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ACCADEMIA ITALIANA DELLA CUCINAA CULTURAL INSTITUTION OF THE REPUBLIC OF ITALY

FOUNDED IN 1953 BY ORIO VERGANI

www.accademia1953.it

CIVILTÀDELLATAVOLAACCADEMIA ITALIANA DELLA CUCINA

INTERNATIONAL

EDITION

CdT_260_COVER_INGLESE_Acca 19/05/14 12:29 Pagina 1

DEAR ACADEMICIANS...2 The Death (once again) of Cuisine (Giovanni Ballarini)

FOCUS4 The restaurant’s classic menu is in a crisis (Paolo Petroni)

CULTURE AND RESEARCH5 Getting in touch with our roots

7 What’s in a name? The contemporaneity of tradition (Fiammetta Fadda)

9 Meditations on a piedmontese dish (Paoletta Picco)

10 Maccheroni molinara style (Giuseppe Fioritoni)

12 Red, white and black (Renzo Pellati)

On the cover: graphic depiction of a detail fromDish with Cherries by Giovanna Garzoni (Ascoli Pi-ceno, 1600 - Rome, 1670). On exhibition at thePalatina Gallery, Pitti Palace, Florence.

S O M M A R I O

PAGINA 1

T A B L E O F C O N T E N T S

INTERNATIONAL EDITION

MAY 2014 / N. 260

EDITOR IN CHIEFGIOVANNI BALLARINI

COPY EDITORSILVIA DE LORENZO

LAYOUTSIMONA MONGIU

TRASLATORNICOLA LEA FURLAN

THIS ISSUE INCLUDES ARTICLES BYGiovanni Ballarini, Fiammetta Fadda,Giuseppe Fioritoni, Renzo Pellati,Paolo Petroni, Paoletta Picco.

� � �

PUBLISHERACCADEMIA ITALIANA DELLA CUCINA

VIA NAPO TORRIANI 31 - 20124 MILANOTEL. 02 66987018 - FAX 02 66987008

presidente@accademia1953.itsegreteria@accademia1953.itredazione@accademia1953.it

www.accademia1953.it

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MONTHLY MAGAZINEREG. N. 4049 - 29-5-1956TRIBUNALE DI MILANO

Rivista associataall’Unione StampaPeriodica Italiana

L’ACCADEMIA ITALIANA DELLA CUCINAFOUNDED IN 1953 BY ORIO VERGANI

AND LUIGI BERTETT, DINO BUZZATI TRAVERSO,CESARE CHIODI, GIANNINO CITTERIO,

ERNESTO DONÀ DALLE ROSE, MICHELE GUIDO FRANCI,GIANNI MAZZOCCHI BASTONI, ARNOLDO MONDADORI, ATTILIO NAVA, ARTURO ORVIETO, SEVERINO PAGANI,

ALDO PASSANTE, GIANLUIGIPONTI, GIÒPONTI,DINOVILLANI, EDOARDO VISCONTIDI MODRONE,

WHIT MASSIMO ALBERINI AND VINCENZO BUONASSISI.

CIVILTÀDELLATAVOLAACCADEMIA ITALIANA DELLA CUCINA

ACCA

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C A R I A C C A D E M I C I . . .

BY GIOVANNI BALLARINIPresident of the Academy

D E A R A C A D E M I C I A N S …

PAGINA 2

Dear Academicians, today aspecter is once again lurkingaround Europe and the entire

world. It is not a question of yet anothersocial or political ideology, but ratherone of the death of cuisine.The end, or death, of cuisine has beenpredicted so many times in the past;however today’s death knell seems un-likely considering the pyrotechnicalexplosion of the multi-form gastronomythat has invaded all forms of masscommunication and contaminated anyand all artistic expression. This veryexplosion is signaling the death ofsomething far more worrisome thanthat which, during the social and eco-nomic changes in the post-World WarII era, led Orio Vergani to raise thealarm that “Italian cuisine is dying”.Postmodern cuisine, which is under-going some confusing tremors thatmay lead some to believe the end is

near, has been elevated to a higherstatus than its predecessors. It isdeemed worthy of the same consider-ation as other human arts, raisingmass nutrition to the level of “hautecuisine”. In addition, postmodern cui-sine has managed not only to elicit,but also express and externalize a vastgamut of social needs, both consciousand unconscious. These undeniableassets and its apparent vitality notwith-standing, today’s postmodern cuisine,which has replaced the now-eclipsedmodern bourgeois cuisine, may sur-render itself in the face of the rapidgrowth and diffusion of other culturaland gastronomic movements and theirequally rapid disappearance.If we consider only the countries ofthe western world in which “haute cui-sine” is most deeply rooted, during thesecond half of the 20th century andbeginning of the current 21st century,in addition to the well known nouvellecuisine movement we have witnessedthe rise and fall of cultural and gastro-nomic movements that have inspiredsuch “isms” as Perfectionism, Concep-tualism, Naturalism, Mediterraneanismand even Techo-Emotionalism. Wemust not forget or underestimate theinfluence of Chinese, Japanese andother Asian cultures, along with thedevelopment of new Scandinavian gas-tronomies and, outside of Europe, neo-Latin ones, especially Brazilian.In Italy we must examine two devel-oping tendencies that are presentingthemselves in different ways, in par-ticular the youth inspired alternativecuisines such as mainstream cuisine

