A few years ago in Rome, I noticed a restaurant with a small window in its facade.  In the window was a small brick alcove holding a large, round, greenish glass bottle filled with dried beans, water and herbs.  The alcove backed up to the restaurant’s woodburning oven, and every time I passed, I would stop to look in at the bottle and observe the beans simmering slowly, absorbing the liquid and becoming plump and rounded and filled with flavor.  It seemed like the ideal way to cook beans, but it made me unhappy to think that I could not duplicate it in my small apartment kitchen with a standard stove.  Or could I?  I had never owned a slow cooker, but the more I thought about it, the more it seemed like the piece of the equipment I needed to to turn out perfectly tender, flavorful beans like those I ate in Rome.  I could hardly wait to get home (well, almost!) to buy one.

Back in New York, I soon realized that slow cookers have as many devotees as they have people who own them and abandon them to a dusty back shelf.  The difference seemed to be that those who love them have discovered delicious recipes and used fresh ingredients to prepare easy and satisfying food, while others relied on packaged and canned products and did not take a few moments to prepare the ingredients before cooking.

I bought a cooker and began by making my first batch of Roman-style beans in it.  They came out just perfect — tender and creamy and infused with the flavor of the herbs and garlic I had added.   Then I tried meats — tough cuts like short ribs, veal and lamb shanks, pot roasts, and stew meat.  The results were fall-off-the-bone tender and savory. Even chicken turned out moist and juicy every time.  To say I was hooked on slow cooking was an understatement.  I made soups, pasta sauces, stews and vegetables. Then I tried grains like farro, barley and polenta and was delighted with the results and ease of preparation.  I also made seafood in the slow cooker and discovered that sturdy varieties like salmon and squid turn out beautifully.  My biggest surprise was how well the cooker handled delicate egg dishes like frittatas, and even desserts, especially creamycheesecakes and flourless chocolate cake.  The gentle, low heat cooked them perfectly.

I compiled 125 of my recipes into a book which is now available.  The name is The Italian Slow Cooker and it was published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.  The book has a soft cover and lots of gorgeous color photos by Alan Richardson, one of the best food photographers.

Here is a recipe from the Italian Slow Cooker that I know you will enjoy.

COUNTRY STYLE PORK RIBS WITH TOMATOES AND PEPPERS

Meaty country style pork ribs are a great choice for the slow cooker.  They turn out moist and tender and never lack for flavor.  Here they are cooked in spicy sauce made with red bell peppers and tomato.  Serve it over polenta or mashed potatoes with zesty broccoli rabe cooked with garlic.

Serves 6

4 pounds country style pork ribs

Salt and freshly ground pepper

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 medium onions, chopped

2 large garlic cloves, chopped

1/2 cup dry white wine

2 tablespoons tomato paste

1 cup tomato puree

1 teaspoon dried oregano

4 medium red bell peppers, seeded and cut into 1/2-inch slices

Pat the ribs dry and sprinkle them with salt and pepper to taste.  In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium heat.  Add as many of the ribs as will fit in the pan without touching.  Cook the meat, turning it occasionally, until nicely browned on all sides.  Place the browned ribs in the slow cooker.  Brown the remaining meat in the same way.

Add the onions and garlic to the skillet and cook 5 minutes, or until softened.  Stir in the wine and tomato paste and cook, scraping the bottom of the pan, until the liquid begins to simmer.  Stir in the tomato puree, oregano and salt and pepper to taste.  Remove from the heat.

Scatter the peppers over the pork in the slow cooker.  Pour on the sauce.  Cover and cook on low for 6 hours or until the meat is tender and coming away from the bones.  Discard any loose bones and skim off the fat.  Serve hot.

