Summertime brought to our minds fresh, sunny, Southern Italian seafood dishes, and we stumbled upon a great cookbook, Chef Giuliano Bugialli’s “Foods of Sicily, Sardinia and the smaller islands” (1996, Rizzoli International Publications). We often talk about Chef Bugialli’s “Parma” cookbook, edited by Academia Barilla and available at the Academia Barilla online store, but we like also Chef Bugialli’s exploration of further Italian regional traditional cuisines.

Today’s recipe comes from Trapani, Sicily: Couscous alla Trapanese (Couscous Old Trapani Style). Couscous is a typical Arab dish, imported into the food culture of Southern Mediterranean countries more than a 1,000 years ago. Traditionally, Arab couscous is made with meat and vegetables, but the unique Tunisian version of couscous is made entirely with fish and seafood.

The proximity of Trapani, Sicily, and Tunis, Tunisia, and the commercial and social exchanges that intertwined the two cities over the centuries, allowed a fusion of some cultural topics from architecture to fishing style and, obviously, to food. Trapani is less than 300 miles away from Tunis, and some of the Sicilian minor islands, such as Pantelleria and Lampedusa are even closer, as you can see in the Google Map below.

Trapani absorbed the Tunisian couscous culture (and vice-versa), adding its own Sicilian touch to a typical Arab dish. The Sicilian Couscous alla trapanese is a main course, and its unusual feature is that fish and chicken are combined in the same dish, a duo sometimes found in Spain (Valencian Paella) but not in Italy. It has become very difficult to find authentic preparations of this dish because today Italians often omit the chicken.

Nowadays people rebel as much at the amount of work and time required to make real couscous as they do to make real polenta. Certainly precooked versions of these grains save time but it is important to understand that in using these precooked versions, the real flavor and texture of the dish are sacrificed.

Ready for the Couscous Old Trapani Style? This recipe requires a long preparation time.

COUSCOUS ALLA TRAPANESE
(Couscous Old Trapani Style)
A recipe by Chef Giuliano Bugialli
(Dish picture by John Dominis)

INGREDIENTS FOR THE SAUCE

- 1 large red onion, cleaned and coarsely chopped
- 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1 1/2 pounds blanched and seeded tomatoes, cut into large pieces
- about 2 pounds fish heads and tails, wrapped in cheesecloth
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
- a large pinch of hot red pepper flakes
- 20 sprigs Italian parsley, leaves only
- 6 large cloves garlic, peeled
- 10 very large fresh basil leaves, left whole
- 4 tablespoons tomato paste
- 3 cups completely defatted chicken broth, preferably homemade

INGREDIENTS FOR THE FISH AND CHICKEN

- 6 medium-sized calamari (about 1/2 pounds), cleaned and cut into 1/2 inch rings
- 2 pounds of different types of non-oily fish, cut into large pieces, with bone (Langoustine, the small lobsters, are optional)
- 1 large lemon
- coarse-grained salt
- 1 chicken (about 3 pounds), cut into 10 pieces, with all the extra fat removed

INGREDIENTS FOR THE COUSCOUS (NOT PRECOOKED)

- 1 pound couscous
- salt to taste
- 1/2 cup lukewarm water
- a large pinch of ground saffron
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 5 large bay leaves

INGREDIENTS FOR PRECOOKED COUSCOUS

Follow the procedure printed on the box, adding oil, not butter, as well the bay leaves and ground saffron listed above.

INGREDIENTS FOR THE BROTH 

- 4 quarts very light chicken broth, preferably homemade
- 4 bay leaves
- a large pinch of ground saffron
- 4 medium-sized carrots, scraped and cut into large pieces

INGREDIENTS TO SERVE

- 3 or 4 langoustine for decoration (optional)
- 15 sprigs Italian parsley, leaves only, coarsely chopped

PREPARATION

Soak the chopped onion pieces in a bowl of cold water for 1/2 hour. Soak the calamari and fish pieces in a large bowl of cold water with the lemon, cut in half and squeezed, and a little coarse salt for 1/2 hour.

If you are making your own couscous, place the (not precooked) grain in a large bowl. Add salt to the water along with the saffron and start adding the water by tablespoonfuls while constantly rubbing the grains between the palms of your hands. Do not add extra water until the previous tablespoonful has been completely absorbed by the grain and uniformly distributed. When all the water is used up, oil your palms and again rub the grains. Keep repeating until all the oil is used up.

