1953 Part III Venice

We left Paris with regret, the second week of July 1953 and boarded the Wagon-lits train for Venice.  Next morning we stepped out of the Santa Lucia railway station, down the steps to the calm waters of the Grand Canal where colourful gondolas and the motor boats were waiting to lead us to the Piazza San Marco.  From there we were ushered to our hotel.

The Grand Canal is “the most beautiful street in the world”.    With exquisite palaces, churches and public buildings, erected on stilts on the water, it is a “street” that can be met nowhere else in the world.

We visited Saint Mark’s Basilica, in Italo-Byzantine style, glittering with gold mosaics, adorned with masterpieces of Italian artists and with exquisite pieces of sculpture, mostly spoils from the sack of Constantinople, during the 4^th Crusade, in 1204.  The Basilica has a separate bell-tower, the Campanille, one of the landmarks of Venice.  Next door is the Doge’s Palace, in Gothic-Venetian style, where we admired paintings of Tintoretto, Titian and Veronese.  

We stopped for an espresso and cantuccini at St. Mark’s Square.   It was like having coffee in an out door museum, so impressive and inspiring that we didn’t want to leave.

We passed the Bridge of Sighs and the Rialto Bridge on our way to San Giorgio di Greci.   We lit a candle and admired the grace and spirituality of the icons and murals  and the superbly carved iconostasis of the church..  Next door, I was moved to tears at the Flanginian School, a Greek Educational Institution, that contributed to Greek enlightenment, for two and a half centuries, during the Turkish rule. Today it houses the Institute of Byzantine and post Byzantine Studies.

Half a day was spent at Murano, where we visited the Glass Museum, and foundries, where high quality glassware is produced.   Mirrors and chandeliers being their prized products, but also smaller objects made out of crystalline glass, enamel, aventurine, multicoloured and milk glass. Quite a joy to behold!

One morning my Mother and I went shopping and bought a few souvenirs, a beautiful cameo, depicting Isabella of Spain, and coral necklaces for my cousins, in Greece.  Cameos were coming back into fashion and I was delighted with my precious, new gift.

On St Mark’s Square and on the narrow streets behind the Basilica were (and still are) some of the finest restaurants, cafes, and bars in Europe   We were having lunch at our hotel when I chose something I had never eaten before “Ris de Veau”, veal sweetbreads, a great delicacy, which I thoroughly enjoyed, but never tasted since.  Another dish we had, in a small trattoria was “Trippa ala Veneziana” tripe in a very tasty tomato sauce. In the beginning I presumed it was some sort of a pasta, a rather chewy pasta, but quite delicious!  

Here are few recipes of some typically Venetian dishes.

SARDINES IN SAOR

This very old Venetian dish is a way for preserving fish.  It has a slightly sweet and sour taste and keeps well in the fridge for a week to ten days. 

1 kg (2 lb) fresh sardines, head and backbone removed, butterflied, washed and dried

Salt and pepper

Flour seasoned with salt and a little Cayenne pepper

Mild olive oil for frying

1 cup raisins

250 ml (1 cup white wine)

1 cup pine nuts, toasted

750 g (1 ½ lb) onions, very thinly sliced

1 tbsp olive oil

125 ml (½ cup) water

2 cloves

1 tsp crushed coriander seeds

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

375 ml (1½ cup) hot chicken stock or more, if necessary

125-250 ml (½ -1 cup) white wine vinegar

1/8 tsp Cayenne pepper or less, optional

Sprinkle the fish with little salt and pepper.  Coat with seasoned flour, shaking off the excess, and fry in olive oil, on both sides, until crisp.  Place the sardines on paper towels to cool.   Meantime, place the raisins in white wine to soak, for about ½ an hour at least.

Sauté the onions in olive oil and water, stirring  until well coated, add the cloves, coriander seeds and a little salt, lower the heat and simmer covered, for 7 minutes.  Then stir in enough hot chicken stock to cover and simmer very gently, covered, until the onions are still a bit crunchy.  Add the raisins with whatever wine has not been absorbed, the pine nuts and cook over very low heat, until the onions are tender.  Add the vinegar and cook for 5 minutes uncovered.  Taste and add more salt and the Cayenne pepper, if using.  Allow the onions to cool.

Arrange the sardines in one layer in a large dish.  Spoon half the onion mixture on top.  Repeat the same procedure once more ending with the onions.  Cover with cling film and, place the fridge.

