Kevin72

The pears I used were Bosc and indeed were unpeeled. Maybe that's what sets up that custard texture I was referring to since they're baked in their skins and get softer inside. Their own natural sugar comes out during baking and caramelizes on the skin, too. Yum. Nice looking crepes. I really don't cook with them enough and should've thought of them this month. Chicken livers are an aquired taste but certainly not something I'd limit to the wives: took me a while to get into their charms as well. And one of our good friends is an East Texas, damn near Lousiana girl and she loves it when I make them. Speaking of Jamie, he had a mini-series on Travel Chanel (rapidly outpacing FoodTV in my book) recently where he went to Italy on a cooking trip. I saw two eps: one where he was running a Sicilian guy's restaurant for a night and both the clientele and the owner ripped him royally on his cooking efforts. The other ep, he stayed with some famous monks and was distressed to find them eating processed, frozen food instead of relying on their own cooking as they had in years past. Pretty interesting stuff.

I'm a gristle initiate at this point and not liable to go much further: it tasted like rubber bands. In fact, the meat itself wasn't even all that great or terribly flavorful. Most boar in the U.S. comes from Texas, in fact, and they are domesticated and raised on a farm, so they're pretty mild.

Final Tuscan meal this month: We started with grilled polenta, topped with a, I dunno, compote? of sauteed olives and rosemary. Grilled boar chops followed. These had been marinated in a mixture inspired by Luongo's recipe for game marinades in A Tuscan in the Kitchen: red wine, rosemary, juniper, garlic, then grilled. The marinade didn't carry through, strangely. The chops were also, unfortunately, rather gristly, so there were only a few good nuggets of tender meat on there. But now I recall Judith's writings that there is a special fondness for tough, gristly cuts of meat there so maybe I was being authentic? On the side, roasted potatoes. Dessert was roasted pears with red wine, honey, and parmigiano: If you've never tried this type of dessert before, I urge you to do so. It's one of those "synchronicity" dishes where everything comes together and creates a whole new flavor and experience that is more than the sum of its parts. The pear flesh takes on an almost custardy texture after being in the oven; the clove-spiked red wine picks up the runoff from the pear, the parmigiano adds little nutty, salty notes, and the honey melds everything together.

That preparation sound mighty French to me, Judith! What would the Tuscans think? Thanks to Pontormo's breakdown and links, I'm really convinced that it's partially due to the differences in arugula available in the U.S. vs. Italy. She also hit on something else I was suspecting: that the walnuts, garlic, and cheese may blunt some of the flavor. I wonder if when we ate it in Florence it was more or less just arugula pureed with mild olive oil . . .

Loved seeing two of my favorite Houston haunts, Mai's and Goode Co., profiled. Mai's really set off a craving for my wife and I and I guess we'll make a run there next time we're in town. Never ran across Bubba's, oddly, and it looks like it was near where I lived at one time (err, not under a freeway). When you were prowling Rice Village before going to Mandola's Seafood, there was a brief moment when I though maybe you'd hit Kahn's, a great deli with great reubens. That would have hit the trifecta for me. Alas. Maybe next time?

Williams Sonoma? I've considered it, but I don't like the bitter elements that come out of cooking arugula. And, from what I recall when we ate it, it was very fresh and "pure" tasting, and I'd think that cooking would mute that. But then, the arugula used over there is reputedly much more intense than what we get stateside.

Last night we had pasta with arugula pesto, based on a dish we ate at Osteria Dai Benchi in Florence: I can't ever get that intense wash of arugula flavor that they had there, though. I make it like a pesto, using walnuts instead of pinenuts, and pecorino toscano only. Gemelli is the pasta.

Thanks for the review and pics, Megan. Sorry that your one outing in our cities didn't deliver.

I want to even say Jesus was our waiter when I went last summer. At any rate, whoever our server was was also very knowledgeable and really into the food. Had a great time talking to him. Frustrating then that it can be so uneven. Marinated anchovies are a glorious thing. We had fried anchovies and they were somehow even better. I had to talk my parents into getting them when we went, but our waiter joined in and endorsed them thoroughly. And now, my parents surprise me by mentioning every now and again how they keep craving those fried anchovies but they're not on the menu when they go back.

