La Tavola Marche Recipe Box

Video Recipe: Pizza Bianco in the Wood Oven

noreply@blogger.com (Ashley Bartner) — Tue, 16 Aug 2016 14:56:00 +0000

A local favorite here in Le Marche and especially at our farmhouse is pizza bianco or white pizza, because there is no sauce. There are many variations of this depending on where you live - but in our neck of the woods, it's made with thinly sliced potatoes, rosemary, dollops of ricotta, sea salt (& peperoncini) and a good drizzle of extra virigin olive oil. We serve this classic up every Thursday during our Summer Pizza Nights!!

Try a Pizza Bianco on your next trip to Le Marche!

Roasted Peppers with Anchovy

noreply@blogger.com (Ashley Bartner) — Sun, 24 Jul 2016 08:21:00 +0000

A A recipe inspired by our travels to Spain and using what is found in our garden/locally in Italy. The roasted peppers and anchovies are a great start to your summer dinner or served it on crostini for lunch with a wedge of cheese! A note on anchovies: First if you think you are not a fan, try it again. This dish is not meant to be 'fishy' - it is the salty, brininess of the anchovies that perfectly compliment the roasted peppers (and they are even better with the smoky flavor from the grill!)

ROASTED PEPPERS WITH ANCHOVIES

4 large peppers
1 clove of garlic
4 anchovy filets
handful of herbs (basil or oregano)
salt and pepper
about 3 TB red wine vinegar
about 7 TB good extra virgin olive oil

Roast the peppers in the oven, on the gas stove-top or better yet on the grill, blackening the skins of the peppers.
Then place the peppers in a bowl and cover tightly with plastic wrap until cool.
Once cool remove the skins and seeds.
Slice into 1cm or 1/2 in strips.
Mince the garlic & tear up the herbs - adding both to the peppers.
Add your anchovy filets.
Season with salt & pepper.
Add the red wine vinegar & olive oil.
Mix and let sit for a few hours. (It gets better as it sits.)
Serve!
This will pair perfectly with crostini/crusty bread and a wedge of cheese!

We made this dish in last night's cooking class!

Quick & Creamy Pine Nut Pasta Sauce

noreply@blogger.com (Ashley Bartner) — Fri, 26 Jun 2015 15:09:00 +0000

This is no alfredo sauce!! This quick and creamy (yet light enough for a hot summer day) pine nut sauce pairs perfectly with homemade pasta. After all the hard work of rolling your dough and making ravioli or cavatelli (or orecchieti, etc.) why drown your delicate pasta in a rich heavy sauce?!

Quick Pine Nut Pasta Sauce
Serves 6

handful of pine nuts (about 100 g or 4 oz) - you don’t have to use pine nuts, any nut of your choice
4 glugs of extra virgin olive oil
1 clove of garlic
150 ml or ⅔ cup of cream
small handful (about 30 g or ¼ cup) of grated parmesan
salt & pepper
pinch of nutmeg

Preperation
In a blender or with an immersion blender puree the cream, salt & pepper, nuts, nutmeg & cheese until its thick and mostly smooth.

In a pan on low flame, heat oil. Place in garlic glove browning on all sides. Once the pasta is cooked, strain the cooked pasta into the pan. Remove the pan from heat and pour cream mixture over. Toss and adjust the consistency with pasta water and taste. Place into serving dish and top with a few extra pine nuts.

Pasta Sauce with Pork Ribs: Tomatoes & Cranberry (Borlotti) Beans with Sage

noreply@blogger.com (Ashley Bartner) — Tue, 18 Nov 2014 08:02:00 +0000

Traditionally this is a summer sauce made when the borlotti beans & tomatoes are fresh but it's so heavy we prefer it in the fall and winter using our jarred tomatoes & frozen beans. Locals add pork ribs to the sauce adding extra flavor and resulting in a side dish of stewed meat! This is a stick to your ribs sauce perfect for a cold Sunday! Pairs great with any pasta shape/size but I prefer cavatelli for a full fledged nap inducing lunch!

Le Tagliatelle con i fagioli freschi
Borlotti & Tomato Sauce with Sage

serves 4+

2-3 handfuls of borlotti beans (preferrably fresh) dried
1 large jar or 2lbs/1 kilo of tomatoes, crushed, passed (seeded & skinned) or pureed
1 carrot
1 celery stick
1 onion
5-6 pieces of bone (whatever type you like) I normally use pork ribs that the butcher cuts in half
olive oil
salt & pepper
1 clove of garlic
sage
sprig of rosemary if you like
pasta of your choice
extra virgin olive oil for finishing the dish

This recipe calls for two pots: 1 for the beans, 2 for the tomato sauce. Make sure the pot for the tomato sauce is larger as we will add the beans into the sauce later in the recipe.

Place the beans (either fresh or dried & then soaked) and sage in a pot with plenty of water, in large pieces add: half the carrot, half the leg of celery & half the onion. Bring everything to a boil, then lower to a simmer. Allow to cook until the beans are tender. (Do NOT add salt during this process.)

Finely dice the other half of the celery, carrot & onion. In the larger pot, heat a few glugs of olive oil and add fine diced vegetables, along with the garlic & a little salt & pepper. Sweat 10-12 minutes on low-low heat or until very soft without browning.

Next, raise the heat, add in your bones and brown on all sides, keep ’em moving in the pot so they don’t burn.

Add in your tomatoes, rosemary and another leaf of sage if your feeling sporty. Bring up to a good simmer and then lower to a low slow simmer. Allow to simmer for 30-35 minutes until it reduces by about a third and becomes nice and thick. Stir it occasionally to make sure nothing is sticking to the bottom.

