Bagna Cauda Season

It is well and truly full on autumn now. If I really admitted it I would say we are well and truly on our way to early winter. Sigh. I love all of the seasons, but I always am reluctant to see summer and autumn leave us as the color of those seasons slip away for another year.
 I took this photo on Sunday November 2, Oggisanti, All Saints day. It was quite stunning and lasted a  long time. One of our friends across the valley from us said he saw a double that day too. Must have been a blessing from all of our loved ones.

Anyway, the wind kicked up good and fierce and blew all the color away. Double sigh. What to do?
Well, one of the perfect antidotes for Piemontese mountain people to chase the blues away, is to make Bagna Cauda. This means hot sauce in local dialect. If it doesn't chase away your blues it will certainly scare away any errant vampires that might still be lurking around, as it has a pretty healthy dose of  garlic, and anchovies too for that matter. I know a lot of people don't like anchovies, and I didn't either growing up, as I never really had it well presented. Once I came to Italy, I have become rather fond of the little darling fishes. I've always been intrigued as to why they are such a big part of mountainous and land locked Piemonte. One story goes that  back in the day when salt was  in high demand and extremely expensive because it was such a precious mineral, it was common to buy salted fish to have a little change ones diet and have some salt as well. When the main diet in the mountains consisted of what you could grow, you ate a lot of dishes with potatoes, cabbage, onions, leeks, eggs and cheese, repeat.  Add salty anchovies and your routine diet is lifted to the next level or two.  It helps too that they will sit in the pantry for quite a while till needed and it was a great way to obtain expensive salt as a more reasonably priced staple.
Anyway, we have been enjoying a round or two of this local specialty with friends and guests lately. It's kind of festive to have a large platter of all sorts of seasonal vegetables, cooked and raw, laid out ready to be dipped or drizzled. It's gone over well, so I though I might as well share the local valley version here.
Enjoy with a friend or two while chasing those harbingers of the blues far, far away. We certainly have been.

Bagna Cauda Val Chisone

Enough for 6

Ingredients

2 T olive oil (27 g)

6 anchovies, salted variety preferred, (12 fillets)

6 garlic cloves medium (crushed)

7 T cream (100 g) (optional )

2 T plain flour (12 g)

½ cup milk (118g)

Method

• Wash the anchovies removing salt and scales.
• In a small to medium saucepan, add olive oil, cleaned anchovies and crushed garlic.
• Cook on low heat until the anchovies have melted and all is combined.
• Add the cream, whisk together.
• In a separate bowl, whisk together milk and flour.
• Whisk in the flour mixture with the anchovy mix, in a steady stream.
• Bring to a boil and gently simmer until the mix begins to thicken, being careful not to boil hard.
• Remove from heat and keep warm until you are ready to serve.

Serve with grilled eggplant/aubergine, peppers, and zucchini.

• Prepare the peppers by roasting in the oven or on the stovetop burner.
• Peel the skin off and cut into serving pieces.
• Peel the eggplant/aubergine and slice into lengths or rounds, medium thickness.
• Slice the unpeeled zucchini into long slices, medium thickness.
• Lightly salt the vegetables drizzle with a bit of olive oil
• Grill on a stovetop pan or an electric or outdoor grill.

To serve

Arrange prepared vegetables on a serving dish and drizzle warm bagna cauda sauce on top.

Cooks Suggestions:

Other vegetables that can be included, boiled sliced potato, steamed cauliflower, baked onions, Cooked beets, raw cabbage, cardoons, fennel, turnips, radicchio, and Jerusalem artichoke.

A little history

Traditionally bagna cauda dipping sauce, is garlic, anchovies, and olive oil only, served in a small ceramic pot heated by a votive candle, accompanied by with a great variety of vegetables. This version is a more luxurious variety, popular in our valley. It was a specialty of Fabrizio’s family’s restaurant, “La Baita” , and was served as an occasional special evening. It was the main and only offering, as was the tradition, for those special “Bagna Cauda” evenings.

Spring fling with Asparagus

Spring has finally not only sprung, but is well underway here in the Alps. It has gotten a cool and very soggy start. I think many of our normal blooms are a bit behind schedule this year not only up here but down in the valley as well. Now that it is here I don't mind so much, but certainly am enjoying the spring green everywhere and all the tiny blossoms and color that springs forth this time of the year. I know everyone enjoys the quickening of our natural world coming back to life after a long winters sleep. 

Our self adopted cat Misha frolicking in our garden

We finally have been able to put our early season window flower boxes out as we wait for our geraniums to wake up and get going. Still a little cool for their taste. They certainly prefer a warmer clime before they give up their blossoms. So we enjoy what is here at the moment, drinking it all in.

