by J. D. Griffo
“And what exactly would that be?” Vinny asked cautiously.
“That this mystery wouldn’t have been solved without the Ferrara Family Detective Agency,” Alberta said.
She smiled impishly at Vinny, who couldn’t help but return a friendly hug. She then looked over at Jinx, Helen, and Joyce, and her heart was filled with pride, joy, and promise. This was her family. It wasn’t perfect, but it was hers.
And like Alberta always said, family was everything.
Please turn the page for recipes
from Alberta’s kitchen!
Recipes from the Ferrara Family Kitchen
JINX’S VEGAN STUFFED PEPPERS
For the Sauce
2 28-ounce cans of fire-roasted diced tomatoes
4 cloves garlic, minced—or 2 if you’re like Freddy, who says, “I like garlic, but garlic doesn’t like me!”
2 tablespoons olive oil
¼ teaspoon chili flakes—or disregard this entirely if you’re like Freddy, who says chili likes him even less than garlic.
1 teaspoon salt
According to Gram, you need “a realla gooda pincha” black pepper, whatever that means!
1 teaspoon dried oregano
For the Peppers
6 peppers, cut in half and seeded to make 12 halves
2 cups cooked brown rice—never, ever use white rice!
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced (see above if you want to cut this in half)
1 large shallot, 2 celery stalks, 3 zucchini—all diced
1½ cups finely chopped broccoli and kale
1 cup of walnuts and black olives, chopped
As much parsley and basil as you want for the garnish
For the Sauce
1. Heat the olive oil in a medium sauce pot and when hot add the garlic and sauté. When the smell makes Freddy leave the kitchen, I add the tomatoes, salt, pepper, chili flakes, and oregano letting it all simmer and thicken for about 40 minutes. Once hot, add the garlic and sauté until softened and fragrant. Add the canned tomatoes, salt, pepper, chili flakes, bay leaf, and oregano. Bring to a simmer and simmer for about 40–45 minutes, until thickened.
2. Once it’s done, puree about ¾ of the sauce in a blender and then return it to the pot to mix with the rest of the sauce.
For the Peppers
You should start this while the sauce is cooking. Gram says, “One of the keys to good cooking is all in the timing.” And she should know!
1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
2. Cook the brown rice and set aside 2 cups.
3. Cut peppers in half from top to bottom, seed them, and brush them with oil, salt, and pepper. Lay them cut side down on a greased baking sheet and cook in the oven for 15 minutes.
4. Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a sauté pan and when hot add the shallot, celery, and garlic, and cook until it’s soft, but not brown. Add, the broccoli and cook for an additional 3–5 minutes. Add the zucchini and kale and cook for 5 more minutes. Everything should be super tender by now.
5. Finally, add in the walnuts and olives and heat it a little bit longer.
Now the Fun Part: Stuffing the Peppers!
1. Spread a layer of sauce on the bottom of a large baking dish and place the peppers cut side up.
2. Mix the vegetables and rice, ½ of the sauce, and some chopped parsley and basil in a large bowl and then stuff those peppers!
3. Cover the peppers with some sauce, then cover the dish with foil and bake for 20–25 minutes.
ALBERTA’S ITALIAN STUFFED SHELLS—ENOUGH FOR THE WHOLE FAMILY
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon tomato paste
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 small diced onion
3 minced garlic cloves—and do not listen to Jinx, you can never, ever have enough garlic!
1 32-ounce can whole, peeled tomatoes
1 pound ground beef
1 cup cottage cheese/1 cup ricotta/2 cups shredded mozzarella/½ cup shredded Parmesan—if you need to use dairy-free cheese, do not make this recipe, it’ll be terrible so just go make something else.
18–24 jumbo shell noodles, cooked and drained—they’re easy to cook, just read the instructions on the box or ask your grandmother.
1. Preheat the oven to 350.
2. Heat olive oil in a pot, add onion and cook for 10 minutes. Then add garlic and chili flakes and cook for another minute. Add tomato paste and fry for 1 minute. Add tomatoes and basil and simmer for 20 minutes.
3. While this is simmering, cook the beef in a skillet in the rest of the olive oil and set it aside to cool.
4. Puree the tomato sauce and combine the beef, cottage cheese, ricotta, and half of the mozzarella and Parmesan.
5. Spread a thin layer of tomato sauce in a casserole dish, stuff the shells with the beef mixture, and line them up in the dish, topping with lots and lots of sauce and the leftover mozzarella and Parmesan.
6. Cover with foil, bake for 15 minutes, remove the foil, and continue baking until the top is slightly browned.
Mangia!
JINX AND JOYCE’S NO-BAKE VEGAN TIRAMISU
1 13.5-ounce can of coconut milk—not skim and it has to be cold
2 teaspoons of stevia powder or whatever sugar substitute you like to use
½ cup walnuts, soaked in water
10 teaspoons of water
3 shots coffee liqueur—Kahlúa’s our fave
1 package of ladyfingers—Schär’s are gluten-free!
1 cup of your favorite flavored vodka—pick whichever one you want, it’s vodka so there’s no way you can go wrong.
10 tablespoons coffee
Cocoa powder
1. Scoop out the hardened coconut cream from the top of the can. Don’t do like Aunt Joyce did the first time and shake the can because then the cream mixes with the coconut water and you have to go out and buy another can of coconut milk.
2. Whip the coconut cream with the stevia powder and put it in the fridge.
3. Blend the walnuts, water, and Kahlúa until it’s creamy.
4. Soak the ladyfingers in the Kahlúa or the vodka or both! Then scoop the ladyfingers, which will have broken up, into the bottom of six glasses.
5. Mix half of the coconut whipped cream with the walnut mixture and scoop into the glasses, add some more ladyfingers if you have any left over, and top with the rest of the whipped cream and dust the cocoa powder on top of it.
6. Leave it in the fridge overnight and enjoy a very decadent breakfast!
HELEN’S FAVORITE DESSERT—SICILIAN CASSATA CAKE (WITH A LITTLE HELP FROM ENTENMANN’S)
⅓ cup dried currants
5 tablespoons Marsala wine
1 16½-ounce can pitted cherries—do not get rid of the cherry syrup!
1 pint ricotta cheese
¼ cup white sugar
2 tablespoons heavy cream
1 12-ounce Entenmann’s pound cake
12 1-ounce semisweet chocolate squares
1 cup unsalted butter
1. Combine currants and 2 tablespoons of wine in a small bowl and soak for 15 minutes. Drain the cherries, cutting them up, and then drain the currants.
2. Puree ricotta cheese, sugar, the rest of the wine, and the heavy cream until smooth. Mix in currants and cherries in a larger bowl.
3. Cut the pound cake lengthwise into 3 horizontal layers, placing one layer on a platter. Spread half of the filling over it, place a second layer, and spread the rest of the filling over that. Then, you guessed it, top with the third layer of pound cake.
4. Refrigerate for about 2 hours so it can get firm.
5. Make the chocolate frosting by combining the cherry syrup, semisweet chocolate, and ¼ cup of wine in a saucepan. Stir over low heat until the chocolate melts, then remove the heat. Add unsalted butter and let it melt. Put the frosting in the fridge so it can thicken.
6. Put 1 cup of chocolate frosting into a pastry bag—do not let Alberta do this, sh
e’s terrible at it—and spread the rest over the sides and the top of the cassata. Use the pastry bag to decorate the top of the cake with swirls and rosettes.
7. Refrigerate the whole shebang for a few more hours.