© Copyright 2010 The Italian Slow Cooker by Michele Scicolone

Grana Padano Pizza at Keste

While waiting in the dentist’s office last week, I had a chance to browse through some of the latest magazines.  Every one had an article about what to buy for last minute Christmas gifts.  They recommended everything from a paperweight (uh, no, thanks) to a whole wardrobe (doesn’t that take a lifetime of shopping?).  I don’t consider myself the most creative gift giver, but I didn’t like any of the ideas.  I can’t imagine anyone buying me a whole wardrobe and when it comes to paperweights, well, let’s just say I have enough!  Instead, I like to give gifts that I like to receive, things that I can eat or drink.  So here are my ideas for great gifts for last minute shoppers:

Averna — Not too sweet, not too bitter, this Sicilian digestivo has subtle flavors of herbs, chocolate and menthol.  Smooth and soothing after a holiday dinner and warming any time.

Panettone – Beautifully wrapped, it makes a perfect ready to give gift.  Ignore the cheap ones which may be made in places other than Italy.  Top producers include Le Tre Marie or Bauli and they are available at many retail shops.  Or you can order one by mail from my friends at Gustiamo.com.  For Christmas breakfast or brunch, I love sliced panetttone toasted, slathered with good butter or mascarpone, and served with a chilled moscato or Asti Spumante.

Prosecco — Sparkling white wine from the Veneto.  We serve it with appetizers or throughout the meal.  Great with fish and seafood for Christmas Eve dinner.  Good producers include Alice, Mionetto, Bisol and Nino Franco.

Grana Padano or Parmigiano Reggiano — I use both for eating and grating.  Try Grana Padano shaved on a pizza with arugula and prosciutto, as I did recently at Keste.  Troppo buono!  Or serve with fresh pears and grapes, or nuts and dried fruit for dessert.   Both cheeses keep well in the refrigerator so I always have them handy.   Other cheese choices would include aged Montasio,  Piave or Asiago.

Kusmi Christmas Tea —  Of Russian origin, this 140-year old tea company is very popular in Paris, where I first discovered it.  The Christmas tea is a blend of black tea with vanilla, orange and spice scents and the beautiful tin makes it ideal for gift-giving.

Extra Virgin Olive Oil — Always in good taste and so useful.  If you are not sure which one to buy, go to a good store like Di Palo on Grand Street where you can sample a variety of oils before you buy.

Chestnut Honey — Drizzle some on gorgonzola, or on that toasted panettone.  Heavenly!  The best come from Piedmont and Umbria in Italy.

Coluccio DOP San Marzano Tomatoes – Something akin to a diamond bracelet for a cook like me, I use these tomatoes all the time.  They are meaty and full of flavor and make terrific ragu.

When in doubt, get a gift basket from D. Coluccio and Sons, Di Palo Selects, or Gustiamo.com.  There’s still time!

Struffoli, puffy little balls of fried dough drenched in honey, are the quintessential Christmas sweet in Naples and other places in Italy, especially the Central and Southern regions.  When I was a little girl in Brooklyn, other kids would be helping their mothers to make gingerbread and spritz cookies, but in our house, it was always struffoli.  Mom would start with a 5-pound bag of flour and a couple of dozen eggs.  She would mix and knead the ingredients together until a smooth dough formed.  Then the dough was left to rest under a clean kitchen towel and she would fill a big pot with oil.  Then we would start slicing, rolling and cutting the dough until little bits.

Rolling out struffoli

Once the oil was hot enough, she would carefully slip the pieces of dough into the hot oil, making sure all the while that we kids stayed far away from the hot pot.  But I loved to watch as the struffoli turned from little pillow shaped pellets into crisp, brown puffs.  When she judged them sufficiently browned, she would scoop out the puffs and drain them on paper towels.  They were eggy and toasty tasting, but they really wouldn’t be at their best until they were thoroughly drenched in good honey.  My mom didn’t think much of the supermarket brands, preferring instead to drive to a private home on Staten Island where the owner kept bees and gathered several different types of honey.  My mom would ask for a blend of the light and dark honeys for a perfectly mellow flavor.

After tossing the struffoli with the warm honey came the fun part — piling the sticky balls into heaps on platters and disposable pie plates to be given as gifts to friends and family. But before they could be given away, the struffoli needed to be decorated.  We used little multicolored confetti and by the time we kids were done with the task, there were sticky finger marks and confetti all over the kitchen table and floor.  Sometimes we added candied red and green cherries, or sliced almonds, or strips of candied orange and citron.  Of course, we couldn’t resist tasting them to make sure they were as good as last year’s.

