Bread and Spirits is a successful Instagram project made of one measure food and two measures drinks that unites Italian cuisine and cocktails enthusiasts around the world.
Born out of the March 2020 lockdown from the combined talents of Jasmina and Stefano, Bread and Spirits is visually stunning, informative, entertaining, and very much unique. In this episode, I have the pleasure to record Jasmina and Stefano’s first audio interview and capture their incredible energy and passion for food & drinks, but also for human connections and communication.
My guest today is Chicca Maione, an extraordinary cooking instructor for both in-person and online classes on Italian cuisine. Based in Castagneto Carducci – Bolgheri, Tuscany, Chicca and her partners have created a community of people from all over the world who love Italian food and participate in workshops, share their experiences, and create connections.
During the episode, Chicca invites everyone to attend their free cooking workshop on October 2nd. Please follow this link for all of the details and to register.
Besides talking about her classes, Chicca shares her fascinating story, from her Neapolitan origins to the amazing experience of cycling all over the world for over ten years, before settling in Tuscany and seeing her love for food and cooking materialize into a new career.
In the episode, Chicca Maione also goes over her philosophy on food, how to bring joy into the kitchen, and the benefits of cooking every day. Finally, she talks about the food she cooks the most (Italian-Mediterranean), which was studied for its links to health and wellbeing (as I had touched on in a previous episode with Diana Zahuranec).
Side dishes have an important role in Italian cuisine. These, often vegetarian, preparations are meant as an accompaniment to a second course, whether it’s meat or fish, a piatto freddo (literally, cold dish) of cheese and/or cold cuts, or a vegetarian preparation. To have a side of braised fennel was common in my family while growing up, and I now make it regularly.
Fennel is known for its aromatic seeds and as a vegetable consisting of the lower part of its stalks, which form an enlarged bulb-shaped bundle(1). As the stalks separate, they become fibrous and are discarded in cooking. Fennel belongs to the umbellifers family along with celery (which it visually resembles), carrots, parsnip, parsley, cilantro, dill, anise, and other plants which tend to produce flowers in umbrella-shaped clusters.
Fennel bulb (raw)
Fennel has a strong anise aroma due to the presence of anethole, an organic compound also found in anise seeds. Some say that fennel tastes like licorice, but this is really because many licorice candies are flavored with anise.
Nutritionally, fennel is a good source of vitamins (e.g.: C, A), minerals (e.g.: potassium, manganese), as well as carbohydrates in the form of dietary fiber (non-digestible) and sugar (3.9% in weight).
Fennel is consumed raw (e.g.: thinly sliced and added to salads) or cooked (e.g.: roasted, braised, or au gratin). In this recipe:
I sliced the fennel perpendicularly to its fibers to tenderize it.
I pan roasted it in olive oil and butter to caramelize the sugars and develop flavor through browning.
Then, I added salt to enhance the flavor and to extract some water (via osmosis).
Allowed the fennel to braise in its own juice covered with a lid at a low temperature.
Interrupted the cooking after 15-20 minutes or when the fennel was cooked through but still had a slightly fibrous texture.
Braised Fennel
Yield: 2 servings
Total Time: 25 minutes
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
side dish
Ingredients
2 fennel bulbs
1/2 Tbsp butter
1/2 Tbsp olive oil
Salt
Preparation
Slice the fennel perpendicularly to its fibers, discarding the stalks.
In a non-stick pan, warm up olive oil and butter, then add the fennel.
Roast the fennel at a high temperature, tossing and flipping it frequently.
Add a pinch of salt, lower the temperature, cover with a lid, and allow the fennel to braise.
Cook for 15-20 minutes, stirring from time to time, just until the fennel is cooked through.
Hello everyone! Today this blog turns eight years old, prompting me to give an (overdue) update.
As you have heard in the latest podcast, and seen on “the social channels,” I have some big news. After spending over 17 years in Vancouver, two months ago I moved to England! Precisely, to the town of Guildford, 30 miles south-west of London. I won’t go too much into the reasons for the relocation, other than saying that they are both personal and professional, and that I am super excited about being here!
Guildford – High Street
If you wonder what’s going to happen to this blog now that I am much closer to Italy and perhaps no longer bombarded by the worst Italian Food “interpretations,” please rest assured that I will continue the project! Even though England’s proximity to Italy, along with a much reduced Italian-American influence should result in a much closer rendition, Italian cuisine is still foreign, and as such, subject to adaptation to the local palate, and I have started to see this already. But in any case, what I’m interested in the most is food culture (and I think you are interested in it too!); England has so much to offer on that front, and I hope to dive into it over time.
Cream-tea: fruit scones, clotted cream, jam, accompanied by tea, of course!
For now, all I can do is share my first impressions. I may be stating the obvious, but, to me, the most noticeable difference between England and western Canada is that in England, the weight of history has resulted in a stronger national identity. However much I love Vancouver’s openness towards all cultures, it’s fascinating to now be exposed to more rooted customs, which may be even stronger in a small town such as Guildford. Moreover, it’s exciting to have the opportunity to explore and discover, for instance, that pretty much all cafes serve cream-tea, that the only fruit in fruit scones is raisins (or should I say sultanas?) and that crusty bread may be called a ‘bloomer’ (having no reason to be called “Italian!”)
I will talk more about British culture and traditions going forward, in comparison to the Italian and North American ones.
