It’s hard not to envy Susan Herrmann Loomis, who spent two years traveling throughout Italy to produce “Italian Farmhouse Cookbook” (Workman, $16.95; hardcover, $28.95). Loomis, whose previous book was the similarly themed “French Farmhouse Cookbook,” gets the kind of assignments that aren’t in most people’s job descriptions.
The author admitted that a lot of people tell her how much they hate her–“always in a very kind way,” she added with a laugh.
But readers will find some comfort in living vicariously through her cookbook, where they’ll visit the Italian farmers, vintners, restaurateurs and home cooks who starred in what Loomis describes as her “two-year Italian odyssey.” These are people who work the land on some level, be it part time or full time, for business or pleasure.
In addition to the book’s several lengthy profiles, Loomis offers introductions to the people through dozens of recipes. Many of these contain some of their sources’ cooking segreti (secrets).
Given all these people and places, having a map to refer to would have been nice; even those familiar with Tuscany and Sicily might not know where Friuli and Piedmont are located. But you will be able to pinpoint the region through taste. The distinctive dishes offer a glimpse of the places they come from, and many contain surprising flavor combinations.
“I was looking for dishes that represented a region, and things that I hadn’t seen a billion times before,” Loomis said. “What I hope it does is make people think differently, and expand their knowledge about what goes well together.”
Chicken with sage comes from part-time farmers Ghiselda and Bruno Bini. They live in Chianti, so it’s no wonder that this unconventional and sumptuous recipe cooks the bird in two cups of Chianti. Fresh sage leaves and black olives add another level of flavor.
Another example is pasta with eggplant and mint from Sicilian architect/winemaker Giusto Occhipinti. Loomis contends that everyone who wrinkles his nose at the recipe’s title winds up loving the finished dish–which cooks the pasta and eggplant cubes together before combining with the mint-based pesto. (I took the challenge at home and joined the crowd. It’s a wonderful dish. Next time I’ll be braver and add the optional raisins and paprika.)
Our experience in the test kitchen, though, showed that sometimes authenticity can create a culinary culture gap, recalling familiar flavors for some while clearly baffling others.
Sicilian farmhouse cake, which Loomis adapted from a recipe by Giuseppina Morella (the Sicilian-born mama of two Tuscan olive growers), is a case in point. Like many Italian baked goods, this cake is heavily spiced–cloves and cinnamon team with cocoa–and on the dry side. It delighted those for whom it brought back memories of Nana’s not-too-sweet confections, which have more in common with bread than they do with cookies and cakes (and are tailormade for dunking into a strong cup of coffee). But some tasters, expecting the more typical rendition of cake–moist and rich–were flatly disappointed.
But everybody loved the tomato sauce from Massimo Gangeni, an organic tomato farmer who lives near Genoa. A simple lineup of tomatoes, garlic, basil and onions swimming in liquid (all of it from the juicy tomatoes) creates a soupy-chunky topping suitable for pasta or meat; it is used in many of the book’s other dishes. Though some thought this recipe required too much work–to start with, 12 pounds of tomatoes are peeled, salted and left to drain–everybody kept taking another ladleful of this sublime, tangy sauce.
The dishes vary in complexity of preparation and ingredients (though almost everything is within reach of a Chicago-area reader), but each one we tested was clearly written and easy to follow.
Other dishes we thought we might try in anticipation of the fall harvest: pumpkin with fresh tomato sauce, hot zucchini soup with fresh herbs, double-crusted eggplant pizza, and fish in Sicilian herb and lemon sauce.
“The surprise I want people to get out of this book is to understand where Italian food comes from, and why it is so exciting,” Loomis said.
As a bonus, they’ll get to meet the cooks who continue to make Italy a food-lover’s paradise.
CHICKEN WITH SAGE (POLLO ALLA SALVIA)
Preparation time: 30 minutes
Cooking time: 55 minutes
Yield: 6 servings
We reduced the amount of parsley to 1/2 cup. We also seasoned the chicken with salt and pepper before we sauteed it. Adapted from “Italian Farmhouse Cookbook,” by Susan Herrmann Loomis.
