OK, so as you know, I love all things bread. And in Italy, the bread is heavenly. Every meal begins with a big old basket of bread. Butter is rarely served. (It’s really only served when a crazy from the States or Canada asks for it. And that does not include me, let me assure you.)
The bread in Italy is always fresh, usually chewy, and always irresistible. But of all the bread I ate while recently in Italy, the best was in a very small ristorante in Francavilla Al Mare (near Ortona, on the east coast of Italy, slightly north and east of Rome.) The following recipe is as close as I can get to that perfect bread without owning a bread oven. (That’s a broad hint Mr. C.) But to completely set the stage for this recipe, I must tell you the whole story of one absolutely perfect meal we experienced while in the Italian region of Abruzzo.
We arrived at our destination (the Setteventi B&B – 40 Euros a night) after a leisurely drive along the Adriatic from our previous night’s stay in Vieste. The seaside town of Vieste is on the beautiful Gargano Peninsula which is lovingly referred to as the spur of the Italian boot. Not as many tourists from America visit this incredible part of Italy, which in my opinion is a real mistake. The people are charming and the terrain and food incredible. But I digress.
We checked into our room at the B&B (a very modern home) and asked the manager where we could eat dinner that evening since our B&B was on a semi-country road on the hill above the main part of town and we really didn’t want to drive any distance for dinner. She asked us if we enjoyed seafood. We said yes. She told us the ristorante just across the street from the B&B was wonderful. Works for us.
Since it was late afternoon and we had been in our car all day, we decided to take a walk and explore our environs. So off we went to explore. We quickly realized that zoning must not be an issue in Italy, because in less than a km, we walked by individual villas, multi-family residences, vineyards (people actually picking grapes that had grown along an overhead trellis), 2 working wineries (saw grapes being crushed), our B&B, and a small elegant 7 table ristorante that provided us with one of our most cherished dining experiences ever.
But first let me continue setting the stage for this amazing meal. Our B&B hostess had told us the restaurant was right across the street, or at least that is what we had gathered from her pretty good English. So at 7:30 we headed out the door of the B&B (actually at the back of the building) and walked up the driveway to the road. We had not really seen any evidence of a restaurant when we had gone out for our afternoon walk, except for a small graveled area reserved for restaurant guests to park. We just assumed that in the evening the restaurant entrance would be quite evident. Well it was not. The building we thought housed the restaurant really just looked like a three story villa. Luckily a gentleman came out of a nearby residence and we asked him for the location of the restaurant entrance. He indicated that he really didn’t know how to get in except to ring the buzzer and wait. Well he rang the unnamed buzzer alright, along with the other two that were labeled with people’s names. Great! Your first night in town and you become your own worst nightmare, a pain in the — tourist! But luckily, as soon as the un-labeled buzzer was pushed the garage gate opened and we were admitted. The restaurant owner came to greet us from the side entrance path and we were escorted down into the restaurant. Even though the ristorante didn’t officially open until 8:00pm, we were made to feel like honored guests. (Actually when we left the restaurant, the side gate was open and the small unassuming name plate of the restaurant (L’Angolino sul mare) was dimly lit making it appear much more like a restaurant entrance than just a lighted path to the ground floor apartment. Well of course it looked different. The restaurant was actually open when we left. Silly Americans!) But back to our amazing dining experience….
Once we sat down at our table the fun began in earnest. As in many Italian restaurants, a little something complimentary is provided as an appetizer or a small glass of lemoncello is offered after the meal. But at this restaurant, they raised “complimentary” to an art form. At L’Angolino sul mare, our first complimentary item was a little nibble in the form of a gorgeous and tasty mini slider bun filled with perfectly cooked shrimp in a delicate sauce. Just large enough for 2 small bites. Along with this came a complimentary glass of Prosecco, along with a basket of flatbread (thin with a very crunchy top crust) and pieces of bread studded with black olives. After that we ordered our primi and secondi. (We usually shared our first and second courses.) For our primi we chose Carbanara de Mare Al Lemone (small pieces of shellfish in a light lemon cream sauce with pasta). OMG – amazing. For our second course we ordered Misti al Forno with Creamy Potato (perfectly prepared salmon, tuna, shrimp, scallops, sardine, calamari, and white fish, with a small ultra creamy potato cake on the side). Again, absolute perfection. We also ordered a lovely bottle of the local wine Trebbiano d’Abruzzo to go along with our meal.
