Stress Free Cooking
by
Barbara Seelig Brown's
Lifestyle Designs

Barbara (right) and Chef Luisa at Arte e Cucina
Cooking School in Siena, Italia.

Arte e Cucina – My Delicious Experience at Cooking School in Italia
By Barbara Seelig Brown

This past July I had the privilege of attending Cooking School in Siena, Italy. I couldn’t have been more excited just thinking about it, cooking and Italy, what could be better! I had high hopes for this experience and my expectations were met thanks to Chef Luisa Neri and Direttore Sonia Di Centa at Arte e Cucina at Society Dante Alighieri, (www.artandcooking.com).

My experience began on a Monday morning with a true Italian espresso and the introduction of the talented Chef Luisa. Chef Luisa had a lovely way about her, knew how to handle the students as well as the food and provided a most wonderful environment in which to learn. One day’s discussion about music resulted in Chef Luisa bringing in a small CD player with the CD’s of the artists discussed the day before in class. She didn’t miss a trick and her food was outstanding! When the chef is dancing around the kitchen, you know you are lucky to be learning from her.

Her excellent menus included such dishes as Ragu di Carne over homemade Tagliatelle (we made homemade pasta every single day), Osso Buco (my favorite), Panzanella (bread & tomato salad), Spinaci alla fiorentina, Pollo al Limone, Crostata ai frutta fresca, and Torta ubriaca agli amaretti. The Panzanella was not just chunks of tomato and huge cubes of bread, it was crusty Italian bread soaked and then torn into very small pieces, tossed with perfectly ripe tomatoes, basil, celery, cucumbers, and onion, then dressed with the finest olive oil and red wine vinegar.

The class cast of characters varied daily and I made some wonderful new friends from our west coast all the way to Japan. The international flavor added even more seasoning to an already delicious mélange. Chef Luisa taught the class mainly in Italian (and why not?) but some participants needed a bit of English thrown in, that is where I found a niche and began to translate. Afterall, the language of food is universal and it was a pleasure to lend a hand. It turned out that Chef Luisa and I made a great team.

There is so much to tell but one thing that kept ringing true to me is this. You know those delicious family favorite recipes that your mother or grandmother made and never wrote down because they didn’t have exact measurements, well, in Italy cooking is still an art, not an exact science. It is not over complicated. The cucchiaio (teaspoon) is a teaspoon not a measuring teaspoon. The ingredients, which are of the highest quality, are the basis for the dishes. Go to market, see what looks good, and go home and cook. Plan the menu at the market based on what is seasonal and looks good, don’t plan the menu at home and then go to 100 stores until you find the missing ingredient – that is already making cooking way too complicated.

Cooking is a way to express yourself and be creative. You know what you like, put it in a pot with a little love and try it! The recipes used in our classes were guidelines with room for tasting and tweaking, this was cooking the way it was intended to be, a labor of love. Taste it, season it, relax, and then enjoy it. It will be good because you made it. So get mom or grandma to show you how she makes her special dishes and make some notes. Each time you prepare the dish, it might come out different but the idea and the memories will still be there. Maybe it’s the memories that really did make that dish so special. And yes, I only like my mother’s meatballs.

Ragu di Carne (Meat Sauce) for Tagliatelle*

1 carrot – cut in large dice
1 onion – quartered
1 celery stalk – cut in large dice
2 cloves of garlic – peeled and crushed
1 bay leaf
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
10.5 ounces of ground meat
3 cups red wine
1 ounce dried mushrooms
10-12 cups of tomato sauce
Salt and pepper

Combine the carrot, onion, celery, garlic and bay leaf and cook about 10 minutes in a little oil. (This is called “un battuto,” a classic seasoning for meat, soup, and sauce.) Add the meat and brown, about 15 minutes. Add the red wine and cook until the wine is completely evaporated.

Meanwhile, reconstitute the dried mushrooms in hot water to cover for about 10 minutes. Drain the mushrooms and reserve the liquid. Add the mushrooms and the liquid to the tomato sauce and meat. Season with salt and pepper, cover, and cook for one hour or longer, stirring occasionally.

Serve over homemade Tagliatelle. Place the cooked pasta into a large serving dish with the ragu on top. Toss at the table and sprinkle with grated cheese.

On Chef Luisa’s well deserved day off, we were instructed by Chef Domenica Rondinella, originally from Sicily, but presently working in Siena. His menu was authentically Sicilian using native fish and seafood.

Chef Domenico’s Sicilian Menu:

Insalata di Polpo al Melone (Salad of Octopus and Cantaloupe)
Spaghetti Mattanza (Spaghetti with Tuna, Clams & Shrimp) (Mattanza is killing field. This is a big event in Sicily where the tuna is harvested once a year.)
Involtini Pesce Spada (Stuffed Swordfish)
Zucchine in Agrodolce (Zucchini with Raisins & Pine Nuts)
Budino al Limone – recipe follows:

Budino al Limone (Lemon Custard)*

ľ cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
3 ounces of sugar
2 cups whipping cream
4 large egg whites
1 package Knox Unflavored gelatin
1 pinch salt
1 teaspoon vanilla

Bring sugar, gelatin and lemon juice to a boil to dissolve and activate gelatin. Set aside to cool.
Beat egg whites to stiff peaks.
Whip cream. Stir in vanilla.
Stir egg whites into cream mixture. Slowly add cooled gelatin mixture. Pour into molds or martini glasses and chill several hours until firm. Garnish with lemon zest and fresh berries.

*Note: Recipe adapted for the American Kitchen by Barbara Seelig Brown from the kitchen of Arte e Cucina at Society Dante Alighieri in Siena, Italy.

The most wonderful part of the classes was seeing these recipes made in the true Italian style. I will be teaching classes this fall using my new “Italian” recipes and beyond that I can’t wait to return to my beloved Italia for more cooking classes. Buon Appetito!

Stress Free Cooking by Barbara Seelig Brown's Lifestyle Designs

Stress Free Cooking
by
Barbara Seelig Brown's
Lifestyle Designs