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HOLIDAY RECIPES-Italian Style

Executive Chef Vito Gnazzo
Shares His Exclusive Holiday Recipes From Il Gattopardo and The Leopard at des Artistes


FINALLY---two recipes for hearty and flavorful dishes from two of our favorite restaurants...  The Leopard at des Artistes’ Christmas Salad Of Clams, Mussels, Shrimp, And Octopus In A Fresh Lemon Dressing and Il Gattopardo’s Artisanal Lobster Ravioli - that add Italian flavors to holiday feasts.
AND will dazzle the tastebuds of guests-as well as leave time to enjoy their bon mots too!

Courtesy of Leopard at des Artistes' Executive Chef Vito Gnazzo...who conjured up probably one of the best meals we have ever eaten anywhere. (Review)






THE LEOPARD AT DES ARTISTES’ “CHRISTMAS SALAD OF CLAMS, MUSSELS, SHRIMP,AND OCTOPUS IN A FRESH LEMON DRESSING”
Prep Time: 30 mins
Cook Time: 60 mins
Total Time: 90 mins
(approx.)
Serves 6-8 persons

INGREDIENTS
1 Large Octopus (approx. 2 lbs)
1 Lb Calamari
24 Medium Shrimp
2 Lbs PEI Mussels
2 Lbs Manila Clams (a large size is preferred)
2 Celery Stalks (chopped)
2 Medium Red Onion (chopped)
2 Medium Carrots (chopped)
Freshly Squeezed Juice of 2 Lemons
1 Cup EVOO
2 Cups White Wine
1 Bunch Chopped Parsley
Frisee to Garnish
Salt & Pepper to Taste
INSTRUCTIONS
In 2 separate large pots, bring water to a boil. To each pot, add celery, carrots, red onions, and 1 cup white wine. Add salt to the boiling water. In one pot, add the octopus, and cook for 40 mins; let cool.  Clean the calamari, and add to the second pot; cook for 10 mins. Let cool. Clean and devein the shrimp; set aside. Steam the clams and mussels separately, until fully opened. Clean the meat of the clams and mussels from their shells, and place in a large bowl. To this bowl, strain  cup of the water from the pot the clams were cooked in. In a medium skillet, sauté the shrimp with 1 Tbsp EVOO until pink (approx. 2 mins) Add the shrimp to the bowl. Cut the calamari into rings, and add to the bowl. Remove the octopus from the water, and remove the larger suction cups from the tentacles. Cut into small pieces, and add to the bowl. Add the chopped parsley, lemon juice, and remaining EVOO to the bowl. Mix well, and add salt & pepper to taste. Garnish with frisee, and serve. Optional: You can substitute 16 scallops for the shrimps

IL GATTOPARDO’S “ARTISANAL LOBSTER RAVIOLI” 
Prep Time: 80 mins
Cook Time: 45 mins
Total Time: 2 hours and 5 mins
(approx.)
Serves 6-8 persons

DOUGH FOR RAVIOLI / INGREDIENTS
3 Cups Durum Flour
4 Whole Eggs
2 Egg Yolks
1 Tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO)
1 Egg, for wash
INSTRUCTIONS
In an electric mixer fitted with a dough hook, combine flour and oil, adding the whole eggs one at a time, and continuing to mix until it forms a ball. Sprinkle some flour on a wood work surface, and knead the dough until elastic and smooth. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and let it rest for about 30 minutes. Cut the ball of dough in half, and cover the rest. Dust the work surface and dough with flour. Form the dough into a rectangle and roll it through the pasta machine, 2 or 3 times, at its widest setting. Guide the sheet of dough with the palm of your hand as it emerges from the rollers. Reduce the setting and continue, until the machine is at its narrowest setting. The dough should be about 1/8-inch thick.Dust the counter with flour, and lay out the long sheet of pasta. Brush the top surface of dough with egg wash. Put the filling about 2-inches apart on half the sheet of pasta. Fold the unfilled half over the filling, and with your fingers, gently press out air pockets around each mound of filling. Use a round mold to cut each pillow, checking to ensure they’re well-sealed; set aside.

