The Cooking and Cuisine of Lazio

[Kevin72]

Er, no. Frozen peas. I stand behind them after too many times shelling out the $$$ for fresh, spending an hour shelling them, and then winding up with pasty starch balls.

[hathor]

Great looking meal Kevin!

What kind of fronds were they on the fennel? It look beautiful.

So who started peas and mint, the English or the Italians?

I haven't seen any decent artichokes around in the market.

I'm very sad.....

[hathor]

Take a look at Michael M's recent trip to Rome!

We have an imbedded reporter!

[tupac17616]

Finally found some guanciale! I didn't think it would be that difficult to track down in NYC, but if I had a dime for every person behind a meat counter that looked at me like an idiot when I asked for guanciale, I'd be a rich, rich man.

Anyhoo, I finally have my beloved pork cheek, and the first of several meals using it had to be some good ol' Spaghetti alla Carbonara:

[NYC Mike]

Finally found some guanciale!  I didn't think it would be that difficult to track down in NYC, but if I had a dime for every person behind a meat counter that looked at me like an idiot when I asked for guanciale, I'd be a rich, rich man.

Anyhoo, I finally have my beloved pork cheek, and the first of several meals using it had to be some good ol' Spaghetti alla Carbonara:

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Nice looking dish!! Where in NYC did you finally find the guanciale?

-Mike

[Pontormo]

So who started peas and mint, the English or the Italians?

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Perhaps this is a chicken or the egg question.

And tup...16: Great carbonara!

Here's Josh Friedland's fun article on home-curing guanciale. Just not sure I'd call it inspirational....

[tupac17616]

Nice looking dish!! Where in NYC did you finally find the guanciale?

-Mike

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Thanks Mike. I found the guanciale at Dean and Deluca in SoHo. They have always had a sign up for it at both Fairway locations, but every time I asked for it they either told me they didn't have it ("Then take down the sign...you're just teasing us!" I always thought to myself ), or they would try to tell me that the lardo they had is "basically the same thing" . Also looked many times with no luck at Citarella, Zabar's, Garden of Eden, etc. Odd thing is that I had also looked for it several times at Dean and Deluca before to no avail, but when I asked the guy behind the counter this time why it was so tough to find, he told me that they always carry it. So who knows. Anyway, I was definitely glad to finally find a source for it.

[FoodMan]

I got a complaint that it wasn't really cohesive as a dish, it was like the lamb & artichoke were both in the pie, but didn't have much to do with one another. 

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At a POTLUCK?! Grrr. Don't get me started on potlucks . . .

I'm guessing that the yoghurt was a substitute for some italian ingredient that's hard to find here?  it worked very well, but I'm curious what my theoretical original ingredient would have been.

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This is from an ep where he did dishes more in the style of "older" Rome, and in fact yogurt is what he used when he did it. He may have spoken to why it was used, but then again, anything goes in Rome!

Since I had the Food Network website up anyway I poked around a bit & found Mario's  Baked Cardoons alla Romana  which are just simmered till soft & then gratined under a besciamella sauce.  They tasted OK but they were really stringy cardoons, so it didn't work as well as it might. 

How DOES one judge cardoons?

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I think I'm about done with cardoons. I think part of it is that you have to get them younger, not the big monsters we get here, and more fresh out of the soil so they're not so old. But beyond that, I'm just not a fan. They have this faint metallic flavor to them I don't like.

But, you do have to cook them alot longer than most recipes say to avoid the stinginess factor: I poach them 30-40 minutes usually. Hell, maybe that's why they don't taste good then.

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I guess I am one of the few who enjoyed cardoons. See my comments in the Piedmont thread about my problems and successes. The stringiness is due to improper peeling. You really have to remove all those ribs on the outside of the cardoon. Recipes never seem to emphasize it enough. So, once I watched Mario do it on Molto Mario and noticed how much of the "skin/rib" he removes. After that I tried it and it worked fine. I am not sure what you folks mean by metallic taste. To me they do taste a lot like artichokes.

BTW, those fried quartered battered artichokes on the previous page look awsome! Are they blanched first, or just battered and fried?

