andiamotrips - campania, italy with karen phillips

Franco Pepe and his brother, Antonio. Summer…Saturday…Pizza…It is a definite must.  A time to be with family and friends at the table., relax, talk about your week, be together. That togetherness that Southern Italy does so well. And on this particular sabato sera, our appointment was in Caiazzo, in the Caserta province. An appointment at Antica Pizzeria Pepe , located in the corner of Piazza Portavetere. Fireworks greeted us as we arrived, common for this time of year. There is always some type of local festival. No reservation…not on Saturday. Franco Pepe  suggested that we arrive before 9 pm… after that, our clients pretty much run the place , he told me jokingly over the phone. We chose to sit indoors, so that we could watch the kitchen at work, but there were plenty of tables outside in the piazza for clients who wanted a pizza al fresco …out in the open. Indoors, outdoors…we were all here for one reason. To enjoy a pizza prepared by the Pepe family. ...

Not far from Amalfi and Ravello, there is an area known as Tramonti...Tra-between...monti-the mountains.  And it is here where you'll find Tenuta San Francesco.  A winery that produces wines using grapes native to this historic part of Campania.  Grapes such as Falanghina, Biancolella, Aglianico, Piedirosso, Pepella, and Tintore. I had been there a couple of times before, but never in the spring. l  I took some friends to meet owner Gaetano Bove who took us on a tour of his Tintore vineyards.  We got up close and personal with vines that were over 250 years old! After a tour of the cantina, we sat down for a wine tasting over a dinner feauturing products and recipes from the area..  Wines tasted; Tramonti Bianco 2010, Per Eva 2008, 4 Spine 2007, and E'ISS 2008. A real taste of the territory...Good food, great wine, and great company... Another relaxing evening in Campania... Azienda Agricola Tenuta San Francesco Via Solficiano 18 Tramonti (Sa) 08...

It was easy to fall in love at first sight .  Bikini Complesso Turistico .  A lido hugging the Sorrento Coast.  Wih the perfect view of Vesuvius.  Spectacular sunset.  Soft music and good food.  It would have been almost impossible not to. But what about by day?  Could this enchanting location by the sea have the same effect ‘ with the lights on ’, so to speak.  Owner Giorgio Scarselli thought so, so he invited me to return a week later.  After my school girl’s crush had worn off and get a real good look at his beach, his restaurant, his Bikini . His beach has been in his family since about 1952.  It started out as a simple place to hang out.  Back in the day, Giorgio’s father told me, there wasn’t even water to take a shower.  Donkeys would climb up the cliff and bring water down so that sun bathers could take a shower.  Times have obviously changed.  This lido has gone from 3 employees to nearly 84 bet...

Photo by Ennio Calice La complessità con un piatto semplice … Chef Ernesto Iaccar i no ’s mantra. Simple ingredients, but complex. Like this recipe he shared with me that uses red and yellow peppers - perfect for the summer. Ingredients Tuna Mousse : 400 g tuna in oil (already drained),40 g carrot,10 g celery,20 g leek, 120 g egg white, 3 sheets gelatin,40 g extra virgin olive oil Pepper sauce : 400 g yellow pepper,cleaned, 50 g onion, 100 g vegetable broth Pepper gelatin : 200 g yellow pepper, 2 g agar Pepper caviar : 200 g red pepper, cleaned, 3 g agar, 2 l vegetable oil Olive powder : 500 g pitted black olives,100 g muscovado sugar Creamy cod : 400 g of chopped cod (baccalà), 50 g potato, 20 g onion, 1 clove garlic, 100 g milk Cod Emulsion : 200 g of codfish skin, 50 g cod pulp 300 g extra virgin olive oil, 2 cloves garlic, chili pepper (to taste). Crunchy cannoli : 300 g rice,100 g red pepper (already cleaned) Additional ingredients : green chili, fri...

Another amazing appetizer offered to me by Chef  Umberto De Martino of Ristorante Marina Grande in Amalfi….Pairs perfectly when served on the terrace overlooking the beach… This is a dish that reminds me of my childhood. Peas were never missing at home in all forms and ways in the kitchen. Caciottina is, in essence, the cheese that I love the most. And prawns? I personally can eat them prepared in any way imaginable, but I love them raw. And to complete this dish, the aroma and acidity of the orange acts as a thread which links me back to the past. –Chef De Martino Ingredients for 4 people: 500 grams of peas, 2 oranges, 8 medium sized prawns, 4 caciottine (a cheese made with fresh cow's milk) 30 gr. each,5 grams of smoked salt , salt, pepper and extra virgin olive oil. Shell the prawns and marinate them for half an hour with the juice of an orange, a pinch of salt and a dash of pepper. Peel the peas and save the skins which will be fried in oil to make the pea chips...

