Puglia Culinaria

Puglia Culinaria
with Ana Sortun, Oldways
and Oldways Italia
March 16–23, 2013
The Wind Plays Over Apulia
T
he wind plays over Apulia. It plays on every
stone that is raised, until it is worn to filigree;
the castle erodes in the same way as the
rock on which it stands. There is a feeling of being
marooned in an older kind of time; the peninsula
is like an island “full of noises” that brings invisible
Ariels and Calibans to mind.
The castle farms look like great ships from afar,
riding a wave of stones or riding at anchor among
the vines. Approach them and the castle becomes
a shepherd’s byre in a ruined Renaissance watch
tower. The towers were built five hundred years ago
in the reign of Carol Quinto in expectation of the
pirates. Nothing in Apulia has endured longer than
this expectation.
Puglia Culinaria
with
Ana Sortun
of
and
White villages built like honeycombs on the crest
of hills turn blind walls to the wind. Stone huts
(pagghiari) built among the olive groves admit no
aperture except a doorway: little structures, erected
with precision, stone by stone, in beehive form.
The face of Apulia vanishes behind the legendary
olive trees, as a little boat disappears behind the
crest of waves. Muffled, the voice of Apulia, as the
wind trifles with olive fronds. Silent the stare of the
Apulians as they perceive the pirate in the gait of
every stranger.
In the silence, gazing from the watch tower, one
can feel the earth slowly swinging as the mast of a
ship sinks below the far horizon of the Ionian – what
is far being as clearly delineated as what is near.
Patience Gray
Honey From a Weed (1986)
3
A Message from Ana Sortun
Puglia, the Mediterranean Diet
and Oldways
Dear Puglia Travelers,
L
earning about local food customs is a fascinating part of world travel.
It’s my number ONE source of inspiration to cook. This week in Puglia,
we hope to introduce you to local fishermen, bakers, pasta makers, olive
oil producers, and winemakers who produce the best food the region has to
offer. I am looking forward to sharing many great meals and a few recipes
with you.
In the spring of 1999, I was invited to Puglia by Oldways to learn and to
cook. There were about 100 people on this trip including doctors, scientists,
journalists, food writers, chefs, food importers, and just plain foodies. Trust
brought all of us together to hear from Oldways and the chefs of Puglia why
this food was so special.
A diet of pure ingredients like wild greens, seasonal vegetables, durum
wheat, olives, capers, some fish, red wine, and LOTS of olive oil is what
Apulians live so long eating.
New friendships were formed during this symposium and we were inspired
as we learned the importance of traditions and the significant role they
played towards better health and sustainability.
My favorite memory from this trip (besides dancing in the sassi) is slapping live octopus against the rocks to tenderize it. It looked so easy when I
watched the fisherman do it. It wasn’t!
I hope this is “truilli” a memorable trip for all!!
Thank you to Sara for being such an amazing influence in my life and for
organizing and leading this trip to Puglia.
Chef Ana Sortun
Owner/Chef, Oleana
O
ldways first came to Puglia in 1995,
bringing almost 100 journalists, chefs,
scientists, food retailers, and cookbook
authors, as part of our campaign to introduce the Mediterranean Diet to Americans.
We had just developed and introduced the
Mediterranean Diet Pyramid in January
1993, and were deeply committed to
helping Americans become familiar with
olive oil and other Mediterranean ingredients and preparations. At the time, olive
oil was more of an ethnic product; no one
had heard of burrata; orecchiette, the little
ear pasta, was not on restaurant menus or
featured on grocery store shelves; Primitivo was not a wine of choice; and
Tuscany, Rome, and Venice were the travel destinations of the day.
We believed then as we do now that Puglia is a special place, a place with
splendid culinary and cultural traditions, traditions that are so perfectly
representative of the wonderful and healthy flavors of the Mediterranean
Diet. Our explorations of Puglia didn’t end in 1995; we returned with other
groups of equally interesting and interested food experts (including Ana
Sortun) in 1999, and then again in 2006 and 2007. And we’re happy to say
that the rest of the world gradually came to know Puglia and its culinary
and cultural treasures.
It seems very fitting to be coming back to Puglia once again, just as the
results of a first-of-its kind clinical study on the Mediterranean Diet were
released. As published in the New England Journal of Medicine on
February 25, 2013, and reported in media around the world, including The
New York Times, the study found that: “about 30 percent of heart attacks,
strokes and deaths from heart disease can be prevented in people at high
risk if they switch to a Mediterranean diet rich in olive oil, nuts, beans, fish,
fruits and vegetables, and even drink wine with meals.”
Olive oil, nuts, beans, fish, fruits and vegetables, pasta and wine. That’s
what we’ll be enjoying during our week together in Puglia, along with
learning about the history and visiting cultural landmarks of this beautiful
region. As we travel from north to south, we’ll be discovering and enjoying
the delicious Pugliese Mediterranean Diet, and all the culinary and cultural
traditions that make Puglia so special.
We hope you will learn to love Puglia as much as we do, and that you will
bring a bit of the place home with you—for great pleasure and health. We
look forward to sharing these pleasures with you.
Sara Baer-Sinnott
President, Oldways
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5
Culinaria Program
1:00
Lunch at Antichi Sapori in Montegrosso
You have a special experience in store. We’ll drive to
Montegrosso-Andria for lunch at Antichi Sapori, long recognized
as a restaurant grounded in local and seasonal foods. We’ll have
a spectacular lunch, plus a chance to tour Chef Pietro Zito’s
garden and see a demonstration of making orecchiette by our
chef’s mother.
5:00
Trani Cathedral
Though it’s been a long day,
we know you won’t want to
miss a glimpse of the Cathedral
in Trani, built a century before
Castel del Monte. We’ll stop
briefly so you can visit the
Norman cathedral, dedicated to
St. Nicholas the Pilgrim, facing
northeast by the sea.
6:00
Return to Conversano and Free Evening
We’ve left the evening free for an early bedtime, or perhaps
dinner on your own in Conversano.
Saturday, March 16: Benvenuto
Morning and Afternoon
Check in at Hotel Corte Altavilla in Conversano
After you check in to our hotel, take time to explore the narrow
streets and charm of medieval
Conversano, or take time for a
visit to the hotel’s Thermarium
spa.
5:00 8:00
Opening Session at Hotel Corte
Altavilla
We’ll meet at the hotel for a
welcome/opening session in
the meeting room. In addition
to introductions to your fellow travelers, Sara Baer-Sinnott from
Oldways, Ana Sortun of Oleana, and Rossella Speranza from
Oldways Italia will give you the essentials about the week ahead,
the foods and wines of Puglia, and how the Apulian cuisine is the
perfect representation of one of the healthiest ways to eat—the
Mediterranean Diet. We’ll close the welcome session with a wine
tasting led by Apulian wine expert and wine producer, Gregory
Perrucci.
Welcome Dinner on the Rooftop at Hotel Corte Altavilla
We’ll go up to the rooftop dining room of Hotel Corte Altavilla for
your first official dinner in Puglia, showcasing a view of the town,
and on the menu, the fruits of the sea.
Sunday, March 17: Castles
9:00
and
and
Valle d’Itria
8:00
Visit Cheese Factory in Conversano
We’ll visit a cheese producer and learn
about the Apulian cheeses that are
showing up on menus around the US.
