After a busy and fun week cooking in Dublin then buzzing around for a long weekend on a bee project I was totally ready to jump on the plane to Venice, the location for the brilliant film thriller “Don’t Look Now” based on a Daphne du Mauriers’ short story, for a few days off and a feasting extravaganza.

Completing my Front tuck – round off, back spring somersault down the garden path in the direction of Mr Del Monte I delightedly informed him I had finished making our reservations for Venice restaurants and that I had succeeded in getting tables at all the best places. I am not sure if he was genuinely as delighted as I was or if the discovery of two baby lemons on the tree he was tending had put the look a look of satisfaction and success on his face.

Venice, more than almost anywhere in the world, is notorious for being a tourist food trap (and has been so I have been told for over 2000 years) so I was putting extra effort into my research so as not to slip up on the food side of the break. I had no doubt as we were heading to Italy that churches, statues and art would be very hard to miss.

Whether I am traveling for work of pleasure I tend to do a crazy amount of research on what and where to eat. I spend the weeks before ringing, texting, twittering and chatting to everyone I think may have the skinny on my destination. I go through my address book of friends and family which includes chefs, clients, food writers, food producers, foodies, food retailers…. you get the picture, it’s a lot of people who know a lot about food.

I could say this slightly obsessive behaviour was because as a well travelled chef/food writer I feel the pressure to know about these things from others and the answer to “Where should we eat tonight” should come from me but its more because I love doing it and I see food as one of the most interesting and important aspects and reveals about people and places.

So for this blog it’s a mini food review, tips and tricks of what and where to eat in Venice.

Firstly NEVER, EVER wonder down a street, peer into a restaurant and think “ooh that looks nice, lets eat here”. Yes that’s a fun approach and works perfectly well else where but in Venice its is a sure fired way of being disappointed and ending the evening in frosty looks and mutterings of “ well it was your idea” as the bill for a bajillon euros reaches the table and you are trying to digest your canned luke warm spaghetti alle vongole.

Trust your sources. When researching and asking people be honest and think do I trust their opinion (having just reread this blog that last sentence makes me sound much less easy going than I actually am ( promise). Some food review sites like trip adviser, that although have some of the biggest collection of views, include everyone’s opinion and so are open to the restaurants friends and family putting positive or false opinions up eg “ eating at Besta Pasta in Towna was the best dining experience I have in the entire universe” or on the other hand allows disgruntled customers to rant or even the competitive restaurateurs to have their say e.g. “ This Venice restaurant should be allowed to sink, the waiters had less charm than the tasteless slimy sea slug like gnocchi being served on my plate” .

I stick to food bloggers websites, trusted sources of friends and family and take note if certain restaurants are repeatedly mentioned on ‘where to’ lists published by magazines and newspapers.

It’s perfectly acceptable to have a sharpener before 11. As you wonder through the markets and peer into tratorrias and bars you will see locals casually sipping on glasses of prosecco, wine or my favourite Venetian drink, the spritz. These can be taken with Aperol ( the scary orange stuff) that is actually delicious but quite sweet, Select, the medium sweet option, or my top choice Campari which is deliciously bitter. The drink is topped off with prosecco and soda water and is served on the rocks. It is usual to get a bowl of crisps or fat green olives along side your spritz and bizarrely is often one of the cheapest cocktails you get over there.

North Eastern Italy produces some good wine that is worth trying so don’t dismiss the Friuli Venezia-Giulia, Alto Adige, Trentino, and Veneto regions when flicking through the wine list ( for reds Valpolicellas and Bardolinos and for whites Soaves are the ones to look out for).

You may of course be tempted to try the Peach Bellini , created here at the iconic Harrys bar in the 30’s / 40’s consisting of white peach puree and prosecco. Whilst drinking it at this charming canal side bar, former watering hole of Hemingway and Welles, you will then of course have to wear your large ‘I am a tourist’ badge. (Yes I’ve done it)…(ok… yes it was fun).

Focus on fish. With its infamous fish market near the Rialto bridge, it is not surprising that fish is the dish to order in Venice (although they are still arguing with Tuscany trying to claim to be the birth place of beef Carpaccio and Venice also loves it liver and onions).

Based on my extensive research the restaurants that made it to my ‘must get a table or there is no point going to Venice at all’ list were;

Al Covo

Locanda Cipriani

Antiche Carampane

Alle Testiere

The results…

Al Covo is set in a small square and  was staffed by charming waiters. The wine list is very reasonable and the menu is encouragingly small.   Simply done fish and desserts worth saving room for makes this a place I would definitely recommend and visit again.

