Natale Italiano – or Christmas D.O.P. In Simon and Alessandro’s Crazy Style!

Saturday 21 November dawned vivid and………..SNOWY! Our Christmas extravaganza within the Curious Kitchen was already panning out higher than we might have hoped: Simon had collected Alessandro Martini, proprietor of Italian Days Experiences primarily based in Bologna from the airport, together with Pina and Anna, two great girls from the ‘Bolognese Society of Pasta Nonnas’. Most small cities and villages in Italy have a society of Nonnas (Italian for Grandmother) who’re the matriarchs of the village, liable for passing down their culinary data to all of the younger folks, in order that they’ll finally have the ability to make all pasta in addition to the Nonnas…….

I had already had the pleasure of assembly the Italians the day earlier than, so I used to be fortunate sufficient to have a glimpse of what was in retailer for our 16 fortunate members……..Alessandro – one of the vital passionate males I’ve ever had the pleasure to satisfy, who together with Simon, was going to create a day which was off the size of exuberance- he genuinely exuded enjoyable, excessive spirits, data of his beloved nation and its meals and wine, to call just a few issues. Subsequent, Anna, – a grasp prepare dinner who spent a few years working in a 2 Michelin starred restaurant and was having no nonsense from both Alessandro or Simon; and Pina, head Nonna and pasta queen, who, in her mid-seventies, had for the primary time in her life, boarded a aircraft and are available to the Curious Kitchen for her first go to exterior Italy! Fantastic!

The company all gathered collectively within the kitchen consuming espressos ready by Marc, our new Barista (Kim needs….) and getting reacquainted with outdated and new mates, till a Pavarotti fanfare started, and the brand new workforce marched in, each Nonnas wielding mattarellos (1 meter lengthy picket rolling pins) letting everybody know they had been prepared for enterprise.

With loud Italian music blasting out Alessandro, sporting his now well-known ‘Cooking with Nonna’ sweatshirt, entered with the Nonnas, with clapping and smiles from everybody. Simon welcomed all, encouraging everybody to put on their ‘Christmas Cook dinner’ hat and Sue invited the group to introduce themselves and share one thing that’s actual proper now. There was a lot pleasure and nervousness within the room, and all of us mirrored on Andy’s remark, that even with a lot awfulness occurring on the planet, there was a pocket of some 30 individuals who had been about to spend a day of nice pleasure, creation, enjoyable and connection introduced collectively by meals.

That was the calmest second of the day – there and gone in a flash. From that second on, Nicki described the Curious Kitchen as ‘Organised Chaos, however in a great way……!’

Alessandro and I shared the menu,

Pranzo – Lunch

Focaccia con rosmarino and dal marino,

Parmigiano Reggiano D.O.P. (Denominazione di Origines Protetta) actually protected designation of origin – or in different phrases, domestically produced produce.

Prosciutto Crudo

25 years aged Aceto di Balsamico- D.O.P in fact

Rainbow Trout caught within the Misbourne and smoked with Oak, Cherry, rosemary and thyme in our personal smoker

And to organize for CENA- Dinner

Antipasti – Insalata Tricolore, displayed within the colors of the Italian flag, Bruschetta, grissini, pate of the smoked trout

Brodo di Capona e tortellini -(Capon and Tortellini Broth)

Zuppa di zucar e marrones (puree of winter squash, parsnip and candy roasted chestnuts)

Ragu di Bolognese e Tagliatelli

Tortelloni of pumpkin, squash & Parmesan

DOLCE

Torta della Risa, Torta ciocolatta di Simon e Alessandro, Italian New York baked lemon meringue Cheesecake

With no apologies for the Inglesitaliano spelling, all of us acquired caught in to making ready a feast match for il Pape himself! Simon sharing to the workforce, ” German time we now have 4 hours and 40 minutes, Italian time, when the aromas from the meals have crammed the kitchen and our hearts and bellies can take no extra, lets prepare dinner…………

Bread doughs for focaccia, panettone and grissini combined and stirred, kneaded and pummelled; 5 kilo Rainbow Trout, lovingly gutted and filleted by Barbara and Marc – by no means tried earlier than however a lot encouragement given, and he or she made an ideal job of it; Capons jointed by Chris embodying the grasp butcher, greens chopped – though not finely sufficient for Nonna Pina’s Ragu……. One other telling off for Andy and Greg! Squash & parsnips seasoned, chopped and roasted for soup and stuffing; Chestnuts, scored and gently roasting, trout within the smoker with cherry and oak wooden chips, bunches of woody herbs from the backyard and a superb dousing of Italian Grappa; and now for the Pasta…… Simon was intent on giving everybody 100g (his measure, i.e. a tough handful) of 00 flour, an egg and a pinch of salt then knead it collectively together with your fingers, whereas Nonna Pina – though she can not converse a phrase of English, managed to convey that there was NO WAY we had been making it Simon’s method, HER method was 200g of flour, 2 eggs and NO salt, and all the things was weighed to the final gram on very correct scales. Simon did handle to sneak 100g to Pippa, who combined it shortly earlier than the Nonna noticed it! The egg is cracked onto the flour and is then whisked to step by step incorporate the flour – a lot much less messy however not practically as a lot enjoyable! The dough is then kneaded till it’s as silky as chamois leather-based, kissed and left to relaxation for half-hour. Nonna Anna was the choose – Gareth was happy along with his dieci factors, though everybody acquired above eight!

