Author Sasha Martin set out to visit 195 countries and sample their cuisines, but at the onset things took a different turn.. Sasha made her way as best she could despite very difficult family situations including the unfortunate death of her brother and stints in foster care.
Despite it all, Sasha persevered and became a successful author. She said, “I realize now that life is never simple. There are many dreams in a lifetime – dreams that flourish or flounder for reasons that can be complex.”
The book includes a number of the family recipes having been raised by a single mother whose cooking talents relied on immigrant family recipes from their Italian family in Genoa. Cousin Alfred’s meatballs were very enticing but involved several days of cooking so while I loved the recipe I didn’t make it.
In the end the dish I made inspired by this book was “Torta di riso”. This is a simple dish prepared by the author’s mother and grandmother, both practical and economical as it uses readily available ingredients. Author Sasha said that she found the recipe for grandma's torta di riso, carefully penned in blue, green and purple ink. Her mother's handwriting was neat, legible and determined. It inspired her I think
However I took some significant liberties with it. First of all I made them as muffins rather than in a cake pan as the author suggested. Then I decided to use the opportunity to incorporate spring vegetables that just happened to be handy in the refrigerator. The result – a delicious snack or side dish for a weekday supper.
Torta di Riso
Ingredients:
4 slices bacon
1 tbs olive oil
1 onion chopped
3-4 spears asparagus
¼ pint cherry tomatoes, sliced lengthwise
2 cups leftover rice, refrigerated
½ cup Parmesan cheese grated
4 eggs lightly beaten
handful of parsley chopped
salt, pepper and chili flakes to taste
Preparation:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees, spray individual muffin pans with cooking spray. Set aside. Saute the bacon over medium heat with a dash of oil till the fat renders. Remove from pan and drain on paper towel. Add onion to the pan and cook till wilted. Then add remaining vegetables. Season to taste. Add rice and Parmesan to the skillet and toss till combined. Poour mix into muffin tins and bake 15-20 minutes till golden brown.
If making the cake version, heat oven to 400 degrees, lightly oil an 8X8 baking dish and bake for 35 minutes or till golden brown. Cut into neat squares or diamond shapes.
This is my contribution to the current selection of our Cook the Books hosted by Debra of Eliot's Eats.
