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PASTRY BAKERY GELATO

AN ITALIAN IN NYC

EASTER PICS 6) art. 1, comma DCB TO - n. 01/2011 IP ISSN 0392-4718

CHOCOLATE AND GELATO RECIPES

SUGAR, COFFEE AND CUISINE

TECHNOLOGY AND PRODUCT

NEWS

CHIRIOTTI 10064 PINEROLO - ITALIA - Tel. +390121393127 - Fax +390121794480 issue eighteen-2011 EDITORI www.pasticceriainternazionale.com - [email protected] Supplemento al n. 234, gennaio 2011 di Pasticceria Internazionale - Sped. in A. P. - D.L. 353/2003 (conv. in L. 27/02/2004 n° 4 - D.L. 353/2003 (conv. Supplemento al n. 234, gennaio 2011 di Pasticceria Internazionale - Sped. in A. P. CUISINE THE SWEET AND COLD side of the territory INTERVIEW WITH FRANCO ALIBERTI, PASTRY OF RISTORANTE VITE OF SAN PATRIGNANO

Young, enterprising, passionate and, as he defines is one sentence that accompanies me every day himself, "a bumbling fool", he's Franco Aliberti, born and that sums up the best of his teaching: "The in 1985, pastry chef of Ristorante Vite in San Patri- last stage of complexity is simplicity." gnano, where he works along with chef Fabio Rossi What makes an excellent ? and a close-knit team. Backed by his family, he left The right balance of character, tastes, colours, his land to chase a dream: to learn from the great ma- feelings and the appropriate use of raw materials, sters and become a professional. The apprenticeship so that it can offer its best. took him all over Italy and beyond, during which he What do you look for in its creation? met great teachers who have left their mark and have Excellent raw materials, preferably a little-known helped him develop. He knows what he wants: to ingredient to intrigue the customer; the processing study, learn, observe, interpret and customize. Having method, to be able to respect it without compro- chosen San Patrignano, he could get down to busi- mising its taste, and the technique that exalts it. ness. For him pastry making is passion, fun, experi- How do you create your dessert ? mentation, alchemy: it is the declination of the territory Over long periods of testing, that can last for he lives in, which allows him to create his own world years. The starting point is seasonality and local of colours, flavours and sensations. All seasoned with elements of produce, followed by demand and customer preference. When I fusion, and myriad references, but especially with a good dollop of create a new item I begin with the name the dessert could acquire. fun. We met him for an interview. As usual he was brimming with I then move on to the design and I decide which plate to use for it. energy and joie de vivre. I also think of how to stir the emotions of my customers so that they become accomplices of my work and are left with a pleasant Let's start with you and your training: when did you realize memory. you wanted to make pastry? Is there one sweet more than any other that you consider to I attended the first two years at the Istituto Alberghiero in Salerno, be your speciality? then, at sixteen, following in the footsteps of my brother, I moved to The classic caramelized puff pastry with vanilla cream and ra- Salsomaggiore Terme, where I finished school. My passion for pa- spberries. stry comes from my mother who always used to let me up her What raw materials do you prefer to work with? and experiment. Every gesture was a game full of passion Spices, herbs, chocolate, vegetables, fruits: anything edible! and curiosity; it is the same game that I still carry around with me and And what ingredients make the difference in a cake? that makes me love this job. There isn't one in particular; the difference comes from the soul, the Who has influenced your career most? identity comes from the creator who conveys a specific and sponta- All have given me something important: the experience in France neous emotional message. with Alain Ducasse opened my mind; Massimo Spigaroli conveyed How do you seek balance? the importance of teamwork; Corrado Assenza, respect for raw ma- Through a continuous study of simple elements rich in beneficial terials and for those who produce them; Gino Fabbri, willpower; properties for our body, such as water and oil, but mostly thanks to Gianluca Fusto, a 360-degree view of the world of sweets; Gen- many samplings and experiments using different combinations. naro Esposito, the joy of this work; Leonardo Di Carlo, humility; How important is it to know ingredients and work methods? Gualtiero Marchesi, the importance of always remembering where It is important to know the raw material right from its origin in order we come from. to understand its properties and the best time to use it. In addi- And, last but not least, Massimiliano Alajmo, and his family, whose tion to this you must have an excellent knowledge of the metho- Le Calandre, near Padua, I worked in for almost four dology and techniques of the trade: it is the only way to achieve years. It is difficult to explain in a few words what I learned, but there excellent results.

