One of the great pleasures of living in Italy is cooking. With access to such wonderful ingredients, all in season, the most simple of recipes turn out absolutely amazing. Last night I decided to make cotoletta alla Milanese. This can be made with either veal or chicken. I bought 7 small pieces of veal cutlet at Coop, along with all of the ingredients: olive oil, butter, breadcrumbs, eggs, flour, and Parmigiano Reggiano. Working in this tiny kitchen is a challenge. Not only is there little counter space, but it seems as if everything is several inches lower than what I’m accustom to in the States. The small kitchen table, sink, counters, and stove are at my knees – well, maybe not at my knees, but close enough.
I sit at the table to clean and pound the veal. Then I set out dishes – one with flour, salt, and pepper, the next with two beaten eggs, and the last with a mixture of breadcrumbs and grated Parmigiano Reggiano. In a frying pan on the stove I have extra virgin olive oil and butter coming to temperature as I dredge the cutlets from plate to plate. The thin cutlets sizzle in the pan, requiring only a minute on one side and less on the other. Golden brown and crisp, they’re plated with lemon wedges. Cinzia makes a salad of arugula and tomatoes and we’re ready to eat. The veal is tender and flavorful, cuts easily with a butter knife, and pairs perfectly with the salad. Almost perfect. It could only be better if we grated our own breadcrumbs, but we have no stale bread just yet.
After dinner we’re invited to visit Maria Giulia and Genevra once again, so at 10:15pm we make our way down the hill. Barking dogs announce our progress. The biggest and loudest belong to our good friends Maurizio and his wife Fabiana. When she emerges to quiet the dogs she spots Cinzia and is all smiles. We haven’t seen her yet and she tells us that Maurizio has been working and is sleeping now. As a baker, he works odd hours, but she assures us that we’ll see him in a day or two. The bar has not been the same since she and Maurizio ran it in 2014 and 2015 when we were here. She also tells us that she’ll have us over to her home for dinner one evening while we’re in Torre Orsina. Perfect.
Genevra answers the door and the four of us sit at her beautiful antique table. Genevra is anxious to play cards and I brought a setup of American style playing cards for us to use tonight. She screams in surprise and delight as I riffle shuffle the deck. I forgot how unique this always seems to the Italians. Their Italian style playing cards are very stiff, making riffling near impossible, so no one ever learns this shuffle. She’s a good student as I teach her “Ace Picks Up All” (and Italian-American version of Scopa), “Go Fish”, “31”, “500 Rummy”, and “Old Maid”. It came down to Genevra and Maria Giulia in Old Maid and Genevra was pleased to win. She was happy and content to help us converse with Maria Giulia on all topics from food to politics to family. The only moment of terror was when a huge grasshopper flew into the room, making her jump from her seat and run for cover. Luckily, Cinzia grabbed a plastic cup and caught the invader. She was going to set it free, but Maria Giulia took it from her and crushed the cup before tossing it in trash.
Genevra has bistecca for dinner. Maria Giulia has a small fireplace in the kitchen that was the sole method used for cooking meals years ago. She now has a stove and oven, but made a small coal fire in the fireplace to grill the steaks – and it was hot outside today! As the night drew to a close Genevra insisted that we try some Nutella. She keeps a small jar in the fridge, and the chocolate hazelnut cream is now the consistency of cold butter. Her grandmother uses a spoon to spread a layer of Nutella on a biscuit for each of us. Genevra is awaiting my reaction, so naturally I ham it up for her amusement. She coaxes another serving from Maria Giulia and then sneaks a spoonful as she returns her precious Nutella to the fridge. It’s 1am before we say our goodbyes and make our way up hill once again.
Today we have a light breakfast and another board for lunch. I decide to make some red sauce (a.k.a. gravy) this afternoon. Back to the kitchen. After browning some garlic, sausage, and small pork ribs in extra virgin olive oil, I remove the meats, plate the fried garlic for Cinzia to enjoy, and add two bottles of De Cecco Passata Rustica, salt and dried basil. After it comes back to temperature I add some water and return the meats to the pot to simmer. Simmering is a challenge as even the smallest of the 6 burners on its lowest setting causes the pot of sauce to boil. After an hour I decide to turn off the heat and let it sit. I’m sure it’ll be delicious. We may have it for dinner this evening or eat the truffle sauce instead. Either way, I win. Nice.
After dinner we’re invited to visit Maria Giulia and Genevra once again, so at 10:15pm we make our way down the hill. Barking dogs announce our progress. The biggest and loudest belong to our good friends Maurizio and his wife Fabiana. When she emerges to quiet the dogs she spots Cinzia and is all smiles. We haven’t seen her yet and she tells us that Maurizio has been working and is sleeping now. As a baker, he works odd hours, but she assures us that we’ll see him in a day or two. The bar has not been the same since she and Maurizio ran it in 2014 and 2015 when we were here. She also tells us that she’ll have us over to her home for dinner one evening while we’re in Torre Orsina. Perfect.
Genevra answers the door and the four of us sit at her beautiful antique table. Genevra is anxious to play cards and I brought a setup of American style playing cards for us to use tonight. She screams in surprise and delight as I riffle shuffle the deck. I forgot how unique this always seems to the Italians. Their Italian style playing cards are very stiff, making riffling near impossible, so no one ever learns this shuffle. She’s a good student as I teach her “Ace Picks Up All” (and Italian-American version of Scopa), “Go Fish”, “31”, “500 Rummy”, and “Old Maid”. It came down to Genevra and Maria Giulia in Old Maid and Genevra was pleased to win. She was happy and content to help us converse with Maria Giulia on all topics from food to politics to family. The only moment of terror was when a huge grasshopper flew into the room, making her jump from her seat and run for cover. Luckily, Cinzia grabbed a plastic cup and caught the invader. She was going to set it free, but Maria Giulia took it from her and crushed the cup before tossing it in trash.
Genevra has bistecca for dinner. Maria Giulia has a small fireplace in the kitchen that was the sole method used for cooking meals years ago. She now has a stove and oven, but made a small coal fire in the fireplace to grill the steaks – and it was hot outside today! As the night drew to a close Genevra insisted that we try some Nutella. She keeps a small jar in the fridge, and the chocolate hazelnut cream is now the consistency of cold butter. Her grandmother uses a spoon to spread a layer of Nutella on a biscuit for each of us. Genevra is awaiting my reaction, so naturally I ham it up for her amusement. She coaxes another serving from Maria Giulia and then sneaks a spoonful as she returns her precious Nutella to the fridge. It’s 1am before we say our goodbyes and make our way up hill once again.
Today we have a light breakfast and another board for lunch. I decide to make some red sauce (a.k.a. gravy) this afternoon. Back to the kitchen. After browning some garlic, sausage, and small pork ribs in extra virgin olive oil, I remove the meats, plate the fried garlic for Cinzia to enjoy, and add two bottles of De Cecco Passata Rustica, salt and dried basil. After it comes back to temperature I add some water and return the meats to the pot to simmer. Simmering is a challenge as even the smallest of the 6 burners on its lowest setting causes the pot of sauce to boil. After an hour I decide to turn off the heat and let it sit. I’m sure it’ll be delicious. We may have it for dinner this evening or eat the truffle sauce instead. Either way, I win. Nice.