My Grundtvig colleages with Monaci’s talented Chef
Grundtvig Colleagues
Tucking in
Healthy Meditteranean diet
Squid Salad
Tasting the different dishes
Satisfaction
Adding pasta to tomato based sauce
Steaming away
Making sure the sauce is evenly distributed
Adding Basil
Spectacular
Adding Mozzarella
Getting ready to serve
Double Delicious
Being Served
Fabulous wines
Lavender Field
View from the Top of the Monaci Factory
From the finest wines to the most delicious food, we certainly weren’t expecting this all in one morning. For days we had been treated like royalty and so it continued.
After our fantastic, informative tour of the factory, we had worked up a true hunger. The spread was colourful and a heady aroma emanated. Stomachs growled as our talented chef tossed an enormous pan of pasta up in the air. All the ingredients were locally sourced born from a rich heritage of making do. Surprisingly there was little garlic in this food. With the sea only a few miles away in any direction, seafood featured large.
I was surprised by sweetbreads topped by acidic, tart goat’s cheese, balanced beautifully with a sweet, berry jelly.
It’s very easy to be vegetarian in Southern Italy. Fruit is generously sized and yet the strength of the sun makes flavours sing: no insipid supermarket fare here. A lot is said about the Mediterranean diet contributing to a long and healthy life, but even if it is a load of old twaddle, at least you’re enjoying yourself as your taste buds zing and if it is true , then what a bonus!
When I woke up this morning it was snowing whirling dervish flakes. God! It’s nearly Easter too. Poor Suggs and Co: stirling performance last night at the sad closure of BBC Television Centre in Wood Lane. I thought back to those warm, balmy days on the Grundtvig Project, longing for soothing Negroamaro wine and the succulent dishes we tried.
(Cue: one of those wobbly dream filters they used to use in the movies.)
We are visiting the Monaci family vineyards in Copertino, Salento. Originally from Campania, the family moved to the Puglia region 50 years ago. Our speaker is Angela Venturi, wine and PR expert specialising in wine making and high quality agricultural tours. Spanning 22 hectares, this masseria focuses on red grapes (Negroamaro, Primitivo, Black Malvasia) trained to grow flat on espaliers (trellis) making the fruit easier to harvest. (A plant’s lifespan is 25-30 years.) This plant is hardy. In 2007 temperatures reached 52 degrees – a great year for red grapes, Angela waxed enthusiastically.
The Monacis never buy in grapes for blending and follow a policy of respecting the soil by not forcing growth. Nevertheless, 100,000 bottles is usual for a good year. Young and white grapes need to be protected from the sun, which can be ferocious in these parts, so vines are planted so that the fruit is protected by the shadow of its own leaves. Nowadays, Antonio cares for the plants while Adriano lays down the law in the factory.
Harvesting 80% by hand, usually takes place late August – early October and sugar content of the grape on average 21-22%. This year sugars weighed in at a whopping 27% – and so expectations were high. Timing is critical as each day you leave the grape, the sugar content changes and the flavour is corrupted. Early harvesting hours protects both the grape and the workers and is over by 11am due to the extreme heat in this region.
Angela, Wine Expert, Explains
Patrick samples the grape
Adriano and Antonio
The Spanish Contingent
The Macerator
Grundtvig colleagues listen intently
Then the wine is stored underground well away from light.
Fermentation tanks
Bottling up machines
The fruit is transported to the press, any hard wood and leaves left over are macerated and put back in the soil as compost. After 6-7 days in the fermentation machines (whose design dates back to the 40′s and provide a stable temperature) skins are removed, recycled and sold to be made into Grappa and surgical alcohol. Nothing is wasted here! The wine is then kept in huge vats under ground away from the light, at 16-18 degrees until ready for storing in barrels. 100% French Oak, they provide natural oxygenation without overcoming the wine’s true flavour, which in itself is strong enough. For 18 months it lays in the barrel and left for a further 10 months in the bottle to settle. “Simpotica” stays in French Oak Barrels for only 6 months.
Bottling
Bottles are received sterilised but are cleaned and re-sterilised to be sure. Great pains have been taken to ensure the quality of the natural cork used. Over the years, it was sourced from Salento, then Sardinia but nowadays it’s imported from Portugal. (Plastic doesn’t allow breathing, screw top proved a disaster!)
