August 17 – August 23, 2026

No picture of the tapas – but here is an app of ricotta salata, uncured chorizo, radishes and friends

Monday:             Tapas:  Chicken Salad in Endive/Fried Polenta in Cacciatore Sauce/Pico de Gallo with Chips/Beef, Bacon,

                      Fried Mushrooms, Lettuce, Mayo Sliders/Cheese Crostini

Tuesday:             Grilled Branzino Fillets with Chickpea Stew

Wednesday:      Spaghetti with Sweet Corn and Scallions

Friday:                 Finnish Clam (Salmon) Chowder

Saturday:           Margherita Pizza

Sunday:              Pork Loin with corn, peaches and lime

Memories of La Famiglia

Decades ago, making reservations for a dinner with the VP of Marketing and the VP of Sales of a company I worked for, I had, at a hazard, chosen to entertain these two luminaries at a restaurant on the Delaware River in Philadelphia called ‘La Famiglia.’  Our waiter, Massimo, took us on a tour of the wine cellar which was, in fact, in the cellar and was larger than any State Store I’ve seen in Pennsylvania.

Being a scotch guy, I had a pre-prandial scotch (a not very exclusive scotch but, at La Famiglia, a very expensive Scotch).  My two guests were wine drinkers and Massimo suggested an Amarone, a highly alcoholic big red, delicious and mind-numbing.  Massimo described this particular Amarone as “chewable.”  It was a substantial wine and the two big wigs drank a substantial amount of it – two bottles.  The expense of these bottles compared to the expense of my Scotch was as the cost of a Suit by Armani compared to a suit by J. C. Penney.

The highlight of my meal was a beautifully cooked branzino – filleted table-side – accompanied by some lightly dressed arugula.  It was a meal to remember.  My guess is that the other two fellows don’t remember much about their meal, which involved appetizers – I passed – as well as veal chops, sides and dessert.

The VP of sales picked up the tab and we all headed to our hotels (I was staying in the suburbs at a Holiday Inn – they downtown at a swanky place).  I didn’t think much about the dinner until the next week when I received a phone call from the VP of Sales asking me to please put the dinner at LaFamiglia on my expense account (the bill was in the mail to my home office), and not to worry, he would approve it.

Thus, was I introduced to a certain sub-culture in the sales universe which never accepted me.  But I was also introduced to La Famiflia and Massimo and the wonders of branzino, a mild, firm fleshed, but very light fish that is SWMBO’s favorite.  Which is to say that if branzino is on the menu when we eat out, she’s going to order it.

I have cooked branzino from time to time – once, memorably, losing a good portion of it between the grates of a charcoal grill.  But last week, I succeeded in cooking a fine version of the fish.  Not as delicate or simple as the meal I had at La Famiglia, but worth your while and much simpler to cook, even on a grill – or should I say, especially on a grill.   The kiss of smoke the grill imparted made took the fish from good to great, but you can easily cook this in a pan on the stove – just make sure that the pan is very hot.

Perhaps not by coincidence, I found this recipe in Michael Solomonov’s cookbook, Zahav.  Solomonov’s restaurants are in Philadelphia – the home of La Famiglia.  There’s something about that town and branzino.

The key to this dish is to get the frozen branzino fillets from Trader Joe’s.  If you don’t know about Joe’s frozen fish, you are missing something.  Because this fish is flash-frozen and never thawed and allowed to deteriorate – which is mostly what you’re getting in super markets – it is superbly fresh and absolutely not in the least fishy.

Here’s how to cook the branzino with a top-notch purée to perch it on.

Grilled Branzino Fillets with Chickpea Stew

(adapted from Michael Solomonov – Zahav)

For the Branzino:

2 large branzino fillets, skin-on (about ½ pound each), halved – We had much smaller frozen fillets, skin-on from Trader Joe’s.  Unless you have a prime fish market near you – like Penn Avenue Fish in Pittsburgh – get Trader Joe’s fish.  It is flash frozen when caught and never thawed out and allowed to deteriorate, which is what super market’s do.

1 teaspoon kosher salt.

Prep: 

Thaw your fish (if going the Trader Joe’s route) and pat it dry.  If you have fresh fish, pat it dry.

Make sure that your grill is clean, hot and well-oiled (I use olive oil, but vegetable oil will work).  Note:  this is key – fish will not stick to a hot, clean, well-oiled grate, but it will stick like super glue to un-oiled grates that have not been allowed to get really hot.

Season the fish on both sides with salt.

Cook:

Grill the branzino, skin-side down until the skin is crisp and releases easily when you try to flip it – about 3 minutes.  Turn and kook flesh side down until cooked through – maybe two minutes or a little less if you have thin filets.

Serve this by itself with appropriate sides, or serve it on top of a fava-bean or lima bean purée (as we did) with appropriate sides.

For the lima bean purée:

½ cup or so of thawed lima beans

½ cup of labneh or Greek yogurt allowed to come to room temperature.

½ teaspoon of salt and a pinch of ground mace

Cook and assemble:

Boil the lima beans for about 1 minute, then purée in a food processor.  Put the labneh or yogurt in a bowl and fold in the beans and then stir in the salt and mace.

To serve with the Branzino, smear some of the purée on a plate and top with the branzino.