briciole

crema di fave e scapi florali d'aglio

fava bean and garlic scape spread

a creamy shade of green

 For the current edition of Cook the Books, we are reading The United States of Arugula by David Kamp (2006). I don't think I can add much to the many reviews the book has received since its publication. It is undoubtedly an important book, very interesting and pleasant to read. Kamp's book paints a complete and complex picture that helps the reader understand how certain aspects of the food world in the US evolved to be the way they are now.

My perspective in reading the book is that of an outsider-insider: I am an Italian who moved to the San Francisco Bay Area (theater of a number of the developments narrated in the book) as an adult (18 years ago), with well-established food roots. I learned not only to cook but to enjoy doing so, and, as a result, I eat out only very rarely. Finally, I don't watch television. From this special perspective, the story told in the book is fascinating, and also puzzling. I am very much Italian in my approach to food and totally immune from the obsession with French cuisine depicted in the book. Such obsession puzzles me.

Kamp dedicates some thoughtful paragraphs to Italian cuisine. You can read an example here. This excerpt brought to my mind two things. First, the 1996 movie Big Night, which shows very nicely the tension between Italian regional cuisine and Americans' perception of it influenced by the Italian-American community. Then, an episode from my previous life. Before moving to the US, one summer, I worked at a Club Med resort in Morocco. The guests came from France, Italy, Belgium, Germany, the UK. One evening, the dining room was divided into two sections: in one, guests would be served a French menu, in the other, an Italian menu. At dinner time, things did not quite go as expected: almost everybody wanted to go into one section — and it was not the one where French food would be served. As Marcella Hazan says in the passage referenced above with regards to Italian food, "it's food that you eat with pleasure... You don't have to analyze it, you just enjoy that it's so."

The recipe that follows is connected to another page of the book, where Ms. Betty Fussell's comment on food hype is reported, within the context of an assessment of Alice Waters' contribution to the discussion on food ways. (You can read the page here.) These Fussell's words made me smile: "little tiny Italian fava-bean grower down the road." I am actually happy that nowadays I can find fresh fava beans at the farmers' market (and fava greens too), a food that is quite common in Italy and that I ate often as a kid.

The other element of the recipe is garlic scapes. The scape is the elegant leafless "stem from which the seed head of the garlic bulb is formed" (source). Garlic scapes are a relatively recent entry in my kitchen: they have gained in popularity in recent years and are now easily found at farmers' market, appearing at the same time as fava beans, a coincidence that I interpreted as a suggestion.

Most recipes I have seen use scapes to make a variation of pesto, or as a side dish, roasted. My spread tastes of fresh fava beans, of aromatic garlic scapes and of pungent fiore sardo cheese. In this small dish, I bring together my Italian heritage and my experience with interesting ingredients I find in Californian farmers' markets. More than an exact recipe, this is an invitation to play with the main ingredients. It is also a variation on the classic Italian combination of fava beans and pecorino cheese.

Note: Savory has a flavor reminiscent of thyme, with mint and pepper tones. I have a bush of winter savory (santoreggia montana) in my herb garden, and I like to experiment with it. If you don't have it, try using one or two leaves of fresh mint (menta).

Ingredients:

• 1 1/4 lb. fresh fava beans in their pod (about 1 1/4 cup shelled)
• 2 1/2 oz. [70 g] garlic scapes
• 1 teaspoon fresh winter savory, optional (see note above)
• 1/4 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves
• 3 tablespoons freshly grated fiore sardo
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 teaspoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
• Fine sea salt, to taste

Shell fava beans and blanch them for one minute, drain them and plunge them into a bowl of cold water. Drain them again, then remove the skin from the beans to bring their bright green core to light. Set aside.

Preheat the oven to 425 F. Cut thinner portion of garlic scapes (above the bulge). Spread all the scapes onto a baking sheet lined with a silicone mat and sprinkle with olive oil and a bit of sea salt. Bake for 12 minutes, then remove the thinner pieces. Bake the rest for another 3-4 minutes. Let cool slightly, then coarsely chop scapes. (This seems complicated, but the top of the scapes ends up charred and I am trying to avoid that. If it still happens, snap off the charred portion and discard it before proceeding with the recipe.)

Put fava beans and scapes in the food processor and pulse to chop. Add herbs and process some more, then add the cheese and process briefly. While pulsing, dribble the oil into the feeding tube, then the lemon juice. Finally, sprinkle a bit of salt and process to a smooth paste by pulsing for several seconds at a time.

I have found that it is better to allow the ingredients to influence each other for a bit before changing the balance, so let the spread rest for 20 minutes or so, then taste and adjust seasoning (salt, lemon juice). Refrigerate until ready to use and take out of the refrigerator in advance, so that the spread in not cold when you serve it.

In the top photo, I am using a grissino as a vehicle for some of the spread.

This is my contribution to the current edition of Cook the Books, hosted by Jo of Food Junkie, Not Junk Food. You can find the guidelines for participating in the event here, and here is the announcement.

I am also sending this to My Legume Love Affair 47, the current edition of the popular, legume-centered event created by Susan, The Well-Seasoned Cook, and hosted this month by Priya of Mharo Rajasthan's Recipes.

Click on the button to hear me pronounce the Italian words mentioned in the post:

crema di fave e scapi florali d'aglio

or launch the crema di fave e scapi florali d'aglio audio file [mp3].

[Depending on your set-up, the audio file will be played within the browser or by your mp3 player application. Please, contact me if you encounter any problems.]

fava bean, garlic scape

 

risotto alle fragole

strawberry risotto

[cliccare il link per andare alla versione in italiano]

strawberry risotto

Berries and risotto make a enticing duo: my risotto ai lamponi (raspberry risotto) and risotto alle more are not only pretty, but also surprising in their ability to deliver a satisfying berry flavor in a savory dish. While I was immediately successful in marrying risotto with two kinds of berries, with a third one, strawberries, I could not strike the right note. I tried three variations, but the result did not satisfy me completely, so I gave up.

Last year, I learned about roasting strawberries and successfully adapted the technique to prepare them for gelato, frittata and, most recently, a version of lassi that uses my homemade kefir. The question then formed in my mind: would roasted strawberries be the ingredient that finally gives me a satisfying risotto con le fragole? The title of the post gives away the affirmative answer.

In this risotto, I finally obtained the strawberry flavor I wanted. Once again, the roasting process with the touch of balsamic vinegar and sugar brings out the berries' flavor. I realize that it also adds to the time requirement for the preparation, but you can roast the berries ahead of time: just remember to warm them up before adding them to the cooking risotto, so they don't cool it drastically.

Vialone Nano, Carnaroli and Arborio are the types of rice I have used to make risotto. My preference goes to the first two, which, unfortunately, are the kinds most difficult to find in the US. If you find some Carnaroli or Vialone Nano at an affordable price, I suggest you try it. If not, you can use Arborio.

Print-friendly version of briciole's recipe for risotto alle fragole

Ingredients:

• 12 oz. [340 g] strawberries, organic or pesticide-free
• 1/2 teaspoon balsamic vinegar (aceto balsamico) of good quality
• 1 teaspoon sugar, possibly ultra-fine
• 1/2-1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 tablespoons minced shallot (scalogno)
• 1 cup [200 g] Vialone Nano, Carnaroli or Arborio rice
• 2 tablespoons [30 ml] white wine, not cold
• 2 cups [475 ml] vegetable broth, possibly homemade + 1 cup [235 ml] water to make a light vegetable broth
• sea salt, to taste
• 2-3 tablespoons freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano

Wash strawberries and carve out stem. Place in a bowl, sprinkle  balsamic vinegar and sugar on them, and toss gently. Heat the oven to 350 F. Line a baking sheet with a silicone mat that is wider and longer than the sheet, so no juice can escape from any side. Place strawberries on the sheet on a single layer. Put the baking sheet in the oven and bake for 20 minutes. Let strawberries cool slightly, then cut them (lengthwise) into 4-6 pieces, depending on their size. Set aside a dozen pieces to garnish the bowls at serving time.

shortly after adding the roasted strawberries

Bring broth and water to a simmer in a 1 qt. saucepan and keep it at that temperature (you may not need it all, depending on the variety of rice you use). In a 2 qt. saucepan, warm up olive oil, then add the shallot and stir. Cook for a few minutes until the shallot is translucent, then add the rice.

Toast the rice for one minute, while stirring, then add the wine. Let the wine evaporate, while stirring the rice, then add enough of the simmering broth to barely cover the rice. Allow the rice to absorb most of the broth, then add more broth, a ladleful at a time, letting the rice absorb most of the broth before adding more. Make sure the rice never gets dry, keep it at a lively simmer and stir at regular intervals.

If the strawberries are cold, warm them up (in the microwave, use the defrost option to do this; otherwise, keep the bowl where they are on top of the pan with the broth). Ten minutes after the first addition of broth, pour strawberries and their juice into the pan and stir well. Make sure the rice comes back to a lively simmer. Continue cooking the rice as before, adding simmering broth as needed.

Taste the rice 6 minutes after adding the strawberries: if it feels a bit hard at the core, cook it a minute or two longer, then check again. (The cooking time depends on various factors, including the kind of rice.) If cold, warm up the strawberry pieces you set aside earlier.

Risotto should be soft and creamy, but with some body (slightly al dente). Remove the pan from the heat, add a bit of salt and the cheese and stir well to incorporate. Taste and adjust the salt, if needed. Let the risotto rest, covered, for a few minutes while you gather the guests around the table. Plate and decorate with the strawberry pieces . Serve immediately and enjoy.