History
Salento has a long history of wine making. Byzantine monks, then the Normans and Frederick II improved the cultivation in the area. Exporting can be attributed to the Berbers. Unfortunately, all wine production in the region was destroyed by disease and had to be re-established in the 19th Century. Wineries from the North started buying grape from the South and due to mass production methods, quality suffered but nowadays, Puglia is the fourth region after Sicily producing quality wines.
(Cue: the wobbly dream filter again.)
It’s Still Snowing!
The care and attention that goes into making these lovely wines is something I’ll certainly remember! As I gaze out of my window, the snow hasn’t let up and I’m reticent to get out of my pyjamas and go shopping.
We are sitting in the sun, glinting through the panes of what can only be described as an enormous industrial greenhouse. The young lady talking to us is of Venneri stock and her English is easy and fluid. Sporting a short French crop, a scarf casually thrown across her shoulders, she has a facile Italian style, so natural. She is passionate about her family’s environmentally caring heritage, recent modernisation and expansion plan. Her grandfather established the farm pesticide-free and they still farm that way today. Solar panels produce energy for the whole company. The Venneris want people to have confidence in the quality of their products.
We are sipping a thick, viscous touch of bliss, a delicious mix of fresh peach juice and almond milk with a dash of Vincotta Primitivo Balsamico. This is a rich, dark Balsamic style vinegar the family manufactures from reduced local wine Primitivo. Adding Vincotto Balsamico, naturally enhances the flavour of food.
The family have been working with nutritionist Alfredo Balliaro, whose focus is Nutrigenomics, the study of identifying and understanding molecular-level interaction between nutrients and other dietary bioactives with the genome. What I think this means is that it’s possible to tailor nutrition to the individual’s genetic make-up. For instance, we are told, local dish combination Ceceri é Trie (pasta and chickpeas) is supposed to be a very healthy combination.
Ceceri é Trie – Pasta and Chickpeas
Whole steamed Fennel – A digestive
Chicory
Mr Vinneri’s Cacti
Mr Vinneri’s Hobby- Cacti
Mr Vinneri’s hobby
Ms Venneri extols the virtues of their Vincotto products as being high in anti-oxidants. The farm comprises 10 hectares, of which 6 are given over to making vinegar under organic certification. 3 kinds of wines are used to make Vincotto. She elaborated, claiming that consumption of Vincotto Balsamico will prevent health problems and that mass manufactured Balsamic Vinegar contains e150D, a chemical caramel, seen to promote Cancer. Vincotto has no ‘e numbers’, being rich in polyphenols and anti-oxidants. Adding Vincotto to pulses during soaking can help eliminate undesirable flatulance. You will be able to see the gasses escaping from the mix, so keep adding occasionally by spoonful until this stops. It’s an excellent replacement for Balsamic as a salad dressing and is less expensive.
Next up, we sample Vincotto Ingentilito, great on meat and fish, we’re told. It’s a natural flavour enhancer unlike Balsamic Vinegar which can be too strong and shield the true flavours. Ingentilito is aged for only 6 months. It’s an excellent replacement for Balsamic vinegar, made locally from Salentino vinegar. It is combined with Primitivo wines and heated until the alcohol evaporates. Currently it exports to the UK, Spain and shortly to Japan.
Cuetto is an even sweeter version, a traditional recipe dating back to the 1800′s. High in iron, it is also good for coughs and acts like honey to soothe the throat. It is used in desserts such as Panacotta or over fruit.
Lastly we are shown the latest edition to the range, coming in a small bottle, a culinary glaze Glassa Di Vincotto. Ms Venneri explained that over-heating the product can change its molecular structure making it carcinogenic: slightly confusing after driving so hard down the healthy route. In the UK we think of a glaze as something we can put on food before roasting to change it’s appearance, so I challenged her on the product’s health claims which returned a rather frosty response! Hey Ho!
