Italy In SF

If you are like me, you will mix up Pinocchio and Pulcinella, enter the wrong restaurant and have an impending sense of doom as you take a look at the sad pizzas coming out of the electric oven. Thankfully, I have friends who call me and tell me I am in the wrong spot! So, just the fact of NOT being the other place certainly improved my mood toward Pulcinella, a small newly-open pizzeria at the corner of Columbus and Vallejo. Wait, you say- are you seriously reviewing a spot smack in the middle of North Beach? I am, indeed.

Pulcinella was a recommendations of friends, and I went out and explored with one of my favorite pizza-buddies. This is the first review-worthy escapade I have had with Amy, so we were both beyond thrilled!

We had the pleasure to converse with Dario, the manager and, in our case, our server, about the restaurant, when they opened, why pizza and so on- it is a worthwhile conversation, and by all means follow his recommendations when it comes to selecting a pizza! Not everyone knows that fried pizza and stuffed pizza are pretty common in Naples. Fried pizza is unheard of in northern Italy, but not in North Beach, where Luigi and Dario really strive to deliver a truly original pizza experience…

In any case, we had a pizza with sausage and rapini, and a pizza Vesuvio following Dario’s recommendation: a stuffed pizza that looks like a margherita up top, but it is filled with ham, mozzarella and many more delights… It was quite simply phenomenal!!! The dough had the right elasticity, a bit crisp but chewy, and the ingredients… I still dream of the tomato sauce!

I am going back this week because the experience has been noteworthy, and repeatable! I was stunned, and can’t wait to have another of their unusual and delicious pizza.

Amy and I also had a chance to try the Pastiera Napoletana, possibly the most reputable dessert in Naples. Order it “unadulterated” of ice cream and chocolate sauce and you’ll be transported to a different world!

Pulcinella Pizzeria e Ristorante Italiano (NOTE: The website not only has music, but you can’t even stop it! Luigi, Dario- please take the music off!)
641 Vallejo St
San Francisco, CA 94133
(415) 829-7312

Filed under: Pizzerie, Restaurants, San Francisco | No Comments »

Vinicio Capossela is my favorite, favorite songwriter/ singer. I have been to every single concert he has held in my neighborhood since 1994- I am a passionate fan, and Camera a Sud was my first dance with my husband. I don’t want to say I feel like the number one fan, but I kind of am! I absolute adore his music.

When I found out Vinicio’s having a show in San Francisco on March 12th, I almost flipped over with joy- Vinicio!! In San Francisco!! In March!! Vinicio will be a guest of the Istituto Italiano di Cultura on March 11th, and he’ll be in concert the following night at Bimbo 365, in North Beach. You’ll find me there, around the first row, singing every single song out loud!

SOLO SHOW SAN FRANCISCO (USA) BIMBO’S 365 CLUB $25
Bimbo’s 365 Club, San Francisco, CA
1025 Columbus Avenue (at Chestnut Street)
Time: 9:00pm (Doors open @ 8:00pm)
Tickets: $25

Box Office, or (415) 474-0365

A few examples of Vinicio’s work (he’s not really into doing videos, so there isn’t much…):

Filed under: Events, San Francisco | 1 Comment »

Every now and then there is one recipe that keeps on sneaking upon me- maybe because people compliment it so much, or maybe because I have had it at a friend’s house and I cannot get it out of my head. Well, this special focaccia belongs to the latest- my friend Arianna made it a few times when I was at her place, and I have just ever since tried to duplicate it. I have realized my “regular” focaccia dough would not work, so I simply follow Arianna’s recipe for the best result. Here’s how it is done:

Ingredients

500gr flour (possibly double zero, I use the Central Milling Company organic unbleached flour that I find at Costco)
300ml water
2 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil
1 bag of yeast
2 teaspoon of salt

What to do

The secret to this delicious focaccia is the fact that it is left to raise twice. I begin by using the dough maker on my bread machine- I start with water, then I add the oil, the salt, and the flour, with the yeast last. I let it go for the full cycle (it is a 1.5hr process where the machine warms the basket to start the first raising, but you can simply use a kitchen aid or make the dough by hand). The point is to let the dough raise at least for 2 hours. After the first raising, take the dough out, and roll it on a cutting board sprinkled with flour.

Once the dough is rolled out, you can put the filling in. I use a black olive tapenade, but a spread of butter and anchovies is also really good! Next, roll the focaccia from the long side and cut about 1.5 inch slices.

