Italian vegetables | All Things Sicilian and more

PUNTARELLE Cooked with Tomatoes, Garlic and Anchovies

I ate Puntarelle cooked with tomatoes, garlic and anchovies as a side dish several years ago in Venice. This is the photo below:

Cooked puntarelle as presented in a restaurant in Venice

A Venetian inspiration for a simple pasta sauce or contorno

Venice Cannaregio, a view from our accomodation

Puntarelle are one of my favourite Italian vegetables, and because I now can find them in a stall at Queen Victoria Market I buy them. Although they are best known in the classic Roman salad of finely sliced shoots dressed with anchovy, garlic and olive oil, puntarelle can also be cooked to make an excellent contorno or a delicious pasta sauce.

One of a number of puntarelle salads I have made recently

A memory from Cannaregio, Venice

This dish is inspired by a meal I enjoyed in Cannaregio, one of Venice’s most authentic neighbourhoods, during my visit to the Venice Biennale in 2019. Away from the busiest tourist routes, Cannaregio still retains the atmosphere of a lived-in Venetian district, with local markets, small trattorie and canals that invite leisurely wandering.

‎⁨Guglie⁩/ Cannaregio ⁨Venezia⁩, ⁨Venice⁩

One of the dishes I ordered at a restaurant was a simple plate of cooked puntarelle that was tossed with tomatoes and I remembered tasting, garlic and anchovies. It was uncomplicated cooking, but memorable because puntarelle were impossible to find in Melbourne or in Adwhere I have found many vegetables that I have had difficulties finding in Melbourne.

Another person ordered the salad. This had red radicchio in it as well as tomatoes and the usual anchovy and garlic dressing.

The results were a simple recipe with remarkable flavour. Italian cooking often demonstrates that excellent dishes require very few ingredients. In this recipe, the slight bitterness of puntarelle, the sweetness of tomatoes and the savoury richness of anchovies create a balance that is both elegant and deeply satisfying. It is a reminder that some of the most memorable meals are also the simplest.

Puntarelle in Melbourne

Recently I have been making the most of the puntarelle available from Sophia’s stall at the Queen Victoria Market. Most often I prepare the traditional salad with an anchovy and garlic dressing and have made a few of these now.

The bunches sold in Melbourne, however, usually contain fewer leaves than those I have purchased in Italy. To prepare them as a cooked vegetable, I often combine the leaves with other bitter greens such as chicory, endive or cime di rapa, which have similar flavours and cooking qualities.

One of the bunches of puntarelle I have bought in Melbourne

This bunch of puntarelle bought in Melbourne has slightly more leaves

When I was staying in an Airbnb in Venice, I also bought a bunch of puntarelle and cooked both the spears and leaves together simply in extra virgin olive oil and garlic. The Venetian bunch was much leafier than those I generally find in Melbourne, making it particularly suitable for cooking.

This is the bunch of puntarelle I bought in Venice…. very leafy.

And recently I cooked puntarelle in much the same way that I cook cime di rapa for pasta or cicoria ripassata.

A simple contorno or pasta sauce

The version I remembered from Venice included tomatoes, so I decided to recreate it at home. Because good fresh baby tomatoes taste bland during winter, I used quality tinned baby tomatoes drained of their juice instead. Their sweetness balances the gentle bitterness of the puntarelle beautifully.

As with all of the green leafy vegetables as I braise with garlic and anchovies and sometimes chilli, the anchovies melt into the olive oil, creating depth while the garlic provides the familiar flavour combination found throughout Italian regional cooking.

Braised/sauteed puntarelle are equally enjoyable served as a vegetable side dish or tossed through pasta. I prefer short pasta. Because the bunches I buy at the Queen Victoria Market don’t contain many leaves and chicory, endive or cime di rapa are in season, I add more green leaves as well.

In this version I added cooked cime di rapa

RECIPE: PUNTARELLE Cooked with Tomatoes, Garlic and Anchovies

Ingredients

1 bunch puntarelle, including shoots and leaves
Extra leaves of chicory, endive or cime di rapa if needed
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2-3 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
6 anchovy fillets (or more) in oil cut into smaller pieces
250-300 g baby tomatoes (fresh when in season or good-quality tinned baby tomatoes)
ground black pepper or pinch of chilli flakes (optional)
salt if you need it.

For serving: 3-4 people

350g pasta
Grated pecorino or toasted breadcrumbs toasted in extra virgin olive oil if desired. (Pecorino is stronger tasting than parmesan cheese and probably better suited)

Method

Prepare the puntarelle

Wash the puntarelle thoroughly. Separate the shoots and leaves and cut into bite-sized pieces. If the quantity of leaves is limited, add some chopped chicory, endive or cime di rapa. (*On this occasion I added some already cooked cime di rapa that I had in my fridge.)

