briciole

delicata squash stuffed with fagiolina del Trasimeno and leeks / zucca ripiena di fagiolina del Trasimeno e porri

dinner, plain and simple (linen by La FABBRICA del LINO) The Cooking Gene by Michael Twitty1, the current selection of the Cook the Books club, is a captivating read and a book difficult to describe in a few words: world history, food history, personal memories, travels all play a part in the story, which has an epic reach, encompassing centuries and large spaces, using the author's family tree as guide. Even before reading the book, I knew Twitty is a great story teller, whether he talks about a specific dish or is inhabiting the lives of his enslaved ancestors. I understand... Read more →

My Legume Love Affair #101: the roundup

Hosting the 101st edition of MLLA, created by Susan of The Well-Seasoned Cook and now hosted by Lisa of Lisa's Kitchen was, as in previous occasions, a great pleasure. Throughout the past month, I have received contributions from around the world, delicious variations on the theme of legumes. Hosting an event means having the pleasure of collecting and then sharing the collection — of savoring in solitude each dish as it is submitted to me, and then inviting everybody to the final banquet. It was a great pleasure to welcome new participants to the party and to say Hi! to old... Read more →

Purgatory bean salad with tahini sauce and Asian pear / insalata di fagioli del Purgatorio con tahina e pera asiatica

Flavors from around the world Federico García Lorca1 is one of my favorite poets, so when I came across a novel whose protagonist's name was Lorca, I had to read it: I am glad I followed my impulse. Jessica Soffer's Tomorrow There Will Be Apricots2 is the current selection of our Cook the Books Club. The book brings together a group of people who all carry a heavy burden of pain: the pain of exile from homeland and from motherhood, the pain of an aloof mother and an absent father, the pain of loneliness, abandonment, inadequacy. Food is one way through... Read more →

annuncio / announcement: My Legume Love Affair #101

I have the honor of being the host for the November 2016 edition of My Legume Love Affair (MLLA), the popular, legume-centered event that is the brainchild of Susan of The Well-Seasoned Cook and has been hosted by Lisa of Lisa's Kitchen since February 2013. Participation in the event revolves around a recipe that showcases one or more legumes. The recipe can be savory or sweet but must be vegetarian. The legume (or legumes) must be one of the main ingredients, not a minor character. (Exceptions to this general rule are legumes whose flavor is so intense that they are used... Read more →

fagioli dall'occhio al berberé / Ethiopian-style black-eyed peas

[cliccare il link per andare alla versione in italiano] a pretty combination The tenth stop of our World Culinary ABC1 is Antarctica (Antartide). Hostess Brii obtained from McMurdo Station2 the menu for one week to give us a sense of what the researchers who spend the fall and winter in Antarctica eat. Spicy Ethiopian Red Lentil Stew caught my attention because I like it and has been on my to-make list for a while. Getting berberé, the traditional Ethiopian spice blend3 to make the dish, took longer than expected and then I realized that, contrary to my belief, I didn't have... Read more →

My Legume Love Affair #82: the roundup

Hosting the 82nd edition of MLLA, created by Susan of The Well-Seasoned Cook and now hosted by Lisa of Lisa's Kitchen was, as in previous occasions, a great pleasure. Throughout the past month, I have received contributions from around the world, delicious variations on the theme of legumes. Hosting an event means having the pleasure of collecting and then sharing the collection — of savoring in solitude each dish as it is submitted to me, and then inviting everybody to the final banquet. It was a great pleasure to welcome new participants to the party and to say Hi! to old... Read more →

fagiolina del Lago Trasimeno ai porri / cowpea of Lake Trasimeno with leeks

[versione in italiano] fagiolina comes in two varieties: white and "rainbow" (the beautiful bicolor linen tablecloth is from La FABBRICA del LINO) When I visit Perugia, the city in central Italy where I was born and grew up, I always bring back some fagiolina del Lago Trasimeno a local variety of cowpea (Vigna unguiculata)1. Besides being pretty, fagiolina is a pleasure to eat: tender, buttery and flavorful. Good things come in small packages. I buy fagiolina at the Antica Spezieria e Drogheria Eredi Bavicchi2 one of my favorite stores in the world. The owner is a supporter of local legume growers.... Read more →

annuncio / announcement: My Legume Love Affair #82

I have the honor of being the host for the April 2015 edition of My Legume Love Affair (MLLA), the popular, legume-centered event that is the brainchild of Susan of The Well-Seasoned Cook and has been hosted by Lisa of Lisa's Kitchen since February 2013. Participation in the event revolves around a recipe that showcases one or more legumes. The recipe can be savory or sweet but must be vegetarian. The legume (or legumes) must be one of the main ingredients, not a minor character. (Exceptions to this general rule are legumes whose flavor is so intense that they are used... Read more →

zuppa di ceci neri / black chickpea soup

[cliccare il link per andare alla versione in italiano] a simply good soup (linen napkin from La FABBRICA del LINO) Julius Knipl, Real Estate Photographer1 is the protagonist of Cheap Novelties, The Pleasures of Urban Decay2 by Ben Katchor. The collection of black and white strips reads like a collection of short-short stories simple on the surface, yet haunting like the dripping of a faucet that prevents us from falling asleep. Julius is out all day in a solidly urban landscape of tall buildings grouped into blocks drawn up by roads. Instead of the sun, a myriad light bulbs (lampadine) of... Read more →

crema di fagioli / refried beans

[cliccare il link per andare alla versione in italiano] painted pony beans (table runners from La FABBRICA del LINO) The seventh stop of our World Culinary ABC1 is Mexico. To celebrate our virtual visit I made a personal version of frijoles refritos. [Note that the prefix re- in this case means "very" or "well".] I had some pinto beans and that's the variety I used initially for the recipe. According to wikipedia2 "In northern Mexico and in American Tex-Mex cuisine, refried beans are usually prepared with pinto beans, but many other varieties of bean are used in other parts of Mexico,... Read more →