Local Recipes from the Island of Elba
i piatti più antichi della cucina elbana
Edited by texts the firm Tourist Promotion of the Tuscan archipelago
Rice with Cuttlefish Ink - Gurguglione - Stockfish “alla Riese” - Schiaccia briaca - Schiacciunta - Corollo - Boiled Octopus - Stuffed Sardines
RICE WITH CUTTLEFISH INK
Ingredients: 600\700g of cuttlefish, parsley, onions, garlic, 500g peeled tomatoes, chilli, white wine, salt, rice.
Clean the cuttlefish without breaking the ink sack
which must be removed carefully and put aside. Cut the cuttlefish
up into small pieces. Sauté a small amount of onion in a
cup of olive oil and once soft, add the cuttlefish and continue
to cook for a few minutes before adding one glass of white wine.
Once the wine has evaporated add 500g of peeled tomato purée,
parsley, chopped garlic and salt. Allow to cook well, adding water
when necessary.
The sauce must remain liquid to allow the rice to cook. When the
cuttlefish is tender add the rice and ink and stir well.
Continue cooking adding vegetable stock when necessary.
GURGUGLIONE - Vegetable Stew
Ingredients: 800g of green bell peppers, 3 large aubergines, 2 courgettes, 1
large onion, basil, parsley, 600g of ripe tomatoes.
Fresh vegetables are necessary for the success of this dish.
Wash the peppers and cut into 4 pieces. Cut the aubergines and courgettes
into large cubes.
Purée the tomatoes and cut the onion into
thin slices. Put all the ingredients together into a frying pan
with 2 cups of olive oil, basil , parsley and a pinch of salt.
Cover the pan and let it cook at a high temperature and then turn the
heat down.
Keep the pan covered to allow the vegetables to cook in their natural
juices. Serve hot.
STOCKFISH "RIESE" STYLE - Stockfish cooked in the style of Rio Marina
Ingredients: 1,2kg of Stockfish (pre-soaked), onion, 500g of peeled tomatoes, basil, parsley, chilli, green bell peppers, black olives, pine nuts, capers, olive oil, parmesan cheese, salt and pepper.
If possible the stockfish is best cooked in a terracotta casserole
dish. Slice the onion and sauté in 1 cup of olive oil. Once
the onion starts to soften add 2 small green peppers, chilli, a
couple of basil leaves, chopped parsley, salt pepper and puréed
tomato Let the tomato cook well before adding the chopped stockfish
and another cup of oil. Add the black olives, pine nuts to taste
and a few capers. Reduce the heat and allow to simmer adding warm
water if necessary.
Once the stockfish is cooked , sprinkle with grated parmesan cheese.
SCHIACCIA BRIACA - Tipsy Cake
Ingredients: 1kg of plain flour, 500g of sugar, 200g sultanas, 300g chopped mixed nuts (hazelnuts, almonds and walnuts), pine nuts, 2 glasses of oil, Aleatico (sweet red dessert wine) to taste, small cube of yeast.
The evening before prepare the dough using the cube of yeast dissolved
in a glass of warm water and 100g of the flour. Leave the dough
to rise all night covering it with a clean cloth.
Flour a board and place the dough together with the remainder of
the flour, the crushed nuts, sultanas, oil, Aleatico and knead together
until the dough becomes soft and smooth.
Grease a small round baking tin and line with greaseproof paper.
Place the dough in the tin and flatten. Before putting into the
oven sprinkle the surface with pine nuts. Cook in the oven at a
high temperature for 40\45 mins. Once baked, leave the tart to cool
and serve without removing from the baking tin.
SCHIACCIUNTA - Shortbread
Ingredients: 3 eggs, 300g plain flour, 300g sugar, 100g lard, a teaspoon of bicarbonate of soda, grated lemon rind.
Beat the eggs in a bowl and add the sugar, lard, bicarbonate and the grated lemon. It is easier to work these ingredients using your hands rather than with a mixer. Once these ingredients have been mixed , gradually add the flour until the dough is smooth. Grease and flour a baking tray and flatten the dough into it. Bake at 180° for around 40\45 mins. Dust with caster sugar before serving. Traditionally at Poggio the shortbread was decorated using wedding rings or thimbles making circular patterns on the surface.
COROLLO
Ingredients: 500g plain flour, 150g butter, 300g sugar, 4 eggs, a small glass of anise, a glass of milk, grated lemon rind, a sachet of dried yeast.
Dissolve the dried yeast in the glass of lukewarm milk. Prepare a well with the flour into which you will pour the previously beaten eggs and softened butter. Add the milk and yeast, the lemon rind, sugar and liqueur. Mix the ingredients together well. Butter and flour a ring mould and pour the mixture in allowing it to cook at 180° for around 45 mins.
BOILED OCTOPUS
Ingredients: 1 octopus, around 1kg, 3 lt of water, salt, chilli.
Salt the water, roughly 3 times as salty as water for cooking pasta
in. Add the chilli and bring to the boil. Once it is boiling hold
the octopus on a long fork and dip it in and out of the boiling
water about 3 times until the tentacles curl up. Leave it in the
water to cook for around another 30 mins.
Turn off the flame and let it rest for around another 20 mins. in
its cooking water. In Portoferraio it is traditional to eat the
octopus tentacles without adding any other seasoning. If you want
you can cut it up until small pieces and season with oil, lemon,
salt, parsley and garlic.
Traditionally the octopus was beaten with a wooden oar to tenderise
the meat, nowadays this is no longer done as no benefit is gained.
The origin of this custom was probably to be found in the ancient
battle between man and the sea where the octopus was depicted as
the "sea monster".
STUFFED SARDINES
Ingredients: Sardine or fresh anchovies, breadcrumbs soaked in milk, garlic, parsley, grated parmesan cheese, salt, chilli, olive oil, fresh or tinned tomatoes, eggs.
Remove the fish scales from the sardines by rubbing them with kitchen
paper from the tail towards the head several times. Gut the fish
by pulling the head towards the tail end. Try and not divide the
fillets. If they do break in two just use them to put in the stuffing.
Prepare around 10 fillets per person. The stuffing is prepared using
chopped sardine fillets, breadcrumbs soaked in milk, a whole egg
for every 3 portions, grated parmesan cheese, garlic, parsley, ground
chilli and salt.
Mix all the ingredients well together. Using a spoon, take a small
portion of stuffing and place on an open fillet, place another one
on top to cover the stuffing. Lightly flour and then dip in beaten
eggs and fry. They can be served simply fried or with a tomato and
fennel sauce.
