Pontormo

Only the last three items, combined with vinaigrette and savories date the recipe (no, it's not a pun when you simply re-use a word if changing n. into a v.). Is it Bartolomeo's? I will try it! (Since it would go on the historical thread you and Adam have built.)

I'm pretty sure that wasn't me. The beet I got from my CSA are probably the first I've ever owned. The same night I roasted the beets and peeled them, but have yet to consume. Just got some cukes from the CSA, including a lemon cucumber (seeGoogle pics). ← Sometimes I have a very creative memory . I am not sure why beet greens would taste bitter; never been my experience. Do try steaming or boiling them in a big pot of highly salted water (5 mins. for latter) and after draining, dressing them as per advice given them in the three linked threads. For a brand new green, it may just be that they require getting used to. However, they're usually not as bitter as certain kales that do become tamed by blanching before sauteeing (so-called black cabbage or dinosaur kale, for example)--they're generally more subtle, like a chard if sometimes leaves get thick and a little tough late in the summer. Your lemon cukes look amazing ! I want one! As for roasted beets, you'll see lots of good advice on the linked threads. I love them with an orange-juice vinaigrette, toasted walnuts and arugula. for crepes idea! I had been placing bookmarks in my cookbooks this week and hadn't even thought of this very obvious idea. Plus I've got FAGE strained yogurt...yum! You read my mind regarding the can of oil-paced tuna, capers, olives, etc., though I am waiting for local tomatoes and this one farm's Jade green beans. I normally could live happily without the latter vegetable, but this variety is so, so, so good! Thanks!

I'd like to return to one of the fundamental reasons both Michael Pollan and John Mackay addressed open letters to one another: the fact that Whole Foods no longer subscribes to a "back-door" policy of permitting individual stores from accepting foods from local farmers to sell uniquely to their stores--or stores in the area. Instead, for the most part, the company ships in food from equally large farms, dairies, etc. to fill its produce section in particular, but also other departments, such as Meat. How much of this stems from business decisions on the part of Whole Foods (logistics of a large corporation vs. small operation, centralization, profit, etc.) and how much is determined by the nature of farming these days?* In an ideal situation at the height of the growing season, were there still a back-door policy, how much--and in how many regions throughout the United States--is available from the types of farms that Michael Pollan admires the most? Just how many farms are there, where are they, and how many consumers are they able to accommodate? * * * I agree with Russ Parsons about the fact that farmers's markets offer something to farmers that Whole Foods would not: a higher profit. I happen to enjoy personal interactions with the farmers, too, especially when they lead to purchases of items I thought were unavailable in the city where I live. What I find sad is the fact that they are, as one eGullet member has put it, primarily a place for yuppies. This is a reason so many of us romanticize European and Asian marketplaces. *I am speaking about a matter that Whole Foods had no control over when it was growing. Michael Pollan might say that the growth of large Organic agribusiness is related to the growth of WF and the latter now has some control over farming; there's a symbiotic relationship at least. The United States is my exclusive subject at this point, though I am a little freaked out by the company's move to an international market.

