Madeleine

Festa Italia 2007: A Retrospective Feast for the Eyes

If you are reading this, first & foremost, thanks for being a part of Madeleine--I enjoy every message & glance at my writings as I am glad to share a passion for a world less hectic, more authentic, with you. As we're already salivating at the prospect of next year's menu's, here's some favorite shots of Italian moments from 2007 (click on the images for a better view)

Salumi galore gathered from Brooklyn to Schenectady's little Italy shared with Italian friends &  family.

Heaven comes to those who wait... Standing in line for two hours for Brooklyn's best pizza. (Somehow we got ours before the striped lady & the L.A. couple ahead of us. YES!!!) The best moments I spent in NYC.

Dinner with bro-in-law David O'Hara 's favorite restaurant in the Bronx's little Italy, Dominick's, where the wait staff looks like goodfellas & they don't give you a menu...

Okay, so who couldn't wait until we took pictures? All of us I guess. When it's good you've got to dive in! David, you're a lucky dog, living in the Bronx. Can't wait to see you again! 

A taste of the old world at the Calabria Pork Store on Arthur Avenue... Unfuhgeddable!                                                                                                                                                                                            

This is as good as it gets--Calandra's Cheese. The ladies in line all seemed a foot shorter than me & spoke only Italian. God bless the Bronx.

Madonia Brother's Bakery where I discovered prosciutto bread & felt like the smallest lady in the room. Darn! They didn't give away that recipe in the Arthur Avenue cookbook, but I saw one in Elenora's Kitchen whose brother incidentally worked at a bakery on Arthur Avenue. Hmmm... Could it be Madonia?

Mike's Deli, the epicenter of Arthur Ave. As soon as we walked by the counter, the guy behind it said, "You look hungry!" & indeed we came back hungry at the end of our tour. These sandwiches came back with us on the plane, the best travel food imaginable. Hey, if they make sandwiches for Yankee Stadium, why can't they cater for American Airlines??? I'd trade frequent flier miles for their sandwiches, anyday. Check out the glimpse of broccoli raab in the deli case.

Inside Arthur Avenue's  thriving market... Feeling like a proud New Yorker at Mike's Deli, I was given away by my inherited mid-western accent: "Are you from Chicago?" But I moved to Schenectady when I was five! Give me some pasta fazool, already...

But let's not forget Schenectady's little Italy. Thanks to my mom, I always get to take a taste of home back with me. Perreca's makes one of my favorite breads in the world, old world-style.

Schenectady is
apparently on the up-swing, so I hope places like this will continue to exist without getting run-over by condo developers. Walking in to Perreca's, the smell alone makes me want to move back east--an incredible perfume of slow-cooked zuppas, artisanal breads, & sandwiches my mamu couldn't resist...

Could somebody please tell me what this is bread used for?

Our last shopping spot was Garofalo's, founded in 1909 by our friend Fran Loeffler's family. The service was surly, cameras were definitely not welcome as we found out, but a few shots we took might give you reason to plunder their stash.

This is where the old-timers come, & beware anyone undercover foodies.

"Did you take enough pictures?!!" one of the red-headed sisters scowled. "It's really ANNOYING." Oh, the perils of blogging... Thank you, Ken, for taking the heat!

And when all else, fails, there's always a Reuben from Gershon's with a kosher dill on the side!!! Now that really hits the spot... I LOVE NY! (note to Seattle, I love you too, especially after eating at Buddha Ruksa tonight.)

And a very happy New Year to you all. Hope you're hungry!

Buon Natale! And a Happy New Year

Christmas has arrived & with it came a brief dusting of snowflakes on our hilltop town, a flurry of phone calls from family, & a blizzard of presents that promise an industrious new year in the kitchen. Gratzi, gratzi!

I have a love affair with island life that most likely stems from a few idyllic summers in Nantucket where life seemed to amble at its own pace. Even in my childhood days as a renowned picky eater, I recall a sense of elation at the table of the restaurants we dined at, a sweetness, an oceany essence in the prawns I ordered night after night that did not exist in the normal dreaded dinner routine of home.   

And so while the San Juan's brought me westward years ago & the isles of Greece, Sardegna, & Corsica have beckoned in my mind, the dream of traveling to Sicily in 2008 with Ken reaches down into the heart of my culinary gut. I have the good fortune to have married a man who brings laughter, wine stories, & incredible food to the table night after night, but also has that genius sort of palate that can recreate an ascension of flavors on a plate that someone has handed him--a skill I someday could only hope to possess. As for me, I'm bound to tweaking recipes from with cookbooks as a crutch, which is why I have amassed a huge collection.

Since Ken did not grow up on the flavors of the southern Mediterranean but rather the southwest, cooking Italian is the one area of the kitchen where he usually throws his gloves off & leaves it to me. In fact our first fight as a couple happened over a skillet of shrimp fra diavola, most likely because the way his Irish dad made sauce was to throw some canned tomatoes in a pot in the morning along with a whole onion, a pound of ground turkey & a block of cheddar cheese until they mystically dissolved by dinner into a watery mess that Ken   actually    loved. Now you see where our trouble began, which is why I need to take my better half to Italy. Pronto!