As on many other Italian menus, the dolce (sweet) offerings included cheesecake. We had resisted cheesecake until this evening, but when the cheesecake was presented as “della casa”, we ordered one serving to share. But before our cheesecake arrived, we were each brought a complimentary dolce. The five little bite sized sweets were served on a raised thin rectangular clear glass tray with indentations for each individual item. The items included a creamy chocolate nut ball rolled in cocoa, a small chocolate mousse topped with a tiny macaroon square, a dark chocolate peanut ball, a tiny green meringue filled with lemon cream, and a perfectly candied whole almond. Fantastic presentation and each bite a culinary miracle.
Then we were served our cheesecake in a bowl. The cheesecake was about the consistency of Zabaglione and of the most delicate cream cheese (probably part Mascarpone) flavor imaginable; lightly sprinkled with slightly sweet dried bread crumbs and tender dried cherries. As each of us spooned up a bite of this delicious mixture we practically moaned out loud. Absolutely too delicious to be true.
And last but not least, we were brought a complimentary aperitif sized glass of Passito, a delightful sweet dessert late harvest wine made from grapes that have been dried on straw. This deep yellow-gold hued wine tasted of honey, sweet vanilla, apricot nectar, and fragrant flowers. (Actually Passito is very reminiscent of Vin Santo, another sweet dessert wine we love traditional to Tuscany.)
Of all the fantastic meals we shared in Italy, this meal I truly hope will remain in my memory until I take my last breath. And all for 65 (including tip) Euros. When we reached our room Mr. C looked and me, and with a big happy grin on his face said, “If I complain about the visa bill when we get home, just remind me of C. da Setteventi #14 (our B&B) and the ristorante across the street!”
Buon Appetito!
- 1 1/3 c. warm water
- 1 T. active dry yeast
- 2 ½ tsp. kosher salt, divided
- 3 T. extra virgin olive oil, plus more as needed
- 3 1/2 c. all-purpose flour
Combine the warm water, yeast, and 2 teaspoons salt in a mixer bowl and let proof for about 5 minutes. Add olive oil and enough flour to make a soft dough. Let rise covered with plastic wrap until doubled, about an hour. Punch down and spread out on an olive oil greased 13×17 (or larger) pan. (Pour enough olive oil on the pan to make a rather slick surface. In other words, don’t be stingy. You are not lightly greasing the pan!) Add dough, then turn dough over and spread out with your hands. (Use some of that nice olive oil on the pan to grease your fingers so they don’t stick to the dough.) The dough should look more like you are making a thick pizza crust than bread. Cover again with plastic wrap and let rise until the dough is soft and puffy, about 45 minutes. Using a pastry brush, gently slather top of dough with olive oil and sprinkle with remaining ½ teaspoon salt.
Bake in a 20 minute pre-heated 500 degree oven (reduce to 450 when you place the dough in the oven) on top of a pizza baking stone, if you own one. Bake for about 10 minutes, then, if you have the option, turn on the convection setting and bake until golden brown, about 5 minutes more. Total baking time should be about 15 minutes.
Serve the flatbread warm or at room temperature. No butter or additional olive oil required. Great served with antipasto or any of your favorite pasta dishes. Also great served with soup.
And yes I wish the top was as crusty and crunchy as the bread I had at the ristorante in Francavilla Al Mare, Italy, but until I get my own bread/pizza oven, this version will have to do. At least the flavor is as I remember. You gotta give me credit for that!