and the nutritional craze for everything“retro”.Just as today we have the phenomenonof mainstream music, a sort of main-stream cuisine is developing, based onmass consumption, commercialization,and passing fads according to thechanging whims of habits and fashion.This includes culinary genres that havea large youth or youth-oriented fol-lowing. They are replacing traditionaland regional popular cuisine and aregaining a foothold thanks to the mediaand collective restaurant industry. Thistrend should not be confused with a“popular cuisine”, that is the fruit ofan authentic cultural reality that orig-inates with the lower social classesand is not influenced by businessschemes or commercial interests, andwhich is passed along in the form offamily traditions.Today’s nutritional nostalgia crazetends to place value on everythingthat smacks of the past, distant or re-cent, as in the passion for “vintage”items. This desire for “retro” flavorsincludes the industrialized foods ofthe immediate post-war period, but itespecially it refers to an interpretation,often rather casual, of traditional foods,dishes, recipes and menus. This is apath that has been followed and en-couraged by the agro-nutritional in-dustry and its large scale distribution.This brings us to our current time,when cuisine has never seemed morealive and vibrant. But considering whatI have indicated above, that is not thecase. There are at least four threatsthat can be identified in present day

Today’s culture of excess is killing cuisine, which has lost its central role in our “fluid” society.

The Death (once again) of Cuisine

PAGINA 3

D E A R A C A D E M I C I A N S …

cuisine. The nutritional offerings ofmainstream cuisine and haute cuisineare so broad, and at the same time somutable, that today’s consumer, lackingthe practical guidance provided bytradition, is essentially unable to gethis culinary bearings in today’s world.There is a betrayal hidden behind thisnutritional nostalgia craze.Industrial cuisine eliminates differ-ences; all flavors are standardized,aligned and flattened. Simultaneously,thanks to many different paths andtechnological developments everyonehas come to believe that they cancreate a new cuisine that is independ-ent from all preceding traditions. It iscuisine born of our fluid culture. Nutritional and cultural globalizationleads to the incorporation of elementsthat characterize many different cul-tures. More than simply the infinitetypes of fusion cuisine, this also includestheir rapid if not immediate expropri-ation. This is a different process fromthe slow and measured one of the pastwhich allowed for the Italian regionalcuisines to assimilate such products asthe potato and the tomato.The final, and most deadly threat isthe globalization of information. DavidByrne wrote in the October 11, 2013

issue of The Guardian that “The In-ternet will soon suck up all the creativecontent of the world”. And the gas-tronomic fan worship, the culinarytheatricality, the exasperating obses-sion with citations, the communicationinvasion and the chef population ex-plosion that requires them to con-stantly modify their dishes makes theemergence of even minimally stablenew culinary paradigms increasingdifficult. The abundance, or betteryet the over abundance of choicesthat has already annihilated traditionis now killing cuisine. All that remainswill be (perhaps) a “fluid” kind of nu-trition that is available to all, in a sortof new Cuisine of Babel.Is there too much of everything avail-able? At one time we were accustomed tothinking of cuisine as traditions in aprocess of continual evolution througha process of constant innovation. Itwas and is the Academy’s job to protectthe traditions of Italian cuisine as wellas to promote and improve them. Perhaps the cycle of modern and post-modern cuisine has come to an endunder the onslaught of new means ofcommunication and transmitting thesocial and symbolic values of a society.

Cuisine is not dead, but a certain typeof centricity is finished. We grew up in a world in which tradi-tional cuisine was the equivalent of agrand narrative of a society and a time.Recipes and culinary rules explainedand interpreted the world, just as didliterature, theater, and later the cinema.Now all that is but a distant memory.Back in the days when Italian pizzeriaswere owned and run by the pizza makerhimself there was a close cultural con-nection with Naples, its cows and itsterritory. With the arrival of the ham-burger in an establishment that nolonger is associated with any particularcuisine, we witnessed the beginningof the dismantlement of any and allregional reference or tradition.We are facing an evolutionary and an-thropological leap of immense pro-portions of which we are not evenaware nor do we understand its con-sequences. We could say that “one”cuisine is finished - that of the lastcentury, and another has begun. Evenin nutrition and cuisine history doesnot go backward. It is the task of theAcademy to study, and to the extentpossible, interpret the phenomenonof a new cuisine in a “fluid” society.

