L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 4, 2021 www.italoamericano.org 26 L'Italo-Americano LUCA SIGNORINI C ooking is crea- tivity, it's an art. In the end, it's all about brin- ging together fla- vors, colors, textures that please and satisfy, but also that tell something about who we are and where we come from. Even the way we cut our sandwiches may say something about us and our heritage, right? Cooking, though, is also experimenting, because as all artists, chefs and cooks a l s o l i k e t o d i s c o v e r n e w combinations and try the unusual: so many recipes were born this way, and how often did our family version of a classic staple — pasta al forno, parmigiana, risotti, you name it — emerge from a moment of impromptu crea- t i v i t y o f o u r m o t h e r s o r grandmothers? That's the thing: often, the experimen- t a l p a r t o f c o o k i n g i s t h e result of a conscious will to c h a n g e a r e c i p e , t o t r y something new. Other times, and this was the case espe- cially in past, when our ance- stors needed to feed a full family with a potato and a handful vegetables, experi- menting was a necessity: facis de necessitate virtutem, t h a t i s , p e o p l e n e e d e d t o make virtue of necessity. But it wasn't only a matter of poverty or restrictions, such as those imposed, for instan- ce, on commerce during the Second World War, but also of what was available seaso- nally and locally. Generally — or in soldoni, as we like to say in Italy — this is how our cucina pove- ra came to be. "Cucina pove- ra," as made with poor, sim- ple ingredients, but certainly not poor in taste, flavor and wholesomeness. Many of us grew up eating these delica- cies of other times, cheap and cheerful dishes, born from the necessity not to waste anything. but also to feed families with gusto, because having a nice dinner can put a smile of people's face, even after the hardest of days. Cucina povera is ubiqui- tous in our country, every region has its dishes and every region adds something local to the mix, but there are some ingredients that recur: bread, for instance, is king f r o m N o r t h t o S o u t h : i n P i e m o n t e , i t i s t h e m a i n ingredient of torta di pane, a cake made with stale bread and leftover fruit, and pana- da, a delicious soup made with, again, bread and broth, topped with loads of parme- san. Variations of panada are popular a bit everywhere in the country: in Sicily, there a r e v e r s i o n s w i t h t o m a t o sauce and even with ground beef added to it. Fett'unta ("greasy slice," literally!) is simple bread bruscato, that is, made crunchier in the oven, covered in olive oil and garlic. It's the great-uncle of modern bruschetta and it's been long considered the f a v o r i t e l u n c h o f f a r m e r s across the peninsula. In Alto- Adige, stale bread is at the heart of a typical recipe, canederli, made with cubed bread, eggs and milk, along with other ingredients, like spinach or spek. In Tuscany, b r e a d i s p r o t a g o n i s t o f another popular cucina pove- ra dish, the panzanella, a salad with a base of stale bread soaked in water, top- ped with a mix of tomato, onion, basil, salt, extra virgin o l i v e o i l , a n d v i n e g a r . I n Romagna, old bread is used to make passatelli. In Sicily, it is used to make pasta con pane e olio and pasta c'an- ciova: the first is also known as pasta alla Carrettiera, a dish made with pasta, bread, garlic, salt and olive oil; the second adds an extra punch of flavor with the addition of anchovies. In Naples, the symbol of cucina povera is certainly the frittata di pasta, made with whichever pasta was lef- tover after a day of celebra- tions. Making it is simple, you just need to add some egg and cheese to the past and fry it in a pan. Vegetables and legumes are kings of the cucina pove- r a , b e c a u s e t h e y c o m e aplenty and, especially when you are in the countryside, t h e y g r o w i n t h e g a r d e n . T u s c a n y i s k n o w n f o r i t s ribollita, made traditionally with kale, stale bread, beans and extra virgin olive oil. It gets its name from the habit, once upon a time, to make the soup in large quantities and to reheat it (ribollire), for m a n y d a y s a f t e r w a r d s . Always in Tuscany, cucina p o v e r a m e a n s p a p p a a l p o m o d o r o , t y p i c a l o f Florence and Siena and made with tomato, bread and olive oil. Cucina povera is not only made of what's leftover and you don't want to waste, it also means dishes made with cheap ingredients that fill up the stomach. In the North, polenta is a staple of cucina povera just like bread: it was available in large quantities and cost very little. It could be eaten on its own, or just with a bit oil and cheese, but it could also be accompanied with meats, in the occasions where it could be afforded. The beauty of cucina pove- ra lies in its incredible simpli- city typical, when you think of it, of Italian cuisine in general: good ingredients, traditional and local, brought together to create new fla- vors, with an eye to economy a n d r e d u c i n g w a s t e , t o o . While at the times of our grandparents cucina povera was a bit of a necessity, today it should be considered almo- st a duty, a way to limit waste and to teach ourselves not only something about our traditions, but also about eating well, without breaking the bank. Panzanella is a typical dish of cucina povera from Tuscany (Photo: © Janna Danilova | Dreamstime.com) The flavorsome wealth of Italy's cucina povera LIFESTYLE FASHION FOOD ARTS ADVICE

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