We ate here again Friday night with decidedly more mixed results. Some logistical issues: right when you walk in there's a table near the entrance and that's where we were seated. I've heard some complaints about seating here before and this time we got it in full: my wife got nudged and jostled every time a party was escorted by to their table. I also think the specials board that the servers have to carry to each new table adds unneccessarily to the bustle: they can't just do a menu insert? We also received the unceremonious "crostini drop" that Elie described above. On to the food: everyone ordered a pasta for some part of their meal and they were almost all outstanding: trofie (stubby spaghetti strands) with lemony sea bass sauce; the much-enthused about corn ravioli and lobster; ravioli with mushrooms, and my favorite, the ravioli with boar, mushrooms, and borlotti beans. There was also a gnocchi ordered which was good, just not as outstanding or unique in flavoring as the rest of the pastas. There was also a seared tuna salad special that one of us ordered to start that was wonderful. Of the secondi ordered, there were two significant missteps. I ordered the duck with grappa and pear. The duck came two ways: the breast was seared, then the leg was braised. The breast had been seared to black outside, leaving the whole thing with an unpleasant, carbonized flavor, and the meat itself was too tough. The leg was better, but damage done at that point. As to the grappa and pear, I guess they were made into a sauce the duck was resting on that added nothing to the whole. There was also a sea bass with grapefruit, but the cut of fish used was so enormous that it was impossible not to get tired of eating it. But two other secondi were quite noteworthy: the chianti-braised shortribs and buratta risotto were amazing, as was the special, another fish with sausage and mussel brodetto. There was a bit of a lag afterwards between clearing the plates, getting dessert menus, and then the check, which was odd given the wealth of staff on hand. Urgh. I really loved this place the first time and still do appreciate what it offers. It's just going to be hard getting back here again anytime soon, more so after such problems.

It's probably anathema to the simplicity of this dish, but do try Tuscan pecorino (or any of the younger, somewhat softer pecorino like caccio) over it some time. The slight tanginess of the cheese really works well with the slight bitterness of the greens. But yes, this is a fall favorite for both my wife and me. She starts asking about it as soon as the cooler weather hits. Thanks for the pics and posts, Divina! Loved the blog!

Yeah, poor Tuscany. I was really looking forward to this month but it's going by so fast and I feel I've barely made anything at all! I made ribollita this weekend, but it's not the most photogenic soup. Tasty, though.

Sunday's dinner began with crostini toscane "finta": fake Tuscan crostini since my wife doesn't like chicken or any kind of liver. So, I pureed sauteed mushrooms and sherry (standing in for Marsala, which was supposed to stand in for Vin Santo), chilies, and capers, then topped them with pickled red onion: We continued with baked ravioli gnudi, a dumpling made of ricotta and spinach, then baked with tomato sauce: The main was arrista fiorentina, the famous pork roast of the region. I didn't get it trimmed properly as for a crown roast, so I totally botched carving it. So, in keeping with my inability to make any meat I make look appealing: That's the filling scattered over the top: minced rosemary, garlic, and pancetta, which really permeated the meat. The region's famous stewed beans were the contorno: But not made in the wine flask, however. Dessert was the cantucci Pan mentioned at the start of this thread, I probably didn't shape them right: And yes, these are made for dunking, not so much eating by themselves.

Magnificent, Elie! This is the perfect weather for this type of meal. Where do you get the meat from? That's really interesting about grilling squash. It cooks through and everything without getting scorched?

Maybe Cantina do Mori? These photos are literally taking my breath away: that shot of the island across from St. Mark's Square in particular. Where were you that you got the aerial view? And I agree with everyone on the Parm factory pics: wonderful, what a fun little diversion!

Good lord, between your blog, Judith's Umbria blog last month, and Ms. Foodie's wonderful travellogue on the Italy board right now, I'm seriously pining for a return trip. Keep up the great work!

It wasn't Villa Gaidello by any chance, was it?

That does look awesome, Elie. And what a great idea to turn it into a casserole. Turns it into something else entirely instead of just reconstituting the same soup over and over again (as I'm still doing with the pumpkin soup from last week . . . )

I tried doing them "fiorentina style" before and they were just way too fatty to go even medium rare. What about like a very slow roast?

Pontormo's right; a google search leads to exactly what I was mentally picturing at sites like this one. Whether it's Tuscan is another matter . . . You know, I was really half-*ssed about that meal with the ribeye. I'd always seen those bad boys at CM and thought that with all their fat they might make a great braise and so bought one on a lark. Certainly for the price they were I probably should've reconsidered.

Someone's going to make a fiorentina, right? ETA: What cut of meat is that there, Judith? And it looks like it's got a second crust just of truffles. I'll bet it smelled amazing.

