Prosciutto recipes from around the web

Not being a chef myself, I am always very amazed at what chefs can create with a few  ingredients. I visited a few of my favorite blog/websites to see what the owners have created with prosciutto.
Here are the results of my research! Enjoy!

By La Tartine Gourmande:

• Prosciutto, St Maure and Pear Tartines
• Black Raddish and its Proscuitto Rose
• Prosciutto, Radish and Honey Tartine, Fennel and Zucchini Salad

By Donna Hay:

• Prosciutto-wrapped leek

By Smitten Kitchen:

• Fennel, prosciutto and pomegranate salad

By Traveler’s Lunch Box:

• Prosciutto e Melone, Kicked Up a Notch

If you know of interesting prosciutto recipes, or have  your own, don’t hesitate to post the links in reply to this message.

If you ever try any of ther recipes above, please let me know if it tastes as good as it looks! I will be trying a few myself. And I will update you on the matter.

Have a great week-end!

 

A Chefs take on: Prosciutto

When I mentionned we were covering Prosciutto di Parma this week, Stefano Leone so kindly sent me these pictures of one of his culinary creations with Prosciutto di Parma:

Ossobuco, sweetbread terrine wrapped in Prosciutto di Parma with orange sauce verrina, mostarda.

Stefano loves pairing this dish with a Gabriel Meffre, Cotes du Rhône AOC – Expression Pierres Brisées, 2006 France which is a blend of Grenache, Syrah, Mourvedre and Cinsault, a crimson robe with purple nuances, an enticing nose of fresh fruits and spices notes. Savory and elegant, finishing by a charming spicy sensation.

Comfort food – Soul satisfying
Cooking and music are alike, in that a finished dish and a performance depend on an element of improvisation which is never part of the recipe or score. When this goes right, the results are magical.

It is the magic that matter!

This is for you!”

Stefano Leone

 

Cooking with the Macchi Family: Prosciutto

At home, Paolo is the one that enjoys cooking the most. I am usually the designated assistant and assembler, and of course the eater!

This evening, Paolo and I made this very homey pasta dish with prosciutto di parma. Nothing too fancy, a nice feel good meal, but soooo tasty!

Since it is prosciutto week on the blog, I decided to snap some pics, and share the recipe with you.

Appetizer:

Prosciutto wrapped around hand rolled grissini’s on a bed of mixed greens and Dwarf Truffled Peaches.

Pasta: Fusilli with peas, cubed prosciutto “crudo” (raw) and Burrata.

1. Fusilli were tossed in onions sauted in butter
2. We added steamed peas, cubed Prosciutto and Burrata
3. and served immediately!

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Tips and Tricks on How To Pick & Store Prosciutto

Here are some tips and tricks about prosciutto that I learn over the time and through my experience working with it over the years. I decided to share these with you, as before I came into the business, I would ask myself these questions everytime I find myself in front of a deli counter.

1. How to store prosciutto?

• If the prosciutto is sliced, keep it in the coldest part of the fridge (usually in the bottom), make sure it’s well wrapped/air tight (preferably in plastic) so the edges do not dry.
• For a full piece (not sliced) you can either refrigerate it in fridge or in the freezer. Always make sure the piece is well wrapped to avoid mould in fride or freezer burn.

 

All You Need To Know About Prosciutto

PROSCIUTTO DI PARMA

Prosciutto di parma has for centuries been made and can only be made and cured in the countryside of Parma, Italy.

Four ingredients are needed for the production of Prosciutto di Parma®:

1. Italian pigs
2. Salt
3. Air
4. Time.

Prosciutto di Parma® is an all-natural ham and all additives are prohibited.

The making of Parma Ham® is a long process where the curing is controlled carefully so that the ham absorbs only enough salt to preserve it. The hams are made from a very rare bread of pigs that are bred in north-central Italy specifically for Prosciutto di Parma® production. They have a specific diet that contains a blend of cereal grains and whey from Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese production. When time for slaughter, the pigs have to be nine months old and must weigh a minimum of 340 pounds.

At the “prosciuttificio” (processing plant) some skin and fat is trimmed to give it, it’s “typical” shape.
Sea salt is rubbed into the meat, which is then refrigerated at 80% humidity for about a week. Remaining salt is then removed and the ham gets a second coat of salt, which is left on another 15 to 18 days, depending on the weight. (more…)

 

A new client of ours: Kaizen Sushi Bar & Restaurant

I came to Montreal in September 1996 to study Interior Design at College Inter-Dec. If I had known then that this would be the city I would permanently live in, find my soulmate, form close and life long friendships and discover my endless love for Sushi, I would have arrived here earlier.