9:30
Guided Tour in Conversano
While Ana, Cara, and Sara from Oleana
prepare for Ana’s cooking demonstration
and lunch, we’ll enjoy a guided tour in our
“home town” of Conversano.
11:00
Cooking Class and Lunch with Ana at
Palazzo D’Erchia in Conversano
In the dining room of the Hotel Palazzo D’Erchia, Ana will
demonstrate the preparation of several dishes inspired by the
cuisine of Puglia. We’ll be treated to a lunch of the same
spectacular dishes.
Countryside
A Guided Visit to Castel del Monte
We’ll leave Conversano and drive north past Bari toward Andria
and the historic Castel del Monte, the octagonal castle of
Frederick the Second of Swabia, built around 1240. With our
guide Simona, we’ll tour and learn the tales that make Castel del
Monte mysterious and mystical.
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Monday, March 18, 2013: Cooking
7
3:00
8:00
Guided Visit to Alberobello
No one who visits Puglia can miss the indescribable, trulli-filled
town of Alberobello. After lunch, we’ll leave Conversano and
drive to Alberobello where you’ll have the choice of a guided tour
of the town, or free time to shop and meander. Everyone on the
tour will also have time to shop before we return to Conversano.
Dinner at Ristorante Pasha in Conversano
Dinner tonight is at Pasha, a beautiful restaurant with a cooking
school, very close to Hotel Corte Altavilla, owned and run by
Antonello Magistà and mother chef Maria Cicorella. The cuisine
is traditional, with a modern twist.
Tuesday, March 19: A Day
8:30
10:30
11:00
in the
City
Visit to the Fish Market in Mola di Bari
After breakfast we’ll drive to Bari via the Adriatic coast and
stop in the village of Mola di Bari to visit the fish market, where
the tradition of boats returning to port after a long fishing trip
remains, and households and chefs alike come to the market to
choose the freshest fish of the day.
Visit to Farmers Market and Fish Market with Ana and
Rossella in Old Town of Bari
We’ll continue to the regional capital of Puglia, Bari, for our city
day with a tour of the market with Ana and Rossella, where you’ll
learn about local and seasonal products.
Choice of Guided Tour in Bari or
Free Time in Bari
Following the market visit, you’ll have the
choice of a guided tour of Bari including
the Basilica of St. Nicholas, the Bari
Cathedral, and ending at the NormanSwabian Castle of Bari. For those who
choose free time, we’ll all meet at the
Castle before going on to the Old Town
where we’ll have lunch.
8
1:30
Potluck Lunch in a Piazza in Old Town
of Bari
From the castle, we’ll walk into the
Old Town, stopping to watch the ladies
making orecchiette along the narrow
streets in Old Town before our “pot luck”
lunch in the Square Albicocca. With help
from the family of Giancarlo Capriati,
three women—Carmela Dragone, Angela
Lorusso and Annarita Cascione—have
joined together to prepare a variety of
traditional vegetable dishes of Bari.
3:30
Return to Conversano
After lunch we’ll return to Conversano for
a siesta, spa or passeggiata on your own.
8:00
Dinner at Casina dei Preti in the Outskirts of Conversano
We’ll make the short drive to the agroturismo Casina dei Preti,
owned by the Fanelli family, in the outskirts of Conversano, for a
lesson in making panzerotti (we promise, you will fall in love with
panzerotti), followed by dinner featuring traditional and vegetable
panzerotti and seasonal vegetables grown at the agroturismo,
accompanied by the wines of the house.
Wednesday, March 20: Cheese, Bread
and the
Sassi
8:00 Departure for Altamura
9:00
Visit to Altamura and the Forno di Santa Chiara to Learn About
the Bread of Altamura
The bread of Altamura is a DOP product from Altamura in
Puglia. The city and its bread are also famous for its successful
fight against McDonald’s entry in Altamura. We’ll visit the Forno
of Santa Chiara, and have a focaccia tasting, and learn more
about Altamura and its bread.
11:00
Guided Visit to Matera and the Sassi, a UNESCO World
Heritage Site
Matera is like no other city.
Actually in the Region of
Basilicata, very close to
Puglia, the city of Matera has
been made a UNESCO World
Heritage site. It is famous for
the Sassi, meaning stone,
houses dug in the rocks or
cliffs. Amazingly, there were
people living in the caves or
caverns until more recent times. A guide from Matera will give us
a tour, complete with history and lore of the Sassi.
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2:00
5:00
Lunch at Madonna della Stella in Gravina with Guided Tasting
of Cheeses and a Musical Surprise
We’ll travel back into the region of Puglia for lunch in a cave in
the town of Gravina. In addition to a hearty lunch by owner and
chef Vito Bosco at Madonna della Stella, we’ll have a guided
cheese tasting from expert Roberto Rubino, and a special
musical surprise for all.
Friday, March 22: Baroque Lecce
9:00
Guided Visit of Lecce
We’ll have a special tour of this beautiful city, giving us the
history of Lecce, and especially its Baroque architectural
treasures, and also of its ruins going back to Roman times.
11:30
Cooking Class and Lunch with Ana at a Private Villa in Lecce
We have a double treat in store—first, with Ana’s second cooking
demonstration and second, with the location of the class—at the
truly beautiful in-city villa of the Reale family. After the class on
the terrace (weather-willing), we will have the pleasure of a lunch
in the glorious dining room of the Reale family. The menu for
lunch will be the dishes from Ana’s demonstration, paired with
wines made by the Reale family.
3:00
Choice of Visit to Otranto or Free Time after Lunch
After lunch we will offer a guided tour to Otranto, a town on the
Adriatic coast known for its seaside location, cathedral, castle,
and appealing walkability.
8:00
Final Dinner at Blu Notte in the Historical Center
Enjoy new friends and old, on the last night in Puglia. We’ll walk
to the lovely Blu Notte restaurant for our final dinner centered
around seafood.
Return to Conversano—Packing for Departure to Lecce
Take a nap on our ride back to Conversano. Your evening is free
for dinner at the hotel or in Conversano, or time to pack before
our departure for Lecce the next day.
Thursday, March 21: Salentine Peninsula
8:30 Check-out and Departure from Hotel Corte Altavilla and
Conversano
9:00
Visit to Polignano a Mare
Enjoy an unguided walk around the beautiful rocky seaside town
of Polignano a Mare.
11:00 1:30 7:30 Visit to Il Frantoio, a Masseria, en Route to Lecce
We’ll stop outside the white town of Ostuni at Il Frantoio, an
agroturismo owned by the Family Balestrazzi (with a splendid
citrus grove and underground olive mill) for a tour and a tasting
of olive oils and other local products. After an aperitivo, we’ll
leave for the trip to Lecce.
Check in at Patria Palace in Lecce
We’ll get to Lecce in time for an afternoon on your own—lunch,
exploration, rest, and relaxing.
Dinner at Le Zie
We’ll meet in the lobby at 7:30 to go to Le Zie together for an
8 p.m. dinner. We’ll have this trattoria—loved by locals and
visitors alike—to ourselves for a splendid meal of vegetarian
home cooking by Carmela Perrone.
