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As a nation, Italy is quite young. Its existence dates only from 1861, but its food dates back to antiquity with each of the 15 regions of Italy have a distinct culture and cuisine with signature dishes that show off the differing regional styles of cooking. Since everyone loves Italian food, we thought it would be fun for this month's "what's for dinner?" menus to explore the cuisine of four popular regions, and we'd devise healthy menus and recipes that would be reminiscent of the food one would have at a family farm, cozy trattoria, or fine restaurant of the region.
Tuscany-Florence
This central region possess what most people think of when they think of Italy -- immense Renaissance cities with museums and cathedrals filled with important art and a simple cuisine based on the world's best olive oil (often sold in designer bottles), the many famous beans of Tuscany, superb wines, and breads made without salt. During the year there are probably more American students attending schools in Florence than any other city in Europe. Our daughter was one of the many during her junior year aboard, and we chose this place of beauty and learning for many reasons, not the least of which was our desire to visit both Florence and the hill towns of the region.
Tuscany's best main courses are grilled or roasted farm animals and game as well as fresh vegetables and fruit, local cheese, bread, herbs, beans, and local wines. This is the land of pears, pecorino, and a number of dishes based on bread: pappa al pomodoro (bread, tomato, and olive oil soup), panzanella (bread and vegetable salad), and crostini (toasted bread spread with different flavor-rich toppings). It is also the cuisine of white beans, pork, wild mushrooms, beef, and chestnuts. The fresh fruit and cheese are hallmarks of the region. How can you miss with this most Tuscan meals -- a succulent pan-roasted pork tenderloin with garlic and rosemary, served with a creamy risotto with artichokes and fresh fennel (often referred to as Florence fennel). For dessert we've filled a perfect pear half with Italian ricotta cheese scented with orange. Delicioso!
(for the recipes, click on The Recipes or click on the individual recipe above)
Venice
My best memory of food and Venice is Harry's Bar where one dines as the Venetians do. We had been joined by our son and some friends who were traveling Europe for the summer, and we took him to lunch. Little did we know that he had saved himself for this meal for a few weeks, and so he had the fixed price many course lunch complete with squid in its ink to dessert. We sat in awe of his appetite and the freshness of the food as it came course after course. This is a city of tourists so eating does not have to be grand, but it can be wonderful if you eat with the locals.
Residing in the heart of 200 square miles of partially navigable salt marsh, Venice is made of up 118 islands, intersected by more than 150 canals and joined by 400 bridges. From dawn to well past dusk, gondolas piled high with crates of freshly-caught octopus, white-ribbed radicchio di Treviso, chartreuse-colored carciofi (artichokes), porcini mushrooms, slender purply-green asparagus, white peaches, dark purple Fragolino grapes, and gamberi (shrimp) silently glide up and down the canals, delivering the daily needs of the city's unassuming restaurants and wine bars.
For our Venetian meal we have included a fresh seafood stew similar to one that we enjoyed in Harry's Bar and for dessert, a Americanized version of the ever present gelato (the Italian word for ice cream), ours made with pistachios, that ubiquitous green nut of the region. While in Venice do visit the market Rialto to get a flavor of the region. This is an area that boasts pasta, beans, and risotto as well as Tiramisu, fresh fruit, and gelato for dessert. There are culinary influences from Persia, Turkey, and the Adriatic, so enjoy our Venetian repast.
(for the recipes, click on The Recipes or click on the individual recipe above)
Liguria
Our third culinary region is the thin craggy coastline that hugs the Mediterranean Sea from France to Tuscany where vegetables, herbs, and flowers flourish in microclimates. One would surmise that since the area is made of a string of small fishing villages that the locals love seafood. Not so! Although excellent fish is available for the tourists, the natives prefer fresh vegetables and herbs -- indeed Ligurian culinary history boasts of stuffed vegetables, vegetable frittatas, vegetable fritters, and rattatuia (ratatouille). This is the land where pesto, that scrumptious green sauce of basil, cheese, pine nuts, and olive oil, was born; and the Ligurians use it for topping everything from bruschetta to pasta to minestrone.
For our Ligurian meal, we'll serve a very traditional fricasseed rabbit scented with rosemary, sage, and thyme with orzo (tiny rice-shaped Italian pasta). If you can't get, or don't like rabbit, you can always use chicken -- actually they cook and taste much the same. A Fennel and Arugula Salad, a peppery green salad follows to clear the palate after the hearty stew. Dessert is not a traditional part of an Italian meal; they eat their sweets in between meals and only make elaborate desserts for company. So we finishing this filling meal with a beautiful crystal bowl filled with iced fresh peaches (perfect ripe peaches sitting in a beautiful bowl of ice and water). We learned this presentation at an elegant restaurant in Santa Margarita, Liguria, and often use it after a hearty meal. Thanks to the wonders of air freight, we are getting wonderful peaches this winter from sunny Chile.
(for the recipes, click on The Recipes or click on the individual recipe above)
Rome
Our last meal comes from the Eternal City of Rome. When you visit Rome, you can literally walk through the ages of time from ancient ruins, through a medieval portal into the shadow of a grand palace from the Renaissance, ending up at a Baroque fountain in the space of 10 minutes. Piazza Navona is where you'll find some of the best gelato in Italy. A short walk from the basilica is Villa Celimontana, one of Rome's prettiest parks and perfect for a luncheon picnic. The Roman lunch hour is from 1 to 3 p.m. and the park will be virtually empty. If you are doing a picnic, there is a small outdoor market around the corner from the basilica on Via dei SS Quattro. This is a shop for locals that carries luscious fruits, berries, and fresh vegetables. There's a salumeria (delicatessen) in the area also for cheese, cold chicken, bread, and bottles of water or diet soft drinks.
In the trattorias and restaurants of Rome, you'll be hard-pressed to decide what kind of fresh pasta to try. This is where they prepare artichokes in the renowned Roman style, saltimbocca (a Roman rendition of veal scallops flavored with fresh sage and slices of prosciutto), gnocchi, pasta e ceci (a rosemary flavored pasta and chick pea soup), and baccalà all' agrodolce (codfish in a spicy tomato sauce with raisins and pine nuts).
For our Roman meal, we decided to do an pasta meal and serve it Roman-style, sitting on cushions on the floor around a low coffee table. We won't be reclining as we did at our Roman feasts of our Latin classes of years ago, but everyone will enjoy eating on the floor -- just be sure to supply plenty of napkins to save your carpet. Begin the meal with Penne Arrabbiatta, one of Rome's favorite pastas, spicy with garlic and crushed red chiles, followed Italian-style by a roasted pepper salad with basil. A warm baked rice pudding made with arborio rice (the Italian rice for risotto) flavored with pears finishes our Roman meal with a flourish.
(for the recipes, click on The Recipes or click on the individual recipe above)
Editor's Note: Dear Reader, We've shared with you some real Italian cooking -- rosemary, sage, roasted vegetables and meats, beautiful fruits -- a long way from the heavy food that's served in some American Italian restaurants.
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