My Calabria by Rosetta Costantino with Janet Fletcher

A Book Review

My Calabria: Rustic Family Cooking from Italy’s Undiscovered South

 
I have mentioned it before. I am a cookbook addict, an avid collector. I love the genre, and my shelves are overflowing. Positively, absolutely overflowing. The truth is the books have begun a slow walk across the library floor, down the hall to the side of my bed. Ask anyone who knows me, and they’ll tell you. It is only fitting that the books have made their way to my bedside since cookbooks are my preferred bedtime reading. But with all those books I have had to become highly selective with my purchases. This one, however, was the proverbial no brainer. As soon as I heard that Rosetta Costantino had written a book on the cooking of Calabria, I knew I had to buy it. Ms. Costantino was born in Calabria, and at the age of fourteen came with her parents to the United States. She and her family live in Oakland, California where she teaches cooking. Her book was released late last year. I apologize to you all for keeping it to myself. Its 416 pages are filled with the food and culture of Calabria, all from the very personal viewpoint of Ms. Costantino. This collection of recipes, reminiscences and cultural background will have you reaching for your Post-It Flags.

My husband’s family is from Calabria, and I confess to very little depth of knowledge of the region, its cuisine and culture. Even within Italy itself until very recently the cuisine of Calabria, and of the south in general, was little known to the inhabitants of the north, and vice versa, this owing to age old prejudices and lack of transport and communication. But Bart, as he looked through the book, was oohing and ahhing as he saw food he remembered from his boyhood years, dishes lovingly prepared for him by his mother Frances and his aunts, Mary and Olga. Sure, Bart ate typical American fifties and sixties fare, the food we baby boomers all ate, but Calabria was the backbone of the kitchen, the backbone of his family. Bart’s relatives are gone now, and how I regret not having spent time in the kitchen with them. This book came to my rescue.

Calabria is at the extreme south of the Italian peninsula, in the toe of the boot, separated from Sicily by the Strait of Messina. Bordered on the north by Basilicata and on all other sides by crystal blue seas, it is a region with which most Americans are painfully unfamiliar. Ms. Costantino and co-author Janet Fletcher right this wrong. After opening with an enlightening armchair tour of the region, the authors move to family and life in Calabria. In an immensely readable style there is a historical overview followed by a section on “Key Ingredients” with valuable information and tips on how to select and use the various foods that form the skeleton of Calabrian cooking. From how to measure flour to how to purchase canned tomatoes (go for San Marzano DOP, stay away from citric acid and calcium chloride additives), the authors build a cook’s confidence right from the start.

The book dedicates a chapter to each of the main food categories – Antipasti, Pasta, Soup, Rice and Polenta, Bread, Cheese and Eggs, Seafood, Meat, Vegetables, Dolci along with the Calabrian Pantry.

Among the Antipasti is a wonderful recipe for Olive Nere Secche con Peperoncino (Dry Cured Black Olives with Hot Red Pepper Fennel.) This is much more than a recipe. Here you will find a primer on how to dry cure your own olives – something Bart remembers very clearly from his days at home. Try the Polpette di Melanzane (Crispy Eggplant Meatballs) once, and they’ll become a family favorite.

The Pasta chapter includes a photo glossary of pasta shapes peculiar to the region and recipes. Cavatieddi, Dromesat, Lagani, Scorze di Fagiolini, Struncatura – they are all here. There’s even a photo essay on how to make Calabria’s famous Fusilli – knitting needle pasta. The Rigatoni alla Pastora (Shepherd’s-Style Rigatoni with Ricotta and Sausage) made a wonderful supper for Bart and me the other night.

In Minestre, Riso, Polenta (soup, rice, polenta) Ms. Costantino points out several differences in technique between Calabrian cuisine and that of the north. Calabrian cooks most often use water in soups rather than broth to prevent masking the true flavor of the soup’s ingredients. Their polenta is finely ground, another contrast to the north. And finally, Calabrian rice dishes are typically boiled, rather than cooked risotto style. It is details such as these, carefully gathered and cogently presented that give the reader a true feeling for the cuisine of this rugged land. This section alone could keep you busy in the kitchen for a week.

Perhaps my favorite chapter is Pane, Pitte, Formaggi, Uova (bread, cheese, eggs.) It opens with the Calabrian baker’s prayer, and it got to me straightaway.