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Saturday, March 23
Departures
11
Ana Sortun
W
ith a degree from La Varenne Ecole de
Cuisine in Paris, the Seattle-born Ana Sortun
opened Moncef Medeb’s Aigo Bistro in Concord,
Massachusetts, in the early 1990s. Stints at 8
Holyoke and Casablanca in Harvard Square,
Cambridge soon followed.
This was all in the beginning of her career, when
Sortun was still cooking what most people think of
as typical Mediterranean food from Spain, southern France, and Italy. People loved it. While at
Casablanca, a friend of the owner invited Sortun to
study in Turkey. Not knowing anything about Turkish food or culture but
eager to learn, she accepted. (“I imagined flying carpets and genies,” she
says wryly.) But when she arrived in southeastern Turkey, Sortun’s host
and her friends presented a potluck of sorts. “I tasted 30 amazing dishes
from these women’s family repertoires,” Sortun remembers. “I was stunned
at how rich and interesting yet light everything was.”
That trip was when she learned that in the Mediterranean, spice is used to
create richness, depth, and flavor without heaviness. She also experienced
the mezze style of eating, which is to have many tastes of mostly vegetable-based dishes before reaching a protein course. “Chefs always focus on
flavor and appearance,” says Sortun, “but few think about how one feels
after eating a long meal.”
Upon her return to Boston, she wanted to fuse her newfound love of
Eastern Mediterranean spices with her passion for using only the best ingredients. The result of this union was Oleana, which opened in Cambridge
in 2001. A mere four years later, Sortun won a coveted and prestigious
James Beard Award.
Sortun’s commitment to locally grown food
took a turn for the personal when a farmer
selling spinach turned up at the back door of
Oleana one day. “I knew then that I would marry
him,” Sortun says. Since 2006, Siena Farms
has been providing the restaurant with most
of its fresh, organic produce. It is owned and
farmed by the chef’s husband, Chris Kurth, and
named after the couple’s daughter.
“If you’ve ever wondered how some of the world’s healthiest and best-tasting foods seem to wind up in your favorite home recipes and restaurants
these days, you’ll be glad to know it’s not by accident. You have friends in
the business.”
Cooking Light Magazine, about Oldways
Let the old ways be your guide to good health and well-being.
O
ldways is a nonprofit food and nutrition education organization, with a
mission to guide people to good health through heritage, using practical and positive programs grounded in science and tradition. Simply, we
advocate for the healthful pleasures of real food.
At Oldways, we are more determined than ever to help everyone, everywhere, live longer and healthier lives. We will do this by continuing to
encourage people to seek out the joys of good foods and drinks, well prepared and consumed with pleasure, in the company of family and friends.
That is the profound and worthy mission that drives us and our partners
every day.
Healthy eating and healthy foods have the power to improve the health
and well-being of all of us. Science and common sense tell us that good
health and good food go hand in hand. The healthy old ways have a special
importance and impact because they bring together: (1) good nutrition
with delicious foods, (2) culture and heritage, and (3) eating, shopping
and cooking. As Michael Pollan wrote in The New York Times on Sunday,
October 2, 2011, “I have yet to hear of a traditional diet—from any culture,
anywhere in the world—that is not substantially healthier than the ‘standard American diet.’ The more we honor cultural differences in eating, the
healthier we will be.”
The healthy old ways also have the power to bring people and communities
together. As Michelle Obama said about the importance of food, culture
and heritage, “Food can be a symbol of cultural identity, it knits families
together. What I’ve come to appreciate is whether you’re African-American,
Puerto Rican, Dominican or Cuban, food is love.”
Oldways was founded in 1990 to address health issues (increasing rates of
obesity, heart disease, cancer, diabetes and other diseases of excess) and
to preserve culinary traditions, helping people make healthy connections to
their food (cooking and eating real foods) and their heritage.
Not content to rest on their laurels, Sortun, business partner Gary Griffin,
and pastry chef Maura Kilpatrick decided they wanted to launch a more
casual venue. Three years of brainstorming later, in August of 2008,
Sofra was born in Cambridge, Mass. This Middle Eastern bakery, café,
and retail shop offers flatbread sandwiches, mezzes, prepared foods, and
baked goods. It has received both local and national press; Food & Wine,
Metropolitan Home and Gourmet have all featured it as a place not to miss.
We learned early on that change happens by motivating individuals and influencers to move in a common direction. Working throughout the world—
from Australia to Brazil and from Italy to the U.S.—Oldways has collaborated with hundreds of international experts including scientists, health care
professionals, chefs, historians, food producers, and food writers to create
“mini-movements” that have inspired millions of people to change the way
they eat.
Learn more at www.oldwayspt.org.
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13
The Heart of Puglia
“T
he wind plays over Puglia,” writes Patience Gray, imbuing visitors
with “a sense of being marooned in an older kind of time.”
Nancy Jenkins writes of “il solleone, the lion sun of August” – of its leonine
strength and glinting brilliance that remind her of the searing heat of the
Middle East.
Then there’s the shape of Puglia – like God’s flexed finger on the ceiling of
the Sistine Chapel – pointing towards the East, towards its unimaginable
riches and deep mysteries.
of its church still visible. There are Saracen neighborhoods with narrow
winding alleys that render small hill towns eerily reminiscent of the souks of
Morocco and Tunis.
So as Puglia speaks to us through its dialects, music, dance, architecture,
gestures and art, it speaks in a language that expresses the mix of genes of
the peoples who came before.
K. Dun Gifford
Founder, Oldways
For thousands of years the great civilizations of the East sailed and
marched to Puglia, making great wars.
These eastern conquerors were followed by those of the great and powerful
civilizations of the western Mediterranean, and then by those of Europe’s
North and of Central Asia.
These armies came over and over again to Puglia not to fight religious wars,
for Puglia was not a religious seat in the sense that Jerusalem was. Nor
were these wars directed governments, for Puglia was not a seat of political
power in the sense of Byzantium or Alexandria or Rome.
In the thousands of years that Puglia was a battleground, the two brass rings
were strategic location and food. Puglia marked one of the Mediterranean’s
“waists,” narrowing the Adriatic and its sea lanes.
More importantly, he who controlled Puglia controlled its vast agricultural
bounty, and with it, he could fill the bellies of his armies and the warehouses
of his empire.
So it is difficult in Puglia to escape for very long from the strong sense of
walking in the shoes of these who came before. Of course the same is true
of Rome, or Paris, or London. But in Puglia we are overtly in the shoes of
peoples of dozens of very diverse civilizations, and everywhere we see their
footprints.
All around us in Puglia there are Greek vases and the ruins of Greek cities.
One of the fabled Roman roads – the Appian Way – ends (or does it begin?)
in Brindisi, where it was a nexus for land-sea transportation a thousand
years before the Christian Crusaders boarded their ships here to sail to the
East, to rescue the Hold Lands from Arab heretics.