Enter Mrs Venneri….another pasta demo ensued. This time we all get a chance to have a go. The light has a very special quality, simultaneously hard, crystal clear, yet diffuse. We watch Mrs Venneri knead the pasta, fry it. Ms Vinneri gives us a run-down about the history of Saragolla Wheat. Originally brought to the Adriatic Coast by the Bulgarians in 400BC it was a low yielding, inefficient type, tall growing and susceptible to weather damage. The Vinneri family are attempting to grow this wheat again and the Tria Pasta we are making today is made with it.
Mr Vinneri’s passion is Succulents and Cacti. There is one entire greenhouse given over to them. Spiky and ferocious in shape, it’s strange to see so many in one place but I’ve always found them photogenic. Standing to attention in rows, they seem military.
I can only feel gratitude to the Venneri family for taking the time for just one day, to give us a glimpse into their life.
We had started the day meeting the little kids in Carpignano Serrano, Scuela de Infancia – Castriniano. With all their lives ahead of them, they were so sweet, all lined up in a row, waving their National Flag proudly as they sang Nursery Rhymes. I felt very privileged to be thought of as an ambassador.
The day had continued to the Olive Groves, where we had experienced the heritage and manufacturing process of Extra Virgin Olive Oil and were shown around “La Furca” a beautiful Farmhouse B&B in Pozzello. (This was a new venture for the owners and so sadly there are no website listings for it as yet.) And then, to experience the Martyrs of Otranto in its Cathedral, it occured to me that the flavours of the region’s wines reflected extremes of life and death. Gazing up at the piles of bones and skulls presented behind glass either side of the alter was chilling and certainly food for thought. It was 1480 July 28th, when a fleet of ships carrying Ottoman troops, attacked the citizens of Otranto who were seeking shelter in its castle. The castle was sadly lacking weapons and the people were soon over run. 12,000 Catholics were beheaded, refusing to give up their beliefs.
Ottoman troops massacred Catholics for refusing to give up their beliefs.
Ottoman troops massacred Catholics for refusing to give up their beliefs.
Lyn Bertramelli (Second from left) and friends prepare a fabulous meal for us
Toasting Our Hosts’ Health
A diagram of the different taste zones on the tongue on the slide behind us.
Learning Sevillana with our Spanish friend Maria.
Our Spanish friends demonstrate Sevillana.
After touring the lovely city, we found ourselves back where we started, at the school, which had been transformed into a lecture theatre and dining room for us. I made a visit to the kitchens to see Lyn Bertramelli and her friends prepare our meal. Lyn’s English was very good because she is married to an Englishman and she explained how they were prepping the dishes. There was the obligatory pasta, platters of local cheese with walnuts and Pezetti di Cavallo (chunks of horse), a peasant meat stew with various things floating around in it including what appeared to be fatty, jelly stuff. Once again Chicoria, Zorin’s favourite, made an appearance. I stuck to the cheese!
Our hosts, Viaggiando Con Le Pro Loco and some local dignatories from The Association of Serrano and Agenzia Ulisse, greeted us with a welcome speech. Vita, our Guide, asked me to speak on behalf of all of us. I’m not a great public speaker but it was easy to say positive things: we had had such a brilliant time. Glass after glass of wine flowed, whilst we tasted the different flavours. From the freshness of a local sparkling Rosé full of life, to the intensity of the Primitivo and Negroamaro (dark and bitter), our tongues were set to tingle.
After our delicious lunch we were treated to a tour to see the industrial side of olive oil production. A visit to Co-operativa Agricola San Giorgio is a must if you’re in the Lecce area, nicely finished off by perusing the produce in the farm shop.
I love industrial places. They are a feast for the senses. Factories provide excellent opportunities to practice capturing motion by using different shutter speeds and combined with the noise make a great video. Crates and crates of olives are standing out front waiting to be lifted.
The basic method is still widely used today. First the olives are ground into an olive paste using large millstones in the press for at least 30-40 minutes. This applies pressure to the paste and separates the liquid oil and solid vegetable matter left over. Then any water in the mix is separated by decantation using a centrifuge. Making sure the olives are well ground, this allows enough time for the olive drops to join to form large droplets and for the fruits’ enzymes to contribute to the oil’s aroma and taste.
