Tag: dish

Bitter tortelli of Castel Goffredo, history and recipe of a single dish – Italian Cuisine

The bitter tortelli are a typical dish of Castel Goffredo, in the province of Mantua. They are called so because of the particular grass that is put in the filling

The Italian culinary tradition is so rich that sometimes there are recipes that do not exceed the limits of a municipality. This is the case of the bitter tortelli of Castel Goffredo, an ancient dish and very "cooked" by the castellans, but until recently not very well known outside the home. The recent history of this small town in the province of Mantua is closely linked to that of stockings. Even today, most of the yarns and tights that cover the legs of thousands of women come right from here. However, the industrial dimension is relegated to the periphery. Crossing the narrow streets of the historic center, from the mouths of its inhabitants and from the menus of its trattorias, one realizes that it is rather this that dominates the scene. particular stuffed pasta.

Tortelli bitters, the origin of the name

They are called that for the presence in the filling of St. Peter's grass, also commonly known as "Bitter herb". The scientific name is Balsamita major, it blooms around the end of June, when the Saint's anniversary falls (June 29th). The plant is part of the family of aromatic-balsamic and has, as you may have guessed, a pleasant bitter aftertaste. The recipe has been handed down from generation to generation, but mostly orally. There is very little literature on this subject, apart from a few cookbooks preserved in the beliefs of older housewives who, they assure, have always made these tortelli.

It's a short step from pumpkin to bitter grass

In the nearby Mantova, the dough is filled with pumpkin and their tortelli are famous throughout Italy. Here, in Castel Goffredo, instead we put this particular grass that still grows spontaneously in the gardens and in the vegetable gardens of the houses. The idea of replace the cucurbitaceae with the aromatic plant it must have come to some housewife who, in times of thin, with the little she had, will have worked to create a new dish. The fame is not comparable to that of the Mantuan tortelli, but lately also bitter ravioli are starting to come out.

In the recipe "publishes" all the ingredients

Only some of the "risidure" (dialectal term to define the women who run the house) know the original recipe, which, however, they keep jealously secret to reserve the true dish to friends and relatives. The following is the public version. For the pastry it takes 300 grams of 00 flour, three eggs and one yolk. The ingredients for the stuffing are: 600 grams of herbs, 80 grams of butter, 50 grams of sage, an egg, an onion, a clove of garlic, 20 leaves of bitter herb, 40 grams of grated bread, 80 grams of grana padano, salt pepper and nutmeg.

Here's how to prepare the filling

First clean and blanch the herbs in salt water. Then drain them, trying to remove all the excess liquid, and cut them – not too fine – with the knife. Fry in butter the sage, onion and garlic. Once the herbs have also been seasoned, combine them in a bowl with the eggs, Grana Padano cheese, breadcrumbs, sage, onion and garlic, nutmeg, pepper and salt. Mix everything and finally add the raw chopped bitter herb. Prepare the dough of egg pasta cut into squares, fill with a teaspoon of filling and fold into a triangle. Cook in salted water and serve with a sprinkling of good grated cheese and a tablespoon of melted butter and crisp sage.

At the Tortello Amaro Festival in Castel Goffredo to eat the real ones

Foreigners have a single chance to be able to taste the truly original and is the Bitter Tortello Festival, scheduled this year from 13 to 16 June at the Parco la Fontanella. On this occasion the housewives themselves will get to work, offering those who are not local the chance to taste the real Tortelli Amari of Castel Goffredo or the Tortelli Amarissi, "Just like the castellans like". The rest of the menu will also be based on dishes cooked with this herb: braised pork with pork bitter polenta, bitter polenta with straccone cheese, Amarburgher with fries, Buon Umore cake, Bitter ice cream is GranitinAmara. For those who could not go to the party can always try them in some country restaurants, such as La Viola, La Pialla, Il Roccolo, or in neighboring towns such as the Selvole which is located in the hamlet of the same name, at the trattoria Da Laura in the Perosso hamlet, at the Agriturismo San Lorenzo in the hamlet of Casalpoglio.

the simplest dish recipe there is! – Italian Cuisine

How to make pasta in white … do you need a tutorial? Maybe not, but a review of the base is always useful

It is the pasta par excellence of families, the one you prepare when you have not had time to do the shopping, the fridge is empty and the children claim dinner. IS' the pasta in white. Yes, the one that really happens when there is nothing at home, but not only. It is the easy alternative when children do not want to eat what you have prepared:
"Mom but did you put the onion in the sauce?"
"Er … no, I never put it …" (frottole)
"But I see it !!"
"Alright then you eat it in white!"
Typical scene.

But it's all in fact except a punitive meal and when you grow up it almost becomes a comfort food, a dish that doesn't engage you, fills you up, warms you up a bit and reminds you of your mother.

But how is white pasta made?

No, we don't want to do a real tutorial, but even white pasta has its rules!
We answer the basic questions!

What format?

Not all pasta is suitable for making a good one White pasta. There are two perfect alternatives.
The first format advice is i tubes or ditalini, better if rigati that collect the sauce well, they are soft, to be eaten strictly with a spoon, for a nostalgic evening, to simply return as children.
The second is the spaghetti. Meanwhile, because in the pantry the spaghetti are almost always present and then because they cook very quickly, to satisfy voracious and hungry diners. They will remain a little dry, I assure you, also because instinctively you will always throw a little too much into the pot, but is it really a problem? For me no.
Last format almost allowed but not really recommended, the noodle or the tagliolino. But this is a refinement, recalling the memory of noodles with butter and truffles, let's face it, not a dish for every day!
But I can say if you have two nests of good noodles in white, they are not bad either.
You can also accept all the other formats you can find at home, but the first two are the ones that will really give you satisfaction.

