We’re back with another themed week on the site: Food Week. This semester, Her Campus FSU has created themed weeks dedicated to exclusive content we believe all of our readers should have access to. Keep up on the site for the next few days as we cover everything from the best brunch spots in Tallahassee to a complete recount of what went down when one of our staff writers decided to cook a meal in her dishwasher (yes, it’s a thing and yes, she actually tried it). Don’t miss out!
In honor of Food Week, the Her Campus FSU team wanted to let you in on some of our favorite family recipes. Enjoy!
Pasta e Fagioli (Pasta and Bean Soup)
By: Sam Swantek
Courtesy: Old Ways-Health Through Heritage
My Grandma has a rich Italian heritage—her grandfather immigrated to Ellis Island from Italy! True to her roots, she is always in the kitchen whipping up delicious sauces, pastas and stews. This recipe for Pasta e Fagioli is one of my favorites. It’s warm and flavorful, and transports me right to Italy whenever I eat it! Enjoy, Collegiettes!
Ingredients:
• 2-3 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 ounces pancetta and 2 ounces prosciutto
• 1 large onion
• 4 cloves garlic
• 3 ribs celery
• 3 carrots
• 1 can cannellini beans
• 1 can kidney beans
• 1 can crushed tomatoes
• 2 springs rosemary
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 bunch basil
• 2 cups dried pasta (the traditional way is with ditalini but elbow macaroni can be substituted)
• ½ cup white wine
• 7 cups beef stock (chicken can be substituted)
• ½ cup grated parmesan
• Salt and pepper to taste
Directions:
1. Heat olive oil over medium heat.
2. When hot, add pancetta and prosciutto and cook for 5 minutes until there is visible rendered fat.
3. Add the onion, garlic, carrot and celery (all finely chopped) and cook about 5 minutes or until onion and celery are translucent in color. Stir frequently to prevent from burning.
4. Add the beef broth, white wine, beans, canned tomatoes, minced rosemary and bay leaves. Simmer on low for about 15 minutes so flavors can develop and wine can evaporate.
5. Add uncooked pasta to the pot and raise temperature to a rolling boil. Cook for 8-10 minutes or until pasta is al-dente. The starch from the pasta will thicken the soup.
6. Search for and discard bay leaves, then add your ½ cup of grated parmesan.
7. Serve soup in bowls. Chiffonade fresh basil and sprinkle on top, as well as salt and pepper to taste.
Slap ya mama, Sweet Potato Pie
By: Kaylah Jackson
Courtesy: Ben E. Keith Co.
This past holiday season Patti Labelle’s pies were selling off the shelves like crazy, and my little sister Kyra took it upon herself to make her own twist to this classic southern dessert. Unlike the usual pumpkin pie served during Thanksgiving or Christmas, Sweet Potato pie is an iconic end-of-the-meal treat in my family. The filling is sweet, the crust is just the perfect blend of doughy and crispy, and when topped with whipped cream and cinnamon, it’ll have even Patti herself second guessing her own recipe.
Ingredients:
• Orange zest
• Ground cloves
• 3 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1/3 cups brown sugar
• 4 1/3 cups white sugar
• 8 sweet potatoes
• 4 Eggs
• 1 Egg White
• 3 tablespoons Nutmeg
• 6 tablespoons flour
• A pinch of salt
• 2 ½ sticks of butter
• 2/3 cups evaporated carnation milk
Directions:
1. Wash sweet potatoes and skin them, and then chop them up and put in a pot to boil until soft. This should take about 40 to 60 minutes.
2. Strain the potatoes and place them inside the mixing bowl. Add salt, flour, eggs and butter, and mix. Then add cinnamon, nutmeg, ground cloves, vanilla and milk; stir in sugar and orange zest and mix together.
3. Crack an egg and use the egg white to brush the liquid on the edges of the pie crust.
4. Pour the filling into the pie crust and make sure it’s leveled out. Place the pie in the oven on 350 degrees for one hour or until the knife comes out clean. Let it cool and serve with whipped cream.
5. Extra filling can be used to make another pie, store in the freezer until ready to make.
Cheese Empanadas
By: Sharon Szmuc
Courtesy: Sharon Szmuc
Empanadas are my favorite dish. My mom usually makes ground meat, spinach, cheese or corn empanadas. She’s even made fake meat empanadas since I’m vegetarian! In Argentina empanadas are eaten as an appetizer at popular steak houses. Meat empanadas are probably the most known, but cheese empanadas are the easiest to make and are always served at a family gathering. My Tia Sandra makes the best cheese empanadas, and I would say my mom comes in a close second! It’s now been a tradition that each time my friends and I come home for break my mom makes us over 80 empanadas, where we eat about 7 each! (Or until we can’t even get up from our chair). Empanadas are a very social food and are a quick finger food for on the go!
Ingredients:
• One packet of Tapas de Empanadas found in the freezer section of Publix (Preferred brand: Goya)
• 2 cups of shredded Mexican style Sargento cheese
• Two eggs
• 4 cups of Ricotta cheese
• 1 cup of grated Parmesan cheese
• Olive Oil
• Sesame seeds
• A cup of water
Directions:
1. Leave the Tapas de Empanadas to defrost for 15 minutes
2. In a small bowl, crack an egg and stir (this will be used to paint the empanadas with a cookie brush to give it a golden touch in the oven)
3. In a large bowl mix, 2 cups of shredded cheese (you can basically put as much shredded cheese as you want), 4 cups of Ricotta cheese, 1 cup of grated Parmesan cheese and crack an egg to give it some texture.
4. Leave mixture in fridge for about 10 minutes
5. Open each Tapa, dip your hand in the cup of water and spread a pinch of water around the edges of a tapa (you have to do this for each tapa in order to stretch out the dough)
6. With a spoon scoop a spoonful of the previous cheese filling and place the filling in the center of the circular tapa
7. Close the tapa into a moon shape, then stretch out the edges of the dough of the moon shaped empanada, and shape the edges in whatever way you please (the easiest is to close them down with fork prints)
8. Repeat steps 5-7 for each empanada
9. Spray Pam or Olive oil onto a cooking sheet and place each empanada
10. With a cooking brush, brush a bit of the egg yolk on top and later sprinkle the sesame seeds on top of each empanadas
11. Set oven to 350 degrees and bake for 25 minutes or until they are golden and enjoy!