How to make risotto with truffles

Last Friday I gave the first cooking-class of the year , and the very first one as “Venise en Provence ” the Cookery School I’m going to open next springtime on the top of the hill in Goult .
As my house isn’t ready yet I went to the one my students rented for their holidays :the Bastide at the “Mas de Rosemarie” (here the kitchen) a very beatiful hamlet near Joucas and Gordes.


My clients , a lovely young couple of Americans asked me a lesson about truffles : January is a good month for this so I proposed a menu with truffles from the beginning to the end . They have three children so we cooked for five and even if the youngest boy did not appreciated so much the taste of truffles he loved the dessert , a truffled chocolate jelly .


















The menu was :
Risotto with truffles  
Tenderloin cooked in claryfied butter with Truffles on the top
Radicchio di Treviso Salad (here you can know everything about this vegetable)
Roasted Potatoes
White chocolate Jelly with Truffles
So…. the Risotto and some photos of the market of truffles in Menerbes .






Risotto with Truffles

Ingredients for 4 servings as a main dish , as a starter you can make half the dose
400 gr of Carnaroli Rice
2 liters of vegetable broth
40 gr of black truffle
50 ml of Prosecco or a good white wine
30 gr of good quality fresh butter
1 tbsp of extra-virgin olive oil
1 tbsp of grated Parmigiano Reggiano
2 grains of freshly  grounded  pepper : a white Sarawak for example or a Kappad ( some peppers have an “animal” smell , here we prefer something more herby and fresh just to give a spicy note without overwhelming the truffle)

Making the broth is very simple : pour 2 liters of water in a stock pot, add 2 coffee spoons of sea salt, 1 leek, a rib of celery without the green leaves, a carrot ,a parsnip ( that gives a very good taste) . You can add other vegetables ,herbs or spices  though this is just a basic broth with a light taste that you can use for so many things .Let simmer gently for about 45 minutes and that’s all . Done! To make risotto keep your broth warm .
Now : pour the oil in a pan ( I recommend something heavy ,the best is copper or a very good quality  non-stick one ) and when it’s warm throw the rice and stir gently till the grains become translucent ,then add the Prosecco ,mix and begin to add the broth . This is important : add one laddle at a time and stir ,when the broth is absorbed add another one . Cooking the rice will take about 18 minutes so after 15 mn it’s better to taste it . In the meantime you’ll have grated half of the truffles and cut very finely the rest . When your rice is almost cooked ( I mean it should be “al dente” ) add the grated truffled and mix well.Now you are ready to  give the final touch : this is very important . Follow me : you’ll have the butter, the Parmigiano, and the pepper ready at your side,  your risotto is “al dente", good ! If you like it creamy and not dry add one ladle of broth , it should be a little bit more liquid than the way you like it. Stir. Turn off the fire. Now  add  the butter, the pepper and the Parmigiano ,mix well : this is the way to get that ‘creamyness’ people like in Risotto. Cover and wait  2 minutes before serving with the rest of sliced truffles on top . Bon Appetit ! Hey...wait a minute : and the chocolate jelly ? Coming soon !

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Glorious food at Pimlico Farmers' Market

Wonderful cauliflowers

Coloured Swiss Chard
 

After visiting Bloomsbury Farmers' Market next Saturday we went to Pimlico Market ,you can find all informations here . It isn't a big one but it is great : you can find anything you need ,from fruits and vegetables to really fresh fish ,poultry ,eggs ,cheese , bread, flowers . Some people says that markets are expensive : yes , it seems so . But you don't need to buy enormous quantities of food :just buy what you need and when you have best quality you'll need less . As the food is so fresh it will last longer , so if you planify your weekly menus maybe you'll spare some money at the end.Surely you'll feel better. When we go shopping in a supermarket we normally buy much more than what we may need , and a lot of "trash food" sometimes .Last but not least : buying directly from producers is a " political" act , doing so we'll help all these people who works very hard for a sustainable agricolture .I won't talk further about quality : photos I shot are much worthier than words.