My namesake, a sixteenth-century Florentine, was known not only for his painting, but also his diary. Romantics claim it as evidence for the belief that artists are weirdoes, born with souls different from the practical, straight-laced types found deep within bankers and brokers. For a period of time Pontormo recorded little more than everything he cooked and ate and everything he cooked and ate tended to be the same thing: a fried egg and bacon over greens. Sounds good to me, actually; you'll find there is a salad named after him based on this formula. In his spirit, I could post in the Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner threads. Instead, I started an inventory this past weekend. Such information, like the details of our dreams, may be of interest only to ourselves. However, I thought I might post it here since I began the list before I went shopping for this week's food, replacing staples, but otherwise, purchasing only produce and dairy products, with the intention of clearing out freezer and shelves. PRODUCE: Beet greens, Butterleaf lettuce, Mesclun, Beets, Carrot, Celery, Cucumbers (2), Snap peas (ditto), Summer squash, Radishes, Scallions, Chili peppers, Ginger root, Parsley, Sage, Rosemary, Mint, Oregano, Tarragon. Garlic, Shallots, Vidalia onions, Russet and Yukon potatoes Apples, Orange, Banana, Blueberries, Cantaloupe, Cherries, GA Peaches, Lemons & Lime DAIRY PLUS: Milks (whole & skim), Yogurts (plain NF & 3-4 oz. Fago Total), Mozzarella (2), Parm, Romano (2), Cacio, Fiore di Sardo, Montasio, Pantaleon, Gruyere, Friulian goat cheese (hard). Butter. Eggs (6). MISC: Olives, Capers, Cornichons, Sun-dried tomatoes, Anchovies, Mustard, Ketchup, Relish, Mayo, Chili-bean paste, Vietnamese chili garlic sauce, Bean paste (sweet), Plum sauce, Fig preserves, PB, Blueberry jam, Raspberry preserves, Raw peanuts, Sesame seeds, Poppy seeds, Yeast, Miso, Whole wheat & All-purpose flour, Cornmeal, Tahini, Walnut oil, Shortening, Maple Syrup, Chili-orange oil, Apricot chutney, Pomegranate molasses, Marsala, Beer (1). FREEZER: Bacon, Cured pig jowl, Pancetta, Ground pork ( ¼ #), Ground lamb ( ¾ #), Hot dog, Chicken Marengo (1, no shrimp), Chicken stock, Ligurian artichoke, Lombardian zucca & Sardinian chard ravioli, Asian peanut sauce (for summer rolls 8/05), HD Mayan Chocolate, Chinese green noodles, Pine nuts, Sumac, Chickpea flour, Buckwheat, Whole wheat bread, Pizza dough, Rhubarb cake (1), Corn, Peas, Leek greens, Cheese rinds, Tomato paste in T globs, Pesto cubes, Kaffir Lime Leaves, Reduced cider ( ¼ cup), Cranberries, Bananas (7), Blueberries. LEFTOVERS & NEWLY PREPPED: Lentil salad, Herbed chèvres, ½ cup salsa, Rhubarb-ginger preserves, Pesto. OJ & Strawberry lemonade. ¼ red onion & lemon. Tomato sauce (1 ½ cups), roasted beet, soup. CUPBOARDS: Lentils (Le Puy, Beluga, brown & red), Chickpeas, Pintos, Black beans, Cranberry beans, Flageolet, Split peas, Navy beans, Couscous, Polenta, Bulgur (fine & coarse), Basmati, Medium grain white rice, Italian & brown short grain rice, Pearl barley, Pasta stelle, Fregule, Spaghetti, Penne etc, Rice wrappers, Rice noodles, Angel hair nests, Oatmeal, Granola, Cheerios, etc. Tangerine peel, dried Shitake, dried Porcini, Star Anise, Dried fish flakes (for miso), Various sea vegetables, Chilies, etc. Almonds, Walnuts & Pecans. Herbs, spices, baking items and more of this and that such as crystallized ginger, honey, stale Kosher miniature marshmallows, dates, raisins… Canned tomato puree, tuna packed in oil, salmon, expired crushed pineapple, Hunt's tomato sauce. Oils (olive, canola, corn, sesame, mustard), vinegars, soy sauce, etc., sugars, High Gluten, Tipo 00 & Cake flour, chocolate, Chinese rice wine, Vodka, Rum, Kahluah, Red wine (out of white & vermouth), Coffee, Seltzer (1). * * * The lentil salad and herbed chèvres were prepared from pantry items and leftovers, for tiered salad ringed by mesclun and first, with a questionable roasted beet from last week. I've just cut down this list even more after using up thyme along with a large can of Italian plum tomatoes to make Mario Batali's simple, all-purpose tomato sauce. Half of the sauce went into a (wonderful) soup incorporating very old cannelloni beans (from freezer) that I baked with leek greens, bacon and various aromatics. All but one of the summer squash were cubed, caramelized in olive oil with crushed garlic cloves, and added after a mirepoix along with stock, garlic, parsley, Parmesan rind & diced, crisp pancetta, with fava beans and snap peas to be added upon serving. The pesto in the fridge is now a pistou. I plan to make rosemary focaccia or cornbread to accompany what remains. Also depleted supply of April's ragu. And to be honest, the chèvres and half a cucumber are history as of last night. Any suggestions for things I could make exclusively—or primarily—with items on hand are welcome. The weekend's coming up, so more groceries will be added, including white wine. I still plan on continuing the pantry project, especially when it comes to fresh herbs and those jars of dried beans. I have ideas, but am open to trying alternatives that might not occur to me. Extra emoticons for anything that would contribute to Cook-Offs or other current threads

