SAUCE or GRAVY ?

The Great Debate, is it GRAVY Or SAUCE ???

What do you Call it?

CHARLIE SCORSESE Makes SAUCE

GOODFELLAS

GIA Says :

It’s interesting to me that people who call it “gravy” believe that the people calling it “sauce” must only be those who came as immigrants later and that “sauce” is a newer term. Not in my estimation.
My grandparents from Italy only spoke Italian, came over in the 20’s and their families called it “SAUCE” no matter if there was meat in it or not. Sundays was always meat in it the “sauce” and on Weds, leftovers, less meat or no meat at all. They lived in the Cobble Hill area of Brooklyn and Park Slope respectively as the children (my Father) became adults. We NEVER said “gravy” and I never heard the term “gravy” until I was much older and it became grounds for a silly argument. I am a second generation Italian American and all my Aunts and Uncles called it “Sauce” regardless if it had meat in it or not. Sometimes it was just a marinara w/out meat but it was always referred to as Sauce on Sundays and Weds. Sundays were characteristically special when you had the relatives over and there was plenty of meatballs and sausage and lets not forget the cheese!! In our house it was always ROMANO on the table. Left overs were eaten on Weds and the meat was either gone or a bit more was added to it usually in the form of ground beef. Many times we ate it without meat due to budget or just not being able to get to the butcher in time.
Again, in my mind “gravy” has a completely different smell, consistency and color and sometimes has onions in it and is usually very salty. It;s usually white or brown flour based and goes over mashed potatoes, biscuits, liver etc.

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Cooking a Pot of SUNDAY SAUCE

or is It GRAVY ???

What Do You Call It ???

ANDREA ANTANUCCI says :

I’m “really” Italian-American and I get extremely annoyed when Italian-Americans call it gravy instead of sauce. Even more irritating is when the pretend to know how to speak Italian and pronounce Italian words incorrectly, almost always chopping the vowel off of the end. I feel Italian is the most beautiful of the romance languages and they make it sound horrible 😦

JAMES PASTO :

Hi Andrea, thanks for your comment. I get your point, but as I see it, “gravy” is a term that somehow emerged as the preferred term for a lot of Italian immigrants to America. The usage is very widespread so it is ‘correct’ as far as they see it. We always called it “gravy” and to me this was one of the ways we distinguished ourselves as “Italians.” On the pronunciation of words: I don’t think it is a matter of pretense but of language adaptation in a new setting as well as the fact that many of the “Italian” words that resulted were originally dialectical forms and not standard Italian. I agree that Italian is a beautiful language and it is too bad many if not most Italian Americans lost it, but I think there is a certain charm to the Italian American “Italgish” that emerged. I don’t see it as a detriment to the Italian language but rather as its survival in a majority English environment under great pressure to give up all non-English forms. But that is my view….

CHELLE says :

I agree, Andrea. I’m first generation US born, 1/2 Italian, who has been to Italy a handful of times. My grandmother born and raised in Italy, living there until her mid-20’s, called it sauce. I find it annoying when people here call it gravy. My grandmother made lovely gravies, from creams and wines, that were truly gravies. I dislike, even more, that I’m always corrected with “gravy” every time I say I’m making my grandmother’s sauce. The people correcting me have never been to Italy, let alone their parents and sometimes even their grandparents…they are 3rd and 4th generation to the US.

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We Know What New York Italian-American

Author Daniel Bellino “Z”

Calls It … GRAVY !!!

AMAZON.com

JR in Rhode Island says :

By my standards in good ol’ Italian-America Rhode Island, a gravy is a tomato sauce with meat, but not like a bolognese. The base of this gravy is made with braciole, pork, sausage, meatballs, and my favorite, chunks of pepperoni. Getting some color first on the braciole, pork, and sausage is a must, meatballs can be fried or baked separately then tossed in the gravy to finish cooking, and the pepperoni can just be tossed in as well. In addition, a proper gravy must cook for a solid 2-3 hours, then simmer for another couple hours. It needs that time to properly cook the tomatoes and get all that flavor out of the meats… so delicious. Also, it is typically made in big batches and freezes pretty well. Buon Appetito!