After grinding, the olive paste is spread onto discs (traditionally hemp or coconut fibres) which are stacked on top of each other, then placed into the press. These days, synthetic fibres are used which are easier to maintain. Using hydraulic pressure of up to 400 atm, the discs are forced together and water is poured down the sides of the discs to increase percolation speed. After each batch , the paste must be removed from the discs, otherwise left overs will cause inconsistencies and contamination to the taste and purity of the oil.
Although they are ancient by design, grindstones break up the fruits’ pulp while barely touching the kernel and skin. This reduces the rate that oxidisation can occur. Using this extraction method, the amount of water used is minimal compared to modern methods of extraction. Less polyphenols are washed away and once the paste is exhausted, the ‘pomace’ has a low water content and makes it easier to manage. The disadvantages to this method are that the grindstones require more manual labour to maintain them and the process involves waiting periods which can expose the paste to oxygen and light. All this translates into a longer production time from harvest to pressing.
Modern Methods
Separation at all stages is done using an industrial decanter and centrifugal force, spinning at 3000rpm.(Two or three phases of centrifuge can be used.) Using a hammer, disc, knife crusher or de-pitting machine, the paste is then malaxed for 30-60 mins. As small olive droplets gather, fruit enzymes create the oil’s aroma. Solids are removed by a slowly rotating coil in the drum which pushes the solids out of the system. Separated oil and water are then rerun through a vertical centrifuge working at 6000rpm removing any small amounts of vegetation water. The machinery using this method is more compact, oil production being continuous and requires less labour. Olive oil made using the two-phase centrifugal system contains more phenols and is more resistant to oxidisation than oils from three-phase or hydraulic press methods. However, this method uses more energy and the pomace can be wetter, so adding drying to the disposal process and because more water is used, it reduces the amount of anti-oxidants present in the product. There are some other methods but I don’t want to bore my readers too much!!!!
First Cold Press or Cold Extraction
The temperature of malaxation and extraction has a critical effect on the quality of the oil. When high temperatures are used to increase the yield of oil from the paste, it has a negative effect on the vitamin and antioxidants content. Under strict EU regulations, extraction must be done under 27 degrees centigrade (80 degrees Fahrenheit). Olive oil bottled outside of the EU is not covered by this standard and so the consumer has no idea what they are buying.
What does this mean to me, the person who dishes out the dosh?
Olive oil quality is equally dependent on the condition of the fruit itself. Oxidisation occurs immediately upon harvesting and the fruit should be pressed within 24 hours. During the period between harvesting and grinding, the olive’s enzymes are very active and degrade the oil. If you wait too long the oleic acid content goes up affecting the taste and making the oil more bitter. Exposure to light also affects this process, so keep your bottles in a dark cupboard or in a dimly lit part of the kitchen. If you buy a large can, it’s best to decant some into an air-tight vessel.
I do believe you get what you pay for when you peruse those shelves in Waitrose wondering why!
They gathered together giggling like girls, four elderly ladies in traditional scarf and swooshy, full skirt. Brandishing a witches broom each, they demonstrated how they used to harvest olives in days gone buy. Gathering at the base of an olive tree, they swept across the surface of the earth, picking up the ripe fruit. They appeared to enjoy the attention and laughed.
We were visiting one of the many walled Masserias (co-operative farms) in the region, which were used as fortifications against the Turks and other invaders around the 1400′s. At around this time the Olive Crusher was developed too as serious oil production was established. Every olive tree was planted one by one and mostly worked by women to collect enough olives to make one litre of oil per day by hand. And this is the way it was done right up until the 1950′s.
Focussing on high quality meant that the olives that had fallen to the ground (Marcire or rotten) were ignored and used for lamp oil instead (exported from nearby Gallipoli). In fact,there are many myths about what makes a top quality Extra Virgin Olive Oil. Some say it’s the oil from the first pressing. Well that’s nonsense! It’s simply that the very best fruit is selected and is never pressed from olives which have already fallen to the ground. This oil is known worldwide for it’s fruity taste and delicate aromas, which can be used in bakery. High in polyphenols and anti-oxidants, its molecular structure is very important. At over 160 degrees celcius, the character of the oil changes.
Masserias are at the heart of Salentino culture. It is possible to get a really good meal here as well as shelter. Many serve as B&B’s too. Narduccio, an old boy from the farm, explained the British helped to restore many Masserias, keeping in line with the tradition of the outer walls being slightly lower that the fully grown olive trees.