Looking up toward Merla peak,  from our balcony

And what is in season now, is what is probably my favorite vegetable, the elegant leggy Asparagus. I adore asparagus in just about every way I have ever had them, I think. And if truth be told, as a kid when Mom served them, even from a can, I still thought I had died and gone to heaven. I still pretty much feel that way whenever I have them even now, but the days of opening a can of asparagus are a very distant memory. It's fresh all the way for me. Even if the season is short, it certainly is sweet. So when I recently found I had some smoked sliced salmon waiting for just the right occasion, it didn't take me long to pair them up with the tender fresh spears I got from the market. The soft smoky flavor of the salmon pairs perfectly wrapped around rosemary infused, oven roasted stalks. I've made them a couple of times lately and I find myself pining for more as I type this blog post out.  So do make sure you try this easiest of treats or even if you find you don't have or want any salmon, oven roasting asparagus is a treat. I think oven roast most vegetables is a wonderful treatment for most vegetables as it concentrates the flavors and adds a natural sweet to their flavor. So do have a go. I added a cheese and prosciutto crudo filled piadina (an Italian tortilla- like flat bread from the Romagna countryside of the Emilia  Romagna region), to fill out this simple lunch. I served the bundles as a side dish for supper the other night and it pretty much upstaged everything else on the plate. I hope you enjoy them as much as we did. Buon appettito!

Oven roasted Asparagus Salmon Bundles

4-5 bundles

Ingredients
500 g or 1 bunch asparagus , ends trimmed (about 20 spears, more or less)1- 2 lengths of fresh rosemary or about 1 T chopped fresh rosemary leaves
Pinch coarse salt
Pinch freshly ground black pepper
2 T olive oil

4 to 6 ounces thinly sliced smoked salmon

Directions
Preheat the oven to 400* F/ 190* C.
Lay the asparagus on a paper lined baking pan. Tuck the sprigs of rosemary under the spearsor sprinkle the chopped rosemary, salt, and pepper over the spears.Drizzle with olive oil.
Lay the asparagus on a paper lined baking pan. Tuck the sprigs of rosemary under the spearsor sprinkle the chopped rosemary, salt, and pepper over the spears.Drizzle with olive oil.
Roast until cooked and starting to brown around the edges, about 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool enough to handle.
Gather about 4- 5 spears together and wrap each bunch in a slice of smoked salmon. Arrange on a serving platter and serve at room or warmish temperature.

Sardines Piemontese Style for Seven Fishes Feast

 This time of year there is always so much going on, but we're all always wondering what to make for those special occaions. Joe over at Italyville is hosting his 2nd annual Seven Fishes Feast event. Joe's family hails from Calabria, down in the southern part of Italy where this traditional Christmas Eve feast originated and he always has some great recipes on his blog. He'll be rounding up a variety of dishes to share with everyone to try for your own holiday feast. Be sure and stop by for the roundup which should be tomorrow the 19th at Italyville.
Up here in land locked Piedmont, the 7 fishes tradition is not really celebrated by native Piemontese, but it isn't to say that fish isn't a focus now or other times of the year, as most all Italians love fish. The Piemontese particularly love their anchovies, which find their way into their traditional bagna cauda and just about any other  winter vegetable you might imagine. Last year I shared a simple traditional anchovy antipasto, whose recipe you'll find here. This year it's another antipasto, but featuring fresh sardines.  If your only experience with sardines is thones in the can, I do reccomend trying them fresh. I can still remember the first tie I had them grilled at a tiny cafe at the end of the Algarve in Portugal and they were such a revelation. This simple dish has a few variations but I like the simplicity and mildness of this one. This recipe does need to sit a couple of days to absorb the flavors. There's still time to get these made before you plan to serve them. These lightly pickled fish will get the juices flowing for the rest  of the feast that is to come without overpowering or sitting too heavy.

Sardines Piemontese Style
 Serves 6

1/2# (250g) fresh sardines, cleaned and gutted
flour to dredge the fish in
Olive oil to pan fry

1 cup white wine
1/2 c white wine vinegar
1/4- 1/2 red onion sliced
S&P

After you have your cleaned sardines, make sure to pat dry if you havejust washed them.
Dredge the fish in some white plain flour and set aside. I shook them up in a bag with flour last time and found that to be too much flour, so go easy on the flour. A quick pass throught the plate with the four on both sides of the fish is plenty.  Sprinkle a bit of salt over all the fish.
 Heat your skillet up and add a small to medium amount of oil. You don't want them to stick nor to you want them supper oily.
Once hot, add your fish and allow to lightly brown on both sides.
emove from pan and allow to cool to room temerature.

In a small sauce pan combine the wine, vinegar and onion.
Bring to a boil and gently simmer for a few minutes till the onion is sft, but still has some body to it.
Remove from hear. Add a  genrous pinch of salt and pepper. Let col to room temperture before pouring over your single layer of fish tht is at room temperature as well.  I like to use a shallow tupperware type container
Cover in an airtight container and refrigerate 2 days. You might want to scoop up the liquid from one corner of the pan and drizzle it over the fish once or twice while they are rsting in the refridgerator
Serve 2-3 per person at room temperature, with or with out garnish.
At home it is usually served, as is.