Place the 4 quarts of broth along with the bay leaves, saffron and carrots in a stockpot and bring to a boil over medium heat. Line a colander with a thick cheesecloth then mix the prepared couscous with the bay leaves and put it in the prepared colander.

Fold the cheesecloth over the top and insert the colander in the stockpot containing the boiling broth. Tightly cover the colander with a lid or with aluminium foil. If you have a lot of space between the stockpot and the colander, you can seal it by wrapping a kitchen towel dampened in cold water all around or you can make a dough with flour and water, and attach it all around the opening in order to keep the steam from coming out (the dough method is Sicilian and probably older than the cloth method). Let simmer for 1 hour.

Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large casserole over medium heat. When the oil is warm, drain the onions and add them to the casserole; sauté for 5 minutes, stirring constantly. Add the tomatoes and cook for 15 minutes, stirring every so often with a wooden spoon. Add the fish heads and tails with their cheesecloth wrapping and cook for 15 minutes, turning the “bags” over 2 or 3 times. Season with salt, pepper and the hot pepper flakes.

Finely chop parsley and garlic together on a board. Add the chopped ingredients along with the whole basil leaves to the casserole, mix very well and cook for 5 minutes more. Dissolve the tomato paste in the broth and pour it into casserole. Lower heat and simmer for 1 hour. The liquid should be reduced by half. Remove and discard the cheesecloth with all its fish bones.

Taste the sauce for seasoning. Start adding the fish that require at least 35 minutes of cooking time, such as calamari, to the broth. Add the other fish and chicken pieces that take less time as appropriate. The chicken will not take more than 20 minutes to cook.

Open the cheesecloth, mix the couscous very well to be sure no lumps have formed, then close it again and cook for 1 hour more.

When the sauce is ready and the fish and chicken are cooked, transfer the couscous to a large serving platter. Pour all the sauce over the couscous, arrange all the fish and chicken, with or without langoustine, on top and sprinkle with parsley. Serve hot.

CHEF TIPS FROM ACADEMIA BARILLA

To obtain a full Sicilian flavor, the Academia Barilla Chef Team suggests to use Academia Barilla’s Monti Iblei Sicilian extra virgin olive oil and Natural Sicilian Sea Salt with Black Olive Oils - they are both available at the Academia Barilla online store.

Buon Appetito!

This month we won’t only introduce renowned Chef Tony Mantuano, but also wine expert Cathy Mantuano. James Beard award-winning chef Tony Mantuano is Chef and Partner of Spiaggia, the only 4-star Italian restaurant in Chicago! Chef Mantuano and wine expert and wife Cathy recently released a new cookbook titled Wine Bar Food that features Academia Barilla products in the book!!! They also are running a casual dining café-restaurant called Café Spiaggia that complements the recently launched exclusive shoreside Private Dining Rooms of Spiaggia. And there will soon be an event with Zagat next month!

Wait, wait, too much info, let’s start introducing both our new Guest Chef and wine expert.

Chef Tony Mantuano, as reported on his bio published on the Spiaggia Restaurant site, “loves green, fruity olive oil, rare Italian cheeses, woodsy porcini mushrooms and the riches of Italian gastronomy“, which he considers “every day specialties“.

After spending one year in Italy back in 1983, learning all he could about traditional Italian cooking and working at a number of Guide Michelin-rated restaurants near Milan and on the Tuscan coast in Viareggio, Chef Tony Mantuano learned to prepare regional specialties that few Americans had ever experienced.

When Chef Mantuano opened Spiaggia Restaurant in 1984, he was widely acclaimed as a trailblazer of fine Italian cuisine, with reviews from the Chicago Tribune calling Spiaggia “the best high-end Italian restaurant between the coasts” and describing the Italian restaurant as “a jewel” and the food as “spectacular“.

While operating also his family’s restaurant, Mangia, in his native Kenosha, Wisconsin, Chef Mantuano took Spiaggia for a new spin in 2000, reshaping the restaurant’s traditional menu into “an exemplar of contemporary Italian cuisine,” with signature dishes such as Crescenza Cheese-Filled Pasta Pillows with Parmigiano-Reggiano, Brown Butter, Rosemary and Garlic, or the Succulent Roasted Turbot with Sunchoke Puree, Porcini Mushrooms and Veal Mushroom Sauce.

