chEAT SHEET: Pizzeria Limoncello

Admittedly, I've been remiss at posting; things have gone from busy to hectic at work. 

Today I'd like to start my chEAT SHEET posts; a good way of deflecting my lackadaisical ways.  I've lived in 5 countries (Thailand included) in a span of a decade and have always found good food in the most obscurest of places.  I always thought that my local friends would lead me back to our haunts until the day a good friend of mine named Benny, passed away last year -- it dawned on me that KL would never be the same without him, who was more or less, my food compass while in Malaysia.  After grieving his loss, I decided to look for my little black book of food and realized, I had not jotted a single entry into my KL list, confident in knowing that he would always be there.  Needless to say, if I find myself back in that city, I would still be able to find some (not all) of our beloved joints.


And so, here it is, my attempt in writing places I like to eat in, from easy to swanky, in an effort to make things simpler for friends who insist I share my eat sheets in places I frequent.  They always reason that I used to travel too much -- when I lived in KL, I was out of the country more than 250 days, visiting Asian countries thrice a week.  I've been to more or less 30 to date and intend to add more, hoping I could afford it.  But this time, I intend to bring The Young Tongue with me.

Pizzeria Limoncello.  The first time I ate here, I remember telling myself that they had the best pizzas in Bangkok.  My sentiments were validated by the several chefs I worked with back then -- a motley crew of nationalities ranging from: Swiss, Germans, Italians, Thais, Indonesians, Indians, Vietnamese, Chinese, Singaporean, Malaysians, British, Americans, Mexicans, Dutch -- I guess you get my drift.  Fast forward to a few years later, a few days to be exact, I found myself eating in several Italian restaurants in search of the perfect place to take clients to.

Bangkok is not one to be bereft of good Italian restaurants.  I'm going out on a limb here in saying that in fact, it has the best line-up of Italian restaurants in the whole of Southeast Asia.  I remember falling in love with a handful a few years back so it was but natural for me to revisit each and every single one.  To my disappointment, some have closed, and some have gone from good to bad - consistency has always been the nemesis of anyone in the food business.  I also found myself in a few establishments with sky-high minimum orders to get a private room.  Touché.

Photos from our dinner:

You can never go wrong with an order of pizza in here.

Food meant for sharing...

A few of their pastas are also hand-made.  And desserts aplenty...

however, it was their Tiramisu I fancied the most.  And in a tongue-in-cheek sort of way, their Limoncello was on the house.  Grazie!

Pizzeria Limoncello

17 Sukhumvit soi 11, Bangkok; Thailand

+66(2) 651.07.07

Roast Baby Carrots

Shapes can be a big game changer for feeding picky little eaters.  Luckily, The Young Tongue is not part of the club.  But she was quick enough to point at the baby carrots in the organic section!


I peeled each and every single one of them, but usually, this step is unnecessary.  Then I placed them in a le creuset dish and added some capers, sea salt, and olive oil.  I then plopped it in the oven for 20 minutes at 180 Degrees Celcius.

I then added some Balsamic Vinegar from Modena just to add that bit of tartness (baby carrots are really sweet).  The Young Tongue enjoyed eating them because she could hold each and every piece!

Cacio e Pepe

All it takes is less than 5 ingredients and less than 5 minutes to prepare this dish.  Cook pasta al dente (click here) and drizzle with some extra olive oil (you can also add a bit of butter if you want it to be creamier).  Then add freshly grated Grana Padano, Pecorino Romano, and freshly ground black pepper.  Season with salt.  

Sun-Dried Tomato Pesto Pasta

The Young Tongue and I really love pasta, eating more of it at home than rice.  We never tire of it and I love preparing it because it's fuss-free.  I also love making pesto at home because I can bottle it or keep it in the fridge for use when I don't have enough time to labor in the kitchen.  

Sun-dried Tomato Pesto is one of those easy-to-make and easy-to-keep sauces.  Great as a dip, as a pasta sauce, or as an accompaniment to salads or appetizers, all you'll need is food processor and a few ingredients.  If you don't have a food processor, don't worry.  You can just chop the sun-dried tomatoes really fine and put everything together.

In a food processor, place the sun-dried tomatoes along with some extra virgin olive oil, roasted pine nuts, Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, salt, and pepper.  Pulse until well-combined.  When making some for storage and later use, ensure that a layer of extra virgin olive oil covers the pesto.  

In this pasta dish, I added about 4 Tablespoons of sun-dried tomato pesto to freshly-cooked pasta.  Want to have al dente pasta?  Click here.  See how much The Young Tongue can't wait to get her hands on it?  Spread the love, make some pesto, and have more time with your child!

Bell Pepper Pasta Salad

I had some leftover sausages in the fridge and thought of adding this into a cold pasta salad.  Grill some yellow and green bell peppers (for the recipe, click here).  Toss this into some cooked pasta with sliced cherry tomatoes and cooked sausage.  Add some grated pecorino cheese and drizzle with extra virgin olive oil.  Season with salt and pepper.  Then garnish with chopped herbs.