FILLING / INGREDIENTS
2 Lobsters (1.5lb each)
1 Medium Shallot
1 Bunch of Parsley
1 Egg White
1 Tbsp EVOO
Salt & Pepper to Taste
INSTRUCTIONS
Place the lobsters in the boiling water for 5 minutes, and let cool. Clean the meat from the body and claws, and chop into large pieces. Finely chop the parsley and shallots together. In a skillet over medium heat, add EVOO, shallots and parsley, and heat until golden brown. Add the lobster, and cook for 1 min; set aside until cool. Pass everything through a meatgrinder (on the finest hole setting).Place all in a medium mixing bowl, and add the egg white; mix until smooth. Add salt & pepper to taste. 

LOBSTER BROTH / INGREDIENTS
1 Medium Red Onion
3 Stalk Celery
1 Leek
1 Medium Sized Carrot
1 Bunch Fresh Thyme
6 Oz Plum Tomatoes
. Cup White Wine
2 Tbsp EVOO
INSTRUCTIONS
Wash and finely chop all the vegetables; place in a large pot.Place over medium heat, and cook until golden brown. Add lobster carcass, crushed into smaller pieces. Let cook over medium heat for 5 mins.  Add white wine, thyme, tomatoes and 1 cup water; let cook over medium heat for 20 mins. Pass the sauce through a sieve to take out the harder chunks of lobster carcass. Set aside.

SAUCE / INGREDIENTS
1 Yellow Zucchini
1 Green Zucchini
10 Medium Shrimp
2 Plum Tomatoes
1 Pinch Chopped Parsley
2 Tbsp EVOO
1 Oz White Wine
INSTRUCTIONS
Clean and devein the shrimp, and cut into small pieces. Wash the zucchini, and cut off the ends; cut lengthwise into 4 long pieces (try to eliminate the middle portion). Slice these long pieces into small pieces. Split the tomato into 4 pieces, and get rid of the seeds; cut into small cubes. In a medium skillet, over medium heat, add 1 tbsp EVOO and zucchini; cook for 2-3 mins. Add the shrimp, and cook for 2-3 more mins. Add a splash of wine, tomatoes, and . cup lobster broth, and let simmer for 2 mins. Add parsley, and 1 tbsp EVOO; stir and remove from heat. Cook the ravioli in a large pot of boiling, salted water for 5 minutes. Lift the ravioli from water with a large strainer, place on plates, and combine with sauce  and lobster broth. 

Buon appetito and Happy Holiday!
Vito Gnazzo
 

 The 411
EXECUTIVE CHEF VITO GNAZZO
Born and raised in the town of Felitto in Salerno, Cilento Coast of Italy, Chef Vito Gnazzo began his culinary career in Milan at El Toula, and later at world-renowned Three Michelin starred restaurant Antica Osteria del Ponte. For over a decade, the Chef held the position as Head Chef of the legendary REX il Ristorante in Los Angeles, praised as one of the best restaurants in California at the time.

Gnazzo then moved to New York to be the Executive Chef at Bice Restaurant, where he met the restaurateur Gianfranco Sorrentino. In 1993 he became Executive Chef at Sorrentino’s Sette MoMA, in the prestigious Museum of Modern Art. In 1996, he followed his culinary passion deeply rooted in the authenticity of Italian ingredients, and returned to the hills of Salerno, developing an “agritourism” project associated with La Locanda, the celebrated “farm to table” restaurant in the countryside of Salerno.

Upon his return to the United States in 2001, he was tapped by Gianfranco and Paula Bolla-Sorrentino to be their Executive Chef at Il Gattopardo. Since that date, Gnazzo has become part of the Sorrentino’s family, as the ultimate artist behind the Southern Italian menus at Il Gattopardo, The Leopard at des Artistes and Mozzarella & Vino, along with their busy Il Gattopardo Catering division. Gnazzo has been awarded two stars by The New York Times and two and half stars by the New York Post. He is committed to bringing the best of the Italian culinary traditions to all of his creations, typically with the use of humble preparation, and genuine, traditional ingredients.

Il Gattopardo: 13-15 West 54th Street/NYC
The Leopard at des Artistes: 1 West 67th Street/NYC