I made a Roman meal this past Sunday but forgot to upload the pics. I will post about it when I do. Hopefully tonight.

[Chufi]

Made gnocchi alla Romana yesterday. I was surprised how easy they were. and very tasty smothered in all that butter and Parmesan!

I had no clue how large or how thin they should be. Is this about right?

[Kevin72]

I had no clue how large or how thin they should be. Is this about right?

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Looks about right to me, and better than my usual results.

Congrats on the guanciale, Tupac! Great looking carbonara; it's interesting how this seems to be a recurring fave this month. Are you going make amatriciani next?

Edited April 11, 2006 by Kevin72 (log)

[NYC Mike]

They have always had a sign up for it at both Fairway locations, but every time I asked for it they either told me they didn't have it ("Then take down the sign...you're just teasing us!" I always thought to myself  ), or they would try to tell me that the lardo they had is "basically the same thing"  . Also looked many times with no luck at Citarella

I have had that exact experience as well here in the city. The Fairway locations are generally good fair priced resources for most things considered away from the beaten track. I will try D&D for it as I would like to make the dish again as it was intended!

Wow Chufi that looks amazing.

-Mike

[Pontormo]

Well, after all this time simply posting information, mostly about links and responding to beautiful things you have made, I finally got around to cooking Roman food myself.

All the pictures of artichokes and saltimbocca got to me. I really had wanted to find a good modest-sized piece of lamb to substitute for suckling lamb, a Roman specialty that online sources say is rarely available in either the States or the UK since it is not profitable to slaughter a tiny little thing not yet weaned when more meat can be produced after it's lived a more substantial life. Memories of the amazingly tender, subtle Icelandic lamb that appeared for the first time last fall also turned my attention to baby cows instead.

Intrigued by the non-traditional folded packages Batali and you all produced, that's what I did instead of the customary rolls. I grew up in an Italian-American neighborhood where these were made with Marsala and slivers of Fontina. I did prefer the simple savory version with sage leaves, white wine and no cheese. I made one extra to tuck into a panino tomorrow.

The lamb would have better for the contorno, but I also enjoyed a dish of baby artichokes fricasseed in an eggy lemon sauce with fresh chopped mint and parsley.

After, I had a wedge of Cacio di Roma with fruit. Exploring new cheeses has been fun.

Finally, Chufi, let me add that I had intended to try my hand at semolina gnocchi, too. Your gratin looks wonderful.

[FoodMan]

Here is my Roman meal from Sunday:

Primo: An interesting pasta shape I picked up at the store called Radiatori with lots of grooves. I served it tossed with the lamb cooking juices, parsley, chile and lots of Parmesan cheese

Secondi: Abbacchio al Latte from Mario's Molto Italiano. Truth be told I was planning on making the recipe right after it in the book Abbacchio alla Romana but MArio's poetic description for the succulent lamb cooked in milk won me over and made me change my plans. He says in part,

"this is what the Roman empire must've tasted like - supreme!" and it sure was. Not very pretty as is true of most Italian braises, but flavorful, rich and satisfying

Contorno: Carciofi alla Romana also from Molto Italiano. I could not wait to try the Roman style artichokes and these were the "indisputed" star of the meal braised with lemon slices, garlic, mint, chilies, white wine and olive oil. My wife does not care much for them so I ate all 4 artichokes myself. Too bad they do not come very cheap here in Houston.

here is the lamb and artichokes with some fresh country bread to mop up the lovely sauce

Dolci: Budino Di Ricotta from...well I guess all the meal is from Molto Italiano. I made this with homemade ricotta. It is simple easy and delicious. Served it with homemade plum syrup.

I was planning on some fried polenta-anchovie "sandwiches" for antipasto, but timing did not work.

[kanljung]

Secondi: Abbacchio al Latte from Mario's Molto Italiano. Truth be told I was planning on making the recipe right after it in the book Abbacchio alla Romana but MArio's poetic description for the succulent lamb cooked in milk won me over and made me change my plans. He says in part,

"this is what the Roman empire must've tasted like - supreme!" and it sure was. Not very pretty as is true of most Italian braises, but flavorful, rich and satisfying

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Not pretty? I think it looks excellent, as does your whole menu. We traditionally have lamb at least once during easter and this year it will of course have a Rome/Lazio theme. I am currently trying to decide on either of the above ones from Molto Italiano and I leaned towards the Abbachio all Romano until I saw this.

