Last weekend I made two dishes for dinner that had Italian origins, but I doctored them with an American ingredient or two: Squash Risotto with Pecans, and Chard with Currants and Pecans. Both recipes called for pine nuts, which I did not have, but, I had plenty of pecans on hand. And the chard recipe called for raisins; I only had currants, but it was a fine substitute. The full recipes are at the end of the post.

Risotto ingredients

The squash cooked with fresh sage

Since I was going to be stirring the risotto fairly often, I wanted to prep most of my ingredients first. (And I find that makes for a smoother cooking experience anyway.) Once the ingredients were prepped, first thing was to cook the squash in a small saucepan with fresh sage and a little salt, and then sprinkle it with a bit of sherry vinegar.

Coating the risotto grains with the oil, before adding any liquid

Adding boiling broth, about a half a cup at a time

While the squash cooked, I started in on the risotto. First, sautéing onions until very soft, then adding the raw risotto and coating the grains well. And then adding the boiling broth a bit at a time.

Adding the cooked squash, when the risotto is almost done

Sautéing the chard

After about 20 minutes, when the risotto was almost done, I added in the squash. And meanwhile, I also did the chard, which was super-easy – sautéing a little garlic, then adding in the chopped chard and stirring until wilted, and then adding the currants and the chopped toasted pecans at the end.

Squash risotto with pecans, and chard with currants and pecans

Both dishes were ready at the same time, I served them immediately, and topped the risotto with some grated Parm Reg. Very yummy! Recipes follow, enjoy,
-Jillian

Squash Risotto with Marsala, Sage, and Pecans
(a modified recipe that originally appeared in Bon Appetit)

INGREDIENTS:
- 4 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 2.5 to 3 pound butternut squash, peeled, seeded, cut into 1/2 inch cubes, about 6 generous cups
- sea salt
- 1 tablespoon fresh sage leaves, finely chopped
- 1 tablespoon Sherry wine vinegar
- 2 onions, chopped, about 3 cups
- 4 cups chicken or vegetable broth, good quality
- 1-1/2 cups arborio rice (I used carnaroli, which is another kind of rice)
- 1/4 cup Marsala or medium dry sherry
- 3/4 cup pecans, toasted
- Parmesan cheese, shaved

METHOD:

1. Heat 2 T oil in heavy large nonstick skillet over high heat. Add squash, sprinkle with sea salt and saute until beginning to brown, stirring often, about 5 minutes. Reduce heat to medium, add chopped sage and cook until just tender, stirring often, about 8 minutes. Sprinkle Sherry wine vinegar over, toss to incorporate. Transfer squash to plate and wipe skillet clean.

2. Heat remaining 2T oil in the same skillet over high heat. Add chopped onions, sprinkle with sea salt, and saute until onions are soft and beginning to brown, 6 minutes. Reduce heat to low, cover, and cook until onions are soft and deep golden brown, stirring occasionally, about 20 minutes. Meanwhile, bring the broth to a simmer in a saucepan. Cover and keep warm over low heat.

3. Add arborio (or carnaroli) rice to onions in skillet. Stir until rice is slightly translucent, about 4 minutes. Add sherry, stir until absorbed. Add 1 cup warm broth mixture, stir until almost all liquid is absorbed, about 3 minutes. Continue adding broth mixture by 1/2 cupfuls, stirring almost constantly, until rice is just tender but still firm to bite and risotto is creamy, this should take about 15 to 20 minutes. Then add the squash, and cook another few minutes, so about 20 to 25 minutes total. Season with salt and pepper. Stir in the toasted pecans. Transfer squash risotto to plates and top with shaved parmesan if desired.

Swiss Chard with Currants and Pecans
(a modified recipe that originally came from Peggy Markel’s Tuscan kitchen)

INGREDIENTS:

- 1/4 cup chopped pecans
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 pound swiss chard, large stems removed
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 3 tablespoons currents, soaked and drained
- salt and pepper

METHOD:

1. Toast the pecans in the oven for a few minutes at low heat.

2. Cut chard into 1-inch pieces. Heat oil in large skillet, add garlic and saute until golden. Add chard and saute until wilted. Add currants and pecans and season lightly with salt and pepper.

