La Bella Italia - Eating Toscana Style

 

What is it about Italian restaurants? There doesn’t seem to be a need for trends or fashion or the “latest”. Instead, Italians just want the very best food experiences, and for that they are both loyal and adventurous. Loyal in that they will go back to the same places over and over again; adventurous in that they will travel far – hours if need be – to experience a meal, but only if (and this is key) they know it will not disappoint.

The trattorie, osterie and ristorantes reflect that sensibility. As we walked the streets of Florence, we saw the same places we had been to 17 years before, serving the same variations on pasta and meats that are simply prepared, and simply delicious. Their enduring popularity is a testament to great food.

This time around we wanted to try new places that were old favourites.  Our first night's dinner also happened to coincide with the Azzurri playing Paraguay in World Cup action, so naturally we wanted to both eat and watch the game.  Trattoria dei 13 Gobbi, at Via Del Porcellana, seemed like the right mix of local flavour and flavours.  "Tredici Gobbi" translates into 13 hunchbacks, and is typical of the off-beat names that one finds in Florence, especially at establishments that have been around for a long time (for example, Coco Lezzone means "smelly cook" but the food is anything but smelly!)

Note the TV screen with the game inside!

Our meal started with the absolutely perfect early summer dish: fiori di zucca: zucchini flowers stuffed with cheese and anchovies, lightly battered, fried. and sprinkled with lots of salt.

Better than french fries...

Although every menu offers a full array of dishes, from antipasti, to primi, secondi, contorni (side dishes) and dessert, watch the way the Italians eat.  It's an antipasto (appetiser) and main (secondo), or perhaps a plate of pasta (primo), with a main.  Often no dessert.  Always wine.  While we tourists just can't understand why we've gained wieght in Italy and the locals all seem slender, it's because they pick and choose carefully.  No snacking.  A leisurely lunch.  Eating s-l-o-o-o-w-l-y.  The Slow Food movement, which began in Torino, is aptly named.

But back to dinner.  In one of the rare times we ate like Italians, we too, only ordered pasta.  The winning dish of the evening was Richard's pasta.  The trattoria is famous for its rigatoni, and rightfully so: it's simply dressed with a tomato sauce that's got plenty of cheese, a touch of basil, and not much else.  Like most of the best Italian dishes, three or four ingredients are enough to make the dish memorable.

 House wine, always well priced and good

My kind of dessert: in-season strawberries, a sprinkle of sugar and a squeeze of lemon.

The next day was going to be a mix of culture and shopping: a stop at the famous Farmacia Santa Maria Novella and next on to the Pitti Palace.

The Farmacia is as beautiful as a musuem but smells better

Instead of a full-blown lunch, we thought we'd grab a quick bite at one of the many bars that dot the city.  We stopped in at Enoteca le Volpi e l'uva Enoteca le Volpi e l'uva, a small wine bar tucked next to a trattoria that was filled with bratty American students changing ingredients on every dish they were ordering. 

We were very happy with what Le Volpi had to offer.  Small bites, perfectly paired with boutique wines.  The first "bite" was Peperoncino piccante, a spicy pepper stuffed with anchovies and capers, alongside a single tomato bruschetta, drizzled ever so lovingly with the best olive oil.  The Porcini e tartufo bianco (a small finger sandwich filled with a porcini mushroom and white truffle spread), was equally delicious, and gave me that first longed-for taste of porcini mushrooms.

The next "bite" was even better.  Le Volpi serves a wide variety of crostone, thick slices of toasted Tuscan bread with delicious toppings.  The Crostone con salsiccia al tartufo (melted Asiago cheese and black truffle-infused sausage), was amazingly good. 

Big enough to share, small enough to savor

 

Yes, it was good!

It was the ultimate Italian lunch - small bites, each distinctly delicious, eaten slowly and with no fuss.  On to the Palazzo Pitti and art for dessert...

The view from the Palazzo Pitti

If you are lucky enough to get fresh zucchini flowers, try this simple recipe.  perfect as an appetiser, it is both easy and impressive - and truly a seasonal dish, a la Toscana.

Fiori di Zucca Fritti (Fried Zucchini Flowers)

1 egg, separated
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp lemon juice
1 c. all purpose flour
salt
pinch saffron
12 zucchini flowers, gently washed and dried, pistils removed
12 anchovies preserved in oil, separated and rinsed
12 small slices fresh mozzarella, about 2 inches long and no more than an inch thick
½ c canola oil
1 lemon, cut into wedges for squeezing

1.  Beat the egg yolk until creamy, and slowly add the oil, water and lemon juice. 

2.  Slowly whisk in the flour, beating to form a light batter with a consistency like heavy cream.  Add the salt and saffron, and set aside for at least one hour.  Beat the egg white and fold into the batter gently.

3.  Heat the oil in a skillet over medium-heat high.  Fold back the petals and stuff each flower with a piece of anchovy and cheese.  Tuck the petals back together so that they enclose the filling.  Holding the flowers by the stem, dip into the batter, letting any excess batter drip off.  Deep fry until golden on all sides, removing as done with a slotted spoon and draining on paper towels. 