Indeed. See introduction and subsequent posts about green walnuts, herbs, et al. As for Shakespeare, do recall how the Queen of the Fairies fell in love with Bottom, at that point, a donkey-headed fool. 'Twas through drinking an herb-rich brew. It's interesting that due to the nature of early Midsummer's celebrations, John the Baptist became a saint associated with lovers in some countries despite his own role in infuriating Salome's mother by condemning her relationship to the man who had him beheaded. However, I don't remember if those associations are grafted onto his cult in Italy...or if those in love are supposed to ingest anything in particular to bind themselves to one another on the 24th.

They are very common in Whole Foods. In the major downtown office district of Washington, D.C., you'll find them in establishments designed to handle lunch crowds. Not in New Jersey?

Bavila: For some reason, I seem to recall that you expressed hesitancy about cooking beets and especially their greens before. We all nudged with advice, but you said you already threw out the greens. You bought again. The following is offered to encourage you to fish in this pond: The internal search engine for eG does not handle short words (4 characters or less). However, I do find that searching this forum usually provides as many ideas as I'll find elsewhere with the exception perhaps of epicurious.com. To overcome the taste for polysyllabic words here, just go to the Advanced Search page for google and specify egullet.org as the domain you prefer. TA DAAA... ..AAH!!! Report back, please. Since I have some in the fridge, too, I'll pipe up once you do. FYI When I google things in eGullet, I find the format switches from Standard to Outline (see blue line above first post). If that happens, just click "Standard."

Une crepe by any other name... For me, a galette is a free-form pie made with a thick pastry dough, rolled out roughly, filled with things savory or sweet and then folded over at the edges so filling is enveloped securely, but still, mostly visible. In Italy, too, certain culinary terms have different meanings depending on one's location. Seems that in terms of the galettes de Sarrasin, specificity is key to distinguish flours and courses.

Especially if the batter sits or the beer is flattened, I don't think there would be too many tiny little bubbles. I like the effect of the ones in your batter as documented in your post here. I was curious about the science involved, myself, and online sources seem merely to repeat what bloggers have been told in the past: carbonated water "lightens" batter, whether for tempura, stuffed zucchini blossoms, or various types of pancakes/crepes.

I agree with hathor. Do a search here in egullet and then on google and epicurioius. You will find riches. I can tell you before you search that you'll find an interesting dish down in the Hearland's Harvest Gathering (thread name?) started by tammylc. See link to first gathering and look for pictures and write-up. The results might be in recipegullet. In response to the question I've cited here, blossoms are harvested while still closed since they can be stuffed and/or are easy to handle even when simply fried in a light golden batter and eaten as soon as the excess grease has been drained. (My favorite, too.) However, there are lots of preparations in which blossoms are cut up, in which case open flowers would be fine, too. These tend to be dishes such as risotto or crepes in which slivers are added to the batter.

Actually, Susan, I was planning on asking about this since I could swear I found a recipe in one of my cookbooks...though when I doubled back, I only came across one for apple fritters which must be based on the same principles. Beer has already been mentioned in this thread; Alice Waters calls for flattened beer in her buckwheat crepes. I should acknowledge the beauty of your crepes, too.