Tuscan fennel and radicchio salad

I will always associate fresh fennel with Tuscany. This is Insalata di Finocchio (fennel) e Radicchio. Radicchio is bitter, so make sure you have enough fennel, and cut the fennel so the pieces aren’t too long – it does not bend so gets hard to eat if it’s too long. Also next time I make it I think I’ll add a little lemon juice to the dressing, to give it a little more bite, and I added chopped pecans at the end, which went very well.

- 1 orange
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 1 tablespoon fresh flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
- 3/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
(I’d also add 1 teaspoon of lemon juice)
- 1 large bulb fennel, trimmed, halved lengthwise and thinly sliced
- 1 medium head radicchio, thinly sliced
(I added some chopped pecans)

Using a sharp paring knife, cut a 1-inch-wide strip zest from orange, avoiding white pith. (The recipe did not specify how long of a strip, so I think I used a strip about 2 inches long, since I like the bitter zest flavor.) Thinly slice the zest lengthwise into strips. In a small saucepan of boiling water, blanch zest 30 seconds, then drain. Squeeze 1/3 cup juice from remaining orange. in a large bowl, whisk together juice, mustard, parsley, salt and oil. Add fennel and radicchio, toss to combine. Sprinkle with the blanched zest.
Serves 4. Original recipe courtesy of La Cucina Italiana magazine.

Gioacchino in the Roadhouse kitchen

Gioacchino Passalaqua, an Italian artisanal food exporter and native Sicilian who co-leads our Sicily Food Tour with us, worked closely with Chef Alex and the rest of the Roadhouse crew to create an amazing multi-course dinner last Tuesday, January 10, 2012! The food wowed the sold-out crowd, and after numerous people clamored for the recipes Gioacchino agreed to write them up for us.

Please note, for the most part, Italians don’t tend to give quantities and specifics – you use “a pinch of this” and “a spoonful of that” and cook for “as long as is needed” – but we asked Gioacchino to please give quantities and details whenever he could. Some of the quantities will seem odd, and that’s because they are Gioacchino’s conversions from metric.

So, please use your creativity and cooking intuition to fill in any gaps where needed, and please let us know if you try making any of these and have more details that we can add in.

Sicilians, like most Italians, use excellent-quality extra-virgin olive oil, and they use it in large quantities – so, if you want your dishes to taste authentic, get a great oil, and don’t skimp in using it!

One other note, three Sicilian wines were served with the meal – two Nero d’Avola’s, and one Il Frappato.

Enjoy!

A n t i p a s t i

“Beccafico” Sardines

Ingredients for 6 people:
2-1/2 pounds cleaned, fresh sardines, spines and large bones removed, so each sardine is in two long separate halves
Extra virgin olive oil
9 bay leaves

Stuffing:
8 oz of bread crumbs
Extra virgin olive oil
lemon juice, one lemon
lemon peel, half lemon
sugar, 2 italian caffe spoon
salt, as enough
parsley, 2 spoons
capers, 1-1/2 ounces
black olives diced and without pits, 1-1/2 ounces
toasted and diced almonds, 2 ounces
2-1/2 ounces of raisins
2-1/2 ounces of pine nuts

Preparation
Mix all the stuffing ingredients until it has a compact/forming consistency. Take half a sardine, put some stuffing into the middle and then roll the ends of the sardine up around the stuffing. Then put sardine rolls in a baking pan with extra virgin olive oil and bay leaves. Sprinkle with bread crumbs and cook at 350F  for 15/20 minutes.