Tony Mantuano is the author, with co-author and wife Cathy Mantuano, of “The Spiaggia Cookbook: Eleganza Italiana in Cucina” (Chronicle Books 2004, awarded as one of the twenty-five best cookbooks of 2004 by Food & Wine). He also has appeared nationally on CNN and PBS, is a regular contributor to the local ABC, CBS and FOX affiliates in Chicago, and has been a guest on popular food talk shows, such as “The Frank DeCaro Show” and “Food Talk with Rocco DiSpirito.”

In 2004, Zagat Survey awarded Spiaggia the “Best Italian Restaurant in Chicago” and the restaurant was named one of the Top five in Chicago by Chicago Magazine. Chef Mantuano also received Chicago Tribune’s “Good Eating Award” and James Beard Foundation’s Best Chef: MidWest Award in 2005.

The recent launch of the fashionable Cafe Spiaggia, in the heart of the Magnificent Mile in Chicago, brought the dimension of the neighborhood cafe sanctuary and casual dining room in the fast pace of Michigan Avenue, creating a new well-known neighborhood Chicago favorite.

Chef-Partner Tony Mantuano and wine expert Cathy Mantuano, their cookbooks and their restaurants get plenty of rave reviews from the likes of Forbes blogs, Chicago Sun Times, Food & Wine, Condé Nast Traveler on Concierge.com, Epicurious.com and OpenTable.com.

Spiaggia’s address is One Magnificent Mile (on the corner of Michigan and Oak) - 980 North Michigan Avenue, Level 2, Chicago, Illinois 60611 - Google Map for your driving directions here below.

For more info on Tony Mantuano please check Spiaggia’s and Cafe Spiaggia’s web pages.

If you are interested in the Italian cookbooks published by Tony and Cathy Mantuano, you can purchase them online at Barnes and Noble and Amazon.com. Wine Bar Food is also available at CrateandBarrel.com.

Or, if you live in the Chicago Area and can’t wait to catch up in person with Tony and Cathy, they have a book signing and demo scheduled on July 2nd beginning at 2 p.m. as part of the Taste of Chicago. They will be located outside the Zagat pavilion signing copies and showcasing recipes from Wine Bar Food - save the date!

This is getting quite long for a blog post, so we cut it here to introduce to you wine expert Cathy and Chef Tony Mantuano with their first gourmet recipe tomorrow!

The Italian Cooking Show, now at its second edition, opened its doors to all Italian food lovers in Coral Gables, FL, last Thursday May 22 for a journey through Italian regional culinary traditions.

Don’t worry if you missed the opening the Italian Cooking Show, as the culinary event has been already scheduled on other dates throughout summertime: June 19, July 17 and August 21, always on Thursday.

We really like the event description on the show brochure by the Italy-America Chamber of Commerce SouthEast, so we report it here below:

The Italian culture is rich in history, art, classic architecture and popular tradition, making it an influential part of the history of Western civilization. As a result of continuous historical, geographical, social and cultural changes taken place for centuries, our culinary heritage inevitably acquires an inestimable value.

In the last 50 years, the Italian culinary tradition has become a universal and distinctive trademark of the Italian country and culture. The wander through Italy’s countless marvels can begin with one of its most revealing treasures: cuisine.

The wholesomeness and genuineness of the Italian products sharply contrast with the qualities of the numerous products of a lesser quality currently circulating in the US market and often misleadingly promoted as Italian.

The Italian Cooking Show is hosted at the stylish MiaCucina Showroom (105 Miracle Mile, Coral Gables, FL 33134, Google Maps below for driving directions) in Coral Gables, with top Chefs from renowned Italian restaurants demonstrating the different regional cooking methods used in preparing traditional dishes (pairing wines will be served too).

Each of the 4 Italian Cooking Shows starts at 6:30 PM with cooking demonstrations from top Chefs, who will engage in Italian regional cuisine preparations until 8:30 PM. Cooking demonstrations are followed by an open reception and free tasting session, until 9:30 PM. and each of the 4 Italian Cooking Shows will be dedicated to the culinary traditions of specific selected Italian regions, according to the following schedule:

Thursday May 22 has been dedicated to the cuisine of Northern Italy: Piedmont, Lombardia, Veneto, Trentino.
Thursday June 19 will be dedicated to the traditional regional cuisine of Central Italy: Tuscany, Emilia-Romagna, Umbria, Marche.
On Thursday July 17 all the secrets of traditional regional cuisine from Southern Italy will be revealed, with an exploration of the cuisine of Campania, Abruzzo, Puglia and Calabria.
Last but not least, Thursday August 21 the Italian Cooking Show will focus on the culinary traditions of the Italian Islands: Sicily and Sardinia.