Harvesting – Two Methods.
There are two ways to get olives from the tree. The Machine Grabber seizes the tree by the trunk and shakes it firmly, allowing the fruit to fall. There’s a down side to this method: damaging the trunk. Alternatively a kind of long-reach strimmer is used, which is by far the gentler way.
In the background, I caught Will learning to turn on a Lamboughini tractor….Lamboughini TRACTOR???
Gary, a British neighbour and married to an Italian, was on hand to do some interpreting for us. Us Brits appreciated a frank account of his trial by fire when he first moved here and had to fit in with the culture. He was very knowledgeable about the olive oil process, explaining that waiting too long to press the fruit results in the acidity content increasing. Extra Virgin is less than 1% acidity by definition. As the olives turn from green to black on the tree, the taste of the oil becomes more peppery: Fruitato – not peppery, Piccante – peppery. This produces interesting varieties of oil. Some types of olive are more acidic naturally. Gary explained that more acidic content can be carcinogenic and it’s common to graft on different cultivars for differing needs, perhaps medicinal, perhaps culinary and as he did so, he stooped down to pick up some Wild Borage.
I was knackered, having stayed up past 2am doing my post-processing. There was no urgency, except that I really wanted to see my shots.
My room had high ceilings and one window whose cil started about 8ft off the ground. Adorned with shutters, there was a contraption leaning up against the wall, in the corner, with which to close the said offender. To be honest, I couldn’t be assed with trying to close it. What it meant was that as soon as the sun was up, friendly, warm light spilled in….early.
I don’t know why, perhaps due to years working in dark studios, my eyes are hypersensitive to light. As soon as the sun is up, so am I. Being in Lecce , I was in a heightened state of excitement anyway. Up I got. Instituto Antonacci was quiet, nothing stirred, not even a mouse. Luckily my room was right next to the Braille library. I grabbed my tripod and tippee toed in, so as not to disturb. There was an extraordinary aroma of musty pages: shelves and shelves of braille books and some spread out on a table in the centre, a complete set of The Divine Comedy giggling in the corner, some of the students’ exercise books on display and a braille version of Walt Disney’s Bambi.
Again, through another window high up, shone the sun. I knew it was only a matter of time before students would arrive, so I trembled trying to get the shots done using l-o-o-o-n-g exposures.
There is more here than meets the eye. Yes, the rooms are lovely, clean, furnished simply. Yes, the staff are lovely and friendly but it’s not just a B & B. Walking down the echoey corridors, you come across strange artefacts….sewing machines….other paraphernalia. There is even a lecture theatre. There seem to be several ways to access the same place, like an Escher drawing, up and around, down and out. The floor is tiled throughout with terracotta and white. This is an art class in the rules of perspective.
Next to the lecture theatre are classrooms which welcome visually impaired students. Papier maché sculptures and willow baskets lie scattered about. Easels rest up against the wall like elderly people taking a rest on the way to the supermarket.
Down yet another corridor, I pass through door after door, into the derelict wing of the building. Again the same motif, stacks and stacks of braille books, abandoned. I wonder how anyone could just neglect them like this.
It’s silent. All I can hear is me tightening up my tripod and breathing.
You know that really tired feeling, when your head throbs slightly and things seem a little distorted? We had had such an amazing day but it wasn’t all over yet. Vita certainly had packed a lot into our Grundtvig week.
We walked in a chattering group, through the beautiful, noisy and vibrant streets of Lecce, past the Roman amphitheatre near Piazza San Oronzo. It was amazing how easily we made friends. I can understand a little Italian and a speak a good smattering of French, so with a few flowery hand gestures, was able to make myself understood. Bobby and Patrick, two other Embrace volunteers, were really relaxed. Bobby’s thing was film and video, Patrick’s teaching photography and both full of excellent ideas too.
The Amphitheatre, Lecce
Through a grand portico entrance on Via Augusto Imperatore, just west of Piazza San Oronzo, we were treated to a very special evening. The Risorgimento was where Vita had her wedding breakfast a little under a year ago she told us proudly.