Now here’s where the magic happens. Remove the chunks of vegetables from the pot with beans. Add the cooked beans to the larger pot SAVING the bean water. Bring the tomatoes & beans up to a simmer, adding a little of the bean water to thin it out. Cook about 10 minutes on a low low simmer, adjusting with a little bean water if it seems too thick.

To serve; fish out the rosemary sprig, garlic clove & sage leaves if you can find them. Remove the meaty bones from the pot. (These can be served alongside the pasta or as another course entirely.) Adjust your seasoning with salt & pepper and toss with hot pasta. We pair it with tagliatelle or cavatelli and finish with a drizzle of good finishing oil - this is when you use the good stuff!

Cavatelli Pasta - Semolina Dough

noreply@blogger.com (Ashley Bartner) — Thu, 09 Oct 2014 09:21:00 +0000

This is one of the easiest pasta dough's to make and it doesn't need a machine or any fancy equipment - just your thumb or a pearing knife. Cavatelli pasta (or little caves) is traditionally from Molise & parts of Puglia. It is very similar to orecchietti (little ears), another pasta made with semolina (ground durum wheat or grano duro). In southern Italy is where you will find most of these types of pasta made with semolina and no egg in the dough.

The recipe for cavatelli varies greatly from region to region, village to village. Below is the recipe that has yielded the most consistent results for us - a soft delicate pasta that's not gummy. After all your work in making fresh pasta you'll be happy to know that it freezes wonderfully! Now on a random Wednesday night just pull out your homemade fresh cavatelli, make a quick sauce and dinner is ready!

This pasta pairs perfectly in the Spring with peas, borlotti, sage & tomatoes in the Fall and norcina (sausage & cream) in the Winter!

You can find videos on youtube all day on the technique for cutting & forming the pasta. Below is a simple explanation. Stay tuned as we'll film our own demo soon!!

Cavatelli Pasta Dough
serves 4

200 grams/ 1.5 cups of semolina or ground durum wheat/ grano duro
25 grams / 1/4 cup of regular flour or soft wheat flour
pinch of salt
125 grams or 3/4 cup warm water

In a bowl mix the salt & both flours together, add in warm water and mix with a fork. Dump onto a board and begin kneading. Adjust the consistency as needed. The dough should have a firmness to it, not mushy, however not as hard as a ball. Continue kneading, until you have a nice smooth springy dough (8-10 minutes by hand). Wrap it in plastic and allow to rest at least an hour.

Now go online and find a video!

Make a snake about the width of a pencil.
Cut into segments as long as your thumb is wide. …..
Now you can either use your thumb or a knife for this next step.

To begin shaping cavatelli, stick your right thumb up and then turn hand so thumb is pointing left. Maintaining even pressure, use thumb to push a piece of dough forward and up, like an airplane taking off. The dough should spring up and form around the curve of your thumb.

Use a bench scraper or knife to transfer cavatelli to a baking sheet covered in parchment paper and sprinkled with semolina, making sure no pieces of pasta touch. Continue until all dough is used. Let pasta dry slightly, 30-45 minutes. (You can then freeze in a single layer. Once frozen place in plastic freezer bag and will keep about a month.)

In a large pot, bring lightly salted water to a rolling boil and drop in cavatelli. Boil the pasta. It should take about 4-6 min depending on the size of your cavatelli. Just keep taking one out and testing! Serve with the sauce of your choice.

Garden Vegetable Stew

noreply@blogger.com (Ashley Bartner) — Mon, 06 Oct 2014 11:58:00 +0000

This is one vegetarian dish that even the die-hard meat eaters will enjoy! The quality of your veggies will turn this from ordinary to amazing and full of flavor. Its filling and incredible versatile based on the vegetables and herbs you use. This veg stew is perfect over a boiled potato or polenta. With the eggs from our hens, we love poaching an egg and placing it atop this gorgeous garden stew, adding a little protein and making it into more of a meal. Plus, eggs are hot right now!! Which just cracks us up (who comes up with these things?! By the way kale is out and cauliflower is in!)

Remember with simple dishes like this its important to use the best quality ingredients. This is just the base for the veggies - use what you've got /like/grow. Add in potatoes if you want, etc.

Garden Vegetable Stew
serves about 6

This is just the base for the veggies - use what you've got/like/grow. Add in potatoes if you want, etc.

1 long eggplant
1 onion
1 pepper
1 zucchini
1 bulb of fennel
2 cloves garlic
olive oil
salt & pepper
a couple of large tomatoes, diced or 1 jar of whole crushed tomatoes
herbs of your choice (rosemary, thyme, bay leaf etc)
optional: capers, olives

Dice all your vegetables in a large dice, keeping them separate. Since its a stew the sizing isn’t exact. But don’t mix all the veggies together in a bowl.

In a large heavy pot, with a little bit of olive oil on medium high heat, sauté the onion for a few minutes. Season with salt & pepper. Then remove from the pot. We are just looking to start the onions cooking.

Repeat the same process, a little bit of olive oil, salt & pepper, sauté for 2 minutes or so and then remove, with each of the remaining vegetable except the tomatoes.

Keep an eye on your pan heat - you don’t want it too hot or too cool: too hot and they will burn your vegetables, too cool and you’ll sweat instead of sauté the vegetables.

Then return all the vegetables to the pot, together, along with the tomatoes and your herbs (and capers/olives if you like). Bring the pot up to a simmer and let slowly simmer until all the vegetables are tender. OR I like to pop it in a 375 F/190 C degrees oven, uncovered for about 45 minutes to an hour or until the vegetables are soft and the liquid has reduced some.

Check your seasoning, remove the herb stems and finish with good extra virgin olive oil on top.

