Italian Cuisine: Past the Pasta

Jeroo Irani takes off on a sumptuous gastronomic safari in the gourmet capital of Italy

Ripe and abundant, lavish, luscious and mouth-watering...are we talking about Italian women or the country’s cuisine? Both have similar alluring attributes, I discovered on a five-day visit to this Mediterranean country. The sun loves Italy and this is reflected in its cuisine. It beams on the people - dark-haired, bronzed and sun-toasted. "The sheer excellence of its ingredients, and the variety of regional cooking styles forged over the centuries make Italian cuisine what it is today," observed Gianfranco Bucher, president, Azienda Di Promozione Turistica Del Comasco. Bucher is also the managing proprietor of the Grand Hotel Villa Serbelloni, one of the only three five-star hotels in the Lake Como area, where I had one of the most memorable meals of my trip.

In Italy, the call of the sun is stronger than the lure of neon. Where else can one sit down with a glass of wine and a plate of something delicious to eat and revel in the stunning setting? I had meals in restaurants with dramatic mountain backdrops; in glamourous laid-back eateries, chic cafes which served simple down-to-earth Italian fare and under vine-shaded arbors. The finest Italian cooking is found not only in swank restaurants but also in the simple kitchens of Italian folk.

Italian food is much more than pizzas and pastas. Sampling the cuisine is akin to a gastronomic safari and is a visual feast as well. My culinary adventure started in the northern region where the Po Valley rises into the snow-dusted Alps. The Valle D’Aosta area snuggling in the heart of the Italian Alps is where some of the highest peaks in Europe - Mont Blanc, the Matterhorn, and Monte Rose brood over verdant valleys.

At a lunch at Vecchia Aosta, in Aosta, the main town of the Aosta Valley, I savoured some of the robust local cuisine - dribbled with Fontina, the strongly flavoured mountain cheese. Lunch consisted of asparagus with cheese, aromatic rice with a subtle cheese sauce and garden-fresh vegetables; and the ubiquitous sunflower-yellow polenta. The emphasis here is on healthy eating (in southern Italy the cuisine is spicier).

Next on our gourmet tour was an Alpine resort - Breuil-Cervinia to the east of the beautiful Aosta valley and at the foot of the majestic Matterhorn (4,478 m). Here we tucked into a hearty lunch at the Golf Club e Cervino. Beyond the lace-curtained, wood-paneled restaurant brooded the Matterhorn massif edged by green pastures and dubbed the most famous rock in Europe. The magnificent vista and a trip to the Matterhorn by cable car had sharpened everyone’s appetite. The group fell ravenously upon the delectable sweet and sour zucchini, a platter of cold cuts including sliced pork and sausages, and baked aubergines drizzled with mozzarella. A full-bodied local red wine slaked our thirst.The valley in fact boasts of many quaint restaurants, some are located in alpine chalets, and one is in a disused water mill; another is part of a farm and serves concoctions based on the owner’s grandmother’s recipes. Some have huge wine cellars and offer 250 varieties of wine.

There were virtuosos in the kitchen of the Grand Hotel Billia in Saint-Vincent, frequented by the likes of Brad Pitt, Kate Winslet and Gwyneth Paltrow who reportedly love the Italian Alps. Saint-Vincent, an enchanting alpine resort, had been our base for three days. The restaurant’s menu included local shrimp tails with mayonnaise sauce; maccheroncini with smoked salmon sauce; grilled pork loin with rocket and fresh tomatoes - the meal had an unexpected alliance of flavours - hardy mountain cuisine melded with the delicate seafood nuances of the Tuscany region. The Italian cuisine that we sampled in the mountains was simple, flavourful, and fresh. There were no East meets West atrocities. The following day we explored Courmayeur (the pearl of the Alps), which sparkles in the shadow of the majestic Mont Blanc. We lunched at La Maison de Filippo in the village of Entreves - near Courmayeur. A spectrum of Italy’s vegetarian delicacies was on offer - macaroni in a velvety tomato sauce; delicately roasted aubergines flecked with bell peppers.

At our next stop, Como, a 45-minute drive from Milan airport, everyone seemed to be on holiday. With its blue lake hugged by high mountains, its grand villas and sun-dried villages, Como is wreathed in romance. The Y shaped lake is most picturesque at the centre where lies the charming village of Bellagio. We chugged there in a boat and disembarked at a flower-bedecked piazza flanked by stately villas and cobblestone steps leading to the lakeshore. The day had dawned overcast but the midday sun had nibbled away at the clouds. We had been invited for lunch at the Grand Hotel Villa Serbelloni. Tables were laid on the covered verandah which commanded views of the bluest of blue swimming pools and the lake with its constantly shifting perspectives. The lunch was hearty without any frilly excesses - a frothy wild duck cream soup, and lavaret (a lake fish) fillet with spinach rounded off with a lemon ice cream to die for.

Two days later we arrived in Venice. In this utterly romantic city of canals and baritone gondoliers, museums bursting with ancient riches and sidewalk restaurants enlivened by wandering minstrels -eating and drinking is a theatrical experience. There are cheap help-yourself cafes, grand restaurants serving classic fare and relaxed ones like the Ristorante all’angelo (dating to 1926) near the happening St Mark’s Square. Overlooking a sidewalk crammed with stylish boutiques, diners are serenaded by musicians pumping old classics on pliant accordions. Venice has a culinary history all its own - coffee, sugar, rice and spices all entered Europe through this port. The Venetians invented the table fork and their dining rooms showcased artistic treasures from all over the world.

Lightly prepared seafood is a Venetian specialty. At the Ristorante all’angelo we had the featherweight risotto di scampi; fusion creations such as scampi Indian style with rice pilaf; fettucine chicken curry and even spaghetti with meat balls - a peculiarly American take on Italian fare, which natives find highly amusing.

Generally Italian cuisine makes one sigh with pleasure. For in this land which is a feast for the senses, and has Eden-like bounty, one tucks into superlatives - see-through ravioli stuffed with tender slivers of duck; a delectable snapper deftly prepared; shell fish cooked in wine, grilled over a fire and tossed on pasta - the fare echoes the Italian’s love of the good life and good living.