Day Four - Squid Sauteed with Potatoes and Chile

So I decided to try this recipe instead of the Roman Gnocchi with Herbs and Semolina.  The only bag of Semolina I could find was 10kg.  Which was a bit too much.

The Squid Sauteed with Potatoes and Chile was a simple dish with very few ingredients.  It did, however, have the most important ingredients, squid, garlic and wine.  I have to say, I'm a bit of a garlic whore and any body that knows me knows I love my wines.  I'm allergic to fish, even though I still make it for my guest.  But I can eat shell fish. YAHOO!!!!  Lobster, shrimp, scallops calamari, escargots etc. and I'm in heaven.  Sometimes, I think it's just the butter and the garlic I'm in love with.  Without garlic or butter the world would be a very very dark place.

I attempted this recipe and ran into a few issues.  The author indicates that once the ingredients are put together in the order specified, water may need to be added to top up the liquid to prevent sticking.  Let's just say, I had to remove the liquid from the casserole instead.  The dish was looking more like squid soup.  To correct this problem, I drained the liquid into a skillet and reduce it to a rich, mouth watering sauce which I drizzled over the potatoes and squid just before serving.  Once again, the dish looked nothing like the picture in the book.  But my husband and I felt it was the most tastiest dish in the book.  With a little squirt of lemon it was perfect.  You have the option to add 1/2 to 1 teaspoon of dried hot red pepper flakes.  I went for 1 teaspoon.  I thought it was perfect.  At my husbands request I'll go a little lighter on the pepper next time.  Yes next time.  I would make this dish again, but alter the recipe a bit.

Tomorrow is the last test day for this book.  My goal is to try to Focaccia with Rosemary, Shrimp in Tomato Sauce with Chickpea Pasta and Zabaglione which I've made before.  Lets see if it beats my recipe.



The Cook Book Addict