6-Day All-Inclusive Tuscan Getaway at Villa Campestri
Have you ever dreamed of jetting off to Italy, lounging in a Tuscan villa, inhaling the perfume of olive groves, all while sipping on a nice glass of chianti? Oh, and spending your days learning the art of Tuscan cooking and then eating your accomplishments under the Tuscan sun. Well, dream no longer — you have two months to find a flight and book this trip. The rest awaits you…
Set inside the private room at Del Posto, Murray’s Cheese threw a Sunday soiree where wine was flowing and some of the best artisan cheese and salumi was being hand cut and shared freely with eager New York City Wine & Food Festival fans. Here were some of my favorite slices — all of which can be cut and carried home from Murray’s Greenwich Village or Grand Central locations.
La Quercia: Rossa Heirloom Proscuitto After talking to the owner of La Quercia, Herb Eckhouse, for awhile, I walked away with several slices of the most creamy, silky prosciutto I’ve ever had and a new appreciation for buying domestic. Made from 100% Iowa-raised Berkshire Pork, this special breed’s short muscle fibers and fat creates a smooth and buttery bite, better than any slice I’ve found elsewhere…yes, even compared to some from Italy. Find it HERE
A lot of us visit Italy and dream of bringing back a little piece of that lifestyle, but Herb and Kathy Eckhouse actually did this after living in Italy for a former job. Over a coffee at an Italian cafe and a few slices of prosciutto, a friend fleetingly said “if you make something this good, you’d make a lot of people happy.” It’s been 10 years since that comment and now this couple has mastered that delight, using the best, responsibly raised pork to highlight the bounty of Iowa and share an artisanal prosciutto product that is pure enjoyment.
Want more? You can actually buy a subscription to a whole pig and over the course of 2 years of breeding and aging, you’ll get various shipments of the best quality pork money can buy — from head to tail. Contact Kendra@laquercia.us for info.
La Quercia Prosciutto
Farms for City Kids Foundation, Spring Brook Farm: Tarentaise Spring Brook Farm is doing something really special in cheese — they’re involving kids. 100% of the proceeds from this fresh cow’s milk Vermont cheese supports the Farms for City Kids Foundation, which brings children to the farm for a one week immersion in farm-based curriculum, giving kids a hands-on experience and understanding of microbiology, food preservation, health and nutrition. If that’s not reason enough to try this, how about the fact that they won First Place in the Best USA Cow’s Milk Cheese category at the World Championship Cheese Contest in Wisconsin!
Farms for City Kids, Spring Brook Farm Tarentaise Cheese
Vermont Butter and Cheese: Cremont, Bonne Bouche, Creamy Goat Cheese, Sea Salt Butter This isn’t the first time I’ve written about Vermont Butter and Cheese — remember when I gushed about trying their cheeses at the Fancy Food Show? Just because I’ve sampled their spread before, didn’t mean I wasn’t going back for seconds. That luscious Double-Cream Cremont mixed-milk cheese that I previewed at the Food Show, is only a few months on the market and is already outselling their previously most popular Bonne Bouche. It’s a beautiful thing when best gets even better. Put this is on your next cheese platter, right next to all the other extraordinary cuts I’m introducing you to. Find it HERE
2010 Best Goat Cheese in America
Creminelli Fine Meat: Casalingo, Tartufo, Barolo, Wild Boar. Americano and Della Musica Sausage That’s a whole lotta meat. And this is why I love what I do. I snagged a slice {or maybe two} of the Wild Boar sausage. It was earthy, salty, meaty goodness. And it was made here in the fine U.S of A. I’m catching on — no suitcase or jet lag needed to enjoy the artistry of authentic handcrafted Italian salumi. Using only choice cuts from select breeds raised on small family American farms, Creminelli Fine Meats are creating a great meat eating experience. Find it HERE
Creminelli Fine Meat Wild Boar Sausage
Cellars at Jasper Hill: Cabot Clothbound Cheddar, Landaff Creamery Landaff To close out a lot of nibbling, I stopped by one last table and was glad that I did. Let me first start by saying this Cabot Clothbound Cheddar was something truly unique because it actually tasted subtly like roasted peanut butter. I’m sure that’s not the first thing you would compare a cheese too, nor is it likely the most appealing way to describe a cheddar. But for that very reason, I was stopped in my tracks and forced — yes, forced — to go back for another bite to make sure my taste buds were not deceiving me. It’s made from one herd’s milk, sold to Jasper Hill when the cheese is only 3 days old, bound in cloth and and aged for 10-14 months in their new 22,000 sq. ft., 7-vault facility in Jasper Hill, VT. This may not be that exciting to most of you, but it excites me. No one else in the U.S. has a facility of this scale and is doing what they are — that can only mean one thing for us cheeselovers. More. Incredible. Artisanal. Cheese. Find it HERE
Cabot Clothbound Cheddar, Jasper Hill, VT
So there you have it. Good American cheese and salumi that does not involve plastic-wrapped single slices. Thank you Murray’s for indulging us with some truly delightful handcrafted bites.
