Author Archive

Posted on April 28, 2009 - by admin - (Comment * FaceBook It * Send to Friend)

Meet the Women of the Enoteca

Our women come from different regions of Italy bringing with them the traditions of their towns, people, and cooking. They often return to the old country to visit with family.

The current lineup:

Adelena from Casola, Napoli
Carmelina from Marcianise, Napoli
Nina from Salerno, Campania
Rosaria from Chieti, Abruzzo
Rosa from Schio, Vicenza
Teresa from Agrigento, Sicilia
Valarie from Sciacca, Sicilia
Carolina from Calabria

Other grandmas who have cooked at Enoteca Maria:

Christina from from San Giuseppe Iato, Sicilia
Gaia from Milano, Lombardia

Posted on April 28, 2009 - by admin - 4 comments so far

We Want You Grandma!

If you are a grandma who would like to share your time-honored recipes with our fantastic customers, we want you in our kitchen! Give Joe a call at (718) 447-2777 or send an email telling us a little bit about your tomato-sauce cooking self. We look forward to meeting you!

Posted on April 27, 2009 - by admin - (Comment * FaceBook It * Send to Friend)

Artisanal Cheeses

Click thumbnails to enlarge photo.

Gorgonzola Cremificato is a famous Italian creamy cow’s milk blue from Lombardy of quality unrivaled by other young or “dolce” Gorgonzolas. Although inoculated with the same blue mold found in spicier blues like Roquefort, this delicate, soft, and unctuous blue is mild and subtly sweet with fresh, grassy undertones. It’s frequently used in Italy in sauces or fresh breads. Gorgonzola Cremificato is the perfect dessert cheese and pairs well with Muscat or other similar fruity dessert wines.

Piave is named after the river Piave, whose source is found at Mount Peralba in Val Visdende, in the northernmost part of Veneto in Italy. The land surrounding the ancient river is integral to the character of the cheese: it is where the milk is collected, the curd cooked, and the cheese aged until hard. Piave, deliciously nutty and pasteurized from cow’s milk, has an intense, full-bodied flavor, reminiscent of Parmigiano Reggiano. It has a concentrated, sweet crystalline paste with a full tropical fruit flavor and slight almond bitterness.

La Tur From the great wine region of Piedmont comes La Tur, a dense, creamy blend of pasteurized cow, goat, and sheep milk. Runny around the perimeter with a moist, cakey, palette-coating paste, its flavor is earthy and full, with a lingering lactic tang. The effect is like ice cream served from a warm scoop. Goes well with Prosecco where the effervescence whisks away the richness while matching the mild acidity.                                

Pepato Maybe spilling peppercorns into the sheep’s milk was an accident, but this is one Sicilian marriage that has lasted for centuries. Pepato (peppered) is similar in texture to Asiago Aged three months, soft and seriously sheepy, this tasty table cheese with spicy salt and pepper balance makes great change of pace for the provolone lover. Pepato pairs nicely with Italian reds such as Amarone, Bardolino or Barolo.                                                           

Taleggio is a semi-soft, washed-rind stinky cheese made from cow’s milk in the Valsassina region in northern Italy, near Lombardy since the 9th century. It is characteristically aromatic yet mild in flavor and features tangy, meaty notes with a fruity finish. The texture of the cheese is moist-to-oozy with a very pleasant melt-in-your-mouth feel. The combination of the soft texture, pungent aroma, and buttery flavors is great on fresh crusty bread. Taleggio pairs nicely with Italian Nebbiolo wines, as well as a wide range of reds and whites.

Enoteca Maria’s Artisanal Cheese Plate is served with four complimentary additions:

Mostarda Mentoveno di Pere (Pear Mustard)
Grappoli d’Uvo (Grapes)
Miele e Noci (Honey with Walnuts)
Torta di Fighi (Fig Cakes)

Posted on April 19, 2009 - by admin - (Comment * FaceBook It * Send to Friend)

Teresa Woos Judges with Homemade Lasagna

The Annual Pasta Bowl sponsored by Community Resources in Travis on Staten Island was held on March 8, 2009. Community Resources offers work-study programs for adults with disabilities.

The judges chose Enoteca Maria of St George as winner of the First Place traveling trophy. Enoteca’s award-winning pasta was a Sicilian Lasagna prepared by Nonna Teresa Scalici and consisted of layers of pasta with speck, prociutto, eggplant, peas and cheeses covered in her traditional tomato sauce. Enoteca was a last minute entry, and arrived at the Pasta Bowl with nothing but three trays of lasagna, aluminum chafing dishes, a spatula and a few business cards. This was a case of the food talking for itself: no frills, just good homecooking.

Valarie Delsante accepts the first-place trophy on behalf of Enoteca Maria. Photo by Melinda Gottlieb

Posted on April 16, 2009 - by admin - (Comment * FaceBook It * Send to Friend)

Mille Fiori Favoriti Review

Pat from the millefiorifavoriti/blogspot writes a great review of Enoteca Maria complete with photos of the food her and her husband enjoyed. Here’s an excerpt:

No matter who is in the kitchen when you go, each meal at Enoteca Maria begins with a generous and complimentary tray of antipasto, selections vary each time. We had small tastes of broccoli rabe, roasted cauliflower and potatoes, marinated eggplant and onion focaccia.”

We were treated to another complimentary dish of a small bowl of beef stew, cooked in tomato sauce. My husband was in heaven, as it taste exactly like his mother use to make it, with big chunks of celery, carrot and potato….

Read the entire review at Mille Fiori Favoriti.

Posted on April 10, 2009 - by admin - 5 comments so far

Biodynamic Garden on Staten Island

Something exciting and unexpected is growing on old Pavilion Hill, in Staten Island. Joe Scaravella, proprieter of Enoteca Maria, along with a group of like-minded friends, is developing a biodynamic micro-farm, located on a terraced hillside, a few short blocks from his restaurant. Responding to that same inner drive that inspired him to open the Enoteca, Joe is striving to bring his food to the next level.

The grandmothers of Enoteca Maria will reap the benefits of the harvest and use this bounty of herbs, vegetables, and fruits in their time-honored recipes. They have already begun using select herbs at the Enoteca.

This is the very first biodynamic garden in the five boroughs of New York City!

Visit Numina Biodynamics to see how the seeds are being sown.