Bacon and Tomato Pasta

Saute chopped bacon in a hot pan and allow it to render fat.  Add chopped onions and crushed garlic and continue to cook until translucent.  Then add a tin of plum tomatoes allowing it to boil then simmer.  Add a piece of bay leaf and allow the flavors to infuse for twenty minutes.  Remove the bay leaf, season with salt and pepper, and toss in your cooked pasta of choice.  Add freshly grated Parmegiano-Reggiano.  Eat while hot!

Pecorino and Parmesan Alphabet Pasta

Effortless and easy to prepare, this alphabet pasta guarantees endless eating fun with your child.  The Young Tongue and I surely did as she blurts out letters about to enter her mouth!

Just cook the alphabets as per package instructions, drizzle with extra olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and add freshly grated Pecorino Romano and Parmegiano- Reggiano.  

Fantastic Eggplants and Mushrooms

I'm a firm believer that if you start your dish with very good ingredients, the dish will turn out well, without having any special culinary skills.  This is a classic example of that premise.  

In a hot cast iron pan, saute some eggplants and onions until soft.   

Quickly drizzle with some balsam glaze from Modena, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and garnish with chopped parsley.  

Last but not the least, try not to forget to drizzle it with some white truffle oil.   Something glaring in the market these days are the several "truffle oil" products.  Read and check the label first as you will find the prices range from $12.00 to $100.00 a pop.  

See that bit of solid in the middle?  That's because I keep my truffle oil in the fridge.

Want to be a food snob?  Buy a bottle that comes with a morsel of white truffle, and don't settle for those that say truffle "essence" or "aroma" on the label.  If you end up with the real deal, store it in the fridge if you live in the tropics.  That ought to give your bottle the proper "shelf life" and help you avoid early stage rancidity.  

Don't be fooled.  The white bit is actually the truffle. 

And the truth is, I'm not a food snob.  I eat anywhere and everywhere, even the most dubious looking joints attract me, as long as the food is good!  

Potato Gnocchi with Broccoli and Bacon

The Young Tongue's current fixation is broccoli.  One day whilst in the supermarket with her nanny, she blurted that she wanted broccoli, grabbed one from the organic section (I kid you not), and insisted it was paid for.  And she insisted that we immediately cook it, steamed and seasoned only with sea salt.  Yes, I must admit, it does sound a bit food snobbish but I have not controlled her musings be it sea salt or maple peanut butter.  Sometimes it scares me!  

Potato gnocchi so happens to be one of her favorite textures as of late so I decided to put both ingredients together.  In a hot pan with just a tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil, toss in chopped onions, sliced bacon, and garlic.  Allow everything to sweat and let the bacon render it's fat.

Once you see brown sediments in the pan, place the potato gnocchi in boiling water seasoned with salt.

I time everything so knowing that the bacon has left brown sediments in the pan, I have enough time to pour chicken stock, add cream, season with salt and pepper, bring to a rolling boil then simmer -- the dish will all come together as I strain the gnocchi.  You know the gnocchi is cooked when it floats.  

Toss the gnocchi with the rest of the ingredients in the pan.  Then plate.  Last but not the least, accentuate your dish with some shaved or grated Parmegiano-Reggiano.

Parmesan Crisps with Coolibah Wild Roquette Greens

I'm finally finding some time to get to know my food stores here in Bangkok.  The first month was really all about The Young Tongue getting adjusted and quite frankly, it was an easy transition because it's such a child-friendly city.  Several days ago, I had to look for rare ingredients for work.  And you know when you're looking for something and you find something else?  Well, that was the case when I came across this Coolibah Wild Roquette Greens from Australia.

It had a distinct peppery taste and I thought that by making Parmesan crisps, it's salty flavor would offset it perfectly.  Add into the equation the sweetness of my tricolore grapes and the sweet-sour note of some Balsamic cream and what do you have?  A salad with both umami and kokumi!

Here's the low down on the crisps:

My secret weapon of choice for shaving some Parmegiano-Reggiano is a good cheese grater.  I've had this Alessi one for several years now and it still remains to be my favorite.  It's elongated shape and slim handle on the top makes for perfect swooping strokes with the cheese.  

Next, in a really hot pan with no olive oil, just place your shaved cheese and allow it to melt, ooze, and get golden in color.  Then flip it like so...

Remove from the pan and allow to cool.  This will firm up into crispy goodness.  Mmmm...

Lasagna Quattro Formaggio: Brie, Parmigiano-Reggiano, Old Amsterdam, and Blue d'Auvergne

Fancy that?  The usual lasagna made of slowly-cooked bolognese and bechamel sauce, layered over thin sheets of pasta and four kinds of cheese?  Having guests over for The Young Tongue's 2nd birthday not only allowed me to have quality time with family, it also enabled me to get rid of shall I say, uneaten portions of cheeses in the fridge?  Don't get me wrong, we love cheese at home.  But often times I worry about storing them properly.