GIOVANNI BALLARINI

To our Readers,

I would like to inform the Academicians that last July Francesco Ricciardi decided to step down from his posi-tion of editor of this magazine in order to devote more time to other activities that required his full attention. It is with regret but also great respect for his choice, that I and the President’s Academic Council extend ourpersonal best wishes and thanks to Francesco for the excellent and distinguished work he carried on behalfof this institution and for having helped bring to life this prestigious publication.Francesco continues to be a member of the Academy, and as a long time Academician he will continue toserve as an example for us, both in terms of his Academic activities as well as his future undertakings.

GIOVANNI BALLARINI

PAGINA 4

F O C U S

BY PAOLO PETRONISecretary General of the Academy

A letter that came recently to the Academy has raisedthe persisting problem of how to distribute thecourses that come to the table and thereby of how

to prepare a menu, both at home and in a restaurant. Any-body who writes a cookbook today starts off with the an-tipasti, then goes on to the second courses, the side dishesand the dessert. It seems so simple, perhaps too simple. Infact, it is not easy to distinguish between these courses, es-pecially at a time when single dishes are fashionable. Therewas a time, in the great banquets of the Renaissance, whenthe distribution was different, as it encompassed dishes(straight from the cupboard) and hot dishes (from thekitchen). Subsequently, in the grand French cuisine, fromthe outset all dishes were exhibited on the table, and eachguest chose them in the order that he or she preferred, notunlike the custom of Chinese cuisine. Eventually, thingsbecame a bit more complicated and the menus werecompiled by specialists, in a complex fashion that wasdifficult to understand: hors d’oeuvres, entrées, relevés, en-tremets (hot and cold), rots, salade, fromage, desserts. Thesame subdivision was adopted in Italy, with proper trans-lations. Artusi adopted a subdivision that was complex to the pointof complicating the search for a recipe: soups in broth,pasta and lean meat, sauces, eggs, batter, fried and stuffedfoods, stewed and cold meats, vegetables and legumes,

fish courses, roast beef, pastry, pies and spooned desserts,syrups, preserves, and ice creams. Today, things havebecome simpler but the problems are still there. There aredishes, such as the famous “cacciucco”, that we cannotclassify as a fish soup or a second course. There are otherexamples of difficult classification: risotto with quails,risotto ossobuco, soufflé with giblets, a big plate of rawfish, spaghetti with lobster sauce and so on. Things are simpler in the United States: the meal startswith a soup or a salad, chosen by the customer (at timesthis serving is included in the price of the meal). A singledish of meat or fish follows with abundant portions of sidedishes. In France as well, lacking pasta, things are easy:the meal is based upon one strong dish. This will explainwhy in Italy pasta or rice messes up the menu. These dayspeople do not order antipasto, first courses and secondcourses (by the way, it would be opportune for academicdinners as well to be confined to fewer servings). Notwith-standing, there are academic convivials that feature strongaperitifs, two first courses, two second courses, whichentails biblical slowness in the service. Our restaurateursshould understand that a dish must be complete. Servingthe side dishes apart in order to spike the bill is a losingpolicy. The chef is responsible for the correct mix, byfollowing not only good taste but also a few rules of ali-mentary education.

Even in Italy, more often than not, a full meal comprising antipasto and dessert is no longerrequested. It is up to the chef, however, to fill up a plate.

The restaurant’s classic menu is in a crisis

THE ACADEMY SILVER PLATEAn elegant silver plated dish engraved with the Academy logo. This symbolic object may be presented to restaurants that displayexceptional service, cuisine and hospitality. Delegates may contact the Milan Headquarters (segreteria@accademia1953.it) for more information and orders.

PAGINA 5

Our Academy was establishedin 1953 but what did it looklike at that time? Sixty years

later, it is not easy to find living wit-nesses. However, we have some letterswritten by Orio Vergani and most im-portantly, the booklet with the firstroster of 1955, and those of 1958-59when Vergani was still alive, and morebooklets still as those of 1977-79 thatcover the first twenty-five years of lifeof the Academy.From the first documents that containthe Statute and the By-laws we canobtain precise particulars that allowus to draw interesting details on a fewaspects that at times appear odd andother times a source of uncertainty.Leaving aside the structure of the or-ganization, let us look as some ele-ments, starting with the mission ofthe Academy and then move on tosome organizational aspects.

The mission of the Italian Academy ofCuisine - The 1955 Statute (Art. 1)enumerates the following purposesthat are still fully current:- to defend the traditions of Italiancuisine and encourage its improve-ment;

- to indicate to the public those restau-rants and enterprises that offer theguarantee of a good and character-istic Italian cuisine;

- to confer awards to those personswho assist in reaching the purposesset forth by the Academy;

- to undertake and promote those ini-tiatives of all kind that may con-tribute to increasing the value and

improving Italian cuisine and thegood table in general.

