but, once cooked, presents a greener taste more akin to everyday broccoli.

This dish combines market-variety cauliflower and the more alien-looking romanesco.  If you can't find romanesco, plain old cauliflower is more than up to the task. Porous florets happily sop up the oil, vinegar and lemon juice dressing. 

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 small head of white cauliflower
• 1 small romanesco cauliflower
• 1-2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon capers
• 1/2 lemon, juiced
• 1 anchovy fillets, finely chopped (optional)
• 6-8 pitted olives, chopped
• Red pepper flakes to taste
• 1 - 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• 8 oz of penne

Wash and core the cauliflower, keeping the individual florets intact as much as possible.  For instructions on coring a cauliflower, go here: how to cut a cauliflower.  Slice the florets in half or in quarters.  Cauliflower browns best when cut with one or more flat sides.  The flat surface will touch the hot pan and caramelize.  Uncut florets will may turn soggy and be hard to brown.

While the water is boiling, heat 3-4 tablespoons of olive oil in a flat skillet over medium-high. Depending on size, you might need more oil.  When the pan is hot (but-not-smoking), add cauliflower slivers.  Quickly stir the so that all the pieces are coated in oil.  :: Stop stirring ::.  In order to brown, the cauliflower needs to be in sustained direct contact with the hot pan.  Wait 3-4 minutes or until the cauliflower has begun to brown.  Continue cooking until browned all over.  Remove the florets and set aside.

Cook the penne in 3 quarts of salted water.   In the same pan that you cooked the cauliflower, heat another 2 tablespoons of oil.  Add the garlic, olives, capers, red pepper flakes and anchovy, stirring occasionally to avoid burning.  Cook over medium heat for another 2 minutes -- you will begin to smell the aromatic garlic and the vinegary tang of the capers.
 

When the garlic starts to caramelize, return the browned florets to the pan.  Lower heat and gently mix together, making sure that the garlic and olives and capers get evenly distributed.  Dress the florets at this point with the lemon juice and balsamic.  Keep cooking for 2-3 minutes over low heat -- or until the juice and vinegar have been absorbed.  Toss the cooked pasta together in the pan with the dressed cauliflower. Serve hot.