Let me say it again: this risotto is worth the extra effort needed to prepare the berries.

This is my contribution to edition #335 of Weekend Herb Blogging, an event started by Kalyn of Kalyn's Kitchen, now organized by Haalo of Cook (almost) Anything at Least Once and hosted this week by Simona of briciole.

This post contains the roundup of the event.

Click on the button to hear me pronounce the Italian words mentioned in the post:

risotto alle fragole

or launch the risotto alle fragole audio file [mp3].

[Depending on your set-up, the audio file will be played within the browser or by your mp3 player application. Please, contact me if you encounter any problems.]

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risotto, rice, strawberry

Per i lettori italiani

risotto alle fragole

Il risotto ai lamponi e il risotto alle more mi venivano bene da un po'. Invece quello alle fragole — provato in tre variazioni — non mi soddisfaceva e quindi ho gettato la spugna.

L'anno scorso, poi, ho imparato a cuocere le fragole al forno e ci ho preparato gelato, frittata e di recente  una versione del lassi che utilizza il mio kefir fatto in casa. Ho pensato: e se  provassi di nuovo a fare il risotto con le fragole? Il risultato finalmente mi ha soddisfatto: in questo risotto sono riuscita ad ottenere la fragolosità che cercavo. La cottura in forno con un pochino di aceto balsamico e zucchero fa risaltare il sapore delle fragole. Mi rendo conto che contribuisce anche ad allungare i tempi di preparazione, ma potete cuocere le fragole in anticipo e poi scaldarle prima dell'uso per evitare che il riso venga raffreddato.

Carnaroli e Vialone Nano sono i tipi di riso che preferisco ma non sono facili da trovare negli USA (e infatti di solito ne metto in valigia un chilo quando vengo in visita in Italia). In caso di carenza del riso preferito, uso l'Arborio.

Ingredienti:

• 340 g di fragole bio o senza pesticidi
• mezzo cucchiaino [2,5 ml] aceto balsamico
• 1 cucchiaino [5 ml] zucchero, possibilmente finissimo
• 1/2-1 cucchiaio [7,5-15 ml] olio d'oliva
• 2 cucchiai [30 ml] scalogno tritato finemente
• 200 g riso Vialone Nano, Carnaroli o Arborio
  
• 2 cucchiai [30 ml] vino bianco non freddo
• 475 ml brodo vegetale + 235 ml acqua per ottenere un brodo leggero
• sale fino, q.b.
• 2-3 cucchiai di Parmigiano-Reggiano appena grattato

Lavare le fragole e privarle del picciolo. Mettere le fragole in una ciotola e aggiungere aceto balsamico e zucchero. Mescolare con delicatezza. Scaldare il forno a 175 C. Foderare una lastra da forno con un tappetino di silicone che sia più lungo e più largo della lastra, in modo che il succo prodotto durante la cottura in forno non finisca sotto il tappetino.

Mettere in forno e cuocere per 20 minuti. (La temperatura in gradi Fahrenheit che uso io, 350, è un po' al di sopra di 175 C e un po' al di sotto di 180 C. Ho deciso di specificare la temperatura più bassa poiché preferisco essere cauta. Potete lasciare le fragole in forno un paio di minuti in più.) Lasciar intiepidire leggermente le fragole. Tagliarle per il lungo in 4-6 pezzi (a seconda di quanto sono grosse). Mettere da parte una dozzina di pezzetti per guarnire il risotto impiattato.

cosa bolle in pentola?

Portare a ebollizione il brodo vegetale leggero e mantenerlo in lieve ebollizione (quanto ne userete dipende dal tipo di riso che usate). In una pentola, scaldarel'olio d'oliva e aggiungere lo scalogno . Cuocere a fuoco basso per qualche minuto, poi aggiungere il riso. Tostare il riso per un minuto, poi aggiungere il vino. Lasciare evaporare il vino, girando il riso, poi aggiungere abbastanza brodo bollente da coprire appena il riso. un mestolo alla volta. Lasciare che il riso assorba la maggior parte del brodo, poi aggiungerne ancora, un mestolo alla volta. Mantenere il riso bagnato col brodo e cuocere, girando ad intervalli regolari.

Se le fragole sono fredde, scaldarle un po' (nel forno a microonde utilizzando la funzione che scongela oppure tenendo la scodella dove sono le fragole sopra la pentola dove bolle il brodo, tipo bagno maria). Dieci minuti dopo la prima aggiunta di brodo, versare le fragole e il loro succo nella pentola del riso e mescolare bene. Riportare il riso a temperatura e continuare a cuocerlo come prima, aggiungendo brodo quando necessita.

Assaggiare 6 minuti dopo aver aggiunto le fragole e se il riso è ancora un po' duro al centro, lasciar cuocere un altro minuto o due, poi assaggiare di nuovo. Se sono fredde, scaldare i pezzi di fragola per la guarnizione. Togliere la pentola dal fuoco e aggiungere il sale secondo il gusto e il parmigiano. Mescolare finché il formaggio è ben distribuito, poi far riposare il risotto, coperto, per alcuni minuti. Impiattare il risotto e guarnirlo con dei pezzetti di fragola. Servire immediatamente e gustare.

Questo post è il mio contributo all'edizione numero 335 di Weekend Herb Blogging, un evento creato da Kalyn di Kalyn's Kitchen, organizzato ora da Haalo di Cook (almost) Anything at Least Once, la cui versione italiana è organizzata da Brii di briggishome, e ospitata questa settimana da Simona di briciole.

Questo post contiene il raccolto dell'evento.

minestra di fave e piselli

fava bean and English pea soup

[cliccare il link per andare alla versione in italiano]

a flavorful soup

Fresh fava beans and English peas (a.k.a., garden peas) were among the purchases I made last Sunday, at the Temescal Farmers' Market (Oakland, CA). By the time I had finished my shopping, I had already decided they would be married in a soup. I had to laugh aloud, considering how much I disliked both fava bean soup and pea soup, when my mother prepared them.

It wasn't only that I did not like either legume, but that I also had to shell them, a task hardly enjoyable for a child or teenager. Now, I don't mind doing it and since I don't like the skin of fava beans (which was the reason why I did not like the soup made with them), I also remove that.

The soup I made was inspired by this Tuscan recipe for onion soup on the Accademia Italiana della Cucina site (in Italian). In my soup, the balance of ingredients is different, so the result is a spring legume soup where the flavor of the fresh legumes shines brightly.

Print-friendly version of briciole's recipe for minestra di fave e piselli

Ingredients:

• 1 1/4 lb. [570 g] fresh fava beans
• 1 lb. [450 g] fresh English peas
• olive oil
• 8 oz. [225 g] red onion (cipolla rossa), finely chopped
• 2 scallions, sliced into thin rounds
• 1 celery rib (costa di sedano), finely chopped
• 1 carrot (carota), scrubbed and chopped
• 1.5 cup [355 ml] homemade light chicken stock or vegetable option
• 1 cup [240 ml] water
• 4-5 basil leaves, slivered
• sea salt and freshly milled black pepper
• slices of rye bread (pane di segale), or of other bread of choice
• freshly grated fiore sardo

Shell peas and fava beans. Blanch fava beans for one minute, drain them and plunge them into a bowl of cold water. Drain them again and then remove the skin from the beans to bring their bright green core to light. Set aside.

Warm olive oil in a soup pot and add onion and scallions. Stir to coat and let cook for a few minutes. Add carrot and celery, stir and cook for 5-7 minutes, stirring often. Add the broth and water, cover, bring to a boil, then lower the heat and gently cook for 20 minutes, until the onion is soft.

Add the peas and basil, and cook for 5 minutes, then add the fava beans. Cook until the legumes are tender to your liking. Taste after 5-7 minutes and evaluate how much more time is needed. Adjust salt and pepper. When the soup is almost ready, toast the bread and line the bottom of soup bowls. Pour hot soup over the bread and let sit for a minute, then sprinkle cheese on the soup and serve immediately.

This soup is totally worth the effort needed to prepare the legumes.

This is my contribution to edition #334 of Weekend Herb Blogging, an event started by Kalyn of Kalyn's Kitchen, now organized by Haalo of Cook (almost) Anything at Least Once and hosted this week by Brii of briggishome.

This post contains the roundup of the event.

Click on the button to hear me pronounce the Italian words mentioned in the post:

minestra di fave e piselli

or launch the minestra di fave e piselli audio file [mp3].

[Depending on your set-up, the audio file will be played within the browser or by your mp3 player application. Please, contact me if you encounter any problems.]

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soup, fava beans, English peas

Per i lettori italiani

una minestra saporita

Al Temescal Farmers' Market (Oakland, CA) domenica scorsa ho comprato fave e piselli freschi. Non mi ci è voluto molto per decidere che avrei fatto sposare i due legumi in una minestra. Mi è venuto da ridere, considerando quanto detestassi sia la minestra di fave che quella di piselli che preparava mia madre.

Il problema non era solo che non mi piacevano i due legumi, ma che toccava a me sgranarli, un compito non proprio divertente per una ragazzina. Adesso la cosa non mi dispiace affatto e dal momento che non mi piace la buccia delle fave (il motivo per cui non mi piaceva la minestra di fave), tolgo anche quella.

Per la minestra che ho preparato mi sono ispirata a questa ricetta toscana per una minestra di cipolle che ho trovato sul sito dell'Accademia Italiana della Cucina. Nella mia minestra l'equilibrio degli ingredienti è diverso e il risultato è una minestra di legumi primaverile nella quale splende il sapore dei legumi freschi.

