La Squadra Di Calcio
The Soccer Team
When Papa and Mama were growing up, the small town rivalries in and around Garfagnana, Mama’s village, and Monte San Quirico, Papa’s, were very intense. The locals fought about everything, from who had the best rabbits to who had the juiciest tomatoes. Occasionally, things got out of hand, especially before the Santa Croce agriculture fair. Once, I’m told, old Guido was lured away from his farm for an afternoon by a mysterious woman. When he returned, he discovered that his 600 pound prize winning boar had been just as mysteriously replaced with a 500 pound sow. Another time, Marco woke up to find his whole pumpkin crop uprooted. Even young kids could be mean-spirited in their rivalries. Papa tells me he and his friends used to ambush boys from other villages who came to San Quirico to far’ l’amore (what they called dating) with local girls. They pelted them with stones and rotten fruit until they turned back. I suppose you could say it was small-time chauvinism run amok, but I know the old-timers had fun.
By the time I got to be a teenager, the rivalries played themselves out in a less agrarian way, usually on a soccer field. The teams-there were twelve in our area- were sponsored by local bars, and the bars themselves doubled as commando centers. During the week we’d hold meetings, strategy, and practice sessions, then on Sunday afternoons, when everyone from the surrounding villages was free, we’d have tournaments.
The games were raucous and high spirited, sometimes even a little violent. Manu a game was broken up by a referee ejecting players for fouls, foul language, or both. I personally never finished a game, but then again, I wasn’t very good. They only put up with me because Papa was the president of the Vipore team. Once, after the coach pulled me from the field for blowing a play, I got so angry, I jumped the coach and was kicked off the field.
Vipore was the sponser of the Pieve Santo Stefano team. Because everyone loved the restaurant, out team was very popular. We even had a few semi-pros and pros from national teams like Juventus and Torino. Adding to our allure was the victory party Mama and Papa would throw after every game, win or lose. Sometimes up to a hundred people showed up. The parties were the greatest. We’d have them on the hill behind the restaurant, and they always lasted well into the night. There’d be lasagna by the meter, enough grilled ribs, chicken, steak, and lamb chops to feed a Roman army, and enough vino, rosso, and bianco, red and white wine to erase any simmering rivalries. At least until the pregame warm-up the following Sunday.
Piccolo Cibreo Tuscan-Style Chicken Liver
Lasagna di Vegetali Vegeable Lasagna
Pollo, Tacchino, Agnello, e Manzo Mixed Grill Chicken, Turkey, Lamb and Beef
Arrosto con Insalata di Rinforzo with make-you-strong salad
Piccolo Cibreo
Tuscan-Style Chicken Livers
Cibreo is what we call un piatto tipico Toscano, a typical Tuscan dish. Out in the country, a farmer’s wife would make it with rooster crest and giblets, but since rooster innards (much less the crests) aren’t readily available in the United States, I invented an American variation, which is why this cibreo is piccolo, or small.
(Serves 4)
1 pound chicken livers 6 anchovy fillets, chopped
5 tablespoons flour ¾ cup Vin Santo (or dry Marsala)
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil 1 small tomato, chopped
½ cup chopped red onion 4 slices Tuscan bread, toasted and rubbed
With cut garlic
2 tablespoons chopped fresh sage 3 tablespoons chopped fresh Italian parsley
¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes 1 tablespoon chopped garlic
2 tablespoons drained capers Salt and fresh ground black pepper, to taste
Wash the chicken livers, dry well and dust them with flour. Pour the olive oil into a large sauté pan and add the onion, sage, red pepper flakes, and garlic and sauté over medium heat. When the onion is golden, after 6 to 8 minutes, add the chicken livers. Cook for 7 to 8 minutes, stirring so they brown evenly. Season them with salt and pepper, then add the capers, anchovies, and Vin Santo. Cook for another 6 to 8 minutes. Add the chopped tomato and cook for 8 to 10 minutes more.