NONNA’S MEATBALLS

Recipe

JULES ZUFFOLETTO says :

Growing up an Italiana-Americana, my family always called pasta with marinara, “sauce.” Ours always had some form of carne or meat: meatballs and sausage for sure, and sometimes we would add ribs or make Braciola. No matter what, there usually wasn’t much left after dinner and we all had to retire to the living room to crash on the couch and digest for awhile. My late Grandmother, Carmella, made our Sunday Sauce dinners most of the time since we would then be visiting both her and Grandpa, Nunzio. Later, I learned how to make it and my Dad began calling me, “the meatball machine,” when I was in high school. I usually made mine a bit larger than my Grandma’s, and near softball size. The mo’ the better, right?! Plus, they did look quite impressive on the plate, if I do say so. Nowadays, I make them smaller or maybe NYY baseball size. It helps with the waistline and there’s more to go around if there are a few peeps dining. So, God Bless Sunday Sauce and my Angels (my Grandparents) up in Heaven from Abruzzi (Italia) that taught me how to make it and create a special connection with family and friends, while enjoying a deliziosoa feast. Mangiare! Mangiare!

ANDREA TAVOMINA from BROOKLYN says :

Hi,
My Nonna & Nonno & my Pop’s were all in Brooklyn, NY and we have always called it sauce. This gravy thing is so strange to me as that’s the brown stuff you put on a turkey at Thanksgiving.I know there is no right or wrong answer here but some get very upset over this “Gravy” thing and consider those if us who were raised using sauce to be “not true Italians”. That is what upsets me, my last name is Tavormina and it’s due to it getting a “V” added at Ellis Island (or so my Pop’s was told and then I was told) my nonno being from Taormina and Nonna from Palermo. So weather your a sauce or a gravy italian…please remember just because some of us are Sicilian and say sauce doesn’t make us any less a true Italian!

Mille Grazie

ANTHONY says :

It’s called gravy only by Italian Americans in South Philly??? Oh I don’t think so. Its Gravy…. for most of New England (North East United States) at least is true for Massachusetts and Connecticut Italian-Americans I grew up with. We actually call it gravy, Sunday Gravy, Sunday Sauce and Sauce. My Italian grandmother, grandma Salerno called it gravy and my mom calls it gravy. I have an Italian-American Recipe website and I have talked with a LOT of Italian-Americans of the past 15 years on this subject and the term “Gravy” for the pasta sauce is definitely confined to the northeast United States. You can see much discussion about this and many other things Italian-American food related …

ROBERT from da BRONX says :
Good morning James! Great story. My family is from the The Bronx and we were raised to call it gravy. We still call it gravy. I don’t believe that there is a right or wrong here. Both sets of my grandparents are immigrants from Italy and when they arrived here, they called it gravy. Another issue is that some folks only called it gravy when there was meat cooked in the tomatoes. Now that is made up here in the U.S. Someone tried to calm the powers to be and come up with something in the middle…..Ours was always gravy no matter what or how it was being cooked. There was a comment above about how she was a “real Italian American” and could not stand how some people spoke Italian and would chop off a vowell at the end. The truth be known is that there are hundreds of dialects in the Italian language and some were real proper and some were somewhat slang. It also depended on where you lived….for instance if you were living in the mountains, it was somewhat slang. The folks that lived in the hills were mostly farmers and schooling was not that important. Different story if you were living in the flatlands or in the cities.

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SUNDAY SAUCE

When Italian-Americans Cook

AMAZON.com

ANTOINETTE SAVIANI of CHICAGO says :

Hi, just want to say as a 2nd generation Italian from Chicago (mama’s family from Calabria /pa’s from Abruzzi) that we call it Sunday Gravy. All of my 24 aunts and uncles and 27 cousins did the same.We put it on before mass, went to Visit Nonna/grandma at my aunts house, came home, boiled the water and put the pasta /macaroni on and ate. It was loaded with meatballs, sausage, etc. On Fridays we didn’t eat meat but we had datalini with sugo (meatless gravy). I’m in my 60’s now and I have about 22 +/- people over almost every Sunday’s for “pasta Sunday’s” my older sister, her children and grandchildren and my own. We crowd around the table(s), adults and kids.A table cloth and real dishes just like Mama taught me. I will make several pots of gravy with a lot of meat and pounds of pasta. We pass the pasta,gravy and freshly grated cheese around, eat,talk, laugh and enjoy. The youngest are 1 year old twins and the oldest …well older then me. It is getting harder to do but even the little ones ask in the middle of the week, is it almost “pasta Sunday”. It doesn’t matter what you call it gravy/sauce, it’s the heritage and link to our past. Keep the traditions going and pass the recipes down. There’s always enough to give every family leftovers with extra “gravy” LOL

