Seasons come and seasons go, but with Domenica Marchetti’s new book “Preserving Italy” you can save the flavors of the season, Italian style. From start to finish, Ms. Marchetti guides the reader from market to kitchen, from chopping board to canning jar. Technique, inspiration, and recipes come together to give the reader everything needed to create an Italian preserver’s pantry.
With a copy of this book in hand there is no need to fear canning. Enzymes, molds, yeasts, and bacteria, all are explained clearly, and fears and concerns are allayed. Tips for safe preserving are included along with a thorough discussion of both water-bath canning and pressure canning.
The reader need have no fear of being faced with recipes that call for twenty pounds of produce; this is small batch canning at its most delicious. You’ll find recipes, real savory Italian classics, in the chapter Foods Preserved in Oil. Whether you favor baby artichokes, asparagus, garlic scapes (the newest darling of the food world), eggplant, grilled mushrooms, grilled zucchini, or eggplant, there is enough here to transform your American pantry into a real version of Italian abbondanza.
One of the nicest things about this book is that it is more than just a collection of recipes. Ms. Marchetti offers suggestions for how to incorporate her recipes into other dishes. Oil-Preserved Butternut Squash makes an appearance in Farro Salad. Lemon Olive Oil adds flavor to Spaghetti al Limone and Baked Whole Trout with Citrus Salt. Fiery Hot Olio Santo adds its inimitable kick to Vegetable Zuppa, and Savory Mint Sauce brings a bright mouthful of flavor to Grilled Summer Vegetables.
Did you grow up snacking on Giardiniera, that toothsome mélange of vegetables and spices? Ms. Marchetti includes her version in the chapter Foods Preserved in Vinegar. You’ll find Cippollini in Agrodolce - tiny Italian onions preserved in balsamic and white wine vinegar, sugar, and spices. Add them to Insalata di Riso or include them on an antipasto platter, and you are sure to please family and friends. Think of Wine-Spiked Julienne Carrots as carrot pickles, and enjoy them straight from the jar or in a salad or vegetable platter. You’ll also find recipes for pickling cauliflower, beets and spring onions, zucchini, mushrooms, and peppers along with suggestions for how to use them in recipes.
There’s plenty here for those with a sweet tooth. Sweet Preserves offers a generous collection of preserves, jams, jellies, conserves, spoon fruits, and marmalades. Rich red Plum Preserves offer up vibrant flavor and are surprisingly easy to make. They are delectable atop toast with Buttermilk Ricotta. Fig Jam with Orange Zest has rich figgy flavor and a delightful seed-flecked appearance. With a grace note of citrus this jam, as Ms. Marchetti suggests, makes a terrific filling for a crostata and a sumptuous accompaniment for roasted or grilled pork. If it’s a familiar jam you are after try the Blackberry-Apple Jam. This classic owes its perfect texture to the addition of a green apple added for a bit of pectin. The flavor is pure blackberry, and it is delicious on toast, even better as a filling for bomboloni, the Italian version of jelly doughnuts. Peach and Almond Conserva is an absolute delight. With almonds for added texture and Marsala for the real flavor of Italy, this is bound to be a family favorite.
Tomatoes and Sauce gives these wonderful summer fruits the royal treatment. Bottled Whole Tomatoes, ripe plum tomatoes preserved in passata (tomato puree) are a must for any Italian pantry. A shelf full of these will keep you in sauce all through the year. Recipes for Passata di Pomodoro, Tomato Conserva (tomato paste), Small-Batch Tomato Sauce, Classic Meat Sauce, Oven-Dried Tomatoes, and Oven Roasted Tomatoes in Oil will turn you into a tomato expert in no time.
The chapter Infused Oils, Vinegars, and Condiments is a real treasure trove. Easy recipes like Citrus Salt and Porchetta Salt bring flavor to everything from meat to vegetables. You’ll find recipes for Seasoned Vinegars and flavored olive oils. Fans of hot peppers can indulge their love for the fiery with Peperoncino Cream or Abruzzo’s famous Olio Santo. You can even pick up a needle and thread and string a Peperoncino Garland. There are recipes for Spiced Tomato Jam, Quince Paste, Classic Pesto, Caponata, and Pesto Abruzzese. Plus you’ll learn to be cure your own olives.
