FICHI SECCHI* - Dried Fig Relish/Salad Recipe
LA ZUPPA DI FARRO - Farro Soup Recipe
BAGNA CAÔDA - "Hot Bath" Recipe
SALSA ALLA MARINARA - Quick Tomato Sauce Recipe
RADICCHIO GRIGLIATO AL ACETO BALSAMICO - Grilled Radicchio with Balsamic Sauce Recipe
TORTA AL OLIO DI OLIVA EXTRA VERGINE - Extra Virgin Olive Oil Cake Recipe
FICHI SECCHI*
Dried Fig Relish/Salad Recipe
Wash the celery and dry with a towel. Toast the hazelnuts, peel them by rubbing with a rough towel, cool them and chop medium rough.
Soak the dried Calimyrna figs in red wine or Marsala wine overnight. If you are in a hurry cover the figs with the wine and warm on medium heat for about 15 minutes. Let cool in the wine, remove, pat dry and use. Use the wine in other dishes or drink it, it is delicious. Cut the celery on the diagonal in very small slices.
Trim and clean the scallions and cut into very thin rings.
Make vinaigrette with wine vinegar (Tiburtini is fantastic), extra virgin olive oil (Nocellino or Olio Verde Giancarlo Becchini, (adding some hazelnut oil is also very good), some Sicilian sea salt (you could use Casina Rossa white truffle salt for added wow factor) and fresh ground black pepper. Emulsify by beating with a whisk.
To serve: Combine the figs, celery, and onion in a bowl, and let them meld for a few minutes. Add some vinaigrette and toss well. Scatter on some hazelnuts. It is delicious served in a perfect, yellow butter lettuce leaf as a starter dish, or alongside roast chicken or pork as a relish.
This dish becomes spectacular especially in the Holiday season when you use Montagnoli
Dottato figs from Calabria with the aroma of licorice and other exotic spices (the family of artisans that makes them won't tell!). In this case do not soak them in wine - just enjoy them for their exotic and fantastic taste. Just follow the recipe.
© 1997 Carlo Middione. All Rights Reserved.
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LA ZUPPA DI FARRO
Farro Soup Recipe
Makes 6 - 8 servings - about 3 quarts
8 ounces of farro (triticum dicoccum) Bartolini Emilio brand
Plenty of extra virgin olive oil for sautéing, and finishing the dish Regaleali or Nocellino brand
4 ounces pancetta cut 1/8-inch thick
1 large onion, peeled, fine diced
2 medium-sized carrots, washed, peeled and diced fine
2 stalks celery, washed, trimmed and diced fine
1 bay leaf crushed
3 large cloves garlic, peeled and sliced
1 large potato (old type - russet), peeled and cubed medium
1 medium head Savoy cabbage, cut into large dice
3 tablespoons tomato conserve Sicilian conserva di pomodoro Antonio Contorno brand
1/3 bunch Italian parsley leaves, chopped coarsely
Sea-salt to taste, about 1 tablespoon
Fresh ground black pepper, to taste, about _ teaspoon
Wash the farro in plenty of cold water. Cover it completely with more cold water and let it soak until needed, up to overnight. If this not possible, bring a quart of lightly salted water to a boil and add the farro. Boil for 15 minutes, drain it and use as directed. You can use the water adding it to the amount needed later, or discard it. Meanwhile, heat some oil in a large soup pot and add the pancetta. Sauté until it is golden, do not overcook it. Add the garlic and sauté until it is light gold. Add the onions, carrot, celery, bay leaf and sauté to soften with no color, about 10 minutes, stirring often.
Add the farro and a total of about 2 _ quarts water or, water to cover by about
3-inches. Bring to the boil, reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Put the potatoes into the pot. Add the Savoy cabbage, the tomato paste and stir well. Add some salt and pepper to taste. Simmer for another 20 -25 minutes. If the soup looks to dense, add more boiling water, if not dense enough, let cook a while longer. When it is done, swirl in the parsley at the end of the cooking time. Serve hot with plenty of olive oil drizzled on top.
Serve with lightly toasted bread rubbed with garlic and drizzled with a bit more olive oil. The soup is quite tasty at room temperature, drizzled with olive.