The big platter would go on the sideboard where we could pick off a few whenever we passed by throughout the holiday season.  The pie plates were wrapped in cellophane and tied with ribbons to bring to friends and family.  Of course, they would give us plates of their own struffoli, but in my house, we all knew that mom’s were superior.  They were crisp and light and never dense and hard like others we had tasted.

A lot of Italian Americans have forgotten, or maybe they never knew, how to make struffoli, so I put them on the holiday entertaining menu I prepared at the cooking class I did at De Gustibus Cooking School at Macy’s on Thursday.  Sure enough, while I was getting ready for the class, I heard one of the assistants enter and exclaim, “Struffoli!  Hurray, we’re making struffoli!”  I felt just like a kid again, making struffoli with my mom.

Here’s my recipe for struffoli which I published in my book 1,000 Italian Recipes.  It makes a plateful, enough for 8 to 10.  If you want to make a big batch to give away, the recipe can easily be doubled.

STRUFFOLI

Makes 8 servings

1 cup all-purpose flour plus more for kneading the dough

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 large eggs, beaten

1/2 teaspoon grated lemon or orange zest

Vegetable oil for frying

1 cup honey (about 6 ounces)

Possible garnishes: multicolored sprinkles, chopped candied orange peel, citron or  cherries, toasted sliced almonds

1. In a large bowl, combine 1 cup flour and the salt. Add the eggs and lemon zest and stir until well blended.

2. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured board and knead until smooth, about 5 minutes. Add a little more flour if the dough seems sticky. Shape the dough into a ball. Cover the dough with an overturned bowl. Let the dough rest 30 minutes.

3. Cut the dough into 1/2-inch-thick slices. Roll one slice between your palms into a 1/2-inch-thick rope. Cut the rope into 1/2-inch nuggets. If the dough feels sticky, use a tiny bit of flour to dust the board or your hands. (Excess flour will cause the oil to foam up when you fry the struffoli.)

4. Line a tray with paper towels. Pour about 2 inches of oil into a wide heavy saucepan. Heat the oil to 370°F on a frying thermometer, or until a small bit of the dough dropped into the oil sizzles and turns brown in 1 minute.

5. Being careful not to splash the oil, slip just enough struffoli into the pan to fit without crowding. Cook, stirring once or twice with a slotted spoon, until the struffoli are crisp and evenly golden brown, 1 to 2 minutes. Remove the struffoli with a slotted spoon or skimmer and drain on paper towels. Repeat with the remaining dough.

6. When all of the struffoli are fried, gently heat the honey just to a simmer in a large shallow saucepan. Remove from the heat. Add the drained struffoli and toss well. Pile the struffoli onto a serving plate. Decorate with the multicolored sprinkles, candied fruits, or nuts.

7. To serve, break off a portion of the struffoli with two large spoons or a salad server.   Store covered with an overturned bowl at room temperature up to 3 days.

Copyright 2004 1,000 ITALIAN RECIPES by Michele Scicolone

If you have any questions or comments about this recipe, or others, I would love to hear from you at mailto:michelescicolone@gmail.com.

Red, White and Green Lasagne, Mortadella and Truffle Stuffed Pork, Slow Cooker Cheesecake and Struffoli plus 4 of Charles’ favorite Italian wines are on the menu for this Thursday’s class at De Gustibus at Macy’s starting at 5:30. Join us for a delicious evening of cooking, eating, drinking and fun.  Hope to see you there!  For more information, go to www.degustibusnyc.com.

A few years ago, I visited the Academia Barilla in Parma, Italy.  Once an industrial zone that included a Barilla pasta factory, the outdated facilities on the edge of Parma were converted about 5 years ago into a beautiful complex housing the Academia Barilla culinary school, two concert halls, a culinary library, a hotel and restaurant.