Spicy cheese filled Zucchini flowers

 

One of Italians favorite ingredients that they love to use here that often surprises our guests, are zucchini flowers. They can be quite bountiful at times when there are many on the vine that will never tun into a zucchini such as these in the photo above and then there are ll of the ones attached to the end of the zucchini when you either pick them from you own  prolific plants or purchase them fresh from your market vendor. Either way, they are delicately flavored, lovely to behold and delicious stuffed and deep fat fried, but then, is just abut everything. That is the typical way they are done and served in most of Italy, but they do find their way into soups, risottos, ravioli and pasta dishes as well.

I did a slightly lighter version of them the other night that had my friends making me believe that they had died and gone to heaven. They savored every morsel. They are so easy to prepare this way, that you might just want to wander out to your garden and see if you have a few to fill with your favorite filling and bake in the oven till warmed though and you have an easy delectable starter that will have you running back out to the garden to find if your zucchini plant has given up a few more flowers while you were busy making and baking the first ones. If not just be patient and I'm sure you'll have a few more shortly. You'll just have to be patient and think about what else you can fill them with. I used a mixture of small bits and tail ends of a variety of cheeses along with some spicy Calabrian salami. You could use some flavorful beans for grains as well. Just make sure to either wrap the flowers in something that will keep them from drying out while they are baking, or lightly brush a bit of oil in them before popping them into the oven.

Fiori di zucchini ripieno 
4 servings

8 large zucchini flowers or more if they are smaller
3-4 slices of Proscuitto crudo, sliced lengthwise to make 2-3 generous strips per slice

200-250 g assorted cheeses, I used fresh
Ricotta,
Seirass, (which is a stronger flavored and firmer ricotta type cheese
Parmesan (Grana Oadan actually)and
Cevrin, which is a strong goat cheese.
The idea is to have a flavorful filling, but not necessarily a stringy type cheese filling, but anything will work really.
50- 100g spicy salami diced
1 egg optional if your mixture holds together well on it's own, like mine did
few grates of fresh nutmeg
2 Tb chives


Mix everything together in a bowl and set aside.
Wash your flowers lightly in a bowl of water to remove dust etc
Working gently remove the large pistil inside. If your flowers are small you might open one sideto ease the filling process.
Fill the flowers generously keeping the slit together as best you can and leave enough room at them end that you can fold the points of the flower over the ends to keep the filling in.
Wrap the ham around the flower in a spiral tucking in your ends if you canso it all holds togther.
Bake in a moderate to hot oven till warmed through and juicy.
Serve immediately.
They are quite rich and usually 2 will make a substantial starter.

Red Lentil Crostini / Crostini di Lenticchia Rossa

I am one of those people with great intentions that sometimes comes though on those good intentions. When I saw that that is was the 2nd birthday of the "The Heart of the Matter, Eating for Life" created by Ilva of "Lucullian Delights" and Joanna of 'Joanna's Foods', and later joined by Michelle of "the Acidental Scientist", I knew I wanted to join the party. If you aren't familiar with their sites do go over and check them out. You'll find a wealth of recipes from all the round ups on cooking for a healthy heart and we all know how important that is. There are loads of creative dishes and I dare say you will discover some interesting blogs to boot. Who says eating healthy has to be boring?

One of our guests recently asked for something with pulses for our "Cooking Together" session and it didn't take me long to settle on a recipe for red lentils that I had on hand. Italians are found of the green variety and are eaten liberally during the Christmas and New Years holidays for health and good luck. Red lentils are small and cook up quickly making them a satisfying starter to your meal.

The theme for this HotM is finger food and so this recipe which comes together quickly,and lends itself to many variations or additions, is a simple pate topping with lots of flavor for a crispy crostini. The flavor is very reminiscent of hummus, but no sesame involved what so ever. We topped our crostini with some of our thin dried apple slices, for a fancy yet easy finishing touch. My photography doesn't really do them justice although they are a tasty eye appealing antipasti.
Red Lentil Crostini
Crostini di Lenticchia Rossa

200 g or (1 cup) lentils or red lentils
1-1/2 cup water or vegetable stock
½ carrot diced
1 shallot diced
½ celery stalk diced
1 bay leaf
Salt and pepper
6 sprigs of Thyme or 1Tb. Dried thyme
3 Tb. Olive oil and a bit more for drizzling
Fresh thyme or parsley for garnishing

Place in a heavy bottomed saucepan and bring to a boil,
Add a tsp or less of salt.
Lower hear and simmer until soft enough to puree, about 20 minutes or so.
Smash with a potato smasher, kitchen wand or food processor .
Stir until you have a smooth but somewhat lumpy texture.
Add 1- 2 Tb of olive oil
Stir well.
Adjust seasonings if necessary
Cut crusts off the bread, to make toast points from soft bread disks, slices or triangles
Drizzle with a small amount of oil and bake till crispy.

Serve the pate with toast points, bread, crackers and raw veggies
Spread or mound with a scoop the lentil pate on the toasted bread.
Garnish with finely chopped parsley or a sprig of fresh thyme
Sprinkle with paprika or hot pepper if you like a bit of spice.
Arrange on a plate
Drizzle with olive oil.
Wedge a thinly sliced dried apple and fresh thyme sprig on top,
if you have some, for a finishing touch.