Puglia is home to Norman and Swabian castles and churches that speak
of religions and cultures strange to the Mediterranean. There is an underground cave village dating to early Christian times, the frescoes on the walls
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15
The History of the Heel of the Boot
St. Nicholas and My Own Miracle of Bari
P
uglia, or Apilia as it is often called in English, is “the heel” of the Italian
boot, including the steep and rocky spur of the Gargano peninsula
projecting into the sea. It is the easternmost region of Italy, eight hundred
kilometers of coastline stretching down the Adriatic and around the heel
into the high arch of the Ionian Sea and the Gulf of Taranto. This heel reaches out towards the Eastern Mediterranean, and at times the landscape looks
and feels more like Greece than the softer, gentler Italy of Rome and the
North. Especially under the harsh brilliance of the summer sun “il solleone,
the lion sun of August” you sense the connection with the Balkans and the
East. Greeks were among the earliest settlers in this region, dominating
the indigenous Messapicans, the Daunians, the Peucetians, as far back as
Mycenaean times, perhaps even earlier. Taranto on the Ionian was a Greek
colony from the eighth century B.C., a flourishing capital
of Magna Graecia, the great cosmopolitan Greek world
beyond Greece itself; in Taranto’s Museo Nazionale, you
catch glimpses of the splendors of that lost world in the
dazzling collection of antique vases illustrating in exquisitely painted detail the old stories of gods, heroes, and
mortals, their lives so intimately entwined.
Puglia has known many conquerors since—the Romans, of course,
and then the Byzantine Greeks, Lombards, Arabs, Normans, Angevins,
Aragonese, and Spanish, the armies of the popes and of the German
emperors, Bourbons who ruled from Naples, Turkish corsairs who harried
the coasts, on and on, in a rich and mercilessly cruel history of conquest,
betrayal, loss and gain. Each incursion, each struggle, left its mark on this
land, from the ancient dolmens scattered across the landscape to the baroque fantasies of cities like Lecce and Martina Franca. These are magnificent castles and citadels, like Castel del Monte, grand and enigmatic, an
octagonal monument in alabaster-colored stone to what some say was the
cabalistic vision of Frederick II, Puglia’s greatest ruler. These are spectacular eleventh-and twelfth-century Romanesque churches like the soaring
seaside cathedrals of Trani and San Nicola at Bari, and rock-carved chapels
and hidden grottoes, the walls of which were plastered by monks, saint, and
hermits with feverish and apocalyptic visions. There are clusters of whitewalled villages and fortified farms called masserie, set well back from a
dangerous coast once beset by pirates and marauders. And of course there
are trulli, the characteristic vernacular architecture of the Murge, the high
grassy plateau of central Puglia. Stone dwellings capped by corbel-vaulted
roofs built of overlapping circles of flat stones called chiancarelle, the trulli
are both disturbing and anachronistic, like the dwellings of a race of aliens
set down in our midst. Traditionally, it is said, they were built of unmortared
stone so they could be quickly torn down when the Bourbon tax-collector
came around, then rebuilt just as quickly when he was gone from sight.
Their roofs are often decorated with painted symbols whose meaning have
long since been lost.
Nancy Harmon Jenkins
Flavors of Puglia (1997)
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S
t. Nicholas performed many miracles
and acts of kindness including rescuing
drowning sailors from a stormy sea and, with
gift bags of gold, three maidens from a life of
prostitution. He lived during the fourth century in Lycia, a part of modern-day Turkey.
He went on to become the world’s most
famous man of goodwill and charity—other
than those who established major religions.
His remains are now in an eleventh century
basilica in the heart of Bari, the seaport capital of Puglia, the southeastern most state of
Italy. Few non-Europeans know that because
of these relics it is one of the significant holy
cities of the world.
According to legend, Nicholas was born into an affluent family. He used
his wealth to help others. Through a series of incidents that seemed like
destiny, he became Bishop of the Church, important enough to attend the
momentous Council of Nicaea. During the time of Emperor Constantine,
this council literally formulated the tenants of Christianity.
Nicholas died in 342 CE and was buried near where he lived. In 1087,
however, when the area was overrun by “infidels” and shortly after the
great schism between the Eastern Church based in Constantinople and the
Western Church based in Rome, his bones were stolen or rescued—depending on how you look at it—by Baresi fishermen. They brought them back
home in triumph where a grand edifice was built for their repose.
Roger Nicholas Webster
Venturing in Italy (2008)
Trulli, Trullo
A
trullo, the plural is trulli, is a traditional dwelling unique to the area of
Valle d’Itria in Puglia. Constructed of local limestone, they were historically dry-laid, that is without mortar. The first circle of stone was laid directly
on the ground. Successive layers were placed on top in concentric circles.
There are several stories about why no mortar
was originally used. The most interesting
was about avoiding the taxes on permanent
structures. When the revenue collector was en
route, the buildings were easily, and quickly,
dismantled. When he arrived he found only
a pile of stones. Over time mortar was used
in their construction with a cone shaped roof
17
sitting on a low square base. Many have a rounded finial on top. The roof,
I think, is a trullo’s most distinctive feature: the breast-like form dominates
the structure.
In some, the design became a bit more complex; walls consisted of an inner
and outer layer. The space in between was filled with smaller stones. Many
were covered completely with a layer of whitewashed cement. Side rooms
were added as families grew. Completed trulli were connected, creating
larger extended living spaces.
Walking into Alberobello the
first time, I discovered a new
meaning for the expression
“urban sprawl”: It was difficult to
tell where one trullo ended and
another began. There were hundreds of them. There was no way
a single photograph could show
them all.
The sassi di Matera (stones of Matera) resemble a jagged grey moonscape. The streets in some parts are located on rooftops. This ancient town
grew on the slopes of several gravine (ravines). Named a UNESCO World
Heritage Site in 1993, the dwellings developed from a prehistoric settlement
and are believed to be some of the first human settlements in Italy. Over
thousands of years, multiple generations of families lived in them. Located
in Basilicata, sometimes referred to as Luciana, they are just over the border from Puglia. It’s a strangely isolated region, cut off from the rest of Italy.
Doreen Wood
Venturing in Italy (2008)
Being under the dome was
magical, filled with innocence
and the memories of a childhood
leaf house. Encompassed in that space was possibility, an invitation and approval to be part of the creative process beyond those walls. Piles of stones,
piles of leaves can become more than what they seem.
Sandra Bracken
Venturing in Italy (2008)
The Sassi di Matera
I
n Matera, the sassi dwellers kept their
chickens under the bed in their cave
homes because there was nowhere else
to keep them. Had they let them run
outside, they’d likely have been stolen.
Early in my life, I, too, spent time under
the bed, also for safety reasons. Visiting
a preserved typical sassi, I viewed the
one large bed, rickety table, primitive
implements and a model horse in its alcove. The curator described the crowding and smells: an average family of
six children and four animals lived in one cavern. I called my own childhood
impoverished until I saw the sassi. My early life circumstances were indeed
tough, but not nearly equal to these harsh conditions. Even though these
days I’m more fortunate, scenes of poverty still trigger memories.
18
Puglia’s Pasta
O
f the many varieties of pasta, some of the most popular in Apulia
are: recchietelle, which elsewhere in Italy would be called orecchiette
(pictured), little ears, from the shape given them by a simple pressure of a
thumb, whose hollow traps whatever sauce
is used with them, often served with sautéed
green vegetables or fresh ricotta cheese;
panzerotti, like ravioli, with a filling of buffalo
cheese, anchovies, eggs and butter, first fried
and then browned in the oven; turcinielli,
little spirals of pasta served with meat or
tomato sauce and grated cheese; stacchiotte,
shaped like seashells with the aid of the point
of the pasta maker’s knife; lagane, the local
name for lasagna; strascenate (cagghiubbi
in Brindisi), strips of pasta rolled around a metal spit to leave a little hole in
the center; fusilli, wire-thin pasta, similarly rolled into a spiral with the aid of
a spit; and mignuice, small semolina dumplings.
