Cicchetti dreams, 3 recipes from the Bulli & Balene Bistrot
Chef Giacomo Faberi shares three of his favorite recipes for all of us who can’t wait to come back to the B9 bistrot to eat cicchetti (open-faced sandwiches). Learn to make Bulli & Balene’s cicchetti at home!
Cream of broccoli, with stracciatella and anchovy
Cut some broccoli into evenly-sized florets and remove the tough part of the stalk. Blanch in boiling, salted water for 4 minutes. Place in a bowl of ice-water to cool, and set aside some of the cooking water.
Blend the broccoli with 2 tablespoons of cooking water, 3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil a dash of pepper to obtain a creamy consistency similar to mayonnaise.
To assemble the cicchetto, first spread the cream on a slice of bread with a drizzle of high-quality olive oil. Top with a teaspoon of stracciatella and an anchovy fillet.
Sweet-and-sour mayonnaise, boiled egg and pulled prosciutto crudo
Clean and dice a red onion. Brown the onion in a saucepan with a drizzle of oil and a pinch of salt until slightly softened (about 1 minute). Add 1 level spoon of sugar and 3 spoons vinegar. Lower the heat to the minimum setting and cover for another minute. Remove the lid and turn up the flame to evaporate the excess liquid. Set aside and allow to cool.
In a saucepan, boil water and and to make the hardboiled eggs (8 minutes). Cool the hardboiled eggs and cut into wedges.
For the mayonnaise, blend the following ingredients: cold sweet-and-sour onions, 300 ml vegetable oil, 2 egg yolks and 1 whole egg, 1 tablespoon of fresh-squeezed lemon juice, 2 tablespoons of red vinegar, and 6 g salt.
Assemble this cicchetto by first drizzle a slice of bread with high-quality oil, then spread it with mayonnaise. Top with a wedge of hard-boiled egg and a rolled-up slice of ham (use a toothpick to hold it all together).
Green pea hummus, seared fresh pecorino cheese and crispy pancetta (or pickled onion, for vegetarians)
Blanch 300 g of green peas and 2 cloves of garlic (remove the cores) in salted, boiling water. Cool the peas and garlic in ice-water. Blend with 4 tablespoons of olive oil, 2 spoons of tahini sauce, and one spoon of lemon juice.
Cut one slice of pancetta and one slice of pecorino. Line a pan with olive oil and heat. Sear the pecorino and pancetta on both sides. If opting for the vegetarian version, marinate the onion by cutting into slices and placing them into a glass of water, vinegar, and 1 spoon of sugar for one hour.
Assemble the cicchetto: drizzle some high-quality olive oil onto a slice of bread and spread it with hummus. Top with the seared slice of pecorino and pancetta, or pickled onion.