If you like, poach an egg and place atop or serve with boiled potatoes or grilled polenta. Makes a great hearty vegetarian dish. It will get better as it sits in the fridge. Change up the vegetables as you like or play with the spices.

Quick Pickled Peppers, Carrots & Onions

noreply@blogger.com (Ashley Bartner) — Wed, 17 Sep 2014 11:07:00 +0000

A favorite way to keep veggies a bit longer into the season is a quick pickle - that great briny flavor with a crunch without the wait of a month or more for a proper pickle.

A Quick Pickle

Use any vegetables of your choice - carrots, greenbeans, peppers, onions, etc. Most often we use a mix of peppers, carrots and onions, sliced thin
water
strong vinegar like white wine, red wine or apple cider (don’t use a soft vinegar such as balsamic)
salt
fresh herbs/aromatics of your choice - thyme, rosemary, dill, peppercorn, cardamon, etc.
chili of your desired strength
honey or sugar
whole head of chopped garlic

This is a ratio recipe. In a pot on medium heat, combine 1 part vinegar to 3 parts water. Add a couple tablespoons of honey/sugar, a couple tablespoons of salt, aromatics, chili, etc. - everything BUT the vegetables.

Once the sugar and salt are dissolved give it a taste. Make sure its not too puckery or too bland - just nice and briny, slightly acidic with a nice taste. Adjust as necessary with more salt, water vinegar or sugar.

Bring to boil.

Begin adding your vegetables based on hardness - for example: carrots first, after 20-30 seconds add onions, after about 20-30 seconds add peppers.

Bring to a rolling boil.

Once soft but still with a crunch, shut off the heat and strain out the vegetables and herbs (Do NOT throw out the liquid!!). Place on a baking sheet in one flat layer and place in the fridge to cool.

Keep the pickling liquid/brine in the pot to cool as well.
Once both the veggies and liquid are cool, place the veggies along with all the garlic and herbs into a jar and cover with the liquid. Keep in the fridge and it will be good for up to 2 weeks, getting better as it sits.

Lemon Tart

noreply@blogger.com (Ashley Bartner) — Sun, 03 Aug 2014 17:08:00 +0000

This truly is the perfect lemon tart. "This is a throw back to culinary school days when we would practice making this tart endlessly. When done right, it's fantastic. I usually play it loose with the recipes but this one you must follow precisely. Not that it is difficult, just several steps involved...but well worth the effort."

Look for this one in the Autumn when we start back up our LIVE from ITALY: Online Cooking Classes!!

It can be made as a large tart or as individual tartlets.
The puckery lemon custard delivers a pure lemon flavor, perfect ending to any meal!

Shortbread Dough (Pâte sablée)
255 g flour, sifted (9 oz)
150 g butter (3.5 oz)
90 g confectioners sugar (3 oz)
few drops of vanilla
pinch of salt
2 egg yolks
1-2 tablespoons ice cold water

Sift the flour onto the work surface and make a well in the center.
Dice the butter and place it in the well, then work it with your fingertips until its very soft.
Sift the confectioners’ sugar on the the butter and add the salt, working it into the butter.
Add the egg yolks and mix well. Gradually draw in the flour and mix until completely incorporated/amalgamated. Add the vanilla extract.
Give the dough a turn or two.
Briefly kneed the dough and form into a disc. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate. (Dough will keep well refrigerated for several days if necessary.)

When well chilled (an hour or so), roll out on your board. Transfer to an 8 in. tart ring. Blind bake at 375 F / 190 C

Lemon Cream
175 ml freshly squeezed lemon juice (6 oz) - about 5-6 lemons
150 g unsalted butter at room temperature (3.5 oz) - cut into pieces
200 g sugar (7 oz)
2 large eggs
3 large egg yolks

In a stainless steel pot, heat the lemon juice, butter and 150 g sugar over low heat until the butter has melted and the mixture comes to a gentle simmer (about 2 minutes).

Using a wire whisk, beat the eggs, egg yolks, and remaining 50 g sugar until the mixture is pale and light (about 4-5 minutes). Slowly pour half of the hot lemon juice mixture into the egg/sugar mixture to temper, beating until blending and fluffy.

Return the mixture to the saucepan containing remaining hot lemon mixture and cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly with a spoon, until the mixture nearly starts to simmer - about 3 minutes.

Transfer the lemon cream to a metal bowl and place over a water bath to cool. (If not using immediately, lay a sheet of plastic wrap directly on the surface of the cream.)

When cool, spread the lemon cream evenly into the pastry shell. Smooth the top with a spatula. Place the tart back in the oven and bake for 5 minutes to set the filling slightly without coloring it.

Carefully remove the tart if made in a ring pan and let cool on a wire rack. Place in the fridge until the tart until the filling is firm. Remove from the fridge 10-15 minutes before serving.

Garnish with compote of wild berries or candied lemon zest!

No Bake Dessert: Poached Peaches with Rosemary in White Wine with Mascarpone Cream

noreply@blogger.com (Ashley Bartner) — Thu, 24 Jul 2014 20:00:00 +0000

A gorgeous oven-free, gluten-free, no-bake dessert perfect for those hot summer nights! This dessert has become a classic in our kitchen and cooking classes throughout stone fruit season. It's light & fresh, and even after a long Italian meal, everyone has room for a little peaches & cream!

It's not only easy to make, but the ingredients are flexible; use white, rosè or red wine (finish off that bottle of white that's been sitting in the fridge for the last 2 nights...) The same with aromatics - rosemary, thyme, lemon, lavender...whatever you've got on hand. (This is why its so important to have an herb garden!)

