Mad Cow Disease (Again)

It's soon going to be Thanksgiving in the US as of this writing, and I trust that those who celebrate it will do so the traditional way, with turkey, or perhaps shift off into the realms of veganism. Not beef. Why? As anyone who has followed the travails of European meat consumption knows, there was a great scare over Mad Cow Disease in England in the mid-90s; the disease, whose technical name is the singularly sinister Bovine Spongiform Encephalophy, is carried by a tiny subviral particle of genetic material known as a prion, whose workings are not well understood. However, we do know that it can be transmitted to humans, among whom, after a period of latency that can last as long as 40 years, it causes a rapidly progressing fatal dementia known as Creutzfedt-Jakob disease. Quoting from the CDC website, "As of September 1997, more than 168,000 cases of BSE were confirmed in Great Britain in more than 34,000 herds. The epidemic peaked in January 1993 at almost 1,000 new cases per week. The outbreak may have resulted from the feeding of scrapie-containing sheep meat-and-bone meal to cattle. There is a strong evidence and general agreement that the outbreak was amplified by feeding rendered bovine meat-and-bone meal to young calves;" the feed was infectious because prions are so hardy that one would need to roast the feed to cinders to do them in (and even then some might remain infectious). As a result of all this English beef was banned in the rest of Europe, and one might have thought that the ministries of agriculture on the Continent would have taken steps to ban the use of animal-based livestock feeds.

They didn't, however, most likely because a ban would have made life much more difficult for those who raise cattle in northern areas where the animals have to survive on fodder indoors for several months of the year, and because animals fed with protein-rich animal-based feed fatten faster. The decision not to ban turns out to have been tremendously shortsighted, because the French, faced with a number of cases of Mad Cow Disease and a few of cases of its human variant, recently began sampling the general cow population. About 0.3 % of the apparently healthy animals checked turned out to be infected, and though this might seem like a small number, the fact that the human variant of the disease has no cure and is transmitted by tainted meats sent a tremendous shock through European meat consumption.

The French President went on the air calling for a total ban on animal-based animal feeds, while the French Government banned serving any meat with the bone (prions concentrate in the nervous system, including the spine) in public mess halls, for example those of schools and hospitals. Italy followed with a decision to ban the import of French meats with bones attached (this includes steak, among other things), and when the French protested, pointed out that they are only prohibiting what the French government has already suggested its citizens avoid.

In the midst of all this, the EEU lost a golden opportunity to show leadership by choosing not to act on calls for prohibiting the use of animal-based feeds for cattle and other ruminants; as a result Germany, which already bans English beef and sheep, has decided to extend the ban to French beef. And consumers, as usually happens when the word on something nasty gets out, are taking matters into their own hands by avoiding beef. Consumption in Italy (and the rest of Europe too) is down by as much as 70% and there are amazing sales on the stuff in markets. Not that many are taking advantage; spot interviews reveal that people are turning to poultry, pork, and fish, and going with organically raised animals if they can.

So, we have a potentially severe health crisis on our hands, and the sad thing is that it could have been avoided, or at least mitigated, had the EEU health people shown some courage and banned animal-based feeds sooner. Equally sad is the fact that the fear of consumers is indiscriminate; there's no demand for pasture-raised beef either despite its safety (animals who graze, according to an Italian ministry of agriculture spokesperson, don't like animal-based feeds), and this means that organic farmers will be hit too, as will herders in southern European countries who have their animals graze year round. This morning's paper had a nostalgic article about "Grandma's sugo alla Bolognese," the thrust being that it will be some time before consumers care to enjoy Bologna's classic meat sauce over pasta again…

The outlook in the US? According to the CDC, the FDA "instituted a mammalian-to-ruminant feed ban in June 1997 that became fully effective as of October 1997." Therefore, the beef should be safe, though buying organically raised could be a good idea just the same, as it won't have the growth hormones used by some American commercial outfits.

