I was not
born with a silver spoon in my mouth.
Or on my
bookshelf.
In fact,
it wasn’t until two years ago, when my colleague Ruth mentioned that the Silver Spoon is her favorite Italian cookbook, that I even knew it existed.
Of
course, Italophile that I am, I bought a copy right away.
The Silver Spoon – first published in Italy as Il Cucchiao d’Argento in 1950 by
Domus, a magazine of design and architecture – is the bible of Italian cooking.
The more
than 2000 recipes in the book reflect the regions in which they were created,
each authentic in its ingredients and preparation. These are wonderful recipes,
quite distinct from what many misapprehend as “Italian” cookery.
In 2005,
Phaidon Press published the first English version and, since then, French,
German, and Dutch editions have been produced.
Recently,
Phaidon created a new series of Silver Spoon books, each devoted a regional
cuisine of Italy. Tuscany was published in 2011, and Sicily in 2013.
On March
15 of this year, we welcomed Puglia to this family of beautifully-produced
books. The photos are exquisite and make me want to try each and every recipe. (Pugila, when picturing Italy as a “boot,” is the heel.) Phaidon sent me a review copy for this post.
For
starters, I made two – the Torta di Bietole e Ricotta (Chard and Ricotta Pie) for Pi Day, and the Pasta alla Seppia.
Both
recipes were tested by friends (thanks Susan and Barbara!), and both agreed
that they are “keepers.” The flavors in the chard and ricotta pie were well
balanced, the texture of the filling was creamy, and the olive oil-based crust
was unexpectedly flaky and added a delicate crunch.
The pie
did take a bit longer to cook to the requisite golden brown, but that didn’t
bother me at all. My friend Karen, of
Lemon Grove Cake Diaries, suggests that
traditional recipes like this should say, “Cook until done.” Really, that is so true. Every Nonna knows exactly when her chard pie is done. But she also knows we would want a timing, so she gave us 30 minutes.
The pasta alla seppia (recipe follows) was beautiful. Beautiful as a dough, beautiful, rolled out, and stunning on the plate. The recipe was spot on, although the “1-2 cuttlefish ink sacs” could be a bit vague for a beginner. I noted (in grams) how much ink I used and it was perfect.
The book actually covers both Puglia and Basilicata (the instep of the boot), and is divided by cities and towns within the two regions: Foggia, Barletta-Andria-Trani, Bari, Taranto, Brindisi, and Lecce (all from Puglia), and Potenza and Matera (from Basilicata). Puglia and Basilicata are known as “The Garden of Italy,” which becomes apparent as you see the beautiful produce in their cuisine. One of my favorite sections in the book – especially for when I travel – is “Food Festivals,” a monthly list of festas and sagras throughout the regions.
I can’t
tell you how excited I am to have this book, and to know about this series. I
have ordered Tuscany and Sicily, and very much look forward to the next book in
this series. In the meantime, I have plenty of wonderful Silver Spoon recipes
to keep me busy!
I
definitely recommend this book; it is worth the splurge at $39.95. Buon appetito!
~ David
Linguine
alla Seppia • Cuttlefish
Ink Linguine
Here is their recipe word for word; my notes
appear in blue.
Preparation
time: 30 minutes plus 1 hour resting +/- 20 minutes drying
Cooking
time: 5 minutes
Serves 4
For the
pasta
200
grams/7 ounces (1 2/3 cups) ’00’ flour *
2 eggs,
beaten
1-2
cuttlefish ink sacs (8 grams) **
olive oil
salt
For the
sauce
150
grams/5 ounces canned tuna in olive oil, flaked
3
tablespoons salted capers, rinsed and patted dry
3
tablespoons olive oil
To make
the pasta, place the flour in a mound on a work counter (The ink will stain.
Make sure you use a surface that is not permeable – I used a large 12-inch porcelain plate), make a well in the centre,
and add the eggs, ink, and salt. Mix with your hands until a dough forms, then
knead until soft and smooth. Flatten the dough into a disc. Coat with a little
olive oil, then wrap in plastic wrap. Leave to rest at room temperature for 1
hour.
Roll the
dough out onto a floured surface into a rectangle about 3 millimeters/⅛-inch thick. Flour the surface of the dough well, then fold
loosely 4 times from the short end of the rectangle. Cut into strips 5
millimeters/¼-inch
wide. Open out, shake off the excess flour and hang over the back of a chair
covered by a towel to dry until the pasta is no longer tacky to the touch.
Alternate Method: Because I have an Atlas pasta roller, I opted to use it rather than
hand cut. Run the pasta through the rollers starting at the thickest setting
and repeat using thinner and thinner settings, stopping at the next-to-last setting. If it is too long to handle, cut in half, then run it through
the cutting side of the machine to make 1/4-inch wide noodles. Instead of
drying them on a towel and chair, you can flour the noodles well and dry them
in small nests.
Put the
tuna in a bowl with the capers and olive oil, and stir together.
Bring a large
saucepan of salted water to a boil, and add the linguine and cook for about 2
minutes, or until al dente (about 3 minutes). Drain well, then mix with the
tuna. Serve.
* ’00’
flour is an Italian flour of the finest grind. It is known by a variety of names
and numbers including “soft flour” (UK), “pastry flour”
(US), “40” (France), “405” (Germany), and “0000”
(Argentina). It can be found in Italian specialty stores, and in many grocery
stores.
