Three Italian recipes aim to recreate Alassio dining at home
A writer adapted three dishes from a food and memoir workshop in northern Italy, substituting local ingredients for foraged items.
By Rosa Fuentes ·
Three recipes adapted from a recent trip to northern Italy now offer a home kitchen version of meals served in Alassio and on Lake Garda. The dishes rely on simple ingredients like roasted peppers, mixed mushrooms, and whole fish.
The writer attended a Food and Memoir Writing class with partner Domenica Marchetti in Alassio, a town between Genoa and Nice. The region's cuisine emphasizes local produce and traditional methods. The writer described the food as extraordinary and respectful of ingredients, noting a lack of heavy sauces or complex garnishes.
The first dish features roasted sweet peppers served with goat cheese. At Osteria i Matetti in Alassio, the meal included wedges of red pepper topped with anchovies, green olive oil, and fresh herbs. The writer recreated this using jarred anchovies and soft goat cheese. The recipe serves four and requires roasting peppers on a gas flame or grill until blackened. The peppers then steam in a paper bag before the skin is peeled. Each wedge is topped with an anchovy filet and drizzled with oil and herbs.
The second recipe is a pasta dish inspired by a lakeside meal in northern Italy. The original plate featured homemade tagliatelle with foraged porcini mushrooms. The writer noted the mushrooms were sautéed in garlic and local olive oil. For home preparation, the recipe substitutes dried porcini, portobello, and shiitake mushrooms. The dried porcini soak in hot water for 15 minutes to release flavor. The sautéed mushrooms simmer with cream and pasta water. The dish serves two to three people and uses tagliatelle or similar flat ribbon pasta.
The third recipe is a roasted whole fish with potatoes. The inspiration came from a branzino dish served on a baking sheet with paper-thin potatoes, capers, anchovies, olives, and cherry tomatoes. The writer plans to use local fish such as trout or snapper. The fish roasts at 450 degrees for 25 minutes. It then broils for five to six minutes until the potato edges are crispy brown. The fish should reach an internal temperature of 145 degrees. Lemon slices tuck into the fish cavity before cooking.
The writer recommends omitting anchovies for those who dislike them. For the peppers, the goat cheese can stuff the vegetable instead. For the fish, the quantity of capers and olives can double to compensate for the missing anchovies. The recipes emphasize high heat to crisp potato edges and briny ingredients to flavor mild fish and vegetables.
These three dishes represent the first experiments the writer attempted after returning from Italy. The ingredients focus on seasonal availability and local sourcing. The preparation methods aim to replicate the simplicity and flavor profiles encountered during the workshop. No additional equipment is required beyond standard home kitchen tools like a broiler and parchment paper.
