Cortazzo Foods LLC - Chef Scott Martino

Tuesday, May 22, 2012

Cortazzo Foods Product Demo

Cortazzo Foods will be at Stauffer's in Lititz this Saturday May 26th from 11am-3pm handing out BBQ samples, hope to see you there.

http://www.cortazzofoodsllc.com/apps/calendar/

Wednesday, April 4, 2012

Fresh Springtime Flavors with Chef Scott Martino

1. Tuesday, April 17 from 6:00 to 7:30 pm
2. Wednesday, April 18 from 6:00 to 7:30 pm
$49.99

Spring has arrived! Join guest Chef Scott Martino, owner of Cortazzo Foods and creator of Cortazzo Sauces, for a demonstration of his culinary techniques. This springtime meal will be prepared by Chef Scott Martino, former Executive Chef at Donecker’s. Come enjoy this filling four-course menu and learn helpful cooking tips.

To register for a cooking class, please contact us by e-mail at info@goodcookingstore.com or by phone at 877-525-7745, Monday-Saturday, 9am-5pm.

Attend a cooking class and receive a 10% discount on all non-sale merchandise on the day of the class.

the good cooking store

Friday, March 9, 2012

Cortazzo Foods – A Labor of Love

On a summer day in 2005, Chef Scott Martino took a break from working at one of the finest restaurants in Pennsylvania and spent some time in his home garden. That day he harvested a bounty of tomatoes and used this fresh-picked produce to create what would become known as the Cortazzo Foods Marinara Sauce.

Chef Martino’s Lancaster County-basedCortazzo Foods now consists of three traditional Italian tomato-based sauces as well as two barbecue sauces. He still cooks using the same principle employed with that first pot of Marinara: small batches and taste-tests of every pot. The chef says that although this is a more time consuming method, it is a “labor of love.” Every batch of these handcrafted sauces simmers for hours and is created using only 100% natural ingredients, many of which are sourced directly from Lancaster County.

Family and friends have played a key role in the creation of Cortazzo Foods. The name “Cortazzo” was inspired by Chef Martino’s grandmother, Marianina Cortazzo. In honor of the chef’s heritage, he uses Marianina’s original Arrabbiata sauce recipe. Her portrait and other family photos are displayed on every jar of the tomato-based sauces. Much like the original Cortazzo sauce, the first batch of what would become Awesome in a Jar BBQ Sauce was created as an accompaniment to ribs Chef Martino cooked for an afternoon of watching football with friends. The Carolina Peakes sauce was created when a native South Carolinian friend told the Chef that people from Pennsylvania couldn’t possibly make Carolina barbecue sauce. Taking on the challenge, Chef Martino produced a sauce with a mustard and vinegar base, the traditional components of the region’s barbecue sauce. To remind his naysayer of her unfounded skepticism, he put her name on every bottle. Now Mrs. Peakes can no longer doubt Chef Martino, and we never will.

Here at Smucker Farms we carry the full line of Cortazzo Foods sauces. Next time you’re looking for inspiration for dinner, stop by the store and pick up a jar of your favoriteCortazzo sauce and cook your family’s next favorite meal, or just use the following recipes created by Chef Martino:

Steamed Clams Cortazzo: http://www.cortazzofoodsllc.com/recipes.htm

Awesome Beef Barbecue: http://www.cortazzofoodsllc.com/awesomebeefbbq.htm

Carolina Peakes Barbecue: http://www.cortazzofoodsllc.com/carolinapeakesporkbbq.htm

by Kimble Guzewich for Smucker Farms of Lancaster County

Wednesday, February 29, 2012

Fresh Springtime Flavors with Chef Scott Martino

Saturday, February 4, 2012

On Orange with Chef Scott Martino; Brian C. Welch

F or the second year in a row now I’ve taken in the opportunity to enjoy one of Chef Scott Martino’s First Friday, prix fixe offerings at On Orange, located in Lancaster, PA. I must admit, I was a bit standoffish about the place in which we would be dining, since On Orange is not really renowned for it’s fine dining experience. They do a better job at serving breakfast and catering to casuals, and, it’s not without it’s charm. The place is very warm and inviting and quaintly decorated. I think, though, that sometimes things may be a little too close for comfort. This time, however, we were able to enjoy our dinner upstairs as opposed to downstairs, which, in my opinion, should be better left for the kitchen itself. An odd split between the dining areas and kitchen areas leaves one feeling bewildered as to who thought of such a layout. The nice thing though, is that our service was considerably better than the last time that we visited.