Wallet damage- 60 euro per person approx for 3 courses and wine

We scoffed;

Salted Anchovies with country butter

Marinated anchovies with fennel fronds and aubergines

Fritto Misto of red mullet, squid and sole

Pan fried prawns and squid with lemon

Ricotta cheesecake

Wild strawberry frittas

Locanda Cipriani

If staying in Venice for a coupe of days I would definitely recommend the boat trip out to Locanda Cipriani on the small island of Torcello. Taking public transport can be a great way to collect the ambiance of a place (unless you are in central or the West Coast of America) and unless you fancy selling your Louboutins or a kidney to fund taking a private water taxi, hop on a vaporetto and enjoy the group ride. If you set out early enough ( 9 ish in holiday terms) you can stop at Murano ( the island for glass) or Burano ( the island for lace) for a quick look before carrying on to the very charming Torcello for lunch. With one road / canal leading from the vaporetto stop to the restaurants ( I think there are 3 in total) and the church you will not need a map.

The restaurant has a charming garden which half made the experience for me so I would suggest going in the warmer months. Service was good and the food very enjoyable.

Wallet Damage – 90 euros per person approx for 3 courses, wine and a view.

We scoffed;

Crab gnocchi

Seabass and sautéed potatoes

Poached Peaches with prauline icecream

Hazelnut crème brûleée

Antiche Carampane

When this restaurant gets mentioned there is usually reference to how difficult it is to find though fortunately for me Mr Del Monte had a knack of easily sorting out these navigational issues so we only ended up down one dark alley with a group of Japenese tourists and their selfie sticks to give each other the acknowledging grins of ‘you’re exploring (aka lost) in Venice too’ . I was concerned by the non Italian vs English speaking ratio of customers here ( the waiters were charming enough not to be snobby about having to mostly speak in their non native tongue) but it was delightfully a top meal and well worth finding.

Wallet damage – 50 euros a head for 2 courses and wine.

We scoffed ;

Spider crab linguini ( sooo good)

Spicy seafood linguini

John Dory with wild mushrooms and zucchini ( this was one of my favourite dishes if the week)

Seabass and salad

Chechetti

On the forth day the sun had gone, the rain had started and moral was sinking to a low. I had not booked a restaurant for lunch this day, as there are only so many three course meals a girl should eat in five days, but I was keen to stick to my rule of not being fooled into stumbling across and eating at the wrong place. It was then that data roaming, foodbloggers of venice and Mr Map Reader Extraordinaire saved us. Just as I was about to push him into the canal he found the chechetti bar that I suggested as salvation to the situation. Chichetti can be found all over Venice and although food writers will tell you of there favourite spots I think providing you are not on the main tourist drags you will be able to spot a good one. Very reasonably priced little slices of bread topped with salted cod or cured meats or grilled vegetables are laid out on trays under the glass counters. You go and have a good stare then point and order the ones you fancy along with a glass of something. My advice would be, as they are usually eaten standing up, is choose somewhere that looks like it has a good atmosphere and the chechetti haven’t been sitting there since time began.

Alle Tesiere

If you want to eat here, this restaurant has to be booked well in advance. You can email, then have to ring to arrange deposit of your grandmother / child or lumps of cash to secure your table. Sadly my Italian currently has limited abilities and it wasn’t until I managed to make the waiter understand I was at the ready to handover my credit card details stage of the booking that he started to thaw to the determined English girl at the end of the phone.

The 24 ish seat restaurant is not particularly good looking and I admit expectations were high. Antipasti and primo were delicious but I think if you are used to eating fresh simply cooked fish the main courses can be underwhelming. The wine list encourages you spend and although I am pleased to have it ticked off my list I would not recommend it to those that eating simply cooked very good fresh fish is nothing out of the norm.

Wallet damage : over 100 euro per person for 4 courses and wine

We scoffed

Spider crab

Prawn ravioli – which was really delicious

Squid and cinnamon gnocchi

3 Small whole turbot

3 Small monkfish

pistachio cake with pistachio ice cream – sooo good

Panna cotta

Next time I visit I would be keen to have lunch on the terrace at the Gritti Palace which I am told is a wonderful place to watch venice float by and I should also mention a restaurant by the Rialto bridge called Bancogiro which has one of the most romantic out door spots at night and serves some delicious food.