Poached Peaches in White Wine

Serves 4

Ingredients:

4 firm peaches or nectarines (mature fruit will fall apart)
2-3 spoons of sugar
white or rosè wine
1 sprig of thyme
1 sprig of rosemary
zest of ½ lemon (use ANY aromatics you like)
homemade whipped cream or mascarpone cream if you like

With a paring knife cut the fruit in half and remove the stone. If the stone will not come away easily, make a shallow incision around the stone and it will fall away once cooked.

Place the fruit cut side down in a pan or pot that fits the fruit snugly. Add in the aromatics with the sugar and top with wine until halfway up the fruit. Cover with baking paper (parchment) and bring the pan up to a medium simmer for 8-12 minutes total depending on the size of the fruit. Give the peaches a turn on their backs after about 5 minutes and they are done when a knife slips easily into the thickest part of the fruit.

Once the peaches are cooked, remove from the pan and place on a plate to cool. Return the pan to a low flame and reduce the wine until it becomes a syrup. Give it a taste - if its a little tart, add a spoonful of sugar. Be careful not to let this burn. Strain the syrup into a bowl and allow to cool.

To serve: Quarter the peaches and carefully remove the skins. Arrange on the plate and drizzle atop the white wine syrup and a dollop of cream.

Homemade Nocino: Spicy Walnut Liqueur with Cloves & Vanilla

noreply@blogger.com (Ashley Bartner) — Sun, 13 Jul 2014 12:54:00 +0000

A booze that's damn near biblical - not only because of its rich smooth spicy flavor of walnuts, clove, vanilla and cinnamon but it must sit in the sun for 40 days and 40 nights as the first step in making it! Pour a glass and serve alongside creamy vanilla panna cotta or topped on gelato for a decadent end to the meal.

A thriving local tradition is making homemade liquor - from grappa infused with fruits & herbs, to visner & visciolino (cherry liquors), nocino (walnuts) & many more! Whenever offered a homemade digestivo (after dinner drink) you must oblige! It is homemade & thus a gift from the house....sometimes a wonderfully delicious drink that you are beggin for more and other times...WOW! absolute firewater! In Italy it's easy to find 95%-97% pure alcohol at any where from the hardware store to the "Costco" surplus shopping stores. And with a walnut grove a kilometer down the road from our farmhouse, this has become a classic in our house.

Picking walnuts with my cousin

I 've told the story before but many of my homemade liquors are recipes from the wonderful Mamma Mochi teaching me her age old recipes of making digestivi. She is my mentor of sorts when it comes to all things 'spirits'! As usual, the recipe varies depending on where you live.

This Nocino recipe for example uses whole green nuts and MUST sit in the sun & stirred for 40 days, then brought in to sit in the dark for another 30 days before you filter. After that, the first pour is traditionally on Christmas Eve! ...maybe I'll leave a little out for Babbo Natale this year!

Nocino
Walnut Liqueur

25 green young walnuts
1 kilo (or just a bit less) of sugar
1 liter of pure alcohol (grappa, everclear or vodka)
250 grams of water
stick of vanilla
stick of cinnamon
5 -7 cloves

Mix together well.
Let sit in sun for 40 days - stirring & mixing the sugar each day.
Then let sit for another month in cool dark storage.
Filter & bottle.
You can let the nocino age if you would like - some prefer to drink immediately & those shelf the bottle for 2 years or more! Traditionally, the first glass should be poured on Christmas Eve.

There is also a recipe for the 'used nuts' with Marsala ...coming soon!

Maria Mochi, my mentor

Video Recipe: Crostata - Rustic Tart

noreply@blogger.com (Ashley Bartner) — Sat, 05 Jul 2014 15:26:00 +0000

Rustic Tart or Crostata: Traditionally made with marmalade, this rustic tart is found kept under a kitchen towel in most homes in our area. With strawberries in abundance this time of year, we use fresh fruit instead of jam.
This recipe is enough to make two 9-in/22cm tarts with lattice. Use what you have for the tart pans, we use round pizza pans.

Full Recipe can be found here: http://latavolamarcherecipebox.blogsp...

"Taste of Italy" is our webseries of shorts (under 2 min.) of life on our farm in Italy, the food, cooking classes, garden and more!

Make this Sauce in the time it takes for your water to boil: "Sauce of the Moment"

noreply@blogger.com (Ashley Bartner) — Mon, 30 Jun 2014 17:29:00 +0000

Sauce of the Moment
Sugo al Momento

This is literally one you use with whatever you have - and/or the vegetable that looks good/in season at the moment. Change it up with the season - you can add pine nuts, leave out the tomatoes, leave out the white wine and use a different acidic ingredient. Use this as an outline and make it your own.

For this recipe, we will use peas as our ‘veg of the moment.'

2 handfuls of fresh peas, shelled
small handful of cherry tomatoes
2 tablespoons of white wine
4 tablespoons of chicken stock or pasta water
handful of parmesan cheese
clove of garlic, kept whole
olive oil
salt & pepper

In a pan, over low heat, warm about 4 glugs of olive oil and gently brown the garlic on all sides. In the bowling salted water you have going for your pasta, blanch your peas until they are half cooked. Remove from water and add to the pan with garlic & olive oil.

Raise the heat to med-high, add in your handful of cherry tomatoes. Give a stir, season with salt & pepper. Once your tomatoes start to cook down and slough the skin, add in 2 tablespoons of white wine. Allow the wine to cook out for 1-2 minutes, add in the chicken stock and allow to cook down. Shut off the heat. Give the sauce a taste and adjust your salt & pepper. Its now ready for your pasta.