La Scienza in Cucina e L’Arte di Mangiar Bene (The Science of cookery and the Art of Eating Well)is an iconic cookbook found in nearly every Italian household and is also known by the shorter name of its author, L’Artusi. I don’t know if it’s more fitting to say the NYC restaurant L’Artusi lives up to that iconic name or to say they are creating their own modern version of the Art of Eating Well through the complex, yet traditional Italian flavors that grace each plate. Either way, it was my selected destination of choice to celebrate Puglia Wine Week, and yes, we ate and drank very very well.
L’Artusi, the sister restaurant of dell’anima, partnered with Apulian wine producer Agricole Valloneto feature several of the best wines from this region and complement each pour with dishes inspired by Apulian cuisine. Agricole Vallone produces wines from three different estates located in Brindisi and Salentino, both found in the most southern region of Puglia known as Salento {the stiletto tip of the boot for those of you less familiar with Italian geography}. The region is known for its breathtaking views of the Adriatic and producing the Negroamaro grape using a traditional Pugliese tree technique. Sounds like a place I need to visit, but for now I’ll settle for an enjoyable evening of local pairings while sporting my own heels.
L'Artusi
To start, we ordered the housemade ricotta with sea salt and lemon, served with a side of raisin-mustard seed marmalade jam and homemade buttermilk crackers, as well as the scallop crudo, sliced thinly and served simply with lemon and olive oil. Our server paired this with the Vigna Flaminio Brindisi Rosato doc 2009. The creaminess of the ricotta and surprisingly light buttermilk crackers were outstanding on their own, but also worked perfectly with the deep pink rosé that exhibited sweet floral and cherry aromas.
L'Artusi Housemade Fresh Ricotta with Sea Salt, Lemon and Homemade Buttermilk Crackers
One of the reasons I love L’Artusi {and dell’anima} so much is because of their small plate, sharing approach to the menu. It’s a great way to sample new flavors and also solves the menu indecision problem that I’m often faced with {just bring a few friends and start ordering!}. The next two plates that followed were unanimously agreed around the table to be two of the best dishes of the evening. The beef carpacio with horseradish crema and rye crisps was so simple, but the crunchiness of the crispy bits and the mustardy kick of the horseradish added a unique depth. The roasted mushrooms with pancetta, fried egg and ricotta salata was my personal favorite — it was sharp, creamy and earthy and had a subtle kick from the pickled chili that was an unexpected, but welcomed surprise. Both dishes went extremely well with the Vereto Salice Salentino Riserva Rosso doc 2006, a 90% Negroamaro red with hints of pepper and chocolate.
L'Artusi Beef Carpacio with Horseradish Crema and Rye Crisps
L'Artusi Roasted Mushrooms with Pancetta, Fried Egg and Ricotta Salata
To finish off the evening we ordered two pasta dishes, but the highlight was an off-the-menu item that arrived from the kitchen and was an incredible celebration of the fall season. Butternut squash ravioli — not an uncommon menu item, but add marscapone cheese, a brown butter sauce and fresh grated parmesan and you have a perfect little package of flavors that would make any taste bud happy.