Robert from Harlem, New York says :

My Sicilian Grandmother called it salsa and she cooked it every Sunday for the whole family gang of aunts, uncles and cousins. We lived in Italian Harlem in New York City. My aunt from Queens called it gravy but we all ate with the same gusto.

TIM SANTUCCI says “

There are Italians in the south. lol…I know not many but we are here. Both my mom’s and dad’s family came from italy straight to the south!!! Mississippi delta to be exact. The first italians here. No influence on us from previous italians here. There are other italians here too. Most of us call it gravy. Some call it sauce. I personally have witnessed the birth of the word “gravy” being used once Italians started learning english here. My mom and other italians here called it gravy because it was thick like a “type of gravy”. It was not thin like a salsa or sauce. So the war goes on here in the south too!!!! Tooooo funny. As I grew up what I noticed was white southern americans calling anything red was a sauce. Especially because their gravy was brown. We knew nothing about that stuff. So to them the only gravy in the whole world was brown so they called our “Sugo”, “Ragu’” “Condimento” etc. a sauce. I see it being called sauce more now. As with anything involving food and language nothing is right or wrong. To me it was just a matter of how they wanted to translate or “find” an english word that would describe it. Our “Sugo” is pretty thick so I guess that’s why we call it gravy. Such an interesting subject. Please don’t think the only italians that came to america only live in the north east. Many of us in the south came in through New Orleans!!!!!!!

All I know is that whatever you calll it, it is sure good!!!!

Ciao tutti!!!

Casnova Venetian Maccheroni Pie Recipe by author Daniel Bellino Zwicke – Venice

GIACOMO CASANOVA

“The SEDUCER”

EXPLORING VENICE

TRAVEL GUIDE COOKBOOK

TRAVEL INFO & STORIES of VENICE

With 40 FAVORITE VENETIAN RECIPES

AMAZON.com

CASNOVA’S MACCHERONI PIE

Free Recipe – Courtesy of author Daniel Bellino Zwicke

Excerpted from Daniel’s latest book “EXPLORING VENICE”

This dish was one of Casanova’s all-time favorites. It’s an extravagant dish that is great for parties, as its extravagance is what makes it special. It is a special celebration dish that most people may have never seen, so if you take the time to make it, it is quite gratifying, and is sure to immensely please your guests, as it did the great Venetian Lover – Giacomo Casanova.

RECIPE –

“CASANOVA’S VENETIAN MACCHERONI PIE”

PIE DOUGH – INGREDIENTS :

1 pound all purpose Flour

1 teaspoon Salt

12 ounces (3 sticks) Butter

Place all ingredients in a food processor. Turn on and pulse just as everything forms into a ball. Stop mixing immediately.

Place dough on a lightly floured board or table and knead by hand for 5 minutes form into a bowl. Cover and refrigerate.

CHICKEN LIVERS :

1 pound Chicken Livers

2 tablespoons Butter

1 small Onion, peeled and finely chopped

¼ cup – Sherry, dry Marsala, or Vin Santo

Salt & ground Black Pepper to taste

1 tablespoon Balsamic Vinegar

Add butter and onions to a large frying pan. Cook on low heat for 4 minutes, as you stir.

Add the chicken livers and cook on low heat for 4 minutes. Add the Balsamic Vinegar and wine and cook on medium heat for 3 minutes.

Turn heat off and set aside to cool.

FILLING :

1 & ½ pounds ground Pork

2 ounces Dry Porcini Mushrooms

1 medium Onion, peeled and chopped fine

2 tablespoons Butter

½ teaspoon each of Salt & ground Black Pepper

½ teaspoon Cinnamon

2 pinches each of Nutmeg & ground Cloves

2 tablespoons Tomato Paste

⅓ cup Red Wine

Place dry Porcini Mushrooms in a bowl of warm water, just to cover. Let the porcini soak for 20 minutes. Remove from water. Wash two times with cold water. Chop and set aside.

