As we enter into late summer, it’s once again the traditional time of year for putting up the season’s bountiful vegetables for enjoyment in the colder weather months. Some vegetables, like tomatoes, take to straight up canning. They are briefly cooked, either peeled and left whole (for pelati) or milled … Read More
Taccole con pancetta e pomodoro
Snap peas, called taccole or piselli mangiatutto in Italian, are one of spring’s most delightful vegetables. Sweet, crisp and toothsome, they are very easy to cook. And, best of all, they don’t need that tedious shelling needed that fresh peas do. The specimens you’re likely to find in Italy (at … Read More
Carciofi in fricassea (Artichokes in egg and lemon sauce)
Artichokes and eggs get along very nicely, don’t they? Artichokes are a classic filling for frittata and if you’ve ever tried it, you’ll know why. They’re delicious baked with egg or fried in egg batter. Or what about an egg, sunny side up, as a topping for braised artichokes? There … Read More
Cipollata calabrese (Calabrian Style Braised Red Onions)
These days it’s become quite chic to claim one dish or another is an example of la cucina povera, or the cooking of the poor. But this one is the real deal. Cipollata calabrese, Braised Red Onions in the Calabrian Style, got its start as a meal for shepherds while … Read More
Gratin di cavolini di Bruxelles e funghi (Brussels Sprouts and Mushroom Gratin)
Properly prepared, Brussels sprouts are a lovely vegetable. Called cavolini di Bruxelles or ‘little cabbages of Brussels’ in Italian, these most elegant of all the cruciferous family of vegetables lend themselves to all sorts of treatments, from a simple sauté to deep frying to this rich and creamy gratin, complemented … Read More
Fiori di zucca alla ligure (Ligurian-Style Zucchini Blossoms)
Lucky me! I found some zucchini blossoms at our local market this week, for the first time in at least two years. Why they waited until the very end of the summer to start selling them, I can’t imagine. But I’m not one to look the proverbial gift horse in … Read More
Asparagi in casseruola (Cavalcanti’s Sautéed Asparagus)
Asparagus generally doesn’t spring to mind when we think about Neapolitan cookery, but here’s an example that challenges our preconceived notions. This recipe for asparagi in casseruola comes to us from Ippolito Cavalcanti, the famed 19th century gourmand whose 1839 masterwork, La cucina teorica-pratica, is one of the Ur-texts of … Read More
Tiella di patate e funghi (Potato and Mushroom Casserole)
Southern Italian cookery, in particular the cooking of Puglia, Basilicata and Calabria, is rife with baked vegetable casseroles . They are often called tielle after baking dish in which they are cooked and then served, much like the word “casserole” in English. We’ve featured the iconic tiella pugliese, a veritable one-dish … Read More