Here’s a dish from Chef Carmine Mazza of Il Poeta Vesuviano perfect to kick off my summer recipe series. An octopus salad with a twist. Ingredients 2 Octopus ‘verace’ at least 500 g, 200 g dried chickpeas, 1 clove garlic, 1 sprig of fresh rosemary, extra virgin olive oil, bread Procedure Clean and blanch the octopus in plenty of water for about 20 minutes, cool and cut into very thin pieces, season with salt and extra virgin olive oil and set aside. Soak the chickpeas the night before in a pot with water and a pinch of baking soda. The next day, rinse well and cook the chickpeas. In a frying pan, sauté a clove of garlic , add the chickpeas and continue to cook with the rosemary. Puree the chickpeas, adding salt and oil to taste, and spread the cream a plate. Add the octopus, a sprinkle of toasted bread crumbs, and a sprig of fresh rosemary. Il Poeta Vesuviano Viale Europa, 42 Zona Leopardi 80040 Torre del Greco (Na) 081 883 26 73

I wanted a pizza...and I knew just where to go. Bikini Complesso Turistico - Vico Equense (Na). I wanted to go for a pizza... A' Pizza ...a first of its kind event hosted by Stefano Bonilli and Maurizio Cortese of the blog Papero Giallo . They  invited the best pizzaioli in Italy. All ready to share with a large crowd of pizza lovers their famous specialties.  Down by the sea. With breathtaking scenery. A light breeze. In the company of the music of Norah Jones and Bob Dylan. I wanted a pizza. A pizza from a pizzaiolo like Enzo Coccia , who I am always happy to see. And a slice of his San Gennaro hit the spot. Anchovies, tomatoes, basil, garlic and olives. A slice that was flavorful, appetizing, and aromatic. The perfect kick for my tour through the stands, which were just heating up, so to speak, as the sun was setting. I saw Franco Pepe . We chatted for awhile as he made a pizza with scarole and olives. And what can I prepare for you? How about a pizza with prosciut...

I knew that when I decided to visit Don Alfonso 1890 , I wouldn’t be the first. I wouldn’t be breaking new ground. I wouldn’t be travelling to a place that no one has heard about. I wouldn’t be the first to take photos of their dining room, kitchen, and new menu. I wouldn’t be the first to sit down with the chef afterwards and talk about the recipes. I wouldn’t even be the first to visit their wine cellar full of nearly 25,000 bottles of wines from all over the world. No, this wouldn’t be a trip for the latest ‘ scoop ’. This was personal. For me. A journey to satisfy my curiosity. To sit down and experience a lunch at a two star Michelin restaurant. Something which, for me, does not happen every day. So off I went. Off to Sant’ Agata sui due Golfi located about 9km from Sorrento. Stop and go traffic the minute I exited at Castellammare di Stabia. More stop than go , but that was to be expected this time of year. It was a gorgeous day, a pleasing drive, spectacular scenery. I...

Barchef/Mixologist Sebastiano Pucella We met one Thursday evening at Città del Gusto for a real drink experience. Sebastiano Pucella …barchef, mixologist with a creative mind and simpatico personality. We met there for one of Città del Gusto’s Thursday night Drink Experience cocktail nights. And it was here that I got a chance to watch Sebastiano prepare several cocktails step by step. He started off with cocktails based on Negroni (gin, campari, and red vermouth). Unstructured Negroni-tini Evolving was the first. A velvety drink with cinnamon alcolato lightly sprayed on top. Next, Negroni with Orange Evanescent with a foamy topping. He made a B evuta di Mela Annurca for me complete with fresh apple, mela , juice that he makes himself daily. Here , Sebastiano told me, is where the bar meets classic cooking . Lemon peel, cinnamon, and ginger were other fresh ingredients that he added to the mix. There were a couple others he wanted me to see. Daiquiri Smokin Cammomila . ...

Here's a recipe for a dish that I enjoyed on the terrace overlooking the beach at Ristorante Marina Grande in Amalfi.  I asked chef Umberto De Martino for the recipe and here it is: Seared tuna with poppy seeds, panzanella and buffalo stracciatella . Ingredients for 4 : 400 g tuna fillet, 60 grams of poppy seeds, 12 slices of bread , 1 tomato, 30 g black olives, 20 gr. of capers, 2 basil leaves, 50 g burrata, salt, pepper to taste, 50 cl extra virgin olive oil Procedure: Roll the tuna fillet in poppy seeds, in order to form a crust. Sear in a hot pan for about 1 minute on each side,then allow to cool. Meanwhile, cut the bread into cubes and toast in an 200° oven for 3 minutes. Cut the tomatoes in a bowl, add the olives, capers and basil, add the toasted bread and season with salt, pepper and oil. Spoon the panzanella (bread salad) onto the center of the dish, cut the tuna into slices and place on panzanella..Add a spoonful of buffalo stracciatella on the s...

Turn right at the 3.7 km marker, then drive for about 7-800 meters . Professor Luigi Moio told me over the phone. You’ll see a vineyard… You’ll see a vineyard , I thought, with a little smile…well, I am in Irpinia… I continued driving…no vineyards, just houses, a narrow road, a tractor, and then, I saw it. Not just a vineyard. His vineyard in Mirabella Eclano. 8 hectares of Aglianico that belong to Quintodecimo, Professor Moio’s winery…his haven…his dream made reality in the heart of Irpinia’s Taurasi country. A dream that I had a chance to share for a few hours one sunny Saturday afternoon. It was hard not to notice the fusion of colors around the winery. A winery that Luigi Moio, along with his wife, Laura Di Marzio brought to life back in 2001. Years after enologist Moio returned from working and living in France. A few years after he began working with wineries such as Antonio Caggiano, Marisa Cuomo, Terre del Principe, and Cantina del Taburno to name a few. Quinto...