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Tuscan
cuisine is some of the best in the world and nobody understands this
better than Tuscan restaurateurs, Giancarlo and Katie Caldesi. Their
advice for achieving the perfect Tuscan meal is to serve it alongside
the speciality wine of the region, Chianti.
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Giancarlo
Caldesi says: "Tuscan cooking is simple and seasonal and a
Tuscan menu will often feature rustic dishes of beef, wild game, duck
and seafood with plenty of olive oil and bread served alongside. A
Tuscan meal is not complete without a bottle of Chianti - a wine
crafted perfectly to be served with food, one of my favourites is
Chianti DOCG from the Castello Di Gabbiano"
Chianti DOCG
from the Castello Di Gabbiano is a full-bodied, robust wine which is
made according to the traditional Tuscan style. This deeply coloured
ruby red Chianti exudes pleasant floral and herbal notes and aromas
of spiced plum and dried fruit, with lush flavours of cherry,
raspberry and blackberry on the palate and good structure. The
Sangiovese grapes are sourced from the heart of Tuscany and with a
medium acidity and medium tannins this wine makes a good match for
the rich, flavoursome foods served in the region.
Giancarlo and
Katie Caldesi have prepared a selection of recipes exclusively for
the Castello di Gabbiano that capture the essence and cooking style
of Tuscany. The three that follow are specialities of the region
which incorporate the flavours of Gabbiano Chianti DOCG: Beef
Ragù, Duck with Cherries and Pears Poached in Chianti.
Made to share
with family and friends, Gabbiano wines are Gabbiano Chianti,
Gabbiano Pinot Grigio and Gabbiano Rosé. Produced at the
beautiful 12th century estate of the Castello di Gabbiano in Tuscany
the wines are available in UK supermarkets priced from £6.49.
A selection
of seasonal Gabbiano recipes from Giancarlo & Katie Caldesi:
Beef
Ragù with Gabbiano Chianti DOCG
Katie Caldesi
says: "This is a rich and
utterly delicious beef Ragù for pasta. The Gabbiano Chianti
DOCG matches perfectly with the beef and smoky flavour from the bacon
resulting in a full-bodied and robust sauce."
Ingredients:
150ml olive oil
2 garlic
cloves, peeled and lightly crushed
Pepper and salt
1 red onion,
finely chopped
2 carrots,
finely chopped
2 large
celery sticks, finely chopped
2 bay leaves
1kg minced beef
125g pancetta
or smoked bacon, chopped
3 × 400g
tins of tomatoes
150ml water
300ml
Gabbiano Chianti DOCG
Method:
Heat the oil
in a large saucepan and fry the garlic, pepper and salt for a couple
of minutes. Add the carrots, celery, onion and bay leaves and leave
to cook for 10 minutes or so until softened. Meanwhile, put the
tomatoes into a bowl and break them up a little with your hands, wash
out the tins of tomatoes with the water and add this to the bowl.
Add the mince
and the pancetta to the pan and fry until browned breaking it up with
a wooden spoon. Any water in the mince should come out at this point
so when you see the mince starting to look dry, add the wine and then
reduce for a couple of minutes. When you have done this, add the
tomatoes and bring the Ragù to the boil then immediately lower
it to gentle simmer. Leave for at 30 minutes adding a little more
water if the Ragù starts to look dry, this shouldn't be
necessary if it is only just simmering. To be traditionally Tuscan,
serve tossed with fresh Pappardelle ribbons of pasta.
Duck
with Cherries in Gabbiano Chianti
Katie Caldesi
says: "This combination of gamey
meat and sweet, slightly sticky cherries is heavenly. This is a dish
we developed for a banquet to be served at the beautiful Castello di
Gabbiano just south of Florence. Italian cherries were just in season
so we dowsed them in the Castello's Chianti DOCG and served this as a
sauce with locally caught duck."
Serves 4
Ingredients:
4 duck breasts
400g cherries
50g sugar
150ml orange juice
500ml
Gabbiano Chianti DOCG (reduces to 150ml in around half an hour)
50g sugar
Method:
Pre heat the
oven to 180°C. Cut the cherries in half and remove the stones.
Put them into an ovenproof dish and pour over the orange juice then
sprinkle over the sugar. Put the dish into the oven and bake for 25
minutes or so until the cherries have softened and browned a little.
Remove from the oven and set aside.
Meanwhile
pour the Gabbiano Chianti wine into a saucepan with the sugar and
bring to the boil. Turn it down to a simmer and leave for around half
an hour so that it reduces to around a third of its volume.
Season the
duck breasts with salt and pepper and fry in hot oil in a frying pan.
Fry skin side down first and then turn them over, around ten minutes
in total. Put them onto a baking tray and place into the oven for
around ten to fifteen minutes or until done. Meanwhile pour the
cherries and the wine into a large frying pan over a high heat and
bring to the boil. Turn down to a simmer and reduce for around five
minutes until the sauce has reduced and thickened. Slice the duck
breasts and arrange on a warmed serving dish. Pour over the sauce and
serve with plenty of creamy mashed potato.
Pere
cotto in Chianti
Pears poached
in Chianti
Katie Caldesi
says: "These make a heavenly
combination served with a little piece of rich chocolate cake like
torta caprese and some Amaretto cream."
Serves 6
Ingredients:
6 fat, ripe
pears e.g. Comice
6 cloves
1 stick cinnamon
1 vanilla
pod, split in half lengthways
1 piece of
lemon zest, 5cm long
1 piece of
orange zest, 5cm long
1 bottle
Gabbiano Chianti DOCG red wine
100g caster sugar
100ml honey
Method:
Peel the
pears and spike each one with one clove on its bottom, near the
centre. Put them into a saucepan stems facing upwards. Pour over the
Gabbiano Chianti wine, add the sugar, honey, vanilla, cinnamon stick
and zests.
Bring the
wine up to a gentle boil and then turn down to simmer for one hour,
uncovered. Using a slotted spoon remove the pears to a serving dish.
Reduce the wine for around ten minutes and then sieve it into a
serving jug. Pour a little over the pears and put the rest on the table.
Gabbiano
Chianti is available in branches of Sainsbury priced from £5.99
Husband and
wife duo Giancarlo and Katie Caldesi cook up traditional Tuscan food
at Restaurant Caldesi and Caffé Caldesi in London, and Caldesi
in Campagna in Bray, Berkshire. English born Katie Caldesi is the
principal of their cookery school, La Cucina Caldesi, in London. She
is a keen cook having learnt her love of food from her mother's
kitchen. Giancarlo remains very Italian, in spite of having spent the
last 30 years living and working in the UK. Both give demonstrations
at their cookery school.
The Caldesis
starred in television show, Return to Tuscany, shown on BBC Two and
UKTV Food, and have published two books, 'Return to Tuscany' and
'Italian Mama's Kitchen' and Katie is currently writing their third.
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