On my last visit home, I had a reunion with Fran Loeffler, my mentor in all things Italian & as we paged through some of her favorite Sicilian cookbooks  I was more inspired than ever to make the journey. The end of this year has been filled with some incredible experiences in both the Bronx's little Italy & my own little borough of Schenectady, and to top it off, both Ken's & my mom equaled the equivalent of a Sicilian Santa Claus gifting us with all sorts of Italian ammunition for the kitchen.

I look forward to the New Year, but give thanks for all that 2007 brought to us: a cherubic new nephew & a tow-headed niece, the miraculous recovery of our dear friends Tom & Connie (we're coming--we promise!), a successful year at Spanish Table, & many joyous hours spent at our own table with friends & family at our little house on the hill. May the next bring us all together again to pass the parmesaen & raise our glasses with cheer!

 

 

 

 

Notes From NY: Schenectady's Holy Cannoli

Even if some of my Chicago-born accent still sticks, I've always considered myself a New Yorker--after all, my Mid-West residency ended by the time I was five-years-old. New York became  home when my father wrapped up his doctoral degree at the University of Michigan & our family of four was transplanted to Schenectady--a city I've rarely heard mentioned outside of Will & Grace (yes, Debra Messing's neurotically adorable character was from my home town. Maybe that says something??)

Growing up, my best friends & boyfriends tended to be Italian, a happy coincidence (hmmm...) that left an indelible mark on my burgeoning palate. A renowned picky-eater in my own household, I reveled in boisterous hours of food, drink & laughter that commenced during Sunday meals at the table of each adopted family, joyfully spooning seconds & sometimes thirds of cavatelli or cannelloni onto my plate which of course would make any grandmother smile.

Not only was my appetite for good cooking appreciably recognized at these weekend paisano feasts, but my proudest accomplishment was the presentation of a custom-designed present from the Messina/Loeffler family on my seventh birthday: a tomato red t-shirt that simply read, "Pasta Princess" in 1970's roller-derby applicaed letters. It was a defining moment, and my lord, if my mom had hung onto that shirt it would be framed & hung amongst my most prized works of art.

So while it may be a ploy to get me back east more often, my parents now oblige me with a trip back to the old country--the remnants of a once thriving little Italy in Schenectady that manages to hang on to its traditions despite gunshots & urban blight. I have almost come to view these small pockets of authenticity as  World Heritage Sites of the soul--culinary treasures of old-world comestibles at non-Dean & Deluca prices because these are a part of the daily life, a non-negotiable.

On each visit home, I seek to fill the void of authentically homespun Italian joints in the Northwest, & I'll daresay my folks are hooked as well when it comes to Civitello's confections so there's something in it for us all! While I've never been to Civitello's for lunch (word has it that their eggplant parmasaen sandwich special has those in the know ((including the mayor)) lined-up around the block), I can attest to procuring the best damn cannoli I've ever had the pleasure to bite down on. Regrettably, these heavenly rolls are one of the few items that cannot be enjoyed anything other than insitu--the perfectly crisped pastry just can't make the long journey home. And now that I'm back, I wonder why I didn't just eat one for every day I was there, a kind of Italian advent calendar.

No chips here, just flakes of shaven chocolate, the shadowy nuance of cinnamon & lightly sweetened ricotta that retains its natural ever-slightly granular texture, the pastry filled to order so each shell remains perfectly crisp...  Uh, they were gone before a picture could be taken. Does that say anything?

Funny that the best pizza in Brooklyn also happens to be found on NYC's J Street, made by Dominic di Fara. That's one coincidence I find divinely delicious..

Civitello's   42 N Jay St  Schenectady NY

518-381-6165

 

Eat Like a Bird: Txori's Quixotic Soft-Opening

Txakoli, kalimotxo, & boquerones txepetxa... While few Seattle-ites speak the language of Spain's Pais Vasco, no one seemed to have a problem devouring these Basque tongue-twisters at Txori's friends & family trial run Saturday night in Belltown. Txori, meaning "bird" in Basque, is the fledgling off-spring of The Harvest Vine--think what Mario Batali's NYC Bar Jamon is to Casa Mono (only bigger & more regionally focused.) And amidst a crowd of free-loading fans packed in tight as a tin of San Sebastian sardines, the smell of success & olive oil sizzling on the grill gave off an inherently festive (albeit authentically smoky) air as soon as we swung open Txori's rod-iron gate & pushed into the fold.