Eggplant parmigiania and a stuffed sardine

Eggplant parmigiana

Ingredients for 6 people:
3 eggplants
High-temperature vegetable oil for deep frying (Note, Gioacchino says he often uses extra virgin olive oil for deep frying.)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Sugar 2 italian caffe spoon
Extra virgin olive oil
1 large onion, finely chopped
Tomato puree, 35 ounce
Fresh basil as needed
Caciocavallo and pecorino cheeses, as needed

Preparation
Wash the eggplants, peel them and slice in strips. Then slices the eggplant making sure that all will be roughly the same thickness of .60 inches. Place the eggplant in a container full of water and salt, it is important that the eggplants are completely immersed in the water.
Drain and deep frying in a high-temperature oil. As soon are well cooked set them on a tray, on which you previously placed a paper towel, and let them drain the oil. Sprinkle with some pinches of salt while still warm.

Fry the finely chopped onion in extra virgin olive oil, then add the tomato puree. Add a few leaves of basil. Season with salt, pepper and a few tablespoons of sugar. Cook until you get a dense enough sauce. At this point, in a rectangular baking dish, lay a layer of fried eggplant cover with the sauce, sprinkle the grated cheese you have decided to use and conclude with a few leaves of basil.
Put the eggplant parmigiana in the oven at 390 degrees F for about 40 minutes until the tomatoes sauce present the characteristic golden “crust”.

Give panelle a squirt of fresh lemon juice.

Panelle

Ingredients for 6 people:
1-1/2 liters of water
18.5 ounces of chickpea flour
1 bunch of fresh parsley
high-temperature vegetable oil for deep frying (Note, Gioacchino says he often uses extra virgin olive oil for deep frying.)
Salt and pepper

Preparation
In a pan add a quart of warm water and salt as needed. Add slowly the flour, stir it slowly, so that no lumps are formed. Place the pan on the stove and then add the finely chopped parsley. Stir until the liquid has congealed enough to separate from the sides of the pan. Turn off the heat and pour the mixture onto a hard flat wet surface (ideally a marble counter top that is ok to cut on) that you moisten with some water first to reduce sticking. Spread it with a spatula to obtain a uniform surface of about 3 mm. Allow to cool. Cut the dough into squares and then into triangles, and fry in abundant oil and hot frying pan. When the triangles are golden brown on both sides take out from frying pan, lay them on a plate with paper towels and add salt and pepper.

Lentil Soup of Ustica

Ingredients for 6 people
Extra virgin olive oil
17.64 oz Ustica lentils (very small and brown)
2 carrots, minced
half an onion, minced
salt
black pepper
fresh wild fennel, a small branch, minced

Pour extra virgin olive oil in a pan with the finely chopped onion, sauté for a few minutes then add carrots, lentils and fill with water. After few minutes add the chopped fennel, salt and pepper. Cook over low heat until the lentils are fully cooked, about 20/30 minutes.

Mm, cheese...

“Argentiera” Cacio Cheese

Ingredients for 6 people:
6 slices of cheese (semiarid Ragusano or Caciocavallo, 5-1/2 oz each)(Note, if unavailable you could try using a semi-aged provolone)
Extra virgin olive oil
3 garlic cloves
3 tbsp of white wine vinegar
Dried Oregano one spoon
Black pepper

Preparation
In a skillet, put extra virgin olive oil and saute garlic. Then remove the garlic from the skillet. Put the cheese and cook until golden brown in color. Spray or drizzle vinegar and a generous sprinkle of oregano and black pepper. Cover the skillet and cook on medium heat for 2-4 minutes. Place cheese on serving plate. Serve hot.

P r i m i

All three pastas

Pasta with “Trapanese pesto”

Ingredients for 6 people:
Campo D’oro “Trapanese” pesto sauce (mixed vegetables)
1 jar of pesto Trapanese
1,1 lb of pasta (busiate shape is preferred, this is like a longer strozzapreti)
Extra virgin olive oil

Preparation
Heat condiment in a large skillet with 3 tbsp of extra virgin olive oil. Boil pasta until al dente in salted boiling water. Set aside a cup of the water used to boil the pasta. When ready to serve toss pasta in pan with heated condiment and adjust consistency using the water used to boil the pasta.

