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Suzy Menard
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Tagliatelle with Fava Beans

Tagliatelle with fava beans, peas, guanciale,  and pecorino means spring is officially here.  
TAGLIATELLE WITH FAVA BEANS
INGREDIENTS

4 oz shucked and blanched english peas

3 oz shucked and blanched and peeled fava beans

2 garlic cloves, sliced thin

1 teaspoon crushed red pepper

1 T sage, julienned

4 oz guanciale, diced

4- 4oz portions Tagliatelle

      DIRECTIONS

In a saucepan, cook the guanciale on med high heat in oil. Slowly caramelize and brown.  Add the English peas, favas, garlic and slowly saute. Add the sage and crushed red pepper. Saute for another 2 minutes.While cooking, boil salted water for pasta. Add tagliatelle to pasta water.
Add 2 cups pasta water to the guanciale mixture. 2 T of butter, 1 cup grated pecorino, salt and pepper. Drain pasta, and add to this mixture. Finish with more pecorino, EVOO and black pepper.

 

A taste of Spring Read more

Tagliatelle with fava beans, peas, guanciale,  and pecorino means spring is officially here.   TAGLIATELLE WITH FAVA BEANS INGREDIENTS 4 oz shucked and blanched english ...

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Simone’s Christmas Tortellini

Simone’s Christmas Tortellini is an explosion of flavor.  Light pasta stuffed with sausage and ricotta served on a potato puree.  A holiday indulgence.
SIMONE’S CHRISTMAS TORTELLINI
INGREDIENTS

for the dough:
10 eggs
2lb type 00 flour

For the sauce:
1 pound loose sausage cooked
1 cup ricotta
3/4 cup grated parmigiano

For the puree:
1 lb gold potatoes cubed
1 small onion chopped
Olive Oil
Salt & Pepper

 

      DIRECTIONS

Add the flour on a flat service and make a hole in the middle.  Add the eggs and mix well until you have a smooth dough.  Let the dough sit for 1 hour.

Saute sausage and mix with ricotta and parmigiano until smooth.

Using a rolling pin, stretch the pasta into a flat, thin sheet.  Cut into 2″ squares. Place a small ball of the stuffing in the square and fold into a triangle and then pinch the two edges together.

Drop in boiling salted water – when they float to the top they are finished.

In a large pot saute the onions in olive oil.  Add potatoes and water and simmer until soft.  Use an immersion blender to make a puree.

Toss the tortellini with butter, sage and parmesan.  Make a thin layer of the potato puree on a serving plate and top with the tortellini.  Add sage for garnish.
—

 

Sausage stuffed Tortellini Read more

Simone's Christmas Tortellini is an explosion of flavor.  Light pasta stuffed with sausage and ricotta served on a potato puree.  A holiday ...

Dinner, How To, Recipes, Recipes, Uncategorised
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White Truffle Parmigiano Sformato

White truffle flan is a great way to start off a holiday meal and represents everything that is great in Italian regional cooking.  A simple preparation, with relatively few but pristine and highest quality ingredients and the perception of a difficult undertaking that none of your guests need to know about.  The magic of white truffles.

 

Yields 8 – 4oz. souffle cup portions

 

WHITE TRUFFLE PARMIGIANO SFORMATO
INGREDIENTS

1 quart Heavy cream
2.5 Cups Grated Parmigiano Reggiano
½ teaspoon fresh grated nutmeg
1 T white truffle paste (optional…but preferable!)
4 whole eggs
4 T all purp. Flour
Salt to taste

White truffles, fresh (avail. at Via Umbria) to garnish

      DIRECTIONS

Heat Cream in a saucepan, add the cheese and blend. Meanwhile, in a mixing bowl, crack eggs, whisk, add the flour and whisk some more until combined. Add the truffle paste to cream mixture and slowly pour cream into egg mixture. Add the nutmeg and adjust seasoning with salt.

 

Meanwhile, get souffle cups, and spray with non stick spray. Ladle in the mixture. On top of stove, pour approx. ¾ ” of water into a shallow stove top-ready baking dish. Place souffle cups in the water bath and cover the whole pan in plastic wrap. Cook on stovetop at medium high heat for about 30 minutes, steaming the flans. They are done when the mixture does not jiggle like jello. Serve warm. Unmold from dishes if desired.

 

Shave white truffles on top of the sformato and serve with crostini and aged Balsamico.

