copyright 2010, Maria Liberati

“Life is a combination of magic and pasta” a saying of the late film director Federico Fellini..and it is so true…

Fellini was from Rimini in the north of Italy but a trip to the Eternal City when he was a young boy changed his life forever…he was enamored with  Rome..its’ people. its’ food, its’ flavors,its’ sights, the magic..and so the films of Federico Felllini were born.

I have walked  past and stopped at many of his old haunts in Rome  and wonder what it would have been like to have dinner with him and his delightful wife, actress Giuliana Massina…a Sunday  dinner ..you know first a’ passeggiata’ on Via Margutta..known for their antiques stores and one of his favorite neighborhoods.

And then heading over to Sora Lella’s restaurant  for a typical Roman pasta dish -Pasta a la Matriciana  (a specialty of the restaurant)– accompanied by a glass of Montepulciano….entertained by the intense flavors of the pasta and the interesting stories of Fellini and his  wife Giuliana and the cinematic  memories of Sora Lella herself…..that would be truly magic and pasta. And the evening’s dinner would finish with a stroll .. under a serene  Roman evening sky….to  coffee bar Giolitti  for a sweet taste of gelato….and an espresso  at Caffe Greco..as famous for its’ coffee as its’creative ‘literati’ customers.

I hope we could fit a quick tour of Cinecitta (the original studios in Rome where he filmed most of his movies) in before dinner..

An imaginary dinner… but here is the real Pasta a la Matriciana

La Matriciana

(from The Basic Art of Italian Cooking: Holidays & Special Occasions winner of the Best Italian Cuisine Book in the USA)

for 4 people

*1 lb of pasta (spaghetti, bucatini,rigatoni)

• ½ onion
• 1 clove of garlic
• ¼ pound bacon (optional), cut into thin strips
• 3 tblsps of extra virgin olive oil
• ½ cup of dry white wine with ½ tblsp of white wine vinegar
• 5-6 leaves of fresh basil
• ¼ of a dry, hot ,red pepper
• a pinch of black pepper
• 2 lbs of ripe red plum tomatoes
• ¼ cup of pecorino romano cheese freshly grated

Place olive oil in saute pan and warm, place in bacon and chopped onion, hot red pepper, garlic .Saute until onion begins to become golden. Pour in wine and let liquid evaporate. Then add in the tomatoes that have been fileted (seeds removed) and fresh basil leaves.

Saute on medium heat for approx 20 minutes, stirring frequently.

Cook the pasta till al dente. Drain and place in sauce, toss and place in half of the grated cheese, toss. Serve each portion with a pinch of black pepper and more grated cheese.

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copyright 2009, Maria Liberati 

I have  always thought of Italian cooking as just that… always making something ordinary into something extraordinary..day old bread becomes an elegant appetizer with just a drizzle of extra virgin, cold pressed olive oil..tomatoes are transformed into a savory condiment for pasta using a few simple ingredients-fresh San Marzano tomatoes (and right now I am up to my elbows in San Marzano tomatoes..it is the season and we are preserving them for the winter) fresh basil, fresh garlic, extra virgin,cold pressed olive oil.

Here is a recipe from The Basic Art of Italian Kitchen here in the mountains of Abruzzo..making ordinary out of the extraordinary with local potatoes, organic rosemary from our garden and locally produced extra virgin, cold pressed olive oil.

Tuscan Roasted Potatoes

*1 lb of red or Yukon Gold Potatoes or locally grown potatoes

*3 stalks of  fresh rosemary

*4 tablespoons extra virgin,cold pressed olive oil

*salt to taste

Wash potatoes, boil  for 10 minutes. Drain, peel. Cut into quarters. Drizzle half of olive oil on bottom of roasting pan, place in potatoes. Drizzle remaining olive oil on top, Salt to  taste, take some rosemary off branches and place on top of potatoes. Place 1 branch of rosemary on top and bake for 30-40 minutes at 450 degrees, place under broiler for 2-3 minutes when finished to brown top.

Serve with a white wine..my choice today will be a chilled Vermentino from Sardinia.

Buon’appetito

Mangia Bene, Vivi Bene,

Maria

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(Photo credits : http://www.mets-de-provence.fr)

Have you ever had a ‘voglio’? A voglio is the way Italians express a strong desire for something- someone that you love, a food, a dish,  an experience. One way to say I love you is ‘te voglio bene’- which literally translated means I desire you very much. Or as the students text  the abbreviation t.v.b.(te voglio bene) to each other.

Well enough for our Italian lesson.

Today I had a strong ‘voglio’ for eggplants. There are eggplants everywhere you go since this is their season for the next few weeks and they are grown everywhere. The farm markets are filled with them.

The dish I selected to make for ‘pranzo’ (lunch) was Ratatouille of eggplant, zucchini and tomatoes. But to be worthy of a ‘voglio’ thsi dish must be made with the freshest and best ingredients. There are only a few ingredients in this dish and each one is important.

Let’s start with the tomatoes. I used fresh San Marzano tomatoes (by the way these tomatoes deserve a t.v.b.all  to themselves. They are as sweet as candy and if you ever need a reason to visit Italy- one of those would be to taste a fresh San Marzano tomato grown in Italy-nothing like it.) However if  you can’t get fresh San Marzano tomatoes use a fresh plum tomato that is red and ripe. If you must use canned, use only a high quality canned tomato (but only as a last resort).

Olive oil- use a good quality extra virgin, cold pressed olive oil from Italy. If  you use anything less this dish will not be a success.

Mozzarella cheese- usea freshly made mozzarella

Parmigiano-Reggiano Cheese-use only parmigiano-reggiano cheese-don’t use anything that is called anything else- parmesan is not real parmigiano-reggiano cheese.

Fresh zucchini, eggplant, onion- these vegetables should be very fresh, eggplants and zucchini should be firm. Buy your produce locally from a local farm is possible to insure freshness.

Ratatouille of Zucchini and Eggplant

*2 medium fresh eggplants

*3 medium size zucchini

*5 fresh plum tomatoes

*2 cloves of garlic

*3 tblsps of olive oil

*1 slice of  fresh onion chopped

*pinch of salt

* 1/2 cup dry white wine

*4 ounces of fresh mozzarella

*3 tblsps parmigiano-reggiano cheese

Wash eggplant and zucchini. Cut zucchini into 1/4 inch slices. Cut eggplant into 1/4 inch cubes. Wash tomatoes. Filet them by removing inside liquid and seeds. Slice into thin slices.

In large saute pan, heat olive oil. Saute whole garlic cloves, chopped onions till golden. place in cut eggplants and zucchini and 1/2 cup dry white wine, 1/2 cup water. Saute for 10 minutes, stirring. Add in tomatoes, stirring and saute for another 10 minutes or until eggplant and zucchini are tender. If at any time liquid is needed add in a little water.

When done remove from heat and add in cubed mozzarella and grated parmigiano-reggiano cheese. Stir, mozzarella cheese will become stringy. Serve warm or cool. Either way this is a delicious dish for a summer day. Serve with grissini sticks and  dry white wine. We had some Falenghina (one of my favorite white wines) with this dish.

Buon Appetito!
For more recipes get your copy of the bestselling book The Basic Art of Italian Cooking at http://www.marialiberati.com