Vaulted ceilings and golden Lecce stone, pitted and worn, were all around us. Although we did miss out dining al-fresco at the roof garden, I was relieved as the nights here are a little bit nippy in November. Feeling a little bit underdressed, it was rather sobering to think that here we were….The Risorgimento had partnered up with Wine Experience Cantele, a local family winery business, to give us the taste of Puglia.
With our starter, a beautifully presented vegetable terrine, (accompanied by Pittule local dish of deep fried dough) we tried first a Cantele Chardonnay, then Verdeca. The Negromara Rosé was quaffable and slipped down. The terrine was a little fussy for my taste and unexpected as up until now, we had sampled simply prepared foods. Our glasses were filled and refilled, so that by the time our main course of Crusted Sea Bream arrived we were at ease with the world. This was my favourite dish of the evening. The fish was succulent and soft, done to perfection. I wasn’t sure if the crust was polenta but nevertheless it was delicious, arriving balanced on a potato cake sitting in tomato broth.
Pittule: deep fried dough
Vegetable Terrine
Sea Bream on Potato Cake
Orange Torte
Grundtvig Delegates
Grundtvig Delegates
Grundtvig Delegates
Toasting the chef
In anticipation
Grundtvig delgates with the chef
On to the reds……. now….deep….rounded….Negroamaro……mmmmmmmm……then Primitivo…stronger….more robust……..mmmmmm………nothing wasted here I can tell you! I could get used to this…..very….
Here comes the pudding….dusted fruity orange torte finished off with a sprig of mint. And indeed it did finish me off.
We gathered around the chef for a photo-call….cheering and clapping. Saluté!
I have to say at this point, after a considerable feast at Bakery Caroppo earlier today, I didn’t think I could fit another thing in!
It was exceptionally dark in Donno’s Pastry shop in Cutrofiano, lit with only a couple of very green strip lights, stretching my Canon 5D Mark 2′s high iso capabilities to the full.
The space was set out more like a science lab than a kitchen, immaculately sterile. There was a talk given by a local dignatory who praised Roberto Donno for his unrelenting dedication and hard work promoting traditional foods of the region.
Donno describing making shortcrust pastry with olive oil
Making Pasticcioto lids
Sorin helps Donno
Donno went on to explain that because Salento is in the centre of the Mediterranean, many different cultures have played out through the food. Pasta Frolla (originally from 1700′s), used to make the crust was made with a kind of pork fat and this gave the pastry an original taste. Donno eloquently demonstrated making the pastry with both lard and olive oil. The olive oil version is the modern, healthy way and uses a food processor. He explained that heat from your hands makes the dough more elastic, which isn’t necessarily a good thing when making pastry.
Pasticcioto started life as a pie but back then only aristocratic families could afford desserts and sweet things. People started making a smaller version for consumption at breakfast time. In Italy, food has always been a reason to bring communities together. When people were in mourning, they would not leave the house for two weeks so would spend the time making pastries which would be offered in condolence : expressing sympathy through food and family.
Preheat the oven to 250c˚ to aim for a temperature of 200. Baking time 20mins until golden.
Make a well with the flour and place the suet in the centre. Make another well in the suet and pour the sugar into it. Mix the sugar into the fat avoiding introducing the flour. Sprinkle the bicarb on top of the flour. Mix the 4 eggs in a bowl and pour onto the suet (pork fat), keeping the flour untouched. Using your hands, pull the flour into the centre, mixing with the eggs, fat and sugar. Don’t knead as too much body heat will affect the pastry. Your pastry will change colour depending on the eggs you use.
Once it’s all mixed you can freeze a large amount for use later or buy it ready-made in good supermarkets if you want to avoid the hassle! The pastry will last 10 days in the fridge though.
Cut the pastry into small pieces, dust with flour and use the palm of the hand or a rolling pin to flatten to around 5mm thick, making it as uniform and even as you can. Place the pastry into pasticcioto tins and push gently so that it reaches into the full depth of the tin. Fill the cases with pastry cream. (Donno didn’t show us how to make the cream but here’s a good version) and cover with a pastry lid. Brush with beaten egg to give a beautiful golden colour when baked. I wondered whether we could use English Custard as a replacement.
Place on a baking tray and take care not to let too much heat escape when placing in the oven for around 20 mins until golden.