Once the pasta is near cooked, return the pan to med heat. Drain the pasta directly from the bowling water into the pan with the sauce. With a spoonful of pasta water, incorporate the pasta into the sauce. Remove from the heat, make sure there is a little bit of moisture in the pan, adjust with pasta water. Now add a handful of parmesan cheese and incorporate into the pasta. Serve.

Change it up with the season - you can add pine nuts, leave out the tomatoes, leave out the white wine and use a different acidic ingredient. Use this as an outline and make it your own.

Sauce of the Moment - A Pasta Sauce in the Time it Takes the Water to Boil

noreply@blogger.com (Ashley Bartner) — Sun, 22 Jun 2014 16:11:00 +0000

Sauce of the Moment
Sugo al Momento

This is literally one you use with whatever you have - and/or the vegetable that looks good/in season at the moment. Change it up with the season - you can add pine nuts, leave out the tomatoes, leave out the white wine and use a different acidic ingredient. Use this as an outline and make it your own.

For this recipe, we will use peas as our ‘veg of the moment’ since it’s Spring.

2 handfuls of fresh peas, shelled
small handful of cherry tomatoes
2 tablespoons of white wine
4 tablespoons of chicken stock or pasta water
handful of parmesan cheese
clove of garlic, kept whole
olive oil
salt & pepper

In a pan, over low heat, warm about 4 glugs of olive oil and gently brown the garlic on all sides. In the bowling salted water you have going for your pasta, blanch your peas until they are half cooked. Remove from water and add to the pan with garlic & olive oil.

Raise the heat to med-high, add in your handful of cherry tomatoes. Give a stir, season with salt & pepper. Once your tomatoes start to cook down and slough the skin, add in 2 tablespoons of white wine. Allow the wine to cook out for 1-2 minutes, add in the chicken stock and allow to cook down. Shut off the heat. Give the sauce a taste and adjust your salt & pepper. Its now ready for your pasta.

Once the pasta is near cooked, return the pan to med heat. Drain the pasta directly from the bowling water into the pan with the sauce. With a spoonful of pasta water, incorporate the pasta into the sauce. Remove from the heat, make sure there is a little bit of moisture in the pan, adjust with pasta water. Now add a handful of parmesan cheese and incorporate into the pasta. Serve.

Change it up with the season - you can add pine nuts, leave out the tomatoes, leave out the white wine and use a different acidic ingredient. Use this as an outline and make it your own.

Radish & Strawberry Salad

noreply@blogger.com (Ashley Bartner) — Sun, 22 Jun 2014 15:58:00 +0000

This radish & strawberry salad certainly strays from the traditional dishes of Le Marche however is a perfect example of the philosophy "if it grows together, it goes together." The crunchy peppery radishes compliment the sweet juicy strawberries, add a bit of young spring onion (and if we were in the States, cilantro!) for a surprising and delicious spring salad. The recipe is inspired by our friends from Perennial Plate!

Radish & Strawberry Salad
equal parts of radish & strawberries, sliced as thin as possible (you can do this with a mandoline or knife)
a pinch of spring onions, sliced thinly
salt & crack of pepper to taste
olive oil
the best balsamic you’ve got: aceto balsamic tradizionale di modena

In a bowl combine radishes, strawberry & onion. Season with salt & pepper and a light drizzle of olive oil. Very gently (with your hands) toss the salad to incorporate all the ingredients.
To serve: plate and drizzle a few drops of balsamic over the top, serve immediately.

Note: Anything from spring will work in this dish, fresh fava beans or peas, chive, etc - if it grows together it goes together.

Homemade Spirits: Wild Cherry Liquor - Visciolino Digestivo

noreply@blogger.com (Ashley Bartner) — Tue, 10 Jun 2014 11:57:00 +0000

A thriving local tradition in Le Marche is making homemade liquors/liqueurs to be served after dinner as a digestivo. Using pure alcohol or grappa infused with fruits & herbs such as visciolino (wild cherry), nocino (walnut vanilla), brugnolino (wild plum/sloe) & many more!

Visciole is a tart wild cherry found in abundance in the Candigliano Valley of Northern Le Marche and its leaves make the most delicious & delicate after dinner cherry digestivo. Visciolino is made with 100 leaves of the cherry tree + 10 leaves from a peach tree along with red wine, sugar & pure alcohol. The recipe below is simple & passed to me by our dear neighbor Mama Mochi, traditionally made at the end of May/early June.

Wild Cherry Liqueur

Visciolino

1 liter of red wine
100 leaves of visciole (wild cherry tree)
10 leaves of a peach tree

Let soak for 10 days & filter.

Add 600 grams of sugar
1/2 liter of grappa or pure alcohol

Mix well, incorporating the sugar.

Bottle & enjoy! You can let it continue to season or age as well - keep in cool dark storage.

Fried Elderflowers & Squash Blossoms in Beer Batter: Light, Crispy & Delicate

noreply@blogger.com (Ashley Bartner) — Fri, 30 May 2014 22:00:00 +0000

Fried Elderflowers in Beer Batter

On a warm Spring afternoon we added Fried Elderflowers or fiori di sambuco fritti to the menu - these edible flowers when fried in a beer batter create a light, crunchy, aromatic antipasti/appetizer!

Serve with the same beer you used in the batter, in our case, local craft beer from Apecchio's Collessi Brewery. The flowers have a floral-lemony flavor that pair perfect with Prosecco as well.

The key to this recipe is keeping all the ingredients - including the bowl & whisk in the fridge!! It is a very light/loose batter that becomes nice & crispy!

Elderflowers or Sambuco from the tree in our front yard

Here is a short 2 minute video taken during a May Cooking Class just the other day - on the menu: Fried Elderflowers, Homemade Ravioli stuffed with Greens & Ricotta in a 'Sugo al Momento' or Sauce of the Moment and 2 Crostata's: Fresh Strawberries and Fig Jam with Pine Nuts. It was a lovely lunch but the elderflowers stole the show!

