A Tour Of Boston's North End With Bertolli

On a gorgeous Saturday afternoon a few weeks ago, I made my way by T and by foot to the North End. I love the North End -- what's not to love about a place that is chock-full of Italian food? -- but I don't get over there nearly enough. I'm even less likely to go now that Lechmere is temporarily closed, but when Lauren and Carly from Bertolli invited me to tour the North End with them and experience Italian food through the eyes of Bertolli, it was the perfect excuse to finally get myself down there.

The theme of the tour was showing how Bertolli serves Italy. Each of the stops along the tour exemplified Bertolli's passion for food and fresh ingredients.

Caffe Vittoria

We started at Caffe Vittoria, where we gathered for cappuccino, cannoli, and biscotti. Caffe Vittoria is the oldest Italian cafe in Boston.

The chocolate-dipped cannoli were my favorite of all the treats we sampled at Caffe Vittoria.

We each ordered a coffee drink to enjoy with our sweets. I went for an iced macchiato with caramel syrup. Caffe Vittoria uses Lavazza coffee, a traditional Italian brand, and it makes some strong, full-flavored drinks. We all got to take home a bag of freshly ground coffee, courtesy of Bertolli.

Even though we already had a gelato stop planned for later on the tour, owner Armando offered to send us out some samples after declaring that Caffe Vittoria is known for its gelato. And after one bite, we could all see why. The gelato was so creamy.

Once we could tear ourselves away from all the sweet treats at the cafe, we gathered outside for a group picture and then made our way over to Salumeria Italiana.

Salumeria Italiana

Salumeria Italiana is a little shop that carries some of the finest foods from Italy and all of the Mediterranean. It originally opened more than 40 years ago because an Italian mother wanted to be able to feed her baby foods from her homeland.

Here we got to try an array of Italian meats, cheeses, olive oils, and what quickly became my favorite balsamic vinegar. Chef Raymond Gillespie, former executive chef of Mamma Maria's, led us through the tastings.

First we sampled the meats: prosciutto de Parma, speck, and porchetta. The prosciutto is produced and aged in Emilia-Romagna (which is one of the regions we'll be visiting on our honeymoon to Italy!), and Salumeria Italiana offers a 14-month and a 24-month version. Speck is a smoked prosciutto produced in the northern part of Italy. And porchetta is an herb-laced meat often used in panini in Rome. I loved the prosciutto and speck.

Then we tried the cheeses: moliterno al tartufo, carozzi capriziola, piave vecchio. The moliterno al tartufo  is a sheep's milk cheese infused with black truffles, and if you like black truffles, I highly recommend it. It was incredible. The carozzi capriziola is a flavorful blue-veined cheese. And the piave is one of my favorite cheeses, so I was excited to see it on the sampling platter.

From there we moved on to olive oils. It's amazing how different the oils can taste. Salumeria Italiana has 25 different kinds! After the olive oils, we each got to try a little of the Rubio aged balsamic vinegar. It is made for Salumeria Italiana by a producer in Modena, Italy. The balsamic was so rich and sweet. Chef Gillespie recommended that we drizzle it on fish or steak after grilling or cooking them. And luckily for all us, our take-home gift from Bertolli at this stop was a bottle of the Rubio balsamic vinegar (and a wedge of cheese).

Gigi Gelateria

We had our sweet and then our salty, so clearly it was time for sweet again. The next stop on the trip was Gigi Gelateria, one of Frank DePasquale's many restaurants in the North End.

The gelateria actually started as a deli about 20 years ago but changed to a gelateria 5 years ago. Gelato moves faster than deli meats, so it ended up being a much better business. Gigi Gelateria features more than 30 flavors. I somehow restrained myself and only tried two: tiramisu and gianduja torrino (chocolate hazelnut vanilla). I thought the flavors were interesting, but I actually preferred the texture of Caffe Vittoria's gelato.

DePasquale Pasta Shoppe

Moving right along, we headed to another of Frank DePasquale's North End spots: DePasquale Pasta Shoppe. It seemed like the right time for another group photo.

