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POLENTA ON THE BOARD INCLUDES more than 100 tested recipes, complemented by stories, illustrations and photographs. The soft-cover perfect bound book is a landscape-design which makes it easier to lie open on your counter as you cook.
Each chapter of the book begins with a story relevant to the recipes which follow. For example, in the chapter entitled “Dandelion Revisited,” which introduces the recipes for Salads and Vegetable Dishes, you are treated to a story about going to the forest to pick wild dandelion and transforming the reviled weed into a delicious salad or sauteed green.
“The Polenta on the Board” story, from which the book draws its title, introduces the recipes for Pasta, Polenta, Gnocchi and Risotto. It describes the Abruzzese tradition of spreading the cooked polenta over a big board and smothering it with long-simmered tomato-meat sauce and freshly grated romano or parmigiano cheese. The board is then placed in the middle of the table and diners pull up a chair, fork in hand, and dig in!
“The Soup Pot” story (see excerpt below) begins an entire chapter dedicated to delicious soups, broths and stocks. Recipes span a broad range of dishes from basic beef broth to stracciatella, a tasty Italian egg drop soup—try it yourself, the recipe can be found further down this page! |
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“LA CENA E PRONTA!” Our call to the dinner table meant that the traditional first course—a steaming bowl of homemade soup—awaited us. After we gave thanks, a bowl of freshly grated romano or parmigiano cheese and a basket of thin slices of homemade bread made their way around the table and our meal officially began.
A meal without soup was rare in Nonna’s kitchen. Whether it was simple brodo con pastine or a heartier minestrone, a pot of zuppa was always ready on Nonna’s stovetop.
Most soups started with a homemade chicken or beef broth. The delicate, comforting taste of broth was created by using two different cuts of meat and a variety of mild tasting vegetables and letting everything simmer for several hours to allow the flavours to mingle.
The ingredients depended on the season and what was available in Nonna’s pantry. When the giardino was producing, Nonna would create summer minestrone, a zucchini soup or rice soup with asparagus or fresh spinach or baby peas. Winter soups typically used dried beans or ceci, preserved tomatoes, root vegetables and winter greens such as cabbage and radicchio. At any time of the year, a clear broth with pastine or a stracciatella provided a lighter first course. |
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Enjoy two recipes from Polenta on the Board! It’s simple: click either recipe below and print the pop-up instructions that appear. Use the easy-to-follow instructions to create your own delectable Abruzzese style dishes.
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Try all of the recipes, read all of the stories...ordering Polenta on the Board online is easy!
Click below to find out how.
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