Traditionally, if serving the greens with the pasta, they are blanched in salted boiling water for five minutes or more (depending on quantity and texture). If using the mixture as a pasta sauce, reserve some of the cooking water. However, I prefer a modern method: sauté the greens directly without parboiling (once again depending on quantity and texture).

Make the sauce

Heat the olive oil in a large frying pan.

Add the anchovies and stir until they dissolve into the oil. Add the garlic until fragrant but not coloured.

Stir in the green leaves, toss around in the pan and when they wilt, add about a tablespoon of water, put on the lid and soften further. Remove them from the pan and set aside.

Add a little more oil to the pan, add the puntarelle spears and cook for a few minutes until softened but still vibrant. (**I added the cooked left over cime di rapa after I cooked the puntarelle and tomatoes).

Add the tomatoes and cook for several minutes until they soften and release their juices. Season with black pepper and chilli flakes if using.

I added the cooked left over cime di rapa after I cooked the puntarelle and tomatoes

Serve as a contorno – grilled fish or meat, roasted meats (nothing juicy).

To serve with pasta

Cook the pasta until al dente.
Transfer it directly to the pan with the puntarelle mixture, adding a little reserved pasta cooking water if necessary to create a silky sauce. Toss well and serve plain or with grated pecorino or toasted breadcrumbs, according to your preference.

Puntarelle alla Romana and Cicoria Ripassata

CICORIA and Puntarelle (Chicory)

Puntarelle alla Romana and Cicoria Ripassata

Puntarelle alla Romana and Cicoria Ripassata are two classic Roman dishes that celebrate Italy’s fondness for bitter greens. Both are types of chicory.

Puntarelle

Puntarelle are a distinctive type of Italian chicory (cicoria catalogna), especially associated with Rome and the Lazio region, where they appear in markets during the cooler months.

I have always loved Italy’s bitter greens — cicoria, radicchio, indivia, cime did rape, dandelion — flavours that many people initially find challenging, but which Italians value for their slight bitterness. Puntarelle belong firmly within this tradition.

The plant has long serrated leaves, but the prized part is the pale green central shoots that are tender, crunchy and slightly bitter.

Their texture and flavour make them especially refreshing when eaten raw.

Puntarelle – vegetable with some of the outer leaves removed

Puntarelle, even more so than chicory, are not a common vegetable. I have only purchased Puntarelle twice in Australia, once from Carmel and Gus’s stall at the Queen Victoria Market and now I was delighted to find it at Daniel’s stall in the B Shed Shop 23-26. The stall is called Sophia’s.

The classic Roman preparation is Puntarelle alla Romana. The shoots are sliced finely into thin strips and soaked in iced water until they curl and become wonderfully crisp – a bit like curling celery.

Curled puntarelle after being soaked in iced water

They are then dressed simply with olive oil, garlic, anchovy and vinegar or lemon juice. The flavour is sharp, savoury and refreshing at the same time. Sometimes hard boiled eggs are added to the dressed salad and this makes this dish extra suitable as a starter.

Like many Italian vegetables, very little is wasted. The outer leaves are often boiled or sautéed with olive oil, garlic and chilli in the style of cicoria ripassata, much like other bitter greens prepared throughout Italy. I have added this recipe because I have mentioned that the course outer leaves are cooked and not wasted.

A mixture of leafy greens can be added with the outer leaves of the Punterelle as there are likely insufficient greens to cook in this manner.

I particularly appreciate puntarelle because they reflect something essential about Italian cooking: the ability to transform a simple seasonal vegetable into something elegant through restraint and balance rather than complexity.

For those who enjoy vegetables such as dandelion greens, chicory or radicchio, puntarelle offer a similar bitterness but with a particularly crisp texture and elegant appearance. They pair beautifully with anchovies, citrus, capers, olives and robust olive oil — flavours that appear frequently in Roman and southern Italian cooking.

ROME’S BITTER GREENS

Puntarelle alla Romana

This is one of Rome’s most characteristic salads — crisp, bitter and refreshing, with the salty sharpness of anchovy balancing the chicory beautifully.

Ingredients

1 bunch puntarelle (mine was one plant)
4 -8 anchovy fillets
1-2 garlic clove
2–3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1-2 tablespoon white wine vinegar or lemon juice
Freshly ground black pepper

Preparing the Puntarelle

Separate the pale inner shoots from the outer leaves. Save the small leaves to add to the salad.

Slice the shoots finely into thin strips. Traditionally they are cut very thinly so they curl easily.

Place the strips into a bowl of iced water for about 30 minutes. This helps them curl and become crisp.

Preparing the Dressing

Traditionally, anchovies and garlic are crushed together to form a paste. Add olive oil and vinegar or lemon juice and mix well.

Alternatively, the garlic can be crushed and placed in a jar with the oil and lemon juice. The anchovies are then cut into small pieces and mixed together just before dressing the salad. I prefer to do this as it allows for a more visual presentation.