Lunch was laid up – all the gorgeous D.O.P. merchandise plus heat from the oven bread and smoky trout, Alessandro advised us concerning the great Aceto Balsamico di Modena, and how one can inform if a grocery store bottle of balsamic is definitely value shopping for, or whether it is simply boiled wine vinegar….. The right stuff have to be aged for no less than 12 years; so for sure, it will price extra that £1.50! A number of the workforce created an Italian impressed Bloody Mary utilizing freshly squeezed cherry tomatoes, crushed basil, oregano leaves, grated horseradish, celery and celery salt and, in fact, just a few slugs of vodka to accompany our lunch. The lunch was heaven on a plate, however we had been all quickly again to work, peeling roasted chestnuts, pureeing soup, stirring ragu, kneading extra panettone, shredding capon skilfully executed by Donna and Aaron, till it was time to get pasta making. We would have liked bucket a great deal of tortellini for the broth, and that is made by rolling out the pasta dough so thinly you could see the desk via it – an beautiful artwork kind in itself, tried by all, and Linda was most positively a trainee Nonna, everybody else couldn’t get the slap and twist motion wanted to cease the dough from sticking to the pin/desk. The dough is then lower into 2cm squares with a pizza cutter and a tiny dab of stuffing put in the course of the sq. (the stuffing was Parmigiano, minced mortadella sausage, pork cheek and salt, all combined collectively to make a effective paste.) The sq. is then folded right into a triangle and pinched across the edges to safe the stuffing, then the ends drawn collectively and joined to make a bishop’s mitre form. We solely needed to make about 750 of them! This was an ideal exercise that everybody might take part with, – an actual sense of bonding and camaraderie across the pasta desk! Rebecca even determined to make herself a tortellini ring.

Niamh organised a cool exercise whereby Sue paired everybody up and we needed to make contemporary chocolate truffles to place in a cracker as a giving and receiving reward for our associate. Chocolate, liqueurs, nuts, spices, sugar and sprinkles saved everybody busy for the subsequent half hour whereas all of us tried to really feel into what our companions would really like in a chocolate by means of common chit chat, hugging or gazing into one another’s’ eyes for a number of minutes, inflicting a lot hilarity across the desk.

Lucy & Paula organised everybody to make 2 traditional panettone with numerous conventional and never so conventional substances to wrap and take residence – we sneaked just a few chunks of heat panettone straight from the oven although – It was the primary time I had tried one which wasn’t not less than 2 months outdated. (By the way way more scrumptious contemporary!)

Alessandro and Simon grabbed a gaggle of the boys and Kathryn to make their chocolate & chestnut torte cake – they had been in hiding from the Nonnas as a result of they didn’t need them to see that NOTHING was measured, the recipe was concocted as Simon had ripped the recipe up in entrance of their very eyes, by really feel and odor and sight alone, curiously, it turned out very nicely!

Pam’s group made creamy pate with what was left of the smoked trout giving it an Italian really feel and flavour, Mark and Gareth made an attractive Tricolore D.O.P. salad, the Nonnas completed their Rice cake then made a tomato pasta sauce for Waleed who doesn’t eat Pork; Steph, Aaron and Donna shredded the capon ( a giant cock which has been castrated so his flesh is tender and he doesn’t wish to combat his compatriots) for the broth, Sue’s group made a unbelievable cheesecake topped with a billowing pillow of Italian meringue… (word to different customers…. Do Not Open Oven 54 instances when Cheesecake is setting) – and final minute touches had been being put collectively throughout the kitchen, the desk was set, the tree embellished, candles lit, Prosecco open, Barolo respiration, crackers on the desk, all the things able to go by a really respected 6.30 (solely half-hour late, like true Italians!)

Alessandro and the Nonnas served course after course of soup, broth, tortellini, tortelloni, tagliatelli, cake, cake, chocolate, till the room most likely weighed about 6o kilos greater than it had earlier within the day, in reality lots of the males lifted their shirts to disclose their lower than flat 12 packs! All washed down with craft beers and lagers from the UK, Prossecco and Italian vino and a ‘blast from the previous’ Lambrusco, which can absolutely make a come again within the very close to future. The one technique to eliminate that extra Pasta was to bop on the desk, which Alessandro, Simon, Becky and Niamh managed to do with out breaking something. The Black Cow vodka made its first look with nuggets of lovely Black Cow Cheddar. As soon as the Cheddar had been devoured we tried it with Parmesan and Balsamic, which didn’t fairly work! The day wound up with everybody sharing one thing they had been grateful for – largely for a beautiful day, having enjoyable, creating nice meals with nice firm and attending to share all of it collectively, – what extra might one ask for?