L'Artusi Special Butternut Squash with Marscapone and Ricotta
“I want to sleep in a pillow of whatever is in that ravioli”
— overheard @ L’Artusi
To pair, we closed out the meal with two reds tasted side-by-side, the Vigna Flaminio Brindisi Riserva doc 2006 and the Graticciaia Salento Rosso igt 2005. Both ruby red in color, the Graticciaia was made in an amarone-style, with 30% dry grapes and 70% fresh, which resulted in a dryer finish but opened up nicely over time and held up to the heavier pasta plates.
Agricole Vallone Wines
Table with a View - L'Artusi's Open Kitchen
The Skim: Uno) Eat at L’Artusi. With a menu featuring an artful list of crudo, veggie, pasta, fish, meat, cheeses and desserts, you won’t have a hard time eating well or creating a satisfying shared table evening. Due) Drink Apulian vino. Next time you’re looking through a wine list and perplexed by the plentiful picks, opt for a Negroamaro, Bombino Biano or Primitivo, three varietals common of the region. And for those of you who care, Puglia is the second largest producer {after Sicily} or organic wines, an indication of the important role agriculture plays in this unique Italian region. Buon Appetito and Salute!
In honor of Puglia Wine Week and to bring you a special edition from the hills of Italy, I asked my brother to contribute a guest blog recapping the honeymoon highlights from Puglia. So much to say and eat, so grab a glass of vino and enjoy!
Guest Grubber: Brian D. When we were choosing our honeymoon destination it was pretty daunting to know that we could go anywhere in the world we wanted and that we were about to escape for three weeks of uninterrupted freedom. Since both of us are gainfully employed by companies we do not own, it was pretty clear to us that this opportunity doesn’t come around all that often. Because of that, the paradox of choice kicked in in a big way and we struggled to narrow it down to a short list. We made our way through all of the continents and ultimately came to the conclusion that we wanted to go somewhere with good weather, great food and to a place that neither of us had been before.
After checking the September weather patterns of almost every place on earth, our final decision was to travel to southern Italy and make our way by car from Puglia, through Calabria and into Sicily. Interestingly, we went into the trip thinking that it was going to be all about Sicily, but now that we are home it is clear that the star of the three weeks was our time in Puglia. Puglia, for those that don’t know, is the region of Italy in the “heel of the boot”.
Puglia, or Apulia, is an interesting place. It is more agricultural, than industrial, and it is definitely a much less popular tourist destination than some of the bigger cities like Rome and Florence or areas like the Cinque Terre and the Amalfi Coast. The accommodations in the area are based largely on the concept of Agritourism, where people stay at farmhouses, or “Masserias”, that were fortified back in the days when the landowners had to deal with foreign intruders and have since been converted into very comfortable bed & breakfasts. The place we stayed was called Masseria Torre Coccaro, a 39 room country estate halfway between the airports of Bari and Brindisi and surrounded by acres of olive groves and vegetable gardens.
Masseria Torre Coccaro
We stayed at Coccaro for 7 nights and used it as our base to explore the region. In hindsight, we couldn’t have chosen a better place and, unfortunately for our waistlines, we were able to sample some of the best food we have ever tasted. Here are the highlight bites:
The restaurant at Torre Coccaro
Fresh Seafood from Savelletri
Set in stables from the 1600’s, the restaurant offered up some of the best food on our trip. First off, their breakfast put the rest of the hotels we stayed at to shame. As for the rest of the meals, they collaborated with local farmers and bordering Masserias to source the best meats and cheeses. They had a network of people that help them find wild products like porcini and cardoncelli mushrooms, asparagus, snails, myrtle and berries. The nearby fishing village of Savelletri brought them fish daily, including freshly-caught scampi, shrimp, tuna, snapper, and local spiny lobsters. To top that off, almost all the fruits and vegetables served are produced on the estate.
