Food Network

COOKING
•  Baking
•  Cooking Guides
•  Cooking Demos
•  Cooking For Kids
•  Culinary Q&A
•  Encyclopedia
•  Holiday Baking
•  International Cooking
•  Recipe Collections
•  Recipes of the Day

Click here for a random recipe. Get a new recipe every time you click!

Find a TV Show
Today's TV Schedule

Find an Episode
Episode Topic
Or was shown during

Sponsor
Recommendations

Email Print Full Page | Print 3x5 Card | Print 4x6 Card

Grilled Calamari on a Bed of Shaved Fennel
Recipe courtesy Roberta Dowling, Cambridge School of Culinary Arts
Show:  Food Network Specials
Episode:  An Italian Christmas With Mario and Giada
4 pounds baby squid, cleaned, bodies scored lightly in a crisscross fashion
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Vegetable oil, for brushing grill
2 large cloves garlic, minced
2 lemons, zested and juiced
1 to 2 fresh red chiles, seeded and finely chopped
1 recipe Roasted Garlic Vinaigrette, recipe follows
1/3 cup minced flat-leaf Italian parsley
1/3 cup capers, rinsed and drained
3 scallions, trimmed and sliced paper thin on the bias
5 heads fennel, trimmed and sliced paper thin
1 cup green olives, preferably cerignola, pitted, and thinly sliced
2 bunches baby arugula, trimmed, washed, and spun dry

Preheat an outdoor grill or grill pan to high heat.

In a large bowl, toss the squid with salt and pepper to taste. Drizzle with olive oil and toss. Brush grill with vegetable oil. Place calamari on grill and cook each side until lightly charred, about 1 minute per side. Remove from heat and place in clean large bowl. Add garlic, lemon zest, chiles, 1/4 of the Roasted Garlic Vinaigrette, the minced parsley, capers, and scallions. Season with salt, pepper and lemon juice, to taste. Set aside until ready to use.

In another bowl toss the fennel with the olives and 3/4 cup of Roasted Garlic Vinaigrette until just coated. Arrange a bed of fennel on a serving platter and set aside.

Into the fennel bowl, lightly toss the baby arugula with remaining vinaigrette and season with salt and pepper. Arrange a "wreath" of arugula around the fennel. Top the fennel with the grilled calamari. Season with freshly ground black pepper.

Roasted Garlic Vinaigrette:
6 garlic bulbs
1 1/2 cups extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1/4 cup water
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Lay each garlic head root side down. Carefully halve each garlic bulb horizontally, revealing the garlic cloves. Lay each garlic head, cut side up, on a small piece of aluminum foil. Drizzle tops with about 1 tablespoon of extra-virgin olive oil and fold up sides of foil, completely enclosing garlic. Repeat with remaining garlic.

Place garlic bundles on baking sheet and bake until cloves are soft, about 1 hour.

Remove garlic from oven and let cool about 10 minutes still sealed.

Carefully squeeze the soft garlic out of the skins into the bowl of a medium sized food processor. Puree the garlic until smooth, adding a little olive oil if necessary.

Leave about 5 tablespoons of the garlic puree in the food processor and store the remaining amount in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.

To the food processor, add the mustard, vinegar, remaining olive oil, and water and puree until smooth and emulsified. Season with salt and pepper.

This recipe was provided by professional chefs and has been scaled down from a bulk recipe provided by a restaurant. The Food Network Kitchens chefs have not tested this recipe, in the proportions indicated, and therefore, we cannot make any representation as to the results.

Other Recipes from this Episode
Panettone
Tiny Honey-Covered Fritters: Struffoli
Venetian Seafood Salad: Insalata di Frutti di Mare Veneziana
Baked Clams on the Half Shell: Vongole Gratinate al Forno
Cannellini Bean Antipasto with Shrimp: Antipasto di Cannellini
Baked Ziti with Meatballs
Stuffed Turkey Breast
Sauteed Broccoli Rabe
Insalata di Rinforzo
Lobster and Mascarpone Holiday Ravioli with Truffle Butter
Bruschetta Con Pomodori
Antipasti de Salumi
Capon Salad: Insalata Di Capone

Recipe Summary
Difficulty: Easy
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour
Yield: 8 to 10 servings

Giada De Laurentiis
User Rating 5 Stars
 Rate Recipe  Read Reviews
 Ratings & Reviews FAQ


 
Shop For This Recipe
 

  Shop for Giada products
  Shop for seafood tools
  Shop for cookware
  Shop for Italian cookbooks
  Visit the Food Network Store