The Academic Body - The foundationdocuments of 1955 spell out that “theAcademic Body is headquartered in Mi-lan, it is national and unitary. It isformed by the Founding Academic mem-bers who may admit through co-optationthose persons who represent associations,groups or entities and who adhere forpersonal reasons”. (Art. 4)The Academic Body, constituted by theFounding Academicians (13 in all),was the subject of an important clari-fication in the Statute of 1977-79 (Art.4) which states: “The Founding Membersbelong to it by right and may admitthrough co-optation individual Acade-micians up to a maximum of thirty torepresent the plenum of the AcademicBody”. During the first decades of lifeof our Academy, the concept of Aca-demic Bodywas made clear to the pointthat it still lives on in a large numberof national and foreign delegationsthrough a small group of Academicians(from a few dozens to several hundred). In practical terms, the Academic Body,constituted exclusively through co-op-tation, not by election, was the Acad-emy. The number of thirty memberswas not that different from what char-acterizes other academies, includinggastronomic ones, of various countriesthat belong to the Académie Interna-tionale de la Gastronomie. This normdoes not exclude that from the verybeginning, along with the AcademicBody, the Delegates may constitutethe Assembly.

C U L T U R E A N D R E S E A R C H

A few notes on the Academy at its origin.

Getting in touch with our roots

PAGINA 6

The Assembly - “The Academic Bodyjoins with the Delegates of the localchapters to constitute the Assembly”, asspelled out in Art. 7 of the 1955 Statute.The Assembly nominates the President,the Registrar, the Treasurer, and twocounselors (Art. 6).In the years from 1977 to 1979, theAcademic Body, composed of thirtymembers, met in plenary assembly andnominated the President’s Council thatat present comprises nine members.In later times, the Assembly was calledupon to exercise a larger task by con-tinuing to elect the President and alsothe elective members of the AcademicCouncil. For its part, the AcademicCouncil elects the members of the Pres-ident’s Council from its membership.In fact, this situation derives from the

fact that the Academic Council has re-placed the Academic Body.

Delegations - It can be stated that theAcademy is based upon the Delega-tions, some of them in existence since1954, while the 1955 Statute (Art. 5)states that “the Academic Body willnominate the Delegates in the variouscenters”. Similarly, Art. 7 calls for thepresence of the Delegates to constitutethe Assembly. The Delegations are reg-ulated; the 1977-1979 By-laws (Art. 1)spell out that “the Delegations constitutedwithin the Italian Academy of Cuisinein the various centers of the Italianpeninsula under the terms of Art. 5 ofthe Statute, are governed by a Delegatein charge whose term of office is threeyears - unless determined otherwise by

the President’s Council -. Such termsmay be revoked at any moment andmust be confirmed”. From the very be-ginning, the Delegate is subject to thenomination by the President’s Councilthat may be revoked or renewed for aperiod of three years.

Academicians - Unlike other academiesthat maintain a distinction betweenthe Academicians of the Academic Bodyand the correspondent and extraordi-nary Academicians (outside the realmof ordinary Academicians), our Acad-emy contemplates only one academiccategory, as evidenced by the 1977-1979 By-laws that stipulate in Art. 1that “the members of each Delegationshould be at least six with the right ofbeing recognized as Academicians”.

C U L T U R E A N D R E S E A R C H

Contributions to the magazine by Academicians are notonly welcome, they are indispensible. HoweverAcademicians need to keep in mind some essentialguidelines, so that their effort and passion are rewardedby rapid and thorough publication.

� Articles: It is essential that articles be sentelectronically, in Word format (not pdf) to the followingemail address: redazione@accademia1953.it

� Article Length: To avoid cuts that are irritating forboth the writer and editor, articles should be between4,000 and 6,000 characters (including spaces). Yourcomputer provides character counts.

� “From the Delegations” Column: For ease ofreading, maximum length is limited to 2,500characters including spaces.

� Convivial Dinner forms: it is equally importantthat the “notes and comments” section of the ratingsheets respect the 800 character limit (Maximum1,000 characters) include spaces, in order to avoid cutsand errors. Rating sheets that arrive at Headquartersmore than 30 days after the event will be discarded.

� Please do not send reports on convivial dinnersheld outside the territory of your Delegation, or onthose held in the homes of Academicians or placesother than restaurants and public settings, as they willnot be published.

� By observing these simple guidelines Academicianscan be reasonably assured of rapid and accuratepublication, thereby avoiding painful cuts.

� Obviously, the Editors reserve the right to edit allarticles and publish them according to available space.

GUIDELINES FOR CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE MAGAZINE

PAGINA 7

T his is the point: what right doesa dish have to be called “Veg-etable Minestrone Milanese

style” when it presents itself this way:in the middle of the soup plate thecanonical vegetable ensemble, that isto say carrots, potatoes, cabbage, rice,crisp rather than well cooked andshaped into a cylinder; and then, pinktomato water, slightly acidulous andlukewarm, added at the last moment. This dish was served as a first courseat the academic dinner of the MilanDelegation at DanielRestaurant in theBrera district, recently opened byDaniel Canzian, who was in chargeuntil a few months ago of GualtieroMarchesi’s kitchen at Marchesino inthe square of La Scala. The dish caused

a bit of a stir among the guests. Thereason was that according to the acad-emy’s paradigm using the same namefor a classic dish that is interpreted ina personal manner is both a theoreticaland practical affront. Theoretical inthe sense that it is tantamount to low-ering a gastronomic flag that had beenflying for centuries; practical in thatone reads “minestroneMilanese style”foretasting its taste and consistencyonly to find a totally “different” dish.It would appear to be a valid reasonto send it back for an intransigent tra-ditionalist. But it would be a pity be-cause it is a very pleasant gastronomiccreation; and it would be an injusticeas well because the chef has explainedthe minestrone by defining it as a

C U L T U R E A N D R E S E A R C H

BY FIAMMETTA FADDAAcademician, Milan Delegation

Why use the real name of a classic dish if it is interpreted in a personal manner?