Place the ground pork in a large pot with half the butter. Cook on low heat for 6 minutes until the meat is cooked through. Season with Salt & Black Pepper and stir.

Add the wine and cook on medium heat for 5 minutes. Add all remaining ingredients and stir. Turn heat to high, and bring everything up to the boil. Once everything is boiling, turn heat to very low, and let simmer on low heat for 1 hour. Be sure to stir with a wooden spoon, scraping the bottom of the pot with the spoon to keep from sticking and burning. Be sure to stir every few minutes. Turn off after 1 hour & let rest.

BECHAMEL :

1 quart Milk

4 tablespoons butter

¼ cup Flour

1 Bay Leaf

¼ teaspoon each Salt & White Pepper

pinch Nutmeg

Melt the butter in a medium pan. Add flour and cook on low heat while stirring with a wire whip for 5 minutes.

Increase to medium heat and slowly pour in the milk while stirring. Add bay leaf, salt & white pepper.

Add a pinch of Nutmeg, and cook over low heat for 10 minutes while stirring.

1 pound fresh BUTTON MUSHROOMS

Clean the mushrooms and cut in half. Saute the mushrooms for 5 minutes in 1 tablespoon of butter, with a pinch each of salt & black pepper for 6 minutes over low to medium heat. Set aside.

1 pound frozen PEAS, defrosted

MACCHERONI

1 pound Short Pasta – Rigatoni, Ziti, or other

Cook the Maccheroni in salted boiling water for 8 minutes. Remove from heat and drain in a colander.

Remove pie dough from the refrigerator. Cut the dough into 2 pieces by cutting off a third of the dough that will be the top of the pie. The larger piece is for the bottom.

Place the larger piece of dough onto a lightly floured surface. Roll the dough out to normal pie size. Place into a 10” Springform pan.

Mix CASNOVA’S MACCHERONI PIE

RECIPE –

“CASANOVA’S VENETIAN MACCHERONI PIE”

PIE DOUGH – INGREDIENTS :

1 pound all purpose Flour

1 teaspoon Salt

12 ounces (3 sticks) Butter

Place all ingredients in a food processor. Turn on and pulse just as everything forms into a ball. Stop mixing immediately.

Place dough on a lightly floured board or table and knead by hand for 5 minutes form into a bowl. Cover and refrigerate.

CHICKEN LIVERS :

1 pound Chicken Livers

2 tablespoons Butter

1 small Onion, peeled and finely chopped

¼ cup – Sherry, dry Marsala, or Vin Santo

Salt & ground Black Pepper to taste

1 tablespoon Balsamic Vinegar

Add butter and onions to a large frying pan. Cook on low heat for 4 minutes, as you stir.

Add the chicken livers and cook on low heat for 4 minutes. Add the Balsamic Vinegar and wine and cook on medium heat for 3 minutes.

Turn heat off and set aside to cool.

FILLING :

1 & ½ pounds ground Pork

2 ounces Dry Porcini Mushrooms

1 medium Onion, peeled and chopped fine

2 tablespoons Butter

½ teaspoon each of Salt & ground Black Pepper

½ teaspoon Cinnamon

2 pinches each of Nutmeg & ground Cloves

2 tablespoons Tomato Paste

⅓ cup Red Wine

Place dry Porcini Mushrooms in a bowl of warm water, just to cover. Let the porcini soak for 20 minutes. Remove from water. Wash two times with cold water. Chop and set aside.

Place the ground pork in a large pot with half the butter. Cook on low heat for 6 minutes until the meat is cooked through. Season with Salt & Black Pepper and stir.

BECHAMEL :

1 quart Milk

4 tablespoons butter

¼ cup Flour

1 Bay Leaf

¼ teaspoon each Salt & White Pepper

pinch Nutmeg

Melt the butter in a medium pan. Add flour and cook on low heat while stirring with a wire whip for 5 minutes.

Increase to medium heat and slowly pour in the milk while stirring. Add bay leaf, salt & white pepper.