When we got inside, we found ourselves in a small shop with a case running the length of it holding assorted freshly made pastas. The varieties seemed endless! And in addition to pasta were all sorts of accompaniments like sauces, cheese, and freshly baked Italian breads.

And behind the pastas sat Zoya, who makes all of the pastas, not only for the shop but also for Frank DePasquale's restaurants. It was amazing to watch her work. I run for the bottle of Advil after making just one batch of fresh pasta. I can't believe she does this all day long!

Here we each got to pick out a pasta to bring home, and I chose a container of red bell pepper gnocchi.

And though you probably wouldn't think we'd be able to eat more after snacking all day, we left the pasta shoppe and headed to Lucca for dinner.

Lucca

Lucca was an appropriate choice for a last stop because it was back in 1865 that Francesco Bertolli opened a small store in Lucca, Italy, where he sold regional foods such as wine, cheeses, olives, and olive oil. Bertolli (the brand) has since expanded to include a range of pasta sauces and frozen meals that pay homage to authentic Italian cuisine. Bertolli uses real Italian ingredients and recipes inspired by different regions in Italy. Throughout the tour, we learned how pairing fresh Italian ingredients with Bertolli prepared sauces and frozen meals can create a well-rounded Italian dining experience.

Our amazing tour guides from Bertolli worked with Lucca to plan an extra special dinner for us. We started off with warm, fresh bread and whipped butter and a basil-flavored spread, which we all thought might be some sort of pea puree. At any rate, it was a delicious alternative to butter.

Then we were presented with gorgeous individual antipasto plates. I enjoyed the calamari and cured meats, and I really wanted to like the pickled veggies, but they had a little too much kick for me. With the antipasto, I had a glass of the Michele Chiarlo (Piedmont) 2008 Barbera D'Asti.

For our entree, we did a side-by-side tasting of two pasta dishes. The first was a black pepper tagliatelle with shucked Maine lobster, North Country smoked bacon, chanterelle mushrooms, sweet corn, and scallions. The second a house-made caramelized onion and goat cheese ravioli with fava beans, escarole, blistered cherry tomatoes, and basil, and finished with aged goat cheese. Both dishes were tasty, and it's hard to say which I liked better because they were so different. With the entrees, I tried another red wine: the Marchese di Gresy (Piedmont) 2009 Dolcetto D'Alba.

For dessert, we decided to order a bunch and share. The warm, flourless chocolate cake was my favorite!

I also enjoyed the vanilla bean panna cotta in a blood orange compote.

I was too full to try the tiramisu, but it looked good.

And I snagged a tiny bite of the almond cake.

This was such a fun tour and a great reason to get myself down to the North End. There are so many places on the tour I want to visit again and again.

Thank you so much to Lauren and Carly for taking us on this amazing tour and teaching us about Bertolli, Italy, and Italian foods.

Have you ever been to Italy? If so, where? (I'm in honeymoon planning mode!)

Individual Plum Crisps

My mom came to the farmers' market with me two weekends ago (before wedding dress shopping), and she ended up buying a container of small plums in addition to a bunch of other farmers' market goodies.

She left some of the plums with me, and I thought I'd make a simple summer dessert with them. These individual plum crisps, with subtle hints of cinnamon, are sweet and tart, preserving the flavor of the plums.

Individual Plum Crisps (my recipe, topping adapted from The Art and Soul of Baking)
Print this recipe
Serves 2

Ingredients

1/4 cup flour
1/4 cup old-fashioned oats
1/4 cup light brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon salt
4 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut in small chunks
4 small plums
Vanilla ice cream or whipped cream for serving, optional

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Whisk together flour, oats, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt in a medium bowl. Using a pastry blender or your fingers, cut in the butter until it is evenly distributed and topping starts to clump together.

Dice the plums, and divide them between two small oven-safe dishes.

Sprinkle half of the topping over each dish (do not pack it down).

