just had to in munich…
Category Archives: de cibo
Eggplant lasagne with 3-tomato sauce
Last night, this dish at the famous Al Fornello da Ricci blew my mind: baked and fried eggplant layered with lasagne and drowned in a tomato sauce made from ciliegino, ramato, and macone tomatoes (I’d never heard of the latter and I’m guessing that it’s a local cultivar).
Amazing… Much more to tell about last night but now off to Ostuni — the “white city” for some sightseeing before tonight’s conference (where I’ll be speaking as well).
Classic homey orecchiette and Sassicaia’s new enologist
You really can’t eat too many orecchiette, can you? I LOVED the classic, homey orecchiette they served us last night at the beautiful Vallone winery after we tasted a vertical of Graticiaia — the Amarone-style Negroamaro that many Apulians call “the greatest wine” from their region. The hand-rolled dumplings were dressed with a fresh tomato sauce and freshly grated ricotta salata. Delicious…
The Castello di Serranova — home to the Vallone winery and a vibrant “living” castle — was in full bloom. Gorgeous.
It was fascinating to talk with Vallone enologist Graziana Grassini (above, second from left, photo by Jedi wine blogger Ryan) who is now — news to me — the enologist at Sassicaia (since last year). She was mentored by Giacomo Tachis and I was riveted by her anecdotes about him (more on that later).
Not much time for blogging today: we tasted 60 competing wines this morning and we have another 40 to taste this afternoon before we head out to dinner this afternoon…
Stay tuned!
Waiter, waiter! There’s a worm in my chive flower! FANTASTIC cavatelli with mussels and chickpeas
My dining companions were more alarmed by the worm in my chive flower than was I. The flower and worm arrived atop a truly fantastic dish of cavatelli with mussels and chickpeas at the Borgo Egnazia, a fancy schmancy resort on the eastern coast of Apulia where we’re staying for the judging.
This was probably my favorite dish so far on this trip. I viewed the worm as a sign of nature and, frankly, I probably would have eaten it in the spirit of experiencing the terroir. But the however sweet lady seated to my right was thoroughly dismayed by its appearance and it was subsequently whisked away after being betrayed by her moan.
I also really loved the chef’s pistachio ice cream drizzled with extra-virgin olive oil.
Onion porn from Apulia
If ever there were a food photo worthy of being called “porn” on my blog, it would surely be this one: this fava bean purée and toasted bread round pie topped with a delicately battered and fried red onion round and accompanied by a lightly roasted shishito pepper (for lunch at the Masseria Le Fabriche yesterday on the western coast of Apulia). Sexy and delicious…
Friselle! Sometimes life’s simplest pleasures are its greatest, no?
When time permits, I’ll devote a post to frise (FREE-zeh) and friselle (free-ZEHL-leh) — a type of crunchy bread, sometimes soaked in water, dressed with various toppings.
That’s one of the Pichierri granddaughters at Vinicola Savese (incredible visit, btw). She’s a heartbreaker!
One of the best tastings and delicious, delicate fiordilatte for lunch
There’s no denying it: so far, the Radici Wines gathering has been one of the best tasting festivals I’ve ever attended in Italy. In past years (now its fourth), the festival was limited to Apulian and Lucanian producers. But this year it includes more than 100 producers from Apulia, Basilicata, Calabria, and Campania.
And even though the unusual “speed-dating” format can lead to some awkward silences, it’s been fantastic to taste and chat one-on-one with so many interesting producers.
There’s no time this morning to begin posting on the many amazing wines (1997 Gaglioppo, anyone? 1975 Primitivo?). But I’ll get to them soon enough.
In the meantime, fiordilatte — literally, crème de la crème, one of the many wonderful “plastic” cheeses produced here in Apulia — and crusty bread were just what I needed for lunch…
Dulcis in fundo: Primitivo di Manduria Dolce Naturale and almond paste pastries
But the dish that really blew me away at last night’s dinner at Le Fabriche was this housemade almond paste pastry, a classic of Apulian gastronomy. The combination of nuanced texture and gentle sweetness was sublime.
The pastry paired stunningly well with Le Fabriche’s Primitivo di Manduria Dolce Naturale, which surprised me with its balanced alcohol and gorgeous fruit (and it thrilled the crowd of top-flight wine writers).
The first tastings of the festival begin this morning and then we head out for a winery visit at Pichierri this afternoon (SUPER psyched for that, one of my favorite Apulian producers)… Stay tuned!
Orecchiette with meatballs… wonderful…
That’s the charismatic Alessia Perrucci (left), our host and owner of the agriturismo Masseria Le Fabriche, with Franco Ziliani (center), who’s one of the Radici Wines festival’s curators, and Nicola Campanile (right), festival organizer.
The food at last night’s welcome dinner was wonderful. I LOVED the handmade orecchiette (one of Puglia’s classic pastas) with veal meatballs and pecorino. The chef’s marretto — a loaf made of lamb offal — was also exceedingly delicious…
An incredible meal at Le Zie (The Aunts), Lecce
I joined Paolo and his crew last night for dinner at the famous and homey Lecce restaurant Le Zie, where owner Carmela Perrone insisted on showing me how to dress my fave e cicorie (puréed favas and sautéed chicory) and fed me my first bite, telling me to make a wish (I’ll tell you if it comes true this Christmas).
However simple, her rendering of this dish was no less than a masterpiece.
La tiella (taieddhra in Leccese), named after the teglia or earthenware pot it’s cooked in — baked mussels, potatoes, and zucchine. Unbelievably delicious… Life-changing, really.
We had sat down for dinner at around 10 p.m. and by the time we arrived at the second course, there were no more of the white-wine braised meatballs. And so Carmela breaded and fried some of the meatballs reserved for the next day. This was perhaps the mother of all meatballs…
I don’t have time to post properly on the amazing meal we had there but I will in upcoming weeks… Today, I’m headed over to Manduria on the west coast of Apulia for the preview tastings for the Radici Wines festival… Stay tuned and thanks for reading!
Do Bianchi 