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SEASONAL DELIGHTS

Each September, wine villages all over the Burgundy region of France celebrate the vendanges, or grape harvest, when the year’s crop is brought in from the vineyards ready to be turned into some of the finest wines in the world.

For those with a passion for truly great food, the most valuable resource is not a cookbook but a calendar. Seasonality is the key to food’s perfection, and each moment in the turning year brings its own opportunities for gastronomic exploration and experiment.

In the fall, farm stands beckon from the rural roadsides of northern Connecticut with arrays of orange pumpkins, rosy apples, and jugs of golden cider. Across the Atlantic, foragers in France and northern Italy slip into the forests to hunt for truffles and wild mushrooms, whose aromas perfume the seasonal specials that appear briefly on local menus. Next, winter sharpens the appetite for robust dumplings designed to counter the sharp winds coming off the Austrian Alps.

Yet soon enough, the earth warms up again, sending up the green, springtime shoots of wild leeks, or ramps, in the Appalachians, and the sea yields up the soft-shell crabs of Maryland’s Chesapeake Bay. Finally, the sun melts the mists over the British Isles in time for that quintessential summer pleasure—a bowl of local strawberries and cream.

CONNECTICUT

APPLES AND PUMPKINS

A familiar sight at many farm stands in the region, rows of harvested pumpkins await their fate as carved wonders.

The primarily rural region of northwest Connecticut promises a delightful harvest treat come fall.

The fall landscape unfolds like a painter’s canvas in northwestern Connecticut’s Litchfield Hills. Covered bridges, century-old farmhouses, and red dairy barns loom large against a tapestry of rich harvest colors—fiery salsa reds, vibrant oranges, and shimmering Midas-touched golds. The explosion of fall color comes not only from the changing foliage but also from the ripening fruits of the season. At numerous local farm stands, the reds and yellows of McIntosh, Macoun, and Honeycrisp apples blend with the orange of pumpkins for carving jack-o’-lanterns and making into pies. Delight in the aromatic smells of cinnamon and nutmeg that waft out of the open doorways of on-site bakeries at pick-your-own orchards. Watch apples being crushed into sweet cider in cider-mill apple presses as you munch on hot apple-cider doughnuts. Sample all manner of pumpkin butters, apple jellies, and other harvest treats. After a fall hike up Mount Tom for panoramic views of three states (Massachusetts, Connecticut, and New York) or through the shaded forests of Kent Falls State Park, dine at a harvest supper at a local church or town hall, where hams glazed with apple jelly, potatoes mashed with creamery-fresh butter, and thick slices of chewy homemade bread spread with sweet fruit preserves crowd the serving table. Before diving in, remember to save some room for generous helpings of apple cobbler and pumpkin pie.

Apple Varieties

Northwestern Connecticut’s apple season extends from late August through October, though not all varieties ripen at the same time. Visit the orchards early in the season and you will find Paula Red and Tydeman. McIntosh and Gala ripen next, with Red and Golden Delicious and Idared ready for picking at the tail end of the season.

Bear in mind that some varieties are better suited for eating fresh, others for baking. For munching, try Honeycrisp, Gala, McIntosh, Macoun, or Red and Golden Delicious varieties. The best apples for pies include Crispin, Jonagold, and Winesap. Tart apples, such as Cortland, Empire, Northern Spy, Rome, and Granny Smith can also be used for baking, but you should add extra sugar.

CALIFORNIA

MUSHROOM PICKING

The beautiful Mendocino Coast is a popular destination for mushroom-lovers during the wild mushroom season.

In the fall, California’s tourist season makes way for the serious business of foraging for fungi.