Place the baking dishes on a sheet pan, and bake for 20 minutes, or until fruit is bubbling and crisp turns golden brown, turning the pan halfway through baking.

Let cool slightly before serving. Serve with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream, if desired.

What simple summer desserts have you been enjoying?

Easy Tomato-Bread Salad

I'm addicted to tomatoes and basil in the summertime. There. I admitted it.

Because of this crazy addiction, I buy tomatoes and basil on pretty much every trip to the farmers' market, which means that even if I buy basil one week, turn it into pesto, and eat it all week long, I still buy more basil. True story. And even if I buy cherry tomatoes to use in a pasta dish, I still buy heirloom tomatoes when I see gorgeous, ripe ones. Having farmers' markets within walking distance every day of the week is a great way to feed this addiction. There are worse habits one could have.

Always having tomatoes and basil on hand is not a bad thing. It makes for a quick and easy dinner, especially when you have an end of a baguette, fresh mozzarella, fleur de sel, and olive oil and vinegar too.

Tomato-bread salad is one of the easiest things to whip up and doesn't even require turning on the stove (just the toaster oven). To make mine, I simply diced two heirloom tomatoes and scattered them on a plate. Then I cubed a 3-inch piece of baguette, lightly toasted the bread cubes, and combined them with the tomatoes.

Next, I seasoned the tomatoes with some fleur de sel. Then I diced four small mozzarella balls (ciligiene) and scattered those on top of the bread and tomatoes. I cut some basil chiffonade-style, and tossed it on top of the bread, tomato, and mozzarella mixture.

Lastly, I drizzled a little extra-virgin olive oil and some balsamic vinaigrette over the whole salad.

And then there was only one thing left to do: dig in!

What are your summertime vices?

Summer Veggies, Ricotta, And Campanelle And Supporting Local Farmers' Markets

One of my favorite things about summer is the abundance of veggies I find at my local farmers' markets. This past weekend I bought a ton of stuff including zucchini, squash, and cherry tomatoes.

I knew I wanted to incorporate them into some sort of dish that would reheat nicely and be easy to take for lunch all week. My mind instantly wandered to pasta, and before I knew it, I was paging through Domenica Marchetti's The Glorious Pasta of Italy. I landed on a recipe for shells with summer squash and ricotta, which Marchetti explained that she would make for her kids in place of processed mac and cheese. A dish that could satisfy cravings for mac and cheese and would incorporate my farmers' market finds? Yes, please.

I made a few small changes, such as using a little less pasta and a little less squash (just fitting the recipe to suit what I already had). I also went with campanelle (because I had it on hand) in place of shells. And I tossed in some cherry tomatoes when the zucchini was almost done cooking. After tasting the pasta, I began thinking of other things I could have done with it, and I decided this dish would be delicious with some fresh corn scraped off the cob and maybe a little bit of fresh basil too. You can start with the base idea of pasta with ricotta and summer veggies and change it until it sounds like your perfect summer pasta dish.

Summer Veggies, Ricotta, And Campanelle (adapted from The Glorious Pasta of Italy)

Ingredients

4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 yellow onion, halved and thinly sliced
14 ounces summer squash and zucchini (about 2 to 3 small), ends trimmed and cut in 1/4-inch dice
1 teaspoon kosher salt
12 assorted cherry tomatoes, quartered
3/4 pound campanelle (or pasta of your choice)
1 1/2 cups ricotta (I used Maplebrook Farm)
Black pepper
1/2 cup grated parm

Preparation

Bring generously salted water to a boil for pasta.

While water is heating, heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large saute pan over medium-high heat, and add onions. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 7 to 8 minutes, or until onion is softened.

Stir in the diced squash and salt.

Raise heat to medium, and cook, stirring occasionally for about 10 minutes, or until squash pieces are tender.

Stir in cherry tomatoes. Cover, and turn off heat to keep warm.

Cook pasta in boiling water according to manufacturer's instructions until al dente.

While pasta is cooking, drizzle remaining two tablespoons olive oil over ricotta, and season generously with pepper. Mix well.

