Franci

Dave, you really did a very good job at stretching the dough, it looks very nice and thin!

Yes, Kevin and Foodman, you are really great! Everything looks wonderful. Can I send you my husband for a quick lesson on how too be more thoughtful? Of course we never celebrate Valentine's day and yesterday he came from work at 11 pm as usual Going back to birds. Honestly it is more in recent years that I see birds cooked somewhat rare. Italians usually like their meat well done. My mom used to cook birds and polenta often, always well done, hers came out tender. I don't know if because of the stricter hunting regulations of what, she has stopped cooking little birds. I still think tenderness has a lot of to do with the age of the birds and sometimes with hanging them the correct time, but maybe this is more true for bigger ones like pheasants

Ricotta is made with whey. I do sometimes make a "formaggio fresco" with whole milk but it's not ricotta. ← Well, then, we will call this "formaggio fresco", Franci, or maybe "American home-made ricotta" as similar recipes are all over the internet *and* in published cookbooks by respected authors. I use it in place of store-bought ricotta in recipes, as did my MIL who was born in Italy. Words. . .difficult things sometimes. Do you make ricotta at home with whey? If so, would you be so kind as to share the recipe? ← I am not saying that if you use fresh milk to make a kind of fresh cheese is not good, it just calling things with their name. Ricotta is made out of whey. One day you can make a fresh cacioricotta and with the whey, the day after, make ricotta. I took these pictures last summer, back home, in a masseria (that's how we call farms in Puglia). cacioricotta in masseria I didn't post the pictures for ricotta Strain the whey after making the fresh cheese, or if you don't mind just lift with a small strainer any residual curd. Bring it to 60 Celsius and add a very small amount of milk (like a cm of a glass for 2 liters whey). If too much milk is added the ricotta will not form. When it reaches 80 Celsius add very little salt and stir, skim but stop as soon as you see the ricotta forming Lower the heat and turn off the stove when you see it is breaking on the surface and big bubble are erupting. Maybe you can see it clearly enough from this picture. Let it rest of a little bit, about 20 minutes, the more it rests the firmer will get. Drain it with a perforated spoon an leave to drain in a perforated basket. This ricotta was not perfect but the pour lady, in one morning showed to me so many things and she was striving to finish her orders for the day. I hope this is helpful. P.S.: the amount of ricotta you can make from a 2 liter whey is very small, that's why is difficult to make at home. Ideal would be having a source for whey.

Pontormo, I am not so extreme, I can have something else on my plate, important that is not too crowed and there is not liquid running all over it. Foodman, I sliced thin the squash, dusted with flour and deep fried. Meanwhile I warmed up some vinegar with salt and garlic. I made layers of fried squash and mint and wet with the warm vinegar. The recipe called for basil but since I prefer mint I used that. In the Sicilian version (zucca fritta all'agliata) they use mint. Let rest one day at room temperature before eating. For the saor, last year I made the saor again and I browned the onions a little bit. I do like it more that way, next time I should keep in mind. Sweat some white onions in oil until soft with salt, brown not brown depending on your preference. Actually I am not sure if browning or not can be a difference between the venetian version or the one in Trieste . Anybody knows? Add some softened raisins, toasted pine nuts- if you like- and vinegar and bring to a boil. I like to add a bayleaf. Dust with flour the sardines and deep fry until golden. Layer the onion with their liquid and the sardines. Let rest at room temperature for one day at least. I refrigerate only if I plan to keep for many days, always eat at room temperature. As for pressure cooker, the latest versions are very good with a valve and a safety block lever. I own a small Lagostina and to cook chickpeas with it it's so much easier

I do not use pressure cooker for meat that I want to cook rare. I rather use it for second- third choice cuts of meat (the ones that requires long cooking) see a lamb shank, ossobuco or, if I don't have time, for a quick chicken stock or even a stew. It just halve or reduce to 1/3 the cooking time.

Ricotta is made with whey. I do sometimes make a "formaggio fresco" with whole milk but it's not ricotta.

Today it was sardele in saor and fried squash.

My husband is Chinese (born in China) and I am Italian (born in Italy). We both dislike Mexican food or better tex-mex food since I never been in Mexico, but I have a feel I wouldn't like it either. We basically met in our early twenties so our tastes grew very similar. I don't like tex mex food because it's too messy for me, same or even more for my husband. We like small dishes, each dish made with few ingredients. The only think we probably like is faijtas but without the fixin's And my husband will not eat stinky cheeses but he loves parmigiano/grana or any hard cow cheese, so I don't think it's because of it.