Beer Batter for Elderflowers and Squash/Zucchini Blossoms

*It is very important to have all the ingredients as cold as possible, including: flour, bowl, whisk/whip, etc.

Serves 4
12-15 flowers (sambuco/elderflower or squash blossoms), it is important to keep the stem long to use it as a 'stir-stick' when frying.
bottle of beer (or seltzer water - but it won't be as crispy)
flour
sea salt (for sprinkling on top before you serve)

Add a couple of handfuls of cold flour to a cold bowl, with a cold whisk add cold beer steadily mixing until you develop a light thin batter without lumps that will coat a spoon. (Think of a thin crepe batter.) - Watch the video for an example.

Once at desired consistency, cover with plastic wrap and place in the fridge for about an hour.

Heat oil to 350 F / 175 C - be sure to use a thermometer.

Clean your flowers. Elderflowers: give a little shake and check for bugs. Squash Blossoms: remove the pistil & stamen.

Dip the flower in the batter holding on to the stem. Allow access batter to drip off. While holding the stem of the flower, place in the hot oil in a slow swirling motion thru the oil. (This avoids clumping).
Fry for 20-30 seconds, until golden brown. Be sure to maintain the temperature of your oil.
Place on the fried flowers on brown paper and sprinkle with sea salt and serve immediately!

Serve with beer or prosecco - something bubbly!!

Warm Artichoke, Asparagus, Fava & Potato Salad

noreply@blogger.com (Ashley Bartner) — Thu, 29 May 2014 17:14:00 +0000

When life gives you lemons, you make lemonade and when the garden is producing kilos of fava and neighbors deliver homegrown artichokes and asparagus we make this delicious warm salad! It's a shame to call is a 'potato salad' but when I asked a handful of guests, as they were eating this dish after a cooking class they all replied 'the best potato salad ever!' Use whatever Spring veggies you've got but the combo of warm boiled new potatoes with sweet artichoke hearts and bright asparagus & or fava is simply...the best potato salad ever!

Check out the short video on Tastemade to see a glimpse of the cooking class with this one the menu!

Artichokes & New Potatoes with Fava and Asparagus

Serves 4

12 artichoke hearts, cleaned (we have small artichokes, if you are using big Roman artichokes you can use 1 artichoke heart per person, cut into quarters)
4 medium potatoes (the best looking potatoes you can find)
2 handfuls of cleaned, double shelled fave beans (or peas)
handful of thin asparagus if you have them (grilled or blanched)
handful of cherry tomatoes, quartered (seeds removed)
small handful of chopped herbs: oregano, basil, parsley - whatever you’ve got.
good extra virgin olive oil
vinegar
salt & pepper

In separate pots, of boiling salted water, cook: the artichoke hearts, the potatoes with the skin left on whole and fave beans until just soft, but not mushy. Drain and allow to cool slightly.
When you can handle the potatoes, peel them and cut into similar size chunks as your artichoke hearts.

While everything is still warm, place the potatoes, artichokes, bean/peas and tomatoes, etc. into a bowl and season with salt & pepper, chopped herbs and dress with olive oil and vinegar. (General rule of thumb, dress with 3 parts oil to 1 part vinegar, i.e.: a 3 count pour of olive oil to a 1 count pour of vinegar.)

Toss gently, adjust seasonings and allow to sit for five minutes and serve slightly warm. Garnish with grated hard egg over the top if you like.

Video Recipe: Cooking Class, Beer Batter for Elderflowers & Squash Blossoms

noreply@blogger.com (Ashley Bartner) — Wed, 28 May 2014 10:00:00 +0000

Serve with the same beer you used in the batter, in our case, local craft beer from Apecchio's Collessi Brewery. The flowers have a floral-lemony flavor that pair perfect with Prosecco as well.

The key to this recipe is keeping all the ingredients - including the bowl & whisk in the fridge!! It is a very light/loose batter that becomes nice & crispy!

Beer Batter for Elderflowers and Squash/Zucchini Blossoms

*It is very important to have all the ingredients as cold as possible, including: flour, bowl, whisk/whip, etc.

Serves 4
12-15 flowers (sambuco/elderflower or squash blossoms), it is important to keep the stem long to use it as a 'stir-stick' when frying.
bottle of beer (or seltzer water - but it won't be as crispy)
flour
sea salt (for sprinkling on top before you serve)

Add a couple of handfuls of cold flour to a cold bowl, with a cold whisk add cold beer steadily mixing until you develop a light thin batter without lumps that will coat a spoon. (Think of a thin crepe batter.) - Watch the video for an example.

Once at desired consistency, cover with plastic wrap and place in the fridge for about an hour.

Heat oil to 350 F / 175 C - be sure to use a thermometer.

Clean your flowers. Elderflowers: give a little shake and check for bugs. Squash Blossoms: remove the pistil & stamen.

Dip the flower in the batter holding on to the stem. Allow access batter to drip off. While holding the stem of the flower, place in the hot oil in a slow swirling motion thru the oil. (This avoids clumping).
Fry for 20-30 seconds, until golden brown. Be sure to maintain the temperature of your oil.
Place on the fried flowers on brown paper and sprinkle with sea salt and serve immediately!

Serve with beer or prosecco - something bubbly!!

