Malazè is Back!

Malazè is back, the festival-lab conceived by Rosario Mattera to promote the beauties and tourist-cultural proposals of the Phlegraean Fields. Now in its fifteenth edition, Malazè is an event that spreads throughout the Phlegraean Fields and ideally unites Naples, Pozzuoli, Bacoli, Monte di Procida, Quarto and Procida as well as numerous associations and businesses in the area.

This year an edition full of events dedicated to food and wine, the beauties of the Phlegraean area, history but also leisure, designed so that you can  immerse yourself in the myths and legends of this land.

"The goal is to let those who do not know it discover this land and to thrill those who already know it but not enough", explains Rosario Mattera. “This is the fifteenth edition, every year is a different bet and we did not expect to get this far; I am driven by the conviction that the territory has strengths that are not sufficiently valued and that it still has a lot to offer ".

Fifteen days, four thematic areas (Taste, Myths and Stories, Archeology, Nature and Landscape). It starts on Friday 14 October 2022 with "A dip in history ... and then toast with the Romans", an appointment that will allow you to snorkel in the submerged city of Baia to continue with the "Bio Fitness Game", a workshop in Pozzuoli dedicated to slow food, Walking Tour of Pozzuoli, wine tastings of the Campi Flegrei DOC wines, oil workshops, reserved for Phlegraean restaurateurs, events to discover the ancient fortress of the Rione Terra di Pozzuoli and much more.

There is also space for outdoor activities with "Kids by bike", urban trekking and walks to discover Capo Miseno and Montenuovo; "The idleness of Dionysus" at the Terme di Baia and "Archeoemotions" will allow, however, to combine different passions together (archeology, taste and nature). Every Monday it will be the turn of the ARF cooks who will organize "Everyone in a barrel", ten-handed dinners in the cellar or workshops and meetings to discover the flavors of this land.

A preview of Malazè 2022 is scheduled for Thursday 13 October, at 5 pm, at Villa di Livia (Pozzuoli). Francesco Maisto, president of the Campi Flegrei Regional Park Authority will speak with Mattera; Nicola Caputo, Councilor for Agriculture of the Campania Region and the mayor of Pozzuoli, Luigi Manzoni. This will be followed by a tasting of typical Phlegraean dishes and Campania wines donated by the ARF and the Women of Wine of Campania. The service will be offered by the IPSEOA "Lucio Petronio" Institute of Pozzuoli.

The entire Malazè 2022 program can be viewed on the website www.malaze.it.

Back to Abraxas - Abraxas Osteria, Pozzuoli (Na)

 

When you open Abraxas Osteria’s home page, you’ll find these words---

We are in the Phlegrean fields, here where throughout the centuries the fire meets the sea, the seductive and wild nature offers unique scenarios and unmatched products.

Here the ancient embraces the modern with warm and lively colors: smoothed tufo stone, the brick arches, the wood, colors and shapes of objects that tell our story.

Every detail has something to tell, each detail is part of Abraxas.

Abraxas is a place where the hosts welcome friends who come back with pleasure to learn about their tales and their passion for these lands, made of laborers, breeders, fishermen and producers

who live to carry on in their companies the ancient traditions that allow each of our plates to

to be lived through warm feelings.

I read those words with a smile as I scrolled through the website with curiosity, enthusiasm, and excitement.  It had been two (omg- maybe three) years since I had visited Nando Salemme -owner, traveller, dreamer, enthusiast- and I eager to see what I Nando had done with the place.

Check it out -

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Lively colors is right!  And what attention to detail.  I fell in love with my water glass-complete with a yellow and blue fish!

 

Nando's menu features not only the traditions of Campi Flegrei/Campania- but has a long list of quality Slow Food Presidio products - many chosen personally during his travels.

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Toasted seaweed bread with Cantabrian anchovies and Normandy butter.  Caciobarile with giant lupins from Variano.  Plegrean fiocco.  Foccaccia with sautéed escarole, olives, walnuts and anchovies. Zucchini crochette and mint mayonnaise.  Casatiello. Stracciata with Neapolitan eggplant.

Murzill 'sapurit ...

Fresella from San Marcellino with tomato salad  and mussels from Campi Flegrei.

Next, I wanted to focus on first courses- and I was served two...

Linguine with a creamy cicerchia sauce, tomatoes, and mussels from Capo Miseno.

Potato gnocchi with leeks, shrimp, squid, and frutti di mare with lemon.

I decided to pass on second courses-that honestly wasn't easy to do, considering the top selection of quality grilled meats.  Next time!

So  I checked out the dessert menu with a deconstructed tiramisu as well as an espresso martini...

So, my impressions about my Saturday lunch at Abraxas?  Let's just say that I gave Salemme a hug when I arrived and an even bigger one when I left...

Host Nando Salemme and myself

A presto!

Campi Flegrei and Then Some-Riccio Restaurant - Baia Port (Na)

 

A pleasant stroll on a windy summer day on the port of Baia...and then I arrived.  My reservation was for 1 pm, and I believe that I was quite punctual, if I must say so myself.  As I was getting my bearings, I saw her from a distance.  Her- Roberta Di Meo- who greeted with a warm handshake and even warmer smile welcoming me to her restaurant-Riccio Restaurant.