The first course we were presented with was a spinach, prosciutto and blue cheese salad with candied walnuts, champagne vinaigrette and a balsamic drizzle. I can honestly say I was a real fan of this salad introduction. We paired this with a Tamanend Moonstone white chardonnay as to keep it light and floral to balance with the salad. My first instinct was to let my olfactory glands have a go at the prosciutto to make sure it was fresh smelling and not slimy. Rest assured, it was of gorgeous color and texture and was exactly what I was hoping for. The spinach greens offered a nice bitterness, offsetting the sweetness of the prosciutto. The blue cheese wasn’t overdone, but allowed for a nice pungent and underlying, creamy texture. Of course, I’m a huge fan of blue cheese to begin with. I’m sure I could eat it by the palette. I think my only concern with this dish was that some sections of the candied walnuts were a little too big, so when I took bites, all I got was a bunch of sweet. And, in this instance, I felt the red onion could have been omitted entirely, giving the dish the same effect. They were a little lost. In all, this was a very good introductory salad, and I eagerly awaited more.

The second course we received was a Madeira short rib with a mascarpone polenta and horseradish gremolata. We paired this with a dry red known as American Beauty from Tamanend Winery. I have mixed feelings about this dish overall. The short rib was absolutely perfect. It was braised for an appropriate time and it was so extremely tender, that I was actually amazed that someone could cook a piece of beef this well for so long, and have it come out like that. However, the polenta I felt could have been brought up a notch. I was missing some of the creaminess of the mascarpone and was hoping for possibly a bit more cheesiness from it. I felt that it needed more to stand up to the corn flavor of the polenta base, so it fell just a touch short when standing up to the amazing flavor of the short rib. I also feel there could have been less of a portion. It was a very tasty dish, and the fact that we were served the short rib on a bone slate was divine and it really lent itself to the presentation and the overall feel of the dish. This is where Chef Scott Martino’s experience starts to show through, by placing the meat on the bone so the juices from the rib don’t leech with the polenta before serving, leading to a murky dish. That’s smart, very smart.

The third course we received was a very nice palate cleanser of pecorino foglie noce, warm chestnut honey on toast points. I’m a fan of this dishes presentation. It comes served on a beautiful piece of slate and is very direct in the approach, standing front and center awaiting digestion. It’s simple, but refined and beautifully minimalistic. The cheese was akin to romano, and had a decent texture to it with a touch of creaminess, but not so creamy that it got lost under the creaminess of the honey. The honey was good, but, unfortunately by the time the wait staff got it to us, it had lost any kind of advertised warmth as described on the menu. To be fair though, honey is a hard product to keep warm, and unless I was having warm honey poured table side, I wouldn’t have honestly expected anything else. It definitely balanced the savory of the previous course and prepped us for the sweet of the final course, offering fantastic balance. And, that’s what being a good chef is all about, telling a story with your food and taking your guests on a tasteful journey.

The last course we had enjoyed was a chocolate creme brulee with fresh strawberries. I’m going to tell you right now that this stuff was absolutely awesome. For some reason, Chef Scott Martino always delivers on his desert courses and finishes very strong, as if he’s hitting a home run and going for the win. The brulee was creamy, texturally perfect, deep, rich and not at all heavy. It definitely paired well with the rest of the courses and completed the culinary voyage. The strawberries tasted as if I had just plucked them from the patch in my mothers back yard and were of “in season” quality. My only issue with the dessert was that the sugar on top didn’t have enough caramelization to it which is mostly what the beautiful brulee package is all about; jamming your spoon down through the sugar to get at the beautiful filling. I heard reports this could be due to a technical difficulty in the kitchen, so I can’t be terribly critical of the situation. The fact is, is that things happen in the kitchen and it takes a great chef to respond accordingly. Chef Scott Martino always responds with clarity and class.