Ingredienti:

• 570 g fave fresche
• 450 g piselli freschi
• olio d'oliva
• 225 g cipolla rossa, tagliata a pezzetti
• 2 cipolle verdi, tagliate e rondelle fini
• 1 costa di sedano, tagliata a pezzetti
• 1 carota, tagliata a pezzetti
• 355 ml brodo di pollo leggero fatto in casa, o brodo vegetale
• 240 ml acqua
• 4-5 foglie di basilico
• sale fino e pepe macinato fresco, q.b.
• fettine di pane di segale o di altro pane a scelta
• fiore sardo macinato fresco

Sgranare piselli e fave. Sbollentare le fave per un minuto, scolarle e versarle in acqua fredda. Scolarle di nuovo e sbucciarle.

Scaldare dell'olio d'oliva in una pentola e aggiungere i due tipi di cipolla. Mescolare e far cuocere alcuni minuti, poi aggiungere carota e sedano, mescolare e lasciare cuocere per 5-7  minuti. Versare il brodo e l'acqua nella pentola. Coprire, portare ad ebollizione e poi cuocere a fuoco dolce per 20 minuti, fino a quando la cipolla sia tenera.

Aggiungere i piselli e il basilico a pezzetti, e cuocere a fuoco dolce per 5 minuti, poi aggiungere le fave. Cuocere fino a quando i legumi siano teneri in accordo al vostro gusto. Assaggiare dopo 5-7 minuti e valutare quanto tempo sia ancora necessario. Condire con sale e pepe a seconda del gusto. Quando la minestra è quasi pronta, tostare il pane e disporlo sul fondo dei piatti da minestra. Versarci sopra la minestra bollente e lasciar riposare per un minuto, poi spargere del formaggio sulla superficie e servire immediatamente.

Questa minestra ripaga dello sforzo necessario per preparare i legumi.

Questo post è il mio contributo all'edizione numero 334 di Weekend Herb Blogging, un evento creato da Kalyn di Kalyn's Kitchen, organizzato ora da Haalo di Cook (almost) Anything at Least Once, la cui versione italiana è organizzata da Brii di briggishome, e ospitata questa settimana da A.B.C. di Fragoliva.

Questo post contiene la raccolta dell'evento.

minestra di cicerchie

cicerchia soup

[cliccare il link per andare alla versione in italiano]

minestra di cicerchie

Cicerchia (Lathyrus sativus) is a legume that, according to this page (in Italian), was once widely consumed, while nowadays, it is grown only in central Italy.

before (bottom) and after soaking

Cicerchie are available only dried: prior to cooking, they must be soaked for 24 hours and the soaking water must be eliminated because it contains a neurotoxic amino acid (ODAP or BOAA) that can cause lathyrism. This condition was and remains a problem when and where lack of alternative food sources led to consumption of large quantities of Lathyrus. As Hank of Hunter Angler Gardener Cook says in this post: "Make these beans a special treat, not a staple, and you’ll be fine." Our consumption of cicerchie has been occasional and I follow the preparation instructions.

I got the cicerchie in the photo at Bavicchi, the store in downtown Perugia that I mentioned in this and other posts. The reference to Perugia in not accidental. In fact...

Perugia: Fontana Maggiore

our tour of the 20 regions of Italy organized by Trattoria MuVarA brings us to my home region: Umbria. If you're familiar with my blog, you know that I was born and grew up in beautiful Perugia. (This post has a few more photos of the city in the heart of Italy.)

My presentation of legumes that are traditional of Umbria already includes lenticchie di Castelluccio, fagiolina del Lago Trasimeno and roveja. To prepare cicerchia, today's legume, I consulted the repository of traditional Italian recipes, the Accademia Italiana della Cucina and there I found an Umbrian recipe for minestra di cicerchie. The English version of the recipe is available in the book by the Academy called La Cucina: The Regional Cooking of Italy. According to the recipe headnote, cicerchie were a popular legume among Umbria peasants. As always, I altered the recipe to adjust it to my taste and then prepared a variation of it. If you don't have cicerchie, the soup can be made with chickpeas (ceci).

Ingredients:

• 1 cup cicerchie
• olive oil
• 6 oz. roasted strained tomatoes (thawed, since they were made last year and frozen) [the original recipe calls for strained tomatoes]
• one large clove of garlic, or two small, minced
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley (prezzemolo)
• 6 mint (menta) leaves, broken into small pieces with your hands (I used my orange mint)
• water
• 1 cup [240 ml] homemade light chicken stock or vegetable option
• sea salt and freshly milled black pepper, to taste

For the variation:

• quadrucci (see below)
• freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano

Soak the cicerchie for 24 hours in 4 cups of water then drain and discard the water. Put in a saucepan and pour water to a level above the cicerchie. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat. Simmer, covered, until tender. The original recipe mentions a long cooking time (roughly 2 hours), which does not match my experience (less than half that time), so check the progress periodically. Also, during cooking, some of the cicerchie lost their skin and I discarded it.

Warm a bit of olive oil in another saucepan, then add garlic and herbs. Cook for a minute or so, until the garlic smells fragrant, stirring, then add the strained tomatoes. Cook into a sauce. In my case, about 8 minutes. Add the cooked cicerchie and let cook in the tomato sauce for 10 minutes, then add the stock plus enough water to make a soup of desired consistency. Continue cooking for 10 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste and serve immediately.

I served the soup with lightly toasted slices of homemade rye bread (pane di segale), as shown in the top photo.

minestra di cicerchie with Parmigiano-Reggiano

I made a batch of tagliatelle alla borragine and cut into quadrucci (small squares) the pieces of pasta too short: my mother used to do this when she made tagliatelle, which was pretty much every Sunday.

I cooked the quadrucci in the soup (this only takes a few minutes). Before serving it, I enriched the soup with Parmigiano-Reggiano. Either way, it was a nice dinner soup, the flavor of cicerchie earthy and unique, reminiscent of both chickpeas and lentils.

This is my submission for the sixth installment of the Abbecedario culinario d'Italia (Italian Culinary ABC), an event organized by Trattoria MuVarA that will bring us to visit all the 20 regions of Italy using the alphabet as guide. F come Foligno (representing Umbria) is hosted by Cristina of La cucina di Cristina. This page has the list of all dishes prepared for the event.

This is another nice soup for Souper (Soup, Salad & Sammies) Sundays, a weekly event created by Deb of Kahakai Kitchen. This post contains the roundup of the event.

I am also sending this to My Legume Love Affair 47, the current edition of the popular, legume-centered event created by Susan, The Well-Seasoned Cook, and hosted this month by Priya of Mharo Rajasthan's Recipes.

Click on the button to hear me pronounce the Italian words mentioned in the post:

minestra di cicerchie

 or launch the minestra di cicerchie audio file [mp3].

[Depending on your set-up, the audio file will be played within the browser or by your mp3 player application. Please, contact me if you encounter any problems.]

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soup, cicerchia, Italian recipe

Per i lettori italiani

minestra di cicerchie

La cicerchia (Lathyrus sativus) è un legume che, secondo quanto scritto su questa pagina una volta era molto consumato, mentre oggi viene coltivato solo in Italia centrale .

prima (in basso) e dopo l'ammollo

Le cicerchie si trovano solo secche: prima di cuocerle occorre tenerle in ammollo per 24 ore e l'acqua deve poi essere eliminata, poiché contiene un amminoacido neurotossico che può causare latirismo. Tale condizione era e rimane un problema dove e quando la mancanza di fonti alimentari alternative porta al consumo di sostanziali quantità di Lathyrus. Il nostro consumo di cicerchie è molto occasionale e io seguo le istruzioni per la preparazione.

Le cicerchie nella foto le ho comprate da Bavicchi, il negozio di Perugia dove faccio la mia spesa di legumi menzionato in questo e altri post. Il riferimento a Perugia non è accidentale. Infatti...

Perugia: la Fontana Maggiore

il giro delle regioni italiane organizzato da Trattoria MuVarA ci porta nella mia regione nativa: Umbria. Sono infatti nata e cresciuta a Perugia. (Questo post ha altre foto della città.)

In post precedenti ho parlato di legumi tradizionali umbri: lenticchie di Castelluccio, fagiolina del Lago Trasimeno e roveja. Per preparare un piatto a base di cicerchie ho consultato il sito dell'Accademia Italiana della Cucina e ho trovato una ricetta umbra per minestra di cicerchie. Come al solito, ho adattato la ricetta ai miei gusti e poi ho preparato una variazione. Se non trovate le cicerchie, potete preparare questa minestra con i ceci.

Ingredienti:

• 180 g cicerchie
• olio d'oliva
  
• 170 g pomodori arrosto passati (scongelati, dal momento che li ho preparati e congelati l'anno scorso) [la ricetta originale prevede passata di pomodoro]
• un grosso spicchio d'aglio (o due piccoli) tritato
  
• 2 cucchiai di prezzemolo tritato
• 6 foglie di menta (io ho usato la mia menta arancio) spezzettate con le mani
  
• acqua
• 240 ml brodo di pollo leggero fatto in casa o brodo vegetale
  
• sale fino e pepe nero macinato fresco, q.b.
  

Per la variazione:

• quadrucci
  
• Parmigiano-Reggiano grattugiato fresco
  

Mettere le cicerchie in ammollo in un litro d'acqua. Dopo 24 ore, scolare le cicerchie e scartare l'acqua. Mettere le cicerchie in una pentola e aggiungere acqua fino a coprirle bene. Portare a bollore poi abbassare il calore. Cuocere a fuoco dolce fino a quando le cicerchie sono tenere. La ricetta originale parla di un tempo di cottura lungo (circa due ore) che non coincide con la mia esperienza (meno di un'ora), quindi il mio consiglio è di controllare periodicamente le cicerchie. Durante la cottura, un certo numero di cicerchie hanno perso la buccia e io l'ho scartata.

