HUNGRY GERALD

Some years ago, HG/BSK toured Sicily with daughter Lesley R., her husband, Profesore Massimo and Granddaughters Arianna and Sofia (then little girls but showing signs of their future brilliance and beauty). HG/BSK had the very good fortune to have Massimo as the tour leader and guide. Professor of Italian Studies at Brown University, he is learned in almost every aspect of Italian culture. And, he grew up in the Sicilian city of Siracusa. Best of all, in HG’s point of view, Massimo combines learning with a good appetite and a knowledgeable appreciation of Italian cuisine. Thus, the group combined visits to the spectacular ruins of Greek temples and other architectural and natural sights, with extraordinary dining. In raucous colorful Palermo, HG tasted voluptuous linguine with sea urchin roe at a seaside restaurant. In a smoky hole in the wall in the center of the city, HG was introduced to the wonders of fried brains, spleen and other innards. And, in the teeming streets HG tasted mysterious treats dispensed by itinerant vendors. While driving, there were many roadside lunches under the Sicilian sun on the outdoor terraces of hillside trattorias. The pasta dishes with eggplant sauces were a revelation. Instead of customary cheese and fruit, the group ended some meals with an array of the justifiably famous Sicilian pastries. In Massimo’s hometown of Siracusa, a trip to the wonderfully preserved Roman amphitheater was followed by bowls of spaghetti with seppie (cuttlefish) plus grilled seppie with peppers and tomatoes. Siracusa is a 2,700 year old city. It was one of the most important cities of Europe during its Grecian period, rivaled only by Athens. Romans, Arabs and other occupiers left their marks on Siracusa. A wondrous city, indeed. After Siracusa, HG/BSK left the family behind and journeyed to the spectacular city of Taormina and its scenic location atop a hillside overlooking the Ionian Sea. On the east coast of Sicily, it has long been one the world’s most favored summer vacation destinations (much loved by Goethe and scores of other poets, novelists and painters). Its colorful art colony and its many gay visitors (Truman Capote, Jean Cocteau, Jean Marais, Tennessee Williams, etc.) gave it a reputation of being “Sodom by the sea.” Today, it’s know for its luxurious hotels and chic shopping promenade. The architectural gem of Taormina is Teatro Greco, a horseshoe shaped theater (built by the Greeks and Romans) that seems suspended between the sea and the sky. Woody Allen used it as the setting for a Greek chorus in his 1995 movie, Mighty Aphrodite. The sea view from HG/BSK’s hotel room terrace was unforgettable as was the pasta with sardines HG/BSK happily consumed in the hotel dining room. The pasta — which contained raisins, pignolia nuts and saffron in addition to sardines — was a living illustration of the Arab influence on Sicilian cuisine. Last night, BSK brought a touch of Sicily to New Mexico by making a stunning platter of linguine with sardines. The dish started with a sofrito of olive oil, anchovies, garlic, shallots, capers, chopped parsley and tomatoes plus a squeeze of tomato paste and a dash of wine vinegar. When the sofrito had simmered into mellowness, BSK mixed it with the al dente linguine and a bit of pasta water. The dish was then topped with chopped, raw and ripe tomatoes plus black Kalamata olives and Portuguese sardines. The tinned sardines, ordered online from Zingerman’s, the renowned Ann Arbor food merchant, are the best sardines in the world. Thick, meaty, flavorful filets. BSK’s dish topped the Taormina version.