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 chicken (3 1/2-4 pounds), cut into 8 serving pieces
Fine sea salt
1/3 cup fresh sage leaves
1 clove garlic, green germ removed, cut crosswise into thin slices
2 cups hearty Chianti or other good-quality red table wine
1 cup black olives cured in brine, preferably from Liguria or Nyons, unpitted
1 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves, for garnish
1. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and saute until browned on all sides, about 5 minutes per side. Work in batches if necessary to avoid overcrowding the pan. Return all the chicken to the pan and season with salt. Add the sage leaves and garlic to the pan, pushing them down among the chicken pieces to make contact with the bottom of the pan. The sage will curl and turn dark.
2. Add the wine to the pan and stir as best as you can, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Bring the wine to a boil, then reduce the heat so the wine simmers merrily. Partially cover the pan and cook for about 10 minutes. Turn the chicken and continue cooking for 10 minutes more. Add the olives and cook, uncovered, until the chicken is done, about 15 minutes more, turning the chicken once.
3. Remove the chicken from the pan and place it on a serving platter. Bring the sauce to a boil and cook until it is reduced by half, about 10 minutes.
4. Mince the parsley. When the sauce is reduced, pour it over the chicken. Garnish with the parsley and serve immediately.
Nutrition information per serving: (calculated by the Tribune)
Calories ………… 389 Fat ………… 26 g Saturated fat .. 6 g
% calories from fat .. 61 Cholesterol .. 104 mg Sodium …… 300 mg
Carbohydrates ….. 3.8 g Protein …….. 34 g Fiber …….. 2.1 g
LIGHT AND LIVELY TOMATO SAUCE (SUGO DI POMODORI LEGGERO)
Preparation time: 50 minutes
Cooking time: 40 minutes
Yield: 1 gallon
This time of the year, 12 pounds of tomatoes may not be too difficult to come by in back-yard gardens. (For the record, we used 20 beefsteak tomatoes.) However, all of the ingredients can easily be cut by one- or two-thirds for a smaller yield–or make the recipe and freeze the sauce for later. We tasted it on pasta; it can also be added to meat, poultry or vegetables. From “Italian Farmhouse Cookbook,” by Susan Herrmann Loomis.
12 pounds ripe, flavorful tomatoes, cored and peeled
Fine sea salt
9 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
3 large onions, diced
6 cloves garlic, green germ removed, minced
1 1/2 cups (gently packed) fresh basil leaves
1. Cut the tomatoes horizontally in half. Sprinkle the cut sides with 1 tablespoon of the salt, place the halves upside down in a colander or on a metal rack, and let drain for 30 minutes so they can give up excess juice, which will help to concentrate their flavor. Coarsely chop the tomatoes without rinsing them and reserve any juice that collects while cutting them.
2. Place the oil, onions and garlic in a large, heavy saucepan and cook, stirring occasionally, over medium heat until the onions turn translucent but not brown, about 8 minutes. Add the tomatoes, cover, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat so that the tomatoes are simmering, uncover, and cook until the tomatoes are softened but haven’t really lost their shape, about 15 minutes.
3. Coarsely chop the basil, stir it into the sauce, and continue to cook until the tomatoes are very soft but still bright but not mushy, about 15 minutes more. Remove from the heat and let cool. The sauce can be frozen up to 3 months or sealed in canning jars and processed in a water bath according to the jar manufacturer’s instructions. The sauce will need seasoning depending on what dish it is being added to.
Nutrition information per cup (calculated by the Tribune):
Calories ……… 155 Fat ………. 8.9 g Sat. fat ….. 1.2 g
Cal. / fat …… 46% Chol. ……… 0 mg Sodium ……. 32 mg
Carb. ……….. 20 g Protein …… 3.5 g Fiber ……… 4.4g