CARLO'S NOTES
Farro Fun Facts:
- Farro is an unhybrydized ancestor of modern wheat. It has a hearty, nutty flavor, and has been grown throughout Europe for centuries.
- Farro is a cereal grain, unlike wheat, however, the farro husks adhere to the grain (like oats and barley). Its fiber content is therefore, high, and so are its nutrients, Vitamin E among those.
- Farro's protein content is quite high, and when combined with legumes, it forms a complete protein source.
- One of the first grains discovered, farro, or Triticum dicoccum is the of modern wheat, Triticum monococcum.
- Farro is said to have sustained the Roman Legions while they conquered Europe.
- Spelt is often confused with farro because it looks nearly identical. Spelt, Triticum spelta, is a softer grain and does not hold up as well when cooked.
- Farro grains have remarkable body and texture even if reheated several times.
- In the Tuscan town of Garfagnana, farro is considered not only an aphrodisiac but also essential to longevity.
- People who are intolerant to gluten often have no problems consuming farro.
© 1997 Carlo Middione. All Rights Reserved.
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BAGNA CAÔDA
"Hot Bath" Recipe
This famous Piemontese dish is perfect for the Fall Season and the coming, Winter. It is festive and welcoming and perfect for group meals. A big, bold red wine is called for with this terrific dish. Leftover (if any!), can be heated and put on poached eggs, or as a dressing on wilted green salads. A "morning after" treat is to scramble eggs and mix in some bagna caôda. White or black truffle oil mixed in at the last moment before serving bagna caôda is heavenly and brings cheers from everyone eating it. I often serve anchovies packed in extra virgin olive oil and truffle alongside the bagna for an extra taste treat.
Makes 6 - 8 servings
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
6 large cloves garlic, peeled and sliced thin
8 Sicilian salted anchovies Agostino Recca brand, boned and rinsed or 10 filets of
Talatta oil-packed anchovies (the ones packed with truffle are fantastic!)
1-cup Santa Chiara Costa dei Rosmarini extra virgin olive oil
Optional: 1 teaspoon Tentazioni white truffle oil
Place all ingredients in a heavy bottomed saucepan on medium heat, until butter and oil begin to simmer. Lower heat, and let simmer for about 20 minutes, stirring with a wooden spoon often to break up the anchovies and garlic. When everything is dark, pungent, and well amalgamated, remove from heat and keep it hot in a ceramic container or similar over a candle. Mix in the optional white truffle oil. Be sure the mixture is hot during the time it is consumed. Leftover bagna caôda can be reheated.
For Vegetables
Peel and trim the following in amounts you like cut small enough to dip:
Celery
Fresh fennel bulb
Radicchio, Treviso (long), is easiest to use
Belgian Endive, red or yellow
Radishes
Red, and/or yellow bell peppers
Zucchini
Belgian endive
Cardoons (tender inner baby leaves)
© 1997 Carlo Middione. All Rights Reserved.
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SALSA ALLA MARINARA
Quick Tomato Sauce Recipe
If there is a simpler, easier and more delicious tomato sauce than this one, let me know. It is critical to use San Marzano D.O.P. tomatoes. There are many imitations and many that simply use the name San Marzano, but without the D.O.P. they are not the same. This sauce takes about as long as boiling the water for pasta, or for making rice. It is also a fantastic "base" sauce. Add a half cup of dry white wine and a half cup of water and you have perfect fish soup by simply slipping in a few pieces of fish or a few shrimp or some clams or mussels, and simmer for about 4 minutes. You can also brown chicken pieces and put them into the modified sauce and simmer for about 40 minutes and have a fast and delicious meal.
Makes almost 1 quart
5 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, Vivande brand or Regaleali
3 large cloves garlic, peeled, sliced thin
1 28-ounce can Strianese brand San Marzano D.O.P. tomatoes (or equivalent fresh, cored, peeled*)
Sea-salt to taste
Plenty of fresh ground black pepper
Heat the oil in a sauce pan. When the oil is nicely hot, but not too hot, add the sliced garlic and swirl the pan to keep it moving. When the aroma is irresistible, and the color resembles very light straw, add the tomatoes, salt and pepper. Stir well and let simmer about 10 minutes, stirring vigorously frequently. This will break up the tomato enough to make it slightly lumpy. You can puree it if you wish, but it is easier and better not to. Serve on pasta, rice, or use as the base for soup or for poaching. The sauce can be made ahead up to four days, kept well covered in the refrigerator, or frozen for up to three months.
