A Lombardian Cookbook
(Lantern/Penguin, 2015)
by Alessandro Pavoni & Roberta Muir
While Italian regions like Tuscany are instantly recognised and 'emerging regions' such as Puglia are gaining attention, a few of Italy's 20 regions are overshadowed by powerful capital cities and barely known by name. So it is with Italy's wealthiest region, industrial Lombardy with fashion capital Milan at its heart, also rich in agricultural land.
In 2012, Alessandro and Anna Pavoni (from two-hatted Sydney restaurant Ormeggio at the Spit) led food writer Roberta Muir and myself, photographer Franz Scheurer, on a trip around Lombardy, discovering the fabulous produce, rich culture and cuisine of Alessandro's little-known corner of Italy. Together they created A Lombardian Cookbook, a celebration of Lombardy's traditional food, as diverse as the Alps, lakes, hills and plains that make up this landlocked region.
Lakes such as Como and Garda provide fish and a micro-climate that allows olive trees, citrus and grapes to flourish further north than normal, while the rib-sticking dishes of the Alps have more in common with bordering Switzerland than sunny southern Italy. Wooded hills provide boar, pheasant and other game plus mushrooms and chestnuts, and the fertile plains of the River Po produce corn for polenta, rice for risotto and pastures for cattle, making dishes like osso bucco popular and producing some of Italy's most famous cheeses, including mascarpone, gorgonzola and taleggio. Baking is also popular in Lombardy and traditional sweets include Italy's famous Christmas bread, panettone, and delicious cakes, nougat and deep-fried Carnevale treats.
The traditional dishes of Lombardy translate to an Australian setting even better than Pavoni could have imagined when he first started researching the book. "Spiedo, spit-roasted meat, is the most traditional Lombardian dish, especially for large gatherings," he explains. "I really wanted to include it in the book, but we cook it in a special machine which you can't get here. Then Roberta suggested we could cook it on the rotisserie attachment of her barbecue. I was so excited - it worked perfectly and we dedicated a whole chapter to this style of cooking - perfect for the Aussie summer."
ISBN: 978-1-921383-38-0
RRP $59.99
Publication date: 26 August 2015
Authors' Biographies & Contact Details
Alessandro Pavoni
After honing his culinary skills in his native Lombardy, then stints in a number of Michelin-starred restaurants in France and Italy, chef Alessandro Pavoni settled in Australia in 2003, landing the role of Executive Chef at Sydney's Park Hyatt. In 2009, he realised his dream of opening his own restaurant and Ormeggio at The Spit was born. Within nine months, Alessandro was awarded a coveted chef's hat in The Sydney Morning Herald Good Food Guide, gaining his second hat in 2012 while he was in Lombardy researching A Lombardian Cookbook. In 2014, Alessandro opened Via Alta in Sydney's Willoughby, featuring the traditional food of Lombardy and northern Italy, followed closely by Chiosco by Ormeggio in the marina adjacent to Ormeggio, inspired by Italy's seaside trattorie.
Alessandro can be contacted at:
M: 0401 102 020
Twitter & Instagram: @AlexPavoni
Roberta Muir
The manager of Sydney Seafood School, Australia's largest recreational cooking school, since 1997, Roberta Muir holds a Master of Arts degree in Gastronomy from the University of Adelaide and is a trained cheese judge. She is the author of the Sydney Seafood School Cookbook (Penguin/Lantern, 2012) and 500 Cheeses (Quintet, 2010) and co-wrote A Sardinian Cookbook with chef Giovanni Pilu (Penguin/Lantern, 2012) and Wild Weed Pie with chef Janni Kyritsis (Penguin/Lantern, 2006). Her latest project is a weekly
e-newsletter and website
www.food-wine-travel.com
Roberta can be contacted at:
M: 0412 159 656
Twitter & Instagram: @RobertaMuir
Authors Alessandro Pavoni & Roberta Muir at Palazzo Vertemate, Lombardy
© Franz Scheurer