Rustico: Regional Italian Country Cooking

Book by Negrin Micol

Val d'Aosta

Fonduta alla Valdostana
Creamy Fonduta over Fried Polenta

Frittelle di Fontina con Spinaci Stufati
Fontina Fritters with Wilted Spinach

Insalata di Lamponi con Polenta
Wine-Macerated Raspberries over Polenta

Seuppa Valpellinentze
Cabbage and Whole Wheat Bread Soup from Valpelline

Seuppa de Cogne
Bread, Rice, and Fontina Soup from Cogne

Costolette alla Valdostana
Fontina-Stuffed Breaded Veal Chops

Cervo Brasato con la Grappa
Braised Venison in Creamy Grappa Sauce

Insalata Verde con Pancetta Affumicata
Young Greens in Warm Bacon Dressing

Lou Mécoulen
Raisin-Studded Sweet Bread

La Coppa dell'Amicizia
The Cup of Friendship

Imagine yourself in a lush valley. It is summer and the sun warms the grass beneath your feet. The Alpine flowers are in bloom, the air is crisp, carrying the scents of tarragon and sage, and your cows are grazing in the meadow. At nightfall, you make the two-hour journey home, the sound of cow bells announcing your arrival. Before your dinner of boiled chestnuts, a hunk of bread, and a bowl of leek soup, you milk your cows, leaving the pails of warm liquid to settle near the butter churner by the wood pile.

This was life for most Valdostani until fifty or sixty years ago: lived in rhythm with the seasons, the mountains defining not only where you could go, but what you ate and who you knew and how you earned your daily bread. Each of the valleys that coast the Dora Baltea River was isolated from the others for much of the year, and their inhabitants lived autonomously, making the most of what they could grow in the steep soil surrounding their homes and from the milk provided by their cows. They developed a subsistence cuisine that would carry them through the difficult winter, a cuisine handed down from generation to generation, much like the guillotine-shaped copapan used to slice the heavy, dark wheels of bread baked in communal ovens by village women.

Perhaps it's because of its geographic configuration-dizzyingly high mountains, jagged snow-capped peaks, permanent glaciers-that Val d'Aosta remains something of a mystery to the rest of Italy. The Valdostani have long lived in a state of semi-isolation, cut off from others when the region 's mountain passes were covered in ice.

Val d'Aosta, Italy's smallest region, was originally settled by the Salassi, a tribe of Celts, and later annexed by the Romans, who founded its capital, Aosta, in 24 b.c. Known as "The Rome of the Alps," Aosta and its surrounding land became part of the Burgundian and Frankish Kingdoms after the fall of the Roman Empire, then fell to the House of Savoy century and eventually became encompassed in Piedmont. In 1927, the province of Turin was divided, and part of it formed a new province, still under Piedmontese rule, called Aosta. Two decades later, the autonomous region of Val d'Aosta was created and bilingualism was officially instituted to preserve its uniquely French culture. Schools teach French and Italian, and most inhabitants speak a French dialect.

All of this might lead you to believe that Val d'Aosta feels like a part of France—but it doesn't. Even if the language spoken by old-timers sounds more like French than Italian and if the cuisine has more in common with nearby Savoie than Italy, there is no doubt that Val d'Aosta is Italian through and through. Just visit the city of Aosta, where a third of the population lives, and you'll instantly understand: there is a joyous exuberance, a festive atmosphere, a friendliness that is utterly Italian. Sit in a caf and the noise level will let you know that you are, indeed, on Italian soil.

Milk, butter, and cheese; hearty grains like corn, buckwheat, and rye; herbs, chestnuts, mushrooms, and honey . . . these are the mainstays of the Valdostano diet. The harsh climate doesn't allow olive trees to thrive, but the Valdostani don't miss olive oil: they prefer unsalted farmhouse butter redolent of Alpine grasses and lard from the family pig to flavor their food and give their bodies energy.

Favorite Restaurants, Shops, and Places

. Bertolin, Via Nazionale 11, Arnad, 0125.966127. Lard of Saint Arnad and Mocetta made from beef, horse, and chamois, among other cured meats for sale.

. La Cave Valdôtaine, Via de Tillier 9, Aosta, 0165.44164. Enoteca where you can buy wines and liqueurs, including génepy and grappa.

. La Maison de la Fontine Borney-Lale Gerard, Via de Sales 2, Aosta, 0165.35639. Fontina aged to perfection.

. Lo Grand Baou, Località  Jovençan di Vertosan, Avise. Gorgeous panorama, excellent cured meats and polenta.

. Locanda la Clusaz, Località  la Clusaz, Gignod, 0165.56075. Home of the best seuppa valpellinentze and an award-winning wine list.

