Mad About Tuscany Blog. Follow Sioban, Australian Chef on her gourmet adventures in Cortona Italy.
Our neighbours told us about an ancient Roman bridge hidden away in the forest only 5km from Cortona town. I've been visiting Cortona for over a decade and hadn't heard of this bridge, and Carlo had a vague memory of visiting it as a child; it's one of those forgotten "local secrets". So we packed a picnic and set off for an adventure...
Read MoreThis salad is inspired by the garden and has all the flavours of summer. The addition of farro grain makes it a filling meal; a perfect lunch or light dinner.
Carlo's lovely Dad looked after our Italian kitchen garden over Christmas and planted seedlings before we got back in Spring. There's an abundance of tomatoes, zucchinis, capsicum, rocket and beautiful herbs. This salad celebrates the kitchen garden and all the lovely produce it gives us.
For Shanna and Giacomo - who have loved this for years and now help me make it! (I'm so proud!)
Tina introduced us to Gelato Biscotti many years ago in Cortona. It's the home made version of an Icecream Sandwich. It's a real high-summer treat and is super easy but does require (a) adult help and (b) the foresight to plan a day ahead. The latter is where we fall down, in the midst of summer school holidays, which makes this even more of a treat when we have everything prepared. A single bite takes me back to summer holidays in Cortona.
Dress them up for adults with a grown-up filling; coffee, pureed mango or raspberry.
Read MoreSome days there's time for home made pasta and a slow cooked ragu. On the other days when life is full of sport, school or socialising this is the perfect quick and healthy pasta dish. True comfort food as we eat in Tuscany.
Casarecce pasta is shaped like a very narrow, twisted and rolled tube. It's great with a chunky sauce. In Australia you'll find it at major supermarkets - the Barilla brand (pictured) should be at your local Coles.
Read MoreDuring our 2014 Mad About Tuscany tour season, we had 3 groups made up of 4 couples who didn't previously know each other but formed life long friendships on tour. Not only have they maintained the friendship, but they have all reunited for a summer holiday at Wildwood Valley.
Read MoreAn easy to make almond tart topped with fresh figs.
It is fig season in Yallingup right now, and each day I pick magnificent purple figs from my sister's tree. They're jammy and sweet inside so we're eating them with breakfast, for dessert, and of course at every cooking school!
Read MoreWe have just finished the olive harvest here in Tuscany and my pantry is full of bottles of just pressed olive oil. The oil is green in colour and peppery in taste. All the neighbours are bringing us their oil to try, which ofcourse they pour generously over a fresh piece of Tuscan bread and sprinkle with a little sea salt.
I have been using the green winter vegetables in the garden to come up with yummy healthy crostini recipes and all are complemented so well by this years new olive oil.
I recommend trying all three of the recipes and I am certain you too will think they are seriously yummy too!!
Read MoreRecipe for Minestrone today Ribollita tomorrow!!!
Serves 8
Ingredients
200g Cannelloni beans, soaked over night in water
2 medium red onions, finely diced
2 medium sticks of celery, finely diced
1 large carrot stick, finely diced
300 gm silverbeet, washed trimmed and finely chopped
800gm cavolo nero, washed trimmed and finely chopped
300gm tomato puree
5 tblsp olive oil
1/2 a small red chilli, finely diced
6 tblsp grated parmesan
sea salt and pepper
2 tblsp cooking salt
extra virgin olive oil for serving
Method
Drain the soaked beans and put them into a large saucepan. Cover with plenty of cold water, add the cooking salt and bring to the boil. Lower the heat and cook for at least 1 hour or until the beans are cooked.
Meanwhile in another pot, heat the olive oil. Add the onion, celery and carrot and season with some salt and pepper and sauté on a low heat for at least 10 minutes, until they have caramalised a little. Add the silver beat and cavalo nero and sauté for a little longer, 5 minutes at least.
Cover with 3 litres of water and bring to the boil, and add the chilli and tomato puree. When it comes to the boil, lower the heat and simmer for 1 ¼ hours.
Drain the cannelloni beans, keeping about 1 cup of the cooking water. Puree half of the beans with this water, leaving the rest of the beans whole. Add both of these to the soup in the last 10 minutes of the cooking time. Check the seasoning and adjust accordingly. Serve in bowls and drizzle with extra virgin olive oil and some grated parmesan.
With your left over Minestrone soup the next reinvent it as a Ribollita the well known Tuscan Bread Soup!! Simply in a large bowl place a spoon of your minestrone soup and then layer on top with thinly sliced stale bread, sprinkle some more grated parmesan and then ladle another spoon of soup followed by a thin layer of stale bread and parmesan, and continue this until you have finished all the soup. Leave for 30 minutes so the soup absorbs all the bread and then heat a fry pan with some extra virgin olive oil and spoon in your thick soup into the pan and cook on the first side until you get a crust and then turn it over like an omlette and form a crust on the other side. serve immediately. Photo below of the wonderful Tuscan Ribollita soup
photo above the Minestra.