The initial rains of winter are met with great anticipation by food enthusiasts in northern California; that is because the first big storms that sweep in from the Pacific mark the beginning of the wild mushroom season. From November to April, a succession of wild fungi appears in the forests of the coastal mountains and on the western slopes of the Sierra Nevada. Some people hunt them obsessively; others merely wait for them to show up on the menu of their favorite restaurants. California’s wild fungi fall into two categories—fall and spring. Fall mushrooms include various species of the Boletus genus (sponge fungi collectively known as porcini in Italy); the pallid and subtly flavored oyster mushroom; nutty, fluted chanterelles; and, perhaps the most prized, matsutakes, an intensely aromatic mushroom that sells for more than $100 a pound (500 grams) in Japan. Spring is primarily devoted to the search for succulent, meaty morels. Wild mushrooms are best prepared simply—included in risotto, sautéed in some butter or olive oil, or simmered in a soup or broth. And now for the obligatory warning: if you are inexperienced, do not hunt wild mushrooms on your own. Secure an experienced forager as a guide for your initial trips, and concentrate on looking for three or four easily identified species.

Chanterelles

These popular mushrooms are usually abundant throughout northern California’s coniferous forests from October through December. They are ubiquitous, easy to identify, and have a rich, complex flavor with overtones of peaches and walnuts.

White and Pacific golden chanterelles are the most common types, with similar flavors and aromas.

The false chanterelle has an orange color not typically associated with chanterelles, and finer gills; it is edible, but inferior in flavor to true chanterelles.

And beware jack-o’-lantern mushrooms-they are easy to confuse with chanterelles. Darker than chanterelles and with different gill structures, they can make you sick and should be avoided.

Woven blinds cast dappled shade over the tables in a seductive, sunny corner of London’s Petersham Nurseries.

WEST VIRGINIA

RAMPS

Ramps are traditionally harvested in spring, when the bulbs are at their most tender.

Considered a specialty by some, scallion-like ramps grow wild in U.S. and Canadian woodlands.

Ramps—also known as wild leeks and, more officially, Allium tricoccum—are the first edible signs of spring. Celebrated in the Appalachian region and spreading north to Canada, these potently nutritious plants are rich in vitamins C and A: for many centuries native Americans have used them to make tonics, and Southerners used to use them as a cure for scurvy. Rural areas are dotted with festivals that celebrate the appearance of the ramps, which can be found in markets, fancy restaurants, and the hearts and palates of the seasonal eater. In the wild, they grow in woodlands, especially those on hillsides. Look for clumps of the broad, smooth, bright green leaves. If you tear a leaf, it should give off a smell like an onion. Using a shovel, extract the whole plant from the soil, gently lifting it by its roots. Ramps have a very strong smell when picked, so take just a few plants at a time. Clean off the mud in cold water, and strip the bulb of its outer membrane down to the milky white, purple-edged flesh. Every part that is left is good for eating. The leaves are tender and have a slightly sweet flavor, while the bulb is pungent. Used raw or cooked in place of garlic and onion, ramps add a special accent to salads, scrambled eggs, bean dishes, and pasta.

Ways to Eat Ramps

Devotees find these delicate bulbs addictive. Most closely described as a cross between onion and garlic with a hint of white truffle, theirs is a unique flavor with a multitude of uses.

Slice or grate them raw into salads or sandwiches.

Cooked, ramps can be eaten on their own—simply sauté with extra-virgin olive oil and a tiny crush of sea salt. A potato gratin with the sautéed ramps and a hefty shredding of aged strong Cheddar is another happy marriage of flavor, as is a generous helping of pasta, ramps, and wild mushrooms.

MARYLAND

SOFT-SHELL CRABS

Watermen unload a large haul of crabs in Crisfield on the Chesapeake Bay.

Crustacean-lovers head for Maryland to catch the seasonal harvest brought in by Chesapeake Bay watermen.

Shrieking gulls wheel over the blue waters of the Chesapeake Bay as they follow the crab boats, whose decks brim with soft-shell crabs, to the waterfront at Crisfield, on the bay’s eastern side. Watch the handsome catch being hauled onto the docks by commercial watermen. Then hurry to the nearby J. Millard Tawes Historical Museum to view the exhibits and join a walking tour of this community nicknamed the “crab capital of the world.” Soft-shell crabs are Atlantic blue crabs caught in the soft-shell stage after molting. Your tour guide will explain how they are harvested before leading you through a seafood processing plant, where you can watch crabs being prepared for market. The tour ends in time for you to catch the passenger ferry to Smith Island, the largest inhabited offshore island in the bay and a 40-minute cruise from Crisfield. With a population of fewer than 500 people, the island was first settled in the late 1600s and has been home to Chesapeake Bay watermen for 15 generations. Chat with these local crabbers as you inspect the crab floats (holding tanks), before popping into one of the island’s restaurants to eat your fill of fried or pan-sautéed soft-shells. Finish your meal with a slice of Smith Island cake—eight to ten thin layers of moist cake laced with sugary-sweet icing baked from recipes passed down from generation to generation.