Scaldare un po' di olio d'oliva in una pentola, poi aggiungere aglio ed erbe aromatiche. Cuocere per un minuto circa, mescolando, fino a quando l'aglio sprigiona il suo aroma, poi aggiungere i pomodori. Cuocere fino ad ottenere un sughetto (nel mio caso, 8 minuti), poi versare nella pentola le cicerchie e farle cuocere nel sugo per 10 minuti. Versare nella pentola il brodo e abbastanza acqua da formare una minestra della consistenza desiderata. Continuare a cuocere per 10 minuti. Salare e pepare a seconda del gusto e poi servire. 

Ho servito la minestra con delle fettine di pane di segale fatto in casa leggermente tostate, come si vede nella foto in alto.

minestra di cicerchie with Parmigiano-Reggiano

Ho fatto le tagliatelle alla borragine e ho tagliato a quadrucci i pezzi di pasta troppo corti: mia madre faceva così quando faceva le tagliatelle, quasi tutte le domeniche.

Ho cotto i quadrucci nella minestra portata. Prima di servirla, ho aggiunto del Parmigiano-Reggiano. In entrambi le versioni, questa è un'ottima minestra. Il sapore delle cicerchie è particolare, e ricorda sia le lenticchie che i ceci.

Questo è il mio contributo all'Abbecedario culinario d'Italia, un evento organizzato dalla Trattoria MuVarA che ci porterà a visitare tutte le regioni italiane utilizzando come guida l'alfabeto. F come Foligno è ospitata da Cristina di La cucina di Cristina. Su questa pagina trovate la lista dei piatti preparati per l'evento.

Questa minestra va anche a Souper (Soup, Salad & Sammies) Sundays, un evento settimanale creato da Deb di Kahakai Kitchen. Questo post contiene il riepilogo dell'evento.

Contribuisco questo post anche a My Legume Love Affair 47, edizione corrente del popolare evento "leguminoso" creato da Susan, The Well-Seasoned Cook, e ospitato questo mese da Priya of Mharo Rajasthan's Recipes.

tagliatelle con bietola e pecorino

tagliatelle with chard and pecorino

tagliatelle with chard and pecorino

Last Saturday, my laptop would not wake up after a period of sleep. (I just learned that the hard disk is broken and needs replacement.) Hence, the last several days have been challenging due to lack of access to files and applications I need for work, the blog and photography. The stressful computer situation did not prevent me from cooking and, in this case, experimenting a bit with available ingredients.

fava bean leaves

As I mentioned in my recent post on ribollita-inspired soup, at the farmers' market, I got some fresh fava bean leaves (foglie delle fave), called also fava greens. What I did not use in the soup, I turned into a kind of pesto, as follows:

• 3 oz. fresh fava bean leaves
• 2 cloves of garlic, previously roasted in the oven (skin on)
• a generous pinch of salt
• 2 tablespoons of olive oil

Put the first three ingredients in the food processor and turn it on, then pour the oil slowly through the feeding tube and process just a few seconds after you finish the oil.

I used a dollop of the sauce to top each bowl of ribollita-inspired soup, and stored the rest for further experiments. The first experiment was to use it as pasta dressing the way I use pesto. The result was acceptable, but not quite satisfying. Freshly harvested rainbow chard from my little vegetable patch almost screamed to be used and I paid attention.

My recipe for making fresh tagliatelle is in this post. The final element of the dish is fiore sardo (pecorino from Sardinia), the kind of cheese I use (together with Parmigiano-Reggiano) to make traditional basil pesto. It's one of my favorite Italian cheeses (and one of the few cheeses I still buy, since I cannot make it at home due to lack of access to sheep milk). It is also the cheese traditionally paired with fava beans, represented in my pasta dish by their leaves.

freshly grated pecorino cheese

This is another recipe where quantities are not fixed: I made a small batch of tagliatelle (using one egg, as in this recipe), harvested a small bunch of chard leaves and adjusted the amount of cheese to our palate. If you cook more chard than needed for the pasta, you can use it later as a side dish.

Ingredients:

• olive oil
• a clove of garlic, minced
• a small bunch of chard leaves cut into ribbons, thick ribs removed and set aside for another dish (like this or this)
• sea salt and freshly milled black pepper, to taste
• a tablespoon (or a bit more, to taste) of pesto made with fresh fava bean leaves (see above)
• a small batch of tagliatelle made using one egg
• freshly grated fiore sardo

Bring water for the pasta to a boil. In the meantime, warm up olive oil in a skillet and add garlic. Let fry lightly for a minute, then add the chard. Sauté over gentle heat until cooked (in my case, it took 6 minutes or so, since the chrd leaves were young and tender). The water hanging onto the leaves should be sufficient, but keep a close eye during the cooking to prevent them from sticking to the skillet. When ready, season with salt and pepper to taste, add the fava bean leaf pesto, stir well and turn off the heat. Keep warm while the pasta cooks.

Add salt to the boiling water, drop tagliatelle into it and stir. Bring back to a boil and cook pasta al dente (it will take just a few minutes). While you keep an eye on the pasta pot, grate the cheese. Pour some cold water into the pot, stir, then drain the tagliatelle. Empty the strainer into a bowl, then dress the pasta with the cooked chard and some of the cheese. Toss well, sprinkle more cheese on the surface and serve immediately.

This is my contribution to edition #261 of Presto Pasta Nights. The event was created by Ruth of Once Upon a Feast and is hosted this week by Simona of briciole (that would be me).

Click on the button to hear me pronounce the Italian words mentioned in the post:

tagliatelle con bietola e pecorino

or launch the tagliatelle con bietola e pecorino audio file [mp3].

[Depending on your set-up, the audio file will be played within the browser or by your mp3 player application. Please, contact me if you encounter any problems.]

chard, pasta, cheese

minestra di verdure stile ribollita

ribollita-inspired vegetable soup

[cliccare il link per andare alla versione in italiano]

ribollita stage

Our tour of the 20 regions of Italy organized by Trattoria MuVarA brings us to Toscana (Tuscany). Though I like Firenze (Florence) and have been there many times, my favorite Tuscan city is Siena, which I featured in this post written after our most recent visit. (Siena is relatively close to my home town of Perugia.)

Siena: il Palazzo Comunale in Piazza del Campo

Siena was the second Italian city my (now) husband visited with me and we both have vivid memories of that occasion. I have always liked the famous Piazza del Campo, but seen my husband's jaw drop when, at the end of a narrow street, the view opened upon it, was a reminder of just how unique the place is.

To prepare something in honor of Tuscany, I went to my wish list and got to the letter "r", where I found ribollita, the famous Tuscan soup. The word ribollita literally means "boiled again." One day you make a pot of soup, then you add bread slices. The day after, you reheat it and it becomes ribollita. There is a bit more to it, but that is the basic idea.

In her cookbook Cucina Povera, Tuscan Peasant Cooking, Pamela Sheldon Johns has a recipe for ribollita that includes a timetable suggesting what to do with the soup on day 1 through 4. Here you can read Sheldon Johns' headnote and recipe, here is the version given by Kyle Phillips, and here is the version by Frank of Memorie di Angelina. Finally, this is the recipe on the Accademia Italiana della Cucina site: it is in Italian, but I am putting the link here anyway, so you can see that no quantity is given for any of the ingredients.

I never had ribollita when visiting Tuscany, which freed me from memory-based constraints. I had the intention to stay close to the tradition, but in the end I took liberties, so, I decided to call the soup I made for the event "ribollita-inspired." However, by using some things I had in the vegetable crisper (mostly from my vegetable patch), I was true to a philosophy that is dear to my heart: you use up everything you have, trying to turn it into something flavorful and healthy.

dry pinto beans

As part of my most recent grain CSA share, I received some local dry pinto beans  and decided to try them: most recipes I read use cannellini beans, while one uses zolfini beans (I have some of those, but that's a story for another day).

fava bean leaves

At the farmers' market, I found fava bean leaves (foglie delle fave), also called fava greens, which I had never tasted and had to try so I used those instead of cavolo nero (a.k.a., dinosaur, Tuscan, or black-leaf kale).

Once again, I make no claims about my rendition, but the spirit is there. This being a popular dish, recipes tend to be family-based and also seasonal. And in true popular cuisine style, I didn't weigh anything, so the recipe is a list of ingredients — which makes me laugh since such a behavior used to upset me when I asked my mother for one of her recipes.

Print-friendly version of briciole's recipe for minestra di verdure stile ribollita

Note: the non-leafy vegetables are cut into small pieces, a mix of sliced and diced, while the leafy vegetables are sliced into ribbons. In the list of ingredients I indicate this as "chopped."