Did you find any suckling lamb and did you use the leg or the shoulder? I guess I will have a hard time to find suckling lamb myself, so I will have to settle for ordinary lamb.

I did a Pollo alla romano the other day, no pictures this time. I used a recipe from Mario Batali, this time taken from the Food Network site. Although it was a quite good, nurturing dish it wasn't that spectacular. It might have had something to do with the heavy cold I had at the time but it wasn't as good as other chicken/bell pepper combos I've made in the past.

Edited April 12, 2006 by kanljung (log)

[Kevin72]

Great meals, everyone!

I keep running across people who don't like artichokes and it boggles my mind.

Foodman, has your Central Market stopped carrying baby artichokes? Ours' only has regular globe chokes and they're looking pretty pitiful.

[Kevin72]

Continuing the Batali theme, Monday night I made one of my favorite springtime dishes, a modification/combo of two Mario recipes: spaghetti with artichokes and caramelized fennel.

These chokes came from Whole Foods. They also had monstrous globes, albeit for $3 each.

The pasta is sweet from the fennel and artichokes, fiery from the chilies, and creamy and succulent from the oil and pecorino. And then the mint over the top of course. An all-timer in my book.

[Chufi]

I keep running across people who don't like artichokes and it boggles my mind. 

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I love eating them, but I have to confess I find cleaning them a real bore. So I don't eat them as often as I'd like!

I had big cooking plans for this month. I was going to cook a big Roman dinner together with a friend of mine who is a) a really good cook, and b) knows Italy very well especially Rome, since he spends a couple of months a year there.

Now it turns out he is spending most of April in.. Rome, which is fine for him (Easter in Rome!) but does get in the way of our cooking plans. So, if we do get round to cooking the big dinner, it will probably be May byt he time we do it. Ah well. I will try to do something on my own though. I might even tackle some artichokes. They were down to 90 eurocents a piece at the market today.. so no excuses..

[Kevin72]

Feel free to post the meal here when you do cook it Klary.

Do you get the baby artichokes there? Those are much easier to do. I actually like most of the ritual of prepping artichokes, except for the scooping out the choke part.

[Chufi]

Feel free to post the meal here when you do cook it Klary. 

Do you get the baby artichokes there?  Those are much easier to do.  I actually like most of the ritual of prepping artichokes, except for the scooping out the choke part.

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I've never seen the baby ones.

I don't know what it is.. I like a lot of kitchen chores that take lots of time.. like shelling peas or making ravioli or whatever.. there's just something about tackling those bulbs with a knife and then all the debris you're left with.. makes me wish I had a little kitchen helper to do it for me

Ah well I'll stop whining about it now! Your pasta dish with the artichokes and fennel looked really good...

Edited April 12, 2006 by Chufi (log)

[mrbigjas]

I was planning on some fried polenta-anchovie "sandwiches" for antipasto, but timing did not work.

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can you tell me a little more about these? i have some leftover polenta at home* and they sound damn good...

*ok it's cheese grits, but i screwed it up by putting in way too little cheese, so you can't even taste it, and also i used some fancy italian white polenta by accident instead of grits--i had a confusing evening last night

[Brad Ballinger]

Apologies for being late to the thread. I've been away. But better late than never, I suppose.

Lazio doesn't have any DOCG wines, but it has plenty to offer other than Frascati. Yet, the region is probably mostly known for whites rather than reds, and the malvasia grape rules there more than any other.

Let's start with the "flagship" wine, Frascati. The Consorzio Tutela Denominazione Frascati oversees the quality of wine in the Frascati DOC. It is made from primarily malvasia and trebbiano. It can be dry and still, sweet and still, dry and sparkling, sweet and sparkling. Most exported ones are dry and still. The proximity of the vineyards to Rome no doubt contributed to the wine's popularity and pervasive presence in the city. Most tourist can't avoid drinking Frascati in Rome. When they return to their own country, they rush to buy a bottle, but are usually disappointed that it just isn't the same, which speaks volumes for atmosphere as a factor of wine appreciation. A classic pairing is carbonara.