Pasta with Pistachio Pesto and Eggplant

Ingredients for 6 people:

6 oz eggplant
1 jar of pistachio pesto
1.1 lb of pasta
Extra virgin olive oil
(Note, Zingerman’s Deli and Zingerman’s Mail Order will probably have the pistachio pesto.)

Preparation
Wash the eggplants, peel and dice them making sure that are roughly all the same dimension about 1.20 x 1.20. Place the eggplant in a container full of water and salt, it is important that the eggplants are completely immersed in the water.
Drain and deep frying in extra virgin olive oil. As soon are well cooked set them on a tray, on which you previously placed a paper towel, and let them drain the oil. Sprinkle with some pinches of salt while still warm.
Heat the pistachio pesto in a large skillet with 3 tbsp of extra virgin olive oil and add the fried eggplant. Boil pasta until al dente in salted boiling water. Set aside a cup of the water used to boil the pasta. When ready to serve toss pasta in pan with heated pistachio pesto and adjust consistency using the water used to boil the pasta.

Pasta with cauliflower

Ingredients for 6 people:
1 large head of cauliflower, core removed and discarded, florets coarsely chopped
1.1 lb of pasta (Bugatini shape preferred)
Toasted fresh breadcrumbs for garnishing pasta, 5.3 ounces
Extra virgin olive oil
Salt
Black pepper
Pine nuts, 2.85 oz
Raisins, 2.45 oz
Onion, half

Preparation
Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Break cauliflower into flowerets. Add about a tablespoon of salt to the water, and boil the cauliflower in it until it is tender but not mushy. Using a slotted spoon or strainer, remove the cauliflower and set it aside. (KEEP cooking water.) When it is cool enough to handle, chop it roughly into small pieces.
In a large deep skillet, saute onion, previously chopped very fine, in extra virgin olive oil, until onion is golden. Start cooking pasta in same pot and same water as was used for the cauliflower.
When the onion is ready, add the cauliflower, pine nuts, and raisins and cook for a few minutes until all the ingredients are blended. When pasta is just about done, drain it, reserving about a cup of cooking liquid.
Add pasta to skillet containing the cauliflower, and toss until they are well combined. Add salt and pepper to taste, along with just enough pasta water to keep the mixture moist but not soupy.

S e c o n d i

Roast Beef with salted chocolate

Ingredients for 6 people:
Antica Dolceria Bonajuto Dark chocolate bar flavored with salt 4 oz, cut into small pieces
3.3 lb Roast Beef, tenderloin round
1 big carrot finely minced
1 clove of garlic finely minced
1 bay leaf
5-6 cups beef or vegetable stock
Extra virgin olive oil
Salt
Black pepper
(Note, Zingerman’s Deli and Zingerman’s Mail Order should have the Bonajuto chocolate.)

Preparation
Lightly season the roast beef with salt and pepper. Put in a saucepan the minced carrot and minced garlic, the bay leaf, 5-6 cups of vegetable stock and extra virgin olive oil. Brown the meat in another pan at high heat. When done, lay the roast in the saucepan with the vegetables and broth and cook in the oven at 375 F until the roast is cooked rare to medium rare. Take the beef from the oven and let rest 15 minutes. Then cut into thin slices. When is ready to serve. Place the roast beef on the plate and garnish with chocolate and serve immediately to avoid the chocolate completely melting before it is served.