"The lastlast stagestage ofof complexitycomplexity isis simplicity"simplicity"

32 2011 - www.pasticceriainternazionale.com - n. 18 Plated : what is its underlying philosophy? What are the greatest difficulties during the preparation of a It's all about getting to the customer using simplicity, lightness, and sweet? proper balance all within a complex study aimed at stimulating tastes: Using the same products as others without repeating yourself; kee- sour, sweet, salty, and bitter. This must always go hand in hand with ping one step ahead of them and searching for something beyond the other senses, placing an emphasis on touch and sight. what you know. There is a fundamental step in creating a new re- What equipment and techniques could you not do without? cipe that I try always to put into practice: be aware of your knowledge The blast chiller, the whisks, the vacuum machine and a thermome- but at the same time, be able to detach yourself for a moment, just ter. If you know the techniques they can be adapted to suit the long enough to create something new. equipment. What do you suggest to young people who embark on this The future sees a growing synergy between salty and sweet, career? and gelato: how do you interpret this? If there is passion and desire you can go the distance: this of Their fusion will be increasingly important thanks to the exchange of goes with a lot of dedication, patience, humility, work and respect for techniques, processes and ingredients. The possibility for the pastry those who teach. Do not give up at the first hurdle; in fact any hic- chef to learn more about the world, and vice versa for the cup is a stimulus to continue and improve. Only in this way can a chef, is an enrichment that gives a broader view of gastronomy, and dream come true. it provides the chance to grow and learn more. It is an important step Monica Onnis that can stimulate the curiosity and thirst for knowledge and experi- mentation of operators. Why oil? It is a dressing of high quality that belongs to the Mediterranean tra- dition. Not everyone knows that fats, along with proteins and car- bohydrates are macronutrients essential for the proper functioning of our body: they provide non synthesised fatty acids, called essentials, such as oleic and linoleic acid that stimulate the absorption of solu- ble vitamins and carotenoids. The oil is composed of 14.5% satu- rated fatty acids, 73% monosaturates and 7.5% polyunsaturated fats: they have a positive effect on lowering bad cholesterol and in- creasing good cholesterol. On this basis I tried to understand what benefits this could bring to sweet recipes: it is a vegetable fat with easily digested components, it has a rapid point of fusion on the pa- late, it is great for fixing flavours, and in some preparations it con- veys a sense of heat. I use extra virgin oil with an acidity below 2%, produced by the community of San Patrignano, cultivated on the hills of Coriano, with olive cultivars such as correggiolo, leccino, mo- raiolo, pendulum and rossina, all hand-picked and cold pressed. Where will confectionary go over the next few years? We will see a return to tradition with more respect for raw materials and a focus on simplicity. Instead of a group of tastes, they will be few and well defined. What do you think of dessert in Italian ? Unfortunately in Italy the restaurant pastry chef is not always present; most of the time you are faced with an offer that for one reason or another is lacking in ideas. Lately, though, the importance of pre- dessert and dessert has been growing, facilitating an increase in quality and greater attention from caterers.

