Whether espresso, in powder or in beans – between sweet and salty notes – it will be Marino Pasquale of pastry shop Cucchi of Milan and Patrizia Di Benedetto of Restaurant Bye Bye Blues in Palermo to turn it into a protagonist.

In Milan, a structure of rare historical value situat- ed in the corner between Corso Genova and Piazza della Resistenza Partigiana catches the attention of pedestrians “La Pasticceria Cucchi”. Founded in 1936, it immediately became place of night entertainment, where the best exponents of the city spent their free time between a glass of whisky and a delicious dish.

In 1943, it was destroyed by bombing, which burned it to the ground, but Luigi Cucchi and his wife Vittorina didn’t lose heart and brought the elegant pastry factory back to old splendour with defiteness.

Thanks to their son Cesare, today it’s still a meeting place for all those who don’t renounce a moment of delicacy and plea- sure. First confectioner Marino Pasquale prepares a dessert for us.

 

 

Operà

Ingredients for the biscuit: whole eggs, almond flour, icing sugar, egg white, caster sugar, butter, flour;

for the ganache: liquid cream, dark chocolate 61%, butter, trimoline (inverted sugar syrup);

for the coffee cream: milk, caster sugar, egg yolks, starch, butter, coffee extract;

Procedure: spread the Gioconda biscuit out (about 1 cm high) and drench it with coffee, proceed with a layer of butter cream made with coffee, lay down another biscuit and drench it with coffee, continuing with the same procedure, alternating another two layers. Finishing by frosting with the dark chocolate ganache and garnish with small fruits and chocolate spirals.

A story of a woman, who managed to win the most pretentious international palates from 1991 to this day, arrives from the islander coast of pacific and shapely Mondello.

It is Patrizia Di Benedetto of the restaurant Bye Bye Blues, who fulfils her dream together with her husband Antonio Barraco, barman and sommelier, to open a restaurant that could change the traditional concept of the restaurant industry in Palermo. She assimilates the old secrets of Mediterranean kitchen from her family since she is a child. She receives important acknowledgements in the enograstronomical field and is awarded with the much-desired “Michelin Star” being the only woman obtaining it in Sicily. Just recently, she’s been protagonist in the US kitchens of New York, Boston, Baltimore and Long Island. A woman and star chef at the same time, who never looked away from her aim: simplify traditional dished and adapt them to a different lifestyle, careful to health and traditional values.

Steak tartare with Porcini mushroom base and coffee powder

Ingredients for 4 people: 30 g coffee powder, 4 caper berries; 

for the tartare: 500 g beef tenderloin, 30 g salted capers, 50 g shelled and slightly roasted almonds, salt and pepper, 70 ml extra virgin oil, 25 ml lemon juice;

for the Porcini mushroom base: 100 g plain flour, 80 g butter, 20 g finely chopped dried Porcini mushrooms, 1 pinch of salt, 10 g sugar, 30 g ice-cold water, 30 g coffee powder, 4 caper berries;

Procedure: Knead all ingredients for the base and leave to cool in the fridge for 30 minutes. Spread out the dough and bake for 20 minutes at 175°. Leave to cool and flatten with a tenderizer. Prepare the tartare by blending all ingredients. Plate up the tartare with the help of a metal ring and put some Porcini mushroom base as well as coffee powder next to it. Decorate with a whole almond and caper berries.

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