1. olive oil
2. 1/4 large onion, chopped
3. 2 scallions, sliced into thin rounds
4. 1 large carrot, chopped
5. 1 small celery rib, chopped
6. 2 garlic cloves, minced
7. 2 small icicle radishes, chopped
8. a bunch of chard stalks, chopped (left over and/or from ingredient #15 below)
9. a mix of herbs (e.g., chopped parsley, leaves of thyme, chopped rosemary needles)
10. 1/2 cup dry pinto beans, cooked as explained in this post
11. 4 cups homemade light chicken stock, or vegetable alternative
12. 1 medium-small cabbage, divided into six wedges and shredded
13. water as needed
14. 1/4 lb. fresh fava bean leaves, chopped
15. a handful of greens for braised mix (chard, kale, mustard greens, etc.), thick ribs removed where necessary, chopped
16. sea salt and freshly milled black pepper, to taste
17. a squeeze of lemon juice
18. bread of choice: I baked this rye bread (without flowers but with caraway seeds), because I thought it would go well with the soup (and I was right); slices of country-style bread, possibly Tuscan (saltless) bread, are traditional

Warm olive oil in a soup pot (a terracotta pot is ideal, but I don't have one — yet) and add onion and scallions. Stir to coat and let cook for a few minutes. Add carrot and celery, stir and cook for a few minutes. Add garlic, then radishes and chard stalks (or whatever you want to use here) and finally the herbs. Let cook for a few minutes and in the meantime, mash the beans.

The recipes I have read instruct you to drain half the beans, and set those aside, then to mash the rest with the cooking liquid. I mashed all the beans in their broth, using a potato masher (so the result was not smooth), then added everything to the soup pot.

Next, pour the broth into the pot and then add the cabbage. Pour some water as well, but not quite to cover, since the cabbage will shrink as it cooks. Cover the pot, bring to a boil and cook gently for 50 minutes or so, until the cabbage is tender. Add the leafy greens, bring back to a boil and cook gently for 10 minutes or so, until everything is nice and just perfect in texture. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

vegetable soup stage

You can serve the soup at this point, by itself (as in the photo above), or ladled in bowls in which you have previously put a layer of thin bread slices. If you do the latter, cover each bowl and keep warm. Let the bread soak up the broth for 15 minutes or so, then serve. In this case, we can call it minestra di pane (bread soup). You can skip this part and go for the ribollita stage.

Put a layer of bread slices in another pot (again here, a terracotta one would be great), and pour soup on it. Depending on how much soup you have, make another layer of bread plus soup. Let the bread soak up the broth for several hours or overnight. When you want to serve the soup, reheat it. If you want a less dense soup, add a bit of water. Gently stir while reheating (this will break the bread), then serve hot with a bit of olive oil drizzled on top.

The splash of green in the top photo is a sort of pesto I made with the leftover fava bean leaves. It is not necessary of course, but it looks nice, doesn't it? The soup was excellent in all versions. 

If you become a fan of ribollita, you can learn to sing this song. Here are the words of the first part:

com'è squisita, com'è squisita la ribollita
e specialmente se ribollita l'è più squisita
se vuoi star bene qua nella vita
mangiati spesso una ribollita
e quando poi l'avrai finita
potrai leccarti pure le dita

how delicious, how delicious is ribollita
and if reheated, it's even more delicious
if you want to be healthy in this life
eat some ribollita often
and when you've finished it
you can also lick your fingers

This is my submission for the fifth installment of the Abbecedario culinario d'Italia (Italian Culinary ABC), an event organized by Trattoria MuVarA that will bring us to visit all the 20 regions of Italy using the alphabet as guide. E come Empoli is hosted by Cinzia of Cindystar. This post contains the list of contributions and a slide show.

I am also sending this to My Legume Love Affair 46, the current edition of the popular, legume-centered event created by Susan, The Well-Seasoned Cook, and hosted this month by the creator herself. This post contains the roundup of the event.

And this hearty soup is perfect for Souper (Soup, Salad & Sammies) Sundays, a weekly event created by Deb of Kahakai Kitchen. This post contains the roundup of the event.

Click on the button to hear me pronounce the Italian words mentioned in the post:

minestra di verdure stile ribollita

or launch the minestra di verdure stile ribollita audio file [mp3].

[Depending on your set-up, the audio file will be played within the browser or by your mp3 player application. Please, contact me if you encounter any problems.]

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soup, cabbage, fava-bean, Italian recipe

Per i lettori italiani

la mia ribollita

Siena è la seconda è che mio marito ha visitato con me. Vedere i suoi occhi pieni di meraviglia al nostro arrivo a Piazza del Campo mi diede un senso ancora più intenso di quanto sia bella.

Per preparare un piatto in onore della Toscana, ho consultato la mia lista d'attesa e alla letter "r" ho trovato ribollita, la famosa minestra Toscana. L'idea di base è la seguente: il primo giorno si prepara una pentola di minestra. Poi si aggiungono delle fette di pane. Il giorno dopo, si riscalda e diventa ribollita.

Non ho mai mangiato la ribollita quando sono stata in Toscana, il che mi ha reso libera di fare un po' quello che volevo. Sono partita con l'idea di rimanere vicina alla tradizione, ma alla fine ho fatto un po' quello che volevo, in base agli ingredienti che avevo a disposizione (in gran parte provenienti dal mio orticello) e quindi ho chiamato la mia minestra "stile ribollita."

fagioli pinto

Nella mia cassettina di granaglie più recente ho trovato dei fagioli pinto e ho deciso di usarli, invece dei cannellini. (Una ricetta che ho visto usa i fagioli zolfini, che ho e che userò quanto prima.)

foglie delle fave

Al farmers' market ho comprato un sacchetto di foglie delle fave, che avevo visto l'anno scorso ma non avevo ancora provato e le ho usate invece del cavolo nero.

Presumo che in Toscana ogni famiglia abbia la propria ricetta per la ribollita. La mia è tradizionale nello spirito, nel senso che utilizza ingredienti di stagione e di produzione locale. Da notare anche che la ricetta sul sito dell'Accademia Italiana della Cucina non specifica le quantità degli ingredienti: come vedrete, io farò altrettanto.

Nota: le verdure non a foglia sono tagliate a pezzetti, mentre quelle a foglia sono tagliate a nastri. Nella lista degli ingredienti, utilizzo per tutte l'aggettivo "tagliate."

1. olio d'oliva
2. 1/4 cipolla grossa, tagliata a pezzetti
3. 2 cipolle verdi, tagliate e rondelle fini
4. 1 carota grossa, tagliata a pezzetti
5. 1 piccola costa di sedano, tagliata a pezzetti
6. 2 spicchi d'aglio tritati
7. 2 piccoli ravanelli ghiacciolo, tagliati a pezzetti
8. una manciata di coste, tagliate a pezzetti (avanzate e/o dall'ingrediente numero 15 qui sotto)
9. un misto di erbe (per es., prezzemolo tritato, foglioline di timo, aghi di rosmarino tritati)
10. 1/2 tazza (120 ml) di fagioli pinto o cannellini, cotti come spiegato in questo post o come fate di solito
11. 4 tazze (950 ml) brodo di pollo leggero fatto in casa, o brodo vegetale
12. 1 cavolo cappuccio medio-piccolo, diviso in 6 spicchi e tagliato a nastri fini
13. acqua, q.b.
14. 120 g foglie delle fave, tagliate a nastri
15. una manciata di verdure a foglia (bietola, cavolo nero, cavolo riccio, ecc.), costa centrale rimossa, se necessario, tagliate a nastri
16. sale fino e pepe macinato fresco, q.b.
17. un po' di succo di limone
18. pane a scelta: io ho fatto questo pane di segale (senza i fiori ma con semi di cumino tedesco), perché pensavo che sarebbe stato perfetto con la minestra (e avevo ragione); tradizionalmente si usa il pane toscano

Scaldare dell'olio d'oliva in una pentola capiente (possibilmente di terracotta) e aggiungere i due tipi di cipolla. Mescolare e far cuocere alcuni minuti, poi aggiungere carota e sedano, mescolare e lasciare cuocere alcuni minuti. Aggiungere aglio, ravanelli e coste (o le verdure che volete usare qui) e le erbe aromatiche. Lasciare cuocere per alcuni minuti e nel frattempo schiacciare i fagioli.

Le ricette che ho consultato dicono di scolare la metà dei fagioli e metterli da parte e di schiacciare o ridurre in purè il resto nel loro brodo. Io ho schiacciato tutti i fagioli nel loro brodo usando questo tipo di schiacciapatate, quindi il risultato non era omogeneo, e ho aggiunto tutto insieme alla minestra.

Versare il brodo nella pentola e poi aggiungere il cavolo. Versare dell'acqua, ma non fino a coprire del tutto, dal momento che il cavolo cuocendo diminuirà di volume. Coprire la pentola, portare ad ebollizione e cuocere a fuoco dolce per circa 50 minuti, fino a quando il cavolo non sia tenero. Aggiungere le verdure a foglia, riportare a bollore e cuocere a fuoco dolce per circa 10 minuti, fino a quando tutto sia ben cotto e piacevole al palato. Condire con sale e pepe a seconda del gusto.

minestra di verdure

A questo punto potete servire la minestra da sola (come nella foto qui sopra) oppure versarla in piatti fondi nei quali avete messo uno strato di fettine di pane tagliate fine. Se fate questo, tenete in caldo i piatti. Fate riposare un quarto d'ora circa e poi servire. In questo caso, la minestra di verdure si pu&ochiamare minestra di pane. Potete saltare questo passaggio e andare diritto alla ribollita.

Disporre uno strato di pane in fondo ad un'altra pentola (possibilmente di terracotta) e versarci sopra della minestra. A seconda di quanta minestra avete, fare un altro strato di pane e minestra. Lasciar riposare per diverse ore o durante la notte. Quando volete servire la minestra, riscaldatela. Se preferite una minestra meno densa, aggiungere un po' d'acqua. Mescolare con delicatezza mentre la minestra si scalda, poi servire ben calda con un pochino d'olio spruzzato sulla superficie.

Il tocco di verde brillante nella foto in alto è una specie di pesto che ho fatto con le foglie delle fave che mi sono avanzate. Non è necessario, ma ci sta bene, non credete? La minestra è eccellente in tutte le versioni. 

