Tripatini

the world's smartest travel social network

Cooking in Le Marche, Italy in My PJ’s

On a rare, warm, spring-like winter night in a farmhouse in La Marche, Italy, it was also a bright sunny Sunday morning in California. I was cutting up a chicken and potatoes in my PJ’s, while chef Jason Bartner, in La Marche, instructed me. Jason told me to make sure my chicken was dry, and to use a towel—it won’t get stuck and it will wash. All I had to do was roll out of bed, turn on my IPad, click a link, and there he was—live, available for any questions I had. We braised the chicken and roasted the potatoes. Both were golden and crisp on the outside, moist on the inside. The chicken meat was full and moist, infused with garlic, sage, and seasoning; the potatoes like pillows, flavored with rosemary and garlic.

This is the way to take a cooking class. The benefits of a live question and answer at any point, hands on cooking along with the chef, and all the ease of my own kitchen in whatever I wanted to wear. Sip coffee in the morning or wine in the afternoon. And you’ve got a whole meal when you are done. No schlepping around town, no packing things up, and if I missed something, the whole thing will arrive in my in-box in a couple of days. Ashley told me: "this is a great way to spend your Sunday, cooking with family or friends, learning something new, gathering for a delicious meal. Or, its the cheapest way to visit Italy, if only for an hour." She's right, indeed, "just right".

I’ve paid $50-$75 for a cooking class I had to drive to and mainly watch, this was $5 and I was hands on throughout. I got the ingredient list the day before, along with prep instructions (pretty simple, preheat the oven and have your ingredients ready to go). The class was over an hour, it lasted as long as it took to cook. I had the recipes, but Jason’s class was more—he explained the why of the parchment, the why of anchovy, the alternatives, and some of the benefits of seasonal cooking. Cook what’s in season, its fresher, better, cheaper. Grow what you can, for the same reasons.

As Jason says, "this is more about technique, not what to cook, but how to cook--simply and correctly."

Like all good cooking classes, Jason passed on tips: which potatoes are best for which use (roasting—try yellow potatoes; russets are too watery, red are too dry, like baby bear’s bed, yellows are just right). Keep your rosemary sprig intact—the stem helps keep it from burning; keep your garlic clove intact, ditto. Roast potatoes at two temps—so they are soft on the inside, crispy on the outside. And do it on parchment, get rid of that aluminum foil. A parchment lid, which is parchment paper pushed down over what’s in the pot, is great for braising. It keeps some moisture in, but not too much.

Need a little salt in your sauce? Use a little bit of anchovy, only a little. Use some capers, or if not, try some olives. Jason was all about alternatives. These weren’t ingredient difficult dishes—just a few, used well, and we had a meal that was easy to prepare in an hour and could be served on any occasion. Prepare these and you will be applauded, and your taste buds will savor all the buttery goodness of the chicken, without the butter.

While things were cooking along, Jason explained knives and knife care. Forged knives are more durable and expensive; stamped knives are cheaper and easier to keep sharp. Jason’s wife, Ashley, relayed questions from the class, and filled us in on some of the joys of living in La Marche. Two ex-pats, they are running a farm, giving cooking classes using their own produce, and you can stay there.

The chicken was done when it fell away from the bone, the sauce complete with some mashing of anchovy and garlic. The roasted potatoes—just right.

The Bartners' joy in what they do is infectious. If only we could all escape to the pastoral life. Short of that, join Jason and Ashley in your PJ’s.

The nuts and bolts:

Classes are usually weekly, on Sundays.

Cost: $5

Sign up for class on-line, and you’ll get a confirmation email with links and prep instructions.

If you’re using an IPad, down load the “Go To Meeting” app (its free), but don’t worry about anything else. Just click on the email link when it’s time for class, and, like magic, you’re in Italy.

Questions? Ashely and Jason are very responsive, even with the time difference.

The website: http://latavolamarcherecipebox.blogspot.it. You’ll find links for classes, some videos of the farm and cooking experiences, links on how to actually go to Italy and take a class, plus some recipes.

Braised Chicken--you gotta try it: http://latavolamarche.blogspot.it/2014/01/recipe-braised-rabbit-hun...

Roasted Potatoes: its all about two temps. http://latavolamarcherecipebox.blogspot.it/2014/01/roasted-potatoes...