Waverly Root
The Foods of Italy (1971)
19
The Classic Dishes
of the Cuisine of Puglia
The Olive Oil of Puglia
P
ugliese cuisine is based on olive
oil, and one of the great products of the region. In any given year,
Puglia produces as much as twothirds of all the olive oil in Italy, and
while much of it is shipped north,
more of it stays right here to be used
in Pugliese kitchens. Cooks in Puglia
even deep-fry with extra-virgin
olive oil, something that comes as a
surprise to Americans but is routine
in many parts of the Mediterranean
(Sicily, Andalucia in southern Spain, and Puglia).
Butter is rarely used in the traditional cuisine, and even some sweets are
made with olive oil and often fried. And sweets, moreover, are not an everyday occurrence but associated only with holidays, whether major ones
like Christmas and Easter, or more minor ones like the Feast of St. Anthony
Abbot and St. Joseph.
Nancy Harmon Jenkins
Flavors of Puglia (1997)
Wild Greens of Puglia
W
ild greens in great variety are still harvested, especially during the brief
Pugliese winter when gardens are less productive and the wildings are
at their best, tender and sweet. On misty days, when the damp soil yields
wild roots more easily, you’ll see elderly foragers, men and women alike,
stoop-shouldered as they course intently over abandoned fields, often
accompanied by grandchildren who are learning to tell good from bad.
Lampascioni are so precious that in recent years, it’s rumored, they’ve been
brought in from North Africa to fill Pugliese market demand. Even the green
shoots of the vine, pruned in the springtime in order to concentrate the
plant’s energy on the developing fruit, are soaked for a few days in vinegar and water, then heated with oil and garlic, mixed with the ever-present
puree of fava beans, and served with crusts of fried bread.
Three dishes come to mind when I think of the cuisine of Puglia, three dishes that Pugliese cooks have prepared...that are linked in their ingredients as
much as in their deep roots in the culinary culture of Puglia. They are:
N’ Capriata or fave e cicoria
A puree made from dried peeled fava beans, dressed
with a thread of olive oil and eaten with steamed
bitter greens, preferably wild chicory.
Ciceri e tria
Homemade durum wheat pasta, in the form of flat tagliatelle or noodles
(tria), cooked with chick peas (ciceri), and mixed with about a third of the
pasta that has been kept apart and fried in olive oil until it is crisp and brown.
Orrecchiette con cime di rape
Homemade durum-what pasta, shaped in the form
of ‘little ears” cooked with the bittersweet vegetable
we know as broccoli rabe or rapini, dressed with
olive oil, garlic, anchovies, and perhaps a little hot
peperoncino.
I could add a fourth dish to the list above....It is called tiella or taieddha
or teglia, depending where you are in Puglia....It is a carefully constructed
layering of several ingredients that may or may not contain rice but will
almost always contain potatoes. Another element will be a vegetable, such
as artichokes, zucchini or mushrooms, depending upon the season, and
the final ingredient is sometimes bits of cod or more usually mussels. Food
historians and writers in Puglia and elsewhere often suggest that this is a
Pugliese version of Spanish paella.
Nancy Harmon Jenkins
Flavors of Puglia
Nancy Harmon Jenkins
Flavors of Puglia (1997)
20
21
Conversano Cooking Demonstration
Cooking Class: Monday, March18
• Almond Pesto with Sundried Tomato and Caper
(Serve with Crudité)
• N’ Capriata—Fava Puree with Spring Greens
• Mussel and Potato Tiella
• Sole Gratin with Pecorino
• Wheat Berries with Grape Must, Dried Fruits,
Hazelnuts and Chocolate
Almond Pesto with Sundried Tomato & Caper
Makes one cup
½ cup sundried tomatoes (the better the quality, the better this will taste),
soaked in warm water
1 tablespoon of great quality tomato paste
½ cup whole, blanched almonds, lightly toasted (Marconi almonds work
well for this)
1 large clove garlic
½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon capers
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar, vin cotton or lemon juice
2 tablespoons of fresh mint
1 tablespoon fresh parsley
Salt and pepper to taste
1. Drain and roughly chop the tomatoes.
2. Combine all of the ingredients in a mixing
bowl and toss to combine.
3. Place the mixture in a food processor fitted
with a metal blade and coarsely chop the mixture until it starts to stick together. Serve with
roasted chicken, salmon or raw vegetables.
N’ Capriata—Fava Puree with Wild Greens
Serves 8
8 ounces dried canelinni beans, soaked overnight
8 ounces dried fava beans, soaked overnight
2 small branches of sage or rosemary
1 cup extra-virgin olive oil
4 fat cloves garlic, finely minced
2 tablespoons fennel seeds, finely ground
1 small dried red chile
¼ cup heavy cream
1 tablespoon wine vinegar
Salt and pepper to taste
12 ½-inch slices of good country bread, lightly toasted with olive oil
in the oven
Lemon wedges
1. Cook the two beans separately in a lot of water with a branch of sage or
rosemary, simmering them until they are very tender. When the beans
are just tender, add a tablespoon of salt to the water and let the beans sit
off of the heat in the salted water for a few minutes. Drain the beans,
reserving about a cup of cooking liquid. While the beans are hot, toss
them with the ground fennel and garlic. Puree them in a food processor
until smooth. Add the cream and vinegar and season with salt and
pepper to taste.
2. Top the bread with fava puree and warm greens and serve with a lemon
wedge.
For the Greens
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
6 cups assorted bitter greens, such as escarole, fava greens, broccoli rabe,
dandelion, or chard, washed and chopped
Red pepper flakes to taste (optional)
2-3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
Salt and pepper to taste
1. Heat 2 to 3 tablespoons of olive oil in large skillet. Add the bitter greens.
Cook the greens, stirring often, until they start to wilt (or what may be
easier for a large batch is to parboil the greens, chop them, and then
sauté in oil).
2. Add hot pepper flakes, if using, and 2 or 3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
and continue to cook until greens are completely wilted.
3. Drain and season with salt and pepper. Add a bit more vinegar if you like.
22
23
Mussel and Potato Tiella
Sole Gratin with Pecorino
Adapted from Nancy Jenkins, Flavors of Puglia
Serves 4
8-10 servings
4 ½ pounds mussels, beards removed and washed very well
½ cup white wine
¾ cup bread crumbs, divided
2 pounds yellow-fleshed potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced
1 pound small zucchini, thinly sliced
1 pound white onions, peeled, halved and thinly sliced
1
⁄2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
¾ cup grated pecorino
½ cup chopped parsley
Salt and pepper to taste
1. Pre-heat the oven to 400°F.
2. Steam the mussels open by placing them with the wine in a covered pan
that has a large surface area. This takes about 8 minutes on medium
heat, depending on the size of the mussel. When the mussels open, let
them sit uncovered to cool. Strain the juice through a fine sieve and set
aside to use in the casserole.