What’s in a name? The contemporaneity of tradition

PAGINA 8

C U L T U R E A N D R E S E A R C H

“contemporary version”. And that’snot all. Daniel distinguished his restau-rant by using the phrase “ContemporaryItalian Cuisine”. According to the Acad-emy, there is no “Italian cuisine” butonly regional gastronomic dialects thathave become quite popular of late sim-ply because after years of rediscoveriesand creative cuisine, a new generationof gourmands has decided that thenewer tastes are actually the olderones. They are filled with history butnever tried in their original version.However, it is true that that there aredishes that are part of the nationalpatrimony, sprawling from South toNorth and vice versa without losingtheir fragrance and the skill of execu-tion. It can be said that “Italy is uniteddue to language and palate”, as statedby Allan Bay, curator of the Ponte alleGrazie series of books of cuisine, in hisponderous volume of 1135 recipes“that make Italy”. Daniel Canzian accepted the benevolentgrievance with Venetian gracefulnessand explained the genesis of the recipe:the crispness of the vegetables derivesfrom the acquired rule of not over-cooking the vegetables that are handledseparately in order to preserve theirgustative personality, just like GualtieroMarchesi has been preaching. Thetomato water is instead a suggestionby Michel Troigros, whom Daniel con-siders his mentor. Troigros’s gloriousfamily inaugurated the nouvelle cuisinein its restaurant in Roanne. After all, aFrench touch in the town where

Napoleon stopped is not entirely outof place. On the other hand, Daniel Canzian canafford to improvise upon tradition sincehe knows it by experimenting it to thefullest: his confidence behind the stovestarted in the restaurant of his parentsin Conegliano Veneto and developedat the Dolada in Pieve d’Alpago, at Tivoliin Cortina and at Gellius in Oderzo be-fore landing at the Alberetaof GualtieroMarchesi. And now, at only 33 years ofage, he is his own master and has ma-tured a personal style.In fact, the provocative minestronewas preceded by a cup of clear “chickenbroth with citrus scent”, a comfort foodof Lombardy that has become con-temporary through the aromatic noteof orange peels, and was followed bya “saltimbocca of coregone”, an es-teemed lake fish that was beloved inthe area before being dethroned bysea fish. The dish was properly marriedwith a regional wine, Lugana Cadoiera2013. Then came the “crunchy suckling

pig with savoy cabbage and cookedapples”: to be sure, it was not thereigning cheek cooked at low temper-ature but a nice chunk of pork roastedon the spot, with crispy savoy and ren-nets that imparted a welcome acidulousnote. The Pinot Noir 2009 from Val-larom was a perfect match.Everything stood out, from the graywalls without decoration to the de-scription of the dishes, featuring onlythe sequence of the ingredients in astyle that was apparently simple butrich in ideas, to the presence of chefswho were serving in the dining room,to the abundance of excellent wine inthe glasses, and to the option of bring-ing in your own wine and paying forcorkage. And finally, a big applausefor the dessert, an unusual two coloredpanna cotta, yellow from tarragon andpink from rhubarb, laid out in theplate with a yin/yang design. Some-times, it is true that “what is beautifulis good”.

FIAMMETTA FADDA

E-mail addresses of Italian Academy of Cuisine

President: presidente@accademia1953.it

Secretary General:segretariogenerale@accademia1953.it

National Secretariat: segreteria@accademia1953.it

Editorial office: redazione@accademia1953.it

@

PAGINA 9

C U L T U R E A N D R E S E A R C H

P eople have been talking aboutvitello tonnato for decades - orat least since the celebrated

