Et tu, Brute?
These are famously referred to as the last words spoken by the Roman military and political leader, Julius Caesar, as he he was murdered by Senators and colleagues on March 15, 44 B.C. in the Theatre of Pompey (Teatro di Pompeo).
Why do I bring this up? Well, because the Teatro di Pompey is exactly 1.5 km, or 19 mins by foot, from Taverna Romana, which stands in my mind as one of the most important sites the city of Rome has to offer. While only in business for a mere 200 years, and thus 1,853 years younger than Mr. Caeser's fateful Ides of March date, it has quickly (all things are relative here, people) made a name for itself, at least in the opinion of this humble reviewer, as one of the best restaurants the city of Roma has to offer. But you won't find it in any guide books, and the owners want it that way.
Saturday, January 30, 2010
Thursday, January 28, 2010
Recipe of a Week: The Godfather of all Meatballs
..... To multiplex cinemas!!! That's right... I'm over the multiplex. Overpriced, overly synthesized movie experiences. One is the same as the next, and none any better than the other. And, best of all, not only do the local guys show a ton of the new movies (but usually only the GOOD ones), they also hit you with classics which you may never have had the chance to see in a movie house. My decision to check out my local 'kino' this week led me to a very pleasant surprise... The Godfather at Kino Svetozor!
Friday, January 8, 2010
Where the hell have YOU been?....
Well, it's been 9 months and 27 days since the Danger Zone's faithful were treated to a review, recipe, or otherwise had their taste buds tantalized. For that, we apologize. But, it wasn't for sheer lack of time, energy, or ingredients.
Your humble host Danger was busy doing just that... hosting. In the months that this blog has been on hiatus, Cooking with Damen, the most action packed cooking DVD to date, has hit your store shelves. And by store shelves, we mean the hands or mail boxes of those lucky enough to receive a copy!
In the coming weeks and months, Cooking with Damen will be presented bit by bit here, and with it the Recipe of A Week will return, restaurant reviews from around the world, and otherwise food and/or drink related news will grace the computer screens of The Danger Zone's loyal.
Monday, March 16, 2009
Recipe of the Week: Danger's Perfectly Plump Peppers
For whom does the Bell Pepper toll??? Fortunately for you, it tolls for thee.
Stuffed bell peppers are a delightful treat which many of you have no doubt encountered in one form or another. My recipe comes from a mood I was in one day to make my own version, and the result had me back in the kitchen making them again before the first batch was finished. They are simple, delicious, and healthy. You can serve these as a mega side dish, or even as a plato principal.
Without further ado, let Danger take you to the kitchen.
(Serves 4-6)
Ingredients:
4-6 Bell Peppers (green and red are my favorite, but any will do)
2 cups (before cooking) Basmati Rice
2 medium tomatoes, diced
Mushrooms (4-6 regular sized champignon mushrooms, or any other type you like, sliced)
1 bunch spring onion, chopped
1 clove garlic (crushed in a garlic press)
2 cups or so of fresh spinach
Olive Oil
Smoky English Bacon, unsliced (or any other type of meat you like, but can cut into cubes)
Fresh Goat Cheese
Chili Powder
Salt and Pepper
Begin by boiling some water and cooking the rice. It can be done long before you start preparing the rest. Cook it and set it aside. You can also add the cubed smoked bacon to the rice and mix it in. I find doing it this way lets the smoky flavor infuse the rice a bit, and the hot rice tenderizes the bacon.
Cut the tops off of the bell peppers, and hollow out the seeds. Leave the stems on so you have little 'lids'. Ideally, you should be working with symmetrical peppers, because they will need to stand up while cooking. Set the hollow peppers aside.
In a large mixing bowl, press the garlic and add the diced tomatoes, chopped spring onion. I also add some salt and pepper, chili pepper, and I sometimes use Mrs. Dash Table Blend, too. Give it a quick stir so that it's a uniform mixture.
Heat about 1 Tbsp of olive oil over medium-high heat in a frying pan, and start sauteing the spinach and the garlic. I chop the spinach into smaller pieces so the leaves wilt up more quickly. I also add the mushrooms only after the spinach is about 3/4 of the way done, so that they don't brown too much and stay juicy.
When the mushrooms and spinach are finished, place them into the bowl with the tomato/onion mixture, and stir well. You have a very lovely mixture of cooked and fresh vegetables and spices now. I've thought this would be worth eating on its own, and usually eat a spoonful or two; but your patience will be rewarded if you go the distance to completion of the recipe.
Now, take the rice/bacon mix and add it to the veggie mix. Mix it thoroughly so that you have a risotto of sorts. When it's all complete, set aside and prep the bell peppers. Bell pepper prep involves massaging them outside AND inside with olive oil with your fingers. If you don't rub them with olive oil, the outsides of the peppers won't roast as nicely in the oven.
In the bottom of each pepper put a small layer of the fresh goat cheese. Then, put a spoonful or two of the rice mixture on top, then another layer of goat cheese, then another portion of the rice mixture, etc. Do this until you have an overflowing pepper, top it with one last bit of goat cheese and stuff the cap on as well as you can. The cheese on top will melt and hold the cap in place in the onion. I usually go for 3-4 layers of the cheese.