In the spirit of Hathor's new contribution to the Ligurian thread, I can tell you what not to do with freugla, although it is edible enough. I had one last serving of Roman Easter ragu in the back of the freezer. Since fregula is both boiled like pasta and cooked with other ingredients in brothy preparation, I had an unfortunate "Aha!" moment. I soaked additional porcini in the last of a bottle of Bordeaux (cf. thread on cooking from your pantry, so to speak), and when softened, added them, the strained porcini-wine and some chicken stock. Then I dumped in the fregula. Don't try this at home. The liquids combined were not still more of an overly concentrated mushroom sauce than a broth, so it took too long for the packaged fregule to soften. By that point, it was a bit like making a risotto with breakfast cereal. I ate it. The salad was wonderful and there were cherries for dessert.

Vivid report, Hathor. Planning on posting link in the Crepes Cook-Off? Sounds like we need a new "Look What I Got at the Market" thread here in the Italian forum.

Abra has a beautiful photograph of a classic Salade Lyonnaise somewhere on eGullet that is a great source of inspiration. I love croutons (see Lori's perfect ones above) that have been rubbed with cut slices of raw garlic. And yes, lots of potent wine vinegar. Around here, the problem is finding good frisee at this time of year. It's tender and perfect early in the spring, but tends to toughen in the heat.

How soon can they make it? I've been fed up to here with children nibbling on the corner of my house, so I locked one up in a cage to fatten up. This was three weeks ago, but when I asked him to thrust out a finger, it was bonier than ever. I am not sure if I'm feeding him right and if I keep him locked up any longer, Whole Foods is threatening to stop buying my gingerbread. Meanwhile, the girl's standing in front of the oven. I wonder....

In Marlena de Blasi's book on Southern Italy, she includes the following: Sospirus, or Lemon Sighs Meringues made with almonds and sugar cubes (Ling: what's the virtue of chopping up sugar cubes instead of using regular sugar?) saturated with grappa Golden Raisin Bread of Sant'Elena in Quartu Made with honey, moscato and almonds, but served customarily with pheasant should you care to respond to the challenge Sebadas Olienese This sounds most promising--it's a baked version of the deep-fried pastry that caught your eye Aranciata Nuorese More of a candy; ingredients: 24 oranges , dark honey and almonds for 2 lbs. There might be some more options on links at the beginning of this thread. I would be happy to email one before Thursday if you don't have access to the book. Nathan A belated note of appreciation. I've also not been all interested in clams these days, not just due to heat spell, and I didn't want to cook my fregule in a tomato sauce. You've given me an idea. Photo looks great, too! Welcome back. Now all we're missing is April who surely has basil in her garden should she care to return us to Liguria. I still haven't baked focaccia this year. Hathor I am glad you have settled back in your beloved Umbria once more! The pasta is exquisite. Each looks like a stegosauros out in the field just before it rains.... (Not in the restrained, elegant plating, of course.)

There's also this: Rustico with further options , though not before September.

Of course you're right. What was interesting about Balducci's is that I ended up speaking with a Marketing specialist. I sent her the info from NYC's Salum. Bell. by email and she thanked me, saying Balducci's is unable to order the product. I was told the company doesn't feature Italian products in particular despite its name. This is what I bought at Eastern Market, except their source is located in Pennsylvania. Thanks for reminding me of my original inquiry and your early response. I suspect I might prefer the product from VA.

I've completely covered a storage jar with produce labels, from bottom bottom to lid, no two alike.

