Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking

by Marcella Hazan

  Caôda is the Piedmontese word for hot, and heat, in the sense of temperature, not spice, is an essential feature of this sauce. In Piedmont, table burners fed by candles keep bagna caôda at the desirable temperature, but any contraption whose purpose is to keep food hot, whether it is fed by candles, electricity, or canned heat, will do the job. Nonetheless, for esthetic reasons if for no others, an earthenware pot is what you want for your bagna caôda and, if you don’t already own one, there may be no better reason than this to get one.

  For 6 to 8 servings

  ¾ cup extra virgin olive oil

  3 tablespoons butter

  2 teaspoons garlic chopped very fine

  8 to 10 anchovy fillets (preferably the ones prepared at home), chopped fine

  Salt

  1. Choose a pot over which you will subsequently be able to rest, double-boiler fashion, the saucepan in which you are making the bagna caôda. Put water in it and bring it to a lively simmer.

  2. Put the oil and butter in the pot for bagna caôda, turn on the heat to medium-low, and heat the butter until it is thoroughly liquefied and just barely begins to foam. If you let it get past this stage, it will become too hot.

  3. Add the garlic and sauté very briefly. It must not take on any color.

  4. Place the bagna caôda pot over the pan with simmering water. Add the chopped anchovies and cook, stirring frequently with a wooden spoon while using the back of it to mash the anchovies, until they dissolve into a paste. Add salt, stir, and bring to the table over a warming apparatus. Serve with raw vegetables, as described below.

  THE VEGETABLES FOR BAGNA CAÔDA

  Cardoons They look like a large white celery, but taste more like artichoke, and are nearly synonymous with bagna caôda. Unfortunately, the cardoons sold in Italian markets in North America are much tougher and more bitter than their Piedmontese counterparts. You might try using just the heart, and discarding all the tough outer stalks. Wash the cardoon thoroughly and cut it into four sections, like a celery heart. Rub the cut parts with lemon juice to keep them from discoloring.

  Artichokes You don’t need to trim artichokes for bagna caôda as you do for other preparations. Rinse the artichoke in cold water and serve it whole or, if very large, cut it in half. If you cut it, rub the cut parts with lemon juice. To eat, one pulls off a leaf at a time, dips it, holding it by its tip, and bites off just the tender bottom.

  Broccoli Not a Piedmontese vegetable, but very nice all the same. Cut off the florets and set them aside for any other recipe calling for broccoli. Serve just the stalks, after paring away the tough, outer skin.

  Spinach Use only young, crisp spinach. Wash thoroughly in many changes of cold water until all traces of soil are gone. Serve with the stems because they provide a handy hold for dipping.

  Sweet Red and Yellow Bell Peppers Wash in cold water and cut lengthwise into quarter sections. Remove the seeds and pulpy inner core.

  Celery Cut in half, lengthwise or, if very thick, in quarters. Discard bruised or blemished outer stalks. Wash well in cold water.

  Carrots Peel the carrots and cut them lengthwise into strips ½ inch thick.

  Radishes Cut off the whiskery root tip, wash in cold water, and serve with the stems and leaves on.

  Jerusalem Artichokes Soak them for a few minutes in cold water. Peel them using a potato peeler, but it isn’t necessary to pare away every bit of the peel as it is edible.

  Asparagus Certainly not a winter vegetable, although often available in some markets. It may be unorthodox, but it is also very good. Use the freshest asparagus possible, with the tightest buds. Pare away the tough, green skin from the base of the spear to the base of the bud. Remove any tiny leaves sprouting below the base of the bud. Wash in cold water.

  Zucchini Not a winter vegetable either, but if it’s there and it’s good, why pass it up? Do choose only the freshest, glossiest, small young zucchini. Soak in a large bowl filled with cold water for at least 20 minutes. Rinse thoroughly under cold running water, rubbing briskly with your hands or a rough cloth to remove any grit still embedded in the skin. Trim away both ends. Cut lengthwise into pieces 1 inch thick.

  OTHER VEGETABLES

  In Piedmont, they also use turnips, and scallions. Radicchio and endive could be other suitable choices. The range is really only limited by what vegetables are edible raw, and which ones you like the best. Since they must be eaten raw, they should be as fresh and unblemished as you can obtain, and the broader the variety the more fun you will have with bagna caôda.

