Sunday Sauce - Italian Recipes, Food and More!

Christmas Eve 2008 Video - Feast of The Fishes on a Budget

Chef Dave Pasternak dropped by CBS to give tips on how to put together an authentic
Christmas Eve Feast of the Seven Fishes with only $80. Let it roll...

Sunday Sauce Visits Zero Otto Nove, Part 1

We spent last Sunday hanging out at Zero Otto Nove on Arthur Ave. in the Bronx with chef/owner Roberto Paciullo. Our mission was to find out all we could about the simply incredible pies (best in NYC!) that Roberto churns out every day in his wood-burning oven and Nikki was even able to get a pizza-making lesson from Roberto's star pizzialo, Enzo.

Enjoy the footage (which was shot by ace-camera person Chessy Giannettino) and more videos to come!

Video#1: Nikki's Intro, Roberto Discusses Why He Opened Zero Otto Nove

Video#2: Nikki Gets a Lesson on How to Make "Pizza Salernitana/Napoletana" From Enzo the Pizzialo

Video#3: Enzo Shows Us His Specialty Pie - "Pizza alla Enzo"

Photo Gallery: Step Inside Zero Otto Nove and Prepare to Drool...

Sunday Sauce Visits the Cheese Man

Sunday Sauce is proud to present to you the following 4 videos showing our visit to "The Cheese Store", a gourmet cheese shop that recently opened in Hoboken, NJ!  Our mission: to be introduced to a few Italian cheeses that most people wouldn't be familiar with.  That means no talk of parmiggiano, mutz or pecorino romano!  Join us on our journey by clicking on the videos below.  We look forward to your emails and comments. Ciao!

PS - "The Cheese Store" is a must-see in our fair Hoboken.  In addition to over 70 cheeses from myriad regions, they sell gourmet food products, meats and sandwiches made only with their gourmet ingredients.  Check them out at:

The Cheese Store
720 Monroe Street
Hoboken, NJ 07030
201-683-8162
www.thecheesestorehoboken.com
info@thecheesestorehoboken.com

Resident Cheese Expert & the First Cheese, "Piantino" from Tuscany

The Second Cheese, "Fiore di Sardo" from Sardinia

The Third Cheese, "Taleggio" from Lombardy

The Fourth Cheese, "Blu del Moncenisio" from Piedmont

Video: Mom G. on how to cook Octopus (Pulpo)

I was pleasantly surprised last Wednesday when I opened up the food section of the New York Times and noticed an article by Harold McGhee that discussed various ways to cook octopus ("pulpo").  One important highlight was McGhee's dispelling the myth of placing a wine cork in the water in which the octopus cooks.  This was precisely what Mom G. discovered several years ago and I have video to prove it!  Each year, me and Mom G. visit Randazzo's Seafood on Arthur Avenue to pick up the bounty for the family Christmas Eve "feast of the fishes", a bounty which most definitely includes pulpo.  After using a cork for years, Mom G. was advised by the owner of Randazzo's to ditch the cork and use a method where you dip the pulpo 3 times in the water before letting it cook away.  This has proven to be spot-on and our pulpo has never been more tender.  Below you will find a video where Mom G. talks about this method.   Although she typically makes the polpo for the seafood salad on Christmas Eve, this dish, dressed with some fresh-squeezed lemon, choppend parsely and drizzled olive oil begs to be eaten on a spring or summer day accompanied with a light, crisp glass of Italian white wine.  Enjoy!   

Video: San Marzano Tomato Test

Posted by: Nikki

Like many Italian food lovers, I am obsessed with tomato sauces and finding the perfect San Marzano brand of tomatoes for these sauces.  So, it is not surprising that on my never-ending quest for the perfect can, I can often be heard asking chefs, vendors and waiters alike, what brand they prefer.  On a recent pilgrimage, er, trip, to the indoor Retail Market on Arthur Avenue in the Bronx, a vendor recommended the brand Strianese at a whopping $4 a can which, the vendor explained, was due to the brand’s “DOP” designation, which means that the tomatoes genuinely originate and are manufactured in the San Marzano region of Italy.

Photo: Our tomato combatants. Are DOP-certified Strianese tomatoes worth the $4? Should La Squisita be used for pest control? Watch the video!

 

Because every trip to Arthur Avenue must include a stop at Café Il Mercato for a slice or two of their delectable Sicilian–style pizza, I queried the pizza guys on their tomato brand of choice.  La Squisita was their answer, a brand that Jonnymangia and I had passed up at the vendor’s because it was not “DOP” designated and was cheaper at just under $2 a can.  But the sauce was so good on Il Mercato's pizza that we decided to pit these two brands against one another in a Tomato Sauce Showdown.

Thus, armed with our battling brands of tomatoes, we decided to make a simple recipe of marinara sauce so that we could really discern the true taste of the tomatoes. To find out which brand won out in our Tomato Sauce Showdown, check out our video!

Video: A Trip to Arthur Ave to Buy Xmas Eve Fish

Our first stab at web video. Quality isn't the best, but we'll nail it soon enough. God bless the iMac!!!