The January 1999 issue of La Cucina Italiana, Italy's best (at least in my opinion) food magazine, came with a reprint of the first issue, from December 1929. It looks like a newspaper and begins with a Program Statement, by Umberto Notari (the publisher, I believe), who says,

"The Italian people is a sober people, but this does not mean it does not want to eat well. Sobriety and taste are not at odds, palate and economy are not incompatible, cuisine and civilization are not unassociated. Quite the contrary.
"The greatest civilizations were developed by the peoples who paid the greatest attention to the culinary arts and nutrition; first example: Rome; second example: France.
"The Italian regions whose peoples -- the Emilians, Tuscans, Lombards, Piemontese, Veneti, Liguri Neapolitans, and Sicilians -- have glorious, masterfully refined food preparation traditions are the most adult when it comes to thinking and acting.
"This precious heritage must not be lost, but rather be spread to the other regions for the national good. Cuisine is in fact not limited to aesthetics and method; there is also a politics of cuisine: a social and economic policy.
"The table is a cornerstone of the family, much like the family is a cornerstone of the State...."

The editorial is followed by the announcement of a Tasting Commission established to taste and judge exclusively Italian foods (with a list of companies that have sent products so far), and there is also a reverent article on one of the Christmas Eves the King spent at the Front during the Great War, written by his chef.

The overall tone of the issue strikes the modern ear as anachronistically nationalistic but is a reflection of the times; it was written in year VIII of the Fascist Era and most of the luminaries mentioned were also in the Party hierarchy. However, there is some surprisingly current commentary as well; The Rubrica della Massaia Moderna (the Column of the Modern Housewife) is entitled "The decline of family cuisine." Things are going down hill fast, we are told, for two major reasons: the hurried pace of life that makes it impossible for all to assemble for the family meal, and the "mania della magrezza" -- thinness mania. There are of course other reasons as well, including changes in the role of women, who have "with a hard to understand sense of snobbery distanced themselves from the stove," and the fact that "family menus have become monotonous and we appear headed towards a standardization of taste." All this leads to people's heading to restaurants, which, according to the columnist, are enjoying a tremendous boom and doing exciting things in the kitchen.

Though one would have to rework the tone, one could write a similar editorial today: The pace of life continues to increase and according to a recent news broadcast a majority of Italians now eat one if not both meals out of the home. Though Italians are not as fanatical about cholesterol and fat avoidance as some peoples (here the emphasis is on freshness and lack of preservatives or pesticides), moderation is the key and most Italians under 45, male and female, keep themselves trim and fit (knowing one will be donning a bathing suit in the summer is a powerful incentive). Most Italian families are double income and the women work as much if not more than the men; frequently nobody has time to hit the stove and thus people turn to preprocessed foods or order takeout. And, to cut costs and accommodate those who don't like particular herbs or spices the food industry simplifies the dishes it prepares. Restaurants with talented chefs, especially those that specialize in traditional recipes, are booming. Sound familiar?

There are also recipes, some of which are interesting, but I'll discuss them anon, because I've gotten a number of requests for Stracciatella of late. It's a Roman version of egg-drop soup and is quite refreshing; here is Livio Jannattoni's recipe, from La Cucina romana e del Lazio:

To serve 6:

• About 2 quarts (liters) broth
• 4 eggs
• 3-4 tablespoons semolina
• 3 tablespoons freshly grated Parmigiano
• 1 tablespoon very finely minced parsley (optional)
• A pinch of freshly ground nutmeg (optional)

Eggs and broth -- hard to devise a better match! In the past custom dictated it be eaten at least once a week, but now its popularity has declined. However, it remains in the archives of authentic Roman cuisine, always ready to reemerge if needed.

In a bowl, combine the eggs, semolina, grated cheese, and, if you're using them, nutmeg and parsley. Add a ladle of cold broth and beat the mixture lightly with a fork or whisk.

Bring the remainder of the broth to a boil. Add the egg mixture in one fell swoop, stirring vigorously with a whisk or fork so as to break up the egg, which will form fine light flakes, minute rags (straccetti, in Italian) that give the soup its name. Simmer for another 2-3 minutes, stirring constantly, and serve, with a little more grated Parmigiano on the side.

A printer-friendly version of this recipe.

While we're on the subject of soup, I recently went to a restaurant called Matteuzzi (Via Certaldese 8, San Casciano Val di Pesa, on the road from San Casciano and Certaldo (near Florence); it's at the bottom of a hill and doesn't have a sign or a door (you enter through the delicatessen next to it when it's open, or the front door of the house when it's not), so you find out about it by word-of-mouth -- or by translating a soon-to-be-published restaurant guide, as I did. In any case, the cooking is excellent and the menu (recited) is quite traditional. One of the first course dishes was Zuppa alla Lombarda, Lombard soup, which mother-in-law Graziella recalled from the war -- a bean soup she didn't particularly like, but her brother did. Why not? thought I and tried it. It's extremely simple, cooked cannellini (white) beans served in bean broth with thin slices of toasted bread and a liberal drizzling of olive oil in the restaurant's version, and quite good. Giovanni Righi Parenti gives a somewhat different version in La Cucina Toscana:

Zuppa Lombarda (from Versilia, the coastal plain west of Lucca)

Why a Tuscan soup should be called "Lombard" begs explanation. It seems that this was the favorite dish of Bernardino Zenderini of Brescia, under whose direction a squadron of Lombards drained the marshes of Viareggio in 1740, much as they had some of the marshes of the Venetian Lagoon.

To serve 6 you'll need about a pound (400 g) dried cannellini beans (white beans), which you will want to soak for several hours in lightly salted water (keep in mind that you will be cooking the beans in this water when you add the salt).

Once they have soaked, sauté a finely sliced onion in 1/4 cup (50 ml) olive oil, and once it turns translucent add the beans and the water they soaked in; season with freshly ground pepper and more salt if need be. Simmer until the beans are quite done, then remove the beans, reserving the liquid, and blend them. Stir a half a glass of red wine vinegar into the bean broth and return the beans to the pot.

Toast several thin slices of Tuscan-style bread, drizzle them with extravirgin olive oil, and line your soup bowls with them. Ladle the soup over the bread and serve, with a cruet of olive oil for those who want more, freshly grated Parmigiano, and coarsely cracked pepper (crush it in a mortar rather than using a grinder).

Mr. Parenti also notes that in many parts of Tuscany the soup's name has shifted into "zuppa bastarda."

A printer-friendly version of this recipe.

Winding down, a couple of travel things.

If you plan to visit Rome, Dmarms writes:

"I recommend Pizzeria Grotto Azurro on via Ciccerone, across from the Hotel Isa and Hotel Cicerone in Rome. This small restaurant is run by 2 brothers and their families. The back dining room (the grotto) is mostly for tourists, lots of Japanese, but the front dining room serves mostly locals. We are treated like family, the staff, which speaks some English, brings us tasty tidbits to sample, and we have even started ordering off the menu. The food is as good as it gets, the menu is quite extensive and changes seasonally, the prices are moderate."

If you will be in Tuscany in late March (26-28), on the other hand, the coastal town of Castagneto Carducci is organizing a gastronomic weekend that looks to be quite interesting, with dinners featuring the wines of Bolgheri (Sassicaia is not the only town jewel), wine tastings, visits to wineries, a show dedicated to Leonardo da Vinci and all sorts of other things. For further information contact Gilda Materozzi of the Office of Economic Development, on +39 0565 778407 - 408, fax +39 0565 774336, email: castagneto.sviluppo@etruscan.li.it.

Thanks for visiting, and have a wonderful day!
Kyle Phillips

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