This was my first time to Riccio, so Di Meo kindly filled me in on the small ristorante's background story.  It was then that I learned that she opened the restaurant back in 2016 with her father, Salvatore.  Their intention was to share their passion for Campi Flegrei- not just in the cuisine, but in the local wines as well. So slowly over time- and the addition of Chef Agostino Alboretto the restaurant grew and is a favorite spot in the area.

Di Meo handed me the wine list- which features local wines as well as national/international offerings.  I chose a Falanghina from Contrada Salandra - a wine which would pair perfectly with the chef's fish based menu.

Let's talk about the chef's menu.  Alboretto is all about no waste, sustainability, seasonality, and of course full on flavor.  And not because it is in style- it is part of this young chef's DNA.  So that is why I decided to put myself in his hands.  The chef did not disappoint.  We decided to focus on amazing appetizers and first courses.  

Take a look...

Amazing appetizers included a raw seafood platter with tartufi di mare/sea truffles, razor clams, shrimp, and oyster.

Then ...

Tuna tartare and guacamole

 with citrus sauce

Shrimp and lemon foam

cuttlefish with oil, lemon and cuttlefish ink salt

carpaccio of mahi mahi and basil crumble

Alboretto thought, that for the next set of appetizers, a trip to the dry ageing refrigerator was necessary.  There he was able to pull out some of his seafood salamis that fit in perfectly with Riccio's no waste philosophy...

The cured fish : tuna speck, swordfish bresaola and amberjack belly

Riccio's  dry ageing refrigerator - with plans to expand

Time to warm things up-still in the appetizer area-

grilled octopus with mushrooms

Cod grenadine and Phlegraean broccoli

Skipjack burger

lampuga- known as a 'pesce azzuro magro' a light blue fish. this is one of the fish that you'll find in the markets this season, an consequently, on the table in restaurants such as Riccio Restaurant - Baia Porto. chef Agostino Alboretto served me a fillet with escarole and black olives...on the side

razor clams au gratin

Let's go back to the topic of no waste- here is Alboretto's seafood tripe featuring the 'fifth quarter' of amberjack and grouper, a squid ink crumble, potato cream and parsley chlorophyll 

Time for a first course or two-  the fall season called and Ricco Restaurant answered-  with

 a pumpkin risotto with cuttlefish and porcini miushrooms....

Spaghetti with razor clams...

Second course- I had to pass.  (I'll return)...but I did go for a dessert.  Babà with a glass of La Sibilla's Passio 2013 dessert wine made with Falanghina...

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A peerfect dessert to top off a perfect afternoon in Baia...Definitely a not to miss spot-not only for the food, location, but also for the spirit of Roberta, Agostino, and Salvatore...

Scusa, but I had to take a selfie!!!  A presto!

from left to right, me, Salvatore Di Meo, Roberta Di Meo and Agostino Alboretto

 

Tra Terra e Mare, Chef Marco Laudato, Ristorante Amare (Sa)

One of Chef Marco Laudato’s daily duties is to head out to his favorite pescheria and check out what’s new.  He then heads back to Ristorante Amare’s  kitchen where he creates mouthwatering, eye-catching dishes. Dishes like this one, which express his love of melding products tra terra e mare/ between land and sea.

Il pesce è un merluzzo dell'Alaska. Lo chiamano carbonaro nero per la sua pelle nera e vive a 200 metri di pronfondità. Questo pesce ha una carne bianca e tenera. In questo caso lo abbiamo prima cotto a bassa temperatura e poi glassato man mano in padella con una riduzione di soia, birra e zenzero così dà conferirgli più sapidità e una leggera affumicatura.  Abbiamo abbinato a diverse consistenze di zucca napoletana. Mi piace fondere grandi prodotti dal mare con verdure e vegetali del nostro territorio così da impreziosire entrambe.

Chef Marco Laudato

This fish dish is an Alaskan cod also known as black carbonaro for its black skin. It lives 200 meters under the sea and characterized by having white and tender meat.  We first cooked it at a low temperature and then glazed it in a pan with a soy, beer and ginger reduction to amplify its flavor and give it a lightly smoked taste.  We then paired it with different textures of Neapolitan pumpkin. I like to mix great products from the sea with vegetables from our territory so as to enrich both.

                                                                                                                 

So here we have it…

Laudato’s Black cod with Caramote Prawns, Pumpkin, and Escarole.

Tra Terra e Mare...

Panettone Pleasures, Forno Guarino, Mirabella Eclano (Av)

I’d like to begin this post by saying that I’ve been in a love/hate relationship with panettone for over 20 years.  Panettone, historically known as a ‘Christmas Cake’ in Italian,  is traditionally made with candied fruits and nuts and not a part of my childhood growing up in the suburbs of the USA. 

Yet, living in Italy for over 20 years hasn’t helped much either.  Maybe because my first introduction to a panettone was during a family Christmas gathering.  The economical store bought cake was cut and shared after a loooong meal. I didn’t like it all, primarily due to the very low quality of the ingredients.