Artusi first raised its status from humbleleftovers to noble antipasto. There issome discussion even as to whether itshould be served as a cold or hot an-tipasto. It doesn’t seem to matter tothe “vitello tonnato lovers” that inrecent years have literally overwhelmedthe blogosphere with recipes, advice,and praise for one of the most talkedabout dishes in Piedmont.We are discussing this phenomenonbecause the Academicians of the Turin-Lingotto Delegation surrendered tothe sublime veal from the Fassonebreed with tuna sauce served at theVicina restaurant that has been in busi-ness since 1908. Let’s start at the beginning: even ifthe name “vitel tonné” may lead us to

believe it is of French origin,the dish is actuallyItalian; specificallyPiedmontese. InPiedmont bothAlba and Garessioclaim paternity.Born as a humbledish, it was oftenmade with leftover(we dare not sayrecycled) cuts ofmeat, covered in asauce. But peopleare still dividedover its prepara-tion. Over time therecipe has contin-ually evolved: may-onnaise was added

to the sauce, then tuna was added tothe mayonnaise. The original tunasauce did not call for mayonnaise atall, but it is in fact present now. Someprepare the sauce in the style of amayonnaise, blending in tuna, an-chovies, capers and hardboiled eggyolks; others add tuna to the sauceand later dress it with anchovies, capersand a spritz of lemon juice. Still othersadd some mustard to the sauce and afew use raw egg yolks instead of hard-boiled ones. Then there is chef DavideScabin of the Rivoli restaurant Com-bal.Zero. He cooks the tuna along withthe Fassone veal and purees the cook-ing liquid to make the sauce. AntonioCannavacciuolo of Villa Crespi in OrtaSan Giulio discovered vitello tonnatowhen he moved to Piedmont in 1989.He calls his version tonno vitellato(tuna sauced veal) and serves it with

mayonnaise. Indeed it is the fish andnot the meat that plays the leadingrole in this dish, while the veal is usedto make the sauce.Thus vitello tonnato always has andwill continue to unleash the wildestof imaginations. Jamie Oliver, one ofEngland’s most famous chefs, servesit not only as an appetizer but alsooften as a main course. He recommendsmarinating the veal overnight in whitewine, sage and bay leaves and thenpoaching the meat in the marinade.In spite of its many variations, thereone thing all chefs today agree on. Tomake a good vitello tonnato the vealmust not be leftover but must comefrom an excellent quality noble breedof cattle. This brings us to the vitellotonnato prepared with Fassone beefby Claudio and Anna Vicina that theAcademicians of the Turin-LingottoDelegation recently enjoyed. The meatcame from a breeder in Cuneo; thetuna sauce was made in accordancewith their Grandmother’s recipe, whichgoes back to the beginning of the1900s and calls for adding tuna to themayonnaise but uses neither capersnor eggs.There is also a fundamental differencethat you can see just by looking atplate: the fresh, rosy slices of veal siton top of the sauce, which is not servedover the top but rather added to themeat at the moment it is sliced andserved. This is the Vicina restaurant’sapproach to a new, contemporaryvitello tonnato that showcases the ex-cellence and nobility of the Fassonebreed of veal. The tuna sauce is merelyan accompaniment.

BY PAOLETTA PICCOTurin-Lingotto Delegate

From the classic tuna sauced veal to Chef Cannavacciuolo’s veal sauced tuna, this preparation of this dish unleashes the imagination of chefs everywhere.

Meditations on a piedmontese dish

C U L T U R E A N D R E S E A R C H

PAGINA 10

M accarune molinare are oneof many examples of thepopular cuisine of the

Abruzzo region and the expression ofancient techniques and old tastes thatare destined to disappear. Bran flourof whole wheat from tender grain,water and salt are the basic ingredientsin the mixture of these handmade suc-culent maccheroni that are long, thickand irregular, with a diameter of 7-8mm (0.27 inches), that elevate simplecondiments or tasty sauces such asthe ragout of mixed beef or the ragoutof pancetta and pork cheek sautéedin a pan with minced onion, sage andparsley, with sauces made out of toma-toes, duck meat, beef and castratedlamb with the addition of capsicumand, for those who desire it, plenty ofgrated pecorino cheese.

The production is complex and requiresexperienced hands acting one overthe other getting into the well of theflour and water mixture to work in acircular motion in order to make aring that thins out and lengthens untilit reaches the shape of a very longmaccheroni. The product is then cutaccording to the desired length of eachpiece.The Abruzzo region is a land that boastancient pasta and pasta makers andtrusts its fame to the use of high qualityingredients, i.e. pure water, selectedgrains and original artisanal tech-niques. The origin of the “molinara”pasta is a controversial matter thatconnects to the history of the regionas well. According to the historians ofAbruzzan gastronomy, the creation ofthis tasty dish is credited to Bisenti,

BY GIUSEPPE FIORITONIDelegate of Pescara

The preparation of a dish in the popular tradition of Abruzzo bound to the history of ancient millers and master pasta makers.

