Cucina italiano e Ελληνική αγόρια: Ghiottoni a Firenze

Class

Fish, Day 2 and Finger Foods!

-Lesson: Preserved Cod Fish

Baccala'--dehydrated with salt, method used in the summer due to high temperatures and need for immediate preservation
Stoccafisso--left out to dry, method used in the winter due to cold, dry temperatures

-Dishes

Acciughe Indorate e Fritte (Golden Fried Anchovies)
- Making this was really fun! We started with whole anchovies and had to rip off their heads, gut them, then tear out their spines and dorsal fin!
  
  Fried Anchovies
Baccala' alla Vicentina (Dried Codfish Vicenza Style)
- Very tasty. We served it with polenta which contrasted the salty baccala' nicely.
- For those who don't know, polenta is essentially a corn patty, made from corn flour. You boil water, add the corn flour and stir consistently, then put it in a mold (loaf pan or bowl of sorts), and let it set. Then you take it out, let it cool for a bit and slice it. The slices can be eaten as is or grilled, fried or baked. For this recipe, we cut out heart shapes and baked them.
- This was my favorite dish today.
  
  Polenta hearts
  
  Baccala' Matecato alla Veneziana
Baccala' Matecato alla Veneziana (Salted Codfish Mantecato Venetian Style)
- Even though this has "baccala'" in the title, it is actually made with stoccafisso.
- Cooked like a sandwich in milk and cheese with parsley, garlic and sauteed onions inside. The fish itself was more bland than the baccala' in the first recipe, but the onions and herbs were delicious.
- Also served with polenta, this time just sliced in triangles and served without baking/cooking further.

preparing the stoccafisso and onions

Baccala' alla Vicentina

Yum. The veal was really nice.
We made mayonnaise (which sounds so much nicer when you say it with an Italian accent)--just eggs, olive oil, lemon and a bit of salt, then added tuna and capers.
Served with olives on top, it was a nice combination of salty and sweet
This was my second favorite dish today

Vitello Tonnato - Vitel Tonne'

Afternoon

-I wore a Michigan shirt today and looked super American but loved hearing "Go Blue!"

It was open!
Former palace of the Medici family, currently is a museum as well as office space for the mayor of Florence, among others
The ceilings of every room were the most impressive--from murals to gold designs, they were all very detailed and ornate

Ceilings, Palazzo Vecchio
My favorite part of the museum was actually unrelated to The Medici (as far as I know). Damien Hirst, an english artist, studded a human skull with diamonds. The skull is lit in a glass case in the middle of a pitch-black room...pretty incredible. For more information about the skull visit http://www.turismo.intoscana.it/allthingstuscany/tuscanyarts/damien-hirst-diamond-skull-palazzo-vecchio/ Unfortunately, no photos were allowed.
Compared to the Bargello yesterday, I definitely liked the Bargello more. This museum was more about the place itself, versus yesterday it was about the place and the art; I enjoyed the diversity.