Albeit controversial for home cooks, I'd like to insist the use of a proper dish to cook this in.    You can use one that's made of cast iron, clay, or glass.  Your fillings of several kinds of cheese, bolognese, and not to mention, the ever so delicate bechamel may get burned when using those disposable aluminum trays.  Buy a good dish that you can reuse and you won't regret it!

Asparagus, Broccoli, Baby Portabella Mushrooms, and Tartufata Sauce

 

The Young Tongue celebrated her 2nd birthday over lunch with the family earlier today.  We had a spread of her favorite things and I thought I'd start with the vegetable dish.

 

Bring water to a boil then add sea salt.  Plunge the broccoli and allow to cook, then drain and strain.  Repeat the method with sliced baby asparagus and combine them in a serving dish.  

 

In a pan with olive oil, saute sliced baby portabello mushrooms.  Then add some tartufata sauce.  Once cooked, season with salt and pepper and toss into the greens.

 

A friend of mine gave me this Sabatino Tartufata Sauce.  It may have arrived in a small bottle, but the flavors are quite strong.  In fact, it added quite an "umph" to my dish.

This particular Tartufata sauce came from white truffles in Italy.  A lady named Cecile sells them locally and you can reach her at: 0917-8559637 or like her page called "Truffles & More" on Facebook. 

Panna Cotta

I indulged my youngest brother's desire for panna cotta on the occasion of his birthday a few days ago.  I learned this recipe while living in the UK through a Korean friend who used to work for Marco Pierre White.  He shared the recipe by MPW which you can find in his  cookbook. 

The first step is to actually allow your gelatine leaves to bloom in ice-cold water.  There are three colors for gelatine leaves - gold, silver, and bronze -  and I particularly like to use silver because it's more compliant and yielding, ensuring supple results.

Slice a vanilla pod in half, lengthwise, and using the back of a knife, scrape off all the goodness.    I'm a purist when it comes to this dessert and insist on using vanilla pods, particularly the Madagascan variety.  If you don't have any and want a more affordable alternative, you can use vanilla extract.

Then place the sliced pod and it's contents on a saucepan with cream, stir with a wire whisk.  Allow for it to infuse under gentle heat (do not boil or it will curl) for about 15 minutes.  Season to taste with sugar.  It may be good to note that you must over-season dishes intended to be served cold.

Then remove the pod and turn off the heat.  Add your gelatine leaves (by this time it's most likely to have bloomed) and stir using a wire whisk.  By the way, sorry for the nail polished fingers -- I usually don't cook with any!  Now back to the panna cotta...Place in a mold and allow to chill until it has set.  The smaller the mold, the quicker it will set.

And oh, do not throw away the pods!  They're so aromatic, it can infuse it's flavors into anything that's porous.  Simply rinse in running water and place in your jar of sugar or beside the eggs in the chiller.  This infused sugar will taste good on coffee and the eggs, well, it'll be good for baking!

I poured some over a champagne flute to demonstrate what a pretty sight vanilla seeds make!  Once it's set, place fresh fruits on top.  My brother likes them with blueberries and unfortunately, there wasn't any in the market so I had to make do with strawberries.  

Happy birthday John Luis!

Chocolate, Almond, and Coconut Biscotti

Perfect with coffee, these biscottis can last for up to 3 weeks in an airtight container in between parchment paper.  I came across this recipe in a supermarket counter, while in a queue, and decided to jot it down and try it in my brother's home.  I never found the opportune time so I promise to bring some over next time I visit Manong Roly!

I've tweaked the recipe to accomodate Philippine weather.

2 1/3 cups All-Purpose Flour

1 1/2 tsp. Baking Powder

1/2 tsp. Salt

110 grams Butter, salted

1 cup Raw or Washed Sugar, lightly packed

2 eggs

1 tsp. Vanilla extract

1/2 cup Desiccated Coconut

3/4 cup Almonds, chopped and toasted

1/4 cup Almonds, ground (do not toast)

1 cup Mini chocolate chip morsels

Using a paddle in your stand mixer, blend the butter and sugar until fluffy.  Add the eggs and the vanilla extract.

Then pour your desiccated coconut.

Add your other dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, salt) a cup at a time until combined.  Add the toasted almonds, ground almonds, and chocolate morsels.

Remove from the stand mixer and allow to chill for 30 minutes, covered with cling wrap.

Remove from the chiller and divide the dough into two.  Using your hands, place the dough on top of a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper and form a 10 x 3 inch log, resembling a loaf.  It should also be about 3/4 inches high.  Bake for 30 minutes at 180 degrees Celcius.  

Remove from the oven and allow to cool on it's baking sheet for 30 minutes.  

Then slice into half inch pieces using a serrated knife.  Place on top of the baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes at 165 degrees Celcius.  Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the baking sheet.  This will slowly harden as it cools off.

Albeit time-consuming, it's worth a try with a hot cup of illy coffee.  Mmmm...