Tastes ofItalia
Transcription
Tastes ofItalia
Tastes Italia TUSCAN TREASURE: VINO NOBILE DI MONTEPULCIANO of THE BEST IN ITALIAN COOKING OCTOBER 2016 The B e Italiast Sala n mi Make Fresh Pasta Like A Pro PLUS 2 SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2016 • TASTES OF ITALIA A VILLA TO REMEMBER AUTUMN IN FLORENCE PERFECT DESSERTS WITH WALNUTS U.S. and CANADA $5.95 TASTES OF ITALIA • SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2016 3 CONTENTS Tastesof Italia Cucamonga Valley’s Historic Landmark Winery Celebrating 88 years of winemaking and grape growing SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER Gifts • Award-Winning Wines Wine Tasting Daily • Picnic Area Wine Club Listed in the National Register of Historic Places THE HISTORIC GALLEANO WINERY Since 1927 40 Features Open 7 days a week 9 a.m. - 5 p.m. (951) 685-5376 4231 Wineville Road, Mira Loma, CA 91752 WWW.GALLEANOWINERY.COM Old Vines Make Better Wines Taste history in a glass every day at the Historic Galleano Winery 4 SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2016 • TASTES OF ITALIA 24 Cooking with Olives 40 All About Salami 28 Walnuts in Desserts 46 Vino Nobile 36 Autumn in Florence 52 A Villa to Remember Whether you cure them yourself or buy them off the shelf, olives add zest to a range of recipes. A classic staple of fall, these delicious nuts help make endings sweet. Susan Van Allen discovers the culinary delights of this iconic Tuscan city. David Cohen explores the ins and outs of this prominent player in Italian cuisine. Patricia Thomson explains the nuances that make this Montepulciano wine a memorable favorite. Lauren Birmingham Piscitelli uncovers the charms of a 17th century farmhouse set in the rolling hills of Tuscany that’s now a five-star bed and breakfast. TASTES OF ITALIA • SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2016 5 CONTENTS PASTA TOOLS Selling de Worldwi Please call us TODAY for more information or questions on specific items! 707-939-6474 www.artisanalpastatools.com t uc w Ne 33 28 od r P Cannoli Tube Sets Stainless steel Beech Chef’s Pasta Pins 24-40 inches Videos of how to use tools featured on website Pinky-shop’s supervisor!! Bamboo Cavarola boards available in 3 woods Walnut, Beech, and Cherry DEPARTMENTS 12 Fresh Pasta 34 Vegetarian Italian Kitchen Made with a few simple ingredients, fresh pasta brings an added level of goodness to your fall dishes. Veronica Lavenia explores the many delicious ways to incorporate vegetables into your everyday menu. 22 64 Mushrooms One of fall’s favorite ingredients, mushrooms add texture and flavor to simple recipes, like polenta. 33 Not My Mother’s Kitchen The Last Word Mary Ann Esposito shares a recipe for apple cake. Cavatelli-maker with custom wood handle In his new cookbook, chef Rob Chirico reveals tips Mama never taught him. SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2016 • TASTES OF ITALIA Piadina/Pizza/ Drawer Pin Corzetti Stamps Available in 23 additional woods, carvings, and styles 707-939-6474 6 Garganelli/Gnocchi Board Original and Hybrid Versions www.artisanalpastatools.com TASTES OF ITALIA • SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2016 7 GOOD TASTES FA L L F L AV O R S , I TA L I A N S T Y L E FRESH PASTA Made with a few simple ingredients, fresh pasta brings an added level of goodness to fall comfort dishes like ravioli and fettuccine with Bolognese sauce. It also adds depth to simpler dishes that call on little more than pesto and cheese for flavor. Fresh pasta differs from the packaged dry varieties in a few ways. For one, it cooks faster, so you don’t have to boil it as long. Fresh pasta is usually lighter in texture than the dried version, so it pairs well with light sauces, but can also hold its own with heartier options. You can adjust the thickness of fresh pasta accordingly so it stands up to whatever your recipe calls for. To make fresh pasta, you need a flat work surface and a little patience. It’s not hard, but kneading and resting are essential for making the pasta light and delectable. The dough needs to be smooth, supple and free of air pockets before you roll it out or send it through a pasta machine. Once you’ve mastered the dough, the rest is easy. When you’re working with fresh pasta dough, divide it so you’re only handling one portion at a time. Keep the remainder in a bowl covered with a clean kitchen cloth so it doesn’t dry