3. Lightly oil the bottom and sides of a deep baking dish that is about
10–12 inches in diameter. It can also be a rectangle gratin or roasting
dish. Sprinkle the bottom of the dish with ¼ cup of the bread crumbs.
4. Layer half the potatoes, half the onions, and half the zucchini in the dish.
Sprinkle with ¼ cup cheese, ¼ cup bread crumbs, and ¼ cup parsley.
Season with salt and pepper. I like to toss all the vegetables together with
salt and pepper, cheese and bread crumbs before doing the layering.
This way, I can control the seasoning all at once and don’t have to worry
about it as I layer.
5. Add half the mussels. Add remaining potato, onions and zucchini in
layers and top with the remaining mussels. Sprinkle the topmost layer
with the remaining bread crumbs, and parsley. Pour the filtered mussel
liquid and about ½ cup of olive oil over the dish. Cover with foil and bake
for 30 minutes. Remove the foil and continue baking an additional 30
minutes or until the potatoes are cooked through.
6. Allow to cool about 20 minutes before slicing and serving. Serve with
some chopped parsley.
6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
1 clove garlic, finely minced
1 cup bread crumbs
Salt and pepper to taste
4 tablespoons finely chopped parsley
6 tablespoons grated pecorino
4 sole filets, about 5–6 ounces each, skin removed
1 tablespoon capers, finely chopped and rinsed
Lemon wedges
1. Pre-heat oven to 375°F.
2. In a medium sauté pan, warm half of the olive oil and stir in the garlic.
Lightly toast the bread crumbs, seasoning them with salt and pepper to
taste. The breadcrumbs should become lightly golden and crisp. Allow
them to cool.
3. In a food processor, grind the breadcrumbs with the parsley, the rest of
the oil, and the pecorino. You should have a powdered fine crumb.
4. Season both sides of the sole lightly with salt and pepper. Top each filet
with ¼ cup of breadcrumbs spread evenly over the fish. Bake the fish for
15 minutes or until it is cooked through. Serve hot sprinkled with capers
and lemon.
Wheat Berries with Grape Must, Dried Fruits, Hazelnuts,
and Chocolate
Serves 4
2 cups cooked grano or hulled wheat berries (soak the wheat overnight and
cook for at least one hour until the grain is very tender and drain)
1 cup sliced almonds, lightly toasted
1
⁄2 cup chopped hazelnuts, lightly toasted
4 tablespoons golden raisins, soaked in hot water for 10 minutes, drained
4 tablespoons finely chopped dried apricots
4 tablespoons finely chopped dried figs
1 teaspoon cinnamon
4 tablespoons grape must
1 cup grated or finely chopped semi-sweet chocolate
Zest of one orange
Pinch of salt
Combine everything in a large mixing bowl and serve with a little scoop of
vanilla ice cream.
24
25
Lecce Cooking Demonstration
Cooking Class: Friday, March 22
• Roasted Fennel with Pancetta and Mint
• Orrechiette with Chick Peas and Spring Greens
• Polpette di Lupo—bread dumplings with ricotta
and tomato
• Bombetta Pugliese—skewers of pork rolled with
cheese, parsley, and pancetta
• Sweets from the house
Roasted Fennel with Pancetta and Mint
Serves 4
2 large bulbs fennel or 4 small bulbs
2 teaspoons salt
12 slices pancetta
2 teaspoons finely chopped garlic
1 cup chicken stock or water
½ cup white wine
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon fennel seed
2
⁄3 cup fresh bread crumbs, finely ground and toasted
2
⁄3 cup grated pecorino
2 tablespoons chopped fresh mint
1. Remove the fronds from the bulbs of fennel, chop them coarsely, and set
them aside. Trim the stem ends of the fennel and slice the bulbs in half if
they are small and thirds if they are large. Place the fronds, fennel, and
salt in a large pot, barely covering all with cold water. Cover the pot with
a lid and bring to a simmer on low heat until the fennel just begins to
soften, about 5 to 7 minutes.
2. Drain immediately, saving the liquid but discarding the fronds.
3. Pre-heat the oven to 400°F.
4. When the fennel has cooled, wrap each piece with pancetta until it’s
completely covered, winding it around the fennel from top to bottom.
Place the fennel wraps in a baking dish.
5. In a small mixing bowl, combine the garlic with the fennel liquid, chicken
stock, and white wine and pour it over the fennel.
6. Drizzle the top with olive oil. Bake for 30 minutes or until all the liquid
is absorbed and the pancetta is crispy. Sprinkle with the crisp bread
crumbs and pecorino and bake for another 10 minutes. Sprinkle with
fresh mint and serve warm.
26
Orrechiette with Chick Peas and Spring Greens
Serves 8
½ pound dried chick peas (about 1 cup), soaked overnight
2 garlic cloves, left whole and 2 cloves, finely chopped
1 bay leaf
1 teaspoon salt
¾ pound dried orrechiette
One small white onion, finely minced (about ¾ cup)
4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 small head of escarole, trimmed of the outer leaves, washed, and
roughly chopped
1 bunch of green or red swiss chard leaves (about 8 cups), washed, stems
discarded, and roughly chopped (or substitute other greens like turnip
greens or spinach)
1 tablespoon capers, rinsed and roughly chopped
4 tablespoons pitted black olives, finely chopped
4 tablespoons golden raisins
1 teaspoon crushed dried red chiles
1 tablespoon fresh squeezed lemon juice
1. Drain the soaking water off of the chick peas and place them in a saucepot covered with double their volume of water. Add the two whole garlic
cloves and the bay leaf. Bring them to a boil over high heat and reduce
heat to medium-low and continue to cook until tender, about 30 minutes.
Add salt to the water at the end and let them absorb the salt. Drain, but
reserve half cup of the chick pea cooking liquid.
2 In a separate pot, boil the pasta until it’s as you like it. Drain but reserve
one cup of the pasta water (just in case).
3. Using a large sauté pan over medium-low heat, cook the onions in 2 to
3 tablespoons of olive oil until translucent, about 8 minutes. Add greens
and chopped garlic, and continue to cook until the greens become soft
and tender, about 10 minutes. Covering them will help soften the heat
and wilt them faster. Season with salt to taste.
4. Stir in the capers, olives, raisins, and chiles and cook for about 5 minutes more until the raisins become soft and the mixture is very tender.
5. Add the chick peas and the cooked orrechiette and another tablespoon
of olive oil.
6. Place everything in a very large mixing bowl and stir it so the pasta
becomes creamy and dressed with the greens and chick peas. Add chick
pea water and/or pasta water to loosen it and continue to stir. Add
cheese if desired.
Note: I like to finely chop the greens and caper mixture so that it is like a
pesto before adding the chick peas and pasta.
27
Polpette di Lupo (Ricotta and Bread Dumplings)
Bombetta Pugliese
Makes approximately 12 dumplings or 36 hors d’oeuvres sized dumplings
Serves 4
2 cups of bread mie (the inside white part of some French bread)
½ cup heavy cream
1 whole egg plus 1 yolk
1 cup ricotta
1 cup grated parmesan
Fresh grated nutmeg to taste
Salt and pepper to taste
1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
4 cups of homemade tomato sauce
2 sprigs rosemary (about a tablespoon of just the leaves)
Handful of parlsey leaves
4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
16 thinly-sliced medallions of either pork loin or pork butt (from near the
neck). Each piece should be about 8cm x 8cm, so you may need to trim.
