Traditional dishes:

Bagna caôda: hot garlic dip

2 bulbs of garlic
250 ml milk
100 g plump salted anchovies
200 ml extra-virgin olive oil
50 g butter
Selection of sliced vegetables (cardoons, Jerusalem artichokes, carrots, endives, spring onions, peppers)

Peel the garlic, and place in a terracotta pot with the milk. Simmer until the garlic is cooked and has lost some of its strong flavor. Drain cooked garlic and push through a sieve. Discard milk. Rinse the anchovies, remove any visible bones and crush in a mortar and pestle. Place garlic and crushed anchovies in the terracotta pot along with the oil and the butter and cook over a low to medium heat for 15 minutes. Place the oil mixture at the centre of the table over a source of heat (like you would a fondue) and with long forks, dip vegetables in this delicious garlicy oil. Serve with lots of crusty bread.

Risotto alla Piemontese: risotto Piemontese style

Ingredients for 4

350 g Carnaroli rice
2 tablespoons butter
½ onion, finely chopped
½ glass dry white wine
1 ¼ liters of homemade meat broth
Salt and freshly ground pepper
50 g grated Grana or Parmesan cheese

Melt about two thirds of the butter in a large pan and cook the chopped onion until it is transparent. Add the rice and cook for two minutes until all the grains are coated in butter and are translucent. Pour in the wine and cook until it has evaporated. Next add the broth, a ladleful at a time, waiting until the broth has been absorbed before adding any more. When rice is cooked al dente and the risotto is nice and creamy, taste and season with salt and pepper. Remove from the heat, beat in the remaining butter and stir in the grated Grana or Parmesan cheese. Leave to rest for a minute then serve.

Bollito misto: mixed boiled meats

Ingredients for 6 - 8

1 kg beef (shoulder, brisket)
500 g neck or breast of veal
Small veal’s tongue
2 carrots, roughly chopped
2 onions, roughly chopped
2 thick ribs celery, roughly chopped
½ calf’s head (or substitute with 500 g beef, veal or pork meat)
1 cooking hen or chicken, about 1 kg
500 – 600 g cotechino (pork sausage)
Salt and pepper

Bring a very large pan of salted water to the boil, then slip in the beef, veal and tongue and the roughly chopped vegetables. Allow to simmer for about an hour then add the calf’s head and the hen or chicken and continue to simmer for another hour or until all the meats are cooked and fork tender. Meanwhile, cook the cotechino separately by pricking the skin with a knife and simmering it in a small pan of water until cooked – 15 to 20 minutes. When all meats are cooked, remove large pan from heat and add the cooked cotechino. Keep warm until ready to serve. Traditionally these boiled meats are served with a selection of green and red sauces, mustard and horseradish.

Brasata al Barolo: beef braised in Barolo

Ingredients for 4 - 6

1 kg boneless beef chuck roast
2 carrots, roughly chopped
2 ribs celery, roughly chopped
1 onion, roughly chopped
Sprig rosemary
4 cloves
Small sprig fresh thyme
1 clove garlic
1 large bay leaf
Small piece cinnamon
4 grains black pepper
6 juniper berries
1 bottle young Barolo
50 g flour
50 g butter
Splash of brandy
Salt and pepper

Place the meat in a large terracotta pot or Dutch oven along with the chopped vegetables and all the spices, then pour in the Barolo. Cover and leave to marinade in a cool place, preferably not in the refrigerator, for 24 hours, turning the meat every so often to ensure it marinades evenly. Once fully marinated, remove beef from wine and spices, pat dry then coat in flour. Heat the butter in a large terracotta pot or Dutch oven and sear the beef on all sides. Remove the chopped carrots, onions and celery from the wine and add to the meat. Cook for a further 5 minutes, then strain the wine from the spices and add. Place the spices in a small muslin bag and add to meat. Season with salt and pepper and simmer for 2 ½ - 3 hours, occasionally turning the meat and skimming off any froth that floats to the surface, and adding hot water as necessary if sauce dries out. Remove meat from pot and keep warm. Pass the sauce through a food mill, vegetables and all, add a splash of brandy, adjust seasoning and cook over a medium heat until it reaches desired thickness. To serve, slice the beef, cover with sauce, and accompany with mashed potatoes or polenta.

Zabaione

Ingredients for 4 - 6

8 large fresh egg yolks
8 dessertspoons caster sugar
8 dessertspoons Marsala or other dessert wine