This week

I ate.

Next stop… Deepest Dorset.

The post Where to eat in Venice appeared first on Philippa Davis.

Sardinia meant a new destination and new client for me so all seemed very exciting. The initial introductions were done over the phone and all seemed like it would work out very nicely until…

“ Oh yes we eat practically anything”! (client)

“Great” (me)

“Yes, and we wondered how you felt about cooking baby … phone line crackles at inopportune moment.

‘I’m sorry?”

“Baby…!” more phone crackling then the line goes dead.

Cripes I thought, what had I got myself into?!

Turns out they were saying baby pig or as its locally called “Su Porcheddu” the Sardinian specialty of suckling pig. Which is totally delicious, though I was surprised when I got mixed reactions of me giving ours a little pre roasting massage with olive oil on my instagram account phollowphilippa. I haven’t concluded yet if I feel bad about eating something so young but I definitely know there are more important issues to confront when buying, cooking and eating meat.  High standards of animal welfare and minimising wastage being top of my list

I flew into Olbia airport on the north east side of the island and having had an incident earlier in the year of almost being picked up by the wrong chap in Val d’Isére I had swapped photos with my client of what I looked like and what they looked like ( his wife joked I just had to imagine him without the helm and sailors cap).  The spectacular drive to the house took about an hour along the textbook Italian winding roads that gently carved through the hot rugged hills.

The island, although not home to many of the charming old settlements you will find elsewhere in Italy, has an interesting Gaudi-esque style of archictecture and a mix of brown, orange and white villas secludedly dotted over the hills. A boat trip around the coast or to one of the islands is a must and for you history buffs we were interestingly near where Nelson kept his fleet in the Napoleonic wars.  I am told though Nelson himself never set foot ashore as was in ill health.

Upon arrival it was straight into the kitchen for me, the best way to break the ice I feel, and on with the lunch prep. The first shop had been done for me and so I wasn’t sure what I would find behind the fridge door and in the cupboards.  Red apron on and pony tail up, I happily set to work in the very pretty blue tiled kitchen and was delighted to find bowls of perfectly ripe tomatoes and peaches and a fridge shelf full of soft fresh mozzarella.  There were some whole skin on almonds, bottles of excellent Italian extra virgin olive oil and so lunch pretty much made itself. Judging from this first bounty I guessed that this would be one of those places where shopping would fully focus on purely what was local and therefore in season.

There are a few places in the Med that I go where I have noticed over the years they have given in and opened up their shelves to suit the tastes of their increasinlgly international clientele. For an island that is super popular with the jet-set crowd I was pleased to see that the shops in our area really did stick to what was local.

This meant produce available was at its best and helped to support the island’s economy. It was quickly clear that the local clientele had no problems buying food that was misshapen and not of uniform size or feel repelled by it if it had mud caked across it. I was also glad to see that shops didn’t feel they could charge extra for these features either.

For me shopping, cooking and eating in places where available ingredients are dominated only by what can be got locally is a fantastic way to discover the local food culture.  Without a choice you are drawn into discovering and cooking the areas traditional food. I was amused when I couldn’t find any chocolate to cook with at the local supermarket  but I could easily lay my hands on five different varieties of peach. I admit though as a private chef I like to give my clients a constant variety of dishes when cooking for them so over long stints it can become very challenging when no other food cultures have infiltrated an area.

For those wishing to embrace the Sardinian food culture here are my favorite things you should look out for:

Su Porcheddu – suckling roast pig

Malloreddus – my new favorite semolina pasta that is shaped like a curled up contact lense. It shelters sauces brilliantly and so is a delight to eat.

Bottarga – salty dried fish roe

Fregula – small round cous cous like shapes that are actually pasta balls that can be cooked like risotto or regular pasta.

The malloreddus pasta nearly pipped the pig to the post for this postcard recipe as I was seriously taken by its  delightful size and perfect shape.  It went particularly well with a pork sausage, fennel seed, dried chili, fresh tomato, saffron and pecorino sauce I made for lunch one day and undoubtedly would suit a clam and white wine sauce recipe.