Soft-shells on the Menu

Soft-shell crabs can be broiled, sautéed, and even grilled, but to eat like a local order them breaded, fried whole, and served on a sandwich made with sticky white bread, or as a fried crab platter with a couple of sides.

Some of the area’s best fried crabs can be found at The Cove or the Waterman’s Inn in Crisfield. On Smith Island you can buy an unusual version of a soft-shell crab sandwich, the Soft Shell Po’ Boy, at the Drum Point Market in Tylerton, year-round population 70. Or dine at Ruke’s Seafood Deck or the Bayside Inn in Ewell, the island’s main community. Make sure to reserve a slice of Smith Island cake—referred to on the island as layer cake—for dessert.

Hairy crabs for sale in Shanghai.

CHINA

HAIRY-CRAB SEASON

Each crab is tied in raffia to keep the claws close to the body.

Shanghai, the bustling metropolis on China’s southeast coast, celebrates the hairy-crab season like no other city on Earth.

Fall is the time of the hairy crab in Shanghai, and the city’s winding neighborhoods of lane houses are interspersed with markets and high-end restaurants hawking this popular, small, bushy crustacean. Hairy crabs are prized in Chinese cuisine for their dense white flesh, which is sweeter than regular crabmeat, and the orange-colored roe akin to rich, just-cooked egg yolk. The Chinese believe hairy crabs have a cooling (yin) effect on the body. Most of the specimens served in Shanghai come from Yangcheng or other freshwater lakes within two hours’ drive from the city. Preparation is simple: the crabs are steamed, then dressed with a sweetened black rice vinegar and sliced ginger. Eaten hot, two to four crabs per person make for a handsome meal. At Ye Shanghai, an elegant, colonial-style restaurant in the French Concession (southwest Shanghai), diners tuck into little crabs no bigger than a human palm. Drink like a local and wash the little critters down with yellow rice wine. Those bold enough to order an all-crab banquet should save room for side dishes that include stir-fried crabmeat and crab wontons.

Shanghai Cuisine

■ Known for rich and luscious dishes, Shanghai cuisine makes extensive use of sugar, which adds an extra meaty dimension to savory sauces. “Drunken” dishes, in which shellfish and chicken are lightly cooked and doused with alcohol, are also common on menus.

■ Shanghai boasts red cooking, a popular style of braising meat or vegetables with soy sauce and sugar. Try red-cooked pork, a heady dish often accented with cinnamon and star anise. Another popular dish is “lion’s head”: baseball-sized meatballs stewed with cabbage.

■ A visit to Shanghai would not be complete without sampling xiaolongbao, steamed dumplings loaded with soup and meat. Just look for the steaming baskets that line the windows of high-end restaurants and street stalls, filled with dumplings waiting to be relished.

■ Larger dumplings, called shengjianbao, are another favorite street snack. These juicy packages of minced meat wrapped in dough are lightly fried until the bottom becomes crisp, while the top remains deliciously soft.

CHINA

COLD FOOD FESTIVAL

A woman prepares traditional food for the Hanshi festival.

For two days of the year, natives of the city of Xiamen in southwest China follow tradition and dine on cold food alone.