Butter or oil?

With the pasta in white it is not just a joke butter! Enveloping and abundant, butter is a real comfort. As a good Italian of southern origins I love extra virgin olive oil but this is not the case. Otherwise you prepare a garlic and oil no? Another world and another purpose.

How do you dress pasta in white?

Very good question. There White pasta it is not just drained pasta and seasoned with a piece of butter. The true art is in draining the pasta very very well, it must not hold water, meanwhile throw a piece of butter in the pan still on the fire that you have lowered, throw back the pasta and turn very quickly with a spoon. Mixing with speed the butter will mount slightly, it will not only be melted, and the dough will be all wrapped up. What a poem!
There are those who dress on the plate. The only advantage is that of not permanently dirtying the pasta pot. Advantage not so decisive as to have to give up a well-seasoned pasta.

And finally?

Grated Parmesan cheese at the moment or or a scented grated nutmeg.
Simply perfect.

Sustainability, here is the best circular dish (and the recipe to prepare it) – Italian Cuisine

Milan City Council, Banco Alimentare and Gruppo Elior closed Milano Food City talking about urban planning in a new way with the creation of a menu inspired by the circular economy and sustainability

Municipality of Milan, Banco Alimentare and the Elior Group committed themselves to food sustainability with a symbolic contest in which they proposed the best dishes inspired by thecircular economy based on the recovery of what is commonly discarded. To compete in a show cooking at Food Academy Elior, two teams formed by chefs Elior and Marco Lucchini and Antonio Oliva, respectively Secretary General and Vice President of the Banco Alimentare Foundation. To decide the fate of the challenge a jury of exception formed by the Councilor for Labor Policies, Productive Activities, Commerce and Human Resources of the municipality of Milan, Cristina Tajani, the starred chef Claudio Sadler and the food and wine journalist and creator and curator of Identità Golose, international congress of kitchen and pastry shop of author, Paolo Marchi. On the occasion of the event, one was given free supply of Amato pasta by Pastificio Di Martino, to support the canteen of the Sant’Antonio da Padova friars on Via Farini in Milan.

"Initiatives such as these, as well as all the appointments offered by the rich calendar of Milan Food City, aim to achieve a double objective: to make the capital the national reference point for the" food "world, as well as to promote, disseminate and encourage a correct food culture. The Administration's task is precisely to create a synergic network between companies, third sector operators and citizens to make them more aware of the adoption of more sustainable lifestyles, thanks also to consumption choices capable of reducing food waste and having the right attention to the most fragile subjects since food is always culture and respect towards man . commented Cristina Tajani, Councilor for Labor Policies, Productive Activities and Commerce of the Municipality of Milan.

"This day – says Marco Lucchini – makes the Food Academy an ideal place where institutions, civil society organizations, citizens and a large company can realize a collaboration that affects and contributes to the transformation of the city, creating a replicable best practice. Each with its characteristics and skills: Elior bringing its knowledge gained within a daily and qualified engineering in the production of millions of meals, the Mensa dei Frati di Sant'Antonio da Padova welcoming those who are destitute, sharing much more with them of a meal. Food Bank as a bridge that unites these realities through its action to recover food surpluses and their donation to charitable structures. Last but not least, the municipal administration in its ability to enhance and support in a subsidiary way the positive attempts that are born in Milan .

"For our group the theme of sustainability is absolutely fundamental – says Rosario Ambrosino, CEO of Elior – With the Positive Foodprint Plan project, we aim to create a virtuous circle in the world of catering, from the field to the table, so that everyone consciously makes the choice more sustainable. We focus our efforts on the entire supply chain to create value in every step, from the search for ingredients to the choice of suppliers, from cooking methods and techniques to the equipment to be used, from awareness of good and healthy food to training, to the recovery of surpluses where they are created. Equally important are our collaborations, as in the case of the Banco Alimentare Foundation, with which we have been running a surplus recovery project for over 10 years. In 2018 alone we managed to distribute together about 36,000 meals recovered from our restaurants09 .

The winning circular plate: Ramen alla lombarda

Ingredients:

For the broth
Chicken wings, neck and skin, Carrots, onion, celery, fennel outer leaves, pea pods, powdered ginger, soy sauce, coarse salt

For the chicken cut:
Chicken breast , Panure of stale rye bread, anchovies, capers

For the buckwheat crepes
Buckwheat flour, water, turmeric powder, salt and pepper

For the gasket
Boiled egg , Carrot tufts

Preparation:

Arrange all the ingredients for the broth in cold water and bring to the boil. Prepare the chicken breast by breading it with stale bread, capers and anchovies and cook it in a mixed oven for 10 12 minutes. Cook one egg for 8 minutes, up cut as cut placed on the side of the plate together with the egg in the stock and ricotta ball with almond on the crepes.

Recipe by Emanuele Oldani and Antonio Oliva

Cover photo: from left Emanuele Oldani – elior chef Marco Lucchini – Rosario Ambrosino – AD Elior, Marco Serina – chef Elior, Ilaria D'Aquila – hr elior director, Marco Lucchini – Banco Alimentare General Secretary, Antonio Oliva – Vice President of the Foundation Food Bank.