You’ve likely heard the expression “bad things come in threes”, right? Well, my family has had one of those weeks. And while these “things” could have been much worse, I am feeling a bit defeated and run-down. I have also not paid that much attention to anything other than caring for my family.
For that reason, this week’s Friday Food Finds will be brief. I managed to pull together a couple of dishes that brought me comfort this week, and I hope they will for do the same for you.
First up is this incredibly flavorful, yet simple Pasta alla Gricia1 from Delallo. I used their shellbows pasta to make the dish as well as the pancetta it called for (I would like at some point to try using the traditional ingredient, guanciale, but it’s not easy to find where I am, so pancetta is the next best option). And since the pancetta I bought had been cured with black pepper, I didn’t end up adding the 2 teaspoons called for in the recipe.
Pasta alla Gricia seems to be having a bit of a moment these days, and it certainly lived up to its hype for me. For a recipe with such a short ingredient list, the amount of flavor you get from the finished dish is pretty spectacular. It’s also an entirely weeknight friendly dish, and I imagine preparing it with thick-cut bacon would make the recipe that much more accessible. If you like pasta all’amatriciana and alla carbonara, there’s a good chance pasta alla Gricia will hit the spot for you too.
The second dish comes from Julia Child’s Mastering the Art of French Cooking. Her Chicken Simmered with Cream and Onions (page 262) was belly-filling and soul-soothing. It is indeed a rich fricassee2, as Julia details in her headnotes, but that’s mostly due to the sauce, which can be served in any amount you choose.
To cut some of the richness (and because I was shy on heavy cream), I swapped out 1 cup of the cream with 1 cup of stock. I thought this added depth of flavor without sacrificing the consistency of the sauce or the way the chicken cooked — it was still fully submerged as it cooked. Substituting any more stock than that, I imagine, would cause the sauce to separate and curdle irreparably. The other change I made was to start with 6 chicken thighs as opposed to a cut-up whole chicken. I would be curious to discover how the dish changes with some white meat in the mix.
For me, Mastering the Art of French Cooking always hit the mark when I need a recipe that will comfort me from the inside out. I’m guessing that has something to do with my own French heritage. Are there cookbooks like that for you? How are they connected to your own identity?
And that is sadly all I have for you this week. May these recipes serve to inspire you in some way going into the weekend. I’ll be back with more next week. In the meantime, please keep me posted on what you’re up to in the kitchen!
Pasta alla Gricia is a dish of pasta, Pecorino romano, black pepper, and Guanciale that originates from Lazio, Italy. There are questions of when and how the dish came to be, but the most popular theory places its beginnings during the 19th century when the Grici (sellers of provisions and other food sundries) would cook and eat simple meals in their shops using the basic ingredients they sold. This pasta dish would have been something they could have pulled together quite easily.
Julia distinguishes a fricassee from a sauté or a stew. In a sauté, no liquid is used to cook the chicken, while in a stew the chicken is cooked only in liquid. For the fricassee, the chicken is first cooked in fat “until its flesh has swelled and stiffened” before the liquid is added and rendered into a sauce.
I loved it too!! What a meal!!
As an fyi, the closest I have come to
Guanciale in the UV is Hog Wash farms jowl bacon. Let me know of you give it a try.