If you want to try a Frascati "on steroids," than consider a Marino DOC wine. Usually more malvasia in the blend, and the wines tend to be a bit more bold and can stand up to richer cuisine.

If you want to immerse yourself in the papal summer residence in Castelgandolfo, you'll likely be drining Colli Albani DOC wines. Again, mostly malvasia and trebbiano. And perhaps more stuffing than most Frascati.

Also, a discussion on white wines of the region would be incomplete without mentioning Orvieto. The wine is produced in Umbria and Lazio, although probably more well known in the former region since that's where the town by the same name is located. But some of the vineyards are in Lazio, so it can be one of the wines from that region. The wines are well-regarded, and legend has it that Pope Gregory XVI ordered that his body be washed in Orvieto before entombment.

As mentioned, there are a few reds produced in the region. Although most are made from sangiovese, montepluciano, and some merlot, there is a grape more native to Lazio called Cesanese, which can produce aromatic and spicy reds. There are both dry and sweet wines produced from cesanese. To experience this native grape and truly take yourself Lazio, look for wines from the Cesanese del Piglio, Cesanese di Affile, or Cesanese di Olevano Romano DOCs.

I suppose I should also mention that one of the higher scored wines from the region (if scores are important to you) is Falesco's Montiano, a Lazio IGT wine made from Merlot. It sells for around $50 (U.S.) and Robert Parker loves it. To me, it drinks like a good $20 California Merlot.

[FoodMan]

Christofer-

I used regular lamb shoulder. I am not sure how to get real suckling lamb. Though the dish was very good, I had trouble removing lots of fat and gristle from the shoulder pieces. I am assuming that would not be a problem with suckling lamb. Also the pieces cooked for a good 30 minutes longer than the recipe specifies, probably becasue it is older lamb. In the future I will use leg of lamb instead UNLESS I can get real suckling lamb. Of course with the leg you have to cook it for a shorter period of time but I have no doubt it will be spectacular. Maybe even cook it in larger chunks and slice it before serving for a better presentation.

Kevin-

I have not been to CM in a few weeks. I bought these globe artichokes from HEB for 1.99 a piece.

Mrbigjas-

I do not have the book in front of me (again the Molto Italiano book), but they are basically cooked polenta rounds (cooked like you are going to grill it and cut with a round cookie cutter), with a piece of anchovie sandwiched between two pieces. The whole thing is lightly breaded and fried. I think that is all, and they do sound and look good in the book. Mario said he had them at a small fry shop in Rome and could not get enough of them....

[Pontormo]

...legend has it that Pope Gregory XVI ordered that his body be washed in Orvieto before entombment.

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Heavens! Sounds rather sticky.

Thank you for the report. Some of us have been cooking from a book that recommends using Frascati or Marino in cooking, substituting the dryer white wine for the traditional Marsala.

Everyone's meals look delicious and the raw purple globe artichokes are beautiful.

Klary, the baby artichokes are very common in Italy and they have been available in the States for at least a decade, I believe. That's what I used last night. Trimming's a breeze and as Kevin mentioned, there's no choke. Thus, I just split them in half--since they were not as tiny as they can be--and the entire thing became tender when cooked. The smallest ones are great in risotto.

Edited April 12, 2006 by Pontormo (log)

[Chufi]

I am not sure how to get real suckling lamb.

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My butcher had piles of suckling lamb when I was there last week.

Isn't it weird how things that are readily available in one place, are very hard to get somewhere else? (Considering none of us are in Lazio )

Edited April 12, 2006 by Chufi (log)

[mrbigjas]

I do not have the book in front of me (again the Molto Italiano book), but they are basically cooked polenta rounds (cooked like you are going to grill it and cut with a round cookie cutter), with a piece of anchovie sandwiched between two pieces. The whole thing is lightly breaded and fried. I think that is all, and they do sound and look good in the book. Mario said he had them at a small fry shop in Rome and could not get enough of them....

excellent. i just may do something like that tonight.