Ragù di manzo al siciliana con cous-cous (Serves 8)

I ate this in Siricusa on the southern-eastern tip of Sicily and never forgot it.  It is an incredible marriage of the Roman, Moorish and Greek influences of this incredible city.

STEW:

• 2 tbsp butter
• 1/2 cup of all-purpose flour
• 1 kg of cubed beef (chuck or pallet is fine as this will cook for a long time, but you can pull off a quickie version by using tenderloin)

Broccoli affogati alla Sapienza (Serves 6 sides)

This is one of my ultimate "comfort-food" dishes.  This is one of the 3 or 4 that I would always ask for when my grandparents would ask me "what do you want us to make for your visit?"

• 8 cups (2 good sized heads) of fresh broccoli including stems, separated and chopped no larger than 2 inch pieces  (1 inch for stem pieces)
• 2 cups of red or Spanish onion, sliced very thin
• 4 cloves of garlic sliced as thin as you can