Fast forward, about 20 years or so…here, thanks to the blog, I began trying panettone made by top pastry chefs, particularly those from southern Italy.  Artisans, I should say,who have opted for quality ingredients, focused on levitation processes, and a variety of flavors has opened my eyes and palate to a completely new world. 

Artisans and bakeries like Forno Guarino, which I have had the opportunity to taste their products off and on over the past 2 seasons.

Forno Guarino, located in Mirabella Eclano, deep in the Avellino province, has slowly but surely been making an impact in this competitive panettone market.  Avellino is known primarily for its vino, but just ten minutes or so from Taurasi, Forno Guarino (founded in 1982) has been working on panettone in their wood burning ovens for the past four years.  Baker Nicola Guarino in conjunction with top pastry chef Antonino Maresca have created a catalogue of 8 Christmas breads of which I had the pleasure to try five over the last few weeks in different occasions.

The first cake I tried by chance in Ischia.  It as an almost midnight snack served to me by Chef Nino Di Costanzo at his restaurant Dani Maison as a way to keep me occupied while I waited for the 0200 ferry to take me back home.  Natale e’…Christmas is.  

A slice of Christmas on that cool Ischia evening…aromas and flavors of mandarin, chocolate, pisto (spices used in the Neapolitan Roccoco’), almonds, hazelnuts, and must. 

A couple of weeks later, I met up with Laura Guarino who gave me the opportunity to try their chocolate version.  Chocolate and lemon, I should say.  

A panettone featuring slightly bitter chocolate and refreshing bits of candied lemon.

Next stop on the panettone express was last week in t in Naples.  An evening at Gran Caffe’ La Cafeteria.  An event for the press to try more of the Guarino inventory. 

Slices of heaven like their bread produced with the Guarino family’s extra virgin olive and verbena herbs that grow happily in Irpinia.  

Unlike the other cakes in the catalogue, this loaf is a savory one served on this particular evening with anchovy butter and orange peel shavings.

Their classic panettone featuring almonds and candied fruit.

A piece of Campania that included soft chunky pieces of annurca apples.

Each panettone strives on key principles, such as not containing conservatives or preservatives, levitation using lievito madre aka sourdough and highly recommends that each cake be eaten within thirty days. Did I already mentioned they are all cooked in a wood burning oven?  Definitely a challenge.  

Il panettone è fatto per essere mangiato, non lasciato sullo scaffale/panettone is made to be eaten, not left on the shelf , Antonino Maresca.

Ok, Maestro...

Let's eat!

Travel Diary - Indian Summer Tour 2016, Part 5, Berardino Lombardo, Agriturismo Il Contandino, Caianello (Ce)

After a long week of school, work, various appointments here and there, Sundays are reserved to stare in famiglia/be with your family.  In terms of Sunday lunch, a grande agriturismo is one of the best ways to spend a long afternoon together. 

Agriturismo? 

 Definition: Agriturismo - a combination of the words for "agriculture" and "tourism" in Italian - is a style of vacationing in farm house resorts codified into Italian law in 1985......

An Italian agriturismo will usually serve foods to guests prepared from raw materials produced on the farm or at least locally. (Source, About Travel )

 I chose Berardino Lombardo’s Agriturismo IlContandino in Caianello for my last stop on my Indian Summer Tour.

Travel Diary October 16, 2016

The weather was perfect!  Perfect for a day of good food, good wine, and great company.  My son and I arrived just in time to get a giant bear hug from Berardino as he led us to the aperitif table.  

Berardino Lombardo

Aperitif country style starring newly pressed extra virgin olive oil and crunchy toasted bread.

A great kick off to what would be an afternoon of local food, local recipes, and fun fun fun.

Example – with truffle season in progress, it just makes sense to make a simple fresh salad with lettuce, thinly sliced mushrooms, truffles, and a splash of olive oil.

 I could have eaten a kilo or so!

Next came an onslaught of appetizers complete with a quick explanation of the ingredients along with tips for me so that I could prepare each item at home. 

Panzariello: day old bread, tomatoes, onions, olives, zucchini, ad origano alltossed with olive oil.

Melanzane poverelle; eggplant marinated in extra virgin olive oil, vinegar, and oregano then baked in the oven for about 20 minutes.  Simple but spectacular!

Pane cotto e broccoli.  Once again, day old bread is not tossed away, but fried with wild broccoli greens!

 Cicoria e fagioli.  Cannelloni beans and  wild chicory soup.

Uovo a susciello.  Another simple and tasty dish using staple ingredients such as tomatoes, broth, sausage, and eggs (cooked directly in the broth! )

A glass or two of Lombardo’s Aglianicone wine….

Sunday?  Can’t miss out on a Campania classic.  Pasta with Ragu sauce!

Second course – Roasted pork with a side of oven roasted potatoes...

Dessert!

Before leaving, a quick stop in the agriturismo’s bottega.  A little shop which features some of the local products produced by Lombardo and friends.  

Products that one can take home and reproduce the flavors and feelings of a spectacular sunny Sunday afternoon.