Merano's International Wine Festival

Moving towards happier things, last weekend I attended the 9th annual Merano International Wine Festival, which is held in Merano's Kurhaus, a beautiful building whose great hall has a spectacular frescoed ceiling. Merano itself is beautiful too, a story-book Tyrolean town built up against a cliff, with a fast-flowing stream in front of it to provide further defense against unfriendlies coming up the valley. The wines were excellent too -- participation is by invitation only, and the judges have good palates. In addition to a hundred well established names, there were "emerging producers", some of whom could have been amongst the hundred in my opinion, a hall full of Bordeaux producers, and another with local people from the Alto Adige (or Sud Tyrol if you prefer); I took advantage of the opportunity to taste through many Lagrein Dunkels, red wines made from the Alto Adige's Lagrein grape, which are pleasingly aromatic and full without being overly tannic. It's always nice to discover something new.

Martino Manetti of Montevertine, one of the legendary Tuscan wineries, says he finds the festival much more useful than Vinitaly (Italy's major wine trade show, held in Verona before Easter), in part because falls in autumn, when he still has wine to place, and in part because of the overall quality of the participants. From a consumer's standpoint the thing will be even more interesting next year because there will be more producers, including a significantly stronger French contingent. So if you work with Italian wines or simply like them you should consider going; by comparison with Vinitaly the setting is much prettier and the pace less harried, while the duration (3 days) makes it something one can work into a family trip. For more information on the festival, which also has a small but interesting food section, see http://www.gourmetsi.com. For information on Merano, on the other hand, check out http://www.meraninfo.it. If you like to ski it could be an excellent bet.

Thoughts on Amarone, and two memorable vintages

The next issue of the Italian Wine Review, my wine newsletter, will be dedicated to the wines of the northeast, so I took advantage of going to Merano to stop in Valpolicella on my way home. Located in the foothills overlooking Verona, it's one of Italy's oldest wine-making regions, and in the past was renowned for a rich sweet red wine called Recioto, which was already coveted by Roman aristocrats 2000 years ago. It's made by picking the best bunches of grapes in hillside vineyards and drying them to raisins to concentrate their sugars (a variety of other flavor-enhancing metabolic changes also take place as this happens), then pressing them in mid-winter and fermenting the must, which is so sugary that the fermentation tapers off before all the sugars are consumed, resulting in a sweet wine that's about 16% alcohol. It's a delight to sip and is one of the finest accompaniments for cheeses, be they aged, crumbly, and piquant, for example 3-year-old Asiago or Parmigiano, or fatter and runnier, for example a Gorgonzola dolce or a good Brie.

Recioto was also prized because it's difficult to make; if the fermentation takes off on the vintner and the yeasts consume all the sugars the resulting wine is very strong, extremely complex, and dry: Since this wasn't what they wanted in the past, they called it Amarone, a word that means "big bitter one," and conveys a sense of sorrow as well. Tastes do change, however, and with the decline in popularity of sweet wines people began to view Amarone in a new light: It was first bottled commercially in the mid-50s and is by now far more popular than its older sibling.

Bertani was one of the first producers to begin bottling Amarone, and has a spectacular cellar with hundreds upon hundreds of bottles of the older vintages, all neatly stacked in bins with tags in front of each that give the vintages. They very kindly allowed me to taste a few: the 94, which is the current vintage, the 68, and the 64, which they consider the best of the century. The 94 was quite nice, a powerful wine with lots of blackberry and cherry fruit on the nose, mingled with licorice and hints of plum, and shot through with alcoholic warmth and hints of sea salt. On the palate it's full and rich, a mouthfilling wine with cherry and blackeberry fruit laced with currants and plums that flow into a warm tannic finish with acidic overtones; it's youth is a little too apparent now, and the body has yet to catch up with the nose. But it is impressive, and will be a real treat 5-10 years on down the road.

