Sicilian Potato Salad and Cooking With The Duchess

On my recent trip to Sicily, I had the good fortune to cook with literary nobility. Let me explain. The above recipe from the cooking session appears at the end, so if you’re here just for the food, skip to the bottom of this post. But then you’d miss learning about a slice of Sicilian history.

One of my all-time favorite books is “The Leopard” by Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa. I first read it in Italian (“Il Gatttopardo”) more than 30 years ago, and have read it in English twice since. It’s a masterpiece of literature and considered one of the 100 greatest books ever written, chronicling the decline of Sicily’s aristocracy, and the rise of the middle class during the unification of Italy in 1861, known as “Risorgimento.” Initially rejected by publishers, it was published in 1958, a year after the author’s death, and went on to become an international success, selling more than 3 million copies, in more than 30 languages. The book was also adapted into an opulent (and excellent) movie in 1963, starring Burt Lancaster, Alain Delon and Claudia Cardinale.

Tomasi di Lampedusa, who was himself a prince, modeled the main character (Don Fabrizio, Prince of Salina) after his great grandather, Don Giulio Fabrizio Tomasi, another prince of Lampedusa.

The book’s main character was modeled after the author’s great grandfather, who was an amateur star-gazer, as is the protagonist in the book.

In the book, the prince dotes on his nephew and “adopted” son, Tancredi, while in real life, the author, who had no heirs, really did adopt his distant cousin, Gioacchino (Giò) Lanza Tamasi, who was already part of a different Italian aristocratic family.

Sadly, as I was writing this blog post, I learned that Giò died last week in his Palermo home – Palazzo Lanza Tamasi on via Butera, the palace that was once home to Lampedusa after his original home on via Lampedusa was bombed during World War II.

A few weeks ago, I found myself sitting next to Giò during a luncheon in the 17th century palazzo, following a wonderful day of shopping and cooking with his wife Nicoletta, the duchess. Although duke and duchess, they were extremely down-to-earth and use their first names in introductions.

It almost seems trivial to write about our deliciously fun day of cooking last month after learning of Giò’s death this week, but the classes are vital in maintaining the palazzo, since upkeep on Palermo palaces doesn’t come cheap. There are a number of apartments in the palace that Nicoletta rents out to visitors also. If you’re planning a trip to Palermo, do yourself a favor and check out her website: Butera 28.

We began the day with a short trip to one of the city’s markets — Capo — to buy provisions for the lunch, then Nicoletta directed us in the preparation for the various courses. The menu was printed for everyone, headlined by the family crest:

We strolled through their ample patio overlooking the sea, to harvest herbs and lemons for the meal:

We all took a hand in chopping, squeezing, peeling, stirring or whatever needed to be done — from the youngest —

to the oldest (my husband and I, without a doubt)

Through it all, the energetic Nicoletta directed us with humor but also the conviction of a drill sergeant — “No, that’s still not chopped finely enough….” or “You missed some of the flesh, keep scraping the eggplant….

She cooked right alongside us, with a knowledgeable and sure hand in whatever task was needed. The kitchen was equipped with a fabulous batterie du cuisine:

And plentiful local ingredients, including capers from Pantelleria, which were used in the recipe at the end of this post.

When our preparations were complete, we sat down to a multi-course lunch in a gorgeous dining room overlooking the sea.

During lunch, it was a privilege to sit next to Giò. He was an accomplished music critic, author, professor, director of several theater and opera companies during his lifetime, and one-time director of the Italian Cultural Center in New York, just to name a few of his numerous achievements. He was keeper of the flame for his adopted uncle’s literary heritage, and with his death, it also feels like the last living legend of “Il Gattopardo” has also gone.

Nicoletta gave us a tour of the palazzo after lunch, starting with the vast library:

There were several sitting rooms, including this one with yellow upholstered furniture, precious tapestries, art work, and Venetian chandeliers.

Another room in the palace:

With a photograph of Giò and Nicoletta earlier in their 40-year marriage:

In addition to paintings with historic, religious or mythical subjects, family ancestors were also captured for posterity:

Including a couple of sketches of family members by Picasso:

But for me, the highlight of the tour through the palace was seeing the original manuscript of “Il Gattopardo” written in Lampedusa’s own handwriting:

It’s sad to think he didn’t live long enough to see the success and popularity of his masterpiece.