4.  Serve the hot flowers on a platter, sprinkled with salt, with lemon on the side for squeezing.

La Bella Italia - Benvenuti a Firenze!

Our two week trip to Italy began and ended in Firenze – that most magical of medieval cities.

Of all the Italian cities I’ve visited, Florence is the one that has been slowest to capture my heart. Richard and I came to Italy shortly after we were married, spending almost a month, clocking nearly 3000 km on our small rented car. Back then Florence was much more indifferent to tourists, less willing to show the warm generosity of spirit that seems innate to all Italians.

But piano piano - slowly slowly - with each successive visit, the city reveals itself. Shunning modernity, proudly still Italy’s cultural capital if not its commercial one, the city is reflected in its citizens. Quick witted, practical and a bit self-deprecating, the pride of the de Medicis and the city’s glorious past are present in every Florentine, and even those not born there seem to have a bit of Dante, Leonardo and Machiavelli running through their veins.

Where else but in Italy do the policemen look so elegant?

We’d “done” the sights on previous visits – the David, the Uffizi, the Pitti Palace – of course the Duomo, climbing every one of those 463 stairs to the top. I can remember the first time I saw that enormous Duomo many years ago, and the sight of it still amazes me. It seems impossibly big, the buildings that surround it appearing almost superimposed against the rich red stone.

Brunelleschi's Duomo, appearing on the skyline like a mirage

This time, there was no set agenda, no list of top ten sights to see. We would let the city lead us, and for that, we followed our noses. 

We started right in our own backyard - or in this case, our own 15th century palazzo, the place we would call home for a few precious days.  The Four Seasons hotel in Florence, barely open two years, is a perfectly placed jewel in the city's centre, just 15 minutes from the Duomo.  Set in the largest private garden in Florence, the hotel is both palace and cozy retreat, filled with staff that are warm, friendly and welcoming, and - best of all - a chef that is passionate about food.

A panoramic view of the courtyard lobby at the Four Seasons

World Cup action in a beautiful al fresco setting

Favourite drinks quickly established: Hendricks and Fever-Tree tonic for the gentleman; a Valentino for the lady (a fancy version of a Negroni) 

  

Vitello tonnato at Al Fresco

Beef carpaccio with the season's tenderest arugula

Fresh pineapple juice - smooth and creamy as a milkshake

To share...a scampi and asparagus risotto that's just the right size.

...and a beautiful view to make the meal complete

That lunch was the perfect way to start our Italian eating adventures.  Next chapter....watching the World Cup with thirteen hunchbacks; snacking Italian-style for lunch and devouring pasta with four lions.

Arrivederci a la bella Italia

Two wonderful weeks, countless amazing meals, and best of all the charming, friendly and hospitable people of Italy, added up to the very best holiday. Lots to digest and write about...as I spend the next several hours on the plane wending my way home, I'll begin to relive the delicious journey. Watch this space!

Daring Cooks Challenge: Three Spice Pâté and Homemade Bread

Deep into my Italian adventures, I completely missed the 14th, and the posting day for the latest Daring Cooks challenge.  But at least I did plan ahead and before leaving, made one of the delicious pâtés that Daring Cooks hostesses this month, Evelyne of Cheap Ethnic Eatz, and Valerie of The Chocolate Bunny, chose. Along with pâté, the June challenge called for freshly baked bread. They provided us with four different pâté recipes to choose from and allowed us to go wild with our homemade bread choice.

I chose to make the Three Spice Liver Pâté, adapted from Ravenous Couple, which was inspired by White on Rice Couple. For the bread, I made one of my favourites: Six Hour Artisantal Bread.  The rustic and chewy bread, with its crackling crust, was just right with the pâté.

Three Spice Liver Pâté

Yields one 10 x 5 inch terrine or loaf pan

1 lb pork liver (or beef or combination)
½ lb ground pork
½ lb pork fat (or pork belly)
2 cloves garlic
2 shallots
1 whole egg and 1 egg yolk
½ tsp cinnamon
½ tsp coriander (ground or crushed)
½ tsp cumin*
¾ tsp salt
1 tbsp coarse freshly cracked peppercorns
2 tbsp cognac
2 bay leaves
1 package of bacon

*I roast and grind cumin seeds as needed, rather than buying gound cumin.  The roasting (done by heating the cumin gently in a pan over medium heat until fragrant), gives a richness to the cumin that store-bought can't replicate.

1.  Preheat oven to to 350ºF (180ºC).

2.  Cut liver and pork fat into small pieces and add to food processor. Add ground pork, garlic, shallots, cinnamon, cumin, coriander, salt and pepper. Grind until smooth.

3.  In mixing bowl, incorporate the meat and liver mixture with the cognac and eggs.

I used duck eggs for extra richness

4.  Line bottom of baking or ceramic pan with overlapping pieces of bacon. Place a bay leaf on the bottom and then fill with meat/liver mixture. Cover top with another bay leaf and then overlapping pieces of bacon.