Lasagna di Vegetali
Vegetable Lasagna
(serves 12 as an appetizer)
4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil ¼ cup seeded and sliced yellow bell peppers
2 tablespoons chopped garlic Fresh ground black pepper, to taste
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes 4 tablespoons salt
3 tablespoons dry white wine 1 cup thinly sliced onion
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh basil 1 cup sliced celery
1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano 1 cup thinly sliced carrots
1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme 1 cup well-washed and sliced leeks, white part only
3 cups pommarola or drained, canned Italian tomatos 1 cup trimmed and sliced zucchini
6 quarts water 1 cup salted, rinsed, dried, and sliced eggplant
1 pound lasagna noodles 2 ½ cups Bechamel
¼ cup seeded and sliced red bell peppers 1 cup freshly grated parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
Make sure all of the vegetables are cut to a uniform thickness. N a heavy sauté pan large enough to hold all the vegetables, heat 3 tablespoons of the olive oil over medium until it gets hazy. Add the garlic and sauté until it starts to color, about 5 minutes. Add the red pepper flakes and the white wine (be careful, it may flame up for a brief moment until the alcohol evaporates). When the wine reduces, after about 2 minutes, add the following vegetables, in order: the onion, celery, carrots, leeks, zucchini, eggplant, and the bell peppers. Cook each vegetable for approximately 1 minute before adding the next. Add the black pepper and a tablespoon of the salt. Cook the mixture for 5 minutes more. Then add the basil, oregano, and thyme and cook for 5 minutes. Add the pommarola and cook for another 5 minutes. Set aside.
Bring the water to a boil in a large pot, add the remaining 3 tablespoons of salt and drop in the lasagna noodles. When the noodles are very al dente, drain them, and plunge them into an ice water bath to stop them from cooking. Lay them out on kitchen towels to drain.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Oil a 13-x-9- inch baking dish with the remaining tablespoon of olive oil. Spoon a little béchamel sauce on the bottom of the pan. Cover the bottom with sheets of pasta, side by side, draping it up the sides, and over the edge of the pan. Trim the pasta to the size of the pan. Spread a layer of béchamel over the pasta. Add a layer of the vegetable/tomato mixture , and sprinkle with Parmigiano-Reggiano. Repeat the process until all the ingredients have been used up. The top layer should be pasta, a very thick layer of béchamel, and Parmigiano-Reffiano. (You can prepare the lasagna up to this point, then refrigerate it, and cook it when you are ready to serve, a day later if you like. An alternative is that after it is cooked, you can cut it into individual portions, wrap in foil, and freeze it. The pieces can be placed directly into the oven to reheat.) Bake for approximately 30 minutes, until the lasagna is heated through and the top begins to turn golden.
Desciamella
Bechamel
(makes 2 ½ cups)
6 tablespoons sweet butter Pinch of ground cinnamon
4 ½ tablespoons all-purpose flour Pinch of white pepper
3 cups milk Pinch of salt
Pinch of grated nutmeg
In a heavy-bottom medium saucepan, melt the butter over low heat. Add he flour, stirring constantly to incorporate it well and prevent lumps. Do not let the flour brown, otherwise your sauce will be pasty tasting. In another pan, heat the milk, but do not let it boil. While stirring the butter and flour mixture, add the hot milk all at once. Add the nutmeg, cinnamon, white pepper, and salt. Turn the heat to medium-high and whisk constantly until the mixture boils, then thickens. Cook at a simmer for 5 minutes, then remove from the heat.
Pollo, Tacchino, Agnello, e Manzo Arrosto con Insalata di Rinforzo
Mixed grill of chicken, turkey, lamb, and beef with make-you-strong salad
4 lamb chops (loin or rib), trimmed of fat 8 cloves garlic, chopped
1 pound boneless shell steak, cut into 4 pieces 4 sprigs fresh rosemary, chopped
Salt and fresh ground pepper, to taste 4 sprigs fresh thyme, chopped
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil 1 can of beer
4 chicken thighs 4 turkey wings
Make-you-strong salad (recipe follows)
Rub the lamb chops and steaks with salt and pepper and drizzle them with olive oil. Mix together the garlic and the herbs and rub half the mixture into the lamb chops and steaks.
Pour the beer into a large bowl and add the chicken and turkey, the remaining garlic-herb mixture, and salt and pepper. Let all the meat marinate for 2 hours in the refrigerator.