Roast beef, stuffed pepper, and a baked onion slice with breadcrumbs

Gioacchino in the Roadhouse rear dining room, at the Sicily dinner

Stuffed Peppers cut in half

Ingredients for 6 people:
3 bell pepper
Salt
Black pepper
extra virgin olive oil
4 potatoes medium size
grated parmigiano cheese 8.9 oz
4 eggs
white bread, 7 oz
parsley
capers, 5.5 oz
pitted olives black olives, 7 oz

Wash the bell peppers dried and cut them in two parts then remove all the seeds contained in.
Prepare the stuffing, cook the potatoes in salted water with all the skin. As soon as cooked make a mash. Soak bread in milk and squeeze tight. Finely chop capers, olives and parsley. When the previous steps are completed put all the ingredients together and add cheese and eggs, mix until the filling is perfectly mixed. Place the bell pepper in a pan previously greased with extra virgin olive oil and add a pinch of salt in the peppers. Stuff the peppers and cover the surface with cheese and a splash of extra virgin olive oil. Bake at a temperature of 380 F for about half an hour.

Breaded baked onions

Ingredients for 6 people:

3 Giarratana or Vidalia onions
Bread crumbs, 7 oz
White wine vinegar, sprinkle
Extra virgin olive oil, as needed
Salt
Black pepper

Preparation
Slice the onion in horizontal round slices in order to obtain the same thickness and the maximum size. Oil the baking dish and place the rounds of sliced onions on it. Sprinkle the onions with extra virgin olive oil, add salt and pepper and cover with bread crumbs. Sprinkle all with white wine vinegar and bake at 350 F until the top is a bit brown and bubbling, about 15 – 20 minutes.

D e s s e r t

It’s an Italian tradition to eat lentils around New Year’s for good luck – I find that I start to crave simpler, bean- and vegetable-based dishes after the winter holidays, so it’s a tradition I enjoy following. On New Year’s Day I made a red lentil soup, which my Mom gave me the recipe for. It’s easy and fresh tasting. I tend to use a bit more lemon juice than called for. Recipe follows, enjoy!

Red Lentil Soup with Lemon

INGREDIENTS:

3 tablespoons olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt, more to taste
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/8 teaspoon ground chili powder or cayenne, or to taste
1 quart chicken or vegetable broth
1 cup red lentils
1 large carrot, peeled and diced
juice of 1/2 lemon, more to taste
3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
Greek yogurt as optional garnish

METHOD:

In a large pot, heat 3 T oil over high heat until hot and shimmering. Add onion and garlic, saute until golden, about 4 minutes. Stir in tomato paste, cumin, salt, black pepper and chili powder or cayenne and saute 2 minutes longer. Add broth, 2 cups water, lentils, and carrot. Bring to a simmer, then partially cover pot and turn heat to medium-low. Simmer until lentils are soft, about 30 minutes. Taste and add salt if necessary. Using an immersion blender, puree the soup, but stop while it’s still somewhat chunky. (If you use a regular blender instead, puree some of the soup, and then return that to the pot with the rest of the soup.) Reheat soup if necessary, then stir in lemon juice and cilantro. Serve drizzled with good olive oil and dusted lightly with chili powder if desired. Optional garnish of Greek yogurt.

I love pumpkin, and as of last weekend I still had several small pie pumpkins from a local farm. So, I decided to try a recipe I got from an Italian friend, Risotto di Zucca – Pumpkin Risotto. My friend is from Piedmont, where much of the risotto eaten in Italy (and the world) is grown. (Our Piedmont tour this past October went to visit a risotto producer, learned a lot and had a fabulous lunch there, and enjoyed risotto as a primi piatti – first course – at many a restaurant throughout the tour.)

The full recipe is below the photos.

The day before I cooked I made sure I had a bag of Italian rice. The two rices used for this kind of dish are Carnaroli and Arborio (and Italians will argue about the merits of each for best use in various dishes); I had a bag of Carnaroli. And I defrosted 1-1/2 quarts of turkey broth we’d made at Thanksgiving. Ready to start, I peeled, de-seeded, and chopped the pumpkin into small cubes.

Peeled and seeded pumpkin.

Carnaroli rice

I simmered the pumpkin in broth and milk, with a bit of cinnamon and pepper, while I cooked the risotto. I brought the rest of the broth to a boil in another pot, and then kept it simmering, and started cooking the risotto. First step is to coat the risotto in oil, I used melted butter, and stirred it for a few minutes until the grains were well coated.

