Patsy's Italian Family Cookbook (33 page)

Giambotta

MAKES 8 TO 12 SERVINGS

Pinch a Neapolitan cook and you will get his or her recipe for this vegetable stew, which utilizes a wide selection of produce simmered together to a tender consistency. There is hardly a vegetable that can’t be used, but these are the ones that my family prefers. (The potatoes are parboiled before adding to the tomato sauce to help them cook more evenly, so don’t skip this step.) You may as well make a big pot because the leftovers are even better after a day or two of resting and reheating.

¼ cup olive oil

1 large yellow onion, sliced

One 28-ounce can whole plum tomatoes in juice

½ teaspoon dried oregano

¼ teaspoon hot red pepper flakes

8 ounces green beans, cut into 1½-inch lengths

2 medium baking potatoes

1 large red bell pepper, cored, seeded, and cut into ½-inch-wide strips

2 medium zucchini, cut into ½-inch thick half-moons

1 cup thawed frozen green peas

2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, for serving

1.
Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden, about 4 minutes. Pulse the tomatoes with their juices in a blender a few times until finely chopped but not puréed. Stir into the saucepan with the oregano and red pepper flakes. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer, stirring occasionally, to blend the flavors, about 10 minutes.

2.
Meanwhile, bring a medium saucepan of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the green beans and cook just until they turn bright green, about 2 minutes. Using a wire strainer, lift and transfer the green beans to a bowl of cold water.

3.
Peel the potatoes and cut them into ½-inch cubes. Add the potatoes to the bean cooking water and cook just until they are softened on the outside, about 8 minutes. Using the strainer, transfer the potatoes to the bowl with the green beans. Reserve the cooking water.

4.
Drain the green beans and potatoes and add them to the tomato sauce. Simmer for 10 minutes. Stir in the bell pepper, zucchini, peas, and parsley. Season to taste with salt and black pepper. Simmer, adding some of the reserved cooking water if the sauce gets too thick; the giambotta should have a loose, almost soupy, consistency until the vegetables are very tender, about 15 minutes. Serve hot, with the Parmigiano-Reggiano passed on the side.

Potato Croquettes

MAKES ABOUT 16 CROQUETTES

Jerry Stiller and Anne Meara have been eating at Patsy’s for decades. In the 1960s, the couple celebrated their first appearance on
The Ed Sullivan Show
by dining here afterwards (the studio was only a couple of blocks away; David Letterman taped there, too). We watched their children grow up. When the Stiller family comes for dinner, I know that their daughter Amy will order potato croquettes. Crisp on the outside, creamy on the inside, they are almost too good to be a side dish; you may want to eat them as a main course.

2 pounds baking potatoes, such as Russets, peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes

2 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 cup whole milk, or as needed

3 cups plain dried bread crumbs

¾ cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

¼ cup finely chopped prosciutto

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

4 large eggs

¾ cup (¼-inch) diced fresh mozzarella cheese

Vegetable oil, for deep-frying

Small rosemary sprigs, for serving (optional)

1.
Put the potatoes in a large saucepan and add enough cold salted water to cover by 1 inch. Cover and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer until tender, 20 to 25 minutes. Drain well.

2.
Transfer the potatoes to a large bowl. Add the milk and butter. Using a potato masher or handheld electric mixer, mash the potatoes to give them a slightly lumpy consistency. Add 1½ cups of the bread crumbs along with the Parmigiano-Reggiano and prosciutto and mix well. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Beat 2 of the eggs in a small bowl and gradually mix them into the potato mixture. Fold in the mozzarella.

3.
Line a baking sheet with waxed paper. Shape the potato mixture into 16 to 18 balls and place on the baking sheet. Flatten each ball slightly with your palm.

4.
Beat the remaining 2 eggs in a shallow bowl. Spread the remaining 1½ cups bread crumbs in a pie plate. Coat each croquette in the beaten eggs, roll in the bread crumbs to coat, shake to remove the excess crumbs, and return the croquette to the baking sheet.

5.
Preheat the oven to 200°F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with paper towels. Pour enough oil in a large saucepan to come halfway up the sides and heat to 350°F on a deep-frying thermometer. Working in batches,
add the croquettes to the oil and deep-fry, turning as needed, until golden brown, about 3 minutes. Using a wire spider or slotted spoon, transfer the croquettes to the paper towel–lined baking sheet and keep warm in the oven while cooking the remaining croquettes, reheating the oil to 350°F between batches. Serve the croquettes hot, topping each with a rosemary sprig, if desired.

Teacher’s Pet

My father Joe was raised in Little Italy on Mott Street in New York. One Monday afternoon, when his father Patsy was home and making dinner, Joe’s elementary school teacher made a surprise visit to the apartment to discuss some minor classroom indiscretion. Patsy was at the stove making these croquettes, and politely offered one, and then two, to the teacher. Before he knew it, she had eaten the entire pan of croquettes!

When she left, Patsy went straight to Joe and shook his finger in his face, swearing that “If she ever comes back and eats all of my croquettes again, I’m gonna kill you! So you better behave!”

Potato Pie with Prosciutto and Sopressata

MAKES 8 SERVINGS

Every Italian American family has a recipe for potato pie, deliciously seasoned mashed potatoes baked as a side dish. We have two versions, which are quite different. Here is my family’s version with three kinds of cheese, and meaty with prosciutto and sopressata.