 

Great way to start off a holiday meal Read more

White truffle flan is a great way to start off a holiday meal and represents everything that is great in Italian regional cooking.  ...

Experience Italy, Food & Drink, How To, Recipes
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Simone’s Savory Thanksgiving Turkey

Thanksgiving isn’t an Italian holiday but Italians really romanticize it.  It fits perfectly with their love of family, food and tradition.  Our friend and practically adopted son, Chef Simone Proietti-Pesci from Umbria makes an annual pilgrimage (no pun intended) to Washington to celebrate Thanksgiving with the Menard family and to do some special guest chef appearances at Via Umbria and as a private chef in customers’ homes.
This is Simone’s delicious take on turkey that uses a few fresh ingredients to bring out the flavors in a turkey.  And this recipe is best enjoyed with a special bird.  Try it with one of our local, cage-free Fields of Athenry Farms turkeys.  You can order yours online and pick it up on the Tuesday or Wednesday before Thanksgiving!
SIMONE’S TURKEY RECIPE
INGREDIENTS

14-16 lb turkey
Pork lard
Rosemary, Sage, Bay Leaves, Juniper Berries, Garlic
Salt
Pepper
Olive Oil
Peeled Chestnuts

      DIRECTIONS

Mince together the herbs and garlic and mix into the pork fat.  Season the turkey with salt and pepper on the skin and inside.  Rub the turkey with the pork fat – on the skin and under the skin.
Place the turkey on a rack in a large roasting pan surrounded with olive oil and peeled chestnuts.
Roast the turkey at 325* for 15 minutes per pound.
Remove from the oven and let sit for 10 minutes before slicing.  Serve with the roasted chestnuts.

 

family, food and tradition Read more

Thanksgiving isn't an Italian holiday but Italians really romanticize it.  It fits perfectly with their love of family, food and tradition.  Our ...

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Ernesto’s Onion Soup

There’s something satisfying about a low-and-slow dinner that pairs perfectly with crisp autumn weather. So while we’re getting into sweater weather here in D.C., we’re outsourcing dinner ideas from our Italian friends in Cannara—this hands-off onion soup is a minimalist masterpiece that transforms the humble onion into a creamy and rich soup that’s perfect for when you want something warm and simple to fill you up.

ERNESTO’S ONION SOUP
INGREDIENTS

White onions

Water

Olive oil

Salt

Garnish (pink peppercorn, black olives, celery, herbs, etc.)
      DIRECTIONS

– Start with 3 or 4 white onions and slice into thin strips. Add them to a wide pot and pour in a 50/50 mix of water and olive oil until onions are half submerged.

– Add salt, then cook for about 30-40 minutes on medium-low heat, until onions are translucent and soft.

– Blend mixture, adding about 1/2 cup of olive oil to emulsify. Texture should be smooth and creamy. Add salt to taste.

– Garnish as desired. Serve.

IMG_0508

IMG_0515

warm and simple Read more

There's something satisfying about a low-and-slow dinner that pairs perfectly with crisp autumn weather. So while we're getting into sweater weather here ...

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Suzy’s Chicken Farro Soup

There’s nothing like a hearty soup to keep your belly full and spirits high as the weather gets chillier. With Via Umbria’s grab-and-go stock of pantry essentials and dinnertime lifesavers (we’re looking at you, oven-roasted chicken!) it couldn’t be easier to get dinner on the table. This week, tuck into a humble but delicious chicken  farro soup bolstered by flavorful parmigiano and garlic.

SUZY’S CHICKEN FARRO SOUP
INGREDIENTS

1 c farro
3 c water
1 small onion diced
1 carrot diced
1 celery stalk diced
1 garlic clove
1 c cooked chicken diced
2 T tomato sauce
EVOO
Parmigiano

      DIRECTIONS

In a medium saucepan add farro, water, onion, carrot, celery and garlic. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and cook over medium heat for 30 minutes or until farro is soft.

Add more water if necessary. Add chicken, tomato sauce and salt and pepper to taste.
Serve with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil and a shaving of Parmesan

 

couldn't be easier Read more

There's nothing like a hearty soup to keep your belly full and spirits high as the weather gets chillier. With Via Umbria's grab-and-go stock ...

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Lemon Ricotta Ravioli

These ravioli stuffed with a zesty lemon ricotta mixture are going to be your new favorite meal. All you need is patience and a bit of confidence—your reward will be a plate full of citrus-y, creamy deliciousness.