The bustling, subtropical city of Xiamen, in Fujian province, is a modern metropolis full of skyscrapers, and on April 4, the townsfolk celebrate Hanshi, the Cold Food Festival, as they have done for generations. According to Chinese legend, the festival, which dates back more than 2,500 years, memorializes a servant named Jie Zhutai, who was accidentally burned to death by the Zhou-dynasty Prince Chong’er. Full of remorse, the prince forbade the setting of fires for three days each year in commemoration of Jie and only cold food could be eaten. Three days are now one, and Xiamen is among the few places in China still to observe the tradition. Along tree-lined alleys, locals tuck into cold vermicelli noodles and spring rolls, usually eaten as appetizers but on this day making up the entire meal. The day following Hanshi is Qingming (Pure Brightness Day)—a national holiday throughout China when families tend the graves of their departed, taking offerings of cold food such as roast pork, chicken with rice, and tea as offerings to deceased relatives. After burning incense, the families eat beside the graves to symbolize being with the deceased, celebrating their ancestors’ afterlife.

Local people “carve” cold food to look like mice and other creatures.

Fujian Dishes

■ Instead of stir-fried noodles or hot noodle soups, restaurants in Xiamen will dish out cold vermicelli topped with scallions, garlic, and chili sauce. The noodles may contain chicken or shrimp, which have usually been cooked the day before.

■ Called bobin in the local dialect, Fujian cold spring rolls contain bamboo shoots, dried shrimp, bean sprouts, shredded carrots, tofu, and oyster sauce, all wrapped in a thin flour skin.

■ The glutinous rice cakes, covered with black sesame seeds and known as maci, have a dense filling made with sweetened peanut powder and more sesame seeds.

■ One of Fujian’s most famous dishes, fo tiao chiang (Buddha jumps over the wall), is a hot thick soup with more than 20 ingredients, including quails’ eggs and several kinds of meat and seafood. It is laborious to prepare and thus tends to be expensive, but it is so tasty that even vegetarian Buddhists (the story goes) are prepared to jump over walls to eat it.

THAILAND

PHUKET VEGETARIAN FESTIVAL

At the city’s Buddhist temples, Phuket inhabitants place incense sticks among food offerings and statues of gods that they have brought from their homes.

Every year, the residents of this southern Thai island forgo meat in a display of Buddhist devotion.

A curious event takes place every fall on Phuket island: residents go vegan for nine days, consuming no meat, eggs, milk, or fish sauce. Restaurants continue to lure in customers with curries and stir-fries, soups and salads as usual—except that wheat gluten and soy are substituted for meat and fish. Food stalls appear beside most major roads, selling all manner of fried delights—fried dough balls, fried curried corn fritters, fried spring rolls, fried tofu—and glutinous buns and rolls and cubes of wheat gluten. Although it is called a vegetarian festival, the event is not a celebration of food but a purification of society’s ills involving rituals of spiritual cleansing and merit-making. The tradition began in about 1825, after a visiting Chinese opera troupe contracted a malady en masse—so goes the legend. The members swore off meat, prayed ritually, and recovered. Every year since, residents of Chinese descent devote nine days to clean living and displays of self-mutilation. Men parade through town sawing their tongues, beating their backs with axes, and piercing their cheeks with sharp objects. Such devotees allegedly acquire supernatural powers as they shift society’s evil onto themselves and away from others. They dance and jiggle as firecrackers boom. Then a clairvoyant woman purges the demons and renews the people’s spirits. Meanwhile, the streets teem with pure food, clean utensils, and sated bellies—how better to please the gods?

Festival Customs

■ Since ancient times, Buddhist vegetarian chefs have employed supreme artifice to craft soy and wheat gluten into elaborate meat-like designs, so as not to alienate non-vegetarian guests.

■ A long list of guidelines steers the festival (no sex, no alcohol, no menstruating women- to name a few). Rule number ten states that participants should not share kitchen utensils, food containers, or meals with non-festival-goers. Keep your food clean and disease will stay away.

■ Although the rituals center around Phuket town, vendors sell vegetarian food across the country during festival time. Look for outlets with flapping yellow flags.

FINLAND

CRAYFISH FESTIVAL

Bowls of flame-red crayfish await their destiny as the highlight of summer feasting.

For two months toward the end of summer, the Finns celebrate Rapujuhlat, a hands-on crayfish feast.