  Ostriche alla Tarantina—Baked Oysters with Oil and Parsley

  THE CITY of Taranto on the Ionian sea, whose waters bathe the instep of the Italian boot, has been celebrated since antiquity for its oyster beds. Oysters from France and Portugal now reach Italian tables, but for centuries most of the oysters consumed in Italy came from Taranto, and so did most of the recipes with oysters, such as the one below.

  For 6 servings

  Rock salt OR clean pebbles

  36 live oysters, washed, scrubbed, shucked, and each placed on a half shell

  1½ tablespoons fine, dry, unflavored bread crumbs

  Black pepper, ground fresh from the mill

  1½ tablespoons chopped parsley

  ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil

  Freshly squeezed lemon juice

  1. Preheat oven to 500°.

  2. Choose a number of bake-and-serve dishes that will accommodate all the oysters in their half shells without overlapping. Spread the rock salt or pebbles on the bottom of the dishes; their purpose is both to keep the oysters from tipping and losing their juices and to retain heat after they are removed from the oven.

  3. Put the oysters in their half shells side by side in the rock salt or pebbles. Top each oyster with a sprinkling of bread crumbs, some ground pepper, a little parsley, and a few drops of olive oil.

  4. Place the baking dishes in the uppermost level of the preheated oven. Bake for 3 minutes. Before serving, moisten each oyster with a few drops of lemon juice.

  Grilled Mussels and Clams on the Half Shell

  For 4 to 6 servings

  2 dozen littleneck clams, as small as possible

  2 dozen mussels

  3 tablespoons parsley chopped fine

  ½ teaspoon garlic chopped very fine

  ⅓ cup extra virgin olive oil

  ½ cup fine, dry, unflavored bread crumbs

  4 ripe, fresh plum tomatoes Lemon wedges

  1. Soak the clams for 5 minutes in a basin or sink filled with cold water. Drain and refill the basin with fresh cold water, leaving in the clams. Vigorously scrub the clams one by one with a very stiff brush. Drain, refill the basin, and repeat the whole scrubbing operation. Do this 2 or 3 more times, always in fresh changes of water, until you see no more sand settling to the bottom of the basin. Discard any that, when handled, don’t clamp shut.

  2. Soak and scrub the mussels in cold water, following the procedure outlined above for the clams. In addition, pull away or cut off each mussel’s protruding tuft of fibers. Discard any that, when handled, don’t clamp shut.

  3. Put the mussels and clams in separate pots, cover, and turn on the heat to high. As soon as they unclench their shells, remove them from the pot. Some shells will open up sooner than others, and the mussels will open up before the clams, so take care that each clam and mussel is removed from the pot as it opens up, otherwise it will become tough. Eventually every shell that contains a live mollusk will open. Those that never open are probably full of mud and should be discarded. Do not discard the clam juices in the pot just yet.

  4. Detach the clam and mussel meat from the shells, setting aside half the clam shells and half the mussel shells and discarding the rest.

  5. Rinse the clams one by one, swishing them around gently in their own juices still in the pan, to remove any remaining trace of sand.

  6. Preheat the broiler.

  7. Put the parsley, garlic, olive oil, and bread crumbs in a mixing bowl. Ad
d the clam and mussel meat, mixing them with the ingredients until well coated. Let stand and marinate about 20 minutes.

  8. Skin the tomatoes, using a potato peeler with a swiveling blade. Cut the tomatoes in half and remove all the seeds, picking them out with the point of a paring knife. Do not squeeze the tomatoes. Cut each one into 6 thin strips.

  9. Wash the clam and mussel shells you set aside. In each shell place one of its respective mollusks. Distribute the marinade left over in the mixing bowl among all the clams and mussels. Top each clam with a strip of tomato. Place on the broiler pan and run under the hot broiler just long enough for a thin crust to form. Serve hot accompanied by lemon wedges.