Se diventate dei fan della ribollita, potete canticchiare questa canzone.

Questo è il mio contributo all'Abbecedario culinario d'Italia, un evento organizzato dalla Trattoria MuVarA che ci porterà a visitare tutte le regioni italiane utilizzando come guida l'alfabeto. E come Empoli è ospitata da Cinzia di Cindystar. Questo post contiene la lista dei contributi e uno slide show.

Contribuisco questo post anche a My Legume Love Affair 46, edizione corrente del popolare evento "leguminoso" creato da Susan, The Well-Seasoned Cook, e ospitato questo mese da Susan stessa. Que sto post contiene il riepilogo dell'evento.

E questa minestra è perfetta per Souper (Soup, Salad & Sammies) Sundays, un evento settimanale creato da Deb di Kahakai Kitchen. Questo post contiene il riepilogo dell'evento.

lassi alla fragola

strawberry lassi

[cliccare il link per andare alla versione in italiano]

strawberry lassi made with kefir

Having a steady supply of homemade kefir means being able to experiment with it on the spur of the moment. My husband likes Indian food and when he eats at an Indian restaurant, he always orders a mango lassi, so it was not difficult to choose that fruit flavor for my first try at using kefir to make the beverage. But then, of course, I had to invent something different.

You may remember from last year (and if you don't, I'll remind you right now) that I tried roasting strawberries (fragole) flavored with balsamic vinegar, then explored a couple of ways of using them, namely gelato and frittata. To be totally honest, the first time I prepared strawberry lassi, I used fresh strawberries and the verdict was: not enough strawberry flavor. So then, the idea of using roasted strawberries formed itself.

roasted strawberries

Strawberries are available at the Temescal Farmers' Market, in Oakland, one of the places where I shop, so it was easy to go from thought to action and the result was greeted with warm approval. Hence, this has now become a standard item on the breakfast menu at our house.

it was good!

Print-friendly version of briciole's recipe for lassi alla fragola

Ingredients for two portions (porzioni):

• 8 oz. [225 g] organic or pesticide-free strawberries
• 1/4 teaspoon balsamic vinegar (aceto balsamico) of good quality
• 1/2 teaspoon ultra-fine sugar
• 2 cups [475 ml] plain kefir, possibly homemade
• agave nectar or honey, to taste (the quantity depending on the sweetness of the strawberries and your personal preference)

Wash strawberries and carve out stem. Place in a bowl, sprinkle balsamic vinegar and sugar, and toss gently. Heat the oven to 350 F. Line a baking sheet with a silicone mat that is wider and longer than the sheet, so no juice can escape from any side. Place strawberries on the sheet on a single layer. Put the baking sheet in the oven and bake for 30 minutes. Let strawberries cool completely. They will juice while baking, so when moving them to the blender in the next step, scoop up the juice as well.

Put half the strawberries and juice into the blender, add 1 cup of kefir and a bit of agave nectar. Add a bit more kefir, if you wish, depending on your personal taste in terms of flavor and texture. Blend, taste and adjust sweetener. Pour into a tall glass and serve. Repeat with the rest of the strawberries and the other cup of kefir, or make one portion and store the strawberries for later use.

This is my contribution to edition #329 of Weekend Herb Blogging, an event started by Kalyn of Kalyn's Kitchen, now organized by Haalo of Cook (almost) Anything at Least Once and hosted this week by Simona of briciole (a.k.a., me).

This post contains the roundup of the event.

Click on the button to hear me pronounce the Italian words mentioned in the post:

lassi alla fragola

or launch the lassi alla fragola audio file [mp3].

[Depending on your set-up, the audio file will be played within the browser or by your mp3 player application. Please, contact me if you encounter any problems.]

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kefir, strawberry

Per i lettori italiani

lassi alla fragola fatto col kefir

Avere a disposizione kefir fatto in casa vuol dire poter fare esperimenti non pianificati. A mio marito piace la cucina indiana e quando mangia in un ristorante indiano da bere ordina sempre un lassi al mango. Il lassi è una bevanda preparata con yogurt che può essere sia dolce che salata. La prima volta che ho provato a fare il lassi usando il mo kefir sono andata sul sicuro e ho usato del mango. Ma poi, naturalmente, ho voluto inventare qualcosa di diverso.

Forse vi ricorderete (altrimenti ve lo rammento io adesso) che l'anno scorso ho provato a cuocere al forno le fragole aromatizzate con aceto balsamico e poi le ho usate per fare il gelato e la frittata. In tutta onestà, la prima volta che ho provato a fare il lassi alla fragola ho usato fragole fresche e il verdetto è stato: insufficiente sapore di fragola. E allora mi è venuto in mente di provare ad usare le fragole arrosto.

fragole arrosto

Le fragole le trovo al Temescal Farmers' Market, ad Oakland (la stagione delle fragole in California è molto lunga, grazie al clima), quindi mi è stato facile passare ai fatti. Il risultato è stato ben accolto e quindi il lassi alla fragola è entrato a far parte del menu della colazione a casa nostra (mio marito, da buon americano, necessita di una colazione sostanziosa).

che buono che era!

Ingredienti per due porzioni:

• 225 g fragole bio
• 1/4 cucchiaino aceto balsamico di buona qualità
• 1/2 cucchiaino di zucchero finissimo
• 475 ml kefir bianco, possibilmente fatto in casa
• nettare di agave o miele a piacere (la quantità dipende dalla dolcezza delle fragole e dal gusto personale)

Lavare le fragole e privarle del picciolo. Mettere le fragole in una ciotola e spruzzare aceto balsamico e aggiungere zucchero. Mescolare bene con delicatezza. Scaldare il forno a 175 C. Foderare una lastra da forno con un tappetino di silicone che sia più lungo e più largo, in modo che il succo prodotto durante la cottura in forno non finisca sotto il tappetino. Disporre le fragole sulla lastra. Mettere in forno e cuocere per 30 minuti. (La temperatura in gradi Fahrenheit che uso io, 350, è un po' al di sopra di 175 C e un po' al di sotto di 180 C. Ho deciso di specificare la temperatura più bassa poiché preferisco essere cauta. Potete lasciare le fragole in forno qualche minuto in più, ma fate attenzione che il succo non bruci.) Lasciar raffreddare le fragole.

Trasferire metà delle fragole e del succo che producono durante la cottura nel frullatore, aggiungere metà del kefir e un tocco di nettare di agave o miele. Aggiungere un poco di kefir, a seconda del gusto per quanto riguarda sapore e consistenza. Frullare, assaggiare e, se necessario, aggiungere del nettare di agave o miele. Versare la bevanda in un bicchiere e servire. Ripetere il procedimento con l'altra metà delle fragole e del kefir, oppure preparare una porzione sola e conservare le fragole per usarle più avanti.

Questo post è il mio contributo all'edizione numero 329 di Weekend Herb Blogging, un evento creato da Kalyn di Kalyn's Kitchen, organizzato ora da Haalo di Cook (almost) Anything at Least Once, la cui versione italiana è organizzata da Brii di briggishome, e ospitata questa settimana da Simona di briciole (cioè me).

Questo post contiene il raccolto dell'evento.

frità an bagna

frittata strips with parsley sauce

[cliccare il link per andare alla versione in italiano]

my "frità an bagna"

Continuing our tour of the 20 regions of Italy organized by Trattoria MuVarA, we arrive in Piemonte (Piedmont), whose capital, Torino (Turin) was also the first capital of the newly united Italian state. It is difficult to do full justice to the many contributions Piemonte has made to Italian gastronomy. A random sample would include gianduia (hazelnut chocolate), Alba truffles (tartufi), several varieties of rice, bagna caoda, cheeses (for example, toma piemontese and bra), grissini (breadsticks) to name just a few highlights. And of course, we cannot forget the wines (Barbaresco, Barolo, Nebbiolo, etc.).

At the Parco del Valentino in Turin

This is a photo from my first visit to Torino, with my parents and brother. It was early December, cold and foggy. It was my first experience of the fog (nebbia) and it made a big impression on me. The city was padded with it: sounds were muffled and objects were faded. I think the photo, shot by my father at the Parco del Valentino, gives an idea of the atmosphere created by the fog. I didn't know at the time that some years later, I would move to Milan and would get very familiar with the thick fog typical of the Po Valley.

A couple of years after that first visit, I was in Torino again with my classmates and had another interesting experience: at the Museo egizio (Egyptian Museum) I saw the face of a mummy, unwrapped. My third and most recent visit was a short one, for a wedding.

None of the visits allowed me time to explore the culinary scene, so once again, for my contribution to the tour, I browsed the recipe section of the Accademia Italiana della Cucina website. Given my partiality for frittata, it is not surprising that I was drawn to a recipe called frità an bagna, which I believe means frittata in sauce in dialect. The English version of the recipe is available in the book by the Academy called La Cucina: The Regional Cooking of Italy. In it, the recipe name is stewed frittata strips, but I made it in a way that it is not really stewed. The book indicates that the recipe is from Vercelli, a city in the heart of rice region.

A sample of my exuberant parsley

Another element of the recipe that appealed to me was the use of a substantial quantity of prezzemolo (parsley). What you see in the photo is only a portion of the parsley I have available in my little herb garden. I planted some seeds and a seedling a few years ago and by letting one plant go to seeds every year, I ensure a constant supply of parsley throughout the year.

