In the Kitchen Campania Christmas-Part 1with Chef Marco Ambrosino, Sustanza Restaurant, Naples(Na)

Curious about the traditions and recipes of the Campania region? So am I ! Enough to speak with two of the region's top chefs- both based in Naples, Italy. To start things off, I asked Chef Marco Ambrosino about some of his Christmas memories. Here he shares a particular one, recipe included, from his island of Procida.

The 15th edition of Malazè, the Campi Flegrei Festival-lab Continues

The event created to promote the beauties and tourist-cultural proposals of the Phlegraean area, organized by Malazè Laboratorio di Comunità APS, continues in its second weekend of events dedicated to food and wine, the beauties of the territory, the landscape, the myths and its stories. These are the ingredients that will accompany young and old "ViaggiAttori" to live an experiential dimension that only these unique places can offer.

"We are halfway there, happy to have resumed this year but aware that Malazè - explains the creator of the event, Rosario Mattera - cannot limit itself to being a showcase of the Phlegraean Fields for only two weeks a year. We want to look to the future in an innovative way to create wealth responsibly in the food sector as well as in cultural and social enterprise, in new digital technologies and in design. But we haven't forgotten our past; we know that roots can make a difference in the globalized world ”.

 Below is the complete calendar of the second weekend of Malazè, reservations are required for each event.

Friday 21st October 2022

At the table with the Sibyl | Masseria Sardo - Lake Averno at 7:30 pm

For info and reservations: 0818581814 - 3493083243 | ristorante@masseriasardo.com

 

Tasting Laboratory of Extra Virgin Olive Oil from Campania | Slow Food Campania - Slow Olive Group | Bacoli at 10:00 (reserved for operators in the sector)

For info and reservations: 339 8006902 | slowolivecampania@gmail.com

Saturday 22nd October 2022

The Rione Terra, like a museum, between Myth, tales and recent history - Lux in Fabula Antonio Isabettini | Pozzuoli - Rione Terra at 17:00, Palazzo Migliaresi at 17:00

Antonio Isabettini tells the story and the chronicle of the Rione Terra with the projection of unpublished visual documents. For info: 328 667 0977 |luxinfabula2@libero.it

Bio Fitness Game - The Garden of the Templars - Redhorn.

Pozzuoli - Lake Averno at 09:00. Team sports training with an athletic trainer and treasure hunt with the Sibyl's enigmas along the shores of Lake Averno.

For info and reservations: 345 667 0467 - 351 731 4370 | info@ilgiardinodeitemplari.it

Discovering the vegetable garden and agro-biodiversity (Pozzuoli - Lake Averno at 10:00). The club's educators will guide families on an outdoor day at the educational garden of the Phlegraean Dog Center in Lake Averno to discover the vegetable garden and biodiversity of agriculture. For info and reservations: 340 6004477 - 348 9608185 | legambientecittaflegrea@gmail.com

In the footsteps of San Gennaro - Progetto Uomo Onlus (9:30 am 1st group / 11:00 am 2nd group - 15 participants per group). A visit, a mix of history, art, tradition and devotion to understand the life of San Gennaro and his link with Naples and the Phlegraean Fields. Accompanied by a qualified guide and a friar, you will have the opportunity to visit the church, the cloister and the soup kitchen (to which part of the proceeds will go) in a different way, focusing on the artistic and spiritual aspect local.

For info and reservations: 333 3577746 | 380 4722925

Campi Flegrei where history becomes myth | Photo exhibition

11:00 opening at Casa Mehari Quarto Via Nicotera 8. For info: 335 7106976 | contact@flegreaphoto.it

Sunday 23 October 2022

Napoli Obliqua Napoli Pedala (appointment: 07:30 - Galleria Principe di Napoli) | A bike trip in the beating heart of the city of Naples, between the districts of the historic center and beyond, to learn more about the morphology of Naples, its history, traditions and contemporaneity.

For info and reservations: 338 2723767 | 338 2127542 | napolibikefestival@gmail.com

Bio Fitness Game - The Garden of the Templars - Redhorn.

Pozzuoli - Lake Averno at 09:00. Team sports training with an athletic trainer and treasure hunt with the Sibyl's enigmas along the shores of Lake Averno.

For info and reservations: 345 667 0467 - 351 731 4370 | info@ilgiardinodeitemplari.it

Foraging among the volcanoes - APS Visit Campi Flegrei - Masseria Sardo

The event will be held in the oasis of Monte Nuovo, from which we will leave to reach the shores of Lake Averno. A fascinating tour that will end with an aperitif. For info and reservations: 347 5507420 - 320 8015037 | info@visitcampiflegrei.eu

Naturalistic Walk in Procida Capital “For orchards and gardens” - Procida Porto 10:00 am | Paths to discover Procida, the smallest of the Phlegrean islands, capital of Culture 2022.