. Lou Ressignon, Rue Mines de Cogne 23, Cogne, 0165.74034. Rustic mountain restaurant with exceptional meats and seuppetta de Cogne.

. Ristorante Vecchia Aosta, Via Porta Pretoriana 4, Aosta, 0165.361186. Restaurant dug in the old Roman walls of Aosta.
Fonduta alla Valdostana
Creamy Fonduta over Fried Polenta

This is one of Val d'Aosta's defining dishes, shared with nearby Piedmont. It is similar to French and Swiss fondue, but a few key differences give it a distinct character. First and foremost is the use of Fontina; second is that the Fontina is soaked in milk for hours before it is melted, which gives it a silky texture; third is the addition of egg yolks, beaten in at the end to ensure a velvety mouthfeel; and finally, there is the preference for pouring the fonduta over fried polenta, as below. Needless to say, you should only use Fontina from Val d'Aosta here; it has a compact texture with tiny holes and a nutty fragrance and can be identified by the mark of its consortium, which is stamped on each wheel. If the urge for truffles is there but the season has passed, drizzle the fonduta-topped polenta with white truffle oil (see Sources, page 372, for fresh truffles and truffle oil).

Serves 8

1/2 recipe Polenta (page 371)

Extra-virgin olive oil for greasing the baking sheet

1 1/2 pounds Fontina from Val d'Aosta, rind removed, cut into 1/4-inch dice

2 cups whole milk

8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter

4 extra-large egg yolks

1/8 teaspoon freshly ground white pepper

2 tablespoons dry white wine (optional)

1 white truffle (optional)

Make the polenta according to instructions on page 371. Pour it while still hot onto an oiled 11 x 17-inch baking sheet, smooth with a rubber spatula, and cool until set. Cut into 3-inch triangles and set aside.

Meanwhile, place the diced Fontina in a bowl and pour on the milk; set aside at room temperature for 3 hours (or refrigerate for up to 24 hours).

Melt 2 tablespoons of the butter in a double boiler over medium heat, then whisk in the Fontina and milk; cook until the Fontina melts, about 10 minutes. Still whisking, beat in the egg yolks one at a time; the mixture should never come to a boil or it might curdle. After 3 minutes or so, the mixture will thicken. Beat in 2 tablespoons of the butter and season with the pepper. Keep warm over the lowest possible flame.

In a 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat, melt the remaining 4 tablespoons of butter until foaming. Add the reserved polenta triangles in a single layer and cook until golden and crisp on both sides, turning once, about 5 minutes per side. Divide among 8 plates.

If you are using the truffle, pour the wine on a towel and rub the truffle with it (this dislodges dirt and gives the truffle a subtle aroma). Serve the polenta hot, topped with the fonduta, shaving the truffle over it with a truffle slicer.

Preparation tips: The polenta can be cooked up to 2 days ahead, cooled, cut, and refrigerated until you are ready to fry it.
Seuppa Valpellinentze
Cabbage and Whole Wheat Bread Soup from Valpelline

The Valdostani are so fond of soup that they are apt to recite the following proverb: "Sette cose fa la zuppa, cava fame e sete attuta, empie il ventre, netta il dente, fa dormire, fa smaltire, e la guancia fa arrossire." ("Soup does seven things, it calms hunger and quenches thirst, fills the belly, cleans the teeth, makes you sleep, makes you lean, and gives color to your cheek.") Originally conceived to serve as one-dish meals, Val d'Aosta's soups are now considered first courses. Most feature vegetables and rice or bread, like this recipe from Valpelline. To achieve the proper texture, dense country bread is a must; also important is resisting the temptation to drown the bread, cabbage, and Fontina in broth, since this is more of a thick bread porridge than a soup in the ordinary sense. This version is from Maurizio Grange, owner of Locanda La Clusaz in Gignod.

Serves 4

4 cups (1 quart) Beef Broth (page 368)

1/2 teaspoon salt

8 large Savoy cabbage leaves

5 ounces day-old whole wheat country bread, cut into 1/2-inch-thick slices

5 ounces day-old white country bread, cut into 1/2-inch-thick slices

3/4 pound Fontina from Val d'Aosta, rind removed, thinly sliced

Pinch ground cinnamon

2 tablespoons (1/4 stick) unsalted butter

Preheat the oven to 450°F.

Bring the broth to a boil in a medium pot and season with 1/4 teaspoon of the salt. Add the cabbage leaves and cook 10 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon to a plate (reserve the broth), cool, and cut into long, thin strips.

Meanwhile, spread out both types of bread in a single layer on an 11 x 17-inch baking sheet and toast in the preheated oven for 5 minutes, or until aromatic but not dry.

Line a shallow round 11-inch ovenproof dish with half of the slices of the whole w...