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Farrotto allo Zafferano con Pignoli Tostati
Creamy Farro with Saffron and Toasted Pine Nuts
I recently received an absolute treasure trove of Rustichella d’Abruzzo products from Rolando Beramendi of Manicaretti Italian Food Importers. Rustichella D’Abruzzo products, the ones that come in the brown bags, have been a favorite of mine since I was first introduced to them in the mid-eighties by food writer Kristine Kidd. I decided to start with the farro (FAHR-oh). Read the remainder of this entry »
I Opened the Window and in Flew Enza
Or how to feed a fever
I had a little bird, and its name was Enza
I opened the window, and in-flew-enza.
Children’s skip rope rhyme, circa 1918
Flu season is upon us. No doubt about it. Just look at the CDC Weekly Influenza Report, your workplace or your kid’s classroom and you’ll be convinced. While nowhere near as severe as the great Spanish flu pandemic of 1918-1919, which killed an estimated 20 to 40 million people worldwide, this year’s flu is nothing to sneeze at, so to speak.
This is a bit like the “Invalid Cookery” chapter out of Mrs Beeton’s Book of Household Management, but where in the mid-nineteenth century the esteemed Isabella Beeton recommended beef tea, today’s common wisdom dictates soups based on brodo di pollo – chicken broth. I grew up hearing that chicken soup was good for what ailed you, and science has proven it true. So get a head start on the flu season and stock your freezer with several quarts of brodo di pollo.
A word about chicken broth: I’ll say unequivocally that homemade is best. You can control the flavor, and you know exactly what it contains. If you don’t have a personal favorite of your own, click here for mine. Of the many commercial brands available Stock Options* is now my favorite. It comes in 8 and 16 ounce tubs and is in the frozen section at the market. Its flavor is light and clean, and not at all salty. For boxed and canned versions, I can recommend Swanson Certified Organic Chicken broth. It is supplied in a 32 ounce container.
This trio of light broth based soups is perfect for someone in need, and with brodo in your freezer you are halfway there. The decorated pasta squares in the Quadrucci in brodo, will lift the spirits of any flu sufferer. The second, Zuppa Pavese is a meal in itself – toasted bread topped with an egg and Parmigiano and set floating in a pool of hot broth, complete nutrition at its simple, yet satisfying best. For a cooked egg soup, try Stracciatella, light broth brimming with egg. Keep these in your recipe file. Like the Girl Scout motto says: Be prepared.