Overall, I’m glad I’ve gotten the opportunity to enjoy Chef Martino’s food again, and it’s always a pleasure doing so. I’m hoping to see him step outside his comfort zone soon and really start showing the Lancaster culinary scene who the next big player in town is. For I do believe he could usurp such a throne with his culinary acuity and attention to detail.

http://www.briancwelchphotography.com/on-orange-with-chef-scott-martino/

Tuesday, January 24, 2012

First Friday On Orange With Chef Scott Martino

On Orange Please join us On Orange Friday February 3rd, 2012 with Chef Scott Martino CEO and Executive Chef of Cortazzo Foods as he prepares a 4 course pre-fixe menu. Seating is limited so make your reservation today. Hope to see you On Orange!

Date: Friday February 3rd, 2012 5:30pm-9pm

Reservations: 717-299-5157 Friday - Tuesday

On Orange February 3^rd 2012

Salad

Spinach, Prosciutto & Blue Cheese

Candied Walnuts & Champagne Vinaigrette

Entrée

Madeira Short Ribs

Mascarpone Polenta & Horseradish Gremolata

Cheese

Pecorino Foglie Noce

Warm Chestnut honey

Dessert

Chocolate Crème Brulee

Fresh Strawberries

Sunday, January 15, 2012

Chef Scott Martino is generous with his family

Chef-Martino-is-generous-with-his-family

By STEPHEN KOPFINGER
Correspondent

To say chef Scott Martino is a busy guy would be an understatement.

He helps to run a Lancaster-based specialty foods business, Cortazzo Foods, which markets such goodies as Italian sauces. (Does arrabbiata make your mouth water?) He keeps busy giving culinary demonstrations, making guest appearances at local restaurants, conducting cooking classes and showing up on a regional television program titled "Cooking for Class," which airs on Ephrata's Blue Ridge Cable 11.

He also has a lot of kitchen experience under his belt, having worked at such notable restaurants as The Loft and the former Restaurant at Doneckers. Yet the Lancaster-born and -bred Martino, 33, has never forgotten his priorities: namely, family.

"Rich or poor, family is most important," Martino said. "That makes everything happier."

That's true even in business. Cortazzo is Martino's grandmother's maiden name. "My family is a big part of it," he said.

At home, Martino and his wife, Erika, enjoy cooking and sharing their city residence with two very friendly dogs. Martino's extended family includes his sister, Missy Martino; his mom and stepfather, Sue and Tim Mackey; his stepmother, Susan, and his father, John Martino.

Food is a binding tie. "Everyone in my family is a pretty good cook, actually," Martino said proudly.

Below is Martino's recipe for Steamed Clams Cortazzo. It calls for Scotch bonnet peppers, but jalapeños can be substituted. It's an "easy comfort" dish, Martino said, which is perfect for these chilly nights.

STEAMED CLAMS CORTAZZO
2 pounds littleneck clams, scrubbed (can substitute mussels)

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

1/2 red onion, finely chopped

4 cloves fresh garlic, thinly sliced

2 Scotch bonnet peppers, finely chopped

1 bunch of chives, cut into 1-inch lengths

2 cups dry white wine

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

1/2 cup Cortazzo arrabbiata sauce

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

1 loaf baguette bread

Soak clams in cool water for 5 minutes, rinse and repeat, to remove grit.

In a large skillet with lid, heat olive oil over high heat until almost smoking. Add the onion, cook for 3 minutes until softening occurs. Add garlic and cook 3 minutes until both are soft and lightly browned, being careful not to burn your garlic. ("Nothing will ruin a dish faster than burnt garlic," Martino said.)

Add the peppers, half of the chives, the clams, white wine, butter and arrabbiata sauce and bring to a boil, then cover and cook until all clams steam open, about 5 minutes. Discard any unopened clams.

Season broth with salt and pepper. Divide the clams and broth evenly into four large bowls, finish with remaining chives and serve with bread. (Martino likes bread from Lancaster's own Alfred & Sam's Italian bakery.)

Notes: To help ensure clams open properly, do not overcrowd your skillet. The weight of excess clams will hinder them from opening properly. To add an extra touch to your bread, slice your baguette on a bias, about 1 1/2-2 inches thick. Rub with olive oil and season with salt, pepper and garlic, and place on grill until crispy and slightly charred. Serves 4.