HG and BSK have been very fortunate in life to have dined looking out at a variety of spectacular views. Of course, nothing will ever match the sweeping New York vistas from tragic, doomed Windows on the World Restaurant on the 105th and 106th floors of the World Trade Center. HG dined there often, managed news conferences and business meetings in its convivial setting. (One of HG’s business colleagues was among four people who left the restaurant and elevatored to safety just minutes before the terrorist plane struck). There are other New York restaurants, thankfully spared disaster, with great views: The glittering art-deco Rainbow Room in Rockefeller Center. The “Top of the Tower” in the Beekman Tower Hotel. In Italy, incredible views were matched with culinary delights: In a miniscule trattoria atop a lofty hill in Tuscany HG and BSk feasted on tagliatelle with generous shavings of white truffle. In Sicily there were extravagant aquatic vistas viewed from a dining terrace where the specialty was Spaghetti Norma (eggplant sauce). Also in Sicily, HG and BSK ate linguini with sardine sauce while seated on the terrace of a posh Taormina hotel, the endless blue of the Mediterranean shimmering in the distance. For many years, HG and BSK didn’t have to leave home to enjoy dining scenery. For some 16 years HG and BSK’s Colorado dining table faced some 75 miles of views including the Front Range of the Rockies, the lights of Denver, Pike’s Peak and the plains of Kansas. (The HG/BSK home was 9,000 feet above sea level). The HG/BSK loft in Vancouver looked over mountains, sea and glittering skyscrapers. Here, in New Mexico, HG and BSK dine with a crackling fire in their fireplace (nights are cool, even in May and early June) with Las Barrancas (the Cliffs) in the distance. These cliffs, which change color throughout the day as sun and shadow paint their surface, are on the land of the Poajque Pueblo. They are steeped in tribal history. Nice backdrop for HG and BSK’s wine accented dinners.

Last night SJ (visiting at HG and BSK’s Santa Fe home with his family) produced a large bowl of spaghetti with sardine sauce. It was one of the very best pasta dishes in HG’s memory. It deviated from the traditional Sicilian Spaghetti con el Sarde but retained that magic island’s ambiance (hopefully, SJ will share his recipe in a forthcoming post).

In any case, it made HG make a mental revisit to Sicily. It is the isle of the most superb ruins of Grecian temples, air fragrant with herbs, sea and mountain vistas and a history of violence, foreign occupation, blood and vengeance. It has been the subject of HG’s favorite novel, “The Leopard,” by Lampedusa and HG’s two favorite films, “The Godfather–Part One and Part Two.” It is an island that has been glorified, romanticized, vulgarized; however, HG’s knowledge of Italy and Sicily is as thin as capeliini. For real insight into the historical and social realities of Sicily, HG will always turn to his intellectually gifted son-in-law, Profesore/Dottore M. who grew up in Siracusa.

Profesore / Dottore M. was also HG and BSK’s incomparable guide to Sicily and to the wonders of the local cuisine. In Palermo, HG tasted a variety of little fried yummies (including spleen) that sing in HG’s mind. There was also pasta with a sea urchin sauce. In Siracusa there were fried cuttlefish. In a small town, HG had the definitive Pasta a la Norma (eggplant sauce) and, of course, there was swordfish and tuna cooked in a variety of ways. And, not to be forgotten, the cornucopia of Sicilian sweets and baked goods. In the terrace restaurant of a hotel in Taormina (certainly the town with the loveliest sea views in the world) HG and BSK enjoyed spaghetti with sardine sauce (enhanced with raisins and pignolias evoking Sicily’s occupation by Arabs many centuries ago). Awfully good. But, HG must be honest (nepotism being not to blame). SJ’s was better.

(Flattery gets one everywhere, says SJ, and so the recipe is divulged. Gather together 1 medium red onion, 4 to 5 cloves of garlic, red pepper flakes, 5 nice plum tomatoes, 2 tablespoons tomato paste, 1/4 cup chicken or vegetable broth, a nice handful of Italian parsley, 2 tablespoons capers, 2 anchovy fillets, a can of (preferably) Portuguese Sardines packed in Olive oil and of course of package of Spaghetti.

Fill a big pasta pot with heavily salted cold water and set to boil. Mince the garlic and red onion and saute in olive oil. Once these soften a bit add some red pepper flakes (to taste) and chop up your anchovies and add them to the pan. Really cook this mixture down so that the onions and garlic carmalize a bit and the anchovies dissolve. Then chop up your plum tomatoes and add them to the pan alongside the tomato paste. Stir everything together and add the chicken broth (if mixture seems too thick add some more broth). Raise heat to a lazy simmer and add the capers and sardines. Add salt and pepper to taste and let simmer for fifteen minutes. Hopefully your pasta water has reached a boil at this point so add your pasta. Cook your pasta until it is a touch underdone (that is a touch before optimal AL DENTE!) and add it to your sauce alongside about 1/2 to a full cup of your pasta water. Raise the heat and keep stirring until your pasta has absorbed some sauce and taste for doneness. When ready add the chopped parsley and serve!)