AUNTIE PASTA: Stuffed Eggplants alla Abruzzese

CHIAVARI, Italy - This eggplant recipe was classified on an Italian web site as a casalese specialty, but since I didn’t know who the Casalese were, I Googled them.

 

Castelbordino, Abruzzo

Much to my surprise the only casalesi I found was a clan of Casalesi in the province of Caserta, and they appear to be a cast of pretty rough characters. It was eminently clear that the Caserta Casalesi walk around saying things like “how you doin’’ and they were not the casalesi I was looking for. I was looking the casalesi who hang around their kitchens cooking eggplants. Sorry guys, my mistake.

So I tried the Google search  again. Nothing. I found casolani in Casoli and calascini in Calascio, castellatesi in Castellalto, castellani in Castelli and just as I was about to give up, there it was, casalesi in Castelbordino, province of Chieti, in Abruzzo.

These Egglplants are Too Big  

If it’s the right place, and I’m sure that it is, Castelbordino is a small town of about 6,000 people that has been around for a long time. Actually make that a really long time as archeologists have found traces of a civilization there that dates back to the XI century BC.  It looks like a nice town, a pretty town, the kind of town where people really do hang out in their kitchens stuffing and cooking eggplants. The kind of town you’d want to live in.

It’s almost a miracle that anything, especially culinary traditions, survived in Abruzzo given the area’s turbulent history. Even if you start in the middle of their history when the Romans and the Goths battled it out during the Gothic War, pretty much whatever there was of value in Abruzzo, was destroyed. Then, when the German Lombards, the Normans and God only knows who else came along, all hell broke loose and actually, from that point on and centuries after, it was one war after another each one doing as much or more damage than the one before it.

These Eggplants are Too Small

So we should thank whomever it was that had the good sense to pass this recipe down through the generations because it’s very good. There was something about this dish that intrigued me, although I confess when it was cooking, and the once little shiny and round eggplants were all wrinkled and kind of shriveled up, I was feeling a little less enthusiastic about it. But I kept going.

Like many home style Italian recipes there are no specific amounts given. How much of one thing or another you use depends on how much you are making. This is a recipe for experienced cooks, cooks who cook by ‘eye’, or as my friend Gary likes to say, ‘by the seat of their pants’, although I never did understand how the seat of your pants had anything to do with cooking. Doesn’t matter, I still love him and he is an amazing cook, so I guess it works. Here’s the recipe, with some of my observations added in. 

These Eggplants are Just Right

Stuffed Eggplants Casalesi (Abruzzo) Style

Cut the stems off of the eggplants. With a paring knife, carefully remove the interior flesh. You don’t want to break or puncture the skin of the small eggplants. I found that a knife with a serrated edge worked best, especially for the small eggplants that I used.

Put the scooped out eggplant pulp in a colander and rinse it under running water to remove the seeds. Chop or cut the pulp into small bits and set it aside to add to the filling. If you use  small eggplants like I did, there really isn’t a lot pulp, but it doesn’t matter. Just use what you have. After you have scooped all of the pulp out of the eggplant, rinse them under running water and put them cut side down on a kitchen towel to drain.

Make a filling using sausage meat, the pulp of the eggplant, day-old breadcrumbs, eggs, chopped fresh tomato, grated cheese, chopped basil and parsley. If you have another filling that you prefer, you can use that one instead.

I used sausage, the little bit of eggplant pulp I had, a chopped onion, a very little bit of very finely diced celery, anise seeds and an Italian roll that I chopped up into very small pieces. A food processer would have done a better job on the roll, but it was okay. And before I stuffed the eggplants I grated some Pecorino Romano over the filling and mixed it in.

When all the eggplants are filled, sauté them in some olive oil until they are wrinkled.

 At this point you can make a simple tomato sauce using: 1/4 cup olive oil, 1 garlic clove, 4 or 5 fresh tomatoes or 1 large can of peeled tomatoes, fresh parsley and basil, salt and black pepper - simmer for 15 minutes. Again I used my own recipe that calls for a small can of polpa di pomodoro, which is chopped up peeled tomatoes, some tomato paste, which I diluted using a little broth (brodo), made from a bouillon cube and a little fresh rosemary.

When the sauce had cooked for about 10 or 15 minutes, I added the stuffed eggplants and cooked everything together for another half an hour on a low flame. It smelled delicious.

 Because I grew up in the States and like one dish meals, I boiled some pasta – pacheri to be precise – and put it with the sauce and the eggplant. There are no photos of this because by then I was starving and so I took a vote as to whether I should just sit down and eat or take some photos, and taking photos lost. Buon appetito. 

p.s. it's probably best if you don't use big eggplants for this recipe, they would be difficult to handle, smallish eggplants would be best. The baby ones I used were ok, but I wouldn't use them again simply because they took forever to scoop out. 

Thanks go to casa-giardino.blogspot.it for the original recipe and the photo of the finished dish

AUNTIE PASTA: The Delicious Scrippelle of Abruzzo

CHIAVARI, Italy – This post on scrippelles is one of the most popular posts on my blog, and one I thought was worth repeating.