Add a pinch of Nutmeg, and cook over low heat for 10 minutes while stirring.

1 pound fresh BUTTON MUSHROOMS

Clean the mushrooms and cut in half. Saute the mushrooms for 5 minutes in 1 tablespoon of butter, with a pinch each of salt & black pepper for 6 minutes over low to medium heat. Set aside.

1 pound frozen PEAS, defrosted

MACCHERONI

1 pound Short Pasta – Rigatoni, Ziti, or other

Cook the Maccheroni in salted boiling water for 8 minutes. Remove from heat and drain in a colander.

Remove pie dough from the refrigerator. Cut the dough into 2 pieces by cutting off a third of the dough that will be the top of the pie. The larger piece is for the bottom.

Place the larger piece of dough onto a lightly floured surface. Roll the dough out to normal pie size. Place into a 10” Springform pan.

Mix the ground pork mixture, peas, and cooked button mushrooms with the chicken livers. Place this mixture into a large bowl with the cooked maccheroni (pasta) and grated Parmigiano cheese and mix. Add ⅔ of the warm Bechamel, and grated Fontina Cheese and mix.

Place the filling in the pie shell. Roll out the smaller piece of dough until it is the thickness of a pie, and top the timballo.

Crimp the dough together with your fingers.

Place in a pre-heated 350 degree oven and bake for 1 hour.

Remove from the oven, and let cool a bit before serving.

Cut each person a generous portion of the Maccheroni Pie. Drizzle a little of the remaining Bechamel Sauce over each person’s serving, with a little grated Parmigiano on top, and enjoy like Casanova.

“SPECIAL ADDED TREAT” Black Truffles

You can buy some Black Truffle Pate on Amazon, made by “La Rustichella.” It’s just about $20 for a jar, and completely worth the extra extravagance. “Casanova surely Would.the ground pork mixture, peas, and cooked button mushrooms with the chicken livers. Place this mixture into a large bowl with the cooked maccheroni (pasta) and grated Parmigiano cheese and mix. Add ⅔ of the warm Bechamel, and grated Fontina Cheese and mix.
Place the filling in the pie shell. Roll out the smaller piece of dough until it is the thickness of a pie, and top the with dough Crimp the dough together with your fingers

Place in a pre-heated 350 degree oven and bake for Cut each person a generous portion of the Maccheroni Pie. Drizzle a little of the remaining Bechamel Sauce over each person’s serving, with a little grated Parmigiano on top, and enjoy like Casanova.“SPECIAL ADDED TREAT” Black Truffles

This is an optional add-on that would be most delightful, and keeping with the Casanova’s desire for the best of life’s pleasure, would be to add a dollop of “Black Truffles” to each person’s dish.

You can buy some Black Truffle Pate on Amazon, made by “La Rustichella.” It’s just about $20 for a jar, and completely worth the extra extravagance. “Casanova surely Would.

Excerpted from “EXPLORING VENICE” – Travel Guide – Cookbook by Daniel Bellino Zwicke

AL Pacino Favorite Pasta ? Story by Daniel Bellino Zwicke – Aglio e Olio

AL PACINO

FAVORITE PASTA ?

SPAGHETTI AGLIO e OLIO

In 1991, the romantic comedy-drama “Frankie and Johnny” gave Al Pacino a rare chance to step away from his typically belligerent, tough-guy roles. Instead of playing a gangster or a police officer, he portrayed a short-order cook who falls for a waitress. While his character served classic diner fare like burgers and fries, Pacino’s real-life tastes lean toward equally uncomplicated comfort food. In fact, one of his go-to dishes whenever he is at Barbetta in Manhattan is spaghetti aglio e olio, a minimalist, quintessential short-order dish at Italian restaurants.

According to Daniel Bellino Zwicke’s book, “Positano the Amalfi Coast Cookbook: Travel Guide,” Pacino ordered the humble pasta dish every time he visited the Barbetta, even though the restaurant does not offer it on its menu. The actor’s fondness for the meal extends to another New York-based restaurant, Serafina, which even named the dish on its menu as “Spaghetti Aglio & Olio ‘Al Pacino'” after the Hollywood star’s repeated orders.

