You were warned.... squid with herbs and lemon

Be honest: if Annalena had written her native "calamari" instead of "squid," you wouldn't be as turned off by the title, if you are in fact turned off (because many of you do LIKE squid. OH. PER Favore: many of you like calamari). Problem is, it seems, many people are afraid to deal with it, for whatever reason. For those who are not "skeeved" by the bodies and tentacles, but are "simply" put off because they do not know how to cook it, Annalena is here to rescue you.
Calamari needs to be cooked one of two ways: very fast, and very hot, or very low and very slow (Hmmm. Sounds like the two types of men Annalena favors. In what camp are you, sailor?). Seriously, ragazzi, if you cook calamari one of these two ways, you are going to get something delicious. If you don't, you may as well use it to hold your papers together, because it is all rubber bands.

This recipe falls into the very hot and very fast category, courtesy of Chef David Tanis and the NY Times, with Annalena's traditional changes. One of the things which Chef Tanis called for in this recipe, was fresh marjoram. Annalena did not have such in her kitchen. It is too bad, because if you walk into a restaurant that features the cooking of Liguria, you will smell two herbs: one is unmistakably basil. The other is marjoram. It is a natural with seafood, and there is a lot of seafood in Ligurian cooking. Chances are, if you had squid in a good Italian restaurant, there was marjoram, or perhaps savory, in it.

Bereft of both, however, Annalena turned to her trusty "Herb of all trades", thyme. And it worked beautifully. When marjoram comes back into season, Annalena will use it. For now , though, this recipe may very well be a keeper. And Annalena wants you to keep it, too.

Your preparation here, will take longer than your cooking. MUCH longer. And your prep will take 15 minutes at most.

Let's get the non squid ingredients together first: mince about 4 cloves of garlic, and also get a very small amount of hot red pepper flakes. Annalena used the flakes from pulverizing one small red pepper, and it was definitely "there," but not spicy. You be the judge here. You also need a tablespoon of lemon zest. Save the lemon for later. A tablespoon of a fresh herb of choice: marjoram, oregano, savory, or thyme all sound good. Annalena suggests staying away from the piney herb family members: rosemary and the like. You will also need a couple tablespoons of white wine, three sliced scallions, and a good third or half a cup of chopped parsley.

Guestimate how much time it will take you to put that together. Not long, huh? Now get a pound to 1.5 pounds of fresh squid. Worry not about the tentacles. Cut the bodies into rings about 3/4 to an inch wide, but don't pull out the ruler for this. Pat it dry, and sprinkle a bit of salt and pepper over it.

Now, get a big wide pan, and add four tablespoons of olive oil. Begin heating it. Have a big metal spoon ready.

Now, keep your eye on the oil. When it's hot enough, you will see a slight undulation (A wave for those of you with lower SAT scores). Just a bit of one. That's when you add the calamari, being very careful because there is no question: this WILL spatter. Start stirring immediately, for one minute. A timer is good here. Then add all of the garlic, pepper, lemon zest, and herbs. Keep stirring, and cook for another minute. Now toss in the wine. One minute more. Take this off hte heat. Add the parsley and the scallions.

Five minutes, maybe? And you've got dinner for anywhere from 2-4 appetites, if you have a starch ready. Annalena followed instructions, and made firm polenta with this (you can do that without Annalena's help, yes?), but rice sure sounds good with this too. Make sure you pour all the juices over whatever you serve.

You cannot find fish much cheaper than squid. Annalena paid 6.50 for her pound of the stuff, and you probably have just about all the other ingredients in your home.

Any of you who wish to tell Annalena "Well, I would, BUT... I have no time to cook," will get no sympathy, nor will those of you who say "well, fish is SO EXPENSIVE..." Get into the kitchen and make this. And get over your "squidophobia." If there is any dish that will get rid of it, it is this.