Potenza, The Old World is New Again

Chef Walter Potenza specializes in old world Italian cuisine.  His restaurant, Potenza, in Providence, Rhode Island is both a gastronomical and educational experience.  You won't find the typical things smothered in red sauce and melted cheese.  The menu, or menus, each featuring regional Italian fare, are elaborate and many of the more interesting dishes require 48 hours notice to order.  The food is rustic, but elevated; it's heartwarming.  To me, this is the heart of Italian cooking.  Delicious food of course, but also food as a vehicle for a whole experience, at the center of which is family.  

Chef Potenza began researching Italian regional food after his father died.  Through a connection, he was able to see his father's classified military records and learned that his paternal grandmother was Jewish and that his father had protected 219 Jews from persecution during World War II.  Now, Chef Walter's menus feature many Sephardic Jewish Italian dishes and he hopes to show through his food that much of what we consider traditional Italian cuisine draws heavily from roots in Jewish food traditions.  

We ordered five dishes that required advanced notice as well as two desserts of the chef's choice: PIzza Rustica, a light quiche of egg and mozzarella with pork sausage; lamb, lean and tender and cooked in a terra cotta pot and flavored with lemons and oregano; a dozen tiny quails, their meat falling off the bone; rich, buttery and earthy mushroom ravioli in a cream sauce topped with shredded duck; and Basilicata, braised artichokes with potatoes, tomatoes, onions and fava beans.  To finish the meal we had Scodelline, a house-made almond pudding with walnuts and Pan di Spagna alla Nocciole, a toasted hazelnut sponge cake, which can also be made without leavening for Passover.  Both were light and nutty and not overly sweet.  

Reading Chef Walter's menus is a treat in itself and you can check out his website at http://www.chefwalter.com/index.html.  Anyone who happens to be in Providence with at least two days notice should call the restaurant and try one of his many offerings.  The dishes are all meant for two, but I recommend eating Chef Walter's food in the company of many.  

Cocktails!

So I've been told that my last entry was a bit depressing.  And I sort of agree.  So in an attempt to not be a total Debbie Downer (Or alternatively a Negative Nancy, why is there never a male name for whiny, buzzkills?) I've decided to alternate entries about being overeducated and underemployed with entries about fun stuff, like cocktails!  After all, I will eventually find a job and I will need to get used to writing other material. 

Both sets of parents are coming over for a lobster bake tonight and I was in charge of cocktails.  After a less than extensive google search, I settled on "watermelon gin fizz" which I found at http://www.examiner.com/food-in-providence/watermelon-cocktail-recipe-with-bombay-sapphire-gin. It's pretty simple, but takes a bit of time to strain the watermelon.  From what I've tasted so far, it's worth the effort.  You'll need the following:

1 small, seedless watermelon
2 limes
15-20 mint leaves
4 tbs of white sugar
club soda
gin
cheese cloth or a fine strainer

Chop the mint and cut the watermelon into medium sized chunks.  Blend the watermelon, juice of two limes, sugar and mint in a blender.  Strain the juice through a strainer or cheesecloth.  Chill the juice and serve with a shot of gin and a splash of club soda.  Garnish with a lime wedge or sprig of mint. Imbibe!

Some tips:
To chop the mint, first "chiffonade" it by stacking the leaves and rolling them up from the bottom of the leaf to the top.  Then thinly slice from the end of your roll to make strips.  Now that you have thin strips, you can cut them again in the opposite direction to get a fine chop.

To get the most juice out of your limes, microwave each for about thirty seconds.  Be careful; they may be hot when they come out.

I always struggle when ordering cocktails out because I have the taste level of a sorority girl (margaritas and long island iced teas please!) but on occasion I have found some real gems.  For some of the best non-homemade cocktails you'll ever have the pleasure of sipping, check out The Spotted Pig in New York City (http://www.thespottedpig.com/) or Cook and Brown Public House in Providence, Rhode Island (http://cookandbrown.com/). 

Both restaurants have extensive and unique cocktail lists (as well as really delicious food), but I would recommend the Forager's Press at The Spotted Pig and the Bicycle at Cook and Brown.  The details of each of these cocktails are lost in the misty memories of a night when you had really great cocktails, but thanks to menupages.com (http://www.menupages.com/restaurants/the-spotted-pig/menu) I have been able to surmise that the Forager's Press consists of Michter's rye whiskey, chopped apples, honey syrup and lemon juice.  The closest approximation I could find of the Bicycle was a recipe on chow.com for a Yellow Bicycle (http://www.chow.com/recipes/14331-yellow-bicycle), which contains St. Germaine Elderflower liqueur, Yellow Chartreuse, Prosecco and a garnish of lemon zest (I do remember that my particular garnish was lime). 

Whatever your drink of choice always remember that life is better (if not classier) with little paper umbrellas!