I have never eaten frità an bagna in Piemonte, so I don't know how my rendition compares to the traditional dish. However, I can tell you that I liked it and have already made it twice. My rendition differs from the original recipe in various ways: for example, I cooked the onion a bit before adding the parsley, used tapioca starch instead of flour (this makes the recipe gluten free), used water instead of milk in the frittata, and omitted the cooking of the frittata strips in the sauce for 10 minutes before serving. I just could not bring myself to further cook the frittata.

frittata cut into strips

Print-friendly version of briciole's recipe for frità an bagna

Ingredients:

• a medium onion, chopped
• olive oil
• 3 1/2 oz. [100 g] flat-leaf parsley, chopped
• one cup [240 ml] broth (I used my homemade chicken broth)
• 1 tablespoon [15 ml] tapioca starch
• 2 tablespoons [30 ml] tomato purée sauce (I used the tomato sauce described in this post)
• 6 eggs (I use pastured eggs)
• 3 tablespoons [45 ml] water
• 2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
  
• sea salt and freshly milled pepper, to taste

Note on the parsley: my parsley is of the variety gigante d'Italia. The stalks are long and fairly thick. I weighed the parsley after removing the thick main stalk, which I set aside to add to various other ingredients to make chicken stock. With the precious help of my mezzaluna, chopping the parsley (divided into two batches) was a breeze.

mezzaluna at work on half of the parsley

Warm up some olive oil in a saucepan, add the onion, stir to coat and cook on gentle heat for 5-7 minutes, stirring often. Add the chopped parsley and stir. Cook for 2-3 minutes. In the meantime, warm up the broth, add the tapioca starch and stir to dissolve and finally stir in the tomato sauce. Pour the liquid into the saucepan, bring to a simmer and cook until the onion is soft. Adjust salt and pepper to taste.

In the meantime, spray a large skillet with olive oil and warm up. I used my largest skillet, whose diameter is 12 inches [30.5 cm]. A slightly wider skillet would have worked as well, since the idea is to make a rather thin frittata. Break the eggs in a bowl and whisk them lightly with a fork until just blended. Add the water, then a few pinches of salt and whisk briefly. Finally, add the cheese and give the eggs a final quick whisk to incorporate it.

Turn on the broiler. (If your oven allows it, choose the "low" setting.) Pour the eggs slowly into the skillet. Cook over low heat until the eggs are set. After the edge is set, run a spatula under it and shake the frittata gently to ensure the bottom does not stick to the pan.

Place the skillet in the oven, leaving the door ajar, for a couple of minutes. The frittata will puff up a bit. Take the skillet out of the oven (don't forget that the handle is hot) and let rest of a couple of minutes, then slide the frittata onto a cutting board. Roll the frittata and slice it into strips no more than 1/2 inch thick. Put the strips in the saucepan with the sauce ans stir delicately. Serve immediately or at room temperature.

This is my submission for the fourth installment of the Abbecedario culinario d'Italia (Italian Culinary ABC), an event organized by Trattoria MuVarA that will bring us to visit all the 20 regions of Italy using the alphabet as guide. D come Domodossola is hosted by Stefania of CookingStefy.

This post contains the list of contributions: a very nice menu!

Click on the button to hear me pronounce the Italian words mentioned in the post:

frità an bagna

or launch the frità an bagna audio file [mp3].

[Depending on your set-up, the audio file will be played within the browser or by your mp3 player application. Please, contact me if you encounter any problems.]

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frittata, onion, parsley, Italian recipe

Per i lettori italiani

la mia version della "frità an bagna"

Continuiamo il tour delle 20 regione italiane organizzato da Trattoria MuVarA e arriviamo in Piemonte. Scusate, ma non posso fare a meno di pensare alla pubblicità del Digestivo Antonetto e a Nicola Arigliano che diceva: "Gruppo vacanze Piemonte, si parte!" E noi partiamo.

Al Parco del Valentino (Torino)

Questa è una foto della mia prima visita a Torino, con i miei genitori e mio fratello. Era l'inizio di Dicembre, faceva molto freddo e c'era la nebbia. Per me fu la prima esperienza della nebbia e mi ricordo bene la strana sensazione dei rumori ovattati e di edifici, alberi, semafori appannati. Credo che la foto scattata da mio padre al Parco del Valentino, renda bene l'idea dell'atmosfera. A quel tempo non immaginavo che qualche anno dopo mi sarei trasferita a Milano e di nebbia ne avrei vista tanta.

Un paio d'anni dopo quella prima visita, sono tornata a Milano con la scuola ed ebbi un'altra esperienza particolare: al Museo egizio vidi il viso di una mummia che era stata sbendata. La mia terza visita avvenne in occasione di un matrimonio.

Nessuna delle visite mi lasciarono tempo di esplorare la scena gastronomica e quindi per il mio contributo al tour ancora una volta ho cercato tra le ricette del sito dell'Accademia Italiana della Cucina. Data la mia parzialità per la frittata, non sorprende che sia stata attirata da un piatto che si chiama frità an bagna (credo che significhi frittata in salsa). La raccolta delle ricette del sito tradotte in inglese (La Cucina: The Regional Cooking of Italy) indica che il piatto è tipico di Vercelli.

Un po' del mio prezzemolo "gigante d'Italia"

Un altro elemento della ricetta che mi ha attirato è l'utilizzo in essa di una sostanziale quantità di prezzemolo. Quella che vedete sulla foto è una parte del prezzemolo che cresce nel mio orticello. Qualche anno fa piantai dei semi e una piantina e ogni anno lascio che una pianta fiorisca sparga i semi: in questo modo raccolto il prezzemolo tutto l'anno.

Non ho mai mangiato la frità an bagna in Piemonte, quindi non ho idea di come la mia realizzazione sia a paragone del piatto tradizionale: se qualcuno di voi conosce questo piatto, lasciatemi un commento con le informazioni che avete. Posso comunque dirvi che la frità an bagna mi è piaciuta molto e infatti l'ho preparata due volte nel giro di pochi giorni.

La mia versione differisce da quella originale in alcuni punti. Per esempio, ho cotto la cipolla un po' prima di aggiungere il prezzemolo, ho usato l'amido di tapioca invece della farina (quindi la ricetta è priva di glutine), ho usato l'acqua invece del latte nella preparazione della frittata e non ho cotto le striscie di frittata nella salsa per 10 minuti prima di servirla (perché l'idea di cuocere a lungo la frittata non mi convince).

fettuccine di frittata

Ingredienti:

• una cipolla media tritata
• olio d'oliva
• 100 g prezzemolo tritato
• 240 ml brodo (io ho usato il mio brodo di pollo fatto in casa)
• 1 cucchiaio [15 ml] amido di tapioca
• 30 ml salsa di pomodoro (io ho usato quella descritta in questo post)
• 6 uova codice 0
• 45 ml acqua
• 2 cucchiai Parmigiano-Reggiano macinato fresco
  
• sale fino e pepe nero macinato fresco, q.b.

Il mio prezzemolo è del tipo gigante d'Italia. Gli steli sono  lunghi e piuttosto grossi. Ho pesato il prezzemolo dopo aver rimosso lo stelo centrale, che ho messo da parte per utilizzare, insieme ad altri ingredienti, per fare il brodo di pollo. Con l'aiuto prezioso della mia mezzaluna, tritare il prezzemolo, diviso in due mandate, è stato facile e veloce.

mezzaluna all'opera su meta del prezzemolo

Scaldare un po' d'olio in una pentola, aggiungere la cipolla e mescolare. Cuocere a fuoco leggero per 5-7 minuti, mescolando spesso. Aggiungere il prezzemolo e mescolare. Cuocere per 2-3 minuti. Nel frattempo, scaldare il brodo, sciogliervi l'amido di tapioca e infine aggiungere la salsa di pomodoro. Versare il liquido nella pentola, portare a lieve bollore e cuocere fino a quando la cipolla sia tenera. Aggiustare sale e pepe a seconda del gusto.

Nel frattempo, oliare bene una padella larga (30,5 cm) e scaldarla. Una padella un po' più larga va bene lo stesso, dal momento che l'idea e quella di fare una frittata piuttosto fina. Rompere le uova in una ciotola e sbatterle leggermente. Aggiungere l'acqua e un paio di pizzichi di sale e incorporare. Infine, aggiungere il formaggio e sbattere leggermente per incorporare.

Accendere la parte alta del forno. (Se il vostro forno lo permette, scegliere l'opzione a calore basso.) Versare lentamente le uova nella padella. Cuocere a fuoco dolce fino a quando le uova sono rapprese. Una volta che il bordo delle frittata si è rappreso, passare una spatolina sotto il bordo e scuotere la padella (delicatamente) per evitare che la frittata si attacchi.

Quando le uova si sono rapprese, mettere la padella nel forno, lasciando lo sportello socchiuso, per un paio di  minuti. Tirare fuori la padella (fare attenzione: il manico scotta) e far riposare un paio di minuti, poi far scivolare la frittata su un tagliere, arrotolarla e tagliarla strisce larghe circa 1 cm. Deporre le striscie di frittata nella pentola della salsa e mescolare delicatamente. Servire immediatamente o a temperatura ambiente.

Questo è il mio contributo all'Abbecedario culinario d'Italia, un evento organizzato dalla Trattoria MuVarA che ci porterà a visitare tutte le regioni italiane utilizzando come guida l'alfabeto. D come Domodossola è ospitata da Stefania di CookingStefy.

Questo post contiene la lista dei contributi: che buon menu!

E mando questo piatto ricco di prezzemolo a Brii di briggishome che questa settimana ha ospitato l'edizione numero 328 di Weekend Herb Blogging, un evento creato da Kalyn di Kalyn's Kitchen, organizzato ora da Haalo di Cook (almost) Anything at Least Once, la cui versione italiana è organizzata da Brii stessa.