Heat the grill or broiler and cook the meat to desired doneness- approximately 4 minutes per side for the lamb chops (for medium-rare), 4 to 5 minutes per side for the strip steak(for medium-rare), and 15 minutes per side for the chicken. (If you broil the meat, it will take slightly less time than on the grill.) Serve with the salad.
Insalata di Rinforzo
Make-you-strong salad
1 quart water 10 cornichons, cut in half
8 shallots, peeled 2 tablespoons drained capers
1 head cauliflower, broken into florets 4 anchovy fillets, chopped
2 small zucchini, cut into 3-x-1/2 inch lengths 3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
Salt and fresh ground black pepper, to taste 1 red bell pepper, halved and seeded
6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil 3 tablespoons pitted, halved green olives
2 tablespoons chopped fresh Italian parsley 3 tablespoons pitted, halved Italian black olives
Bring the water to boil in a saucepan and add the shallots. Cook them until tender, 15 to 20 minutes, depending on their size. Mix together the cauliflower and zucchini and steam them until they are tender-crisp, about 5 minutes.
Preheat the broiler. Place the peppers, skinside up, 2 to 3 inches from the heat and watch carefully. When the skin blackens, turn them over and blacken on the other sie. Place the peppers in a closed plastic bag for 15 minutes. Peel off the skin and cut the peppers into chunks.
Toss all the vegetables, olives, cornichons, capers, and anchovies together in a large bowl. In a small bowl, whisk the red wine vinegar with salt and pepper. Whisk in the olive oil in a thin, steady stream. Add the parsley, and pour the dressing over the salad. Toss well and serve warm or at room temperature, with the mixed grill.
Semifreddo con Granella e Salsa di Cioccolato
Semifreddo with ground Nut Brittle and Chocolate Sauce
Semifreddo, which means “almost frozen,” unites the creamy coldess of gelato with the airy lightness of mousse. I grew up on it, and it’s added more than a handful around my midriff. The granella, a ground-up nut brittle, gives this semifreddo a tasty candy-bar crunch. (If you don’t want to make our own granella, you can buy a bar of peanut brittle and a bar of almond brittle, break them up, and grind them in a food processor.) For a really decadent flourish, serve the semifreddo with warm chocolate sauce and strawberries.
(serves 8)
3 medium eggs, separated 1/3 cup water
6 ½ tablespoons sugar Chocolate Sauce
½ cup Granella 3 cups fresh washed strawberries
1 ½ cups heavy cream
In a bowl, beat the egg yolks with 2 ½ tablespoons of the sugar until they are pale. Add the granella and mix well. In the bowl of an electric mixer, whip the heavy cream on medium-high speed until it begins to thicken, then lower the speed and continue beating until the cream is stiff and glossy. Fold the whipped cream into the egg yolk mixture. Beat the egg whites until they are stiff and smoth.
In a saucepan, bring the remaining 4 tablespoons of sugar and the water to a lively bubble and let it cook for 3 minutes, or until the syrup is clear. Remove it from the heat. Turn you mixer to high, and slowly pour the syrup into the egg whites, beating the 2 ingredients together for about 3 minutes. The mixture should triple in volume. Turn the mixer down to medium and beat until the whites cool to room temperature, about 5 minutes. Fold the whites into the yolk mixture. Combine well but do not overmix, or the batter will fall.
Spoon the mixture into individual custard cups and freeze for about 6 hours, or until frozen completely like ice cream. Serve with the chocolate sauce and strawberries, if you wish.
Granella
Ground nut brittle
¾ cup sugar Sweet butter, for the pan
1 generous cup nuts (hazelnuts,
almonds, peanuts) Toasted and cooled
Melt the sugar in a medium saucepan over low heat, stirring constantly, then remove it from the heat, add the toasted nuts, and stir to coat all the nuts well.
Transfer the mixture to a well-buttered sheet pan and spread to cover the bottom of the pan. Let this cool, then place it in the freezer until it becomes brittle.
Break the granella into chunks that will fit ito a food-processing bowl. Process the granella until it is coarse and crumbly. Granella can be used for garnishing many sweets. Store these ground nuts in a container wrapped with plastic in a cool, dry place. They will keep for a month.
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