Why Peschici

Everyone asks us “How did you decide on Peschici?”

We had a couple of business requirements for this trip and one of them was to complete the documents for my Italian citizenship. That required a trip to Atripalda, Avellino, Campania, Italy and visit with the local registrar. The question was where to we go from there.Two years ago our travels had taken us to Sui Dui Golfi on the Sorrento peninsula, in Atripalda we were only 164 kilometers (about 2 hours) from the Adriatic and we wanted to explore Puglia, go east young man.

A second part of business was to visit Radicondili and see the home of Il Campo cooking school in Tuscany, so driving time for the 3rd leg of our trip was a consideration.

Peschici is a town on the spur of the Italian boot, the Gargano Promontory. It is situated on the eastern most tip of the peninsula nestled into the Foresta Umbra. On the map it looked like a good place to use as a base to visit Monte Sant’Angelo (the grotto of Archangel Michael) and the Padre Pio shrine in San Giovanni Rotondo Padre Pio. Then take a longer day trip south to Castel del Monte, Alberobello (to see the Trulli).

It looked good on the map, and the town is beautiful, the drive into and out of Peschici has some spectacular views, but it is challenging. Generally driving the Italian countryside and smaller towns does not concern me, but the blind curves and switchbacks here more than doubled driving time compared to distance. Then thinking about the drive made each excursion and return a major effort. This reduced our travels, but we did discover da Celestina Ristorante, and if you like the beach, see the pictures on the Peschici post.

Emanuela la Podere La Fonte Torta

The planning of this trip actually began in March 2011. Marlane Miriello shared this recipe for Torta Pasqualina with me so it could be prepared for the membership of the House of Italy in Balboa Park San Diego, California. The idea was to demonstrate the authentic food being prepared and served in the Il Campo cooking school.

What it did for me was add Radicondili to my list of places to go in Tuscany. And to make the experience even more cohesive, Emanuela at Podere La Fonte where we stayed is the guest instructor that originated this recipe and taught it during one of the week long courses, perfetto.

                             Torta Pasqualina

For the filling:

1 ½         pounds                   fresh spinach or swiss chard leaves -- washed thoroughly

1              pound                    ricotta cheese (ideally made from fresh
½             cup                         finely grated parmesan cheese
2                                             eggs + 1 egg white
 ¼            tsp.                         ground nutmeg
                                               salt and pepper to taste
2              tblsp.                     whole fennel seeds

 For the crust:

3              cups                       whole wheat or white all-purpose flour
½             cup                         olive oil
1              pinch                     salt
Water or ricotta as desired -- enough to blend the dough

Pre heat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit .. 176 celcius

Preparing the crust:

Place the flour and salt in a food processor.
Turn on the food processor and slowly add the olive oil. Blend until the mixture becomes well-blended and mealy.

Add either the water or ricotta, with the food processor on, one

tablespoon at a time until the dough becomes smooth and elastic.

Remove from food processor and place in a covered bowl for at least thirty minutes.

Roll out the dough on a floured marble slab or pastry board until it is very large, approximately 20" square.

Assembling the tart:

Spoon the filling into the center of the pastry sheet, spreading it out over approximately a 12 X 15" area in the center of the crust.

Fold the wide edges over the filling.  Paint the top of the crust with and egg wash made of egg white and a few drops of water.

Sprinkle 1-2 tbsp. fennel seeds over the top. Bake in the center of a 350 degree oven for approximately one hour, or until golden brown.

Remove from oven, let it cool slightly before serving. Torta Pasqualina is also good served at room temperature or cold.

Cinta Senese

From the first day of planning this trip a visit with Marlane Miriello in Radicondoli, Siena, Tuscany was on the agenda. Marlane is a founder of Il Campo a cooking school based in Radicondoli. We have traveled to Tuscany many times but never in this area. Marlane was kind enough to send us to the village of  Scorgiano, Monteriggioni, Siena, Tuscany to find one of the things on my list, Cinta Senese.

This is the area where Cinta Senese , THE heirloom pork breed of Tuscany, has been reborn. There is a fresco by Ambrogio Lorenzetti called "Effects of Good Government - The well-governed country" in the Palazzo Comunale di Siena, dating back to 1338 depicting the Cinta Senese. The breed is recognized by a dark coat with a white band that covers the front legs and encircles the chest, shoulders and over the back, Cinta (belted) Siena (senese). When you see the Cinta Senese beside the wild boar of Tuscany many of the characteristics remain, even after many genetic changes.

The hills covered with oak forests, providing ample supplies of acorns were the perfect environment for these foraging animals. In fact today, the Cinta Senese must be provided a large open field combined with forest to thrive. If given a choice of human provided grains or foraging the will chose the latter.

Up until the 1950’s nearly every family in the area would raise the breed for fresh meats and salumi. Then came the introduction of the “large white”.  Cross breeding with the Cinta Senese produced an animal that would be ready for market in six months and full maturity in 1 year, while the Cinta Senese took at least a year and up to 2 years to reach maximum weights. This cross breed matured faster and thrived in confinement. By the 1990’s the pure Cinta Senese was almost extinct.

In the late 1990’s a group of farmers (The Consortium of Cinta Senese) decided to purchase and maintain breeding boars with the sole purpose of maintaining the breed. Their efforts are not complete, but there have been great strides in removing the Cinta Senese from the list of endangered species.

Why is so much space dedicated to this one topic? For those that know me, I have consumed my share of pork. It is a travesty what American pork producers have done to the animal in search of the politically correct dining product. In reality we have created a bigger problem than was resolved.

The Cinta is bred and raised in wild or semi-wild, large enclosed forests. They consume natural foods of acorn tubers and other organic materials. This produces a red flesh with a high density of unsaturated fats, including omega 3’s and omega 6. The fat is rich in oleic acid (helps reduce cholesterol). The flavor (fat) is less saturated and allows the smell to emit.

We had the pleasure of tasting this wonderful product at a restaurant directly across the road from the producer, L’Astronave (further description to follow). Cinta Finocchiona, Cinta Coppa, Cinta pork steak.

For those that know me, I have eaten my share of porchetta, pork chops, salumi, pastas with pork ragu in my time, including the Mangalitsa, this is the best pork that has passed these lips ever!!!!