 

Teramo, Abruzzo

Scrippelles are a typical food of Teramo, a small town in Abruzzo.  If you have never heard of them, you are not alone. I had never heard of them either until Debra Cardelli Cellucci of Philadelphia Pa. talked about them on an Italian-American Facebook page I follow.

Scrippelle are very thin pancakes made from flour, eggs and water. If you are thinking that’s the same recipe for crepes, you are right. They are one and the same. In fact, there is a real French connection to this dish according to an article published in a local Abruzzese magazine called The Abruzzo Enogastronomica, but more about that later.

The real difference between them is the way they are served. In Abruzzo scrippelles are served m’busse, which means in chicken broth. The basic idea is to first prepare a thin batter . . . but wait a minute, I think it’s better if Debra tells you herself. Here is her recipe from the Facebook page:

 

Scrippelle M'Busso

Debra’s Scrippelle M’Busso Recipe

“12 eggs, 3 cups of water, 1 cup of flour in a large mixing bowl. Beat eggs, add water, then slowly add flour while constantly mixing. Use a good crepe pan. Depending on the size of the pan you may want to cut them in half after rolling. Heat pan to medium to high heat, then lightly grease the pan with either fat back or olive oil.

I use a 10” crepe pan and add about half a soup ladle of batter and roll it around quickly so it spreads evenly.  It should be very thin. Lift the edges of the crepe and when the edges start to curl pick it up quickly and turn it over. It only takes about a minute or less on each side. Let each one cool for a minute or two before stacking them on top of each other.  1 dozen eggs makes about 40 10” crepes. They can be cut in half to double that to 80.

After they are cooked, mix grated pecorino cheese with black pepper to your taste. Take each crepe and sprinkle with a good amount of the cheese/pepper mix, and tightly roll the crepe. Cut them in half and stack them close to each other in a casserole dish or plastic container if you are going to freeze them. When you are ready to serve, let them come to room temperature. Place them in individual soup bowls and pour your favorite chicken soup over them.”

 

 Timballo di Teramo

And that, according to Debra, is all there is to it. In researching this dish, I found that some cooks like to roll the scrippelle tightly and then slice them into ribbons, like fettucine and then serve them with soup. The crepes are also used to make another delicious local dish called Timballo di Teramo.

This timballo is made in layers, like lasagna, but instead of pasta locals use scrippelle. And there is one other small difference; this timballo is made in a casserole dish rather than a lasagna pan. Using an ovenproof casserole dish, first put in a few spoons of sauce.  The sauce can be a white béchamel sauce with fried artichokes (spinach or peas works well too), and scamorza cheese. Or, you can use your favorite red tomato and meat sauce. Alternate a layer of scrippelle with a layer of sauce. The top layer should be sauce sprinkled with a good grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese.

 

 It All Starts Like This

In the Italian recipe it says to preheat your oven to 320 degrees F/160 degrees C and bake for about an hour until the flavors blend together and a slight crust forms on the top. You can probably get the same results with a 350 degree F/ 175 degree C oven and a cooking time of 25-30 minutes. What’s important is that the ingredients heat through and the sauce and the cheese are bubbling.

As for the French connection, the story goes back to the 16^th century when the French ruled Abruzzo.  It seems the French chef in charge of the officers' mess in the town of Teramo, used to serve his officers crepes instead of bread. He though they were more ‘attractive’ than the dark coarse breads that were common at that time.

As it happened, one day when Messer Enrico Castorani, the chef’s helper, was moving a heaping plate of crepes, they fell into the soup pot that was filled with hot chicken soup. 

The chef didn’t know what to do. He decided to serve the crepes and the soup, and when he tasted the crepes in the soup, he found that it was a most delicious combination, and that, according to local legend, is how scrippelle in broth was created. 

 A special thanks goes out to Debra Cardelli Cellucci for sharing her recipe with us. Thanks Debra.

AUNTIE PASTA: Scrippelles

CHIAVARI, Italy – Scrippelles are a typical food of Teramo, a small town in Abruzzo.  If you have never heard of them, you are not alone. I had never heard of them either until a week or so ago when Debra Cardelli Cellucci of Philadelphia Pa. talked about them on an Italian-American facebook page I follow.

Teramo, Abruzzo Italy

Scrippelle are very thin pancakes made from flour, eggs and water. If you are thinking that’s the same recipe for crepes, you are right. They are one and the same. In fact, there is a real French connection to this dish according to an article published in a local Abruzzese magazine called The Abruzzo Enogastronomica, but more about that later.

The real difference between them, is the way they are served. In Abruzzo scrippelles are served m’busse, which means in chicken broth. The basic idea is to first prepare a thin batter . . . but wait a minute, I think it’s better if Debra tells you herself. Here is her recipe from the Facebook page:

 Scrippelle M'busso

Debra’s Scrippelle M’Busso Recipe

12 eggs, 3 cups of water, 1 cup of flour in a large mixing bowl. Beat eggs, add water, slowly add flour while constantly mixing. Use a good crepe pan. Depending on the size of the pan you may want to cut them in half after rolling. Heat pan to medium to high heat, then lightly grease the pan with either fat back or olive oil.