16 cubes mozzarella or other melting cheese
16 slices prosciutto
1. Toss the bread with the heavy cream and let stand in a stand mixer bowl
for 5 minutes to allow the bread to soak up the liquid. Add the remaining
ingredients to the bowl and using a paddle attachment, mix until it forms
a soft dough. If the mixture is very soft, add more bread crumbs until it
sticks together and is shapeable.
2. Form the mixture into 12 little football shapes or round dumplings. Heat
a large sauté pan with a little olive oil and a little butter. On medium-low
heat, panfry the dumplings on both sides (about 2 to 3 minutes a side)
until they are golden brown. It’s easiest if you use a non-stick pan.
1. Place the parsley and rosemary in a blender with the olive oil and some
salt and pepper. Blend until smooth and pour into a little work bowl.
2. Lay out the pieces of pork and season with salt and pepper. Spoon a
teaspoon of herb oil onto the meat and top with a piece of prosciutto.
Place a cube of cheese in the center (you can use any cheese grated or
cubed) Close up each piece of pork into a little ball and put onto a skewer (which should keep them closed up).
3. Take outside to a charcoal grill and cook them for about 10 minutes.
Serve hot.
3. You can re-heat the dumplings in the oven before serving with tomato
sauce.
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29
Conversano
Lecce
Restaurants
Restaurants
Lounge Bar Cliché, Piazza Castello,
+39 080 246 2749
A new restaurant, an American/lounge bar located on the ground floor of
the castle in a beautiful environment. For dinner or for appetizers and
listening to music.
Alle Due Corti, Corte dei Giugni, 1, +39 0832 242223
Simple, not fancy, with traditional dishes of Puglia. In the historical center.
Pub/Norcineria Amici Miei, Piazza Battisti, 15
+39 080 495 2998
An informal restaurant for salumi, grilled meat, and antipasti.
Taverna San Leonardo at Palazzo D’Erchia, Via Acquaviva d’Aragona, 116
+39 080 495 0350
Trattoria specializing in authentic Apulian cuisine (reservation required).
Pizzeria
Pizzeria da Bernardo, Via Calata Nardelli, 17
+39 080 495 6022
Enjoy genuine pizza cooked in a wood oven. The pizzeria is located in a
characteristic ancient building.
Doppiozero, Via Guglielmo Paladini, 2, +39 0832 521 052
Neighborhood café perfect for a coffee break, lunch, or “aperitivo” cocktail,
in the historical center.
Osteria Degli Spiriti, Via Cesare Battisti, 4, +39 0832 246274
Regional cuisine with homemade pasta recognized by Slowfood, close to
the historical center.
Ristorante Arte dei Sapori, Vico degli Alami, 3, +39 0832 303534
In the historical center, with typical Mediterranean dishes and an extensive
wine list.
Trattoria Fiori di Zucca, Via Forlanini, 26, +39 0832 230313
Local, seasonal cuisine, with vegetables and pasta, and wines of the
Salento.
Coffee, Ice Cream, and Other Shopping
Pizzeria La Casa di Totò, Via San Mauro, 10
+39 080 495 7316
Neapolitan pizza in an informal environment.
Maglio, Via Templari 16 just off of Piazza S. Oronzo
Super locally made chocolates, jams, and famous “latte di mandorla”,
which is an almond syrup used in iced coffee in the summer.
Coffee and Ice Cream
Pasticceria “Natale, Via Trinchese 7 off of Piazza S. Oronzo
For the gelato (pinoli e pistacchio are fabulous).
Art Café, Piazza XX Settembre
+39 080 495 029
A café with a modern style close to City Hall.
Caffè dell’incontro, Piazza XX Settembre, 2
+39 080 495 1067
Great ice cream, coffee, and cappuccino in an old traditional bar
in a central square.
Gelateria Crema Bianca, Via Porta Antica della Città, 25
+39 080 495 2266
Gelateria/lounge café where you can taste artisanal ice cream.
Avio, Via Trinchese 16 near Natale and Piazza S. Oronzo
For great espresso and coffee; only no sweets... this is where the locals go.
Alvino, Piazza S. Oronzo
For a coffee/dessert. A classic, but a little touristy. Nice, if you have good
weather and can sit outside.
300mila, near Piazza Mazzini, in Via Centoquarantesimo Reggimento
Fanteria, 11
For coffee or quick lunch.
Shopping
Society, Via degli ammirati 6
For splurge shopping on super gorgeous textiles (home and accessories).
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31
Puglia Culinaria Restaurants and Hotels
Participants
Hotels
M. Laurie Cammisa (Boston, MA)
Robert Mitchell (Cambridge, MA)
Corte Altavilla
Vico Altavilla, 8, 70014 Conversano, Province of Bari, Italy
+39 080 495 9668
Isabel Chesak (Cambridge, MA)
Janet Morehouse (Winchester, MA)
James Cronin (Westerly, RI)
Loretta Noriega (Boston, MA)
Michele Cronin (Westerly, RI)
Ardis Ono (Hilo, HI)
Patria Palace Hotel
Piazzetta Riccardi, 13, 73100 Lecce, Province of Lecce, Italy
+39 0832 245 111
Joyce Easter (Kittery Point, ME)
Rodney Ono (Hilo, HI)
Emily Eryou (Naples, FL)
Susan Pharr (Cambridge, MA)
Restaurants
Mary Finck (Cherry Hill, NJ)
Margaret Flowers (Weston, MA)
Jocelyn Ramella
(Charlestown, MA)
Ristorante Goffredo at Corte Altavilla
Vico Altavilla, 8, 70014 Conversano, Province of Bari, Italy
+39 080 495 9668
Joanne Giga (Owatonna, MN)
Antichi Sapori
Piazza Sant’Isidoro 7-12 | Montegrosso, 76123 Andria, Italy
+39 088 356 9529
Susan Heath (Seattle, WA)
Palazzo D’Erchia (cooking class)
Via Acquaviva D’Aragona, 116 70014 Conversano, Province of Bari, Italy
+39 080 495 0350
Pasha
Piazza Castello, 5-7 70014 Conversano, Province of Bari, Italy
+39 080 495 1079
Agriturismo Casina dei Preti
Prov.per Cozze, 9/A, 70014 Conversano, Province of Bari, Italy
+39 389 468 5908
Madonna della Stella
Via Madonna della Stella, Gravina in Puglia, Italy (BA)
+39 080 325 6383
Il Frantoio
Strada Statale 16 Km 874.1, Casella Postale 25 72017 Ostuni, Province
of Brindisi, Italy
+39 0831 330 276
Le Zie
Via Costadura, 19, 73100 Lecce, Province of Lecce, Italy
+39 0832 245 178
Blu Notte
Via Brancaccio, 2 Lecce, Province of Lecce, Italy
+39 0832 304 286
Carolyn Scarbrough
(Heathsville, VA)
Susan Grant (Atlanta, GA)
Charles Schoendorf
(Rowayton, CT)
Mary Dee Hacker (Glendale, CA)
Eileen Sporing (Charlestown, MA)
Janis Hersh (Arlington, MA)
Sally Howe (Orange, MA)
Jacquelyn Sporing (Covington
Township, PA)
Sandra King (Sudbury, MA)
Carol Stearns (Charlestown, MA)
Kathy Kramer-Howe (Paradise
Valley, AZ)
Robert Tunis (Sudbury, MA)
Cortney King Tunis (Boston, MA)
Karen Lacey (Green Bay, WI)
George Webber (Kittery Point, ME)
Phillip Ledin (Winchester, MA)
Nancy Wheatley (Boston, MA)
Anne Liebman (Cambridge, MA)
Clare Wisor (Bridgewater, NJ)
Stephen Mansfield (Arlington, MA)
Geraldine Woods (Wallingford, CT)
Jean Mansfield (Arlington, MA)
Hosts
Sara Baer-Sinnott, President, Oldways (Boston, MA)
Ana Sortun, Owner/Chef, Oleana (Cambridge, MA)
Cara Chigazola Tobin, Sous Chef, Oleana (Cambridge, MA)
Sara Fetbroth, Restaurant Manager, Oleana (Cambridge, MA)
Sarah Dwyer, Program Manager, Oldways (Austin, TX)
Abby Sloane, Program Assistant, Oldways (Boston, MA)
Rossella Speranza, Oldways Italia (Puglia, Italy)
Simona Cardone, Oldways Italia (Puglia, Italy)
Cynthia Louthan, Oldways Italia (Puglia, Italy)
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33
Acknowledgements
Organizing the Oldways Culinaria in Puglia has been a delight, a labor of love, full of pleasure and
collaboration. The event would not be possible without the help, care, ideas, interest and passion
of many individuals and organizations.