The dressing: Chopped anchovies and a mixture of extra virgin olive oil, squeezed garlic, and lemon juice

Assembling the Salad

Drain the puntarelle thoroughly and dress just before serving.

Taste and adjust seasoning carefully — the anchovies are already salty.

The salad is excellent with grilled fish, roasted meats or simply with bread especially when there are boiled eggs in the salad.

We had it as an accompaniment to a seafood Paella.

Cicoria Ripassata

This is one of the simplest and most satisfying ways Italians cook bitter greens. The word ripassata refers to the greens being “passed again” through the pan after boiling.

Ingredients

1 large bunch cicoria or other bitter greens including the outer leaves of the Puntarelle
2–3 garlic cloves, sliced
Chilli flakes or fresh chilli to taste
Extra virgin olive oil
Salt

Cooking the Greens

Wash the greens thoroughly and trim any tough stems.
Boil in salted water until tender — usually about 10–15 minutes depending on the maturity of the greens.
Drain well and gently squeeze out excess water. Chop roughly if the leaves are large.
Heat generous olive oil in a frying pan.
Add the garlic and chilli and cook briefly until fragrant, but do not allow the garlic to burn.
Add the greens and sauté for several minutes so they absorb the flavours of the oil.
Taste for salt and serve warm or at room temperature.

In Rome this dish is often served alongside grilled sausages or roasted meats, especially pork – the bitterness counteracts the fatty nature of the meat.

CICORIA and Puntarelle (Chicory)

CICORETTA CON SALSICCIA (Chicory with fresh pork sausage)

ITALIAN BITTER LEAF SALAD

WANT NOT WASTE NOT- Chicken livers and chicory, twice

IL FRUTTIVENDOLO

I am writing a tribute to Gus and Carmel, owners of IL Fruttivendolo.

In 2009, I first wrote a post about Gus and Carmel Bressi’s enthralling seasonal, heirloom produce at the Queen Victoria Market on my blog, Sicilian Seafood Cooking. But my shopping at their vibrant stall began long before that.

When I moved from Adelaide to Melbourne in early 2002, I stumbled upon a hidden gem nestled in the QVM— a fruit and vegetable stall that felt like my own slice of Italy. I live just a stone’s throw away from the market and I found a profusion of seasonal delights that was reminiscent of my Italian background.

Gus and Carmel’s stall became my one destination for all things fresh. Here, I found a bounty of ingredients that were nearly impossible to find elsewhere in the QVM: the first cime di rapa, artichokes and cardoons (Carmel holding a cardoon).

Carmel was certainly very original and inspiring when displaying vegetables. Those brussels came from her.

Their shelves overflowed with fragrant herbs, crunchy fennel (both bulb and bunch), kohlrabi, and wild greens like nettles, milk thistle and amaranth that added adventurous variations to my cooking.

Endives, frisée and chicory were alongside bunches of puntarelle and senape – and I question if any shopper had seen this leafy green vegetable before (Senape is the middle photo).

There was an array of cauliflowers in every imaginable shape and colour and for many, much of the produce was uncommon. Above – Gus being enchanting to Mary Taylor Simeti who was visiting Melbourne from Sicily at the time. Although I had told him about her, when I introduced him to her, I dont think he realized just how much she knew!!! Mary is the queen of Sicilian Food writing. (Pomp and Sustanance, Bitter Almonds, Sicilian Summer – Cooking with my grandsons).

I marvelled at their diverse colours of eggplants, pink, white, violet and even striped eggplants, varieties that I had not seen since Sicily, crisp witlof of two different colours, and types of radicchio that I had not encountered since Trieste and Venice where radicchio reigns supreme (In the regions Friuli Venezia Giulia and the Veneto).

Fresh borlotti beans, broad beans, and the asparagus in colours and thicknesses, the thick white variety that was everywhere in Paris in Spring. The purple variety surprised me because it lost its colour when cooked.

And who could forget the first heirloom tomatoes, strikingly different carrots, and the sweetness of fresh figs and prickly pears?

While you might spot a few of these treasures at other stalls, Gus and Carmel were the true pioneers. Their passion for produce was profound, and they were more than happy to share tips on how to prepare even the most unfamiliar vegetables, turning every shopping trip into a culinary lesson. They were innovators, always one step ahead, knowing exactly what was in and who to source it from. Others, like John from Tomato City specialises in tomatoes, he does have eggplants, radicchio and artichokes, as Italian stallholders generally do, but Il Fruttivendolo specialised in the uncommon, a great range of varieties of the same vegetables, those not usually seen in other greengrocers.

Below, broadbeans. notice how relatively small they are. theis is how they should be sold, not like the briadbeans that are generally found in other places that are picked far too mature.