Walk through vegetable gardens, vineyards, gardens and typical streets of the island. For info and reservations: 333 7201311 - 338 8257952 | association@vivara.it

Vibrating in the memory of the ruins of the Villa Rustica del Torchio (Phlegraean quarter - Villa del Torchio 9: 30-12: 30)

Gong concert and ancestral instruments by Gong Master Antonella Notturno and guided tour by the Campi Flegrei Archaeological Group. For info and reservations: 349 0962592 - 338 3187875 | protocol.generale@comune.quarto.na.it - ​​raffaella.devivo@libero.it

Walking Tour Pozzuoli. Discovering the wonders of the Phlegraean Fields with a walk in the historic center of Pozzuoli. For info and reservations: 081 19009000 | percorsiflegrei@turismoeservizi.it

Fata Morgana at Lake Averno (from 10:30 to 13:00). The educators of Legambiente Città Flegrea and the Morgana fairy will guide the participants on a particular outdoor walk to discover the archaeological evidence, myths, legends and floral and faunal species of the mysterious Lake Averno. For info and reservations: 340 6004477 - 348 9608185 | legambientecittaflegrea@gmail.com

Capo Miseno Myth and History - Between Ceres Dionysus and Isis (Bacoli Faro di Miseno at 11:00). Guided walk through the breathtaking scenery of Capo Miseno where participants can have fun in a procession in honor of ancient divinities. For info and reservations: 339 4195725 | Culturavventura@gmail.com

Archeoemotions: Discovering the Mosaics of the Submerged Bay (from 11:00 to 12:00). Boat excursion, a unique and inimitable journey to discover the history of the submerged villas of Baia and its spectacular mosaics | For info and reservations: 379 2426496 |nostrosud.srl@libero.it

Bacoli waterways and ... wines. A guided tour to discover two extraordinary Roman archaeological sites hidden in the narrow streets of the historic center of Bacoli: the Cento Camerelle complex and the Piscina Mirabilis.

or info and reservations: 081 014 0916 | info@piscinamirabilisbacoli.it

Discovering the Ancient Misenum (Bacoli - Sacello degli Augustali at 10:00)

Guided walk to discover the sites of the ancient Roman town of Misenum whose port was the seat of the most important fleet of the Roman Empire.

Terramadre life resurfaces | Campi Flegrei Award VI edition | photographic exhibition at Castello di Baia

Flegrea PHOTO association in collaboration with the Phlegraean Fields Archaeological Park

Baia - Archaeological Museum of the Phlegraean Fields | For info: 335 7106976 | contact@flegreaphoto.it

For all updates and news in detail, just consult the event website www.malaze.it.

A Pepper by Any Other Name...Azienda Agricola Vincenzo Egizio, Brusciano (Na)

Vincenzo Egizio

I guess you could say the motto of my visit to Brusciano that Saturday was everything you wanted to know about papaccella Neapolitan peppers but were afraid to ask...
But  i really wasn't...afraid to ask, I mean.
So when I called up Vincenzo Egizio, Azienda Agricola Vincenzo Egizio, one afternoon I shared with him my sudden can't wait until summer desire to learn about that Neapolitan prized pepper - the papaccella.  Sure it would have been nice to walk through the fields, see them.  But it was late February. The last papaccelle peppers were harvested several months ago - just before the first frost.

But my visit with Egizio, I believe, was timed just right,  considering that these Neapolitan peppers had recently (and finally) been recognized as part of the Slow Food Presidia brand.  These tiny peppers are NOT your typical bell peppers.  They are smaller, sweeter - perfect to conserve in a variety of ways.





I've been in this business for around 15 years, and over time we have organized a 'Vesuvian basket' where every product represents a producer.  These are mine.  Let's begin with the Neapolitan papacella.  Like wine, when we purchase a product, we need to know and understand where it comes from. We need to know the producers.  When we taste it, we can't tell if pesticides were used.  Looking at it, however, we can tell it it was grown in a green house or in an open field, if these was sun or bitter cold.  Even by its color we can tell if a large amount of fertilizer was used.  We can understand many things.  So that is why it is very important to know the producer.  How he/she works.  A perfect shiny papaccelle on the shelf may be appealing, but it may also be full of pesticides, etc.  The product must have flavor, but also needs to be good for you.  Even the terrain is important as well as the environment it grows in.  Alll of this contributes to the economic value of this product.  It is also imprtant where the product is grown.  Neapolitan papaccelle expresses itself best in Brusciano or the surrounding valleys such as Pomigliano.  I cannot grow the same product elsewhere  If I give these seeds to another producer, who may be better than I am, if the terrain is not the same, the plant will not be either.


So my next mission - to speak with Egizio about how he conserves the peppers.  Three ways; sweet and sour, marinated in vinegar, and grilled.
Each has its conservation process, each has its own type of dish to accompany it with.  Check out the video, and take a look at my paraphrased translation underneath.





The recipes are mine, prepared in the lab this way, with no conservatives or chemicals- just vinegar, salt, extra virgin olive oil and sugar.  Then pasteurized properly, obviously.  One type of conserving these peppers is the classic way- whole.  

