Marc's Musings

Review: Tuccio's Fresh Italian Kitchen

Just barely off the beaten path near downtown Mount Prospect (in the Clock Tower Place strip center) there exists a cute little Italian restaurant called Tuccio's Fresh Italian Kitchen. Beth and I have been there a few times and have never been disappointed.

The dining room, with seating for about 35 people, is open to the kitchen where you can watch owner John Messina and his small staff cook up each meal to order. There seems to be enough wait staff for one for every 3 tables (they have approximately 12), so the place is constantly moving. Every time we have been in there "Grandma," John's mother, has been in clear sight, either sitting at the counter, or walking around making sure everything is to your liking. The pictures and memorabilia on the wall appears to all be of and from family as the people bear striking resemblance to grandma or the owner.

The food is outstanding. The one time we had the calamari it was grilled to perfection. I haven't had the same thing twice, and haven't had a bad meal. The lasagna is stuffed full of cheese, the ravioli fresh--I could go on, but I'm getting hungry just thinking about it. The portions are huge, and we usually end up taking some home with us so that we save room for dessert. Speaking of desserts--grandma bakes them fresh each day--if you have room, I highly recommend the lemon bars. Regardless if you get dessert or not, when you get the check, there is a pizzelle for each member of your party on a plate.

We have not yet tried their pizza or calzones, which apparently are rated #1 in the NW suburbs. The atmosphere is casual; they will cater a party and/or deliver tasty goodness to you. Sadly, their website is no longer up--it appears they didn't pay the hosting bill and someone squatted on it. The best I can do is provide a pdf of a copy of their menu--click their logo to get it.

Gino's East Pizza Crust

I was browsing around this afternoon and found what appears to be the actual recipe for Gino's East pizza crust. I'm copying it here in case the post mysteriously disappears from the interweb:

1 Cup water
1 package yeast
1/3 cup oil mixture
1 T sugar
1 tsp cream of tartar
1 lbs Bread Flour
1/4 tsp yellow food coloring

In a bowl, put water (luke warm), then yeast, oil, cream of tartar, and sugar. Mix with hand until yeast dissolves. Then, pour in Bread Flour a little at a time. Mix with your hand. Just curve your hand like a dough hook and hold the bowl and mix. Then, knead it until it gets firm. Add more flour if needed. Secret is also in the kneading. Knead it for about 10 minutes straight. Then, roll it into a ball, and put it in a bowl with oil brushed in the sides. Cover with plastic wrap and a kitchen towel. let sit overnight unrefrigerated. Only let it rise once. Portion and use.

And, the kind of pan they use is a Tinned Steel pan that is seasoned. And, when you cook it, make sure you put oil in the pan also. Stretch it out in the pan and put a layer of cheese over it. Then, put it in the fridge for about a day. Then, take it out and put another layer of cheese, then sauce, then pecorino romano cheese and oregano.

The oil mixture is about 95% corn oil and 5% extra virgin olive oil.

Also found Lou Malnati's recipe.