Academia Barilla will be of course participating to the event, and Academia Barilla Italian Culinary Specialist Costantino Cicchelli will be on site, offering free tasting sessions and culinary tips for getting the best out of Academia Barilla’s range of Italian traditional regional gourmet products, all of them available also at the Academia Barilla online store, if you cannot make it to the Italian Cooking Show in Miami!

Live the life of Italian luxury through your sense of smell, sight and taste with a native Italian as your guide. Separate fact from myth as you learn how extra virgin olive oil is produced and what makes a great one. Experience the best of the best featuring extra virgin olive oils, balsamic vinegars, pecorino, Parmigiano Reggiano, Salame di Parma, and Prosciutto di Parma. Taste olive oil like the professionals by sampling 3 DOP extra virgin olive oils from different regions of Italy and learn which types of foods are complimented by each. Understand how balsamic vinegars are produced and aged, and taste the differences.

The discussion and tasting of cheeses focuses on sheep’s milk pecorino and cow’s milk Parmigiano Reggiano. Italian meats like salame and Prosciutto di Parma are cured in a natural way that enhances their flavors. When you taste these authentic products, you’ll be able to select and buy with confidence (which you can also do at our online store if you cannot make it to the Ducantur class).

Save the date (and the location): The Cook’s Warehouse and
Sherlock’s Wine Merchant in Decatur next Thursday, June 12, from 7 PM to 9 PM.
Admission is 55$. The address to the class location is 180 W. Ponce de Leon Avenue
Decatur, GA 30030, a Google Map is provided here below for your driving convenience.

�
Five Chef assistants will be in the kitchen 45 minutes before class
to assist all participants with the preparation work, so try to get to the class a bit in advance.

Call
Simone Stevenson
at
The Cook’s Warehouse & Sherlock’s Wine Merchant
for more info at +1 (404) 377-4005 (Store)
or visit Cook’s Warehouse website for more info and a full schedule of culinary classes.

Organized by Academia Barilla partners Learn About Wine, TASTE Italy just found new event locations where food culture merges with architecture and design, Los Angeles’ A+D Museum (Architecture and Design Museum) and LACMA, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.

TASTE Italy is one of the few wine events in the US where the selection of Italian wine producers and wineries not only is excellent, but also very consistent, with more than 50 premium and super premium wines to explore and discover each particular wine region or style in Italian wine making. Here is a partial list of the wines you can taste this evening at TASTE Italy:

