THE SANNIO STAR

Tasty Tidings from the Heart of Italy

www.savourthesannio.com May 2010

WINDING VINES OF THE AMALFI COASTThe Amalfi Coast, south of the Bay of Naples, is one of the most beautiful, famous and well-known parts of Italy: it welcomes visitors with a feast of light and scents: the only condition necessary to enjoy its spectacular landscape is to carefully follow the roads and paths as they slowly wind their way around the land.The hills are steep and rocky and offer only one way to farm: by patiently removing the stones and using them to support the soil, creating sweeping walls of terraces where vineyards overlook homes which overlook lemon orchards and all tenaciously clinging to the mountainside. Working this land demands constant care and stubborn passion. The thin soil is protected against the wind from the sea by growing grass and vegetables, putting every square inch of land to good use.These criteria are being diligently put to work by two exceptionally polished producers: Patrizia Malanga in the tiny coastal town of Raito and Luigi Reale in Tramonti, in the green hills directly behind Ravello. Continue>>

After our visit to the Amalfi Coast, and with two bags full of luscious organic lemons, I wanted to make risotto al limone. But as I searched around the internet for a recipe, I was dismayed at the amount of butter that was called for and butter is something we don’t even keep in out refrigerator! So I decided to experiment using olive oil instead of butter. Then I rummaged in my kitchen cupboards to see if I had all the other ingredients. Hmm, no rice. But, refusing to be daunted, I invented a distinctive and dietetic pasta al limone of my own:

Sauce ingredients for 2 people:1 stem of fresh garlic, chopped1 leek, slicedPinch of saffronParsleyExtra-virgin olive oilJuice of ½ a lemonGrated rind of ½ an organic lemon¼ cup of water½ cup of white or rosé wine200 gr. of long pasta

The cooking time is so quick, that you must start by heating the water for the pasta in a pot (and remember to salt it when it boils).

Wash the lemon. Heat the water in a non-stick frying pan, add the garlic and allow the flavor to sweat into the liquid. Then add the leek, and salt to taste. When all the water has evaporated, add the wine. When the wine evaporates, add the lemon juice and saffron. Then add the grated lemon rind and parsley and put aside until the pasta is ready.

In the meantime, your water has boiled and you’ve cooked 200 grams of long pasta. When it’s still very al dente, put the pan back on the stove and transfer the pasta (together with a little of its water) and stir over a high flame until the water has evaporated. Douse with olive oil and serve.

RISOTTO … or rather, PASTA AL LIMONE

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COOKING IN A NORMAN CASTLE

COOKING WITH MARILì

My brother Paul and I have lived in Italy since 1961 and he is particularly fascinated with the Italian obsession over food. Here is an excerpt from a letter he sent to his friends and although the places he describes are not in the Sannio (he lives in Rome), it struck a cord, because it describes the shopping habits and techniques of Italians all over the country.

Delving into the relationship between Italians and food is like trying to explain why Americans over-consume or the Germans love beer; it’s a convoluted and never-ending process. Opera, painting…food; Mamma, home…food; summer, beach…food; grandma, ancestral home… food. The Italian passion for food is, at times, even greater than their love for soccer and an inordinate amount of time is spent shopping for it, cooking it, talking about it and, of course, eating it.

And it always comes out so good! Why? Here are a few reasons I’ve come up with:

First of all, a great deal of effort is put into getting the best raw ingredients. If you’ve ever eaten in Italy and wondered why Italian food back home doesn’t make the grade, this is the long and the short of it. I doubt whether Mario Batali’s ragù can hold a flame to that of my neighbor’s Mrs. Fusarpoli (who comes from Naples) simply because he doesn’t have the same climate, soil and sunshine that produces the oil, tomatoes and basil.

In Italy good food plays a vital role in society: it’s the cement that keeps families together and friendships alive. Interactions happen around the table: families celebrate baptisms, confirmations and weddings which all have an important food component. Even normal dinners become an occasion when the whole family is looking forward to their favorite casseroles, fruits and vegetables.

Cooking is competitive. Food is rooted in traditions that are passed down from generation to generation and recipes for the same dish vary from town to town. Every Italian is convinced that their mother’s recipe is the best as is the frantoio (olive press) in their home town where they buy their oil in 5 liter cans. Continued >>

THE ITALIAN ART OF FOOD SHOPPING

by Paul Goldfield