We feel so very fortunate that we have the great pleasure of traveling with Ana Sortun, the very
talented chef and partner of Oleana and Sofra, during our week in Puglia. As always, she’s gracious and generous about sharing her knowledge, and equally interested in continually learning
about food traditions through travel. In addition, and happily, Ana has brought two wonderful
people from Oleana: Sous Chef Cara Chigazola Tobin and Restaurant Manager Sara Fetbroth.
Oldways’ long-time partner in Puglia is Rossella Speranza. She has worked with us for fifteen
years—as Oldways Italia—and has turned her passion and love of Puglia and the olive oil, food,
wines, and cooking of Puglia into her life’s work. We are always grateful to Rossella who has
helped make our week in Puglia a memorable one, and also thankful that she shares her passion
for Puglia.
During our journey in Puglia, we will meet many others who have contributed and helped in so
many different ways.
Special thanks go to Natalia Reale Basili in Lecce for opening her home to us. Her warmth and
generosity are extraordinary, and Oldways is very grateful to Natalia and her family for sharing
their beautiful villa with our group and their assistance in arranging Ana’s cooking class.
Cynthia Louthan, an American living in Salento and a friend of Oldways, has been a wonderful
support and has provided information and ideas, and will be with us during our time in Lecce.
Thank you very much Cynthia.
To our guides in Puglia—Simona Cardone, Katia Sportelli, Amy Weideman and Angelo Caliano—
thank you for sharing your knowledge, interests, and passion for Puglia.
Many thanks to our new friends at our hotels—especially Letizia Valenzano and Chef Paolo
D’Anna at Corte Altavilla in Conversano; Salvatore Perrone at the Patria Palace Hotel in Lecce;
and Apollonia D’Erchia at Palazzo D’Erchia in Conversano.
A special thank you to Apulian wine expert and producer Gregory Perrucci of Accademia dei
Racemi for introducing us to the wines of Puglia.
We will enjoy a number of wonderful meals during our week in Puglia. Many thanks to all for
adding to our knowledge of Puglia, with delicious meals and the important connections of food to
the place. We recognize and thank Chef Pietro Zito and his mother of Antichi Sapori for sharing
his love of local and seasonal foods with us; Apollonia D’Erchia for aiding in our cooking class
preparations and execution at Palazzo D’Erchia; Antonello Magistà and his mother Chef Maria
Cicorella of Pasha for sharing their unique cuisine with our group; Giancarlo Capriati, Carmela
Dragone, Angela Lorusso, and Annarita Cascione who prepared our special vegetable potluck lunch in Largo Albiococca in Old Town of Bari; Silvio Fanelli and Caterina Schiavone at
Casina dei Preti for their hospitality, generosity and unforgettable lessons in making panzerotti.;
bread maker Vito Macella at Forno Santa Chiara for introducing us to the bread of Altamura;
Vito Bosco for his hearty and memorable lunch at Madonna della Stella and Roberto Rubino
from Anfosc for his expertise and cheese tasting. A special thanks for Franco Tranquillino for
organizing our Cola Cola experience. Thank you to Armando Balestrazzi and family at Masseria Il
Frantoio for sharing the wonders of their agroturismo with us; and in Lecce, thanks to Benedetto
Cavalieri for the gift of his wonderful pasta; Carmela Perrone of Le Zie for her exquisite home
cooking; and Sonia Gaetani at Blu Notte for our splendid seafood dinner finale.
Finally, and wholeheartedly, many thanks to everyone at Oldways, and especially to Joan Kelley,
Oldways’ graphic designer, who has once again made everything look so beautiful; Birthe Creutz
who has been a help with the finances and budget; Sarah Dwyer who always pitches in and is a
wonderful and welcoming presence; and most of all, many thanks to Abby Sloane, for her hard
work and dedication, for her incredible enthusiasm and excitement about the program, and for
being such a solid point of contact for all.
Sara Baer-Sinnott
President, Oldways
March 2013
CREDITS: As a nonprofit educational organization, Oldways expresses sincere
appreciation to the sources of selections that appear in this Program Book. These
works make valuable contributions to this educational program, and to our under¬standing of Puglia, and the foods and wines that make it so special.
34
The Heart of Puglia
S
o as Puglia speaks to us through its dialects,
music, dance, architecture, gestures and art,
it speaks in a language that expresses the
mix of genes of the peoples who came before.
Not surprisingly, this very diverse cultural genealogy
spawned an unusual and rich variety of culinary
inventiveness in Puglia, in the foods and in the
preparations of dishes and meals. The genealogy
of Pugliese dishes of grains, greens, vegetables,
fruits, meat, poultry, mushrooms, fish, cheese—
and bread, pasta, soups, wines, liqueurs—more
often than not hearken back clearly to cultures far
away and long ago.
But the families of Puglia have firmly affixed their
own local stamps to the dishes. Neighboring
cities, and certainly towns, use similar principal
ingredients in dishes (orecchiette, chick peas,
olive oil, or squid, for example). But in their use
of seasonings, preparations and minor ingredients
in their dishes, the people of Puglia have always
woven very different patterns.
This remarkable play of local flavors from town to
town does remind us of being in another, older kind
of time. It is the play of the wind and the strength
of the sun that does so, too, but it is much, much
more than that. It really derives directly from the
polyglot of cultures and traditions that came before,
that somehow and ineluctably find expression in a
deeply-knit unity—The Heart of Puglia.
K. Dun Gifford
Founder, Oldways
Organized by
266 Beacon Street, Boston, MA 02116, USA
Tel: 617-421-5500 • Fax: 617-421-5511
oldways@oldwayspt.org
© 2013 Oldways Preservation Trust