When all 4 peppers are prepared this way, place them in a Pyrex casserole dish and bake at 400 degrees for approximately 25-30 minutes. Keep your eye on these bad boys, so that if the skin roasts too much or they begin looking too soft, you can take them out. Peppers are always different, and some take a little more or less time than others. The ingredients inside just need to get hot, so you're really only watching the peppers.
When you pull them out of the oven, you'll have fat little peppers stuffed with seasoned goodness. I like to pour my favorite hot sauce on them. They are obviously best when eaten hot, but you can keep them in the fridge and reheat, too.
Enjoy these sons of guns, because they are a real winner, and my own personal creation.
Bon apetit!
Stuffed bell peppers are a delightful treat which many of you have no doubt encountered in one form or another. My recipe comes from a mood I was in one day to make my own version, and the result had me back in the kitchen making them again before the first batch was finished. They are simple, delicious, and healthy. You can serve these as a mega side dish, or even as a plato principal.
Without further ado, let Danger take you to the kitchen.
(Serves 4-6)
Ingredients:
4-6 Bell Peppers (green and red are my favorite, but any will do)
2 cups (before cooking) Basmati Rice
2 medium tomatoes, diced
Mushrooms (4-6 regular sized champignon mushrooms, or any other type you like, sliced)
1 bunch spring onion, chopped
1 clove garlic (crushed in a garlic press)
2 cups or so of fresh spinach
Olive Oil
Smoky English Bacon, unsliced (or any other type of meat you like, but can cut into cubes)
Fresh Goat Cheese
Chili Powder
Salt and Pepper
Begin by boiling some water and cooking the rice. It can be done long before you start preparing the rest. Cook it and set it aside. You can also add the cubed smoked bacon to the rice and mix it in. I find doing it this way lets the smoky flavor infuse the rice a bit, and the hot rice tenderizes the bacon.
Cut the tops off of the bell peppers, and hollow out the seeds. Leave the stems on so you have little 'lids'. Ideally, you should be working with symmetrical peppers, because they will need to stand up while cooking. Set the hollow peppers aside.
In a large mixing bowl, press the garlic and add the diced tomatoes, chopped spring onion. I also add some salt and pepper, chili pepper, and I sometimes use Mrs. Dash Table Blend, too. Give it a quick stir so that it's a uniform mixture.
Heat about 1 Tbsp of olive oil over medium-high heat in a frying pan, and start sauteing the spinach and the garlic. I chop the spinach into smaller pieces so the leaves wilt up more quickly. I also add the mushrooms only after the spinach is about 3/4 of the way done, so that they don't brown too much and stay juicy.
When the mushrooms and spinach are finished, place them into the bowl with the tomato/onion mixture, and stir well. You have a very lovely mixture of cooked and fresh vegetables and spices now. I've thought this would be worth eating on its own, and usually eat a spoonful or two; but your patience will be rewarded if you go the distance to completion of the recipe.
Now, take the rice/bacon mix and add it to the veggie mix. Mix it thoroughly so that you have a risotto of sorts. When it's all complete, set aside and prep the bell peppers. Bell pepper prep involves massaging them outside AND inside with olive oil with your fingers. If you don't rub them with olive oil, the outsides of the peppers won't roast as nicely in the oven.
In the bottom of each pepper put a small layer of the fresh goat cheese. Then, put a spoonful or two of the rice mixture on top, then another layer of goat cheese, then another portion of the rice mixture, etc. Do this until you have an overflowing pepper, top it with one last bit of goat cheese and stuff the cap on as well as you can. The cheese on top will melt and hold the cap in place in the onion. I usually go for 3-4 layers of the cheese.
When all 4 peppers are prepared this way, place them in a Pyrex casserole dish and bake at 400 degrees for approximately 25-30 minutes. Keep your eye on these bad boys, so that if the skin roasts too much or they begin looking too soft, you can take them out. Peppers are always different, and some take a little more or less time than others. The ingredients inside just need to get hot, so you're really only watching the peppers.
When you pull them out of the oven, you'll have fat little peppers stuffed with seasoned goodness. I like to pour my favorite hot sauce on them. They are obviously best when eaten hot, but you can keep them in the fridge and reheat, too.
Enjoy these sons of guns, because they are a real winner, and my own personal creation.
Bon apetit!
Friday, March 6, 2009
Recipe of the Week: Mrs. Marlowe's Kick-Ass Carciofi Dip
Over the years, I've been fortunate enough to have heaps and heaps of this delicious dip shoveled into my stomach on tortilla chips, vegetables, bread, or even by the lovin' spoonful. My time at university was happily spent imbibing a host of things I probably shouldn't have, only to find Mrs. Marlowe (now) waiting in The Temple (her hubby's former palace of residence) with a hot bowl of this cure-all, ready to cure what ailed me with some Sunday football.
Mrs. Marlowe has been kind enough to volunteer this simple, yet delectable, treat for our first guest Recipe of the Week.
For the sake of authenticity, I'm posting this recipe exactly as given to me.
"Ok {Danger}, here's the recipe. It's really simple.
1 cup sour cream
1 cup mayonnaise
1 cup Parmesan cheese
1 jar artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
1 pkg frozen chopped spinach, defrosted and drained
Mix all together and spread in oven safe dish. Bake at 375 until brown and bubbly. Serve with veggies and/or in bread bowl."
Voila!
Mrs. Marlowe, thanks a million. Have a batch of this wonder drug waiting when I come for Christmas!
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