Crisci pasta, comu crischu Cristu nta fascia
(Grow, dough, as the Baby Jesus grew in his swaddling cloth)

A discussion of the breads common to the area includes a detailed recipe of how to make her family’s everyday bread. We are even taught how to make bread crumbs. This is a cuisine where nothing, absolutely nothing goes to waste. But my favorite part of this chapter is Ms. Costantino’s recipe for homemade ricotta cheese. Over the years I have made versions with varying combinations of dairy products. The curdling agents were as varied as the dairy combinations – lemon juice, vinegar or citric acid. You name it. The author’s technique is a complete departure for me. A mixture of milk and cream is heated and then poured into a clean pot. Salt is added, the mixture cooled, and liquid rennet is added. The result was creamy ricotta with mild flavor. Warm, it was a delectable topping for a piece of grilled bread. This is my new favorite homemade ricotta.

Throughout the book are glimpses into the life, culture and people of Calabria. These insights elevate this from cookbook to something more, providing as they do, immersion into Calabrian life. In Pesce (fish) is an essay on La Tonnara (The Tuna Hunt) that is at once both touching and informative. Included are recipes for swordfish and tuna, the Calabrian fishermen’s two most prized catches. The Octopus salad is simply gorgeous and you will find all you need to know to bake an entire branzino in salt, Branzino Sotto Sale.  I have included a recipe for Swordfish from her book.  Do try this at home.

In Carne (meat) are recipes for veal, rabbit, lamb and goat, but as Ms. Costantino writes “Pork is the undisputed King among meats in Calabria.” And this chapter proves it. If you are looking for Pork Rolls or Meatballs, they are here. I found the section on Salumi, with its beautiful photographs and detailed descriptions of the various regional Salumi and notes on their production particularly informative. Many of these products are not available in the United States, so I found this well worth the read.

The bounty of the vegetable garden is also well served here. When Americans think of Italian food, we often neglect vegetables. But Italians have a way with vegetables, and they eat a lot of them. We are treated to a shot of Ms. Costantino’s father in their orto (home garden.) The Costantino family garden brought back memories for Bart. He recalled his own family’s orto – fully half a city lot and every nook and cranny elsewhere on his extended family’s property. They grew almost every vegetable they ate, and with this book his mom and aunts could have cooked them all. Verdure (vegetables) includes, among other recipes, a delightful Tortiera di Patate e Carciofi (Potatoes Layered with Artichokes and Breadcrumbs), the classic Parmigiana di Melanzane (Eggplant Parmigiana with Fresh Ricotta), the traditional Ciambotta (Vegetable Stew) and no less than three zucchini recipes. Cruciferous vegetables are represented also with Cavolfiore Impanato ( Fried Cauliflower) and Cavolo Cappuccio con Pepe Nero (Braised Cabbage with Pancetta and Black Pepper). Who said veggies can’t be good?

What is not cooked, can be preserved. In La Dispensa Calabrese (the Calabrian pantry) are detailed instructions for water bath canning along with a year-long preserving calendar. With recipes for everything from Green Tomato Jam to Fig Jam to Zucchini Sott’Olio (Zucchini Preserved in Oil – the author and her mother make 100 pounds every summer), it is all here. This is cooking from the ground up. This is eating local. Out of a tradition of need the Calabrians learned how to make summer’s bounty last throughout the year.

And then come sweets. Dolci (desserts), my favorite food group – just ask those who know me. I must have my sweets, and if they are deep fried, well, all the better I say. Here you will find beautiful Cannariculi (Fried Ridged Pastry with Warm Honey Glaze) and two kinds of sweet fried ravioli. Oh my. But I’d say my favorite is Grispelle (Warm Christmas Doughnuts), yeasty deep fried treats that are so special they are reserved for Christmas. Most beautiful are the Pesche con Crema (Peaches with Pastry Cream.) Two little cakes are sandwiched together with pastry cream, dipped in scarlet liqueur or food coloring and rolled around in sugar. And yes, they look like real peaches and taste like fruit from the angels. I can’t neglect the gelati – Ricotta, Licorice and Dark Chocolate with Hot Red Pepper. And of course Tartufo. Sweets are big here. Sweets are good here.

Sara Remington’s photographs illustrate life in Calabria and its food with a respect saturated with a connection to the land. Her honest and vibrant style gives the reader a solid sense of how the finished dishes ought to appear.

Wine suggestions from Shelley Lindgren of San Francisco’s A16 and SPQR restaurants are especially informative, explaining as they do what characteristics of a wine make it a good match for the dish at hand. For example, the hot peppers in Spaghetti Aglio, Olio e Peperoncino (Spaghetti with Garlic, Olio and Red Pepper) call for a light-bodied red low in tannin – too much tannin would amplify the pepper’s heat and unbalance the dish. And that’s just for starters. With Ms. Lindgren’s recommendations you will become adept at matching the wines of southern Italy with its foods.