Almond Dough (1700′s)
Benedictine monks brought this dough to the Salento region which produced and exported a huge amount of almonds at this time. Later, production moved to Bari. Bari almonds (higher in essential oils) are smaller and less attractive to look at but are tastier than their Californian cousins which are more fibrous and woody.
Recipe
1/2 kilo ground almonds.
1/2 kilo caster sugar.
Whole eggs. ( Around 4-6 until mix is sticky.)
Flavourings: lemon or orange rind, vanilla pods – optional.
Preheat the oven to 170˚C – Baking time 25mins.
Method
Put the almonds in the freezer for around 30 minutes before you process.
Place the almonds in a processor and grind.
Add the sugar and any flavourings to taste.
Slowly add the eggs until the mix turns into a paste. It needs to be very sticky.
Using a piping bag, pipe peak-like shapes onto a baking tray. Topping with nuts or dried fruits will release delicious aromas.
Bake in the preheated oven for 25 minutes at 170˚C. Allow to cool.
Finally, Roberto showed us his conceived delicious chocolate sauce product called CioccOliAmoci. Drizzled over Pan D’oro, he passed a delight around to us all. This is a chocolate sauce made with olive oil, smooth and flavoursome. Can this be healthy you’re asking? Perhaps…. if it’s made with olive oil….
Just 40km South of Lecce is the sleepy little village of Specchia Gallone. Slap bang in the centre can be found the Church of Sant’ Anna, whose architecture dates back to the 1300′s. Inside, the walls are covered in frescoes ‘Il Ciclo Pittorico’ (possibly 1600′s) depicting the Old Testament on the left of the altar and the New to the right. The colours are gorgeously subtle.
We are here on the Grundtvig Project, visiting the Caroppo Bakery to see how the locals make Pane Casereccio. “Cucina Povera” or the regional peasant food which is largely plant based, high in fibre and unsaturated fats is considered by the medical profession to be conducive to a healthier, longer life.
The main ingredients usually present in Salento cooking are oven baked bread or pasta. Any meat present is usually chicken or mutton because the land does not support resource-hungry beef. Good, fresh veg such as courgettes or aubergines feature high on the list. They don’t seem to put much garlic in the food here. I’m told the further West and North you go, the more you find.
“Frisella” or Frisa is a local kind of bread which keeps a long time. Hard as rock, it is made with dark wheat or barley. To soften, drench in sea water for 30 seconds and top with chopped tomatoes, olive oil, salt and pepper. I’ve seen something very similar in Malta…and it is, well….yum, although make sure you’ve got access to a good dentist! It’s nutritious, light and low in cholesterol. The dough is left to rise for 3 days and the yeast remains active which grows on top of the bread, creating craters and dimples on the surface.
Caponata, for topping Focaccia, is a veggie stew with peppers, zucchini and yellow tomatoes, a real taste of Summer. Legumes such as split yellow peas, influences from North Africa are often to be seen in ceramic pots bubbling away by the open fire. Another topping used is sheep’s cheese with olive oil. You can also make sweet versions with stewed fruit for pudding.
Pane Casereccio, home style bread, is baked in the oven at between 3-400 degrees. The yeast remains live in the centre and so it’s recommended that you cut the bread from the end to avoid bloating. The modern habit young Italians have of drinking beer with pizza means that two differing yeasts linger in the tum and cause havoc. A local wine like 14% Taranto is a much better idea! Made by a cooperative vineyard, its price is kept as low as possible so that everyone can benefit. Fresh raw Fennel is used as a digestive to clean the palate between courses.
Casereccio dough is very wet and has the texture of Mozzarella, slippery and stretchy. You can stir into the mix whole olives before baking. The water you use is also very important. Traditionally, the water was from Naples and the flour from Puglia, which went well together and were rich in calcium and minerals.
We are treated to a veritable feast, accompanied by a local band (although Sorin is not impressed by bitter Chicoria). One of the lads has fallen in love with a gorgeous girl, the bakery proprietor’s daughter, who dances La Pizzica with such stamina, she is wearing me out just filming her. Sporting blue jeggings that leave little to the imagination, she gyrates and rotates to everyone’s delight.
Thank you Specchia for making us all feel special.