I use a 10” crepe pan and add about half a soup ladle of batter and roll it around quickly so it spreads evenly.  It should be very thin. Lift the edges of the crepe and when the edges start to curl pick it up quickly and turn it over. It only takes about a minute or less on each side. Let each one cool for a minute or two before stacking them on top of each other.  1 dozen eggs makes about 40 10” crepes. They can be cut in half to double that to 80.

After they are cooked mix grated pecorino cheese with black pepper to your taste. Take each crepe and sprinkle with a good amount of the cheese/pepper mix, and tightly roll the crepe. Cut them in half and stack them close to each other in a casserole dish or plastic container if you are going to freeze them. When you are ready to serve, let them come to room temperature. Place them in individual soup bowls and pour your favorite chicken soup over them.

 Timballo di Teramo

And that, according to Debra, is all there is to it. In researching this dish, I found that some cooks like to roll the scrippelle tightly and then slice them into ribbons, like fettucine and then serve them with soup. They are also used to make another delicious local dish called Timballo di Teramana.

This timballo is made in layers, like lasagna, but instead of pasta locals use scrippelle. And there is one other small difference, this timballo is made in a casserole dish rather than a lasagna pan. Using an oven proof casserole dish, first put in a few spoons of sauce.  The sauce can be a while béchamel sauce with fried artichokes (spinach or peas works well too), and scamorza cheese. Or, you can use your favorite red tomato sauce. Alternate a layer of scrippelle with a layer of sauce. The top layer should be sauce sprinkled with a good grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese.

It all starts like this

In the Italian recipe it says to preheat your oven to 320 degrees F/160 degrees C and bake for about an hour until the flavors blend together and a slight crust forms on the top. You can probably get the same results with a 350 degree F/ 175 degree C oven and a cooking time of 25-30 minutes. What’s important is that the ingredients heat through and the sauce and the cheese are bubbling.

As for the French connection, the story goes back to the 16^th century when the French ruled Abruzzo.  It seems the French chef in charge of the officers' mess in the town of Teramo, used to serve his officers crepes instead of bread. He though they were more ‘attractive’ than the dark coarse breads that were common at that time. As it happened, one day when Messer Enrico Castorani, the chef’s helper, was moving a heaping plate of crepes, they fell into the soup pot that was filled with hot chicken soup. 

The chef didn’t know what to do. He decided to serve the crepes and the soup, and when he tasted the crepes in the soup, he found that it was a most delicious combination, and that is how scrippelle in broth was created. 

I liked to give a special thanks to Debra Cardelli Cellucci for sharing her recipe with me, and allowing me to share it with all of you. Thanks Debra.

AUNTIE PASTA: The Hills are Alive

SARONNO, Italy –  The province of Abruzzo is beautiful, it’s hill country and has more than its share of medieval towns like Castel del Monte. It’s not the best place to farm but definitely a great place to raise sheep. You might ask just what you can do with sheep after you’ve sheered them, milked them and bred them? Well, you can eat them. In fact, one of the most typical and delicious dishes found in Abruzzo is called “arrosticini”,  skewers of lamb meat cooked on a charcoal grill. 

 Castel del Monte, Abruzzo

Writing this post made me think about a dinner I once cooked for some friends, who brought along a friend who was visiting from Philadelphia. I made, among other things, roast chicken and potatoes.  A few weeks later my friend told me her visitor had been very disappointed that I hadn’t made “real” Italian food, even though it’s hard to imagine something more Italian than chicken with potatoes pan roasted in the oven with fresh rosemary. And odd as it may seem, lamb kebabs, usually associated with middle eastern cultures, are also very much Italian.

 Mangia, mangia   (photo from Flickr)

Today’s recipe is super simple, but there is one small trick. The trick is to not use a cut of meat that is too lean. If the meat is too lean it dries out and becomes super tough. Lamb shoulder is good because it has a good proportion of fat to lean. If you don’t want to bother making your own kebabs you can probably buy them ready-made in your grocery store or butcher shop. They sell them in most grocery stores throughout Italy, but not all year round. What we eat at any particular time of the year depends on the season, including meat. Remember my ordeal of trying to find a whole turkey last November?
 

Lamb keb...errr, I mean Arrosticini

The most traditional method of cooking the kebabs is over a charcoal grill, but any grill will do. If you are not using charcoal you can flavor the kebabs by brushing them with a long sprig of fresh rosemary that has been dipped in olive oil and crushed red pepper and maybe a squeeze of lemon juice. It’s not the same as using charcoal, but it’s good. 

Ingredients

800 grams (about 1 ¼ lbs) of cubed lamb meat

Juice of ½ lemon

Crushed red pepper (optional)

Extra virgin olive oil

Sprigs of fresh rosemary

Lay the skewers of lamb out on a plate and brush them with olive oil, a sprinkle of salt and pepper. You can add a squeeze of lemon if you want. Turn them to be sure they are well coated and place them on the grill. Cook them over low heat (too high a heat will burn them and dry them out). Baste and turn occasionally with the sprig of rosemary dipped in olive oil.

Serve with crusty Italian bread, a crispy salad and a glass of red wine and you’ve got classic Italian country cooking at its best.