Their stall was filled with vibrant colour and fragrances and each vegetable, fruit and herb was meticulously labelled and beautifully arranged in baskets and boxes.

It was no wonder that their display often attracted the attention of photographers and TV crews, even if their contributions went unrecognized.

Gus and Carmel were initially located in B Shed, Stall 61-65, their space later transformed into the beloved Il Fruttivendolo—a name that elegantly summarises their dual role as sellers of both fruit and vegetables.

Il = the, frutti = fruit + vendolo = seller = fruitseller.

Just as greengrocers also sell fruit, fruit sellers also sell vegetables.

When the Queen Victoria Market underwent its redevelopment, they were relocated to a couple of temporary stalls before being housed in A Shed, where they continued to enthral customers.

Sadly, when I returned from a three-month trip away and I found that Il Fruttivendolo was no longer there. The operation of the stall came to an abrupt end early one morning when Carmel, alone and carefully organizing her produce, was threatened by an assailant at knife point. Fortunately, another stallholder intervened, chasing the assailant away. But the incident left its mark, prompting Gus and Carmel to accelerate their timing to retire.

Gus and Carmel Bressi were not just suppliers of fruits and vegetables; they were large contributors to the vibrancy of the Queen Victoria Market. Their absence is felt deeply by their customers and the other stall holders, especially those who just like Carmel and Gus have been there for a very long time.

They are remembered for their legacy, the flavours they brought to many kitchens, and their dedication and commitment to source quality produce.

There are many vegetable recipies in this blog – All Things Sicilian amd more.

Here are a few recipes, but if you use the search botton you will be able to find many more.

SENAPE, a new type of mustard green vegetable

CIME DI RAPE (A winter green)

ASPARAGUS and ARTICHOKES

NETTLES (Ortiche), Culinary uses and gnocchi

PASTA RIMESTATA COI CAVOFIORI; Pasta with cauliflower, sultanas, pine nuts and anchovies

FENNEL; male and female shapes

STUFFED BAKED FENNEL WITH PANGRATTATO; FINOCCHI RIPIENI

Melbourne; August: Winter Artichokes in risotto and stuffed

CAPONATA FROM PALERMO (made with eggplants)

SICILIAN CAPONATA DI MELANZANE as made in Palermo (Eggplant caponata and Eggplant caponata with chocolate)

MARY TAYLOR SIMETI and her new book:SICILIAN SUMMER An adventure in cooking with my grandsons

CARDOONS, What are they? (Cardoni or Cardi in Italian)

PASTA CON FINOCCHIO (Pasta and fennel; preferably wild). This is a recipe Gus gave me.

Below, a tribute from The Friends Of The Queen Victoria Market.

IN PRAISE OF WINTER VEGETABLES

How I love winter vegetables. Come to think of it, I love all vegetables!!!

These are some of the seasonal vegetables I bought last week from the Queen Victoria Market and I always make the most of them.

Although the seasons have become blurred and are becoming even more so (changes in climate, new strains of seeds, faster and better refrigerated transport) I still look forward to seasonal vegetables and tend not to buy them out of season.

What I did with the above vegetables and the recipes (click on the links)

I stuffed the Artichokes with ricotta, almond meal and pistachio.

The Cime di rape were cooked with orecchiette.

The KALE was braised with garlic and eaten as a side vegetable. The left over cooked kale went into LENTIL SALAD

The CAVOLO NERO went into a soup.

The Frisée went into a mixture of leaves for salad.

I used half of the Celeriac raw with some rocket (dressed with homemade mayonnaise) and the rest I cooked and made a mash with cooked potatoes (Ratio: more potato than celeriac- I used 3 medium cooked potatoes and ½ cooked celeriac, butter and milk or cream, salt and pepper).

With the left over potato and celeriac mash, I added garlic, extra virgin olive oil and a little warm vegetable stock and made a Skordalia with a difference. There is no celeriac in skordalia and I am probably offending many fine makers of skordalia (those from a Greek culture), but it tasted great. The pink peppercorns I grounded on top also made a difference. I presented it with Sardinian carta di musica (music sheet)- a yeast-free, paper-thin bread. It is called pane carasau in Sardinian.

The red radicchio was made into a salad with canned tuna, cooked borlotti and red onion (Recipe from my book: Small Fishy Bites).

The fennel was braised and topped with TAPENADE

SEE: RADICCHIO, TUNA AND BORLOTTI SALAD and BRAISED FENNEL WITH TAPENADE

You will find other recipes for some of these vegetables on my blog: key into the search button the name of the vegetable you are looking for, and different recipes should come up.

In this photo there are artichokes, fennel, celeriac, kale, cavolo nero, red radicchio and a baby endive (which is sometimes called curly lettuce or frisée).

QUEEN VICTORIA MARKET (Carmel and Gus’s stall in B Shed, Stall 61- 63)