In addition to the obvious Spanish history, Argentina has a large Italian influence and population as well. It is very apparent in the cuisine, from the abundance of homemade pastas and pizzas to the ridiculously good gelato to the favored aperetif found on every restaurant and bar shelf, Fernet. With time, this has morphed into the cocktail of choice among Generations X and Y: Fernet and Coke. The majority of Argentines either have a Spanish or Italian last name, and there's a running joke about a newlywed Argentine couple that went to Italy on their honeymoon, and upon returning, exclaimed, it's really weird, all the streets in Italy have Argentine names!
Leo, the junior winemaker, comes from a 100% Italian family, and the roots are strong (last name, Morgani). I was invited to lunch at his grandmother's house yesterday, an invitation that came with instant excitement. Of course, it being Sunday and yet another Argentine holiday (Dia de los Trabajadores!), almost his whole family was there, from grandparents and parents, to aunt and cousin, to brother and sister and sister's husband.
When we walked in, I was instantly transported to what I felt was a house in the Italian countryside. Leo's mom, cousin, aunt and grandmother were all at one side of the kitchen table, covered in flour and dough, and working away on homemade gnocchis. (Dad, grandfather and brother were on the other side, watching whatever futbol game was on).
Did I want to help? Hell yes I did!
Leo's mom, Monica, showed me how to roll out a bit of dough, cut it into tiny squares, and use my thumb to roll each square down a long wooden spoon-like tool that had long ridges indented on one side (the yellow thing in the picture). The first few came out looking like lumpy messes, and Leo laughed and told me to press harder. I finally got the hang of it, using my crazy hitchhiker thumb to its fullest extent.
Once we made what I'm sure were over 1,000 gnochhis, they went to the pot of boiling water in batches, getting cooked until they began to float. They were then placed in a dish and smothered in Salsa Portuguese, a homemade tomato sauce (tomatoes from the Morgani plantation of course) with mushrooms, beef, onions, thyme, and a little cream. Topped off with grated parmesan. Then came the roasted chicken and vegetables (eggplant, peppers, onions, sweet potato, white potato), all from the family plantation. Store bought empanadas were the disappointment of the meal.
But no Argentine meal is complete without some form of sugar. First came the baked apples, topped with dulce de leche. Wait, there's an interesting flavor in these apples, I said. What is it? A few people shrugged, with Leo's sister saying, baked apples and dulce de leche! No, no, there's something else in there. Then Leo's grandmother came over, chuckling. Whiskey! She pantomimed drinking the whole bottle. This is the same grandmother that put Fernet in her coffee the last itme I had lunch there. I like this woman.
After the apples, which I think may be my new go-to dessert for dinner parties (so easy and SO good!), came boiled and semi-candied membrillo, the ever-present quince. This I actually did not like, and only had a bite of. Then came the strong coffee, served in espresso cups. And of course the Fernet. After having a few Fernet and Cokes the night before, I passed on it, and Leo's dad was the only one seen pouring it into his coffee.
I wasn't hungry until about 10:30 last night, at which point I had a few crackers and called it a day.
Today is the last day of grape crushing, and we have an end of harvest asado to celebrate. After, I'm catching a ride back to Mendoza city with Karim, who is leaving for a three-week European vacation on Wednesday. There's a wine tasting tonight with the old group, and it's Cara's last one before she goes back to the States. We'll be tasting bubblies! And tomorrow morning I have an interview with Carolyn, who has an office position for me with her company. If all goes well, I may be staying in Mendoza another few months.
I'll come back to La Consulta tomorrow evening and stay through the end of the week, as the harvest is nearly finished and my time here is almost up. Sad! I moved out of my picture perfect cabin today, and will either stay at the B&B where Karim had stayed or at Leo's house... still TBD. My bags will hang out at the winery until I know. Yes, Dad, I am living the life of a gypsy!
(Picture to the right is of Jo, Karim and me after our last lunch together at El Cielo on Saturday.)
No comments:
Post a Comment