ITALIAN FLATBREAD

The Middle East has pita. Indians nosh on naan.  Italians have piadina.  Denser than a pancake but lighter than its leavened cousins, piadina is the carb of choice in Italy's Romagna region.

Photo credit

Locals lunch on wraps made of this griddle-puffed flatbread.  Whether filled with  prosciutto or grilled veggies, piadina can sate  the most bread-o-philic palette.  Sweeter wraps, schmeared with nutella, are also common.

Accounts mentioning the piê go back to the 14th century.  Originally made at home by poor cooks, this flatbread has turned into a quick on-the-go meal --  Italy's answer to the burrito.

Malleable, this dough uses no yeast. No need for it to rise. Just pulse the flour, fat and wine together. Rolled into tortilla-sized circles, the piadina is ready for the griddle.

* In Italy, piadina tends to be made with lard, which is far more common in Romagna region than olive oil.  This recipe swaps out the piggy fat for a mix of olive oil and cold cubed butter.

http://annaincasa.blogspot.com

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 cups flour
• 6 tablespoons olive oil
• 3 tablespoons cold butter
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• circa 1/3 cup cup dry white wine

Pan-"toasted" piadina

First pulse the flour, salt and baking soda together in a food processor.  Once the dry ingredients have been mixed, turn on the food processor and pour a steady stream of olive oil into the flour.  The flour and oil will turn into a sand-like mixture.  Add the cubed cold butter and process.

Pour the dry white wine in bit by bit.  The dough will be granular in texture and, unlike a pie crust, should NOT form into a ball in the mixer.  When larger clumps start to form in the mix, dough is ready.  Put the floury mix onto a flat surface.

Using the warmth of your hands, press the loose dough together into a ball.  Knead the dough until pliable.  If the mix is too "crumbly" and won't come together into a workable dough, pulse with a bit more liquid in the mixer.  With the palm of your hands, roll dough into a log and cut into 1.5 inch rounds.  Use a rolling pin, flatten the rounds into tortilla-shaped circles.

Heat cast iron skillet or griddle pan over medium high heat.  Cook the piadina in the ungreased pan for 3-4 minutes on each side.  It will puff up slightly over the heat and start to brown.  After a minute, spin the piadina 180 degrees to ensure that it won't burn on the bottom.   Stuff with cured meats and cheeses; serve hot.

RECIPE NOTE:

Making piadina is an inexact art -- sometimes you may need a little more oil or a little more liquid. The consistency you're looking for, though, is pliable but not sticky.   

MUSHROOM TOASTIES - CROSTINI AI FUNGHI

Last weekend, I traipsed through San Francisco's Ferry Building Marketplace.  Once the terminus for traffic in and out of the Bay, the space has morphed into a high-end food hub.  Speciality shops -- bread-bakers, salami-makers and cheeses-mongers -- line the interior.

A line of eager mouths snaked in front of Acme Bread, where workers pulled flour-dusted loaves from a brick oven. At Boccolone, diners noshed on house-cured salumi and homemade Italian sausages.

Evoking Europe's covered markets, the Ferry Building touts California's local vitals. I can't afford most food on sale here. I like to browse, though.  One of my favorite spots is a stall where I've never shopped: Far West Fungi.

Far West Fungi

Specializing in mushrooms, Far West serves edible fungus from across California -- including both farm-raised and forest-foraged varietals.  Pink oyster mushrooms, the ruby hue of a grapefruit, beckon to prospective foodies.

Perusing the porcini and prune-wrinkled morels, I started concocting mushroomy meals in my head. Risotto? Lasagna? Veggie ragù?  In a rush, I went for a quick dish: mushroom crostini.  Toasted bread is crowned in pan-crisped mushrooms, lemony parsley and a hint of cream.  I grabbed a crusty baguette at Acme Bread and headed home.

