The European cookbook for American homes (from Italy, Spain, Portugal and France)

Salted anchovies. These can also be bought by weight out of big tins. They cost a fraction of the price and are better for cooking than the kind that come in bottles, preserved in oil. They must lie in cold water 1-2 hours, to extract the salt, before being skinned and boned. ITALIAN 13 Dried mushrooms. A few ounces kept in an open jar, over which a cloth may be tied, are convenient for those recipes which call for a little mushroom flavoring. Soaked for sev- eral hours and then minced and added, with their liquor, to sauces or soups, they have a higher flavoring value than fresh mushrooms. A little goes a long way, and thus they are more economical than the fresh ones. For the antipasto plate, there are tuna fish, pickled peppers, canned cepes, and Italian sausages. Herbs, especially basil, for flavoring; red wine vinegar for salads; pine nuts for special dishes; the best of salt codfish; spaghetti and other pastes, properly made from hard wheat; Gorgonzola and other imported cheeses ; and hearty hearth bread, which should go with every Italian menu. APPETIZERS (Antipasto) PISSALADEIRA 8 salt anchovies Onion rings l/i standard recipe bread dough Thin slices cheese Olive oil Thin slices tomato i dozen stoned olives Salt and pepper Soak anchovies in cold water two hours; clean and take of? the fillets. Pat out bread dough i inch thick, to fit a round pan about one foot in diameter. Oil the pan with olive oil, lay in the dough and let it rise. Decorate the top with onion rings, tomato slices, and cheese slices; arrange the anchovy fillets and olives attractively in the open spaces between the slices, and lay some within the onion rings and on top of the tomato slices. Season with salt and pepper, and sprinkle generously with olive oil. Bake in a hot oven (4000 F.) 20 minutes. This is a Neapolitan specialty, but is also found all along the Riviera, where it is made and consumed by the fishermen. From the spelling of the name it evidently originated with the Portuguese who once fished the Mediterranean. The pain baig- nade, open-faced sandwich, made of half a split hearth loaf, cov- ered with tomato, onion slices, olives, and anchovies and sprinkled with anchovy oil, is a quick version of the pissaladeira. This sandwich is familiar to tourists, for it is served to bathers on the beaches of the Italian and French Rivieras. 14 ITALIAN 15 ANCHOVY CANAPES Salted anchovies Rounds of hearth bread Butter Green olives, chopped Grated Parmesan Soak anchovies 2 hours in cold water; rub off skin and strip fillets from the bones. Mash several anchovies to a paste; mix with melted butter, strain. Heat, and quickly fry bread brown on both sides. Cover fried bread with anchovy fillets, sprinkle with the chopped olives, and then with Parmesan. Place for a moment under grill for cheese to color, and serve hot. ANCHOVY SALAD THE SALAD i pound salted anchovies 1 pickled beet, diced 1 onion, chopped fine 1 tablespoon capers Vi green pepper, chopped fine 2 hard-boiled eggs, chopped THE DRESSING i cup Italian olive oil XA teaspoon sugar % cup red wine vinegar Pepper, freshly ground THE GARNISH 3 hard-boiled eggs, quartered 1 tablespoon capers Lettuce leaves 1 green pepper, chopped fine Water cress 1 onion, chopped fine 2 pickled beets, diced