Ah! but that's my whole point. Eating vegetables as VEGETABLES then I want them al-dente, but overcooked vegetables in stock - when pureed - are SOUP, which is not meant to be al-dente. ← I think Ling was just expressing a difference in taste which I completely understand, especially in the context of her amusing anecdote. I've got a few relatives whose over-cooking of vegetables Nigel Slater would have fit nicely into an unpleasant little chapter were they part of his childhood. I don't like mushy peas or limp Army green asparagus. I'm all for perfectly stir-fried vegetables that remain somewhat crisp or resist each bite. I mostly prefer vegetables somewhere beyond Al Dente otherwise, unless raw, though there are plenty of exceptions. I have grown to appreciate certain dishes in which vegetables are over-cooked, something I would have turned up my nose over long ago were it not for Southern messes of greens or how wonderful fagiolini are at Cinghiale Bianco where they stew forever to become more fully themselves. But let's face it, virtually all of the flavor is extracted from the chicken, celery, onion and carrots after they've simmered for four hours. I personally would not recycle them in soup since I figure they have become one with soup already as they produced stock and the solids remaining are the coil shuffled off. I won't touch the celery. Yet the transparent onion is utterly sweet if faintly so and the carrots are the part I love the way Ling loves her chicken-back "oysters", especially when there's a brown wrinkly end that has been above the broth, coated with a slick, gooey membrane of fat from the top. That's all. Now, as for Chefcrash...well, he must have posted here already, no?

Tough act to follow, but I would like to quote the employee of the French embassy who participated in the round table discussion of the World Cup for the The Washington Post (linked up thread) that included a discussion of appropriate foods for spectators (see page 5 of online story). In response to one question, France replied: That's why the respondent has the job, non? And when asked about appropriate food, again, same diplomat:

Since I have never seen a fig tree, it is startling to see a photograph of the actual leaves versus sculpted ones on ancient statues. Do you mean no figs yet this year or are they hard to grow? (Love them wrapped in prosciutto.) Is there anything in your family's amazing garden that is impossible or difficult to find in stores or markets? I would love a little bit of a field trip if there are interesting markets, funky or impressive stores that permit photography, that is, if you are not selected for a long period of jury duty.

Its not an economic thing for me - I seem to spend a lot of money on food - but I hate throwing out flavour - I would have pureed the mushy veges in all that lovely liquid and used it as soup, or the basis for a soup. ← One of the pleasures of making a vat of chicken stock is dining on the strained contents. Lately, I've been using a long-handled strainer to keep most of the bird and vegetable bits submerged. However, the carrots and layers of onion that rise to the top to become encrusted with fat are the best part, eaten with freshly ground pepper and Fleur de sel during the fishing process. Feeling more civilized? Fill a nice big pasta bowl with choice bits, discarding what cannot be consumed immediately. Salt & pepper. Parsely or grated cheese if you must. Some olives. Good bread. Glass of wine. Wedge of cheese. Chocolate afterwards. Save the rind. Wrap, freeze and add to soups or sauces. * * * Little hardened bits of any cheese hunkered down in the back of the second shelf can be grated over pasta, integrated in gratins, mac & cheese or bread pudding. * * * Spinach boiled instead of sauteed? Pour the liquor into a mug. Sniff. Ick? Pass it to me. Delicious.

Look for posts written by divina and hathor in this regional forum. Click on to their web sites for further information. You'll find links at the bottom of their posts.

Mike: I wondered if you were off on vacation or... Thanks for the thoughtful post. Your speculations regarding Sardegna make a lot of sense, though I do find that there are quite a few examples of "cucina povera" that we have all appreciated. For me, these have centered on vegetables and creative uses of pasta or grains. Plotkin and others talk about isolation between husbands who herd sheep (and roast what they catch at work) and wives who stay back home (baking bread) with their families as a common aspect of the culture. However, we do see great food among fishermen, perhaps because port cities attract merchants and have more diverse populations? I know very little about this place, but certainly Sicily's long attraction to Greeks, Byzantines, Arabs, Normans, etc., etc. helped create a very different island cuisine. While I am not of Italian descent, I have lived in a number of Italian-American communities and have witnessed exactly what you've described. (I think I've posted about it in terms of a midwestern butcher whose family was relatively isolated from others who shared his Italian roots. He was insulted when I asked for a certain Italian cut, saying "I am in America now! I drive a BMW!) As for your honey, I am jealous. I can't even find a good dark substitute; buckwheat honey used to be common. Online sources charge around $18 plus shipping.