Michelle Chiarlo, Barbera d’Asti, Piedmonte, Italy 2006
Pighin Estate, Pinto Grigio, Grave, Italy 2006
Nozzole, Chianti Classico Reserva, Tuscany, 2005
Guidalberto, Tenuta San Guido (Sassicaia producer), Toscana, 2004
Tenute Silvio Nardi, Rosso di Montalcino, Tuscany 2005�
Tor Calvano, Vino Nobile di Montepulciano, Tuscany 2004
Saia, Feudo Macari, Silicy 2004
Livio Felluga, Pinot Grigio, Grave 2007
Castello di Monsanto, Chianti Classico Riserva, Toscana 2004
Capezzana “Carmignano” 2003
Il Poggiale Morello Toscano Rosso 2005
Lasorda Pinot Grigio del Veneto 2006
Abbazia Prosecco Spumante Gold 2007�
Santi Valpolicella Ripasso 2005
Ca’ Bianca Gavi 2006
Rapitala “Campo Reale” Nero D’Avola 2006
Nino Negri Sfursat Valtellina 2004
San Leonino Chianti Classico 2004
Castello di Volpaia Chianti Classico 2005
Castello de Volpaia Borgianni 2006
San Felice, Tenuta Perolla Vermentino 2007
San Felice, Tenuta Perolla Rosso 2006
San Felice, “Il Grigio” Chianti Classico Riserva 2004
Villa Jolanda, Moscato Rose’ NVMaioli, Dolcetto di Ovada, Piedmonte 2003 (LearnAboutWine Cellar)
Antinori, Santa Cristina, Sangiovese, Toscana, 1999�
Vietti, Barbera D’Asti “La Crena”, Asti/Piedmonte 2001�
Santa Martina, Rosso, Toscana, 2005
Canalegrande, Daniela Rigamonti, Barbera & Bonarda, 2005
Gaia, Ca’Marcanda, Promis, Toscana, 2004
Il Poggione, Brunello di Montalcino, 2001
Serpico, Dei Feudi Di San Gregorio, 2003
Palazzo Della Torre, Veronese, Allegrini, 2004
Terredora Greco
Terredora Falanghina
Terredora Aglianico
Argiano non Confonditur (Tuscan blend)
Ceuso Scurati (Nero Avola)
Maso Poli P Grigio 2006
Cantele Negroamaro Rosato 2007
Castrelvero Cortese 2007
Colosi Rosso 2006
Cantele Primitivo 2005
Castelvero Barbera 2006
Taburno Falanghina, Taburno 2007�
Caggiano Tari Aglianico, Campania 2006�
Molletieri Aglianico Cinque Querce, Campania 2005�
Bisol Prosecco
Lasorda GM Chianti Classicoadd
Val di Suga - Brunello di Montalcino Spuntali 1999
Ermacora Tocai Friulano 2006�
Rocca di Montegrossi Chianti Classico 2005�
Tenuta Garetto Barbera d’Asti Superiore”Fava” 2003
Vigne e Vini Schiaccianoci Negroamaro del Salento IGT 2005
Ca Berti Lambrusco Grasparossa di Castelvetro “Amabile” sweet

How can you taste all this great wines and not get drunk? Well, here is some great advice from the wine experts at Learn About Wine: you shouldn’t actually drink the wines you taste and, after visual, olfactive and mouth tasting, wines should be spit, as professional sommeliers and wine tasters do. Then, at the end of your tasting round, you can focus on the one or two wines that appealed most to your personal taste, and have a glass of them to fully enjoy the experience.

Other good advice is to actually get some food in between wines, and this is where Academia Barilla gets in at TASTE Italy. Italian Culinary Specialist Francesco Zimone will be at the event with a food tasting booth where you can explore Academia Barilla’s Italian regional food selection that matches the wine regions, with traditional gourmet specialties from Emilia Romagna, Liguria, Tuscany, Sardinia and Sicily - the best way to taste Italy (and balance the drinking)!

Other appetizers and desserts will be also provided by Angeli Caffè, one of LA’s best Italian restaurants, and Acadie Crepes, who will offering Mediterranean crepes both sweet and savory, another good way to match the different wine styles.

TASTE Italy opens today June 6 at 7:30 PM, and will close at 9:30 PM. The address to the A+D Museum is 5900 Wilshire Blvd, Los Angeles, California 90036 (right across from LACMA). Admission is 55$ advance purchase, 70$ at the door, with proceeds benefiting both A+D and LACMA Museums. For more info call Learn About Wine at +1 (310) 451-7600.

We provide here a Google Map for driving directions but allow us to suggest not to drive, so you can indulge (responsibly) in the wine tasting experience and don’t worry about going back home safely. Or, you can always have a designated driver who won’t be tasting wine, and still enjoying the event hanging out at the Academia Barilla booth for a great gourmet food tasting!

TASTE Italy is the first appointment of this new Friday Night Wine Tasting series at A+D, the next scheduled events will be TASTE Paso and BBQ on July 11th, TASTE Sonoma on August 1st, and TASTE ABC and Tango (Argentina, Brazil, Chile) on September 5th. Save the dates!

Final non-culinary suggestion? If you plan to attend the TASTE events at A+D, try to get there a few hours in advance, so you can also enjoy the great exhibitions at both the A+D Museum and LACMA.

The A+D Museum currently features “After the Flood“, an architecture exhibition presenting proposals for replacement housing and redevelopment in New Orleans Louisiana in the aftermath of the Hurricane Katrina.

The Los Angeles County Museum of Art features several parallel exhibitions and events, such Phantom Sightings, a selection Chicane video art, the photo exhibition of LA artist Philip-Lorca Dicorcia (through September), or the painting exhibition of artist Ernst Ludvig Kirchner.