I have certainly perfected my recipe for minestra!! or in English known as a minestrone. The wonderful thing about this soup recipe is that it can be reinvented into 3 different dishes. On day one, you make your minestra and enjoy a big bowl of vegetable and white cannellini bean soup, for dinner that night you can diversify it into a minestra di pane. Simply by ladling some of your minestrone into the base of a big deep bowl, then thinly slice your old stale bread and place it on top of the minestrone, then sprinkle some grated parmesan and continue this in layers until you use up all of your minestrone. Serve and enjoy whilst hot.
What you cannot finish for dinner you save and reinvent the next day into a ribollita, the well known Tuscan bread soup!! Using your left over Minestra di Pane, you heat a fry pan with some extra virgin olive oil and you spoon the thick soup (it is nearly the consistency of polenta) into the pan and let it get a crust on one side and then turn it like an omlette and form a crust on the other side. Serve warm.
Autumn such a great season to be in Tuscany!!
read the next blog for the recipe for Minestra as Minestrone.
One of the reasons why I love living in Italy is because it has 4 very established seasons. From season to season the colour of the landscape changes, the temperature in the air, the length of the days and of course all the varied foods that can be enjoyed within each season.
Now that we are in the middle of Autumn the colours of the trees are just magnificent, amber, red and yellow colours that are splendid. The mornings and evenings are fresher but the sky is still bright blue. At night you light the fire, for warmth and company.
The beauty of the Autumn colours
The glorious autumn food is plentiful in the mountains where we live and we thrive on gathering all that is on offer. We have a great selection of wild mushrooms, mostly, porcini, pinoroli and the prized ovuli.
Porcini mushrooms can be used in so many ways, sautéed and served on a bruschetta or tossed through a pasta, sliced thinly and served as a salad, grilled whole to accompany your big bistecca or fritte, to enjoy as a canapé or side dish!!!
In our surrounding mountains we also have plenty of Chestnut trees and an abundance of chestnuts are falling to the ground. Our favourite way to enjoy them is to roast them over the open fire and enjoy eating them accompanied with a glass of Sangiovese wine
The autumn vegetables are ready for picking in our garden so I have an abundance of fennel, Cavolo Nero, Cime di Rape, and silver beet.
There are so many great reasons to come and enjoy a holiday in the Etruscan village of Cortona, located in Tuscany just over an hour south of Florence and 2 hours north of Rome
One of the things that I enjoy most about our time living here in Italy is all the wonderful festivals they offer. Cortona is renowned for the number of festivals it offers in the Spring, Summer and Autumn months.
The most significant of these events is the famous “SAGRA DELLA BISTECCA” (Steak Festival) with the largest wire rack turned on in Italy.
It is held every year in the public gardens of Cortona. On a wire rack giant 14 meters (the largest in Italy) are cooked T-bone steaks, strictly Chianina meat, and I can assure you the meat is to die for especially as it is cooked over the open flame and naturally enjoyed with a good glass of Chianti Sangiovese or Cortona Shiraz.
Other food festivals on offer are the PORCINI MUSHROOM festival also held in August where you can enjoy the fresh porcini mushrooms in so many ways, The hard decision is what to eat!! Wow should I have Bruschetta with sautéed porcini, tagliatelle with fungi porcini, bistecca with sautéed porcini, porcini fritte, or a Carpaccio salad with porcini!! All ways are yummy!!
The CHOCOLATE festival at the end of September is not to be missed also!
Not to be missed at the end of May and early June is the well known historical festival ARCHIDADO JOUST people are lead back to the ancient medieval splendor of the city. The streets are decorated in medieval style, ladies, knights, flag flyers, crossbow shooters, soldiers, pages, civil and religious authorities, all dressed with fine costumes, liven up the city center, which is rich in history and artistic beauties of every time. The atmosphere in Cortona is magical and electric!! Click to read more www.giostraarchidado.com
The ANTIQUE festival is well known as the “MOSTRA ANTIQUARIA” and runs on weekends in August and September, both main piazzas in Cortona are filled with stalls selling interesting Antiques.
CORTONA ON THE MOVE is a display of professional photography work from international photographers and is presented in 4 different locations around Cortona and runs from the middle of July to the end of September,
The CORTONA MIX FESTIVAL is 10 days of a great line up of music and theatre performances offering, modern to classical with the Toscana orchestra performing, Many of the events are held in the main Piazza Signorelli and also in the wonderful Theatre in Cortona. This runs during the last week of July and into August.
The EUROPEAN FESTIVAL OF MUSIC AND FOLK DANCING is held on the 13th August and brings Piazza Signorelli to life with old fashioned dancing costumes and music!
To find out more about these unmissable festivals visit the official Cortona Festival website.
www.cortonamia.com.it
