CSA vegetables

roasted zucchini and eggplant from my CSA, marinated with fresh oregano, basil and mint from the herb pots on the balcony

More Sicilian Street Food

so it wasn't all just sheep's brains and tongues, there were a few normal things to eat in the main street market in Palermo

Sicilian street food

I have a friend in New York who always fantasizes about having a bar or restaurant that focuses on Sicilian street food. These are photos I took in May of the street food available in the Ballaro market.

snails with lots of garlic, parsley and black pepper

steamed lambs head with lemon and parsley

C.S.A 3.2

so these are my cooking greens from the C.S.A. a bunch of chard and kale and weird miners lettuce. I like to cook them Moroccan style, sauteed with a little minced garlic, preserved lemon and one fierce chili pepper. I forgot to drizzle it with Argan oil. Maybe next time.

here are the greens just blanched. It's always amazing what they cook down to.

How it all Began

A couple of years ago, my brother took me to this place off the hustle and bustle of Termini train station in Rome. I was on the way to the airport for a flight back to New York and looking for something to get to avoid having to eat the dreaded airplane food. Termini is tourist and immigrant center in Rome. One does not normally get good or authentic food anywhere near there. But this little spot has obviously been there a long time. Er Porchetta it was called, and it had just three tiny tables squeezed in to the tiny space. It was nine o'clock in the morning and one table was occupied by a train or bus conductor. He was having a morning "merenda" of sliced tomatoes and anchovies and a nice refreshing glass of white wine. In the front was a glass case with a porchetta in it and in the back a small service counter with a small refrigerator behind. The place was maybe 150 square feet in all and such a slice of old Rome. Porchetta is a passion of mine and something to always eat greedily in Italy since you didn't find it in the States. I've always loved minimalist eating places. I was amazed by the women in Vietnam who carried a street stall with them on a pole. Table and chairs at one end, cooking utensils and food at the other. You could hail them like you do a cab in other cities. They set down the baskets, set up the table and chairs and their cooking station and whip you up something incredible to eat. I spent a long hot week alone in Pnomh Penh, watching this guy in utter fascination he had a table on the side walk with two woks, one with water, one with oil. A little mise en place on one side, a little mise en place on the other a fridge behind and there again he cooked up the most amazing dishes effortlessly. Other chefs dream of thousand square feet kitchens with brass and enamel ranges, copper saute pans, every gleaming piece of kitchen equipment available and an army of cooks working in perfect synchronization. Me? I'm dreaming of that little tiny place, with just one or two people, just making one little dish, hand crafted every time. And so the idea for Porchetta was germinated, perhaps I could do this in New York, wouldn't need alot of space, no one does it.....

C.S.A

a C.S.A is community supported agriculture. You pay a farm up front for a share in the seasons produce and every week you get a portion of the harvest. It's great as what a seasons share costs is about what I used to spend at Union Square farmers market in a week. Yesterday was my third share. It's still a lot of greens mostly. I got a lot of big rainbow colored swiss chard with fat meaty stems. I wanted to use all of them so I stripped the leaves from the stems, and cut them up. I sauteed a little onion in olive oil and then added the stems. then I added water and through in some Maine yellow eyed beans for good measure. Although dried they are still quite fresh so they cook up pretty quickly. Once they were close to done I threw in a slivered garlic scape that also came with my share. I let it cook down and then added the swiss chard leaves. I simmered away until the greens were cooked and the cooking liquid mostly evaporated then finished it all with a nice shot of Teverina extra virgin olive oil and served it with some pan roasted shrimp...

Italy in the spring

The tonnarelli cacio e pepe tossed table side at Da Felice in Testaccio Rome. The one and only