A taste of Italy

We just returned from 12 glorious days in Italy. Beautiful sunny skies, 20 degrees most days, really delicious coffee and dining al fresco every night. I didn’t take many pictures; my camera wouldn’t do it justice, so I just enjoyed the view. We made a point to try the food specialities of each area we visited. In Bologna we had this local condiment of slowcooked melty onions and tomato. We stirred it into our pasta ragu— another local dish—and ate it with veal and grilled vegetables. This recipe dates back to 1886 and my husband read somewhere that it is thought to be the oldest written recipe. It is often made with lard, but since my son is fasting for Lent I made it with olive oil. Just a few simple ingredients, but involves a commitment of time. You need to salt and sugar the onions overnight before slow-cooking for a few hours. I made a lovely pasta e fagoli to have with it. I made some polenta to go with it the next day and we all agreed that this would become a regular staple. Serve it with eggs or pile it on some cheese toast. Serve it hot or room temperature; I expect it would freeze really well if you should have some leftovers; we didn’t. I look forward to making it in the summer when the onions and tomatoes are fresh out of the ground. You can also marinate for 2-4 hours and then cook it, I did it overnight. Next time I will use the slow cooker so I don’t have to watch over it and stir it so often. It really is worth the effort.

Friggione

3 lbs. white onions

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1 teaspoon granulated sugar

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 can whole (796ml) peeled plum tomatoes from Italy

Finely slice onions, put in large bowl and sprinkle with salt and sugar. Stir it to combine well, cover and let marinate overnight. Heat oil in large pan over medium-high heat and put onions and any juice in the pan. Turn heat down to low and cover with lid, cook for two hours, stirring occasionally. When the onions have darkened, add the tomatoes and cook another two hours until the mixture is thick with just a little liquid remaining. Season sauce with salt and pepper.

Makes 8 servings