PASTA DOUGH 
INGREDIENTS

200 g semolina flour

200 g type 00 flour

4 eggs

      DIRECTIONS

On a large wooden cutting board, make a well with the flour. Crack eggs into the well. Using a fork, slowly beat the eggs and mix in the flour, being careful not to break the walls of the well.

After most of the egg and flour is incorporated, begin to knead the dough. Knead for at least 10 minutes, until very smooth.

Wrap in plastic wrap and let sit for 15-30 minutes
before rolling.

LEMON RICOTTA RAVIOLI
INGREDIENTS

2 c ricotta

Zest of 1 lemon

1 c ground pecorino or parmigiano

1 egg yolk

Salt and pepper to taste

Pasta dough (above)

      DIRECTIONS

Combine ricotta, lemon zest, pecorino/parmigiano and egg yolk. Taste and adjust seasoning.

Roll out pasta dough until paper thin. Dollop the ricotta mixture onto your pasta sheets. Cover the mixture with another sheet of pasta, sealing around each dollop to encase the ricotta tightly.
Cook in boiling water 2-3 minutes until ravioli rises
to the top of the pot.

 

citrus-y, Read more

These ravioli stuffed with a zesty lemon ricotta mixture are going to be your new favorite meal. All you need is patience ...

Entertain, Food & Drink, Home and Abroad, Italy @ Home
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Suzy’s Staples

It was Friday night at Via Umbria—the cafe was full of patrons enjoying dinner, guests in the wine room were engaged in our Weekly Somm tasting and a Birthday celebration was due to start upstairs shortly.  Bill and I looked around and realized that we had a great staff on hand and that if we left now we could sit outside on this perfect September night and enjoy dinner and a relaxing evening at home- so run away we did.  A few minutes later as we inched along Wisconsin Avenue, we realized that we had no groceries at home. Not just ‘nothing we wanted to eat’, but after weeks of late nights and travel – not a single thing that qualified as edible.  As we got closer to the Safeway and started discussing strategies for running in quickly and what we could make – a last minute U-turn was made and we and headed straight back to Via Umbria to pick up our staples.

While there are definitely some benefits to the enormity of a store like Safeway, the idea of being able to avoid the chaos and dash into Via Umbria to grab a few excellent products from farms we know and love seemed like the obvious choice.

We often describe Via Umbria as an “Italian Village under one roof” but in many ways it would be simpler and just as accurate to describe our store as a one-stop market in Georgetown for high-quality pantry staples and top-notch food.

With the idea of ‘who knows what tomorrow brings,’ here is my express list of groceries and pantry staples we grabbed and how I plan to use them:

  • Oven Roasted Chicken
  • Meatballs
  • Carrots
  • Lettuce
  • Lemon
  • Onion
  • Farro
  • Lentils
  • Pasta
  • Jarred Tomatoes
  • Parmigiano
  • Cheese
  • Baguette
  • Wine
  • Franciacorta – delicious sparkling wine
  • Caviar
  • Salmon

For the record—lentils and farro are my go to last-minute dinner staples.  Why?

  • They don’t need to be soaked
  • They can cook unattended
  • They cook in under 30 minutes
  • They are super versatile
  • They are delicious and nutritious

Now, faced with a bevy of incredible ingredients, dinner was simple. We cut the chicken in half and put it in the oven to warm up, set a pot of lentils, carrots, and onions to simmer on the stove, and made a bright and fresh salad of lettuce with olive oil, lemon juice and a hint of shaved parmigiano.  

In less than the time it would take to have a delicious, greasy pizza delivered we were sitting outside on a perfect fall night enjoying a glass of wine and a favorite cheese from the Pennsylvania-based Farm at Doe Run while our dinner was happily cooking.

That’s just half of my express shopping list.  What else is on my menu for this week?

  • Pasta with tomato sauce,  parmigiano and a green salad
  • Farro soup with onions, carrots and chicken
  • Baked Meatballs with lentils and roasted carrots

And for the night I really don’t want to cook at all?  I’m opening a bottle of Franciacorta, cracking open a tin of caviar and enjoying some locally cured Smoked Salmon from DC Smokehouse.  If I had really been thinking ahead I would have grabbed some yogurt, a dozen eggs and a pack of bacon—then I wouldn’t have to wake up on Saturday morning wondering what’s for breakfast!

 

These are a few of my favorite things... Read more

It was Friday night at Via Umbria—the cafe was full of patrons enjoying dinner, guests in the wine room were engaged in ...