RISI E BISI

Many years ago, Risi et Bisi was apparently a dish eaten, mainly, on the feast of St Mark, the Patron saint of Venice.  Venetians insist that if prepared around the month of April, when fresh peas are at their best, this soupy risotto is elevated to a festive, gourmet creation.  Naturally, you can also prepare it with frozen peas. It is a combination of proteins, starch, vitamins and minerals that is both nutritious and comforting.

1½ litre (6 cups) hot, tasty chicken stock and a little more if necessary
3 tbsp olive oil
30 g (1 oz) butter

1 medium onion, finely chopped

2 cloves garlic, finely sliced

400 g (2 cups) Arborio rice

Salt and pepper

60 g (2 oz) sliced prosciutto, thickly chopped

1½ kg (3 ½ lb) fresh peas, weigh first and then shell or

750 g (1½ lb) frozen peas

2 cups chopped parsley

½ cup grated Parmesan

1 knob of butter, the size of a walnut

Gently sauté the onion in olive oil and butter until soft, then add the rice, garlic, a little salt and pepper and cook, stirring until well coated with butter.  Add a ladleful or two of the hot chicken stock, stirring all the time, until the stock is absorbed. Add more stock to barely cover the rice, and continue the same way for 10 minutes more.  Then stir in the peas and the prosciutto and keep on adding, stock and stirring for 5 minutes more.    Add the parsley, and check if the rice and peas are cooked.  Add more stock, if necessary, as this is a liquid risotto, and simmer for a few minutes more.   Remove from the fire and stir in the Parmesan and butter, and mix well.   Serve immediately, while hot and creamy.

FEGATO ALA VENEZIANA

If you like liver, try this recipe.

4 tbsp olive oil

60 g (2 oz) butter

6-7 medium onions, thinly sliced

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 sprig fresh sage
A little vegetable stock

750 g (1½ lb) calf’s liver trimmed and thinly sliced

125 ml (½ cup) white wine

a few drops of vinegar, optional

A little vegetable stock

1-2 fresh sage leaves

In a deep frying pan, heat 2 tbsp of olive oil and 30 g (1 oz) butter.   Add the onions, a little salt, sage, about 250 ml (1 cup) vegetable stock and simmer over very low heat, stirring frequently for about 15 minutes, until the onions are cooked, but not coloured.  Transfer the onions to a dish, discard the sage and keep hot

Add the remaining olive oil to the frying pan.  Pat the liver dry and sauté for 2-3 minutes on each side, in batches.   Sprinkle the liver with salt and freshly ground pepper and place it on the dish with the onions.

Discard all the olive oil from the frying pan, pour in the wine and deglaze with the help of a wooden spoon.  Add the vinegar, if using, sage, the remaining butter and a little stock and swirl until the gravy thickens. Taste, and season with salt, pepper and vinegar if necessary.  Place the liver and onions in separate piles back into the frying pan with the gravy and and cook gently for 2-3 minutes more.  Arrange the liver on a heated dish, cover each slice of liver with the glazed onions and sprinkle with the remaining gravy.  Serve immediately.

VENETIAN CARROT CAKE

This juicy, spicy cake was created and very popular, during the late Middle Ages, in the Jewish Ghetto of Venice.  Venice was, then, at it’s height of power and wealth and had the monopoly, among others, of all precious spices imported from the East.

I found the recipe in the internet, a few years ago, and changed it because I have friends who are allergic to nuts.  It might not have the authentic taste that  Jessica and Lorenzo enjoyed, but whenever I make it, it disappears, promptly, to the last aromatic crumb.

75 g (½ cup) golden raisins

62.5 ml (¼ cup) dark rum

125 ml (½ cup) sunflower oil or mild olive oil

150 g (¾ cup) sugar

The grated rind of ½ a lemon

3 eggs

Vanilla

260 g (2 cups) self-raising flour

½ tsp nutmeg

¼ tsp ginger powder

1 good pinch of salt

½ cup desiccated coconut

2 cups coarsely grated carrots (2-3 medium-sized carrots)

The juice of ½ lemon

2 tbsp toasted pine nuts

Preheat the oven 180 C (350 F).   Simmer the raisins in rum for 3 minutes and allow to cool.

Whip the oil with the sugar and the lemon zest until it emulsifies. Whip in the eggs one at a time and add the vanilla.

Sift the flour in a large bowl, and stir in the nutmeg, ginger powder, salt and  coconut.  Scrape in the oil/sugar/egg mixture, add the carrots,  lemon juice, raisins and any rum that hasn't been absorbed, and fold well together. Spoon the batter in an oiled baking tin, lined with baking parchment and level the top with a wet spatula.  Sprinkle with the toasted pine nuts and bake for 30-35 minutes until the cake is golden brown.