Fresh mushrooms

 

Smoked poultry

 

 

London Farmers' Markets: Bloomsbury

Wondering where to find good, fresh, organic food in London? No more.....get a look on this : London Farmers' Markets . You'll find a complete list of all the markets in town . I visited two: the first one I went  was in Bloomsbury.It's near the University of London and as there are so many students coming out for lunch is a market mostly based on street food ,though you can choose some  amazing vegetables coming from Wild Country Organics  , meats and poultry ,eggs. I bought some pigeon's breats that I cooked just few minutes with olive oil and a nut of butter , they were so tender and juicy .

                                    

The small white breads you see in the middle are "English Muffins" . I love them !

Students are coming for lunch

Hamburghers on the grill ,then there are different sauces on a small table and you cans dress it as you like.

 

 

 

 

 

Food Blogger Connect : a great meeting in London

At last I'm back ,sipping a cup of smoked tea while the Guinness Cake is cooling on the rack and Fall is advancing here in Provence . I was  ten days in London , three of which for the Food Blogger Connect , the annual meeting for food-bloggers in Europe ( but with people coming from all-over the world) .
It was my first time at the FBC and I must say it is very very well organised : all the time you had some interesting lesson to attend or workshops , all the day long you had a cup of coffee or tea and amazing food for breakfast , lunch , afternoon tea and supper . I attended two workshops : the first was held by Dianne Jacobs , a fantastic food-writer  and a wonderful ,caring person also . The  second ,about  food photograpy, was with Ellen Silverman who had the patience to have a look at all of our blogs to give us her advice and suggestions ( for me was : keep it simple and use something to filter the light ).
I met people....that's the purpose . I can't remenber all ,but I finally met Sandra , which I knew only by the net , it was magical to see her even if only for a short time . And Giulia , Regula,Rossella,Rossella ( yes I know, same name but two different persons , I love them ) Carla,Sally,Sarka , Marika, and Bethany who's the mind behind all this .

Why did I go there ? Why did I began to write this blog ? I suppose that's all about finding my voice .
Something has been lost along the way . Life hasn't been much kind . But today I can write a new chapter . So long . Have a good night ,you all . And a better day .

 

Coming back soon

 

 

Yes, it's a very long time I don't write here . It has been a very very long summer and ....no holidays but a lot of work . Now it's a little bit hard to begin again . I cooked for so many people , so many differents recipes and hardly the time to shoot some pic to remember . I succedeed anyway to write the menus I made : enough to write a book ! I've dressed differents tables . And I met a reader of my blog ( will post on this very soon ) .
 

Le scaloppine d'agnello per l'MTC

Le scaloppine.....un piatto che ho fatto raramente e senza troppo pensare alla ricetta ,il che vuol dire :fatte un po a caso . La spiegazione dettagliata di Elisa mi ha aperto un mondo : W le scaloppine !
Visto che abito in Provenza che altro potevo fare se non delle scaloppine d'agnello ? Ecco allora una versione decisamente mediterranea con tutti i profumi del Sud .

Profumate con i fiori di finocchio selvatico e l'aglio fresco , il fondo di cucina ricavato dai minuscoli ossicini tondi ( le scaloppine sono ricavate dalla coscia ) cotti in un brodo assieme alle verdure classiche e servite con delle patate al forno per le quali ho "creato" una ricetta speciale sulla base del gratin dauphinois e che si sono rivelate assolutamente deliziose .

Ingredienti per 4 persone

4 fette d'agnello ricavate dalla coscia ( fatele tagliare dello spessore adatto alla scaloppina come indicato qui  )
2 cucchiai d'olio evo
2 spicchi d'aglio possibilmente fresco
2/3  fiori di finocchio selvatico ( in mancanza usate i semi )
1 carota
1/2 gambo si sedano
Sale comune per il brodo
Fior di sale per le scaloppine
Pepe nero ( io ho usato il Voatsiperifery )
1/2  bicchiere di pastis
Farina di riso e ceci in parti uguali per infarinare la scaloppina

Le patate al forno stile Gratin Dauphinois

800 gr di patatine novelle
1 litro di latte
2 spicchi d'aglio
Noce moscata grattugiata 1/2 cucchiaino
pepe bianco macinato fresco ( per gli appassionati : un muntock ,con le sue note ' animali' e calde )
1 cucchiaio d'olio evo
2 rametti di rosmarino


Lavate le patatine ,tagliatele in due e mettetele in una pentola .Aggiungete l'aglio,un cucchiaino di sale grosso,la noce moscata  e il latte . Portate a bollore e lasciate cuocere 5 minuti .Togliete le patate dal liquido ,mettetele in una pirofila , aggiungete una bella macinata di pepe ,il rosmarino e l'olio , verificate il sale e mescolate . Passate in forno ventilato a 200° per circa 20 mn ,finché le patate son ben dorate .