Pumpkin cubes simmering in broth and milk.

Coating the rice grains in melted butter.

Then I added a cup of hot broth, and stirred until absorbed, and kept adding more hot broth by 1/2 cup-fulls.

Adding the broth to the rice, 1/2 to 1 cup at a time.

Getting soft but a bit al dente inside, just about ready to add the pumpkin.

Once the risotto tasted done – somewhat soft but still a bit al dente in the center, I used a fork to mash the pumpkin in its broth, mixed it in to the risotto, added Parmigiano Reggiano, and served it immediately on warm plates, drizzled with a little Italian olive oil. Along with some fish poached in white wine and parsley, and an Italian white wine. A delicious dinner.

Stirring in the cooked pumpkin.

Pumpkin risotto and fish poached in wine and parsley.

Risotto di Zucca – Pumpkin Risotto

Serves 4

2-1/2 to 3 cups pumpkin, peeled, scraped, and cut in small dice
1 pound carnaroli rice, approx
approx 5 cups broth, for risotto
2/3 cup broth, for cooking pumpkin
1/4 cup milk, for cooking pumpkin
1 pinch cinnamon
black pepper
3 tablespoons butter
1 cup Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, grated
salt to tast

1. Peel, wash and cut the pumpkin in small cubes; put it in a pot with stock and milk and a pinch of ground cinnamon and ground black pepper. Bring to a simmer, turn down to low, cover, and cook everything until the pumpkin becomes soft and can be mashed easily with a fork and mixed into its broth.

2. Meanwhile, bring the rest of the broth to a boil, turn down to a simmer, and cook the rice (usually the cooking time is about 15 minutes). First, stir the rice in a couple tablespoons of melted butter, about 5 minutes, then add the simmering broth in approximately 1/2 cupfulls, stirring until absorbed. As soon as it’s cooked, add the pumpkin, more butter, and grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese. Mix everything, add salt to taste, and the pumpkin risotto is ready to eat!

During our Sicily food tour, a highlight of the trip is spending time on a family-owned olive estate during the time of olive harvest and extraction of their excellent olive oil. We stroll with the owner in the orchards, gardens, and mill, and learn all about the process and about what goes in to making a great olive oil.

The olive orchard.

The vegetable garden.

We learned that:
- Harvesting the olives at the right moment, while still green, means maximum flavor and lower yields – they much prefer quality to quantity
- Getting the olives to the mill right away is important, so they don’t sit and start to ferment
- Rinsing and sorting them thoroughly, to remove leaves and twigs, helps too
- Extracting the oil using the gentlest mechanism possible, to produce the least heat during the process, also maximizes quality and flavor

The care they take during the entire process means they create an intensely flavorful, fresh oil, with an incredible color too.

Here are two video snippets from one of our visits.

First, the olives being milled – the estate we visit mills its own olives. The olives are hand harvested in their orchards, and driven to the milling building. The olives are unloaded onto a conveyor belt, which takes them into the rinsing stage, they are hand-sorted, then dried, and then move into the extractor, which turns slowly and gently to separate the oil from the solids.

The second video is of the owner, Gabriella, talking a bit about the olives and the harvest process. The harvest goes on for weeks, and she and her father and other family members and workers, work pretty much around the clock.

That evening, we all sat down to a wonderful dinner in her villa of a variety of homemade local specialties, featuring their excellent oil of course, as well as produce from their gardens and fruit trees, local fresh and aged cheeses, and their house-marinated olives. Everything was delicious.

Walking up to the villa with Gabriella

The first course - local cheeses, and homemade spreads and marinated olives.

Last month we paid a visit to the artisanal candy company D. Barbero in Asti, Piedmont, Italy, and were given a wonderful behind-the-scenes tour by Davide – he and co-owner Giovanni are 6th-generation family owners. They are proud of the fact that the company is and always has been in the vibrant city center of Asti, rather than relocating to the more-convenient suburban industrial areas.