*It is unlikely you will find fresh tomatoes as good as the San Marzano in the can. Even in the height of the summer season, vine ripe or so-called Heirloom tomatoes cannot, in my experience, match the taste and texture of the imported ones.
© 1997 Carlo Middione. All Rights Reserved.
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RADICCHIO GRIGLIATO AL ACETO BALSAMICO
Grilled Radicchio with Balsamic Sauce Recipe
Makes 6 Servings
3/4 cup 3 year old balsamic vinegar Acetaia Leonardi brand
2 medium-size heads of radicchio di Treviso (long) or di Chiogga (round)
2 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped fine
Extra virgin olive oil q.b.* Nocellara brand
Sicilia sea salt
Black pepper
Put the balsamic vinegar in a heavy sauce pan over medium heat. Bring to a boil, then immediately reduce the heat to simmer and reduce by one-third, about 3 minutes. Set aside until needed. (You can make this mixture up to two-weeks ahead. Keep it well covered in the refrigerator for use on fish, chicken, roasted vegetables, or drizzled on fresh fruit such as figs, peaches or caramelized pears or apples. It is also good drizzled on some cheeses such as Gorgonzola or mascarpone.)
Peel off any bad looking leaves of radicchio and discard. If using Treviso trim the stem end but leave it intact. Cut the radicchio into 6ths. If using Chioggia, do the same. Mix the chopped garlic with some olive oil and brush the cut surfaces liberally with the mixture. Use a pastry brush if you wish, but your fingers will work, too. Sprinkle liberally with salt and pepper.
Heat a grill (stovetop type works well), or use a very hot broiler preheated for at least 20 minutes. Put the radicchio down on the hot grill and cook it for about 2 minutes. Turn it over and cook for another 3 minutes or so. Do not make it mushy. It should be cooked but firm and holding its shape.
Serve it hot or at room temperature drizzled with some of the balsamic reduction.
NOTE: You could also scatter on some well-toasted pine nuts, or walnuts, or crumbled Gorgonzola or goat cheese.
© 1997 Carlo Middione. All Rights Reserved.
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TORTA AL OLIO DI OLIVA EXTRA VERGINE
Extra Virgin Olive Oil Cake Recipe
Makes (2) 8 inch round cakes OR 1 10 inch square cake
7 large eggs separated
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1-cup flour
3 tablespoons cornstarch or fecula (potato starch)
1-cup extra virgin olive oil, Nocellara or Santa Chiara Costa dei Rosmarini
Grated peel of one lemon
1/2 envelope, or 1 1/2 teaspoons yeast dried yeast
Confectioner's sugar for sprinkling, q.b.*
Lightly oil the cake pan with some of the olive oil. For complete assurance the cake will come when done you might line the bottom with parchment or wax paper cut to fit.
Beat the egg yolks and sugar to the ribbon stage on high speed with an electric mixer. Mix in flour, cornstarch, olive oil, lemon peel, and yeast. In another bowl, or clean the first one out well with hot water and soap, beat egg whites to soft peak and quickly and thoroughly fold into the mixture. Pour into the greased pan and bake at 375 degrees for about 40 minutes. Test for doneness by inserting a toothpick into the center of the cake. If it comes out "clean" the cake is done. Cool the cake; sprinkle with powdered sugar and serve with dessert wines or dry Marsala. The cake will keep well for several days covered in clear wrap and refrigerated. Let it come to room temperature for 3 hours or more before serving it.
This cake is meant to be eaten plain as described. Resist the temptation to bury it in "sauce". If you MUST, however, have some, use cold zabaione cream and some strawberries, or plain whipped cream with a little powdered sugar added.
Q.B. Means quanto basta, "enough" or "the amount needed"
© 1998 Carlo Middione. All Rights Reserved.
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