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Jennifer’s Sausage with Grapes

This recipe for sausage with grapes from Chef Jennifer embodies the humble (but delicious!) cooking style of Umbria. Though it has just four ingredients, it’s a remarkably well-balanced dish that packs a flavor punch. Make it as a simple dinner when you’re too tired to cook but want something satisfying on the table.

JENNIFER’S SAUSAGE WITH GRAPES
INGREDIENTS

8 sausage links

Fresh wine grapes, cut in half (can substitute raisins)

White wine

Italian parsley (or other herb of choice)

      DIRECTIONS

Brown the sausages in a pan until well caramelized. Add the grapes (or raisins). Follow with the white wine, pouring into pan until about 1/3 of the way up the sausages. Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer.

Add parsley leaves and cover, simmering over low heat until sausages are cooked.

Slice the sausages in half on the bias and let them sit in the sauce for at least 10 minutes.

** If desired, reduce the sauce further (with sausages in it) by cooking a little further.

 

Just four ingredients Read more

This recipe for sausage with grapes from Chef Jennifer embodies the humble (but delicious!) cooking style of Umbria. Though it has just four ingredients, it's a ...

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Tommaso Collins Recipe

We’re celebrating Suzy’s birthday with one of her favorite drinks to sip on—the Tom Collins. In the Italian spirit, we’ve renamed ours Tommaso and used our favorite Italian sparkling water. Here’s why we love it: it’s a simple (and quick!) blend of gin, lemon juice, seltzer and simple syrup which, when combined, is a citrus-y sour cocktail thats deliciously refreshing. Perfect for the sweltering heat of late August!

TOMMASO COLLINS
INGREDIENTS

Ice

Juice of ½ a lemon

½ oz. simple syrup

Seltzer

Lemon wedge, for garnish.

      DIRECTIONS

Fill a highball glass with ice. Pour in gin, lemon juice and simple syrup.

Top with seltzer water. Taste and adjust as needed.

Garnish with a wedge of lemon.

Our take on a Tom Collins Read more

We're celebrating Suzy's birthday with one of her favorite drinks to sip on—the Tom Collins. In the Italian spirit, we've renamed ours ...

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Liam’s Fig Crostata

This is our favorite way to handle an overabundance of produce—depending on the season you can make a filling with mixed berries, apples and cinnamon or ricotta and marmalade. Here Liam uses a mix of ripe figs, honey and a dash of vincotto. The wine (vincotto translates to “cooked wine”) deepens the flavor and rounds out the sweetness of the figs, leaving you with a balanced and elegant dessert. Enjoy!

LIAM’S FIG CROSTATA
INGREDIENTS

For the crust:

300g flour + more for dusting

140g butter, room temperature

1 whole egg

1 egg yolk

1 ½ Tbs baking powder (or 1 packet of Italian bkg powder w vanilla)

pinch salt

For the filling:

6 cups of fresh ripe and plump figs

¾ cup honey

1 T a.p. Flour

3 T butter, cubed into small pieces

1 T vin cotto

 

      DIRECTIONS

Roll the dough to about ½” thickness.  Place in a 10” pie pan.

Meanwhile, combine the ingredients for the filling and put in the pie pan. Fold the outer edges of the dough around the perimeter of the fig filling. Brush the dough with egg wash and sprinkle with sugar. Put in refrigerator for 1 hour before baking at 375 for 30-45 minutes.  

Serve warm.  

Balanced and elegant Read more

This is our favorite way to handle an overabundance of produce—depending on the season you can make a filling with mixed berries, ...

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Marinated Pecorino

We continue our celebration of cheeses with Marinated Pecorino.  Enjoy one of Italy’s finest formaggi in a simple but decadent way. Perfect on its own, Pecorino gets a perfection boost from a generous drizzle of good olive oil and cracked black pepper. Buon appetito!

MARINATED PECORINO
INGREDIENTS

1 lb pecorino

1/2 c olive oil

Black pepper, ground coarsly

      DIRECTIONS

-Break or cut the cheese into small bite-sized cubes, about 1 inch.

-Toss with the olive oil and black pepper. Put in a serving bowl and cover.

-Let the cheese marinate at room temperature for at least 1 hour before serving. Can be made ahead but should be served at room temperature.

Simple but decadent Read more

We continue our celebration of cheeses with Marinated Pecorino.  Enjoy one of Italy's finest formaggi in a simple but decadent way. Perfect on ...