"spaghetti" al pomodoro

"spaghetti" with tomato sauce

"spaghetti" al pomodoro

Years ago, some time after I had moved to California, a colleague described to me a squash whose pulp, once cooked, looked like spaghetti. I remember that, as I was listening, I thought "Well, it's not April 1st, so this story unrelated to the time of year." I thought that it was a story like that of spaghetti growing on trees. In this case, spaghetti grew close to the ground. The background to the story was my curiosity about zucca (pumpkin, winter squash), a food that had never appeared on the table when I was growing up and that I was slowly learning to know.

When later I saw some melon-like fruit labeled "spaghetti squash" at the grocery store, I had to receonsider my position. I bought one of the squashes and verified that indeed, once cooked, the pulp of this squash separates in strands that remind one of broken spaghetti.

A short detour. Learning to wrap spaghetti around a fork takes a bit of practice, so young kids have their portion cut into short strands that can be more easily handled. However, it becomes a point of pride to be able to eat spaghetti properly, and once that happens, having an adult cut your spaghetti is an affront. While I have forgotten the details of my evolution on the spaghetti-eating path, I preserve the negative gut-feeling reaction to the sight of someone cutting spaghetti. There was one dish for which my mother broke spaghetti into short strands: cauliflower soup (minestra di cavolfiore). However, the breakage in this case occurred prior to cooking.

baked spaghetti squash

Back to spaghetti squash, I like that it offers a chance to prepare squash in different ways, namely to dress it as if it were pasta. Due to its thick skin, spaghetti squash stores well. The one in the photo has spent several months in my storage space without problems. I must admit that my technique for removing the pulp from the skin needs refinement: I could not get strands longer than a couple of inches, which means my plate of "spaghetti" is not likely to fool many people. (And considering my feelings about broken spaghetti, having a bowl of it did not make me particularly proud of myself.)

But whoever is fooled, once they take the first forkful to their mouth, will hear me squeal: "Pesce d'Aprile!" All right, that in theory would happen only if the date were April 1st, as explained in this post. But over at Very Good Recipes, April 1st will stretch for the whole month of April, thanks to the April Fool Challenge. I am one of the judges, so my post does not take part in the challenge, but is meant to illustrate what we are looking for in the entries submitted for it.

The "spaghetti" in the top photo were dressed with a simple tomato sauce (sugo di pomodoro). Last summer, I made several batched of strained roasted tomatoes and froze them in one- and two-cup sealable bags. When I want to make some tomato sauce, I grab one of the two-cup bags, thaw it and the sauce is ready in a short time.

Ingredients:

• a spaghetti squash
• 2 cups strained roasted tomatoes, thawed if frozen
• olive oil
• a shallot, minced
• leaves of a sprig of thyme
• a small garlic clove, minced
• sea salt, to taste
• freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano, to taste

Preheat the oven to 375 F. Cut squash in half lengthwise, remove seeds and threads (a grapefruit spoon is an excellent tool for this task), place on a lined baking sheet and bake for 40 minutes or until pulp is cooked. Let cool briefly, then with a fork, remove the pulp in strands and place in a large bowl. Sprinkle a bit of salt and stir. Note that spaghetti squash can also be cooked in a microwave or boiled. I favor the oven because it imparts a nice flavor to the squash and dries out some of the water it contains.

In a small saucepan, warm up a bit of olive oil, then add shallot and thyme. Cook gently for a few minutes, then add garlic. Cook for a couple of minutes, then add tomatoes. Bring to a simmer and cook for 7-8 minutes. Adjust salt, to taste.

Place some of the "spaghetti" in each bowl, distribute some tomato sauce over it, then sprinkle some cheese and serve immediately.

When you eat the first forkful, you'll notice that this spaghetti has a different texture from pasta and the taste is different as well. It's probably better to compare spaghetti squash with other types of squashes. The strands maintain a certain amount of bite, which allows the visual illusion. The flavor is quite mild, so choose some condiment or a nice sauce to go with it — as in the case of pasta, come to think about it. And as in the case of pasta, I recommend not to overdo with sauce, cheese or whatever else you are adding.

All the details of the challenge are explained on this page, so I won't repeat them here. The page also has the list of judges and the entries submitted so far, starting with those from the judges. Take a look at what's on the page, so you can get some ideas to get your creativity going. You have until Monday, April 30th to submit your entry according to the specifications laid out on the page referenced above. We are looking forward to reading about interesting variations on the theme of "fooling" someone at the table.

Click on the button to hear me pronounce the Italian words mentioned in the post:

"spaghetti" al pomodoro

or launch the "spaghetti" al pomodoro audio file [mp3].

[Depending on your set-up, the audio file will be played within the browser or by your mp3 player application. Please, contact me if you encounter any problems.]

April Fool Challenge, spaghetti squash, tomato sauce

kefir fatto in casa

homemade kefir

mango lassi made with kefir

A couple of months ago, I made kefir using this culture. The process was straightforward and in about 24 hours, we could taste it. I ended up making fresh cheese with it: I will described that in an upcoming this post.

While my first adventure with kefir was unfolding, Jeri, who writes the blog of the New England Cheesemaking Supply Company, published a three-part summary of information received by readers of their newsletter: 1. ordering kefir grains; 2. growing kefir grains; 3. using kefir grains.

In the first post, I learned more about kefir grains (grani di kefir) and the difference between them and the culture I had used. The cultures have probiotics in them, but "nowhere near as many as in the living grains." Probiotics are defined as living organisms, which upon ingestion in certain numbers, exert health benefits beyond inherent basic nutrition.

Kefir is a unique cultured dairy product due to combined lactic acid and alcoholic fermentation of lactose in milk. Kefir is produced by microbial activity of “kefir grains” which have a relatively stable and specific balance of lactic acid bacteria and yeast. [source]

I decided I needed to get some first-hand experience of the interesting-looking kefir grains. At the same time (and I guess this was all part of a grand scheme), Claudia of Honey from Rock wrote about her adventures with kefir. Shortly afterwards, I spent a few days on the Big Island and visited Claudia

Among the many goodies that Claudia gave us (I already mentioned one in this post), there was a small bag with some kefir grains in a milk bath. They did fine on the trip back and as soon as I got back home, I started my first batch of kefir.

Basically, it does not get easier than this. You still need to be careful about sanitizing the tools you are using, but really, making kefir at home is a breeze: you only need a glass jar, a strainer and a spoon or something similar to move the kefir grains. I sterilize the glass jar in the oven and the lid with boiling water. When the jar has cooled, I strain the kefir grains (from the previous batch of kefir or from the milk in which they were resting in the fridge).

The photo above is from a while ago. Most recently, instead of straining the kefir grains, I spoon them out, taking advantage of the fact that they tend to be at the surface of the jar of ready kefir. I then strain the content of the jar to separate small grains left behind. I have not read this anywhere: I feel like this way I stress the grains less. In any case, when straining kefir grains, be gentle.

Add milk of choice to the jar (I use pasteurized organic milk straight from the bottle) and then the strained kefir grains, cover the jar (leaving the lid just a bit loose to allow the CO₂ produced to escape), then set it aside in a warm, dark place (or wrap it in a kitchen towel). The kefir grains will take it from there and deliver kefir within a certain number of hours. It takes me 24 hours to get kefir, sometimes a bit longer, depending on the temperature. Once strained, I store kefir in the fridge and let it ripen for a day or two before using it.

Rather than go into the details of the set up, which is described in details in a number of places on the web — like this page and also this page, the one most people reference — I have summarized in a diagram the ways in which I have used kefir in its natural or drained state (arrows pointing down from "kefir"). The arrow pointing up from kefir grains means that I reculture milk with the grains strained out of the previous barch. I don't make kefir continuously. When I don't need more kefir than I have, I place the grains in a jar, cover them with milk and put them in the fridge for a few days. Since the grains grow while also making kefir, you may want to find a friend who wants to try and give her/him the extra grains that you get.

I have already shown one of the ways in which I use kefir in this post, where it substitutes sour cream topping for soup. The mango lassi in the top photo was made with

• chopped ripe mango
  
• kefir
  
• a bit of agave nectar as sweetener (the quantity depending on the sweetness of the mango and your personal preference).
  

And the beautiful scones below were made using kefir instead of buttermilk (latticello).

curry pumpkin and ginger scones

If you go to Honey from Rock and enter "kefir" in the Search field, you get the list of posts where Claudia talks about her adventures. The idea is that once you have kefir, you come up with various ways to use it. That is, at least, what happened to me.

Due to the claimed health benefits of kefir which include reduction of lactose intolerance symptoms, stimulation of the immune system, lowering cholesterol, and antimutagenic and anticarcinogenic properties, kefir has become an important functional dairy food and consequently, research on kefir has increased in the past decade. [source]

There are indeed a number of scientific papers describing research that looked more closely at the composition of kefir grains and at various effects of kefir administration to mice and rats. There are studies on specific health effects of kefir consumption in humans. For example, in this one on people with lactose maldigestion, kefir improved lactose digestion and tolerance. In other areas, results have been mixed (as this article summarizes): I hope larger studies will be conducted. In the meantime, I will continue enjoying making and using kefir at home.

Exciting update (May 26, 2012): my kefir story is featured in today's post on the New England Cheesemaking Supply Company blog.

Click on the button to hear me pronounce the Italian words mentioned in the post:

kefir fatto in casa

or launch the kefir fatto in casa audio file [mp3].

[Depending on your set-up, the audio file will be played within the browser or by your mp3 player application. Please, contact me if you encounter any problems.]

kefir