Cooking Conversions & Cheat Sheets for the Kitchen

noreply@blogger.com (Ashley Bartner) — Sat, 26 Apr 2014 11:52:00 +0000

Cooking is about as much about improvisation as it is about technique - what do you do if you run out of brown sugar?! Or in our case, we live in the Italian countryside where 'packed brown sugar' for good ol' chocolate chip cookies does NOT exist. So does that mean we can never eat cookies or oatmeal with brown sugar again - no, we just have to get creative & improvise with that we have on hand. (Sometimes it's also knowing where to shop - for example cream of tartar is found not in the grocery store or bakery but...pharmacy! (Sold by weight, the fine white powder folded into paper packets - reminiscent of trafficking drugs!) Also most Chef don't weigh out 5 tablespoons of olive oil - they eye it! That is why most of the recipes on our blog call for 'glugs' because it's a visual & audible indicator how much you are using.

Rustic Tart with Fresh Strawberries & Cream

noreply@blogger.com (Ashley Bartner) — Fri, 11 Apr 2014 06:19:00 +0000

Traditionally made with marmalade, this rustic tart is found kept under a kitchen towel in most homes in our area. With strawberries in abundance this time of year, we use fresh fruit instead of jam.

This recipe is enough to make two 9-in/22cm tarts with lattice. Use what you have for the tart pans, we use round pizza pans.

Italian Rustic Tart with Strawberries
Crostata di Fragole

1 1/3 cup, 250g butter
4 cups, 500 g of flour
1 1/4 cups+ for dusting, 250g sugar
pinch of salt
1 teaspoon, 5g baking powder
2 full eggs + 3 yolks
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
drop of booze - grappa, rum, brandy, anything you like
about a pint of fresh strawberries per tart, sliced
Optional: Serve with whipped cream or mascarpone cheese thinned out with milk.

Cream butter & sugar until light & fluffy. Beat in eggs one at a time, then add vanilla a few drops of your favorite liquor and beat in.
Sift together all the dry ingredients.
Incorporate the dry ingredients into the butter & egg mixture with a few strokes of a wooden spoon forming a dough. Take 1/3 of the dough & and roll it out slightly larger than your parchment lined tart pan. Roll down the edges of the dough to create the crust.
Arrange the strawberries slightly overlapping to cover the tart. You can sprinkle a little sugar over the strawberries, if they are in season this is not necessary.

To make the latticework top:
Pull off a pinch of dough & roll into a long snake. This is an easy dough to work with if it breaks just pinch it back together. This is a rustic tart. Moist hands will help if the dough is sticky.
Continue until you have enough to make your lattice top.

Bake in a preheated 350F/175C degree oven for about an hour or until the top is nice & brown, the bottom is cooked & the dough should shrink away from the pan a bit.

In loving memory

Spring Vegetable Soup

noreply@blogger.com (Ashley Bartner) — Mon, 10 Mar 2014 13:46:00 +0000

Spring Vegetable Soup - Artichoke, Pea, Asparagus

Spring Vegetable Soup

Serves 4

1 leek or spring onion, diced
1 carrot, fine dice
1 liter or 4.5 cups of vegetable stock or brodo
couple cloves or garlic
olive oil
3-4 leaves of mint, chopped
small handful of parsley, chopped
optional: 2-3 slices of prosciutto, thinly sliced & then chopped.
salt & pepper
about 2 cups or 2 large handfuls total of cleaned prepped veggies. Use whatever spring vegetables you have: asparagus, artichoke hearts, peas, fava beans (double shelled), leafy greens, spinach, kale, etc.

In a pot over low heat, sweat the garlic, onion & carrot in olive oil for about 10 minutes or so - without color.
Season with salt and pepper. Then add the vegetables in the order to cook, ie: artichoke hearts would go in first as they are the hardest vegetable, followed by peas, asparagus & fava, then spinach, etc. Add in the stock, bring up to simmer for 15-20 minutes until all the vegetables are cooked properly. Skim any oil that has floated to the top.
Finish with the chopped herbs. Check your seasonings and adjust if needed.

Serve with toasty bread and finish with extra virgin olive oil atop each bowl of soup.

Roasted Lamb with Potatoes & White Wine (Roman Spring Lamb)

noreply@blogger.com (Ashley Bartner) — Mon, 10 Mar 2014 12:56:00 +0000

A beautiful dish for Easter, Roasted Spring Lamb with Potatoes & White Wine - good every time! The recipe is adapted from one of our favorite Italian cookbooks, The Silver Spoon. Have you ever cooked lamb before? Have questions? Try our LIVE! online, interactive Cooking Class from our farmhouse/cooking school in Italy on March 16th and make this dish right along with the Chef! (Details Here)

Roman Spring Lamb
Roasted Lamb with Potatoes & White Wine

1 kilo or 2 lb leg of lamb, in pieces (ask the butcher to do this for you)
flour for dusting
2 glugs of olive oil
3 sprigs of rosemary
a small handful of sage leaves
couple of cloves of garlic
glass of white wine
1/3 glass of white wine vinegar (about 5 tablespoons)
4 potatoes, sliced
salt & pepper
2/3 cup water, boiling
optional: 2-3 anchovies (or capers or anchovy paste)

Preheat oven to 350 F/180 C
 Dust the pieces of lamb with flour, shake off the excess.

In a heavy bottomed roasting pan, over medium-high heat brown the lamb on all sides in a couple glugs of olive oil, turning frequently (about 10 minutes).

Once browned, season with salt & pepper. Toss in the rosemary, sage & garlic.
Combine in a glass the wine & vinegar, then add to the roasting pan. Reduce until almost all the liquid has evaporated, turning the lamb frequently.

Once the pan is almost dry, add the boiling water. Then top with the slices of potatoes (its OK not to cover the entire dish) and roast in the oven for 30-45 minutes until tender WITH a foil lid.

If it seems to be drying out - add in a little hot water mixed with a dash of white wine.