If you have ever wanted to make your own cheese or cure your own meat, the chapter Fresh Cheeses and Simple Cured Meats provides an informative introduction. Ricotta made with buttermilk is the perfect place to start. Or try Liguria’s famous Prescinseua for a trip down the road slightly less traveled. If sausages and salumi are your pleasure, the author’s recipes will whet your appetite and get you started curing your own meat and making your own sausage.
Some of my favorite recipes are found in the penultimate chapter Syrups, Liqueurs, and Fruits Preserved in Alcohol. Mint Syrup, Orzata (almond syrup), and Blood Orange Syrup will wake memories for all who grew up Italian. Classic Limoncello and Nocino both make appearances along with a most delicious Coffee Cream Liqueur. Fans of Marsala will enjoy Zabaglione Cream Liqueur. Strawberry Cream Liqueur is delicious chilled, but even better half-frozen.
Fittingly, a chapter on Confections wraps up the book. From the classic nut-studded nougat Torrone, to the Italian nut brittle known as Croccante, to Panforte di Siena, and Fig and Walnut Salami, this chapter could be a sweet book all on its own, a collection of some of the finest Italy has to offer.
This volume is Ms. Marchetti’s paean to the Italy she loves, a wealth of information interwoven with personal recollections shared with generosity and grace.
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From the Publisher
Savory Mint Sauce from Preserving Italy
Makes 1-1/3 cups
This is one of the simplest sauces to make, and one of the most versatile. In Sicily it is known as zogghiu and is believed to be Maltese in origin. It is used to dress grilled fish, meat, and vegetables. It is also delicious spooned onto grilled bread and topped with fresh summer tomatoes. In this version, I’ve added some chopped walnuts to the basic sauce for a little extra body. See the variations that follow for more ways to switch up this spunky, garlicky sauce.
Directions
1. Place the mint and parsley leaves, garlic, and salt in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the metal blade. Pulse briefly to chop the leaves. Add the nuts and pulse again until everything is coarsely chopped. With the motor running, add the vinegar, 1 tablespoon at a time. Turn off the motor and scrape down the sides of the bowl if necessary. Then, with the motor running, drizzle in the oil. You should end up with a sauce that is somewhat thinner than classic basil pesto, but thick and spoonable nonetheless.
2. Scrape the sauce into a jar or container and top off with a thin layer of olive oil. Store in the refrigerator for up to 1 week, or in the freezer for up to 6 months. If you like, divide the sauce between two or three containers before storing.
Variations
Add 3 or 4 anchovy fillets and 1 tablespoon capers.
Substitute almonds for the walnuts.
Add a handful of finely chopped olives and a generous pinch of dried peperoncini flakes or minced fresh peperoncini.
Ingredients
- 2 lightly packed cups (28 g) fresh mint leaves
- 2 lightly packed cups (28 g) fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves
- 2 large cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1/4 cup (28 g) coarsely chopped walnuts
- 3 tablespoons white wine vinegar
- 3/4 cup (165 g) extra-virgin olive oil, plus more to cover
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Reviews with images
Great book, and for a fantastic price.
This looks like a great book to have, and for only around $15, it’s worth having. I love reading the various recipes. Some people on the reviews complain that there are many recipes that cannot store for more than 3 months, but that’s fine by me. Three months is long enough for me, and there are recipes that can be preserved for longer periods, too.I have only made one dish, and I love it. The salted green tomatoes, recipe “Linda’s Salt-Preserved Green Tomatoes”. They are amazing. I accidentally sliced the green tomatoes 1/4 inch thick, instead of 1/2 inch as recommended, so I only fermented them for 6 days, instead of 10-14 days as recommended. Even at 1/4 inch, I love them. Maybe they are even better this way, if you plan to serve them as a side dish, with meats as an appetizer, or on a hot dog; or serve them as the author does, “I find them irresistible and often enjoy them for lunch alongside hard-boiled eggs or cheese and salami”.
Top reviews from other countries
AJLJ
Great small batch recipes - you don't need bushels of produce.
Reviewed in Canada on September 22, 2021
Mr Barry G.H.Martin
Taste of Italy at Home
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on June 7, 2021Ms. Stephanie B.
My most favourite Italian cookbook!
Reviewed in Canada on March 4, 2020