  Sautéed Scallops with Garlic and Parsley

  THE SUCCESS of this very tasty seafood appetizer rests on two recommendations: Buy the most tender, smallest scallops you can find and do not overcook them. Canestrei, as they are called in Venice, are no bigger than the nail on one’s pinky. They are both tender and savory. If the small, sweet bay scallops are in season and available to you, those are the ones you should get. Deep-sea scallops are large, chewier, and less sweet, but they are a perfectly acceptable substitute if fresh.

  For 4 servings

  ½ pound fresh bay scallops, OR large sea scallops cut into 3 or 4 pieces

  2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

  1 teaspoon garlic chopped fine

  Salt

  Black pepper, ground fresh from the mill

  1 tablespoon parsley chopped fine

  1 tablespoon chopped capers

  2 tablespoons chopped homemade roasted peppers

  1½ tablespoons fine, dry, unflavored bread crumbs

  4 scallop shells, available in most cooking equipment shops, OR 4 small gratin dishes

  1. Wash the scallops in cold water, drain, and pat thoroughly dry with kitchen towels.

  2. Put the olive oil and garlic in a small saucepan, turn on the heat to medium. Cook and stir the garlic until it becomes colored a pale gold, but no darker. Then put in the scallops. Add salt and a few grindings of pepper, and turn up the heat. Cook at a brisk pace, stirring frequently, for a few seconds, until they lose their shiny raw color. Turn off the heat.

  3. Preheat the broiler.

  4. Add the parsley, capers, chopped peppers, and 1 tablespoon of bread crumbs to the scallops and mix well. Distribute the contents of the pan among the 4 shells or gratin dishes. Sprinkle with the remaining ½ tablespoon of bread crumbs.

  5. Run the shells or gratin dishes under the preheated broiler for about 1 minute, or no longer than it takes to form a light brown crust over the scallops. Serve promptly.

  Arrosticini Abruzzesi—Skewered Marinated Lamb Tidbits

  IN ABRUZZI, as in the other central Italian regions, Umbria, Latium, and Tuscany, the shepherd and his lambs are equally a feature of the landscape and of the gastronomic tradition. The recipe that follows is borrowed from the shepherds’ own outdoor cooking, when they camp out with their flocks. Although it can be done indoors in a home broiler, it would be wonderful over the hot embers of a wood fire.

  For 4 servings

  ½ pound boned lamb shoulder

  1 garlic clove

  2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

  Salt

  Black pepper, ground fresh from the mill

  ½ teaspoon dried marjoram OR 1 teaspoon fresh chopped

  10 or 12 small skewers

  1. Slice the meat into strips about ½ inch wide and 2 inches long. Do not trim away the fat, but try to have lean meat attached to some fat in as many pieces as possible. The fat will melt partly in the cooking, feeding the fire, and baste and sweeten the meat.

  2. Mash the garlic with a heavy knife handle, crushing it enough to split it and loosen the peel, which you will remove and discard.

  3. Put the meat in a bowl, adding the oil, salt, several grindings of pepper, marjoram, and garlic. Toss well, thoroughly coating the meat. Let the lamb marinate at room temperature for 2 hours, or in the refrigerator for 4 to 6 hours. Turn the lamb pieces from time to time. If refrigerated, take the meat out at least 30 minutes before cooking.

  4. Preheat the broiler or light the coals or, even better, prepare a wood fire.

  5. Turn the meat thoroughly one more time, then skewer it, piercing each strip in at least two places.

  6. When the broiler or fire is hot, or the wood is reduced to hot embers, place the skewers as close as possible to the source of heat. If barbecuing, use very hot coals. Cook for 3 minutes on one side, then turn the skewers and cook for 2 to 3 minutes on the other. A small, fine crust should form on all sides of the meat. Serve at once.

  SOUPS

  ITALIAN SOUPS owe their character to two elements: the season and the place of origin.

  The seasons determine the choice of vegetables, legumes, tubers, and herbs, which, except for those few fish soups that are more seafood courses than true soups, are usually prominently present, either as an accent or as the dominant ingredient.

  The place shapes the style. A vegetable soup can tell you where you are in Italy almost as precisely as a map. There are the soups of the south, founded on tomato, garlic, and olive oil, often filled out with pasta; the soups of Tuscany and other central Italian regions that are fortified with beans and supported by thick slices of bread; the soups of the north, with rice; the fragrant ones of the Riviera, with lettuces and fresh herbs.