Put the rolled slices in a baking pan sprinkled with oil, and let it raise a second time for at least an hour- more if you have time! Find a place where the dough will not suffer breezes and air- I usually cover it with a clean towel and put it in a closed cabinet- or in the oven if I am not using it!

After the second raising is the time to bake! Set the timer for 30 minutes, oven temperature 400F, and try not to open the oven before the 30 minutes are up. Check for a golden finish on the focaccia- if it is not there, continue cooking at five minutes increments.

Enjoy with good friends and good wine!

Filed under: Traditional Foods | 3 Comments »

What would I do without my wonderful foodie friends and fellow bloggers? I would certainly not eat as well as I do! My friend Gudrun told me about this little tiny place at the Stanford Barn, and ever since I tried it I made it my favorite lunch spot!

The owner-chef Rocco is from Emilia Romagna, like yours truly. He has worked in Porretta Terme, and at Babbo in NYC before heading out to sunny California and infuse this uber-small and quaint spot with the Italy I grew up in. A simple sandwich, a tasty salad, a few zeppole are all it takes to bring me back to the flavors of home, and I love every bit of it!For example, the one above is what in Italy goes under the name “tuna salad”. The disappointment in ordering one if you’re expecting the other is quite evident, and it works in both directions!

I peruse Tootsie’s for breakfast as well, as the cappuccino and espresso are just great- not to mention the staple of the Italian breakfast, the cornetto (aka: Italian croissant). Rocco spins the cornetti in their delicious Nutella variation, a reason alone to head there in the morning! Now I am trying to get Rocco to start offering bomboloni… and then I can have perfection right in my backyard!

Tootsie’s At Stanford Barn
700 Welch Rd
Palo Alto, CA 94304
(650) 566-8445

Filed under: Bakeries and Pasticcerie, Peninsula, Restaurants, South Bay | No Comments »

I am a bit late with my Fancy Food post, as the week has been a bit on the crazy side!! Nevertheless I explored the beauties of imported (and local!) foods at the Fancy Food Show this past weekend. I got the special treat of playing “apprentice” to the most amazing food blogger ever (thanks Amy!), and got to learn a ton about all sort of different and amazing new imports, existing imports, and local goodies.

A few of my favorites are below- mostly are from Italy, or used in Italian cooking (surprise!), and a few are just fun little great products!

I loved the colorful lay-out of the Etruria products, but even more than that I absolutely LOVED the honey vinegar- aceto di miele, a descendant of idromele (well, a quick search showed me the English name for it is none other than mead!), one of the oldest beverages in recorded history (and a dead one, at that!). Giuseppe, the owner/ producer/ chef of Etruria, was at hand to explain all about his products. The honey vinegar is made with water and homey, and let to ferment. Giuseppe produces honey vinegar from three different types of honeys he produces himself, and all three are impossibly OUTSTANDING. I can see them on puntarelle, or even mixed with soda water for a digestivo… delicious. You can find Giuseppe’s products online at Chefshop.com and also at several shops around the Bay Area. I am dying to get some samples to try out in my kitchen- will write more once I get them!

Oregon Growers and Shippers has a delicious, scrumptious cherry and Zinfandel jam I am dying to get on a crostata. My husband will be making me one with a sample I got from them, I can’t wait!! More reviews (and a crostata recipe!) to come.

Bertagni pasta was a delicious find. I am not a fan of refrigerated pasta, but sometimes I cave for convenience. (Fine, I said it!). If only I knew what I was missing out on when I wasn’t scouring out Bertagni!! Delicious dough texture, and really tasty fillings make of this pasta the next best thing to a rolling pin.

Ricotta is always a favorite, and finding a decently-priced, reasonably tasting ricotta is always a challenge (unless my friend Rosetta makes it for me!). I find Cantare’ a really good store-bought one- and each little package comes in a draining basket. The presentation they had at Fancy Food was beautiful!

Truffle salts were a big trend at the show, and I got a few samples to try out. I am not quite sure how to use them, but I am going to have a taste-off as soon as all the samples are in!

Now, this was one of the weirdest thing I have ever tried- smoked olive oil. The whole show was talking about it, and I found it kind of interestingly wacky!

A product I am looking forward to put to the test is Bread Armor: a plastic bag designed to keep your favorite artisan bread from getting hard as a stone (I am sure it happened to you too!). An innovative product with some unusual characteristics that make our lives easier. What’s not to like there?

Filed under: Events | 4 Comments »