Welcome to the La Quercia Blog!

Tagliatelle with La Quercia Prosciutto and Poppy Seeds

This recipe comes from Saveur Magazine and is delicious, quick, and easy. It serves 4 people.

Use La Quercia Prosciutto or Speck - a package of the pre-sliced is about right.

The poppy seeds add a lot of visual appeal and a mild bit of crunch, so don't leave them out. The acidity was perfect, even with the wine, the lemon juice, and the buttermilk. I had to change things a bit, since I had no heavy cream - I just doubled the buttermilk and added a bit more butter. It was less creamy, but still very flavorful. I also added the scallions all at once, since I wanted to mitigate the raw onion effect. I did think that there was not quite enough sauce for the suggested quantity of pasta, so I increased the amount of prosciutto and green onion.

Ingredients

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

2 large shallots, thinly sliced

Salt and pepper to taste

2 tablespoons poppy seeds

1/2 cup white wine

1/2 cup buttermilk

1/2 cup heavy cream (or use only buttermilk for a less rich dish)

16 ounces tagliatelle

2 to 4 ounces prosciutto, thinly sliced and cut in 1 inch pieces

 

1/2 cup or more finely grated Parmigiano Reggiano, plus more for garnish

1 bunch scallions (about 6), cut in 1/2 inch slices

Preparation

Melt butter in 12" skillet, add shallots, salt and pepper and cook over medium heat until soft, about 3 minutes. Add the poppy seeds and cooks until they are fragrant and shallots begin to caramelize a little. Add wine and reduce until almost gone. Then add buttermilk and cream (if using) and reduce slightly. 

Cook pasta until al dente (the tagliatelle I used took only two minutes). Drain, reserving 1 cup of cooking water, and add to sauce in skillet. Add the prosciutto, grated parmigiano, the scallions, and the lemon juice. Toss to combine and add the reserved cooking water if necessary. Check seasoning and add salt and pepper if necessary. Serve with more cheese if you want to.

And here's a happy customer at the end. He really liked it!

June 2012: Recipes and Recipe Ideas

I am always looking for easy and delicious ways to use our dry-cured meats. Arranging them on a white plate and serving them with bread or grissini is my basic go-to, but there are alternatives. I generally like to follow the fundamental rule: "Use great ingredients and don't screw them up." So - simplicity is good!

Here are some links to recent finds in a variety of magazines. I've been "pinning" to our Pinterest page where you'll find a growing collection of recipes using our prosciutto and other dry-cured meats. The pictures are great! Inspiring!! Check it out here.

You can use our prosciutto in any recipe that calls for Spanish or Italian ham. Our speck, with its gentle smokiness, is perfect for recipes with American or country style ham. Our pancetta and bacon are interchangeable (although different!) - use the bacon if you think a hint of smoke would be the right touch. Our meats are made from nonconfinement, humanely raised, antibiotic-free animals. 

This recipe for Minted Pea and Prosciutto Crostini from Martha Stewart is really pretty (pink and green!) and easy - and a great way to get your veggies!

Here's a recipe for Pan-Seared Trout with Dry Cured Ham from Food and Wine Magazine. It would be perfect for La Quercia Prosciutto or Speck and you could even try it with our pancetta.

Here's a quick and easy pasta dish called Bow-tie Salad with Fennel, Prosciutto, and Parmesan, also from Food and Wine. I recommend eating it at warm room temperature. 

Fruit and prosciutto go beautifully together, the perfect blending of savory and sweet. This recipe for Pear Wedges with Prosciutto and Mint from Bon Appetit Magazine would also be terrific with peaches and basil.

Finally (for today!), here's a recipe for Prosciutto Wrapped Greens from Fine Cooking Magazine. We've been making some variant of this ever since Alisa Barry of Bella Cucina made some using our prosciutto at our very first Fancy Food Show.

Enjoy!

 

 

September 14, 2011: The Perfect BLT

Jennifer McLagan wonderful book, Fat: An Appreciation of a Misunderstood Ingredient, with Recipes, has a terrific recipe for a BLT made with Bacon Mayonnaise - mayonnaise made with bacon fat instead of oil! Here's the La Quercia version.

Bacon Mayonnaise (enough for 4 sandwiches)

• 1 egg yolk
• 3/4 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
• Fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1/2 cup liquid bacon fat from La Quercia Tamworth Country Cured Bacon (barely warm, so it's liquid but not hot)

Combine the egg yolk and seasonings in a food processor or blender (or use an immersion blender) and gradually add the bacon fat while machine is running until mixture emulsifies. If it's too thick, blend in a teaspoon of boiling water.

For each sandwich 

• 2 slices of challah or your favorite bread, freshly toasted if desired
• 2 tablespoons bacon mayonnaise
• 1 or 2 lettuce leaves
• 2 or 3 slices of ripe summer tomatoes
• 3 or 4 slices of cooked La Quercia Tamworth Country Cured Bacon

Spread each slice of bread with 1 tablespoon mayonnaise, place lettuce and tomato on bottom slice, then top with bacon and the second slice of bread. Press together gently. 

Serve to a wildly appreciative friend! 

NB: The bacon mayonnaise should get used up right away - it stiffens up when refrigerated.

July 19, 2011--Best Summer Hors d'Oeuvres

In the Sonoma Sun, Kristin Viguerie writes about luscious California plums--"there is certainly no more ideal warm weather hors d’ oeuvres or perfect picnic fare than a platter of thinly sliced La Quercia American Prosciutto – find it in the deli at Sonoma Market – and sliced, fresh plums."  This is a picture of the daughter of a friend of ours, and it looks like she agrees wholeheartedly!

 

July 17, 2011--La Quercia Iberico de Bellota Lardo at Brunch

This mornning for brunch we had friends over.  And this week, we packaged up our first batch of the year of La Quercia Iberico de Bellota Lardo.  It went on buttermilk waffles and was amazingly creamy.  What a treat!