  The one common link Italian soups have, the single distinguishing feature, is their substantiality. Some may be lighter than others; some may be thin; some thick. In some soups the beans or the potatoes may be puréed through a food mill. In no soup, however, is the texture, consistency, weight—the physical identity of the ingredients—wholly obliterated. There are no food processor soups, no cream-of-anything soups in the Italian repertory.

  Minestrone alla Romagnola—Vegetable Soup, Romagna Style

  AT HOME, in my native Romagna, this is the way we make minestrone. To seasonal vegetables we add the always available staples—carrots, onions, potatoes—and cook them in good broth over slow heat for hours. The result is a soup of dense, mellow flavor that recalls no vegetable in particular, but all of them at once.

  Note that all the ingredients do not go into the pot at one time, but in a sequence that is indicated. By first sautéing the onion you produce the essential underlying flavor, which is then imparted to the other vegetables in turn. While one vegetable is cooking, you can peel and cut up another, a more efficient and less tedious method than preparing all the vegetables at once. If more convenient, you can of course have all the vegetables prepared before starting, but do observe the cooking intervals indicated in the recipe.

  For 6 to 8 servings

  1 pound fresh zucchini

  ½ cup extra virgin olive oil

  3 tablespoons butter

  1 cup onion sliced very thin

  1 cup diced carrots

  1 cup diced celery

  2 cups peeled, diced potatoes

  ¼ pound fresh green beans

  3 cups shredded Savoy cabbage OR regular cabbage

  1½ cups canned cannellini beans, drained, OR ¾ cup dried white kidney beans, soaked and cooked as directed

  6 cups Basic Homemade Meat Broth, OR 2 cups canned beef broth plus 4 cups water

  OPTIONAL: the crust from a 1- to 2-pound piece of parmigiano-reggiano cheese, carefully scraped clean

  ⅔ cup canned imported Italian plum tomatoes, with their juice

  Salt

  ⅓ cup freshly grated parmigiano-reggiano cheese

  1. Soak the zucchini in a large bowl filled with cold water for at least 20 minutes, then rinse them clean of any remaining grit. Trim both ends on each zucchini and dice the zucchini fine.

  2. Choose a stockpot that can comfortably accommodate all the ingredients. Put in the oil, butter, and sliced onion and turn on the heat to medium low. Cook the onion in the uncovered pot until it wilts and becomes colored a pale gold, but no darker.

  3. Ad
d the diced carrots and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, stirring once or twice. Then add the celery, and cook, stirring occasionally, for 2 or 3 minutes. Add the potatoes, repeating the same procedure.

  4. While the carrots, celery, and potatoes are cooking, soak the green beans in cold water, rinse, snap off both ends, and dice them.

  5. Add the diced green beans to the pot, and when they have cooked for 2 or 3 minutes, add the zucchini. Continue to give all ingredients an occasional stir and, after another few minutes, add the shredded cabbage. Continue cooking for another 5 to 6 minutes.

  6. Add the broth, the optional cheese crust, the tomatoes with their juice, and a sprinkling of salt. If using canned broth, salt lightly at this stage, and taste and correct for salt later on. Give the contents of the pot a thorough stirring. Cover the pot, and lower the heat, adjusting it so that the soup bubbles slowly, cooking at a steady, but gentle simmer.

  7. When the soup has cooked for 2½ hours, add the drained, cooked cannellini beans, stir well, and cook for at least another 30 minutes. If necessary, you can turn off the heat at any time and resume the cooking later. Cook until the consistency is fairly dense. Minestrone ought never to be thin and watery. If you should find that the soup is becoming too thick before it has finished cooking, you can dilute it a bit with some more homemade broth or, if you started with canned broth, with water.

  8. When the soup is done, just before you turn off the heat, remove the cheese crust, swirl in the grated cheese, then taste and correct for salt.

  Ahead-of-time note Minestrone, unlike most cooked vegetable preparations, is even better when reheated the following day. It will keep up to a week in a tightly sealed container in the refrigerator.