Open season on crayfish is declared on July 21, and until early September, Finns in country and city gather around festive tables to crack, poke, and munch the sweet crustaceans. Netting in local waters has diminished since an algae-fungus infestation in the early 1990s nearly wiped out the native crayfish, Astacus astacus. Trapped at night in cold rivers, crayfish are sold at premium prices, so many shoppers rely on imported stock from Spain, Turkey, or the U.S. Preparations for a party include ordering 12 crayfish for each guest and draping a special bib over the back of every chair. The crayfish are cooked in boiling water or brine with heads of crown dill (seeds and fronds), strained, and cooled overnight. To serve, they are piled on a platter to provide the feast’s centerpiece alongside dill-sprigged new potatoes. Finland is a bilingual nation, and some traditions vary: for example, Swedish-speaking Finns don pointed party hats and sing schnapps-themed drinking songs with each toast. The way to eat a crayfish is always the same, however: snap it in half, suck the juices out of the head section, and peel the meaty tail out of its crusty case with a special crayfish knife. A squeeze of lemon juice or a dab of smetana (tangy sour cream) accent the delicate flavors. Raise a tiny glass of iced vodka to toast the crayfish: Kippis!

Rapujuhlat Etiquette

■ A lakeside sauna in the Finnish forest often precedes a crayfish feast, marking summer’s end before closing up the summer cabin.

■ As an appetizer, some cooks peel crayfish claws to top buttered toast triangles, sprinkled with feathery dill. The season’s chanterelles and other forest mushrooms also turn up in soups and savory appetizers.

■ The menu may open with crayfish, then feature plank-roasted or poached salmon as the main course, and fresh blueberry tart or cloudberries from Lapland as dessert.

■ This feast is traditionally casual and noisy as everyone slurps tasty juices from the crayfish heads and claws.

NORWAY

LUTEFISK

Pairs of cod hang for air-drying on a fish flake-a wooden rack-erected on the shore of a small Norwegian fishing village.

Some people consider this infamous national dish-reputedly conceived by the Vikings–to be a major gastronomic challenge.

Unless you are that rare gourmet—a lutefisk (or lyefish) aficionado—there is a certain bravado involved in sampling this dish in its place of origin. For centuries, huge shoals of cod have migrated south from the Barents Sea to spawn in the sheltered waters around the Lofoten Islands, near the city of Tromsø in northern Norway, where they are fished from January through May. The sun may barely rise above the horizon in this northerly place, but Lofoten hosts a number of warm and welcoming restaurants that will prepare lutefisk with expertise and authenticity. You could also visit the more southerly city of Ålesund, a center of lutefisk production. The dish starts as stockfish—that is, air-dried cod—which develops a powerful aroma. Soaked first in a solution of caustic soda (derived from the potash salts of wood ash, usually birch), the fish is soaked again to remove most of the chemicals. Then it is ready for cooking. The history of this extraordinary dish is much disputed and, unsurprisingly, the stuff of legend. Was it invented when a Viking longship carrying stockfish was destroyed by fire and its cargo rescued after a soaking in seawater? Or perhaps when a wood-staved drying unit suffered a similar fate and the resulting smoked fish were considered too precious to waste? Whatever its origins, lutefisk has been documented since the Middle Ages and remains a winter staple in these most northerly lands of Europe.

Lutefisk

The flavor of lutefisk has provoked fierce reaction, but in truth it is rather delicate. The fish requires precise preparation to be palatable: several days’ soaking in daily changes of fresh water, followed by a very few minutes’ cooking—in its own juices—until the fish is translucent and jelly-like but not falling apart. Oven-baking in butter is an alternative.

Traditional accompaniments—such as a smooth white sauce, plain-boiled potatoes, and grainy mustard—should provide a range of contrasting textures, if not colors, although people who eat lutefisk regularly tend to add crisp bacon and green peas.

Cuisinières in resplendent carnival colors attend Mass at the cathedral in Guadeloupe’s largest city, Pointe-à-Pitre.

GEORGIA

A COUNTRY FEAST

This spread of traditional Georgian dishes includes turkey satsivi (bottom left) and the dumplings known as khinkali (top right).

Georgia is famous for its food and wine, which can be enjoyed to their full in the wine-growing region to the east of T’bilisi.