In October 1996 I was introduced, by then a class mate and today my close friend Bill, to sushi. As I was having it, I still remember that it was a shrimp tempura roll. I was amazed at how something could taste so good. I was also amazed over how they managed to mix so many different flavors in one little roll, not to mention the combination of soy, ginger and wasabi all together creating the perfect harmony and satisfaction between all my senses.

I very quickly picked up on the sushi hype and started my pilgrimage across Montreal to see what the city had to offer. My friends and I (many of them international students just like me and new to Montreal)  continuously exchanged experiences from different sushi bars and quickly made sure we went to try out the places that we hadn’t been to yet. One evening, I had this girlfriend of mine asking me, if I would like to join her for sushi at Kaizen, I said I had never been there so I would love to join her. After my evening at Kaizen my quest for the best sushi place ended. From then on I still continued going to new places that opened and many of them were remarkable but my heart was still at Kaizen and I always have to go back every once in a while.

I would say that it’s a little over a year now that I have been wondering why no sushi restaurants carries our products and what we could offer that they can’t already get. When we first started importing Bottarga, I remember Paolo saying that “this should be something that might be interesting to sushi bars and restaurants”. But then at the same time, we realized that this is not what we wanted to primarily contribute with. As time passed the thought just kept on growing in my head and I was now at the point of really wanting to have a maki roll with Prosciutto di Parma, I had by now even built an idea of what should be in this roll. I’m sure many of you are now wondering why I didn’t just try making it myself. You see, this was so important to me that there was no room for disappointment.

And then it hit me! Where else but at Kaizen. I knew of Cassady Sniatowsky through Paolo and I had seen on different occasions pictures that were uploaded on Facebook from Kaizen by him and I was amazed of the different kinds of fish that they were using and how a lot of it was seasonal and imported. I knew I was able to reach him on Twitter, so that’s what I did. I thought I was going to have to work really hard to convince him and that I would have to somewhat explain myself but that wasn’t the case. Sharp as a whip and always looking for something new and also very confident in his Sushi Chef or ‘Itamae’, Antonio, this was just another one of their continuous and ongoing experiments to outdo them selves and differentiate themselves from others by being one of the better ones and for some of us, the best.

On Halloween evening, Paolo and I went to Kaizen Sushi Bar & Restaurant to have one of the better meals I’ve had in a long time and also a very memorable one. I finally got to have sushi with Prosciutto di Parma and also with Spek, which is a slightly smoked prosciutto, but that was not even the beginning of what we had that evening. Every plate that was served were beautiful to look at, the flavors were magical to savour and the aftertaste is something that I am still holding on to as I am writing this post. I would without a doubt suggest for you to pass by Kaizen and try your Harumaki and don’t forget to let me know what you think about it.

 

A chef's take on Parmigiano at Restaurant Primo and Secondo

Primo and Secondo has been a milestone for Italian cooking  in little Italy for a while now, we have enjoyed many dishes made by part owner and executive Chef Roberto Stabile. Roberto, his wife Natalina and family have over the years been faithful and valued clients of ours here at Macchi Inc. and Paolo and I have personally experienced many  exciting dining experiences over there. I’m sure you have read some of the write ups that have been made by food and restaurant critics in the past and he keeps on evolving with all the upcoming food trends.

Here is an expample of how Chef Roberto Stabile will present a plate with parmigiano reggiano:

Prosciutto Appetizer w. figs and Parmigiano reggiano

• Prosciutto friulano riserva
• fresh figs
• arugula salad
• Parmigiano reggiano shavings

Trust me, it tastes just as good as it looks!

Off course the plates change depending on the season and what fruits and vegetables are available on the market. Since the Jean Talon market is practically in the ‘backyard’ of the restaurant, it makes it extremely easy for him to ‘work-as-he-goes’ during the summer season.

As usual, I would be extremely appreciative to hear your thoughts on this and if you get a chance to go and have this there let me know what you think.

Until tomorrow, have a good  one!

 

MrsMacchi and Kim Vallee at DNA Restaurant

On the launch of my Blog, the first product that I introduced was our key product: The Citterio Prosciutto. Kim Vallee sent me a message on twitter and let me know that she had by then only had one kind, of the five kinds of prosciutto that we are supplying and I quickly responded to her and offered her to have a Prosciutto tasting with us over a lunch at restaurant DNA in Montreal. With me I brought my husband and the President of our company Macchi Inc. Paolo Macchi and Kim were accompanied with the all so pleasant foodie friend of hers, Nathalie Rivard. As we all installed our selves at the table, there were 4 cameras and one video camera, one computer and 3 iphones covering our table and I was just thinking; “will there be any room for the plates?”

- Of course, there was !!!

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