Davide, next to a candy case that their traveling salesmen used in the early 1900s.

A torrone box from the early 1900s.

D. Barbero is most famous for the production of artisanal torrone, a light, crumbly sweet that’s been popular in Italy for literally thousands of years – the Romans had a taste for it. D. Barbero’s version is packed full of excellent ingredients like a particular kind of local honey called Millefiori, real vanilla, Piedmont hazelnuts, and Bronte pistachios from Sicily. They have won many awards for it over the last 100 years or so.

After we toured the little historical section of the building, where they have their medals and certificates and also candy machines from the early 1900s, we went upstairs to the production area.

This is the room where the torrone is made, and Davide introducing it to us. The air had a light aroma of honey and hazelnuts.

The torrone starts out as a fairly thin liquid, and then as it’s gently stirred by the torrone machines it gets thicker and thicker.

Meanwhile, in the adjacent room, the fresh nuts are shelled, roasted, skinned, and then carefully checked for any bad ones. The nuts are then added to the gently-stirred torrone when it’s at the right consistency. The batch they were making that morning was with hazelnuts rather than pistachios:

Once the nuts have been added and the final consistency is reached, they remove the torrone using wooden paddles, lightly shape it, press and roll it into wooden trays, let it harden, and slice and package it. (Our tour was hands-on at this point – we got to help press a batch into the wooden trays.)

Then we went down to their shop, and tasted many of their products. I had never tried torrone before, and loved the light, crunchy texture and delicate honey and nut flavor.

Davide cutting up samples for us in the shop.

Samples of the torrone, as well as their chocolate-covered grissini (breadsticks) and gianduja (chocolate-hazenut) candies. Yum!

On our recent Zingerman’s Food Tour of Piedmont, in northwestern Italy, the group spent a very fun day with Chef Beppe Sardi. For the first half of the day, we went shopping for the ingredients for that afternoon’s cooking class. We shopped in Alessandria, on an amazing street of one high-quality food store after another. The Chef knew everyone of course, and people were constantly stopping him on the street to say hello.

Chef Beppe Sardi at the start of our shopping expedition, explaining some of the stores we'd we going to.

On of our early stops, was a favorite cooking supply store - only the suitcase weight limit made it possible to resist.

We bought many kinds of meat, but not at only one butcher store – we stopped at three: one that specialized in poultry, one in pork, and one in beef. These were all within a few blocks of eachother. Early on he stopped at one little store to buy milk, butter, and flour.

Buying beef for the braised beef we'd be making that evening.

Buying milk, butter, and more than one kind of flour.

The shop where we bought cheese also sold all kinds of salamis.

Buying cheese.

Piedmont is well known for its cheeses, among many other foods.

We're only an hour from the coast here, and fresh seafood comes in every day.

Oxtail, an essential ingredient in a very traditional Piedmont dish called Bollito Misto (boiled meats)

We admired the freshly made pasta, all shapes, sizes, and fillings, but did not need to buy any, since that evening we made our own from scratch. And we took a break for a few minutes at a cafe mid-morning, to enjoy a local specialty that is essentially a mini-cappuccino, with far less milk than a regular cappuccino – this means it’s acceptable to drink by Italian standards, even though it was no longer first thing in the morning!

Ready-made fresh pastas

The mini-cappuccino of Alessandria

We bought some beautiful fresh mushrooms, which we later used to make a light pasta sauce.

Porcinis

Walking through the Thursday produce market.

Turns out that Borsalino, the famous Italian hats, originated in Alessandria, and we were walking right by their original store. So, we had to go in for a quick peek. And one guest bought a lovely hat!

A slight Borsalino distraction

One of our last stops was a tiny produce store, which we had gone back to because it was too crowded to go in the first time we walked by it. Chef bought a few more things, and then we headed back to the Marquesa’s estate for lunch and a brief rest, before putting on our aprons and cooking our multi-course dinner!