For something truly authentic, 10 minutes before the lamb is ready smush 2-3 anchovy filets in a bowl with a little of the pan juices/sauces and pour over the entire lamb/potato dish and return to oven to finish cooking for another 5-10 minutes.

Check your seasonings.
To Serve: pick out the stems of herbs and transfer the meat to a warm serving dish and spoon the pan sauces/gravy over the top with the potatoes.

The Perfect Frittata WITHOUT the Flip

noreply@blogger.com (Ashley Bartner) — Sat, 01 Mar 2014 13:51:00 +0000

A light paper-thin frittata topped simply with Spring’s young onions or traditional balsamic vinegar of Modena D.O.P., done with the right technique elevates an 'omelette' to a sophisticated and elegant dish. This healthy versatile recipe is not just to be made for breakfast, it can be served along side a salad for a light lunch or an appetizer/antipasto with dinner.

The best way to learn to make a frittata is to be taught in person so why not sign up for our live! online and interactive cooking class this Sunday when it's on the menu! (LIVE from ITALY Online Cooking Class details.)

Without having to flip the eggs this dish just got super simple - it's all in the detail!

The pan heat is very important. If your pan is too hot you will brown your eggs and a proper frittata should have no color.
By using the oven to firm up/cook the top of the frittata this eliminates the need to flip it & risk breaking the eggs.
Less is more. Remember this is not a thick fluffy omelet but delicate enough to almost melt in your mouth.

Simple Frittata

Serves 2
2 eggs
butter or olive oil
salt & pepper
Nonstick frying pan
anything you like to add inside: cheese, veg, bacon, balsamic, truffles, etc.

Preheat broiler/grill.
On medium heat, get the pan warm. Beat 2 eggs in a bowl. Add a small amount of butter or olive oil to the pan.

Add the eggs to the perimeter of the pan letting them swirl to the center. Once they have set up, add your filling as you like (cheese, veg, onions, etc.), crack of salt & pepper. Then pop it into the oven under the broiler 5-10 seconds until the top has set.
Slip onto board, fold over and cut.
Serve immediately.

Video Recipe: How to Make a Proper Italian Coffee

noreply@blogger.com (Ashley Bartner) — Wed, 12 Feb 2014 10:34:00 +0000

What's the best part of waking up in Italy? A proper Italian caffè! This short film shows you how to use and clean for a Moka to make Italian coffee (caffè, macchiato & cappuccino) at home. The Moka is the most widely used home coffee maker in Italy & makes a great caffè, we use it everyday!!

Click on the photos below to buy the essentials for un caffè Italiano vero!

Amazon.com Widgets

Video Recipe: Savory Rustic Tart with Wild Greens, Ricotta & Prosciutto

noreply@blogger.com (Ashley Bartner) — Fri, 07 Feb 2014 15:00:00 +0000

Recipe for the Savory Tart with Wild Greens, Prosciutto & Ricotta

During a hands-on cooking class at La Tavola Marche (farm, inn & cooking school) in Le Marche, Italy guests forage for wild greens in the field in front of our 300 year old farmhouse. Jason helps guests identify the different edibles and with bags full of dandelion greens, poppy greens, grispigno & more they head into the kitchen to create a rustic tart with the fresh picked wild greens, ricotta & prosciutto.

During the dog days of winter, enjoy this slice of life/glimpse at one of our Spring cooking classes!

Visit us during April/May 2014 for one of our Spring Cooking & Foraging Holidays in Italy:

Cooking with Wild Edibles & Bottling Wine: 24 - 28 April 2014 (4 Nights) = 500 Euro/person

“Made in Le Marche” D.O.C. Wine & Cheese Tour, Artisan Meat Market Trip with Chef & Craft Beer Tasting with 3 Cooking Classes 13-18 May 2014 (5 Nights) = 928 Euro/person

Recipe for the Savory Tart with Wild Greens, Prosciutto & Ricotta

Torta di Erbe Selvatiche

Pastry Dough
Ingredients:
2 3/4 Cups (250 gr) all purpose flour
3/4 Cup (150 gr.) butter, cut into pieces
1 egg
2-3 Tablespoons ice water
pinch of salt

Method:
Sift flour into a mound, add the butter & pinch of salt. Rub together with your fingers or food processor. When mixture resembles crumbly coarse sand incorporate the egg & water. Knead 2-3 times.
Form into a disk, wrap in plastic and place in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour.

Filling
Ingredients:
2 Cups (400 gr) of cooked, drained and squeezed dry greens (mix of wild greens or chard, spinach, escarole, etc.)
1 Cup (250 gr.) sheep’s milk ricotta cheese
zest of half a lemon
generous handful of Parmesan
2-3 slices of prosciutto, chopped
salt & pepper
1 egg, separated

Method:
Cook your greens in boiling, salted water depending on the toughness (spinach may only need 20-30 seconds, chard needs 3-4 minutes). Drain and squeeze as much liquid as you can out of the greens. Combine the greens in a bowl with the ricotta, parmesan, lemon, prosciutto, salt & pepper. Taste & check your seasonings.

To Assemble the Tart:
Preheat oven to 350 F/ 185 C

Remove the dough from the refrigerator and split in half. Roll out dough to 1/4 inch or 1/2 cm thickness and line the bottom of a tart or pie pan. (We use 9-inch or 25 cm but you can make individual tarts as well.) Make sure to have enough dough to fold the edges back over the the top.

Once pastry is lined in pan, brush with egg white then fill with a generous amount of the chard mixture (filling in evenly).

Brush folded over part on the top with egg yolk as well.

Place in oven, bake 45 minutes - 1 hour until pastry is golden brown & filling is bubbly. Serve warm or room temperature.