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A
new look for vintage fruits
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Make
the most of the Autumn by going chestnut or pear
gathering. And then delight your family and friends
with these modern takes on some of nature's oldest
fruits.
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 The
old chestnut
Up until the Middle Ages chestnuts were a staple
part of the diet of all Italians living in the hills
or mountains. In the year 1000 chestnut
groves were planted instead of oak in the
Apennines and chestnut trees were popularly known
as bread trees by the people. Italians use two type
of edible chestnut, chestnuts and marrons (a larger
chestnut usually grown in the Apennines between
Emilia and Tuscany, Piedmont and in some parts of
Lazio). The recipe below uses marrons.
Quality chestnuts come with an IGP mark, and chestnut-lovers
should try the Castel
del Rio variety.
Chestnut Tortellacci with Herbs
and Mushrooms
Ingredients:
Pasta
3 eggs
300 gr of flour
a pinch of salt
Filling:
200 gr chestnuts (boiled and pureed)
100 gr mortadella (diced)
100 gr grated parmesan
a pinch of nutmeg
salt and pepper
Sauce:
parsley
chives
savory
marjoram
ceps
half a clove of garlic (crushed)
Combine the pureed chestnuts with the other
ingredients and leave aside. Sieve the flour and
break in the eggs. Add the salt and work the flour
and eggs together until you have a smooth dough.
Knead until it is smooth, firm and elastic. Roll
out the dough on a floured surface until it is thin.
Cut into squares and place a spoonful of the filling
in each one. Fold and close the tortellaci pressing
with your fingers (use some oil to help make the
pasta stick). Cook the pasta in boiling salted water
until firm but ready (al dente) adding a spoonful
of oil to the water just before draining. Stir in
the sauce made with the mushrooms, garlic, herbs
and oil.
 Pears
for everyone
The pear
tree is one of our oldest known fruit trees and
comes in thousands of varieties, few of which are
commercially grown. Italy is the top pear-growing
country in the world.
Pears are highly nutritious and are rich in
mineral and natural sugars. Most of the pears we
buy are picked before ripening and are kept at room
temperature. Varieties can be split into "summer"
and "autumn-winter" pears. Pears lend themselves
to a variety of dishes. The recipe we give below
uses Kaiser pears, a variety of pear available throughout
the Autumn and Winter and is delicious as either
a starter or second course.
Baked pears with speck
and gorgonzola
Ingredients
3 Kaiser pears Kaiser (all approx. the same
size and weighing a kilo in total)
100 gr sliced speck
100 gr strong gorgonzola
milk
chopped walnuts
parsley
Preheat the oven to 200°C. Peel, core and quarter
the pears. Wrap a slice of speck around each quarter
and cook in the oven for 15 minutes. Crumble the
gorgonzola into a pan. Add 3 or 4 tablespoons of
milk and heat gently mixing with a wooden spoon
until the cheese melts. Pour the sauce over the
pears and top with the chopped walnuts. Serve with
a chilled Chardonnay from Trentino.
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| by
MARIA LINARDI |
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October
2001
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THE SURVIVOR'S 
