Wednesday, September 17, 2008

Amo la mozzarella!

Man, there ain't many things I like better than quality mozzarella cheese. If you ever want to serve an appetizer that will impress the hell out of your guests, try this:

Top 8-10 baguette slices with a quarter-inch slice of fresh mozzarella. Put 'em in an oven and bake until the cheese begins to bubble and just turn brown. Just as soon as the baguette/mozzarella slices come out of the oven, top each with a slice of fresh tomato. Drizzle with top-end olive oil and serve. Stand back and wait for folks to say, "This is really good!"

That said, there's a mozzarella bar opening in NYC. I'm jealous ...

"OBIKÀ is how Neapolitans say 'here it is.'

"Obikà will open on Sept. 22 in the sculpture garden of 590 Madison Avenue, the former I.B.M. building. ...

"After more than a year of construction and red tape, the latest installment of Obikà, which opened its first mozzarella bar in Rome four years ago, will open on Sept. 22 in the sculpture garden of 590 Madison Avenue, the former I.B.M. building, between 56th and 57th Streets. ...

"Obikà focuses on the most prized mozzarella in Italy, large balls of mozzarella di bufala, made from water buffalo milk. Obikà New York will offer primarily two types of mozzarella di bufala, one a sweet, delicate mozzarella from Paestum in the Campania region of Italy, with a Protected Designation of Origin designation, that will be shipped to New York three times a week, and a mild, creamy American one from Bufala di Vermont. (Long before the recent mozzarella contamination scare that has plagued farms around Naples, Obika began testing its mozzarellas monthly for bacteria and toxins.)

"The cheese will be served with accompaniments such as Sardinian bottarga, mortadella with pistachios, Tuscan porchetta and fig marmalade. Salads, antipasti, pastas, desserts, coffees and a large selection of Italian wines from small Italian producers will also be available."

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

I assume you mean only Tennessee home-grown tomatoes?

Anonymous said...

There is nothing, nothing, nothing that tastes better than white soft mozarella with a baked crust. I'm preaching to the choir to tell you but balled fresh mozarella is always in Publix's deli.