Subj : Re: Greasy Spoons
To : Ruth Haffly
From : Dave Drum
Date : Tue Mar 11 2025 06:22:00
-=> Ruth Haffly wrote to Dave Drum <=-
RH DD> Sugar in the pasta sauce seems to depend on which region of Italy the
DD> recipe came from. I've told the story here before of hitting sugar in
DD> a "daily special" at an Italian joint owned by a chilli cook of
DD> Italian ancestry. And his explanation. Neveer ordered red sauced pasta
DD> there again. Mostly stuck with my usual chilli-mac. Mardango was,
DD> after all, six time Illinois State chill champion.
RH> I remember reading your account of it. My MIL's ancestry is from
RH> Calabria, the toe of the boot--down near Sicily. She has put a carrot
RH> in her sauce as she claims that it absorbs some of the acid from the
RH> tomato in the sauce. I've not really noticed a difference in hers with
RH> the carrot and mine without. I think I'm a bit heavier with the spices
RH> (except salt) than she is.
There seem to be as many regional variants in Italy as there are in the
Unried States. My friend Joe (Guiseppe) Gallina and his brothers wound
up here in Spring-A-Leak running restaurants. Joe's is in the middle of
downtown. Mike's (Emilio) place is in nearby Riverton where 70% or so of
the population is of Italian descent. And Marco had a very successful
restaurant in a shopping center. Then it disappeared. I aked Joe about
"What happened?" and was told the Marco got homesick and returned to the
island of Sicily where he's "cleaning up" selling American-style pizza.
Go figure. Bv)=
DD> 8<----- SLIUCE ----->8
DD> My house mate spotted the cans of tuna I got at Hy-Vee and began a
DD> long reminiscence about his Aunt Joan's tuna salad and how it was the
DD> best he had ever had. He won't be expecting this:
RH> My mom's only uses for tuna were in a simple macaroni and tuna (with
RH> mayo) salad or just with mayo for a sandwich. I'll cut up an apple or
RH> two (depending on how much tuna I'm using) into the tuna and mayo. My
RH> MIL was skeptical of that when she saw me do it; now it's the way she
RH> likes her tuna. As a Tupperware dealer, she passed on the suggestion at
RH> some of the demos she did, giving me credit. (G)
Hmmmmmmm ..... never tried an apple in tuna salad. I'll have to keep that
in mind. I know applem works great in chicken salad.
This is basically what I made. I've never been a fan of sweet pickles in
my tuna salad - so I stock Heifitz or Vlasic or Mt. Olive dill relish.
I use Duke's mayo as it is less sweet than Kraft or Hellman's. The "As
Seen On TV" Vidalia Onion Chopper with the small (1/8") plate in place
worked very nicely/quickly to make uniform chinks of the veggies.
I did all the options except the eggs in this batch. Must have been a
hit because I was asked this morning A: Is there any left? And B: When
are you going to make some more?
MMMMM--------------------------OPTIONAL-------------------------------
2 lg Hard boiled eggs; chopped
2 tb (or less) sunflower kernels
1 sm Bell pepper; any color,
. - cored, diced small
Drain the tuna well, give the water to the cat and you'll
have a friend for life. Put the tuna into a suitable bowl
and break up any chunks with a fork.
Add the onion and celery, stirring into the tuna with
your fork. Then add as much DILL relish as you wish to
suit your taste. Follow with enough mayonnaise to hold
it all together without being too loose.
If using chopped egg and/or sunflower kernels - now is
the time to stir them in - just until incorporated.
You are now ready to make sandwiches or stuff tomatoes.
Uncle Dirty Dave's Kitchen
MMMMM
... WANTED: Man to work in dynamite factory. Must be willing to travel.
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