out before you get to it. Add fresh pasta to your culinary repertoire and you’ll never be at a loss for something to eat. 12 SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2016 • TASTES OF ITALIA TASTES OF ITALIA • SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2016 13 GOOD TASTES Perfect Risotto Cooked to a creamy consistency, this classic rice-based dish is a go-to choice for a cool weather meal. Risotto with Mushrooms 1 ⁄ 3 cup olive oil 4 garlic cloves, diced 1 cup onion, diced 2 cups arborio rice 1 cup dry white wine 5 cups chicken broth, divided 2 cups sliced mushrooms 1 ⁄ 2 cup chopped fresh parsley 4 tablespoons butter 1 cup shredded provolone cheese, divided Salt and pepper to taste In a large skillet combine olive oil, garlic and onions and cook on medium for 4 minutes. Add the rice and cook for 3 minutes, stirring well to coat. Add the wine and cook until liquid evaporates. Add broth, 1 cup at a time, and continue cooking until each cup of liquid evaporates, stirring frequently. When you add the last cup of broth, also add the mushrooms and parsley. Cook until rice is al dente and creamy. Stir in the butter and half of the cheese. Add salt and pepper to taste and sprinkle with remaining cheese. Serve immediately. Makes 6 servings. 20 SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2016 • TASTES OF ITALIA TASTES OF ITALIA • SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2016 21 GOOD TASTES Cooking with OLIVES by Patrick Bartlett N ative to the Mediterranean region, olives are abundant in Italy. This time of year, growers are busy harvesting the fruit from the trees that will be processed in a variety of ways. Some will be pressed for oil, while others will be cured to be enjoyed alone or added to recipes for an extra kick. Black and green olives are the same thing. Canned black olives are picked green and turn black when cured. When an olive is fresh from the tree it is extremely bitter. To make olives edible the bitterness needs to be leached out using salt brine. There are several methods of curing olives. Greek method: The Greeks don’t allow the quicker sodabased solutions. Instead they use a salt brine that cold soaks the olives for around ten months until fully fermented. This process produces a much sweeter and more complex flavor than other methods. Salt cured: With this method the olives are rubbed with coarse salt and left to air dry in a method similar to drying raisins. When done they are more wrinkled and packaged dry after the remaining salt is removed. Spanish method: The Spanish generally prefer green olives, and they developed the lye (caustic soda) method that speeds up the process of curing before rinsing and finishing in salt brine. This method produces a crisper, nuttier-flavored olive. American method: Similar to the Spanish method, but with added soakings and the addition of iron to retain the dark colors. During the lye solution soaking, air is pumped through the soak to increase oxidation and give the olives a darker color. There are also sun-dried and oil cured methods, but these are the basics. Now that you know how olives are cured, the following list covers the more common olives available in many markets. The choices are wide, so here’s a primer to help you choose the best olive for your fall dishes: 24 SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2016 • TASTES OF ITALIA TASTES OF ITALIA • SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2016 25 GOOD TASTES GOOD TASTES Walnuts in Desserts A match made in heaven, cool weather meal-enders taste even better with a nutty boost from this fall classic. O nce called Juglan regia, “Jupiter’s royal acorn,” by ancient Romans, walnuts have long held an important place at the table. Originating in what food historians believe was ancient Persia, walnuts used to be reserved for royalty. Luckily, they’re more widely available today and are a popular culinary choice for many home cooks. Used in main dishes, desserts, sides, salads, and pesto, walnuts are readily available in the fall. To keep them fresh, experts at the California Walnut Board say to keep them in the refrigerator. Walnuts go rancid when exposed to warm temperatures for long periods of time. Heat causes the fat in walnuts to change structure, which creates off odors and flavors. Fresh walnuts smell mildly nutty and taste sweet. See walnuts.org for more tips about walnuts. In the meantime, try the following recipes to perk up your fall menu. 28 SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2016 • TASTES OF ITALIA TASTES OF ITALIA • SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2016 29 GOOD TASTES Autumn in Florence Bursting with fall’s bounty, this Tuscan city offers recipes to savor in your own kitchen. by Susan Van Allen Cathedral Santa Maria del Fiore, Florence, Italy. 