The 68 is a lively ruby with hints of brick on the rim (most 32-year-old wines would be far into brick red, so this is impressive), and has an extremely complex, elegant bouquet in which dried cherries, blackberries and berry fruit mingle with dried flowers, salted pepper paste, green leather and sea salt; the effect is extremely harmonious and well balanced. On the palate it's equally alive, with rich cherry blackberry fruit laced with balsamic overtones, supported by warm velvety tannins that lead into a long, warm, slightly balsamic berry fruit-laced finish. Most impressive, and it will add grace to a meal. However, by comparison with the 64 it's up front and simple. The 64 is a little more towards garnet than the 68, an indication of greater age, and has a bouquet that's simply extraordinary, with delicate dried flowers laced with balsamic overtones that bring to mind old lace, fresh leather, and hints of underlying fruit. Very much a sniffing wine, one of those things you can get lost in, rather like a Beethoven sonata. On the palate it's rich and smooth, with a tantalizing sweetness (remember its origins), berry fruit, and cherries supported by smooth sweet tannins that gain definition from the faintest of burrs, and lead into a long clean finish in which cherry fruit is supported by slight balsamic overtones. An extraordinarily delicate wine, finesse in a bottle.

We also tried something new, a Valpolicella Classico Superiore called Ognissanti, which is made from a single vineyard that doesn't contribute to Amarone. So there's no culling of grapes, and the vineyard's best ends up in these bottles. Again, most impressive, with rich fruit and smooth supple tannins that have a greenness to them that's characteristic to Valpolicella, and makes the wine well suited to savory dishes that are towards the sweeter end of the spectrum. In fact, it would be an excellent accompaniment to Thanksgiving turkey with dressing and all the other accompaniments, including cranberry sauce.

Pearà

Having said all this, you may be wondering, "What does one eat with an Amarone?" One classic reply is bollito misto, the boiled dinner that's common to all of Northern Italy; here's the Piemontese version, which was a favorite with Crown Price Vittorio Emanuele a century ago. What's done in the Veneto is similar, though the sauce of choice is a peppery exotic called pearà, which is made with crumbled bread, bone marrow and ground pepper (hence the name).

Dino Coltri says, in La Cucina Tradizionale Veneta, to take a pot, ideally terracotta, and melt equal volumes of unsalted butter and very fresh bone marrow. Then add very finely ground bread crumbs, and stir well with a wooden spoon while they absorb the grease. Once they have (you'll have to go by eye on the exact amounts involved) stir in some broth, ideally made with meat (as opposed to poultry). Simmer over a very low flame for at least a couple of hours, stirring it every now then and adding more liquid if it starts to dry out. Then salt it and season it with a goodly grating of freshly ground pepper. The finished sauce should have the consistency of a thick mustard of the kind that has whole mustard seeds in it.

Instead of pepper, you can use grated horse radish, which is what I've encountered in Veronese restaurants, where they make it strong. Not eye-watering, but with a good bit of zing.

Antonio Piccinardi says the bread crumbs should be toasted, and that the dish is quite old, as combining bread crumbs with fat is the precursor to working butter and flour together to make beurre manié.

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Cookies & Tiramisu

I had hoped to discuss mussels as well in this issue, but we're running short of space. We do however have enough time for a couple more recipes from the forum. Adriana, who makes cookies in Agrigento and ships them fresh throughout the world, kindly contributed a recipe for Coffee-Flavored Almond Cookie Squares:

• 500 grams (1 pound 2 ounces) Almonds
• 500 grams (1 pound 2 ounces; this is slightly more than 2 cups) Sugar
• 5 egg whites beaten until stiff
• 5 teaspoons of ground espresso coffee
• Powdered sugar (the kind that doesn't include starch)

Peel and crush the almonds. Mix sugar with 3 tablespoons of water, crushed almonds, ground coffee, and egg whites.

Grease a rectangular pan and cover with fine bread crumbs. Pour mixture into pan and bake at 300 degrees for about 40 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool. Cut in small square pieces, sprinkle with powdered sugar and serve.