Saturday night's meal: Started with a primo of crema di carciofi, artichoke "cream" as a take-off on the sweet pepper cream recipe in Guliano Bugiali's Foods of Tuscany cookbook. Artichokes, potatoes, and onion are cooked until they are collapsing, then get coaxed further along by a whir from the immersion blender: We then had Tuscan pot roast, made with an emormous ribeye steak our Central Market sells as a "Cowboy Steak". Braised with red wine, tomato paste, mushrooms, and the usual base aromatics. Served over mascarpone polenta: Yawn. Nothing new to report here. As I mentioned in the Piemonte thread at the start of the year, Italian beef braises for the most part are beginning to bore me; they all wind up tasting the same no matter what you throw in there. And yet, pork braises are all gloriously different and new to me almost every time. Weird. Sunday night we began with something my wife starts inquiring about as soon as it hits fall: bruschetta with kale: Go for broke with a robust olive oil and top with soft, young pecorino and this is deliriously addictive. Then another favorite: papardelle con pollo "alla lepre". After my disappointment with rabbit last year (and seeing other's similar experiences), I've decided to stick to skinless chicken legs and thighs to replicate the flavor of rabbit. No way I'd be able to track down hare here. The papardelle: The chicken legs get marinated in red wine and juniper overnight, browned off, then aromatics are added, along with the strained marinade, a few crushed tomatotes, and stock, then braised until falling apart. I fork-shred the meat and don't chop it as fine as others upthread directed. Also, I'm a total barbarian and do go ahead with the cheese on this one. It is just chicken, after all! Dessert was an apple crostata: Crostate, by the way, are another culinary kryptonite for me. It seems that I've seen simpler, more straightforward recipes for the dough, but I use the one in Field's Italan Baker which is a pastry crust. Maybe I'm not remembering the name right: aren't crostate what you bake free-form in an oven? Roll out the dough into a circle, heap fruit in the middle, fold the edges up and around the filling, leaving it open? With the pastry dough it immediately collapses in the oven and oozes the filling out.

Is this Adam thread recent, or is it the one from 05? Did I miss another Adam travel thread?!

What wonderful pictures. That shot of the fig and salumi platter is amazing. One question: Isn't this Vernazza? And I love this picture; like even the staff were surprised by it. The guy's hand gesturing in the corner is what makes it. What's the crust made of?

Along with several other posters here, I’ve had Lola on my “To Visit” list for a while and finally got to hit the Tasting Room Friday night. The 10 course tasting and wine pairing: Winterpoint Oysters, lemon juice and chives Prosciutto and Petite Bichone Salad, Fried Quail Eggs and Truffles Bisol “Crede” Prosecco Pumpkin Ravioli, Toasted Walnuts, Grapes and Brown Butter Seared Skate, Buttered Leeks, Risotto and Champagne Citrus Beurre Blanc Cauliflower Soup with Fried Shallots and Chive Cream Iname, Soave Classico 2005 Texas Quail, Polenta and Pomegranate Glaze Roasted Duck Breast with Cannellini Beans, Pancetta, and Fried Collard Greens Ny Strip, Mascarpone Yukon Gold Potato and candied garlic Domaine Ligneres, “Arie” Corbierres 2002 Grapefruit Sherbet Chocolate Fondant and Banana Ice Cream Marenco “Scrapona” Moscato d’ Asti The meal started promisingly enough with the oyster, sent out moments after we’d hashed out the details meal. It was a stellar example of raw oyster-ness: deeply briny, jet cold, shot through with the lightest touch of citrus and chives. The flavors just kept going afterwards. My wife, who is pregnant, got a miniature asparagus tartelette and offered me a taste: intense, pure, essence of asparagus. The next course presented a problem that foreshadowed a theme for the night: despite that she had just 10 minutes ago explicitly told the waiter “no goat cheese” that was indeed what the prosciutto bundled around. Lucky me; I got to eat them both and they were great, but my wife was a little irked. The pumpkin ravioli were another perfectly autumnal dish: intensely flavored pumpkin with an added layer of richness from the brown butter (I can never get mine that spot-on and nutty tasting), but then cut by the interesting foil of fresh grapes. The skate wing and risotto were also very well done and artfully plated, and I liked that the citrus beurre blanc helped cut the richness. The cauliflower soup was good, I thought, but my wife didn’t like the chunky soffritto (finely diced onion and carrot, sautéed briefly) added in I guess at the last minute. For the meat courses, the abiding problem was that they were all similarly prepared and then served with some form of rich starch: roasted quail and risotto, seared duck and beans, seared steak and mashed potatoes with cheese (not to mention the preceding skate wing and risotto). It got a little monotonous: maybe a braised item instead, or roasted vegetables instead of a creamy, rich puree. And here again, though it had been stated when we made the reservation and then again when we placed to order that night that my wife couldn’t have meat cooked less than medium, most of the meats came out with decided pinkness to them. But I will say this: everything was perfectly portioned. Just a medallion of meat for each course and a dollop of said starch. My wife, who gets full pretty easily these days, also remarked on how she wasn’t bursting at the seems as she was worried she would be. The grapefruit sherbet (why not call it sorbet?) at the end of the meal really did its job cleansing the palate. Nothing we had was bad or off-mark, just some stumbles. I was more dismayed by the disconnect with what was served to my wife. Also, the meal started at a pretty quick pace with stuff coming out at regular intervals, then slowed to a crawl by the end. It should be noted that I overheard, and then later confirmed, that their original chef has left, with Gray Henry now in charge of the Tasting Room. It was empty at first but was filling up nicely when we left. Several tables around us started up a conversation about how good the food was. So, in sum: very good, just not great, which I was rightly or wrongly hoping for. Some tweaks here and there and it'd definitely be back in form.