 

Far West Fungi

 INGREDIENTS:

• 12 oz - 1 lb of mixed mushrooms (crimini, button, Shitake, portobella, etc), sliced
• 1 loaf crusty bread (baguette or Italian), sliced thick
• A bunch of flat-leaf parsley
• 2 tablespoons fresh cream or half-and-half
• 4-5 tablespoons fresh grated parmigiano
• 4-6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• Black pepper, to taste.

www.thefreshloaf.com

Slice the rustic Italian loaf or baguette into 1" - 1.5" slices.  Toast the bread on a baking sheet in the oven until hard.  Be sure not to over toast.  Your slices should feel like toast but not yet be golden-brown.  Set aside the bread  and let cool at room temperature.

Meanwhile, wash and clean the mushrooms, scrubbing off any soil that clings to the 'shrooms. Coarsely slice the mushrooms. Some slices can be thin like the mushrooms you see on pizzas and some can be chunkier.  When the mushrooms are cut rough-chop a bunch of flat-leaf parsley. You'll need about 2 tablespoons of chopped parsley.

Image from: Delightful Delicacies

Heat the olive oil over medium heat in a large skillet.  Cooking in batches, saute the mushrooms until they've begun to brown. You don't want slimy mushrooms. To avoid soggy 'shrooms, cook them in hot oil and only just cover the surface of the skillet.  Cooking the mushrooms all at once will cause them to release water -- they won't brown and they will turn mushy.  Smaller batches, on the other hand, will caramelize and sizzle.

Cook 2-3 minutes on each side, stirring only occasionally.  Once browned, remove the batch of mushrooms to a separate plate and continue pan-frying the remaining fungus. When all of the mushrooms have been browned, return them to the skillet.

Heating over medium-low, toss in the chopped parsley. Pepper to taste and mix for 1 minute. Because we're using salty parmigiano, you won't need to add salt now. While the mushrooms and parsley re-heat, spoon in the grated parmigiano. Stir the skillet vigorously until the cheese starts to melt and turn gooey.

Photo from Italian blog: http://focacciaalrosmarinoit.blogspot.com/

Lastly, pour in the heavy cream one tablespoon at a time. Toss the pan to make sure the cheese, parsley and cream evenly coat all the mushroom mixture.  Generously dress each slice of toast with the cheesy mushroom mix. Serve warm.

GARLIC BREAD TUSCAN STYLE

There are easy recipes. And, there are easy recipes --  food that  folks who struggle with Kraft Mac can make. And, make well.  Literally meaning an oiled up slice of bread, fettunta is Tuscany's bare-bones take on garlic bread.  (My high school English teachers would be horrified -- two sentences in one paragraph that start with "and").

For most Americans, just mentioning garlic bread conjures images of oven-toasted loaves doused in butter, parsley and mountains of minced garlic.  Some garlic bread leaks yellow. Some ooze gooey cheese. Others make you wonder why the bread looks like orange Kool-Aid.

While not straying far from the grease + bread + garlic equation, fettunta might better be called garlicky bread.  If American garlic bread showcases the zing of garlic and the stringiness of mozzarella, the star of fettunta is the bread.  To be sure, garlic is still here.  It's just not the main attraction -- one note in a choir rather than that voice that makes you forget all others. Since garlic won't overpower the bread, it's key that you get your hands on a quality loaf.

Raw garlic is rubbed right on top of toasted or grilled bread.  The warm surface absorbs just a hint of the garlic's punch.  You taste the bread. You taste the fruity olive oil. You taste the garlic.  No one flavor kills the others.  Served hot, this is easy and light finger food.

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 loaf crusty bread
• Olive oil for drizzling (1/2 cup)
• 6 or so peeled garlic cloves
• Salt & pepper

Slice the crusty Italian loaf into thick "bruschetta-sized" slices. Each slice should be about 1 to 1.5 inches wide.  Once sliced, flash toast (on high) the slices. If you have a grill pan or a grill, grilling the bread is the way to go.  This will endow the final dish with a rich, smoky aftertaste.  

When toasty, take a clove of garlic and rub it into the bread's rough surface.  The garlic will rub off.  Garlic up each hot slice this way.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper.  If the bread is already salted, only use a smidgin of salt. As a final step, pour a big glug of extra-virgin olive oil over each garlicky piece.  The warm bread will absorb the oil. Serve hot.

                                               This photo is from http://theitaliandish.blogspot.com