2011 - www.pasticceriainternazionale.com - n. 18 33 SPRING extra virgin olive oil biscuit CUISINE

Oil structured biscuit Blood orange and dill granita cocoa butter g 40 blood orange juice g 300 extra virgin olive oil g 200 syrup 30 Bé g 80 centrifuged dill g 30 Melt the cocoa butter and slowly drizzle in the oil. Mix well and pour into gelatine g 2 the Pacojet, freeze and process to obtain a very light raised mass. Form Centrifuge the pulp of red oranges and dill, then mix the two juices with the slab of butter and refrigerate. the syrup 30 Bé, in which was dissolved gelatine. Stir and check for sa- extra virgin olive oil butter g 240 fety with the refractometer not exceeding 21°-22°Brix. Freeze, cut with icing sugar g 100 a knife and store in freezer. almond flour g 60 0 flour g 120 Juniper jam 00 flour g 350 juniper g 400 eggs g 100 Cover the juniper with water and bring to a boil. Drain and set aside the water obtained, repeat three times, and proceed: salt g 0.6 cooking water g 1300 baking powder g 5 cooked juniper g 400 vanilla bean no 1 Since the oil has a low melting point, use the same procedure as for a sugar g 600 classic pastry. However, in the mixing bowl mix the flour, salt, sugar and glucose g 100 baking powder. Mix with the leaf, then add eggs and vanilla and butter vanilla bean no 1 oil. As soon as the pastry is firm place in the fridge for 3 hours. Grate the Whisk together sugar and cooked juniper, gently combining the re- pastry with the wide part of the grater to obtain many flakes and let stand maining ingredients until you get a thicker syrup. Blend, sieve and store in the refrigerator for 30 minutes. Bake at 164°C with the valve closed in refrigerator. for 13 minutes. Allow to cool and pass gently through a sieve: in this way the fine dust is removed and the flakes are rounded to look like pebbles. Juniper crunch Store in sealed jars. Isomalt g 320 Geranium gelato juniper jam g 45 Cook and allow the Isomalt to dissolve properly. Spread the sugar on milk g 2250 Silpat and cool. Pulverize the sheet of sugar produced in a cutter, then sugar g 200 with the help of a small strainer sprinkle on Silpat. Bake at 168°C for 10 milk powder g 250 minutes and once removed from the oven, before the crunch cools, with sugar g 200 the help of a spatula, spread out in a thin layer, turn upside downon ba- stabilizer g 14 king paper and remove from the Silpat. Store in airtight containers. cream g 200 For decoration geranium leaves g 120 edible flowers of different colours. Bring the milk to 30°C, add the milk powder and sugar a little at a time, stirring constantly; when at 60°C add the sugar and the stabilizer pre- viously mixed together. Bring it to 81° - 82°C, filter, add in the cream and allow to cool to 35°C. Finally, incorporate the geranium leaves. Allow to IN THE BLOOD ORANGE GRANITA OF CALABRIA, THE SWEET JUICE infuse for 3 hours. Strain and let stand for at least 10 hours. Freeze in IS COMBINED WITH A DILL CENTRIFUGE TO HARMONIZE THE TASTE Pacojet and whip at the moment of serving. AND ADD AROMA TO THE GRANITA. EDIBLE FLOWERS RECALL THE BEGINNING OF THE SPRING BLOOM AND REQUIRE A DELICATE GE- LATO, FLAVOURED WITH A LIGHT TOUCH OF LEMONADE, FOLLO- WED BY THE FRESHNESS OF WHITE, A SIGN OF PEACE FOR THE NEW SEASON: THIS WAS THE ORIGIN OF GERANIUM GELATO. THE CHEWY PART, CONSISTING OF A PEBBLY EXTRA VIRGIN OLIVE OIL BISCUIT REFLECTS MY PHILOSOPHY: TO LIGHTEN THE CAKE BY RE- PLACING FAT WITH OIL, FOR THE BENEFIT OF CRISPNESS AND FLA- VOUR. AND FINALLY THE SPARKLING ITEM, AN ALARM FOR THE TASTE BUDS: THE THIN CRUNCH FLAVOURED WITH JUNIPER. Franco Aliberti Ristorante Vite of San Patrignano www.ristorantevite.it

34 2011 - www.pasticceriainternazionale.com - n. 18