After a tour, I had the chance to work with Chef Nicola Bindini in one of the Academia’s enormous professional kitchens.  Some are used for pastry making, there is one with a pizza oven, and others are used for cooking demonstrations.  Classes are open to aspiring chefs, avid home cooks, and experienced chefs who want to improve their technique and learn more about Italian ingredients.  It is definitely worth a visit if you plan to be in the area.  You can find out about what’s going on there by checking their website at http://www.academiabarilla.com/

The chef showed me how to made an artichoke and prawn salad topped with shavings of Barilla’s Pecorino Grand Cru, lamb chops with pesto, a molded chocolate and zabaione dessert and my favorite, pennette with pumpkin, smoked pancetta, Parmigiano Reggiano and balsamic vinegar.

I thought of that pasta the other day when I was trying to decide what to do with the large butternut squash that was sitting on my kitchen counter.  At Barilla, Chef Nicola had used a large winter squash called Zucca Mantovana.  It was round and pumpkin shaped with rough tan skin, orange flesh, and a flavor similar to that of butternut squash, so the one I had was a perfect substitute.  Since I didn’t have smoked pancetta which can be hard to find in this country, I used some thick-sliced bacon.  I always have Parmigiano in the refrigerator and a small bottle of aged balsamico on hand, so the rest was easy.

The warm colors of the squash and pasta and the contrasting flavors of the salty cheese and bacon with the sweet, creamy squash made it a perfect pasta for a fall day.

Penne with Butternut Squash, Bacon, and Balsamic Vinegar

Serves 4

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil plus more for drizzling

2 ounces smoked pancetta or thick sliced bacon, finely chopped

1 small red onion, finely chopped

1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh rosemary

1 garlic clove, finely chopped

1-1/4 pounds butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cut into 1/2-inch dice

Salt and freshly ground pepper

8 ounces penne

1/3 cup freshly grated Parmigiano

1 teaspoon aged balsamic vinegar

In a large skillet, cook the pancetta in the olive oil over medium heat until the pancetta is lightly golden, about 5 minutes.  Add the onion and rosemary and cook 5 minutes more until the onion is tender.  Stir in the garlic.  Add the squash and salt and pepper to taste and stir well.  Cover the pan and cook, stirring occasionally, 15 to 20 minutes until the squash is tender and starting to brown.  If it begins to stick, add a tablespoon or two of water.  With the back of a spoon, mash some of the squash until creamy.

Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to a boil.  Add the pasta and salt to taste.  Cook until slightly underdone.  Scoop out about 1 cup of the pasta cooking water and set aside.  Drain the pasta and add it to the squash.  Add some of the cooking water and stir well.  Cook 1 minute until the pasta is tender.  Remove from the heat and stir in the cheese.  Add a little extra virgin olive oil and mix well.  Drizzle with the vinegar and serve hot.

Imagine the densest, chocolatiest ice cream you have ever eaten.  Then think what it would be like if it were hot and served liquid in a cup, maybe topped with some cold,  whipped sweet cream.  That’s what you get when you order chocolat chaud in Paris or cioccolato caldo in Milan. A cup of molten heaven, it  almost makes a winter day bearable.

It’s not easy to find that kind of hot chocolate here in New York, so Charles and I were delighted to find that a Burdick Cafe and Chocolate Shop (www.burdickchocolate.com) had opened a few blocks away.  Charles remembers meeting the owner, Larry Burdick years ago when he would come to the shop where Charles worked to buy the finest liqueurs to flavor his hand made chocolates.  His signature chocolates were shaped like sweet little mice with pretty silk tails.   Sure enough, you can still buy them at the shop, as well as bars and bite size filled chocolates.  But we were there for a cup of hot chocolate.  I ordered the dark chocolate, and what a treat it was!   Did it transport me to Angelina’s in Paris?  Not quite, but it was delicious all the same — dark and dense with a slightly bitter edge.  Hot chocolate for grown-ups.

The cafe has a few small tables where you can sit and relax.  I can’t imagine why, but there are alternatives beverages like coffee and hot milk as well as cold drinks. And that’s not all.   The pastries looked amazing, but after sipping the molten chocolate, I decided to save them for another time.  All I can say is, it’s a good thing they don’t have croissants or I would have a hard time staying away from the place.