Reserve 1 cup of the pasta water, and drain pasta. Transfer the pasta to the saute pan, and gently toss to combine with veggies.

Fold in the ricotta and parmesan. Loosen the mixture with reserved pasta water as needed.

Season to taste with salt and pepper, and serve warm.

(Cooled pasta can be refrigerated, stored in an airtight container, and reheated in microwave.)

And while we're on the subject of farm fresh veggies, did you know that Mass Farmers Markets is now offering a consumer membership program?

The consumer membership program directly supports local farmers markets, as well as the many amazing programs that Mass Farmers Markets manages to connect all types of communities to healthy local food while simultaneously supporting sustainable agriculture and small business.

Mass Farmers Markets also:

• Facilitates and pays farmers for $1 million in subsidized local food sales to low-income seniors and families.
• Works with markets to accept electronic food stamps to allow more residents access to fresh, healthy food and has generated to date an additional $120,000 in sales for farmers statewide.
• Pioneered the first Veggie Prescription program, which allows doctors who identify youth at risk for diet-related disease to write a prescription so that child, and his or her entire family, can eat an extra serving of healthy, fresh and local fruits and vegetables every day.

If you're interested in being a consumer member, just fill out the form on the Mass Farmers Markets website. You can even designate one-third of your membership fee to go to your local market. An individual membership is only $40 and includes a member button, car decal, market list, e-newsletter, and more.

The more members who join, the more money can be raised to help Mass. farmers and small businesses survive and guarantee the success of all of our favorite markets year after year.

Two Sides Of The Odyssey Boston

This past weekend I had the opportunity to take not one but two Odyssey cruises on the Boston Harbor. On Friday night I joined a small group of Boston Food Bloggers for a dinner cruise, and on Sunday morning, I joined a group of Boston Brunchers for a brunch cruise.

On Friday evening after work and a quick detour home to retrieve my forgotten wallet, I set off for Rowes Wharf to meet up with the nine other bloggers who would be attending the dinner onboard the Odyssey. It started raining just as we were boarding. With clouds in the sky and the sun setting soon, we realized we probably wouldn't have the greatest views from the boat and settled in at our table.

Because we were attending as bloggers, our dinner (typically $89.90) was complimentary, and we soon learned that dinner comes with one included drink. We were on the Wine Lovers' Dinner Cruise, so there were three featured wine offerings from Westport Rivers that evening. For my one included drink, I chose a glass of sparkling wine (2005 Westport Brut "RJR"). I thought a little crisp, bright, pear-flavored bubbly was just the thing to kick off dinner. Later on in the meal, Meghan, Daisy, and I ordered a bottle of Wycliff sparkling wine to share ($28).

As we looked over the dinner menus and started trying to figure out what we would select for our first course, entree, and dessert, servers came around with warm rolls.

It was a tough decision, but I opted to try the shrimp and corn chowder (roasted sweet corn, Gulf shrimp, red peppers, and potato with fresh cream with an herbed crouton).

The soup came in an adorable cup, and the server immediately poured it into my bowl.

I decided the hearty chowder was the right choice for a gray, rainy evening. It was both sweet and spicy and not overwhelmed by the flavor of red peppers, which is something I always worry about when they're included in a dish.

For my entree, I stuck with the comfort food theme and ordered the short ribs (braised beef short ribs marinated in a shallot and wild mushroom gravy, served with garlic mashed potatoes, puff pastry, and crispy onion straws). After being served Meghan's chicken and Rachel's ravioli, I sat with an empty place setting while everyone around me had their entrees before them. When our waiter came to check on us, he noticed I hadn't gotten my entree, and he rushed off to find it.

The short ribs were tender and well flavored. I pulled gently at them with my fork and pieces fell right off. The garlic mashed potatoes were a nice match, but the puff pastry was too crisp and a little out of place in the dish.

