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04/12/2004 Archived Entry: "Good News (for you, not so hot for me)!"

We’ve had a few people pull out of our September 12th through 18th “Cook At Seliano” Culinary Vacation. So if you’ve been thinking about joining me for this week of food and wine, history, culture and camaraderie, now’s your chance.

In our last session, in March, besides cooking for three half days, we had a private tour of the Feudi di San Gregorio winery in Avellino, in the hills east of Naples; we went pottery shopping in Vietri sul Mare, toured the medieval center of Salerno, went to a new museum in Naples that houses the treasures of San Gennaro, visited the ancient Greek temples of Paestum (right down the road from our base on Baronessa Bellelli’s farm), went to a small local workroom where they make handmade ravioli and fusilli, visited a mozzarella di bufala factory, and took a stroll through the ancient seaside town of Agropoli. It’s likely we’ll do all those things, or most, again in September.

We’ll certainly have lunch again at Feudi’s new and incredibly impressive winery and visitor’s center. It’s called Marenná and it’s a starkly contemporary but fabulously luxurious room with views of the lush green countryside. I have to say this was the most delicious refined meal I have ever eaten in Italy. All the ingredients are locally grown, and the dishes are all based on traditional local dishes, but they are cooked and presented in the most of-the-moment elegant manner. One example: A silken, intensely flavored puree of celery and potato, served in a big white bowl, was garnished with a sfogliatella filled with minced pork. Yes, that’s a savory version of the Neapolitan breakfast pastry. Okay, another example: For dessert, the traditional Neapolitan pastiera, the ricotta and grain pie, was made into a soufflé. It should go without saying that since we were at a winery, every one of our seven courses was served with an appropriate Feudi di San Gregorio wine.

As for our cooking sessions, they are always based on the season’s ingredients: In September we will eat a lot of red peppers, eggplant, both summer and winter squash (and their flowers), and tomatoes, among many other things. (We tend to eat too much.) Our pizza making class at the end of the week is always a big hit: we fire up the enormous wood-burning oven and everyone tries their hand at making a Neapolitan-style pizza and calzone. And everyone loves the accomplishment of making the famous timballo di macaroni, the dish made famous in the movie Big Night.

For more information or to book this very special trip limited to 14 travelers, please write to cookatseliano@aol.com or call (718) 783-2626.