5.  Place in oven in the larger baking pan and add enough water to cover 2/3rds of the pan containing the meat/liver mixture. Bake for about 1-1.5 hrs, and remove from oven.  The pâté will contract and the juices will be on the bottom. Allow to cool and soak up the juices. Remove any excess bacon and discard the bay leaves.

Six hour bread has crusty goodness

NB.  I clearly didn't read the directions carefully and left the bacon on - oops.  Must be my love of all things pork.

The pâté was part of a Sunday brunch spread, a birthday celebration with dear friends.  Watch for upcoming posts on the rest of the menu: Fire Roasted Chicken; Three Cheese Fritatta and a super-lemony panna cotta with the season's first strawberries.

The table set for a celebratory feast

Roasted garlic for the chicken

Italy Bound!

On my way to Italy for two glorious weeks, where I hope to eat lots of amazing food. And hopefully catch up on some blog posts that have been laying fallow. Follow me on Twitter for the blow by blow - or should I say bite by bite? A presto, tutti!

In Season: Grilled Spot Prawns with Spring Asparagus

There's that funny phenomenon in life when you happen to notice the same thing over and over again. Like when you buy a new car and suddenly it seems EVERYONE is driving the same model. That’s what happened to me with spot prawns. Had them for the first time just two weeks ago at Malena in a gorgeous spot prawn risotto with a crustacean brodetto, artichoke and cumin. And then there they were at Fisherfolk at the farmers' market last Saturday.  With no plans for dinner, we bought a pound, firmly frozen in sea water and picked up a bunch of fresh asparagus from Anne at the Wooler Dale Organic Farm stand. It was the perfect way to eat our first outdoor meal of the season.

I had never heard of spot prawns before, and it's good to know that they're deemed an acceptable seafood buy.  According to SeaChoice, which rates and ranks the sustainability of seafood:

"The spot prawn industry is currently centred on exports; over 90% of the prawns caught in our waters end up in Japan. At the same time, the imported, unsustainably harvested, and arguably less-tasty prawns from Asia are readily available on the Canadian market. It seems counterintuitive to think of flying all those little prawns around the world, when given sufficient local demand, consumers could affect these trends and make this product more readily available here in Canada."

The best part about these spot prawns is the simplicity of preparation.  A simple grill with the shells on, a squeeze of lemon, and the already salty prawns are ready for a happily messy meal.  You can also marinate them in an Asian style marinade. If you are lucky enough to get sashimi grade, try them raw. 

Grilled Spot Prawns
serves two

1 lb. sashami grade spot prawns
olive oil
2 lemon halves

1.  If frozen, thaw prawns and rinse well.  Dry on a tea towel.  If using a marinade, put the prawns in a bowl and marinate for 30 minutes.

2.  Heat a grill (either gas or charcoal) until hot.  Grill the prawns for 3 to 4 minutes per side, or until just done (shells will be slightly charred)

The "spots" that give these prawns their name

3.  Serve immediately, squeezing lemon juice to taste before eating.

Simple Grilled Asparagus
serves two

Asparagus can be prepared in many ways, and combines beautifully with any number of ingredients.  Best of all though, is fresh just-picked spring asparagus, lightly grilled, and topped with a shaving of local cheese.

1 lb. asparagus, trimmed
Olive oil
Salt to taste or grated cheese (such as Parmigiano Reggiano)

1.  Light a charcoal or gas grill on high.  Arrange asparagus crosswise on grill.  Cook, turning frequently, until lightly charred.

2.  Remove from heat, toss lightly with olive oil and salt, and top with grated cheese if desired.  We used a lovely sheep's milk from Monforte Dairy.

A little bit of quinoa rounds out the meal

Be sure to have plenty of wet napkins on hand for sticky fingers!

The garden lights come on, ushering in twilight and the end of a perfectly delicious dinner

Quick Bites: Summer Salsa Salad

Now that the days are long, the sun is shining, and suppertime can linger well into the evening, it’s time to simplify dinner with something light, easy and delicious.



Enjoying lunch at Waupoos Estates Winery in Prince Edward County

The inspiration for this salad started with salsa-flavoured cheese curds purchased from Black River Cheese Company in Prince Edward County. Curds are one of the few types of cheese that should be eaten fresh, ideally within a day or two of manufacture. We bought a bag to nibble on as we drove through the County, but there was plenty left by the time we got home. With no time for grocery shopping, the curds, combined with some fresh mixed lettuce, avocado, tomato, and a light vinaigrette, made an easy meal that was the perfect way to end the weekend.

Summer Salsa Salad
serves two for dinner

4-6 c. mixed greens, such as romaine and butter lettuce
1 large tomato, diced
½ avocado, diced
one bag fresh cheese curds (about 8 oz)
2 tbsp olive oil
2 tsp sherry vinegar
sea salt or Maldon salt, to taste
freshly ground black pepper, to taste

1.  Combine first four ingredients in a bowl and toss lightly.  Add next four ingredients, toss until combined, and serve with crusty bread alongside.

Use any type of firm cheese, cubed, for this simple supper salad.  To up the fiesta flavour, add diced red peppers and marcona almonds