Cold weather comfort carbs; a recipe from Diana Henry in the Daily Telegraph
When we think of Italy, it is almost always of the North, the mountains of the Dolomites, the majestic Aosta and Fassa Valleys, Monte Bianco, better known by its French name of Mont Blanc, marmots, of bright sunshine bouncing off pristine snow and the memory of a particularly spectacular thunderstorm on Marmolada.
All of which meant that Diana Henry’s piece in Saturday’s Telegraph magazine had us reaching for maps and old photo albums and reminiscing about hearty food eaten after a day in the mountains. Her recipe for Pizzoccheri della Valtellina transported us straight back to cosy, homely restaurants, all too happy to feed cold and hungry children and adults and to satisfy the kinds of appetites that only oodles of cold, fresh mountain air and strenuous activity can generate. It also reminded us of the food served to intrepid souls who head out and spend the nights in mountain huts (rifugios) and who are rewarded for their efforts with tasty carb loading either to reward their return from the mountain tops or fuel the coming ascent.
Diana’s version looks more refined that the “school dinner” catering in the huts and the benefit of the prospector pan is that you can the dish straight from the oven to the table.
We love the styling of the dish by Valerie Berry in Diana’s prospector pan, beautifully shot by Liz and Max Haarala Hamilton.
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