36 SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2016 • TASTES OF ITALIA Scenes from Florence: Top: Vintage chairs along a walkway. Lower left: Michelangelo’s David in the Galleria dell’Accademia in Florence. Lower right: Lion door knockers are often seen in Florence. TASTES OF ITALIA • SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2016 37 INGREDIENTS All About Salami A prominent player in Italian cuisine, this humble product often defines the culinary regions of a country that prides itself on flavorful creations. Story by David Cohen 40 SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2016 • TASTES OF ITALIA TASTES OF ITALIA • SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2016 41 V ITALIAN WINE Vino Nobile Accessible and fruity, Vino Nobile di Montepulciano, one of Tuscany’s most historic wines, is poised for a Renaissance. Made primarily from the sangiovese grape, it is paired with other varietals that tame its robust tannins to a velvety softness while retaining a succulent fruit profile that imparts a smooth, drinkable nonchalance. Story and Photos by Patricia Thomson FOR WINEMAKERS IN ITALY, pleasant days and cool nights mark the most important part of the wine growing season—harvest. Plucking grapes from the vines at just the right moment merely begins the process of creating wonderful wines, like Vino Nobile di Montepulciano, one of Tuscany’s historic reds, which is made primarily from the sangiovese grape. Requiring a long growing season, sangiovese often stays on the vines until late September, allowing its natural qualities to ripen to their fullest potential. 46 SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2016 • TASTES OF ITALIA TASTES OF ITALIA • SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2016 47 NATIVE SOIL A VILLA to REMEMBER In Tuscany, a family has turned a 17th century farmhouse into a fivestar bed and breakfast that’s surrounded by beautiful vineyards and gardens. A well-stocked wine cellar goes nicely with cooking classes, giving guests a true escape from the trappings of a busy life. S Story and Photos by Lauren Birmingham Piscitelli ignor Nicola was four years old the first time he visited San Gimignano, an idyllic hill town in Tuscany. Also known as the Town of Fine Towers, it’s encircled by 13th century walls. “I tugged at my mom’s skirt and told her I wanted to get married here,” says Nicola, who is now 44 years old with salt-and-pepper hair and crystal-blue eyes. Today, Tuscany is his second home, a fact that happened quite by chance. In 1998, Nicola, whose family has been in the wine business for four generations, was in Seattle working with a distributor who expressed his love for Tuscany and said he wanted to buy a vineyard there. “As I gave him a hand looking for properties, my dream to have a villa and vineyard in Tuscany that I could call my own soared,” he says. One weekend, Nicola was cruising through Tuscany on his motorcycle and ended up in Montepulciano. “It was my first time to the medieval town, and its magic stole my heart. During that visit, I went to see my supplier, Signore Giorgio. I told him I was looking for a vineyard property and he replied, ‘Why don’t you buy my cousin’s property—it’s for sale and it’s the best property in Montepulciano.’ I called my father immediately and told him that Giorgio’s cousin’s property was for sale. My father was interested too, so my parents came to Tuscany and went to see the property. It was love at first sight,” says Nicola. They organized a family reunion and discussed the potential purchase. “My mom said, 52 SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2016 • TASTES OF ITALIA Signor Nicola and his family kept the integrity of the 17th century farmhouse they bought and renovated in Tuscany. TASTES OF ITALIA • SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2016 53 2 SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2016 • TASTES OF ITALIA TASTES OF ITALIA • SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2016 3