Spaghetti aglio e olio is a fitting choice for Al Pacino because the dish reflects both his Italian heritage and his humble beginnings before becoming one of Hollywood’s most awarded actors. Born in East Harlem to Italian immigrants and later raised in the Bronx after his parents divorced, Pacino has long embraced his roots, even joking that Italians in America are usually “half Italian”, whereas he is “all Italian.” His favorite pasta dish is also deeply connected to southern Italian cooking, particularly Naples. “I’m mostly Sicilian, and I have a little bit of Neapolitan in me,” he quipped (via Golden Globes).

Pacino’s appreciation for the dish may also stem from the difficult years he spent trying to break into the acting scene. Before landing major roles, the “Godfather” star worked low-paying jobs to support his acting studies. At times, he was unemployed and seeking shelter wherever he could, which sometimes meant on the streets while attending auditions and studying. During those lean years, inexpensive meals like spaghetti aglio e olio would have been a practical option. After all, cooking spaghetti agilo e olio is like making pasta from stuff that’s already in your kitchen. Most of its ingredients, including the spaghetti noodles, garlic, olive oil, and red pepper flakes, are pantry staples. Since olive oil is the star of this dish, however, it’s worth investing in good extra-virgin olive oil for the best flavor. Another tip: Add parsley and grated cheese for extra flavor and richness.

POSITANO The AMALFI COAST

TRAVEL GUIDE – COOKBOOK

PACINO PASTA RECIPE

And MUCH MORE …

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Sinatra Pasta – Tomato Sauce Recipe – Salsa Pomodoro

FRANK Makes PASTA

FRANK SINATRA Shows DINAH SHORE

HOW to MAKE TOMATO SAUCE

“SPAGHETTI POMODORO”

SPAGHETTI POMODORO

This dish focuses on a “quick” sauce that tastes of fresh Tomatoes rather than a long-simmered “Gravy.”

RECIPE “FRANK’S TOMATO SAUCE”

Ingredients:
1 lb Spaghetti

1 (28 oz) can Whole Peeled Tomatoes (preferably San Marzano), crushed by hand
1/4 cup Extra-Virgin Olive Oil
4–6 cloves Garlic, peeled and lightly smashed
Handful of Fresh Basil Leaves, torn
Kosher salt and black pepper to taste
Optional: Pinch of red pepper flakes
Instructions:
Infuse the Oil: Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the smashed garlic cloves and sauté for 2–3 minutes until golden brown. Sinatra’s Rule: Remove the garlic once it’s golden to leave only a subtle infusion.

Start the Sauce: Carefully add the hand-crushed tomatoes and their juices to the oil. Add red pepper flakes if using. Simmer on medium-low for about 15–20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the sauce slightly thickens but remains bright red.
Cook Pasta: While the sauce simmers, cook spaghetti in a large pot of heavily salted boiling water until al dente (firm to the bite).
Finish & Emulsify: Reserve 1/2 cup of pasta water, then drain the spaghetti. Add the pasta directly into the sauce skillet.
Toss: Add the torn basil and a splash of the reserved pasta water. Toss vigorously over medium heat for 1 minute until the sauce coats every strand. Serve immediately.
Fettuccine à la Sinatra
This is a decadent, Alfredo-style preparation that Sinatra often requested. It is defined by its simplicity—no flour or thickeners, just high-quality dairy and cheese.
Prep time: 5 mins | Cook time: 15 mins | Servings: 4

Ingredients:

1 lb Fettuccine (fresh is best if available)
1/2 cup (1 stick) Unsalted Butter, softened
1 cup Heavy Whipping Cream
1 cup Parmesan Cheese, very finely grated
Salt and freshly cracked black pepper
Fresh parsley for garnish
Instructions:

Boil Pasta: Cook fettuccine in salted water until just al dente.
Melt & Blend: While the pasta cooks, melt the butter in a large saucepan over low heat. Be careful not to let it brown.
Create the Base: Slowly whisk in the heavy cream. Simmer gently for 2–3 minutes until slightly thickened, but do not let it reach a rolling boil.
Add Cheese: Gradually whisk in the Parmesan cheese until the sauce is smooth and velvety. Season with salt and a generous amount of black pepper.
Combine: Drain the pasta and add it to the sauce. Toss gently to coat.
Rest & Serve: Remove from heat and let the pasta sit, covered, for 2 minutes—this allows the noodles to absorb the sauce. Garnish with parsley and serve on warm plates.