Georgia’s wine country lies in the Alazani River Valley in the eastern province of Kakheti, where the Caucasus Mountains rise above hillsides planted with fruit trees and vines. As soon as warm spring weather arrives, Georgians gather for impromptu picnics. Tablecloths are spread with a dazzling array of dishes flaunting vivid colors and flavors, from ruby-red beet puree (pkhali) to turkey satsivi (enrobed in an earthy, walnut-inflected sauce made golden from dried and ground marigold petals). Georgian food expresses both Mediterranean and Middle Eastern tastes, the result of a rich interplay of culinary ideas carried along the ancient trade routes by merchants and travelers. Creamy water-buffalo yogurt and sharp suluguni cheese complement the grilled meats that Georgians claim recall the legend of Prometheus, who is said to have given fire to mankind when chained to a rock on nearby Mount Elbrus. Seasonal fruits—tart lady apples, sugary peaches, pink gooseberries, cherries, apricots, and many varieties of plums—beckon for dessert, along with churchkhela, long strings of nuts that have been dipped in fresh grape juice, then dried. Plenty of local wine will wash down the food as Georgians give praise for nature’s bounty with toasts and singing.

A Tradition of Toasts

A Georgian feast, or supra, is a ritual affair. For centuries, the Georgians have gathered around the table to affirm their culture, even under foreign subjugation. A tamada, or toastmaster, orchestrates all but the most informal meals. The best tamadas are renowned for their wit and eloquence as they guide the company through a series of toasts. The toasts are uplifting, so that even a sad occasion becomes an affirmation of life.

Toasting begins with an acknowledgment of God’s presence; then the host family is thanked. Georgians do not sip, and drinking at random is not allowed. Wine is drunk each time a toast is pronounced, but if inebriation seems imminent, the tamada slows down. Raise your glasses high with excellent local grape varietals, such as Saperavi and Rkatsiteli.

GERMANY

ASPARAGUS FESTIVAL

Chefs trim white asparagus ready for sale In Mannheim’s market. The hlghest-grade asparagus has straight, white stems.

Every spring, thousands of visitors descend on southern Germany’s Asparagus Triangle to celebrate this culinary treasure.

Every year on the first Saturday in May the sedate town of Schwetzingen, in the southwestern state of Baden-Württemberg, is overrun with people, bands, and asparagus stalls. This is the Spargelfest, or Asparagus Festival—a day of music, dancing, and parades in honor of the Königliche Gemüse, or royal vegetable. For this is no ordinary asparagus, but the highly prized white-alabaster-stalked variety—so exclusive it was once eaten only by kings. The Spargelfest marks the peak of the asparagus, or spargel, season, which lasts from April to June. It is a period of frenzied activity during which around 70,000 tons of the delicacy are gorged, and restaurants offer a special Spargelkarte, or asparagus menu. Asparagus mania is concentrated around the two main growing regions, Baden-Württemberg and Lower Saxony, and many towns hold a festival. The largest takes place in the city of Bruchsal (Baden-Württemberg), but the most famous is the one in Schwetzingen, the self-proclaimed “asparagus capital of the world.” It was here that the white-asparagus craze started: the town was the summer residence of the 17th-century elector, Karl Theodor, reputedly the first person to grow the vegetable, in the light, sandy soils of his palace gardens. Today, white asparagus is available to everyone, and there is no better opportunity to enjoy it than at the Spargelfest. Visit the stalls, take part in the grand peel-off, where you can test your asparagus-peeling skills, and watch the festival’s king and queen being crowned with asparagus spears.

White Asparagus

Softer and sweeter than the green version, white asparagus is grown in sandy soil and—unlike its green counterpart—is protected from direct exposure to the sun. This gives the plant its characteristic milky white color.

When choosing white asparagus, make sure the stalks are plump, as these are the sweetest and tenderest of all. The stalks should also, ideally, be pure white from tip to base. Any purple coloring at the tips indicates exposure to the sun and a loss of flavor.

To cook it, tie peeled asparagus in a bundle and stand it upright in a deep pot, in salted boiling water that comes about three-quarters of the way up the stalks, and boil for 10–20 minutes. Try it in cream of asparagus soup, with hollandaise sauce, or, best of all, with melted butter or an oil and vinegar dressing.

