GUANCE AL CABERNET SAUVIGNON

February 14, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Beef Cheeks Cooked in Cabernet Sauvignon

I have discovered that this dish was invented at the end of the XIX century, when a cattle plague occurred in Biranza, a northern region in Italy. All of a sudden people had to deal with the problem of how to preserve a huge amount of meat, having of course no refrigerators available.

The only solution was to keep the meat in a marinade of vinegar and wine, that’s why a small amount of milk is included in the recipe which was meant to remove any excess sourness.

If this story is true or not, the “guance al vino rosso” is in any case a traditional food for a lot of regions, especially in the center and north of Italy. It’s one of those dishes that bring back a lot of memories for me, the winters and the kind of tastes of the old days …. I had the best beef cheeks of my life in the restaurant Primo al Pigneto in Roma, prepared by my friend Marco.

Cheeks, although seen as a “poor” cut, are perfect for low temperature and slow cooking. The result is extra tasty and extra tender. If possible, it would be perfect to serve this dish with the same wine you used for cooking. A good cabernet sauvignon would do.

I combined the recipe of Sorelle Simili and Palma D’Onofrio together and created this one with some extra personal touches…

Ingredients: 

  • 4 Beef cheeks
  • 1 Stem of celery, roughly chopped
  • 1 Carrot, roughly chopped
  • 1/2 Onion, roughly chopped
  • 1/2 Garlic cloves - Crushed (Get the specific tool to crush the fresh garlic gloves. I’d never use the jars of garlic you find in supermarkets – Your guests will thank you for this!)
  • 1/4 Cup of balsamic vinegar
  • 1 Litre dry red wine
  • 1/2 Litre stock (Chicken, beef or both)
  • 1/2 Cup of milk
  • 20g Flour
  • Extra virgin olive oil
  • Salt and pepper, Bay leaves, a bit of rosemary and 3 leaves of sage

Recipe:

  1. Try to trim as much fat as possible from the cheeks. After rolling the cheeks in flour quickly, brown them in a pan with a bit of olive oil. When browned take them out the pan and set aside.
  2. In a pot, put a bit of olive oil and onions and let them cook until they turn a golden colour. At this point add the celery and carrots, wait 5 minutes then put the meat in the pot and stir gently.
  3. Add balsamic vinegar and allow to dissolve. Then add the hot red wine, salt and pepper and herbs. Stir again!
  4. Wait until the whole mixture starts to boil, then reduce the heat to minimum and let it cook for 3 hours, lid on leaving a tiny opening with the help of a wooden spoon.
  5. Add milk and let it cook without the lid for another 15/20 minutes. It’s possible to prepare everything in advance but this must be the last touch before serving.
  6. Cut the cheeks in slices and serve with a simple potato mash or with a grilled polenta “crostoni”, some grilled baby potatoes in their jackets and pickling onions. My last touch is always a generous sprinkle of fresh chopped parsley.
Filed Under: Recipes Tagged With: , , ,

Duck Pie

February 14, 2012 By Leave a Comment

This is one of our best sellers, actually we bought Die Ou Pastorie with this recipe! Of course I put my hand on it and made my variations. It’s now much nicer…

Almost every country has their own pie, the Anglo-Saxons of course, and the French but also in the eastern cuisines and even in Latin America… what else is an Empanadas other than a pie?

Incredible to think that what we are use to finding as a convenience food in supermarkets and petrol stations has such an old story.

In fact the origin of savory pies goes back to Egyptian times, in Mesopotamia and it’s known also that Greeks and Romans had their kind of pies… From these heroic beginnings the meat pie became popular in all of Europe in the Middle Ages, when apparently (NDR) they started to use the word pie. Lately French and (of course!) Italians developed the pastry, getting it closer to our contemporary puff pastry.

Probably the use of the crust was meant to help preserve the filling in winter time for a few days or perhaps was meant to prevent the meat mixture from burning during the baking phase… Somebody wrote somewhere that crust was usually given to servants, while the rich inner part was eaten by the lords and ladies… who knows!?

Here’s my recipe, try it and tell me.

Ingredients For 6 People: 

  • 1 whole duck
  • Cloves
  • 1 Cup of red wine
  • 1 Cup of chopped mushrooms
  • 1/2 Red onion – Finely chopped
  • 1 1/2 Cup of fresh cream
  • A sheet of puff pastry
  • A couple of finely chopped sage leaves
  • Mixed herbs – You can make it youself by mixing bay leaves, thyme, marjoram, a bit of rosemary, and if you like Provence, also lavender…

Recipe:

  1. Put the duck in a pot of salted boiling water and let it cook for 3 hours with a few cloves and the red wine.
  2. Take the duck out of the water, let it cool for a bit, and then while still warm, debone it accurately and cut into pieces.
  3. In a pot, bake the red onion in butter until it softens, then add the duck, season with salt and pepper and let it simmer for 5 minutes on low heat. Add brandy and let it evaporate. Add herbs and cream and allow to thicken for about 20 minutes.
  4. Meanwhile, cook the mushrooms separately in a bit of butter, with a pinch of sat and pepper. Try to avoid the mushrooms losing all their water, otherwise they became like chewing gum. A trick is to use a wide enough pan, where the mushrooms can be in only one layer, and leave an empty space in the center of the pan. It works, believe me!
  5. At this point mix together the mushrooms with the duck mixture.
  6. Take 6 oven proof bowls and distribute the filling
  7. Cover with a thin layer of puff pastry and place in a preheated oven at 200° for about 10 to 12 minutes. You’ll see the pastry will be nicely puffed and gold.
  8. We serve our pies with a shot glass of homemade jelly and some simple seasonal vegetable.
Filed Under: Recipes Tagged With: ,