Photo by: PhillipC

I poured my morning cup of coffee, grabbed my stack of food magazines, and went to sit in my Springy sun-filled (finally) sun room.  Before I could put my coffee down, my May 2009 issue of La Cucina Italiana slipped off the top of the pile and landed wide open to a beautiful spread of Il Palio in Siena, Italy. My heart leapt. Siena is the beautiful town where I spent the best six months of my life. And Il Palio is the glorious horse race that has occurred twice each summer for more than 350 years in the Piazza del Campo. Il Palio is a dangerous race where jockeys ride bareback, where 90 degree corners must be turned, and where horse – not man – is winner. In fact, a horse can win even if the rider falls off.

Unfortunately, I’ve never been to either race because at the time I felt sunning myself in in the Greek isles was more fun (it was fun, but I should have scheduled in at least one race). Seeing the pictures of Siena and the Piazza del Campo brought back so many memories of friendship, food, love, and even politics:

• The fountain where darling Daniele professed his love me, only to have me turn him down. Poor guy. I was gentle, though.
• The corner of the square where my girlfriends and I, sitting on our coats studying, were trampled by a swarm of journalists. At the center of the swarm was the Soviet dissident Andrei Sakharov. Coats and homework were trampled, but at least we had an interesting excuse to give our professor!
• The little café where we’d sip aqua minerale con gas (sparkling water) and nibble on the free bread sticks.
• Long laughs over wine or sangria at Bar Centrale or Re Artu.

The article also reminded me of the wonderful meals our friend Claudio would make us. Many of which I still cook to this day: Penne con Panna e Salciccia (penne with cream and sausage). He taught us the delectability of pasta drizzled simply with garlic infused olive oil, which seemed to be our standard meal at the end of the month when the money ran out. He also taught us that we were using far too little salt in our pasta water, and that, no, not all pasta is the same.

Best of all, the article reminded me of the times I’d sit in the Piazzo del Campo thinking of all the laughs, the professed loves, the glasses of wine sipped, and friendships that had formed over the centuries in that same little spot where I sat.

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Categories:	Italian • Travel	2 Comments
Tags:	il palio • Italy • siena • Travel

Photo: pink_fish13

I return home from work (hungry), check the mailbox and find my newest issue of Gourmet magazine. There on the cover is a delicious grilled sandwich bulging with juicy ham, its bread toasted to crisp perfection. When I flip through the pages (which, by the way, reading a food mag is never a good idea to do when you are hungry) I am reminded of the sandwiches we used to get in Siena, Italy. After school my girlfriends and I would head to Bar Centrali for panini and cokes (okay, sometimes wine). When I first arrived in Italy I could barely speak a lick of Italian, but I quickly mastered the art of ordering my “panino.”

“Prosciutto crudo, fontini é fungi con salsa rosa é salsa verde, per favore!”

Raw cured ham, fontina cheese, mushrooms with red and green sauce grilled to perfection on a big fancy panini grill. I’m still not really sure what the red and green sauces were (tomato- and pesto-esque), but they were divine in their mystery. Best of all, I felt oh so Italian when I placed the order! I ate that same sandwich almost daily for six months straight. Whether I ate the same version because I was so in love with it (completely) or just scared to learn a new string of ingredients (probably) I’ll never quite know (or admit).

Oh, so young, so naive! If I were there again I’d be ordering a different panino each day. Choosing from amongst the cured meats and cheeses that hung over the bar.

I’ve never been able to reproduce that same panino, and I don’t think I actually want to, as the memory of that one great panino would somehow be sullied. I will always miss that sandwich, though not nearly as much as I miss the time spent with my wonderful girlfriends. Nothing comes close to either.

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Categories:	Cheese • Italian • condiments	2 Comments
Tags:	Bar Centrale • fontina • grilled sandwich • Italy • panini • panino • prosciutto • prosciutto crudo • sandwich • siena

Photo: James.Whisker

Every day as we walked to school in Siena, Italy we passed the big panforte factory. We could smell the delicious confection baking and it was intoxicating. Back then I didn’t appreciate this dense and chewy cake but it’s now something I look forward to during the holidays.

Panforte dates back to at least the Middle Ages, some believe back even further, and originated in Siena (or at least Tuscany). It literally translates to “strong bread,” referring to its piquant flavor. Being so densely packed with dried fruit, nuts, spices, and honey I’m sure the Crusaders referred to it as their energy bar.

Many regard Siena as the panforte capital of Italy. While there are various recipes for panforte most Senese believe it should contain seventeen ingredients to represent the seventeen contrade (subdivisions) of the walled city (my beloved contrada was the Istrice, or the crested porcupine!).

If you’re making panforte follow the traditional Italian way by baking it in small 4-inch disks. Wrap it in wax paper, then brown butcher paper. Tie it with string and, if you want to get really fancy, seal it with red embossed wax. Che bella! A little slice is perfect in the morning with a cup of cappuccino, or after a meal with a nice glass of vin santo.

Panforte
Adapted from Chef Gina DePalma

Nonstick cooking spray, for pan
3 cups whole blanched almonds
1 3/4 cups whole hazelnuts, skinned or unskinned
2 cups diced candied orange peel
6 ounces dried apricots, diced
5 ounces dried figs, diced
1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon Dutch-processed cocoa powder
1 teaspoon coarse salt
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 3/4 cups granulated sugar
1 3/4 cups honey
6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) unsalted butter, plus more for pan
Confectioners’ sugar, for dusting

Preheat oven to 325 degrees with a rack set in the center of the oven. Generously spray a 9-by-2-inch heavy-bottomed, nonstick round cake pan with nonstick cooking spray. Line bottom of pan with a parchment paper circle, spray parchment paper circle with cooking spray. Coat bottom and sides of pan with flour, tapping out excess.

