Cafe di Stasio, Melbourne

Keeping the Italian theme going, although outside the country of Italy this time.

I have 2 favourite Italian restaurants in Melbourne: Florentino and Cafe di Stasio. Being the last day of summer, or at least the last day of holidays and the last day of January, I decided to give myself a treat - the start of the new working year.

Cafe di Stasio would have to be the find of the century. In addition to their fabulous a la carte menu, almost everyday of the year they also offer a "Slow Food - Seasonal Lunch", which at $35 is an absolute gift. For this cost you choose from the weekly changing seasonal lunch menu and get 2 courses (either appetizer & main , or main and dolce, or appetizer and dolce) together with a bicchiere of wine, bread, caffe AND superb service and superb ambience.

Long time Maitre d' Mallory Wall, in colourful yellow sunflower pattened summer peacoat, greeted me at the door and didn't flinch when I responded that no, I didn't have a booking, and yes, I was eating solo (or sola). You get the same excellent service whether you're having the $35 special or the more (much more) expensive lunch.

On a day the temperature was predicted to hit 39 degrees, the room was cool and comfortable, with protective glare blinds at half mast onto Fitzroy Street and the lighting in the rustic terracotta head / mask wall lighting suitably subdued. The excess cutlery was removed before I sat. On request a glass of iced water was served as I perused the Slow Food Seasonal Lunch menu. A waiter delivered a small bowl of salt, carefully placed at the far side of my table-for-two, and then the butter bowl was placed in line. The generous slice of thick crispy bread, still warm, was served elegantly with 2 spoons. Additional appropriate cutlery was set after my selection of food (3 options for each of the first two courses). My selected wine, a Yarra Valley Airlie Bank Shiraz Viognier 2008, was poured, and when my water glass was almost empty another waiter quietly appeared to refill it from a cold jug.

My Quaglie alla Griglia con Rucola was tender, succulent and the quail cooked to perfection. Music softly playing... was it Simone? Next to me, a business table of five: from their talk, well-travelled guests in publications and IT, not all known to each other. One had just had the best holiday ever, taking his young family to New Zealand. Seated behind me, a quieter couple enjoying an intimate lunch break together.

Calamari alla Griglia was served with a small unpretentious salad of fresh rosy red tomatoes, rucola, mint, zucchini and fennel. The calamari was smoky grilled, slightly overpowering with taste and smell of the smoke, but still delicious.

A toilet break. Modern Italian fixtures and spotless, of course. When I returned from my ablutions, my serviette had been folded and returned to the table: everything else except my wine and water glasses, had been cleared.

A fine hot-enough Lavazza espresso caffe with good crema was served: milk and sugar separately so that I could make my caffe machiato as I like it.

A fabulous relaxing hour and a half... great food and wine...now suitably spolied and off to work.

Saffron workshop at Salone del Gusto, Slow Food, Torino

I did manage to get into a Saffron workshop at Salone del Gusto, the Slow Food extravaganza .

The beautiful blue flowers, with such special stamens, the most expensive "food"in the world. What patience is needed. And they are now grown in Sardegna. Wippee!

Slow Food Salone del Gusto, Torino

We visited the huge Salone del Gusto in Torino on Saturday.... the bi-annual main event of the Slow Food movement, celebrating the food we eat and the growers that grow it and make it.

The exhivition building is always absolutely chock-a-block with thousands of interested people looking, tasting, learning. Generally enjoying themselves. A coupon frm the newspaper got me a free lunch. Also a great cheese tasting... I'm still trying to find the actual name of the best runny cheese I've ever tasted. I was too late to book a workshop or formal tasting, but a generous man at the table offered me a large spoonful of his.

Truffle hunting

Truffle hunting season is October and November in Piemonte. This links with the Truffle festival in Alba, and the truffle hunters are very busy, with the prized WHITE truffles. Make sure you find a REAL truffle hunter, and a REAL trained dog... woods are all around, many in the special Langhe area of the Region.

Here's Micchi, a beautiful fully trained truffle hunter. The dog, that is!

Vin Santo & Cantucci after dinner?

One of the traditional things to do, especially in Tuscany and Umbria, is to finish an evening meal with Vin Santo and cantucci. Many people like to dip their biscuits into the wine. Here's a recipe for the biscotti, named cantucci....

Ingredients: 2 cups of SR flour
2/3 cup sugar
Pinch salt
3 eggs
1 tspn vanilla
1/4 cup whole almonds (not blanched)
Set oven to 170 degrees C
Method: Combine dry ingredients in bowl
To the eggs , add vanilla, lightly beat and add to centre of flour mixture
Mix thoroughly
Knead with hands in bowl, then onto floured marble surface for a further short kneed
Set aside for 10 minutes
Flatten dough to approx 1 cm thick
Turn dough onto itself a few times and kneed briefly.
Divide into 3 equal pieces and form 3 cylinders or rolls approx 30cm long
Place onto long tray lined with non-stick baking paper, and put in oven for 30 minutes
Remove from the oven. After a few minutes slice carefully, on the diagonal, approx 1 cm wide.
Return to oven . Stand them upright (or turn once). Cook 15 minutes
Buon appetito !

Torta di Pomodoro / Tomato tart

Due to popular demand... as they say!

This is simple, very popular (when ever I make it, people always ask for the recipe!), and tasty. You really do need to make your own pastry (easy!) though.
I find it best if you make this tart the day before , and serve at room temperature (although also OK straight out of the oven). Great for a relaxed lunch in summer with friends and a glass or two of Chianti Classico, out on the deck with overhanging grape vines. Or outside a villa in Tuscany, overlooking the rolling hills.

Pastry:

• 2 cups plain flour, 125 gms unsalted butter. Mix in a whizzer until it looks a bit like breadcrumbs. Add 2 eggs, one at a time, while keeping the whizzer whizzing. It's ready when it all clumps together. Tip out onto glad wrap, push together into a flat pat, cover completely with the plastic wrap, and leave it in the frig for about an hour.

The Filling:

• Cut about 8 onions (the red ones are best), finely sliced. Add to a large saucepan, with good extra virgin olive oil (about a cup), 2 or 3 cloves garlic finely cut, and cook slowly until the onions caramelise. This might take 3/4 hour. Stir a few times. Maybe add a tablespoon of dark brown sugar, and stir till amalgamated. Let this mixture cool.
• In another saucepan, add 1 or 2 cans of peeled tomatoes and a bottle of Italian tomato sugo. Mix and heat,. Maybe add a spoonful of tomato paste if it looks too runny. Cool.
• Roll out the pastry and place over a 30cm serrated edged, flan case (with removable bottom). Add the caramelised onions, and spread evenly over the pastry base. Add the tomato mixture. Pick a few sprigs of rosemary from the veggie garden, and decorate the tart with rosemary, black olives (halved, with pips removed) and anchovies.

Cook in preheated oven about 200C, atound 40 minutes, or until the pastry looks tan. Yum!

San Giovanni Firenze

June 24 is a special day for Florentines: a holiday for their patron Saint, San Giovanni. In the afternoon, huge numbers dressed in Medieval outfits, meet at Palagio di parte Guelfa for the corteo, The Parade of the Florentine Republic. Led by 2 policemen on horseback , this year at the first corner (5 meters after the start!) one of the horses pooed, so for the entire Corteo it was necessary to break ranks slightly to avoid the large yellow mound - causing some amusement and toilet humour (!) so to speak. Don't miss this marvellous event.... remember June 24, every year. It's worth a visit to Florence just for this alone. Part 2 tomorrow!