Togliete l'osso dalle scaloppine ( é piccolo e non lascia un grande buco ) quindi battetele con il batticarne ( in mancanza il pugno andrà benissimo) .
Versate 750 ml d'acqua in un pentolino , aggiungete gli ossicini d'agnello l'aglio la carota  il sedano e i fiori di finocchio selvatico ( io ne avevo di secchi dall'anno scorso ,buonissimi ) e 1/2 cucchiaino da caffé di sale . Fate bollire per circa mezz'ora scoperto ,in modo da ridurre il brodo .
Infarinate le scaloppine con una miscela in parti uguali di farina di riso e ceci ( per una nota mediterranea ) e fatele dorare su entrambi i lati nella padella con i due cucchiai d'olio evo ,basteranno 2/3 minuti . A questo punto toglietele , riservandole in un piatto . Sfumate il grasso con il pastis grattando bene le parti solide che si saran formate , quindi  versate  due/tre mestoli di brodo  e fate ridurre per addensare la salsa . La salsa pronta rimettete le scaloppine in padella giusto il tempo di scaldarle, spargetevi sopra qualche granello di fior di sale e il pepe macinato fresco ( nelle buone drogherie dovreste trovarlo) e servite irrorandole di salsa e accompagnandole con le patatine arrosto .

Con questa ricetta partecipo all'MTC di Giugno

Pie Party 2012 : Rhubarb & Cherries Pie

Yesterday I was surfing on internet and I went to see Eat the Love ,a blog that I love . Irvin is so much fun and a talented baker. Today ( in USA , in Europe we are in the next one ) is Pie Day , an event on the net : everyone is invited to bake a cake and share it on the web . I made this

A very simple Rhubarb & Cherries ( yes I know , a little bit addicted like here ) . I made a classic crust but I substituted a small amount of wheat flour with some quinoa flour , I like its hearthy taste and it has given an unespected crunchy-smoothness to the crust .

Rhubarb & Cherries Pie

For the crust :

200 gr of all-purpose wheat flour

50 gr of quinoa flour

125 gr of butter

a pinch of salt

60 gr of icing sugar

1 egg

a pinch of vanilla seeds

half an eggshell of water

Sift the flours in a bowl , add the butter cut in small pieces and flatten with your fingertips till it comes like sand ( work quickly or the butter will ' burn' ) then add the sugar , the salt and the vanilla ,mix with a fork .Make a hole at the center , break the egg in , add a small quantity of water like half a eggshell and toss with the fork until it comes to a dough . If it's too dry sprinkle with some water , then make a ball , wrap it in a film and let cool in the fridge one hour or overnight .

The filling

400 gr of rhubarb

400 gr of cherries

50 gr of brown sugar

half a csp of pepper ( I choose Voatsiperifery , a wild pepper from Madagascar for its very peculiar smell, if you can't find you can try Long pepper  )

6/7 biscuits

 Wash the rhubarb and cut it into slices , wash the cherries and take off the stems and the kernel ,mix the rhubarb , the cherries and the sugar , put in a saucepan and cook till the rhubarb comes soft.

Mash the biscuits.

Preheat the oven at 350 F or 180°.

Divide the dough in two pieces ,one must be the double of the other like 2/3. Roll the bigger one on a dusty surface , line it in a tart pan of 24 cm , sprinkle the bottom with the mashed biscuits ( it avoids the dough getting  moisty) fill with the rhubarb-cherries mixture , spread the freshly grounded pepper all over , then roll the smaller piece of dough and cover the pie with it .Seal well the borders and let cook about 35 minutes , or till golden .Let cool before serving