Cooking School at Torre Coccaro This wasn’t something we planned to do, but when we arrived at the property and learned that there was a school on site we couldn’t pass it up. We had a ton of fun with chef Donato, learning how to make typical Apulian dishes including fresh bread, 6 or 7 different types of pasta, a simple pizza with tomato sauce, fresh mozzarella and capers, a fried version of a calzone called “Panzerotto” that is unique to the region, sautéed “sweet olives” that were picked that day and unlike anything I have ever had, an eggplant terrine and baked fish (Orata) with fresh vegetables. Luckily we weren’t forced to eat everything we made, but we were able to sample most of them. Needless to say, we didn’t have dinner that night!
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Local Puglia “Mozzarella Farm” Another treat that was offered up on arrival was a visit to the farm just down the road that raised cows and made fresh mozzarella and burrata cheese daily. For those that don’t know, “burrata” means buttered in Italian and is usually made from mozzarella and cream. The outer shell is solid mozzarella and the inside usually contains both mozzarella and cream. That said, this farm also made another version of burrata filled with fresh ricotta, which was new to me and even better than the classic version…who knew it was possible. Believe it or not, we spent 45 minutes with 3 workers that spoke about 3 words of English, collectively. It could have had something to do with the free samples they kept pushing on us, but we just couldn’t tear ourselves away.
Hand Pulling Mozzarella
Masseria Il Frantorio Another masseria,Il Frantorio, just down the road and on the way to the town of Ostuni, gave us one of the culinary highlights of the trip. They served up a seven course meal that was both creative and delicious. So much so that we didn’t realize that the entire meal was almost entirely vegetables (sourced from their garden on the property of course, BUT vegetables nonetheless!) It wasn’t until the last main course, when a filet of local swordfish was served, that we looked at each other and said “wow, I didn’t even notice”. The highlight of the meal was a pair of fried carciofi (artichokes) drizzled with reduced sweet wine alongside lampascioni fritti (hyacinth bulbs) with orange honey. Pretty simple, but super delicious when paired with a glass of late harvest Primitivo di Manduria.
Fried Carciofi at Il Frantorio
Al Fornello di Ricci In the town of Ceglie Messapica lies a restaurant calledAl Fornello di Riccithat Mario Batali called the best in Puglia.
“The place is perfect! If you are within 200 miles of this place and choose not to eat here, you are mistaken” — Mario Batali
Needless to say, we are suckers for marketing, or at least Batali hype, so we had to check it out. The meal did not disappoint. Across the board, the dishes were simple, but the flavor of each was intense. We knew we were in the right place when the tasting menu kicked off with a selection of eight different antipasti, ranging from simple beet chips to fried zucchini blossoms stuffed with fresh ricotta. After that we had two pasta courses, a main of locally-raised lamb, and dessert — each course paired with a different wine and included in the fixed price. Delicious. The only downside was the 45 minute drive back to Coccaro after the meal…as you might expect, driving on Italian country roads while in a food coma isn’t usually a recipe for success.
Fava Bean Crostini and Fried Zucchini Blossoms
I could probably keep going, as there are tons of other great meals and experiences that I left out, but it’s really just more of the same goodness. So as the Italians say, “Basta!!!” or “enough”.
Overall the trip to Puglia far exceeded our expectations and the fact that it never felt touristy and overrun just made it that much more special. We came home with the feeling that we had somehow outsmarted the rest of the tourists in Italy, standing in line at the Uffizi in Florence or craning their necks to take in the tower in Pisa. We couldn’t be happier with our decision to spend a week there and in some ways wish it was longer. Our only fear now is that we don’t get back before the rest of the world figures out what a great region it is!
RT @gopuff: We're about to drop a ton of flash deals when this thing kicks off. Like this one. Take up to 30% off alcohol right now! #AnyGi… 2 years ago
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