Maccheroni molinara style

PAGINA 11

C U L T U R E A N D R E S E A R C H

an agreeable town in the high valleyof the Fino river in the territory ofTeramo, ruled from the end of thetwelfth century by the Acquaviva fam-ily, owner of feudal lands in the north-ern part of Abruzzo. Around 1340,the Acquaviva lords established millsin the Fino valley. They operated withtwo millstones, a fixed one and a ro-tating one, propelled by the hydraulicenergy of the river. At the end of thework day, the millers of the area utilizedthe flour that stuck to the millstonesto prepare a simple and genuine mealsto recover their energy. In so doing,they invented the “maccarune molinarestyle”, a cord thick as a finger andlong as a hank of wool that was workedexclusively by hand. In his book Abruzzo in the Kitchen(published in 1978 by Costantini inPescara) Luigi Braccili tells the storyof this extraordinary dish that was in-troduced to the table of Robertod’Angiò’s court by the physician andscientist Bartolomeo from Bisenti, whoenjoyed great esteem and considerationby the King and Queen Sancia ofAragon. Along with the tradition ofthe millers in the Fino valley, there isanother belonging to the millers ofPaglieta and the Lower Sangro, whomilled the wheat with their typicalmillstones. The popular tradition, hand-ed down through the centuries fromone generation to another, recountsthat in these territories as well themillers prepared the typical pasta madeonly with wheat and water by workingit delicately into an unending hank.The condiment was invariably garlic,oil and capsicum; alternatively, thesauce was made with fish taken fromthe mill’s channel and, whenever pos-sible, with meat ragout. There are still testimonies of this an-cient technique that is doomed to dieout. Nicola DiLallo, a miller and masterpasta maker from Paglieta, has learnedthe art of working grain and wheatfrom the experience handed down byfour generations of “master millers”.He works exclusively with type 0 wheatfrom tender Bolero grain and is capable

of spinning a long hank of maccheronein the molinara style into a thin, soft,damp, elastic and porous cord thatcan stretch dozens of yards with nointerruption. The pasta is worked ex-clusively by hand with a constant cir-cular motion; the cord stretches pro-gressively and thins out until it reachesthe diameter of 1 centimeter (0.4 inch-es); the expert adding of flour preventsthe maccheroni from massing up whilebeing worked. Working the pasta is a long and tiringexercise. It can take between 4 and 5hours to make enough to feed 25 per-sons. Nicola prepares his hank on along wood table and serves the re-sulting pasta on the same table, afterdressing it with a very savory sheepsauce. The soft roulades lose the strongand penetrating sheep odor thanks toa long and slow cooking process scent-ed with aromatic herbs and vegetables.The master pasta maker works only athome. He brings home all the necessaryutensils including the large pot that ismade exclusively with copper. Thepasta must cook rapidly and must bestrained, dressed and served directlyon the wooden plank. Unfortunately,

this antique and original technique isdisappearing and Nicola DiLallo is thelast practitioner in the Sangro region. In the province of Pescara, the mac-cheroni molinara style can be enjoyedat the restaurant La Bilancia situatednear Passo Cordone. It is an old restau-rant that has been managed for overthirty years by Sergio di Zio and hiswife Antonietta, a skilled chef, and isrenowned for the old specialties ofAbruzzo that are prepared with gen-uine products extracted from a gardenthat is cared for by the restaurateursor acquired through scrupulous re-search of old and practically out ofdate vegetables, and finally combinedwith quality meats and sausages. Antonietta Marrone is the master pastamaker of this restaurant that employsa mix of wheats, specifically sometender grain and bran flour, workeduntil they yield an homogenous mass.With her own original technique, An-tonietta too starts her work by shapinga well in the mass by using her indexfinger. The hole must be widened inorder to allow the entire hand to fitinside it to start the final manipulation.The process shapes a cord of approxi-mately 8 mm (0.27 inches) that mustbe worked with the bran flour andelongated as cord with a length ofdozens of yards. The pasta cooks insalted water for about 15 minutes andthen is dressed and sautéed in a panwith garlic in olive oil with the additionof dry sweet peppers before heatingis stopped. In the same province, the tradition ofthis particular pasta worked with fin-gers is offered by the local restaurantsand the pasta makers of the territorycomprised between Elice and CittàSant’Angelo as the “pasta of the miller’swife” (la molinara). This captivatingdish however is nothing other than are-interpretation of the ancient recipeof “maccarune molinara style” fromwhich it is removed etymologically aswell as gastronomically while keepinga few elements of contact with theoriginal antecedent specialty.

GIUSEPPE FIORITONI

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T he grains of rice that we haveused in cuisine for centurieshave always been white, buttoday w are seeing both redand black grains on ourplates. These are not prod-ucts that have been treat-ed with strange colorantssimply to satisfy our de-sire for novelty: they areancient grains destinedto conquer the palatesof an ever increasingnumber of consumers.