Daniel Bellino Z

The SINATRA COOKBOOK

“SINATRA SAUCE”

COOK & EAT LIKE FRANK

His FAVORITE ITALIAN RECIPES

AMAZON.com

Jersey Crab Sauce Recipe

JERSEY SHORE CRAB SAUCE

There are plenty of Maryland Blue Crabs down on the Jersey Shore, as well as plenty of Italian-Americans. The two go together, and this Crab Sauce for pasta is a specialty of Jersey Italians who love seafood, along with their Brooklyn and New York neighbors. They all love it! So will you.

RECIPE

12 Hard Shell Blue Crabs

12 tablespoons Olive Oil

12 Cloves Garlic

1 for each Crab, peeled and chopped

1 Small Onion, peeled and chopped fine

1 teaspoon Red Pepper Flakes

1 – 28 oz. can whole San Marzano Tomatoes

1 – 28 oz. can Crushed Tomatoes

1- 16 oz. can Tomato Puree

½ teaspoon dry Basil

¼ cup chopped fresh Italian Parsley

1 pound Lump Crab-Meat, fresh frozen or canned

1 pound imported Italian Spaghetti or Linguine

Put olive oil in a large pot and heat to high.

Place the Crabs in the pot and sauté at high heat for 10 minutes.

After browning the crabs, remove from pan and set aside.

Put onions in pan and cook on medium heat for 5 minutes.

Add the garlic and red pepper to pan and cook on low heat for 3 minutes.

Add whole tomatoes to pan and cook on high heat for 4 minutes whole stirring with a wooden spoon. Add crushed tomatoes and tomato puree.

Add the Crabs back to the pot. Cook for 90 minutes on low heat.

Remove the crabs from pan and let cool on the side.

Remove all the meat from the crabs and discard the shells.

Add crab-meat to sauce with your extra pound of lump crab-meat and simmer on low heat for 10 minutes.

Cook pasta according to directions on package.

Drain pasta and put back in the pot it cooked in with 8 tablespoons of reserved pasta cooking water.

Sprinkle pasta with a little olive oil and mix.

Add 2 cups of crab sauce and half the parsley to pasta and mix.

Plate the pasta with sauce on 4 plates in equal portions and top with some more sauce and some parsley.

Notes: Do not serve with cheese! Italians never have cheese with Seafood Pasta. This is enough sauce for 2 to 3 pound of pasta, or about 12 portions, so after you make this Pasta with Crab Sauce with 1 pound of pasta, you still have plenty left over for another day.

The Finished Sauce

“Yummm” !!!

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Pasta with Jersey Shore Crab Sauce

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JERSEY CRAB SHORE SAUCE

and Other Great Recipes

SEGRETO ITALIANO

by Daniel Bellino Z

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Bellino Makes New Yorks Best Burger – Cheeseburger Burgers NYC

MINETTA TAVERN

Good Burgers, but Far From The Best

New York’s Best Burger? Who makes it? Or who makes, plural, New York’s Best Burgers. Well first off, Minetta Tavern does not make the Best Burger in New York. Far from it. And of the Burgers at Minetta Tavern, forget the highly overrated Black Label Burger, the Minetta Burger has it beat, though there are better Burgers in New York. For, one, the Burger I make at my house in Greenwich Village, just two blocks away from Minetta Tavern is far superior, a buch tastier burger than you’ll get at Minetta Tavern., but there’s one thing we have in common when making New York’s best burger. And the Burger I make in my house is way Better than the Burgers at Minetta Tavern.

So what’s the difference you ask? And you want to know what it is I have in common with the Burgers at Minetta Tavern? The thing I have in common with Minetta Tavern when making my Burger that is without question one of the Best in New York, and for a whole lot less money (about $3.10). Yes, thing that Minetta Tavern has in common with me, in our Burger making, is that we both buy our meat from pat LaFrieda, it’s just that I use the better blend than Minetta Tavern. The Black Label Burger Blend by Pat LaFrieda is made with Dry Aged Beef, which though people would want you to think otherwise, dry aged beef is one of the worst things you can use to make a burger. Dry Aged Beef is old meat, and is actually meat that is deteriorating. It’s much better to use fresh beef when making a burger, and that’s all their is to it, and Minetta Tavern uses Dry Aged Beef for its Black Label Burger. Not good.