After squeezing into the enchantingly urbanized old-world bar area--the culinary engine of Txori--hostess Carolin Messier de Jimenez quickly welcomed us with aplomb then dashed down the narrow dining room, keeping her new flock of birds in a row. "This dish gets a side of bread!" Jimenez called out watching a bowl of salt cod going down solo on a table. "Silverware & napkins too!" Well after all, this was a soft-opening & as their email invitation made clear--the food was free, but our role was to be hungry guinea pigs as you want friends to outnumber critics the first night in your new nest.

It took fifteen or so minutes to secure a table after arriving for our 9:30 reservation, but that worked to our favor as parking in Belltown is a b*#%h on a Saturday night & just as Ken had resigned himself to paying for parking , a benevolent hipster in an Audi passed her validation ticket to him upon leaving her spot. Thank goodness for random acts of kindness because no sooner than I said, "There he is!" Carolin whisked us to an available two-top. "You got lucky," she quipped, shouting behind her shoulder. "Very lucky."

With many familiar faces in the house including Tavolata's Ethan Stowell (pictured next to proprietor Joseba Jimenez de Jimenez--Seattle's 'other' chef in the hat), it seemed natural to glance upon our neighbor's incoming fleet of pintxo's (the local term for tapas in the Pais Vasco) & take note of not-to-miss items. Some of my best meals in Europe have been the result of such "I'll have what they're having!" ogling & heck, I've always got a roving eye in restaurants that drifts, dodges to other tables & most likely drives my husband crazy while conducting a dinner conversation. Hey, if I'm paying, I'm looking & I guess in this case that applies even if the food is on the house!

So by all means, let's get to the heart of the matter--the food. Expect traditional small bites with some surprises, and I do mean bites as there was a rarely a dish that two mouths could realistically share without first-dibs envy (how does one halve an ink-embalmed squid gracefully with your incisors?) But as the portions were free & perhaps down-sized in instances for the opening, I can't yet advise on how many of each to order--if this is your dinner destination, it might be a long night with a booze-fueled tab.

The best (& intended) purpose of the place is to graze & get on with it which is the preferred way to eat in Spain. But with how folks in Seattle tend to hunker down for hours over a double espresso, only time will tell if this idea catches on... For those of you that live in a walkable radius for a post-work pick-me-up pintxo--I hate you. As for us mortgage-paying South-enders--thank god for taco trucks.

WHAT WE ATE:

pulpo da feira $3- How on earth do these guys get a gnarly octopus to be so tender? The top-notch lagrima olive oil imported by none other than Classical Wines of Spain they use begs for to be sopped up, so order something that comes with bread before this comes to your table!

tartaleta de champinones $2.50- Our neighbors raved about the tart crust & since I'm wild about mushrooms, this is one of the first dishes I had to order. The menu description includes jamon--not sure I picked up on that... Perhaps a dish for pastry lovers.

calamares en su tinta $4.25- While you can hardly see this jet black jewel, this was my "it dish" (click on it to get a better picture--lighting was dim), & while Ken & I shared many a pintxo Saturday night, this was one I couldn't split. If I had to think about it too much, the velvety ink that ensconced this squid beak might have made this former vegetarian rather squeamish, but this was two bites of heaven that went right down the hatch with a glass of cold txakoli. Salud, indeed!

chorizo con chocolate $2.25- While these 'wings' of chorizo with chocolate shavings may not have been photogenic, the taste was heavenly indeed.  We ordered two rounds because they were so good--one came hot, the other not. I hope the chefs go with the former as the combination was an unexpected delight.

bacalao en salsa verde $4- I'll be honest, along with loving bacalao & being too lazy to soak a stinky piece in our fridge over a two day period, I'm always up for ordering a dish that highlights salt cod. While I was grateful that I got a plating of bread to sop up other sauces, this was almost too salty to enjoy without a double-dose of broth. I'll be sure to try it again after the chefs aren't under the gun to open.

Pan tomaquet y pernil $3.50- Comforting & homey, but always hard for me to order in a restaurant if I have the basic ingredients on hand. Good for improving your chances with a state trooper on your way home if you've been drinking other places in Belltown. More heart friendly than a late-night Dick's pick-me-up by far.

Albondigas (price ?)- This was one of the few specials off the chalkboard available at our 9:30 seating & one of my favorites...   No notes on this one, just big sloppy grins from both sides of the table.

barquitos y traineras $2.75- It's hard to resist the idea of ordering a puddle of melted cheese when you have a few drinks in ya. After carefully accumulating a sly stash of baguette rounds from other dishes, we chose this as our final order before hitting the road but would have a hard time recommending you do the same. Tetilla is the creamy cheese seen throughout markets in Galicia, & while I love it on its own or in other applications, the sweet sauce formed an overwhelming moat that reminded me of Spaghetti-o's. Sorry guys, the one dish I really didn't care for...

All in all, a quixotic evening that left me inspired & hungry for my next visit. Thank you, Txori! And do as the Spaniard's do--throw your napkins to the wind... They love you for littering. Where else on the west coast can you say that & still feel good about yourself?

Txori

2207 2nd Ave. Seattle  206.204.9771