We are met at the ferry dock in Varenno by Chef Moreno and with another taxi driven by Monica to take us all up into the hills above town to the village of Gittana where the Ristorante Il Caminetto and Cookery School is located. Chef Moreno and his wife Rosella operate the restaurant in a building that has been in his family for over a thousand years. He was born in this kitchen by the fire place. Il Caminetto means 'my sweet fireplace'.
We are welcomed with beautifully set tables, cappuccinos and what I thought was cheesecake, but was told it is a Torta Paesana which is a peasant cake made from his mothers recipe of whatever is in the kitchen with bread as a base. A little bit sweet but lovely with coffee.
Everything is set for an eating extravaganza. Bottled water, white and red wine....anything you want. Chef Moreno starts with a description of the meal he will be preparing...fresh chicken...Pollo in Umido alla Contadina, translated, stewed chicken, farmer style. Everything is done with exquisite style and cleanliness. Every ingredient is freshly grown, picked, chopped, grated and mashed.
Memorable quotes: show the garlic whose boss; keep always your kitchen clean and organized; only use aromatic herbs; approach love and cooking with reckless abandon (the Dalai Lama) ....
Chicken heading for the oven.
Next we start with the filling for the hand made tortellini. Garlic, zucchini, fresh herbs, ricotta cheese.
It just gets better watching him as he mixes his flour and eggs for the tortellini wraps. The smells in the kitchen are out of this world. I wish I could record the aromas.
As we watch, smell, listen, and drink wine we are also sketching our experiences.
We all took turns folding tortellini until all the pieces were ready for the pot. Knowing we were going to eat all this food we were starting to get a little bit hungry.
The finished product, as in Italy, pasta is the premier course...
Next came the meat dish....stewed chicken with chard risotto and tomatoes. To die for flavours!!
We are slowing down, the food and wine is making us a little too comfortable ...the sketching seems to have stopped also. Next comes dessert in the form of limoncello .....much of that and we wouldn't make it onto the ferry.
As we leave the cookery school after seven hours of indulgence the sun is still shining and we all take a breath of fresh air smelling the many herbs growing in front of the restaurant door.
We take away a souvenir apron to wear at home, a reminder of our wonderful experience with a charming chef in his unique kitchen. It has been one of the most entertaining days, and the best meal of our tour so far. It will be hard to top the quality of the food we have consumed today. It was a joy.
Arrivaderci Chef Moreno.
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