Piedmont’s glorious countryside supplies produce for Turin’s markets.

ITALY

SLOW FOOD IN TURIN

Leaf-wrapped figs tempt the taste buds.

Whether you want to shop, eat, or just browse, enjoy some of the best slow food in this north Italian city.

It is a bright April morning in Turin, capital of the Piedmont region, and the daily Mercato di Porta Palazzo—said to be the largest outdoor food market in Europe—is packed with shoppers. Like the nearby cathedral housing the Turin Shroud, this is a place of pilgrimage, and not just for food-lovers, but for home-cooks in search of top-quality ingredients for family meals. It being spring, there are new-crop salads, massed young snails—the symbol of the Slow Food movement—making a bid to escape their display boxes, and, on the butchers’ stalls, tender lamb. Italians would not think of eating lamb at any other time of year—they are, after all, the most assiduous observers of the seasons, and each season brings its own foods. Three miles (5 kilometers) to the south lies another pilgrimage site. Since 2007, the converted Carpano (Punt e Mes) vermouth factory in the Turin suburb of Lingotto has housed the food emporium called Eataly, showcase of the Slow Food ethos. If a traditional Italian food shop is like a jewel box, this is the treasury. Whole rooms are devoted to fresh fruits and vegetables, seafood, dried and fresh pasta, cured meats, maturing cheeses, wine, preserves, bread, and coffee. There are tasting counters and specialty eateries, plus rooms for seminars and lectures. This is not just a shop, but a declaration of intent to enshrine and preserve the values of fine food that are exhibited at traditional outlets like the Mercato di Porta Palazzo.

The Slow Food Movement

The concept of Slow Food was forged in the mid-1980s, when McDonald’s threatened to open a branch by the Spanish Steps in the heart of Rome. To a group of journalists eating together in the town of Bra, to the south of Turin, this represented the ultimate erosion of all they held dear about good Italian food.

Led by Carlo Petrini, the journalists campaigned to reverse this trend, promoting instead values such as the local sourcing of good ingredients, sustainability, artisan (as opposed to factory) production, the careful and respectful preparation of food, and conviviality in the eating of it—Slow Food, as opposed to Fast Food.

The idea caught on, and now the Slow Food movement has more than 180,000 members forming local chapters, called convivia, in 120 countries. It is also behind the giant biennial food fair in Turin called the Salone Internationale del Gusto, and the school of gastronomy, the Università di Scienze Gastonomiche.

A table is set with traditional foods and decorations for the Iranian Noruz (New Day) celebrations.

AUSTRIA

WINTER TREATS

Skiers in the Austrian Alps refuel on krapf’n, a type of large doughnut that comes with savory or sweet fillings.

Take time off from the ski slopes to enjoy the hearty, warming, winter fare of the Alps in western Austria.

Snow-clad mountains glisten in the winter sun; wooden chalets sigh under the weight of a blanket of snow, the silence broken only by icicles cracking as they slowly melt. The old-world charm of the Austrian Alps has been preserved here, and peasant food is the cuisine of the region—simple, hearty fare made from ingredients that a farmer can produce in his self-sufficient alp, cut off from civilization by yard-high snow for months on end: satisfying dishes made with a few cups of flour, an egg or two, some butter, milk, and a good measure of cheese that’s been ripening in the back of the chalet. Many traditional dishes are variations on a theme, changing slightly from valley to valley: such as the state of Tyrol’s dumpling dish, Kasnock’n. Schlickkrapfen—pasta dough filled with spinach and curd, cooked, then tossed in beurre noisette—is Austria’s answer to ravioli, hailing from the neighboring state of Carynthia. Salzburg’s Kaspressknödel, dumplings made from stale bread, eggs, some herbs, and a good helping of cheese, are enjoyed in a clear broth or pan-fried and served with salad. Skiers start the day with goat’s milk, home-churned butter, dry-cured ham, and crusty farmer’s rye before facing the slopes. They come back at lunchtime to a steaming bowl of Gulaschsuppe (goulash soup), a dish said to revive the dead; or spend the afternoon lazing on the sun terrace with a mug of Lumumba (hot chocolate laced with rum), and doughnuts fried to order, Germknödel (a fluffy cloud of steamed yeast dough smothered in vanilla custard), or an indulgent strudel.