The peppers are washed, then place in a jar with water and vinegar.  They can be used in the classic Neapolitan reinforcement salad or served with pork or cod.  

Another way to conserve them is the sweet and sour method.  Agrodolce.   

These pepper can be eaten straight from the jar though some chefs have used them in sauces.  This method takes up to 5 days.  The peppers are washed, sliced and seeded then placed in a container with vinegar, salt and sugar.  The peppers soaked for about 48 hours, turning every now and then.  During this process, the peppers release water but soak up sugar.  The peppers are then dried for about 2/3 days.  Then placed in jars with extra virgin olive oil.   

Grilled peppers are a little quicker to prepare.  This particular jar has green peppers, which have more acidity.  

Many green peppers are on the market becauase they are the ones harvested last.  The harvest season is from August to November, and during November, producers notice that the frost is about to arrive so they harvest the remaining plants on the vine - many green.  The grilled pepper process is as follows:  the peppers are slice then boiled in water and vinegar aith a certain percentage of salt.  They are then drained, grilled, then placed in jars with parsley, garlic and extra virgin olive oil.  A perfect side dish.

So, it didn't matter that I didn't get a chance to walk the fields with Egizio in the height of the summer harvest season.  That will come later, for sure.  Because I first would like to hang out with him as he plants the seeds - very very soon.

Country Rich - Officina Vesuviana, Somma Vesuviana (Na)

Allora, Karen...I'll send you the GPS coordinates.  Let's hope that it doesn't rain....

And that's how my day in the country Campania began with Giuseppe Rea and Francesco Manzo of Officina Vesuviana began.  Well, sort of.   I had been hoping to have a visit - in the country - in the shadow of Mt Vesuvius for quite some time.  Years maybe.  I don'y know how many times in my 25 + years of living in the Campania region have I seen these pieninelo tomatoes hanging by the roadside during the summer months. 
But it wasn't until recently that I decided to take a bite, so to speak, of these pomodori - those special ones - that can only be found  in the Vesuvius area.  Those ones label PDO. Those that only grow in this particular territory. This pear shaped tomato with a pointy end.  Full of strong acidic flavors thanks to where the soil that they call home.

 Yeah, I could have done a little research on the internet, but I wanted something di piu'.  I wanted to see these tomatoes up close and personal.  To talk about them with those who know what they know what they know.
So let's go back to my message from Giuseppe (aka Peppe) Rea. My appointment with the guys from Officina Vesuviana was for 1:30 pm ish on a cloudy Saturday morning.    I pulled up around 1345 - Rea met me with  a smile and a 3 wheeler piaggio which I followed as he opened up a gate that led me to a goose bumpy world of complex simplicity.
Dark grey fertile volcanic soil - exhilarating aromas of fava beans in the air.  Fantasticaaa!
But I came for tomatoes - even though it wasn't tomato season.  You see, that is the beauty of these piennolo tomatoes from Vesuvius.  Though harvested in the summer, they are conserved in a special way - on braided twine - they can be consumed well into the spring.
So I was treated to a spectacular show - simple for Rea and Manzo, but memorizing for those of us who had never seen it up close and personal. 

Giuseppe Rea

Francesco Manzo

Rea sat and went to work, Manzo explained the process. 
And who imagined that as the months went by that the tomatoes' aromas and taste would change/mature - just like a fine wine.

These tomatoes - three varieties - yellow piennolo vesuvio, red piennolo vesuvio dop, and tigrato-tiger stripe - a wild variety from the Galapagos islands.  These tomatoes have a unique flavor - sharing the unique flavors thanks to the fertile soil from the volcanic soil where they grow.

The guys even  harvested an orange tomato, but we will have to just have to wait until next season for a taste...

As Rea worked, I got to learn a little more about Officina Vesuviana - its philosophy, its products.  Besides fresh tomatoes, they make can their tomatoes as soon as they are harvested.  Canned, but in reality they are jarred and vacuum packed in large glass jars.  I had a chance to try and appreciate assai their various pate' made from each variety.  And since we were located nearby the Vesuvius National Park, it would be a crime to not try their mandarin marmalade.  I did.

But I wanted a quick recipe-  here Manzo shares one for a quick tomato sauce- olive oil, garlic and a few of their fantastic tomatoes....

It's philosophy?  As it turns out, Manzo is math, science and history enthusiast.  Did I mention the goose bumps I had when I arrived?  They came back.  We spoke about mathematical sequences, mathematicians, acidity, soil and future projects as he pointed out wild herbs, sprouts, and everything else under that cloudy volcanic skyIt was hard to keep up, honestly.  But no problem - because I made them promise to invite me back ---when the fava beans are ready to harvest.  As well as other spring vegetables such as contogiorni peas.  And in the summer?  I did notice that small vineyard of Catalanesca grapes next to the apricot orchid.
Fantasticaaa!