Thanks! Here I cooked some of the squash in the onion base for risotto and some of it I sauteed in the pan. I know some people think that you cannot toast rice properly if you have already your base of vegetable in the pot but beeing only a portion I didn't have any problem. The squash which I used for topping the risotto was simply sautee in the pan and dusted with a very little cinnamon, I didn't want it to prevail. I like to have the contrast of soft squash in the rice and firmer but sweeter squash on top. Here I have a confession, most of the purists would cut my head off but this risotto was cooked in the pressure cooker . With the pressure cooker I am always sure of the outcome, it's very handy if I have guests and I don't want to spend my time stirring all the time or I am in a lazy mood. In 6-7 minutes it's ready.

Thanks to Legourmet and Chimico for the etimology of topinambur! Franci, the reason I quoted this particular line is the fact that I have both zucchini and a new supply of polenta at home. I found nothing online using the spelling of zucchini offered here. Would you happen to know what Venetians do to zucchini when they're served with polenta? Is this actually a vegetarian main dish? Or do you you serve something with protein on the same plate? ← Pontormo, sorry I didn't reply earlier, we just come back for a week end in Rome. We wanted to go to Venice but because of Carnevale we decided it was not a good time. Polenta and zucchini. I found it only in Oretta Zanini De Vita collection of regional recipes. Basically it says to saute the zucchini with some onion in oil and butter and some thyme. Cook the polenta and pour it in a baking dish (about 3 cm), dust with a good amount of pecorino di Pra' dei Gai (I never tried it) and layer the zucchini, more pecorino, some breadcrumbs, a little bit of butter and under the grill or salamander. Polenta and funghi is much more common if you don't want to serve polenta with meat. Today I didn't have a lot of ingredients at home, I still need to go out for grocery shopping. I decided to go with a simple risotto con la zucca

I do normally use it for baking cookies, for now I still have some left, that I brought from Italy (but even in sealed packets it evaporates, in the last I opened it was almost gone). Since I have moved to London I have not spent time looking for it. I do not recall if I saw it at Gennaro, a deli in Lewisham (try to call and ask for "ammoniaca per dolci" or baking ammonia), or, a good bet would be trying other etnic groceries: greeks or germans. For ex. there is a small greek grocery around Baywater (on Moscow road) you could call. I assumed you live in London...sorry. Or if you have a good pharmacy there is no reason for them not to order for you. In Italy it is common. Chance is that the will sell you a huge quantity. The cookies with baking ammonia are very different than baking powder, much more tender. Only advice keep the oven door slightly ajar to let the ammonia evaporate, the smell during cooking is not pleasant but if cooked properly there should not be any residual smell or taste. If you don't find any, let me know I'll try to open one of my packages and see if there is still some which is not empty, in case, if it's just for the sake of trying, I can send it to you.

Yes, I agree, you need to season the tool. It would be better if you could keep it in hot oil for a hour at least.

Rotolo di patate. It's the basic recipe for gnocchi. If you use good floury potatoes you don't even need the egg in it. Dust with flour a cheesecloth, roll your gnocchi dough in a rectangular shape, add the filling of you choice and roll it up pinching the hedges. Tie with kitchen string, like a salame and boil for about 35-40 minutes. I let cool a little bit before slicing, pour noisette butter on top, some grana or parmigiano and I like to pass under the grill for a couple minutes. For filling the most classic one is with spinach, but often make it with zucchine "trifolate" and cheese.

Thanks guys, I know where the tuberous comes from. It's the origin of the name that I am not sure. I took my books on regional cooking here some classical dishes that might inspire Primi Bigoli: with molluschi (shellfish), with granseola (crab), with duck, with sardelle (with sardines), scuri in salsa brodetto polesano (it's a fish soup) Liver canederli from Ampezzo Casonsei ampezzani (ravioli with redbeats and poppy seeds) gnocchi di zucca malafanti (a polenta with beans) Paparele con fegatini or with green beans Polenta: with bisato (eel), with sucui (zucchini), with shrimps (often used white polenta with fish), with baccala', with cuttlefish, with porcini. Risi e bisi, Risi in cavroman Riso e zucca riso in peverada risotto with asparagus Risotto with radicchio di treviso risotto with bruscandoli (here for a picture, they are the tip of the hop) risotto with atichokes Risotto al Tastasal Risotto all'isolana Risotto alla pilota Risotto with frogs Sopa coada etc. Secondi Anara col pien (stuffed duck) Baccala' alla vicentina Bollito con la peara' (with a sauce with marrow bone and breadcrumbs) El Bisato sull'Ara (bisato is eel, anguilla) Capesante gratinate (scallops) Cappone alla canevera (basically the capon is cooked in pork bladder and a "canevera" a cane is used as vent) Capriolo braised Carpaccio Coniglio faraona in peverada (pheasant in peverada sauce) stuffed faraona Fegato alla veneziana Moleche col pien (softshell crabs, stuffe) Pastissada de caval (it's a horse meat stew, I'd be very happy finding the horse meat..) Pit in tecia (it's chicken cooked in tecia=terracotta pot) Roasted chicken with beans Rognone (kidney with mushrooms) Seppie alla veneziana (cuttlefish) torresani (colombo)