As you are not allowed to BBQ or have outside fires on the island due to previous serious incidents all the food had to be cooked indoors.  I totally understand this but it didn’t stop me thinking that this place could be my paradise if only I was allowed an outdoor wood oven.   The menus involved lots of pastas and risottos but with plenty of shellfish , salads and vegetables in the sauces and eaten in the true Italian way as a Primo ( like a starter ) they were not too filling.  Pan fried meats were often served with wedges of lemon to keep it fresh and bowlfuls of salsa verde and pesto sauces.   Bulbs of garlic seemed to be needed with practically every shop, we had got it down to a fine art of going every other day, and so did cases of the incredible Sardinian Vermentino, currently my favourite white wine.

With much debate as to what to write for this weeks postcard and quite a few dishes vying for the spot in the end I had to choose the suckling pig. It was the most delicious thing I have cooked and eaten all year… so far. The smells as it cooked were so superb that everyone, including me, could not resist opening the oven to have a better sniff and peak at the pig.  It hadn’t been since my London restaurant days that I had got to cook one (although I had recently cooked suckling wild boar) and  having topped up my research and feeling that I have perfected it I want to share with you my tips and tricks.

This week

Super yachts spotted : 8

Peaches bought and eaten ( by us all) : 103

Varieties of peach bought : 5

Pasta cooked : 5.1 kilo

Olive oil used : 4.2 litres

I’m loving: walking to the end of the garden and falling into the med.

Every home should have: a Bose wireless mini speaker ( they are amazing)

I’m reading : The Magus, compelling read despite some of the most dislikable characters ever written.

 Suckling pig .

2 tbs extra virgin olive oil

1 suckling pig

1 fennel bulb

2 apples plus one small one for serving

handful each of parsley and thyme

1 garlic head cut in half horizontally

1 onion, red or white, peeled and chopped into four.

½ pint dry white wine like vermentino

Pre heat the oven to 160 C

With a damp kitchen paper towel give the pig a quick wipe.

Sprinkle with salt and give a quick massage with oil all over

Stuff the belly with fennel , chopped apple , thyme , parsley stalk , garlic , onion . If the kidneys and heart are in you can leave in as they can be eaten and or will add the flavor.

Then sit pig upright and try to position front legs stretching out and back legs tucked under – like an Egyptian jackal statue .

Cover the ears in foil for cooking as otherwise will burn .

If you want to stuff apple in mouth at end stuff a ball of foil in mouth at this stage.

Slit the pig in a few places so skin does not burst when cooking ( I made incision by armpits and back legs – but not too deep)

Bake at 15 mins per pound at 160 °C

After 1 1/2 hours add 1/2 pint water to the tray .

At 2 1/2 hours add 1/2 pint white wine to the tray .

Baste occasionally.

The Liquids will keep the pig moist and produce your gravy but you don’t want to add them too soon as you also want the pig to roast.

Once cooked Let rest for 1/2 hour after cooking lightly covered in foil .

There should be lots of lovely natural juice you can strain off and use for gravy.

Remove the foil ball and earmuffs and stuff a small apple in its mouth

Serve at the table to lots of oohs and ahhs with some delicious Sardinian wine.

Next stop … Dublin

The post Roast suckling pig appeared first on Philippa Davis.

The Italian Job…

The Tuscan hills bulged like the limbs of a Botticelli woman. The roads delightfully twisted through these curves and I noted to myself that next time when taking a job here I would write in my contract that I needed to do the shopping in a Ferrari. A red one.

The job for the week was to cook for 18 fun loving individuals that had flown in from all corners of the globe to celebrate a milestone birthday. They had taken a large villa plopped reclusively on top of one of these voluptuous hills with only a discreet track lined with Cyprus trees marking its whereabouts. Well that was my sat nav’s excuse for getting confused.  With temperatures dallying around 30°C and the prospect of shopping at Italian local markets for a group that were ‘game to eat anything’ I was very much looking forward to my week’s work.

On the first evening, one of the guests bounced into the kitchen just as I had started frying the sage leaves in butter for their saltimbocca to enquire,

“Was I into cocktail making?”

“Indeed I am,” I said.

So with the house being equipped with a full-on professional bar I happily got shaking. Now, I know there is some weird and wonderful mixology going on out there like drinks made from ‘smoked rabbits breath’ or ‘dehydrated  Louboutin sole dust’  but whenever I try one of these new concoctions I always wish I had just chosen a classic. With this in mind, the ones I whizzed up during the week were all traditional, including some unashamedly girly Cosmopolitans, zingy Mojitos and very American Long Island Iced Teas.

