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Scrapbook from the Venice Film Festival (Contagion Premiere)
Hello lovely readers! I’m just back from a delightfully laborious Labor Day weekend in Venice, Italy, where I was in attendance for the premiere of the excellent film, Contagion. It was just over 48 hours of jam-packed happenings and the food was sublime. Below is my little scrapbook.
Happy back to school. Not.
Love,
gp
7:00 pm
Another airport lounge ... on my way to Venice.
11:38 pm
I arrive starving and order a perfect Spaghetti Pomodoro at the Hotel Cipriani. (See bottom of the newsletter for the recipe.)
Hotel Cipriani
Hotel Cipriani & Palazzo Vendramin,
Giudecca 10,
30133 Venice
+39 (041) 520 7744
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10:30 am
Hair and makeup with Renato Campora and Emma Lovell.
11:20 am
I don’t feel ready.
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12:35 pm
We head to the Casino on the Lido for a Press Conference on the movie. Our crazily talented director, Steven Soderbergh, arrives.
12:40 pm
Good morning to you, too ...
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1:00 - 2:00 pm
Press conference and photo call: "Yes, this movie made us wash our hands more often."
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3:00 - 4:30 pm
Matt and I chatting on our TV interviews that were held in Ca’Giustinian, a 15th century gothic Palazzo. I’m trying to keep a straight face but he keeps making me laugh. We have 12 six minute interviews back to back with a 1 minute break between each.
4:36 pm
That’s that … off to get ready for the premiere.
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9:45 pm
The cast stands at the end of the movie. It’s my first time seeing it too.
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10:30 am - 2:30 pm
Press day #2 begins with 25 six minute TV interviews with Matt.
2:30 pm - 3:45 pm
In the afternoon it’s 5 roundtable interviews (15 minutes each) with the international press.
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12:30 pm
Lunch break! I have amazing Fritto Misto followed by whole wheat spaghetti with Anchovy Sauce at the Grand Canal Restaurant at the Hotel Monaco (I asked for the recipe which is at the end of the newsletter). This is a really special place to eat.
Grand Canal Restaurant
Hotel Monaco
San Marco, 1332
30124 Venice, Italy
+39 (041) 520 0211
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4:00 pm
I have some free time at the end of the day to go exploring. We sneak out of the back of the hotel and ride down the canals to buy a friend a birthday gift.
Bummed out gondolier.
I stop by this amazing antiquarian jewelry shop, Bastianello Arte, which has some pretty spectacular pieces. Venice has been a center of jewelry making and trading for centuries and it’s a great place for a really special find.
Bastianello Arte
San Marco, 5041
30124 Venice
+39 (041) 5226751
Just a few of the gorgeous jewels I saw. I need a sugardaddy ...
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8:30 pm
I have a special dinner with a few close friends at the Terrazza Danieli on the top floor of the Hotel Danieli. It has a spectacular view of Venice.
This is an incredible lobster salad with artichokes and purple potato puree we had, that was followed by a perfect pesto pasta with candied tomatoes and soft mozzarella—red, white and green to celebrate the 150th anniversary of Italian unification. (See below for recipes.)
Terrazza Danieli
Castello 4196
Venice 30122
+39 (041) 522 6480
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10:30 pm
The weekend is over and I head back home on a boat to the airport.
12:30 am
My flight is delayed.
3:30 am
Home.
8:00 am
School run. Ouch.
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Recipes:
From the Hotel Cipriani - Pasta al Pomodoro |
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- 2 lbs mix of regular and cherry tomatoes peeled and roughly chopped. Make sure the tomatoes are as ripe as possible.
- 2 white onions finely chopped
- 1 peeled garlic clove
- 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tbsp fresh unsalted butter
- De Cecco Spaghetti
- Parmigiano Reggiano
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Basil
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1.Heat the oil in a casserole dish, add the garlic and brown slightly. When the garlic is golden remove it from the oil. Add the chopped onion and fresh butter and stir thoroughly. Cook until the onion is no longer shiny, then add the peeled tomatoes. Season with salt and pepper to taste and cook over mild heat for about thirty minutes.
2.When the tomatoes are cooked, beat with a whisk in order to refine the tomato sauce, adjust the taste and keep warm.
3.Cook the pasta “al dente” in a large pot of salted water, then drain it and add it to the tomato sauce. Add basil leaves torn by hand, a knob of fresh butter, and a generous sprinkling of grated Parmigiano Reggiano. Stir thoroughly and serve immediately, steaming hot.
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From the Grand Canal Restaurant at the Hotel Monaco - Bigoli in Salsa (Whole-wheat Spaghetti in a light Anchovy sauce) |
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Serves 4
- 300 gr. "bigoli" Whole-wheat Spaghetti
- 500 gr. white onions
- 350 gr. salted anchovies cleaned
- 200 gr. extra virgin olive oil
- 2 bay leaves (simmered)
- black pepper to taste
- 5/6 gr. wild fennel
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 40 gr. Parmesan cheese (optional)
- 50 gr. butter
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1.To make the sauce, slowly braise the peeled and finely chopped onions in the oil together with the bay leaves and the black pepper for about 10 minutes. Add the cleaned and de-salted anchovies. Cook gently for another 15/20 minutes, or until the anchovies and onions have melted together into a creamy sauce.
2.Cook the Bigoli in unsalted water until “al dente”. Season the bigoli with the sauce, butter, parmesan and wild fennel.
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From the Terrazza Danieli - Lobster salad with purple potato foam and Italian caviar (optional) |
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Red, White, and Green Spaghettini – 150th anniversary of Italy |
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Serves 5
Pasta:
- 280 gr. plain flour (00)
- 80 gr. bran
- 270 gr. egg yolk
- 100 gr. water
- 10 gr. extra virgin olive oil
- 8 gr. salt
Form a mound with the flour on your workbench, make a well in the middle and add the egg yolks (previously beaten together), water, extra virgin olive oil and salt, slowly incorporating all ingredients together with your fingers in circular movements.
Once combined, knead the dough until is a smooth mass and then set aside for 30 minutes at room temperature.
Roll out the pasta with a rolling pin (or use a pasta machine) until it is approximately a 3 mm thin sheet. Roll up the sheet of pasta on itself to form a cylindrical shape and cut into thin strips approximately 3 mm wide.
Pesto:
- 500 gr. fresh basil leaves
- 30 gr. fresh parsley
- 150 gr. extra virgin olive oil
- 20 gr. grated parmesan cheese
- 5 gr. salt
- 10 gr. pine nuts
Quickly blanch the fresh basil leaves in hot water for 1 second and immediately cool them in a bowl full of water and ice cubes.
Dry the leaves using a clean dish towel. Using a pestle and mortar, pound the dried leaves with all the other ingredients. Adjust salt to taste.
Allow the pesto to rest overnight.
Sauce:
- 500 gr. fresh basil leaves
- 30 gr. fresh parsley
- 150 gr. extra virgin olive oil
- 20 gr. grated parmesan cheese
- 5 gr. salt
- 10 gr. pine nuts
Halve the tomatoes and place them in a warmed pan with olive oil and a clove of garlic, then add some fresh basil leaves.
Warm the pesto in a large separate pan.
In the meantime, cook the pasta in boiling salted water for 2-3 minutes or until the spaghettini are "al dente."
Drain the spaghettini and place them in the pan with pesto until they’re completely covered with the sauce, being careful not to overheat.
Turn off the heat and add a couple of spoons of sauce and garnish with fresh buffalo mozzarella.
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Goodbye Venice!
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