That's it!

"I hope you enjoy the recipe," she says, "and if you would like more info on our Italian almond cookies, stop by http://www.CookiesFromItaly.com and sign up for our free newsletter.

A printer-friendly version of this recipe.

Classic & New Tiramisu

Sergio instead posted a couple of Tiramisu recipes, and the pumpkin in one strikes me as singularly well suited to the season. So here we are:

Tiramisu:

Ingredients

• EGGS, 4-5 yolks
• MILK, 1/4 cup (60 ml)
• SUGAR, 1/2 cup (120 g)
• VANILLA EXTRACT (OPTIONAL), 1 tablespoon
• CREAM CHEESE, 16-ounce. (or, 8 oz. cream cheese + 8 oz. Ricotta -- 450 g in all)
• SEMISWEET CHOCOLATE, 2-1/2 ounces (60 g), grated
• WHIPPING CREAM, 16 ounces (450 g)
• LADYFINGERS, 30 toasted, or Savoiardi
• ESPRESSO, (or strong coffee) 1 cup
• COFFEE LIQUEUR, 1 oz.
• RUM OR BRANDY, 1/4 cup
• COCOA POWDER, 2 tablespoons

Directions

1. Beat eggs, milk and sugar in a two quart sauce pan until sugar is dissolved.

2. (Optional. Add 1 tablespoon vanilla extract when beating eggs and sugar)

3. Heat to boil over medium heat, stirring constantly, reduce heat, boil one more minute.

4. Set aside, cover and refrigerate.

5. Beat whipping cream and 2 tbs. cocoa in chilled bowl until stiff, refrigerate.

6. Mix espresso with rum / brandy and coffee liqueur. (optional) set aside.

7. Mix cold (sugar egg milk mixture) with cheese and grated chocolate.

8. Dip half of the savoiardi in coffee mixture, (do not soak) and arrange in glass baking dish (I use 2 pie plates).

9. Spread half of the cheese mixture over the savoiardi.

10. Spread half of the whipped cream over the cheese mixture.

11. Repeat with remaining savoiardi, cheese mixture and whipped cream mix.

12. Sprinkle with some cocoa and some coarse-grated chocolate, cover and refrigerate.

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Spiced Pumpkin Tiramisu

• 1 package Italian Ladyfingers (Soft, not hard cookies)
• 1/8 cup Frangelico Liqueur
• 8 ounces (200 g) Mascarpone Option: Use Cream Cheese
• 1/2 cup (120 ml) canned Pumpkin Puree
• 1 tsp. ground Cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp. ground Ginger
• 1/4 tsp. ground Mace
• 1-1/2 cups Confectioner's Sugar
• 1 tsp. Orange Extract
• 2-1/2 cups Heavy Cream, whipped and chilled, divided

Arrange ladyfingers on the bottom of a 9-inch square pan. Pour the Frangelico liqueur over the soft sweet ladyfingers. (You may substitute the same volume of Orange Juice for non-alcoholic preparation.)

In a mixing bowl, blend together the mascarpone with the pumpkin puree. Add the cinnamon, ginger, mace, confectioner's sugar and orange extract.

Fold in 1-1/2 cups of the whipped cream. Pour the mixture over lady fingers.

Gently spread remaining whipped cream on top of pumpkin mixture.

Sprinkle the top with a dash or two of additional cinnamon, if desired.

Cover and refrigerate at least two hours before serving, or overnight.

Slice to serve.

A printer-friendly version of this recipe.

Last thing: If you live in the US and don't know about the FDA's threat to ban raw-milk cheeses, check the Cheese of Choice coalition link below. And finally, this time's proverb, which is Tuscan: "Leggere e non intendere é come cacciare e non prendere:" Reading without understanding is like going hunting and coming home empty handed.

A presto,
Kyle Phillips
Webweaver, About Italian Cuisine

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