As always, before the job began I had discussed with the client what they loved, hated and how they wanted the week to be. We got as far as ‘Italian’ and stopped there. This is the perfect job brief for whenever you venture somewhere new you never quite know what you are going find. I have definitely found the best way to plan a menu is to go to the shops/markets, see what looks best and then decide what’s for dinner.  As they mentioned they ‘eat anything’ I noted on my first shopping trip that 4th stomach of the cow seemed plentiful, maybe I should try them on my Florentina tripa recipe… but perhaps that was a little daring for the first night.

Anyone who has experienced food shopping in Italy will realise that produce, even in the local supermarket, is generally superb, very seasonal and almost entirely centered around traditional Italian ingredients. It will probably be hard finding ingredients like limes and coriander but there will be six different types of ricotta and five varieties of aubergines to choose from.   I’m not sure I would enjoy this pure approach all the time but when in Rome (or Tuscany as it happens) I love it.

By day two I had scoured most of the local shops and sussed out what was looking good so I could plan the food for the weeks main party. The menu was as follows;

Aperitvio

Aperol Spritz/ Peach Bellinis

Rosemary arancini with spiced tomato sauce

Prima

Fried zucchini flowers stuffed with sheep ricotta, anchovies and pine nuts

Secondo

Florentine steaks

Grilled Bream with chili sauce

Contorno

Fresh Borlotti beans with herbs and balsamic

Insalata

 Grilled radicchio, hazelnut pesto and rocket.

Dolce

Peach, amaretto and almond tart with salted caramel ice cream

The rest of the week consisted of long lunches, more evening feasts and plenty of swims in the pool (the guests not me).  Then all too quickly Sunday came, my bags were packed and the sat nav set for Florence airport. I weaved my way back to the UK and got ready to cook for my next job, a fashion shoot in the Scottish Highlands.

 This week’s stats:

Cocktails shaken: 165

Transport: A red Ferrari (trapped in a Peugeot 206 body).

Every home should have: A Sonos music system and a Teriyaki grill.

Borlotti beans podded: 556

Chianti drunk : too discreet to say

Deep fried zucchini flowers with prosecco batter, stuffed with sheep ricotta, anchovies and pine nuts

Serves 4 as a starter

You may think it is extravagant using prosecco in a batter when you could substitute sparkling water but its not like I used a Don Perignon 1995. No, that was a totally different party and recipe….

Ingredients

8 Flowers (As a starter you probably want 2 each)

Stuffing Ingredients

2 tbs pinenuts toasted and roughly chopped

8 dessertspoons of ricotta

3 anchovies fillets finely chopped

2 tbs chopped mint

zest of 1 lemon

Batter

200g self raising flour

1 egg

450ml Proseccco.

1 litre sunflower oil

To serve 2 tbs runny honey

In a bowl mix the stuffing ingredients and season with salt and pepper

Carefully spoon the mix into the zucchini flower heads (A teaspoon works best) then seal back up the flower by pressing the petals to the ricotta mix you just put inside. (You don’t want it bulging with ricotta mix, about 2 or 3 teaspoons for each flower depending on size should be perfect).

They can be left in the fridge all day if prepared in advance but I would bring them out around 1 hour before being fried so they are not really chilled right through.

Make the batter about 1 hour before using by:

In a large bowl add the flour.

Crack the egg in the middle then start adding the prosecco until you have a smooth batter (about the consistency of double cream).

Leave the batter at room temperature until ready to use.

To fry, the oil needs to be about 3 inches deep so if you don’t have a deep fat fryer and are using a saucepan bare this in mind.   Heat the oil up to about 190 °C or so that when you drop a few blobs of batter it immediately sizzles.

Get ready a plate ready lined with some kitchen paper and a slotted metal spoon that you can fish the frying flowers out of the oil with.

When the oil is hot give the batter one more quick whisk then carefully fully dip the stuffed flowers in the batter.   Pull out of the batter and let the excess drip back into the bowl then carefully slip into the oil.

They will take about 2 minutes to fry and might need gently turning over as they tend to roll onto one side. You can cook about 3 or 4 at once.

Remove from the batter and transfer to the paper.

While still hot transfer to the serving plate, drizzle with honey then serve.

The post Recipe | Deep fried zucchini flowers with Prosecco batter, stuffed with ricotta, mint and anchovies appeared first on Philippa Davis.