Now, onto a brief retrospective on this last year of blogging, or podcasting, as I should say. With only one article published, no recipes (boo!), and eight podcast episodes, it appears that I have been dedicating myself almost exclusively to Thoughts on the Table. I have certainly enjoyed producing each episode, along with my wonderful guests (some returning and some new): from the planning, to the recording, to the editing. If you missed any of them, here is a summary:
Returning guest, food blogger and photographer David Scott Allen returns on the show to discuss The Basic Rules of Italian Food, such as that no Italian would dare to cut spaghetti with a knife, or to have a cappuccino after a meal!
Food blogger Alida Zamparini returns to give us an update on her latest recipes and blogging trips. As you will hear, Alida has been focusing on regional Italian products and artisan craftsmanship, such as the production of ricotta in the Friulian Alps. Alida also introduces her passion for ancient grains such as spelt and Kamut Khorasan.
An interview with blogger Enzo De Chiara during which he explains his link to the United States and how he started his blog to document his food, travel, and lifestyle experiences across from his hometown of Bergamo (in northern Italy) and his adoptive city of Columbia, Missouri.
A Christmas episode with my friend and recurring guest Nick Zingale. In the episode, he describes how his Italian-American family celebrated Christmas over the years, with a special mention of the Feast of the Seven Fishes.
Yvette, Giampaolo, and 9-year-old Azzurra describe how they started producing short videos to promote their Memphis restaurant and help introduce continental Italian food to North America.
Foodiamo’s founder Raffaele Asquer and chief editor Roberto Croci talk about the Foodiamo project and how it expanded from guide to Italian food in Los Angeles to online magazine of global appeal.
Neapolitan born and raised Giuseppe D’Angelo describes how he made a mission for himself to discover the best Neapolitan pizzerias around the world. In his blog, he praises how pizza makers outside of Naples can obtain an excellent product despite operating in less than ideal conditions.
Writer and editor Melinda King talks about her background in food and wine science and history and shares her view on the true nature of Italian food with an insightful analysis that transcends its well-known allure.
When I started Thoughts on the Table, I never would have thought that it’d reach its 67th episode, that it would feature so many amazing guests, and that it would have allowed me to approach Italian food and food culture from so many different angles! This episode’s guest is Melinda King, an established writer and editor who has worked in the food industry and who has an extensive background in science and history. In our chat, Melinda introduces herself and then shares her view on what Italian food really is, with what I think of as one of the most insightful analysis I have ever encountered!
During the episode, Melinda mentions the book by Alberto Capatti and Massimo Montanari titled Italian Cuisine – A Cultural History, a wonderful read for anyone interested in understanding where modern Italian food comes from and in the premises of its very identity.
If you want to know more about Melinda, please check out her bio below. To get in touch with her, please leave a comment or contact her at setteveli21 AT gmail DOT com.
Melinda “Mindy” King is a writer and editor finishing her graduate thesis at the Università degli Studi di Padova in Agricultural Sciences and Italian Food and Wine, currently living in the Veneto countryside tending vines, animals, and a cornfield. With ten years in publishing management, research, freelance writing and illustration (having ghostwritten over 320 books), she earned degrees in European History (emphasis Medieval and Renaissance Studies—science and medicine), Anthropology, and Environmental Sciences having studied at Chapman University, Universidad de Monterrey, The British Institute, and Università di Firenze. With a background in wine studies (Sommelier, distribution, sensory analysis, and retail) she now applies herself to land management and training techniques. A lifetime of restaurant management and cooking (Colombian-Spanish and Swedish chef-family of wine and paella fiends), she has an eye to quality and tracking, as well as a sense of humor. Meanwhile, she has been a teacher and translator having traveled and worked in over seventy countries. Born in Santa Ana, California, spending much of her childhood in Mexico, Mindy moved to Italy in college to study, and finally found her home. Melding history and science, her focus on viticulture and vinification emphasizes vini autoctoni d’Italia (native grapes). The importance of this topic, she believes, is in the manner the grapes are cared for, and the people who do the work. The theme of her life is “inviting people to share their stories,” and Italian grapes have much to say. Investigating vines in the Etna volcano region (specifically Nerello Mascalese) in Sicily, she is further inspired on the beautiful connections between time, tradition, and soil. Her obsession is Italian “terroir,” and the historical meaning behind what “tastes good.” She is grateful to have parents with deep curiosity and dynamic appetites. Science is the study of energy. Taste is the observation of culture. Italian food are these things, in perfect practice.
This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful.
Strictly Necessary Cookies
Strictly Necessary Cookie should be enabled at all times so that we can save your preferences for cookie settings.
If you disable this cookie, we will not be able to save your preferences. This means that every time you visit this website you will need to enable or disable cookies again.
![[Thoughts on the Table – 98] Introducing Jasmina and Stefano from Bread and Spirits](../wp-content/uploads/2022/03/js.png)
![[Thoughts on the Table – 95] Introducing Chicca Maione from Chicca’s Cooking Club](../wp-content/uploads/2021/09/tot-chicca.png)
Besides talking about her classes, Chicca shares her fascinating story, from her Neapolitan origins to the amazing experience of cycling all over the world for over ten years, before settling in Tuscany and seeing her love for food and cooking materialize into a new career.
![[Thoughts on the Table – 67] The Premise of Italian Cuisine, with Melinda King](../wp-content/uploads/2018/05/tot-mindy.jpg)
