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Ciao a tutti! Hi Everybody! I will be a weekly food blogger at Amy Dickinson’s site at www.askamydaily.com This a great opportunity and wanted to thank everybody for their love and support! I look forward to sharing my blogs on this site too! Here’s a photo of my Amaretti Bouquet’s: un abbraccio,  maria ! So excited to be featured on April 25 as the Author of the Day on Cookstr.com. I want to thank everybody for your on going support! I will be starting my new book later this year! In the meantime, as Mother’s Day and Father’s Day are just around the corner, my cook book Breaking Bread in L’Aquila or my apron make the perfect gift! Please visit my website at www.foodandfate.com. a presto, Maria !!
It’s been a while since I last blogged. Forgive me ….. April 6, 2012 will mark the third anniversary of the L’Aquila Earthquake. I just returned from a visit to L’Aquila and was very sad to see that movement is still very slow!! I’m organizing a few events in the next few months to help raise awareness and continue with fund raising! I am working with a friend whom I met two years ago in Castelli (the finest ceramic designs in the world). I asked Antonio Simone, old school ceramic maker (inks are still made by hand), to design a plate from my book Breaking Bread in L’Aquila. When we met last week, he had me choose from a few designs and had a hard time picking one design. Instead, I picked two. This will be the first of my series and will add on: vases, larger platters, dinner plates, espresso cups (you get the picture)! I have a limited supply of each of these designs available end of May. Unique, one of a kind, hand painted dish as part of my brand extension. You can hang it as a beautiful wall design or use the dish to serve my biscotti, amaretti, an antipasti or condorni. Then again, rule breaking Maria says “anything goes”!! Each plate will be for sale on my website at www.foodandfate.com for $250.00. A portion of the net profits will be donated to an Art School in Castelli. I will post more about this soon. A beautiful dish to add to your collection and the perfect way to help the children/youth in Abruzzo. My goal is to present a check at Telos in Europe: The L’Aquila Conference a presto, Maria !
Brava! My first jar of Melanzane Sott’Olio (Pickled Eggplant). It is not an easy task when unwritten family recipes end up in a game of charades+pictionary and a series of made up words. Here’s an example of a made up word: frip e frappi – it gets scary when you know exactly what they are referring to. I started writing down all of these ancient Calabrese secrets before they become extinct like the dialect! But seriously, there are a few different recipes to pickled eggplant. Some do not boil the eggplant whereas others will marinate with white vinegar/water. Others will cut the eggplant in strips or rounds – my family refers the strips to the same size of fringi friti (french fries). Ingredients: 4 large eggplants Preparation: Peel eggplant, cut in half and slice into finger length pieces approximately 1/4″ thick (fringi friti). Place in a large bowl, add salt and stir thoroughly. Boil a large pot of salted water and add vinegar. Add the eggplant when the pot is boiling for approximately in ten seconds “frip e frappi” turn them over for another ten seconds. Drain the eggplant in collander. Shock them by adding cold water to stop cooking. Let stand for about two hours. Squeeze and wring out all excess water from the eggplant using hands. Add the eggplant in the bowl and place a plate with a weight (I wrapped a brick in a towel) and placed on the plate. It helps to get any excess water removed. Check it periodically within a 24 hour period. Remove excess water. Add the strained-drained eggplant to another bowl. Add olive oil, chopped garlic, oregano, red chili flakes and chopped mint (optional). Taste and add salt, if necessary (it should be a little salty). Place in jars and cover with additional olive oil. Close jars tightly. Store for 2 weeks before serving. This is great for antipasti, sandwiches or with crusty bread. Anything goes …. whatever you like. Growing up, we used to eat melazane sott’olio served with cured salciccia, cheese and tomato salad. Don’t forget: A nice glass of red wine ! a presto, Maria |
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