Here is a photo of the author with more of his handwritten manuscript:

The members of the cooking class had come from the U.S., France and Germany and were a happy, easy-going group of travelers.

While there were several courses, I’m posting the recipe for just one here — a potato salad that would be perfect for that picnic you might be thinking about now that the weather has warmed. I came back from Sicily armed with the salted capers from Pantelleria that Nicoletta uses in this recipe. I also brought back sea salt from nearby Trapani, where salt has been harvested for decades. If you aren’t planning a trip to Sicily, you can buy both online from Gustiamo.com. The photo below is the dish we prepared that day, using the famed red onions from Tropea, impossible to find in the U.S. In the absence of those, supermarket red onions will stand in just fine.

We were too late to rent an apartment at Palazzo Lanza Tamasi. However, we rented a modern apartment in Lampedusa’s original palazzo that was bombed on Via Lampedusa, very centrally located in a quiet street.

The entrance includes a wall with writings from Lampedusa:

There are several apartments for rent. If you’re interested, send me an email and I will send you the rental info:

Check out Ciao Chow Linda on Instagram here to find out what’s cooking in my kitchen each day (and more).

Click Here For Printable Recipe

Sicilian Potato Salad

Ingredients:

2 pounds (1kg) of potatoes

1 pound (1⁄2 kg) of tomatoes, optional

1⁄4 cup of salt preserved capers

1 tablespoon of dried oregano

1 medium red onion

Good red wine vinegar

Extra-virgin olive oil

Freshly ground pepper

Small new potatoes and Roma or San Marzano tomatoes would be ideal for this recipe. 

Directions:

Steam the potatoes until done, peel and cut them in large chunks.

Put them in a bowl, let them cool.

If using, cut also the tomatoes in bite-size pieces, seed them and add them to the potatoes.

Thoroughly but delicately rinse the capers and gently pat them dry.

Thinly sliced the onion in rings.

Add the capers and the onion rings to the bowl.

Sprinkle the oregano and the pepper.

In a little jug, mix the oil and the vinegar (1/3 of vinegar and 2/3 of oil).

Dress the salad with this mixture just before serving, otherwise the potatoes absorb all the oil and become soggy.

Serves 6-8.

 

Old Fashioned American Potato Salad

With the fourth of July coming up, many of us will be holding backyard picnics and barbecues. If you’re like me, one thing that’s always on the picnic table is potato salad, although I generally make the kind I grew up with, that uses vinegar and oil as the main dressing.

But occasionally, especially when my father isn’t among the guests (he hates anything with mayonnaise), I’ll make a classic old-fashioned American-style potato salad, using mayonnaise. Both versions are delicious, so it’s nice to mix it up once in a while. After you boil the potatoes and cut them into chunks, add some sliced celery, minced red onion, eggs, sweet pickle relish, parsley and salt and pepper.

Mix everything together with mayonnaise and some Dijon mustard. Don’t worry if you don’t have the exact amounts of ingredients in the recipe below. It’s very forgiving if you want to add more potatoes, or less, or more of any of the other ingredients. Just taste as you go along.

Serve at room temperature or cold from the fridge. It makes a great late night snack too. Happy Picnicking!Click here to connect with me on Instagram and find out what’s cooking in Ciao Chow Linda’s kitchen each day (and more)

Old Fashioned American Potato Salad

Author: Ciao Chow Linda

printable recipe here

Ingredients

• 3 pounds red skinned potatoes, boiled and peeled (optional)
• 2 stalks celery, diced
• 1/2 cup red onion, minced
• 4 hard boiled eggs, chopped finely
• 1/4 cup sweet pickle relish
• a big handful of minced parsley – maybe 1/2 cup or so
• salt, pepper to taste
• 1 cup mayonnaise (I like Hellman’s)
• 1/4 cup Dijon mustard

Instructions

1. Boil the potatoes until they are fork tender, but not falling apart in the water.
2. Test by pricking with a knife to see if they’re cooked.
3. If they’re small, they shouldn’t take longer than 15-20 minutes.
4. Drain the hot water and cover with cold water.
5. When cool, peel the potatoes (if desired, if not, leave the skins on)
6. Cut into chunks (not too large, and not too small)
7. Place the potatoes in a bowl, with the rest of the ingredients.
8. Mix thoroughly and serve cold or at room temperature.