Kevin, I agree with the others, you spaghetti look very good. Curiosity. Do you know how jerusalem artichokes are called in Italian? Tobinambur, I don't know where the name comes from. Foodman, I have in my hands the Slow Food edition for "pani d'Italia". I'll copy the list for Veneto: Bibanesi (short breadsticks) Bossolai (from Chioggia, kind of taralli) ciòpa, very typical from the region. Belongs to the category of "pane a pasta dura", low hydratation bread, around 40% water. Montasu', like ciopa is a pasta dura bread, you will find it also in Emilia. I have a recipe for it if you are interested. I don't have a direct link, but if you want to see how it is shaped, go on www.glutine.com look for pane bolognese, at the end of the page there are instruction on how to shape montasu'. pan biscotto pane al mais pane azzimo (due to the jews presence in Venice) piava (from Padova) Puccia (different than the southerner version. This is a 70% rye flour, has caraway and fennel seeds in it, plus a wild oregano of the area around belluno called zigoinr) Servede with cheese and salumi up in the montains. rosetta (but you find it all over the place and impossible to make at home) Spaccatina

Let's make two Italians thinking that wine is not always necessary, with saffron in particular I avoid it.

I cannot think of any of them that is really a classic for birthdays: Torta Nicolotta, that would be with stale bread Torta fregolotta, similar to sbrisolona Torta putana (yes, with one t), with polenta, raisins, apples, sometimes squash Torta sabbiosa (sandy), this is very good but to me it is more a tea cake Torta di paparele, this one is interesting. Paparele are fresh pasta tagliolini...possible ottoman influence through Venice. There is something similar also in Emilia: torta ricciolina. Or maybe you could use pandoro as layers for a dessert After lasagne I would make zuppa inglese!

The cornmeal I used it's even finer, like durum flour. For this torta, for my taste, I like it better. I tried only one time a coarser coarnmeal and I found it difficult to get right the amount of liquid necessary, it would be a trial and error process, for sure I'd keep it a little runnier, or, if you have an eletric coffee grinder, I would give to the coarmeal some pulses.

I have been making this torta salata so often lately that I couldn't restrain from posting a picture. It's a good way to use very fine cornmeal (even finer than fioretto, the kind you find in Indian or Middleastern stores) but more importantly is really delicious. It makes a great appetizer with salumi. It is called baciocca, here the recipe I was given.

Carnevale is coming and I had friends over for dinner yesterday, I took my chance for my once a year chiacchiere frying. They are sooooooo good. I served them with sanguinaccio, a thick chocolate cream Both recipes are either on Recipegullet under my name or on my blog.

This is radicchio di treviso

Ah, I forgot, i am thinking of an Asian dish that maybe uses those shanks, and I actually would be something that you find also in Italian cooking. I always amazed when I find similarities in my husband chinese family and Italian food: pork with beans! In Italian would be fagioli con la cotica.

Dave, I am so happy that you and the family had fun with it!!! How did the dough work? Looking forward to see the picture Kevin, you are working for all of us! I feel a little ashamed. I thought of making something with buckwheat but I left my spaeztle grater in Italy and now I am thinking about the buckwheat cake with a blueberry jam filling or the Meraner Torte.

without spending so much money: coarse salt (or Kosher) and vinegar works very well for cleaning copper pots.

To me it is strange to put two "primi" dishes in a menu. Unless it's a very formal meal with many courses I will never put together a soup and a pasta. After the pasta, I will go the Italian way that would be a roast of meat and vegetable, or it for you is too heavy with a vegetarian dish (like a sformato di spinaci) Pannacotta is always good.