They belong to the categoryof so-called “functional foods”

that have many health benefits.The red-hued rice is a species thathas been in existence for millennia,especially in West Africa. This grainwas so widely cultivated that Europeansailors referred to the region stretchingfrom Senegal to the Ivory Coast as the“Rice Coast”. Over a third of the slavesshipped to the New World came fromthe Rice Coast, and they continued togrow this rice as their favorite food. Itwas subsequently replaced by the Asianvariety of rice because it rendered agreater harvest. It was only at the be-ginning of the 20th century thatbotanists were able to demonstratethat the African rice (Oryza glaberrima)was a unique species, different fromthe Asian variety (Oryza sativa). Thered color of the grain covering is richin polyphenols that have antioxidanteffects similar to those of grapevines.In Italy this red variety is known as“Ermes”. It is cultivated in Casalbel-trame in the area around Novara.Thanks to the leavening action of

monascus purpureus, when fermentedit also is used to reduce cholesterol.Black rice has also been around formillennia. In China it was exclusivelycultivated for the Emperor and hiscourt because it was reputed to havegreat nutritional value. It actually hasa high mineral content, especially an-thocyanin (the pigment that give theseed capsule its color) which has greatantioxidant properties that boost theimmune system. Another characteristic of pigmentedrice is the aroma it releases duringcooking. The presence of external or-ganic compounds give off a perfumeof freshly baked bread. Obviously redand black rice require a different cook-ing technique from plain white rice,similar to whole grain rice. This resultsin a longer cooking time. The best known black rice in Italy is“Venere”. It is a recent variety, onlydeveloped in 1997. Cultivated in theprovinces of Vercelli and Novara, it isa hybrid of an Asian rice (that wasunsuited to the Italian climate) withour native variety. The name “Venere”(Venus) is an homage to the planet,the goddess of love, and the legendaryJosephine Baker.There is also a green rice (known aswild rice - Zizania aquatic) that origi-nated in Canada and is also grown inthe United States. During cooking itreleases an intense perfume of tea andaromatic herbs. It is often eaten insoup, and is frequently paired withfish or game. For the time being, it israther difficult to find in Italy.Why do we Italians utilize almost ex-clusively white rice, from the japonica

DI RENZO PELLATIAcademician, Turin Delegation“F. Marenghi” Study Center

Can we look forward to enjoying even more colored rice?

Red, white and black

PAGINA 13

type to the short grainedvarieties (Carnaroli, Arbo-rio, Baldo, Vialone) whilethe indica varieties such asBasmati, are more typicalof the Asian rices?In addition to our knowl-edge of algebra, mathemat-ics and philosophy we alsoare indebted to the Arabsfor the gift of rice, becauseonce again we must admitthat food and culture oftentravel together. History tells us thatwhen the Arabs (who thanks to theircontact with the Byzantine Empire be-came important scholars and re-searchers) arrived in Italy, they intro-duced the culture of white rice whichhas persisted until this day. In particularthe Arabs became the intermediariesbetween the East and the Mediter-ranean lands, and this in turn encour-aged the diffusion of cultivation andirrigation techniques .Rice landed in Spain with the Moorsand there is abundant documentationof its arrival also in Sicily and otherareas of southern Italy. However, start-ing in the 15th century, rice cultivationwas developed more intensively innorthern Europe. The only surviving

rice dishes in the south are the Sicilianarancine rice balls and the Neapolitandish sartù. This would seem to indicatethat rice is a less popular food in thesouth. The true Italian risotti, so pop-ular among chefs around the world,are still an important part of northernItalian cuisine. The widespread culti-vation of rice in the classic provincesof Novara, Vercelli and Pavia followingthe construction of Camilo Benso diCavour’s canal has made Italy the lead-ing European producer of this grain. Before becoming a staple of the Italiandiet, rice was considered a spice (re-served for the privileged classes owingto its high cost). It was also seen as amedication for gastric and intestinalafflictions, and when ground and

blended with almonds itwas used to prepare thelight dish bianco mangiare.Even today many peoplerecall the doctors’ prescrip-tion for riso in bianco (plainboiled white rice) as a rem-edy for gastro-enterologi-cal disturbances. Pediatri-cians recommend rice be-cause it is easy for childrento digest and absorb be-cause of its low cellulose

content. Today they still recommendthat during their infant’s first threemonths of life mothers dilute theirmilk with water in which rice has beenboiled rather than plain water becausethe starch granules are extremely small(about 10 microns) compared to othergrains.While the diffusion of rice is clearlywell entrenched today, its level of con-sumption in Italy is rather low: 5.6kilograms (12 lbs.) annually per capita.Clearly we have a strong preferencefor pasta: 28 kilos (62 lbs). In thefuture the availability of colored ricewill allow us to associate the pleasuresof the table with a beneficial activitythat will help us maintain good health.

RENZO PELLATI

C U L T U R E A N D R E S E A R C H

2014 ECUMENICAL DINNERThe convivial ecumenical meeting, that brings together all Academicians in Italy and aroundthe world at the virtual table, will take place on October 16 at 8:30 pm, and this year’s theme

will be The Cuisine of Rice. This theme, chosen by the “Franco Marenghi”Study Center and approved by the President’s Council, is aimed at rediscover-ing the cuisine of the many varieties of rice using traditional recipes thatmay have been long forgotten and that are part of our regional culinary

patrimony. We will also examine some new culinary trends involvingrice. Delegates are responsible for insuring that the ecumenical din-ner be accompanied by an appropriate cultural presentation that il-

lustrates the importance of the proposed theme, and that a menu devotedto the chosen theme is followed.