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Flank Steak with Chimichurri Sauce and Potato Salad

Grilling season is right around the corner, and while most of us aren’t likely to host a big gathering due to the Covid-19 pandemic, you can still enjoy a backyard barbecue with the friends and/or family who are in your bubble. If you haven’t got an outdoor grill, it’s just as easy to cook this on the stovetop, using a grill pan to get those characteristic marks and flavor. Flank steak is not a tender piece of meat, so you’ll need to marinate it first, for a minimum of a few hours, or overnight. Use a thermometer to test for the level of doneness you prefer — taking it off the heat about five degrees before the meat reaches the temperature you’re looking for. The meat in this post was cooked to about 125 degrees, then rested for a few minutes before slicing. While the meat rests, the temperature will rise a few degrees. Slice it thinly against the grain, on the diagonal.

What’s the perfect side dish for your meat? Well, potato salad, of course. While I love potato salads of all kinds, I am partial to the ones with an oil and vinegar base, the way my mother used to make them when I was growing up. But inspired by my friend Marie, whose food is always tempting, I took a cue from her and made a dressing with lemon juice instead of vinegar, and using some “balsamic pearls” that were included in a food basket I won at a charity event. They are totally optional, and may be hard to find, but worth seeking for the unique look they add to the salad. Since chives are in full bloom right now, I added some chive flowers to the bowl too. For best results, use small yellow potatoes, like Yukon Gold, or fingerling potatoes, rather than the large starchy, baking potatoes.

Drizzle the chimichurri sauce over the meat for even more flavor, serve with the potato salad and a green vegetable and you’ve got a meal fit for company or a family backyard barbecue. The only thing missing is a bottle of good red wine. The recipes below will serve about six people, but if it’s just two of you, the leftovers are good the next day too. The meat is great served cold in a sandwich with the chimichurri sauce smeared on the bread, or made into a cold beef salad. If you get bored eating the potato salad a couple of days in a row, add it to some leftover vegetables and beaten eggs and turn it into a frittata. Leftovers never tasted so good.

Click here to connect with me on Instagram and find out what Ciao Chow Linda is up to in the kitchen (and other places too.)

Flank Steak with Chimichurri Sauce and Potato Salad

Author: Ciao Chow Linda

printable recipe here

Serves: serves 6-8 people

Ingredients

• FOR THE MEAT and MARINADE:
• 2 lbs. flank steak
• 2 limes, juiced
• 1/2 cup orange juice
• 4 cloves garlic
• 1/4 cup fresh herbs, chopped (I used parsley and lemon balm, but have also used cilantro, which not everyone loves)
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 2 teaspoons chili powder
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon fresh oregano
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil (I used olive oil)
• 1 jalapeno pepper (I used some homemade candied jalapenos)
• 2 tablespoons white vinegar
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons honey
• FOR THE CHIMICHURRI SAUCE:
• 1 shallot, finely chopped
• 1 jalapeno pepper (I used some homemade candied jalapeños)
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/4 cup Italian parsley, minced
• 1 teaspon kosher salt
• 1/4 cup fresh oregano,( or if you prefer, cilantro)
• 3/4 cup olive oil
• FOR THE POTATO SALAD:
• 2 pounds small yellow potatoes, like Yukon Gold
• 1/4 cup minced red onion
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
• about 1/4 cup parsley, minced
• about 4 tablespoons chives, minced
• chive flowers, optional
• dark balsamic pearls, optional

Instructions

1. Mix all the marinade ingredients for the meat and place in a container at least four hours ahead of grilling..
2. Cook over an outdoor grill, or an indoor grill pan until the interior of the meat registers about 120-125 degrees F. for rare, 125-130 for medium rare and 130-135 for medium.
3. Take it off the heat a few degrees before the desired temperature because it will continue to cook slightly as it rests.
4. Let it rest for 5-10 minutes, then slice it thinly, against the grain, on the diagonal.
5. Serve with the chimichurri sauce.
6. FOR THE CHIMICHURRI SAUCE:
7. Mix all the ingredients together and stir, then drizzle over the cooked meat.
8. FOR THE POTATO SALAD:
9. Boil the potatoes until tender, then drain and let cool to room temperature.
10. Peel if desired, or leave skin on.
11. Mix the dressing ingredients together with a fork or whisk, except for the chive flowers and the balsamic pearls.
12. Toss the potatoes with the dressing.
13. Place the salad in a serving bowl, and scatter the chive flowers and balsamic pearls on top.

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