Many kinds of beans

Hot peppers

Stay tuned, for a post about our cooking class.

I was looking for an easy party appetizer using some of the sweet red bell peppers I still had from my garden, so I flipped through several Italian cookbooks I have and found the idea to make a roasted red pepper crostini (it may have been from a Faith Willinger Tuscan cookbook).

First, you need to char the outsides of the red peppers. I had about a dozen peppers, and I used an outdoor gas grill, which worked great. Then I put them in a paper bag, and closed it up tightly for a few minutes until the peppers had cooled down. Then I pulled off the peels with my fingers – from what I’ve read its important to NOT put the peppers under running water when you do this – you lose some of the tasty flavors that way.

Once I had prepped all my peppers, I prepared the other ingredients for the marinade – about 10 cloves of fresh garlic, also from my garden, which I sliced very thinly.

The first two of my roasted and peeled red bell peppers.

Garlic is nicely strong at this time of year.

And I picked fresh oregano leaves until I had about a half a cup.

Then, I cut the peppers into strips lengthwise, discarding the centers and seeds of course. Next, I took a round glass tupperware dish with deep sides, and I started layering. First a layer of the roasted pepper strips in the bottom. Then I sprinkled with a little sea salt, freshly ground black pepper, and some fresh oregano leaves, and some of the sliced garlic. Then I repeated with more layers. Once all the peppers were in, I poured in enough extra-virgin olive oil to cover. (You’ll want to use a really good oil.)

And then, patience! It’s supposed to marinate ideally for two days in the fridge (covered), and then you let it come to room temperature before serving. I had only made this one day ahead of the party, but it still tasted great. I bought a couple baguettes, and some salted rice crackers for a gluten-free option. I sliced the baguettes but decided not to toast them. Just before the party I arranged pepper strips on a slice of baguette or a cracker and put them out on a platter. They were delicious! I had some leftover and I’m still enjoying them, I think they’ll last quite a while in the fridge.

Marinating the peppers

The final dish, in the front left and rear right, together with some other appetizers.

Lomo Saltado (Peruvian Steak and Potato Stir Fry)

I will soon be heading to Italy to lead two food tours in October 2011, but in the long term we’re interested in leading tours in other places, such as Peru! So I figure this is a good recipe to share. It was delicious, and easy, especially because I cheated a little bit – I bought fresh hot french fries from Zingerman’s Roadhouse (which is only a mile from my house), rather than making my own. This recipe is from the May 2011 issue of Food & Wine magazine. A really nice flavor, with the cilantro, spiciness, and salty fries.

Peruvian Steak and Potato Stir Fry (Lomo Saltado)

1/4 cup olive oil
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 garlic clove, minced
salt and freshly ground pepper
1 pound skirt steak
1 red onion, halved and slivered
vegetable oil, for frying
8 ounces frozen french fries
1/4 cup pickled jalapenos, sliced   (I did not have pickled jalapenos, but I had pickled pepperoncini’s from my garden from last year, which I used instead. Worked fine.)
1 large tomato, chopped
1/4 cup fresh cilantro
hot sauce, for serving

1. In a large bowl, combine the olive oil, cumin, coriander, garlic, and a generous pinch each of salt and pepper. Cut the steak into 4-inch pieces, slice the steaks across the grain 1/2 inch thick and add to the bowl along with the onion. Let marinate 10 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, in a large skillet, heat 1/2 inch of oil until shimmering. Add the french fries and fry over high heat until golden and crisp, about 3 minutes, drain on paper towels.

3. Heat a large griddle until very hot, add the steak and onion along with the pickled jalapeno (pepperoncini) and stir fry over high heat until the meat and onion are cooked through and lightly charred, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the tomato and cook until softened and beginning to char, about 1 minute. Add the french fries and cilantro and flip with a spatula to combine. Serve right away with hot sauce.