Using a sharp knife, roughly chop almonds and hazelnuts and place in a large, wide bowl, along with orange peel, apricots, and figs; toss to combine.

In a medium bowl, stir together flour, cinnamon, cocoa powder, salt, nutmeg, cloves, and pepper. Add to bowl of nuts and fruit and toss until well combined.

Place sugar, honey, and butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Cook mixture until it reaches 217 degrees on a candy thermometer. Remove pan from heat and quickly pour sugar mixture into nut mixture. Using a heatproof spatula, stir until well combined. Transfer mixture to prepared cake pan, smoothing surface with a spatula.

Transfer cake pan to oven and bake until entire surface is bubbling, 15 to 20 minutes. Transfer cake to wire rack and let cool completely. Wrap well with parchment paper, and then again with plastic wrap. Store in a cool, dry place up to 3 weeks.

To serve, dust the panforte with confectioners’ sugar and cut into thin wedges with a sharp knife.
For more on the history of panforte check out Siena’s Panforte: A Christmas Delight.

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Categories:	Baked Goods • Fruit • Herbs • Holiday • Italian • Nuts • Seasoning & Spices • desserts	6 Comments
Tags:	baking • Christmas • Food • foodista • holiday baking • Italian • Italy • panforte • siena

You all have been enjoying the limoncello recipe so much I thought I’d stay on the Italian train and give you another tasty treat. Bomboloni are the Italian version of doughnuts – without the holes – and are usually filled with cream, raspberry jam (or some other yumminess), and dusted with sugar.

My girlfriends and I used to sit in the Piazza della Republica in Siena, sip caffè lattes, and nosh on bomboloni until we were nearly sick.

Those were the good old days.

Bomboloni

Scant 1/4 cup loosely packed fresh compressed yeast
Scant 1/4 cup cold water
3 1/2 cups bread flour
4 large eggs
1/3 cup granulated sugar, plus extra for coating
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cubed
Vegetable or canola oil
Raspberry jam (or pastry cream)

Dissolve the yeast in a small bowl with the cold water. Place the flour, eggs, sugar, and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and beat on medium speed until the ingredients are dispersed, about 5 seconds. Add the dissolved yeast and beat for about 2 minutes on medium-high speed, until the dough is well combined and holds together. Add the cubed butter and mix for another 5 to 7 minutes, until the dough no longer sticks to the side of the mixing bowl. If the dough is overly sticky, you may need to add about 1 tablespoon of flour. It is usually necessary to scrape down the side of the bowl with a rubber spatula to encourage the dough to form a ball and come away from the side. Remove the paddle and pat the dough into a ball at the bottom of the bowl. Cover the mixing bowl with plastic wrap and let the dough rest at room temperature for about 20 minutes. The dough will rise slightly.Remove the dough from the mixing bowl and punch it down to remove the air. Spread it onto a lightly floured baking sheet with your fingers and flatten the dough until it is about 3/4-inch thick. Cover with plastic wrap and let it rest in the refrigerator for a minimum of 2 hours or overnight. It will slightly proof.

Remove the dough from the refrigerator and place on a lightly floured work surface. Flatten it slightly with your hands. Cut the dough into circles with a 1 1/2-inch diameter cutter, keeping the cuts as close together as possible. Pat any leftover dough into a rectangle and cut more circles out of it. (At this stage, the Bombolini can be frozen for up to 1 week if well wrapped in plastic wrap. Allow the Bombolini to defrost in the refrigerator before proofing.)

Place the Bomboloni on a parchment covered baking sheet lightly sprayed with vegetable cooking spray. Space them 2 inches apart. Loosely cover the baking sheet with plastic wrap. Allow the Bomboloni to proof at room temperature for about 2 hours, until they have doubled in size and appear light and full of air.

Heat the oil about 15 minutes in an electric fryer or in a 4-quart heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium-high heat to 320 degrees F. If using a saucepan, check the temperature with a candy thermometer. Fry 5 to 7 Bomboloni at one time, any more than that and the oil temperature will dip down too much and they will not fry evenly. Fry for a total of 3 to 5 minutes, until they are golden brown. Turn to evenly fry each side. As they fry, they will increase in size. Remove the Bomboloni with a large slotted spoon and set on a paper towel to drain the excess oil.

While the Bomboloni are still warm, roll them in a bowl filled with granulated sugar until evenly coated. If desired, fill the Bomboloni with a jam-filled pastry bag fitted with a 1/4-inch plain tip. Use a sharp paring knife to make a small hole on the bottom of each Bomboloni. Place the tip of the pastry bag in the hole and squeeze until the Bomboloni feels heavy. It is best to fill the Bomboloni while they are still warm and the dough soft and pliable. Serve immediately.

Recipe courtesy Jacques Torres, Dessert Circus At Home, 1999

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Categories:	Baked Goods • Italian • desserts	13 Comments
Tags:	bomboloni • Dessert • doughnuts • Food • foodista • Italian • Italy • siena • Sweets