After moving through our first two courses pretty quickly, our waiter asked if we wanted to wait on dessert, which we all did because we were full. Some of us took our drinks and wandered upstairs to get outside for a little bit. The middle two floors of the boat were occupied with private parties, but we were able to go up past them to the back deck. On a nicer evening, I imagine it would be much more pleasant out there, but we were all getting pretty windblown and didn't hang out there for too long.

Photo courtesy of Daisy

When we returned to our table, some people ordered coffee or tea (I stuck with my glass of bubbly), and then our waiter brought our desserts. I chose the raspberry mousse cup (raspberry mousse served in a dark chocolate cup, finished with homemade whipped cream and raspberries a raspberry).

I love desserts that combine chocolate and something lighter and fruitier. The raspberry mousse was definitely fruity, but it fell short on lightness. It was much heavier than a mousse should be, and I was left wondering what was put in it to make it so heavy. Even so, I enjoyed the dessert, especially the chocolate cup, though I did miss the whipped cream.

We disembarked around 10 p.m., and I trekked home in the rain, sufficiently full and ready for bed.

I spent Saturday wedding dress shopping with my mom, sister, and matron of honor and then returned to Rowes Wharf around 11 a.m. on Sunday morning to re-board the Odyssey, this time for a brunch cruise. The weather was absolutely gorgeous -- blue skies and bright sunshine. I was excited about brunch but maybe even a little more excited about the prospect of soaking in a little sun too.

Once we boarded, we were led to the same lower deck where I had sat on Friday night, but our tables were on the other side of the boat this time. When I sat down, I found a complimentary glass of bubbly in front of me, and a waitress soon came around to ask us if we wanted our complimentary bubbly to be turned into a mimosa. I'm always down for brunch mimosas, so she added a splash of orange juice to my glass.

To the left of our table, we could see the brunch buffet. The breakfast items were on the side closest to us, and the lunch items were on the far side. I decided my game plan would be to start on the breakfast side and then head to the lunch side for the second round.

I filled my plate with some roasted potatoes, scrambled eggs, bacon, a croissant, and a slice of carved-to-order black pepper-crusted sirloin with a dollop of horseradish. The potatoes were tasty and actually all very soft and tender. I'm usually wary of scrambled eggs on brunch buffets, but these were fluffy and cheesey, and I was pleasantly surprised. The bacon was crisp and enjoyable, but the croissant was like a roll, lacking buttery, flaky layers. The sirloin was well done (and dry), which I was not expecting, and I couldn't eat it. I also had a piece of strawberries and cream French toast (not pictured), which was coated with a thin layer of strawberry cream cheese -- just enough to add a little sweet, fruity flavor.

After my breakfast course, I scoped out the lunch side and piled my plate with Caesar salad, roasted summer veggies, and penne primavera. The veggies and penne needed a little salt and pepper and were best eaten together, in my opinion, and the Caesar salad was quite good.

There were several cakes and a chocolate fountain, but I was pretty full, so I just tried a bite of Bianca's red velvet cake, which had a layer of chocolate and frosting between each layer of cake and was incredibly moist. I kind of wish I skipped the rest of brunch and went right for that cake!

Daisy and I decided to order drinks and head upstairs and out to the sunshine. I went with my standby, the St-Germain cocktail, but the Odyssey makes it with Grey Goose vodka, so I asked for it without vodka and essentially got St-Germain and Champagne, which was just perfect -- effervescent, floral, and slightly sweet. Oh, and it came with an edible orchid, which made heads turn wherever I went with my drink.

(Teeny tiny rant here: Why do restaurants insist on adding an "e" at the end of St-Germain on their menus? It's not St-Germaine!)

The top deck of the boat is completely open, so we headed out there, walked around taking pictures, and found some seats in the sun.

I felt completely relaxed and happy. I really think I needed some serious Vitamin D, and a brunch cruise on the Odyssey delivered.

Please note that dinner was a Boston Food Bloggers experience and may not be a typical experience, and brunch was a Boston Brunchers experience and may not be a typical experience. For both meals, all of our food and one drink was included, and we paid for any additional drinks we had.

Have you ever taken a mini cruise like this?