As you delve into the book, you will develop a sense of the Calabrian people and how wisely they work with Mother Nature to make the best use of their land and seas. With each turn of the page their creativity will inspire you. This book is good in every way – a feast for the stomach and the eye, a testament to Rosetta Costantino’s deep and abiding love for the land of her birth.

And don’t forget the Post-It flags.

At the bottom of the page I have listed the many ways to learn more from Ms. Costantino – this is one connected woman. I encourage you to explore her website. You will be glad you did.

Pesce Spada alla Bagnarese
Swordfish in a Garlicky Broth, Bagnara Style

Serves 2

Bagnara Calabra-Bagnara for short-is the center of Calabria’s swordfish fishery, occupying a sliver of Tyrrhenian coast between mountains and sea. From April to July, these giant migratory fish travel along the Costa Viola, between Bagnara and Scilla, on their way to the Strait of Messina. For more than forty years, the town of Bagnara has staged an annual swordfish festival the second weekend in July to honor the local specialty. Thousands of people from all over Italy descend on the town to enjoy fresh swordfish with pasta, or grilled, or steamed by this unusual method common in Bagnara.

You will need a baking dish or lidded casserole just large enough to hold the fish in one layer and a larger flameproof baking dish or roasting pan that can hold the smaller dish in a bath of simmering water. The thin steaks steam quickly in their own juice, producing an aromatic broth with the mingled flavors of parsley, capers, and garlic. Serve with crusty Italian bread to soak up the tasty broth.

American fishmongers slice swordfish too thickly, in my opinion. In Italy, it is always sliced more thinly, so it cooks quickly and remains juicy and tender. If you can only find thick steaks, halve them horizontally with a long, sharp knife. This dish is so delicate and simple that fresh, not frozen, swordfish is a must.

You can double the recipe to serve four people, but make sure you have a baking dish large enough to hold all four steaks in one layer, and a deep flameproof roasting pan large enough to hold the baking dish. Struncatura (page 68) or another seafood pasta would be an appropriate first course.

Suggested wine: Pasetti Zarache, Trebbiano d’Abruzzo, Abruzzo
A lean, dry white wine from the Trebbiano grape with enough body to stand up to meaty swordfish.
Alternate: Dry Chenin Blanc

2 skinless fresh swordfish steaks, about 3/8 inch (9 millimeters) thick and 5 to 6 ounces (160 grams) each
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil, plus more for garnish
1 large garlic clove, very thinly sliced
1 tablespoon capers, preferably salt-packed, rinsed
1 tablespoon chopped flat-leaf parsley
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

Season the swordfish on both sides with salt and pepper. Using the 1 tablespoon olive oil, coat a baking dish just large enough to hold the swordfish. Put the swordfish in the baking dish and scatter the garlic around it. Sprinkle the surface of the fish with capers and parsley. Spoon the lemon juice and 1 tablespoon water over the fish. Cover the baking dish tightly with a lid or aluminum foil.

Choose a large roasting pan or other deep pan that can take stovetop heat and accommodate the baking dish. Set the pan on a burner and put the baking dish in it. In a separate pan or teakettle, bring several cups of water to a boil for pouring into the roasting pan. Turn the heat to high under the roasting pan and add enough boiling water to come halfway up the sides of the baking dish. After the water returns to a boil, cook the fish for 8 minutes. Uncover and check for doneness; the fish should be cooked through but still moist and surrounded with flavorful juices. Taste the juices and add more salt if necessary.

Serve the swordfish in shallow bowls, spooning the garlicky broth over the fish. Drizzle each portion with additional extra virgin olive oil.

Recipe and picture reprinted with the permission of W.W. Norton & Company, Inc.

You may connect with Rosetta at:

Cooking with Rosetta
Calabria From Scratch
Twitter
Facebook
My Calabria Facebook page

 
My Calabria: Rustic Family Cooking from Italy’s Undiscovered South
by Rosetta Costantino with Janet Fletcher
Hardcover, W. W. Norton & Company (November 8, 2010)
416 pages
ISBN-10: 0393065162
ISBN-13: 978-0393065169

Note: You can click on any picture for a larger image, and to see a slide show!

I have no affiliation with any product, manufacturer, or site mentioned in this article.