Food Menu – La Gioia

THE APPETIZER IN THE ITALIAN TRADITION

It originates in Ancient Rome.

Many Latin writings testify that Roman nobles were aware that starting the meal with vegetables and salads helped the stomach to receive the other courses, which were rather rich and elaborate. After the fall of the Roman Empire and throughout the Middle Ages, it seems that the appetizer fell into disuse and reappeared in the sixteenth century.

In Italy, the characteristics of the territory and climate define the type of ingredients. In regions where the climate is dry, the wind blows from the north and winters are harsh, appetizers become hearty dishes based on cheeses, cold cuts and cold cuts, or savory pies.

In the sea areas, the protagonist is the fish.

The less well-off classes ate single dishes and often ate leftovers, reworked into succulent preparations, such as bruschetta with olive oil and oregano using leftover bread toasted on the fire of the brazier. In the north, cold cuts and cheeses were a second breakfast to recharge their batteries during the working day, or a pre-lunch for their families and the owner of the farm on feast days.

Other ingredients that were the protagonists of our appetizers were vegetables, preserved in oil, which were served accompanied by toasted bread, next to the plate of cold cuts.

MELANZANE IN AGRODOLCE

The Queen of Southern Italy

In the Middle Ages it was introduces to the Mediterranean by the Arabs, in Sicily, and then spread to the rest of Italy by the Carmelite friars.

It was called the “apple of fools” or “insane apple”: because of its toxicity when raw, it was believed to be poisonous and also caused psychic disorders.

Now they are undisputed protagonists of the cuisine of Southern Italy, where they are prepared in various ways, different by territory.

SWEET AND SOUR AUBERGINES

In Roman times there was already the culinary technique of sweet and sour, with the use of vinegar and homey. In the early Middle Ages, thanks of Arab influences, honey was replaced by cane sugar, making the sweet-and-sour contrast and more delicate

Burrata Alla Salentina

It is said that the burrata of Andria was invented in an old farmhouse in the early decades of the twentieth century by the brothers Vincenzo and Lorenzo Bianchino. Due to a heavy snowfall, not being able to transfer the milk to the city, in order not to waste the raw material, they recovered the cream that naturally emerged from the milk. Referring to the production process of mantéche, for the preservation of butter, they created a casing with mozzarella paste to keep the fresh product inside In Puglia, burrata was traditionally wrapped in leaves of plants typical of the Murgia plateau: the stems of the yellow asphodel, collected before the flower blooms, were blanched with water and vinegar, preserved in oil and used to make fresh stretched curd cheese.

The name Burrata was probably given to it to recall the “buttery” flavor of its tasty heart In 2016 it obtained the recognition of PGI (Protected Geographical Indication).

VITELLO TONNATO

The most likely origin of this dish points to Piedmont. The first mentions of the dish in its original composition date back to the eighteenth century.

At first, the recipe did not include tuna; Presumably the adjective “tonnato” meant cooked in the manner of tuna. The recipe was codified by Pellegrino Artusi at the end of the nineteenth century At the time, neither mayonnaise nor tuna were found in the recipe, but only anchovies and capers that were added to the leftovers of boiled veal to regain some of the lost taste. The word “tonnè”, which originally had to be tanné, that is, tanned, messy.

Then, you know, in the Piedmont of the Savoy, both Italian and French were official languages and together they had stuffed the Piedmontese dialect with Frenchisms, hence the reason for that “tonné” with a French sound, which perhaps was also a way to give value to a dish instead typically popular, prepared with leftovers.

TARTARE DI TONNO

There are those who believe that tuna tartare is a Japanese recipe. In fact, tartare originates from the tradition of the Tartar peoples of Eastern Europe to eat raw meat. The Tartars, a nomadic and warrior people, put raw meat between the back and the saddle of the horse to sustain themselves during their journeys. In this way, during the rides, the meat was minced and beaten.
Today it is a refined and exclusive dish, and it is thought that its diffusion in restaurants is due to the fame of the Japanese Sushi. In reality, Italy, which is surrounded by 2/3 of the sea, has an ancient tradition of consumption of raw fish (as well as raw meat).
In Puglia it is traditional to eat raw fish directly in front of the fishmongers’ sales counter. On the coasts of Bari and Lecce, you can come across countless fishmongers with tables and chairs, so you can enjoy raw fish served with only many slices of lemon.

FRITTINI NON VEG

In our tradition it is made up of vegetarian ingredients but also and above all animal products.

This tradition is linked to the moment of slaughter, which used to take place directly at home. The waste and the less noble parts of the animals were destined for this preparation in order not to waste anything.

This preparation was eaten in a very convivial way on the feast day following that of the slaughter, becoming today the symbolic dish of large family lunches and festivities.

ITALIAN COLDCUTS

Is a millenary tradition. IS precisely in Etruscan and Roman times that the first references to hams and sausages are found. The term Salumi derives from the late ancient Latin salumen to indicate the use of salt to preserve food.

The peasant tradition devoted to the breeding of livestock, especially pigs, and the conditions of poverty that have marked the lives of many families for years have led to the exploitation of everything that animals could offer: from milk to meat. Each region and each territory, however, has been able to find different ways of interpreting the need to preserve meat for a long time, helping to create a variety of products that, today, represent a true wealth of our country.

BRUSCHETTE

The origin of bruschetta is ancient, so it is not known exactly when it was born or where. Perhaps in Tuscany or Lazio, in whose primitive dialect the word bruscare is found.

The dish was born from the farmers’ need to preserve loaves of bread, a precious commodity that could not be wasted. The slice of bread was toasted on the fire and then rubbed with garlic, to which oil, salt and cherry tomatoes were then added. The Etruscans may have been the first to add oil. In Tuscany, bruschetta is in fact called fettunta (greasy slice) and is prepared with Tuscan bread without salt.

In Puglia, slices of bread were eaten by farmers during long working days and accompanied by the typical oil obtained from cold-pressed olives. The Piedmontese call it soma d’aj, a term that derives from “soma”, the load of donkeys, and from “garlic”, one of the main ingredients. Finally, in Calabria it is known as fedda ruscia, or “toasted slice” and the condiment respects the traditional one.

VELLUTATA DI ZUCCA CON FUNGHI

(PUMPKIN)

It is believed that the Halloween party is actually derived from ancestral customs from Southern Italy and other European locations that landed in the USA in the wake of emigration. For example, it is an ancient custom in Calabria, between 1 and 2 November, to represent the return of the dead by emptying a pumpkin and putting a candle inside.

The feast of All Saints on October 31 was instituted by Pope Gregory IV in 840, to Christianize an ancient Celtic custom.

In ancient Rome, pumpkin was cooked and pureed, enriched with spices. pepper, cumin, rue and silphium (now replaced with dill). TheSilphium was believed to be a gift from the god Apollo.The myth of the silphium could be at the origin of one of the most widespread symbols in history: the heart. In Roman times, in fact, the heart was imprinted on Cyrenaic coins (ancient Libya) to indicate the silphium.Today, the plant is extinct.

Customer Reviews

Arati Rao

The presentation was to point. Really good looking dishes. But very honestly the food didn’t blow our mind. We had ordered the Tuna Tartare, Beetroot infused risotto, white snapper and a cannelloni main dish that was the servers recommendation.