I have in the past year used numerous sources to buy ground beef for my burgers. I buy meat from one of the best Butcher Shops in New York, which is Florence Prime Meat Market on Jones Street in Greenwich Village. I’ve been buying Sausages, and Steaks from this great old Italian Butcher, which to me is the best butcher shop in all of New York. I mostly bought steaks here, and it’s relatively recently that I started buying ground beef to make burgers with. I was there buying myself a Newport Steak (Specialty of The House) one day, when I watched an elderly neighborhood lady getting individual Hamburger Patties made for her. I started chatting with here about the burgers, and she said she loved them, so I said I’d get some of them, my next time at the butcher shop, and so I did a couple weeks later. I’ve tried both the chuck and the sirloin ground beef from the market. They both made fine burgers.

Trader Joe’s recently opened in my neighborhood, and I’ve tried a couple different types of their ground beef (80/20 and 85/15 ratios), and they both made pretty good burgers.

Today, I wanted to get a couple burger patties from Florence Prime Meats, but they were closed when I got there, so I made my way over to Grestide’s. I went to the meat counter and spotted Pat LaFrieda’s Burger Blend made with Beef Brisket, Chuck, and Beef Short Ribs. There were 4 Patties in the package, for $8.99, at $2.25 a Burger, it’s more than I normally spend, but if I can get a better burger it will be well worth it. I’m still trying to get a Burger to taste as good as the ones I made from the meat that my cousin Joe gave me, that was a package of 4 Black Angus Burger Patties from Wayside Market in Southhold, New York, on the North Fork of Long Island. The Burgers I made with that meat, may very well be the Best Burgers I’ve ever had in my life. “I kid you not,” and I have witnesses to back me up on this. Anyway, I wanted to see if this Burger Blend from pat LaFrieda could come close, or dear I say, be better than those Burgers made with the Black Angus Patties from Wayside Market.

So I bought the burger blend and headed on home. I got my stuff ready. I sliced some New York Cheddar Cheese, and sliced some onions. I toasted and buttered an English Muffin, heat my pan, poured in a bit of oil, and threw my burgers in to cook. As the burgers were cooking, I put a little dijon Mustard on one side of the Muffin. I seasoned the burger with salt, and flipped it over to the other side. Then I seasoned the top side with salt and black pepper. The Burgers cooked another 4 minutes, and then I turned the heat off and let the burger rest for 3 minutes before putting it on top of cheese on on side of the muffin. A put a little nob of butter on top of the burger, then a little Ketchup before topping the Burger with the other half of the bun. I put it on the plate and brought it to the table. I grabbed the burger, bit into it, and from the very first bite, I htought “Wow,” it was a dam good burger, and better than any of the meat I’d bought in the past year, including Florence Prime Meat. Wow, this was impressive, and the Pat LaFrieda meat was well worth the bit more than I paid for it, and a real bargain when you consider that a McDonald’s McDouble cost about $2.69, and a superior burger like this, with more meat, cost just about .35 Cents more than the inferior McDonald’s Cheeseburger. Dam!

Yes, I loved the burger. This Burger that I just made at my house was without question better than almost any burger I’ve had in New York. my Cheeseburger was better than The Black Label Burger at Minetta Tavern, or the Minetta Burger, it’s better than the Shake Shack Burger which I normally love but wasn’t that happy with their burgers the last two times I was at Shake Shack (Mine is Better). My Burger tasted better than the JG Melon Cheeseburger (I Love), but not better than the Burger I had at Charle’s Prime, which was the only Burger I’ve had in New York City that was better than the Burger I made at home.: But as good as this burger I made at home with the Pat LaFrieda Burger Blend, “it was Dam Good, but not as Good as the Burger that I made at home with the burrgers from that box of 4 Black Angus Patties from Wayside Market of Southhold, NY.