** The
cuttlefish ink I used was a gift sent from friends Roque and Gabriella in Venice. It comes
in 4 gram packets. I have looked online, and it is readily available from a
variety of sources in these small packets.
Christina | Christina's Cucina
March 21, 2015 at 4:18 pmI, on the other hand, grew up with Il Cucchiao d'Argento as our ONLY Italian cookbook in our house. We had very few, including Mrs. Beeton's Book of Cookery and Household Management (or something to that effect). What did frustrate me about the Italian version was that there weren't many measurements given, which is of course due to the fact that all Italians could cook then, and just "knew" what a handful meant! My aunts and cousins in Italy still do this to me when I ask for recipes!
I have never tried cuttlefish ink pasta, and actually don't know why I've never made anything this adventurous? It looks wonderful, David. Maybe I'll pull out my own English version of Cucchiao's Pasta book (which I bought for $5!) and make a pasta I've never made before…thanks for the inspiration!
Cocoa & Lavender
March 22, 2015 at 9:21 pmI just saw the pasta book on their website and want to get it, as well. It's fun to make things we've near made before, isn't it, Christina?
Andrea_TheKitchenLioness
March 21, 2015 at 6:56 pmDear David, the Torta di Bietole e Ricotta already looked rather delicious on facebook and so do your Linguine alla Seppia – what a dark, rich color they have from that cuttlefish ink. I have never attempted to make pasta with ink but I have eaten them at an Italian restaurant before. So nice that you were provided with a copy of the Puglia book from the Silver Spoon series – I have looked so many times at the Silver Spoon cookbook at our local bookstore but never bought it, yet…
Euch ein schönes, warmes Wochenende,
Andrea
Cocoa & Lavender
March 22, 2015 at 9:22 pmIt is definitely worth having the Silver Spoon, Andrea! Especially if your girls like Italian food!
Sippity Sup
March 21, 2015 at 9:58 pmThis is serious cooking and you pull it off beautifully. GREG
Cocoa & Lavender
March 22, 2015 at 9:23 pmThanks, Greg – it was funA,
john | heneedsfood
March 22, 2015 at 3:21 amI was given the original English version to review a couple of years ago and still love how diverse it is. Definitely comes with my recommendations, as well!
Cocoa & Lavender
March 22, 2015 at 9:24 pmI hadn't thought about its diversity, John, but you are so right. I should (and will) use it more!
Lizzy (Good Things)
March 22, 2015 at 4:59 amAh yes, what a wonderful book… it was given to me as a gift by a dear friend. Love it, although a couple of times when I was looking for specific Italian recipes, I could not find them in there! Panforte for one. Love your pasta dish!
Cocoa & Lavender
March 22, 2015 at 9:25 pmI agree, Liz, finding a good recipe for Panforte has been hard for me, too. If you do find one, please share!
dedy oktavianus
March 22, 2015 at 4:29 pmyupp, but you definitely need one of silver spoon for this fancy pasta
Dedy@Dentist Chef
Cocoa & Lavender
March 22, 2015 at 9:26 pmThanks, Dedy! That is a great way to put it!
Lily Lau
March 22, 2015 at 7:34 pmBest book I've seen in so long… I totally recommend it! 🙂
Lazy Penguins
Cocoa & Lavender
March 22, 2015 at 9:26 pmThanks, Lily – I am glad to know you liked it, too.
Anonymous
March 22, 2015 at 10:58 pmIt is a sign of a good book when you go out and buy the others in the series!! Have a great week…
Cocoa & Lavender
March 23, 2015 at 1:59 pmYes, Karen – it is definitely a sign… but not a good one for my sagging bookshelves! 🙂
Kathy
March 22, 2015 at 10:59 pmI bought the Silver-Spoon when it first came out in english…love that book!
Now I will have to look for Puglia…both your Torta and pasta look lovely!
Cocoa & Lavender
March 23, 2015 at 1:59 pmThanks, Kathy. We were eying the chard again yesterday at the market… thinking the chard pie needs another visit to our table!
Cheri Savory Spoon
March 24, 2015 at 3:11 pmHi David, your taste testers are very fortunate people, both recipes look delicious. Have a great week!
Cocoa & Lavender
March 25, 2015 at 2:17 pmCheri – I find it is always good to get lots of testers, lest I eat the entire recipe myself! (Well, I share with Markipedia on occasion…)
Colette (Coco)
March 25, 2015 at 7:19 pmGorgeous pasta, David.
I need more practice, for sure.
And such a lovely, Italian, elegantly simple dinner. I will have to put this on the table this w/end. xoxo
Cocoa & Lavender
March 26, 2015 at 2:04 pmI love making pasta, Colette. It seems funny to people that it is something I will do on a weeknight after work. I wish we could make it together! 🙂
Nuts about food
March 26, 2015 at 10:01 amYour black pasta looks stunning! Love the photos.
Cocoa & Lavender
March 26, 2015 at 2:05 pmThanks, Fiona. Every time I look at the photos, I think of licorice!
Valentina
April 5, 2015 at 8:29 amDavid, this is one of my favorite of your posts — the photographic journey you lead us through is beautifully. The transformation of the flour with egg in the well, to the ball of black dough is so cool. And I especially like the one with the couple of strands of raw pasta hanging from the pasta maker. I'm loving it.
Cocoa & Lavender
April 5, 2015 at 1:57 pmThank you, Valentina! It was definitely fun to make and shoot! If you look carefully at those two strands left on the machine, they are actually just starting to fall and the tops are blurred! 🙂