Dumplings with Cheese Kasnock’n

Mix two-thirds of the butter with salt, flour, and milk, and form into small dumplings (about 0.5 in/1 cm diameter). Bring a pot of salted water to a boil, then reduce to a gentle simmer. Put dumplings in the water for 2—3 minutes. Lift out and set aside.

In an ovenproof pan, fry shallots in the remaining butter until starting to brown. Remove shallots and reserve. Add dumplings to the pan, cover with grated cheese, and broil until cheese has melted. Sprinkle with the shallots and serve.

FRANCE

MUSHROOM PICKING

Mushrooms of every size, shape, and color are sold in the local markets.

Head for the forests of the Auvergne in central France to enjoy the annual fall bounty of delicious fungi.

Every fall, people across Europe set out on dew-fresh mornings and on weekends to forage for mushrooms in woodlands and forests. Wild fungi are one of nature’s most bounteous gifts, offered in all shapes and sizes. You will see them piled up on market stalls, spread on sunny doorsteps to dry, and on menus in every restaurant, where they are turned into soups, coulis, pâtés, casseroles, and risottos, or served simply with omelettes or in salads. One of the best places to head for is the Auvergne region in the Massif Central. This land of forests, rolling hills, and extinct volcanoes is never overrun with tourists. The countryside is moist and green, with rivers and springs, and sprinkled with Gallo-Roman sites, churches, châteaux, and spas. Well-marked trails lead through the Livradois Forest Natural Regional Park in the northern Auvergne and the Tronçais, Europe’s largest oak forest, in the south—both good places for champignon-hunters. While there, you might hear bellowing deer or catch a glimpse of a wild boar. Game is a popular accompaniment for mushroom feasts. The cuisine of the Auvergne is distinctive and farm-based, featuring charcuterie and—in particular—cheeses such as creamy Bleu d’Auvergne, which goes well with raw mushroom salads, and Saint-Nectare, which has a distinctly earthy flavor.

Wild mushrooms sautéed in butter

Mushroom Varieties

There are literally dozens of kinds of cèpes, bolets, morels, and girolles to be found on the forest floors of the Auvergne, many of them identified by local names, such as “trumpets of the dead.”

Use a basket or paper bags (not plastic bags) for collecting mushrooms. Keep different kinds of mushrooms apart in a basket, or collect different types in different bags, as any poisonous mushrooms will affect the edible ones.

Even if you are using a chart or book to identify fungi, you should get a second opinion about whether your haul is safe to eat. Take the mushrooms to a local pharmacy to have them checked before eating: French pharmacists are trained in mushroom taxonomy and will give you free advice. Around 30 people die every year in France from mushroom poisoning.

The many varieties of dried mushrooms make good edible souvenirs as you cannot bring fresh wild mushrooms home with you.

FRANCE

TRAVELS IN TRUFFLE COUNTRY

The truffle’s knobbly, irregular appearance belies its rich aroma and flavor.

The jewel of the cuisine of the Périgord in southwest France, the black truffle has excited gourmets for more than 4,500 years.

The beautiful region known as the Périgord to the east of the town of Bergerac, in the western part of the Dordogne region, has something for everyone: rich history, ancient buildings, fine food and wines, and truffles—the “black diamonds” of the Périgord. From Bergerac follow the D32 eastward, through farmlands and forests. Pass through the village of Liorac-sur-Louyre with its 11th-century Templar church, on to the ancient market town of Sainte Alvère, the domain of the truffle and location of the largest market of its type in the region. The black truffle grows on limestone slopes, hidden under the roots of oak trees, and as they can sell for up to $1,820 per pound ($4,000 per kilogram), their location is a jealously guarded secret. Truffle-hunters use trained sniffer dogs to locate these gems. The smallest shaving of a truffle is all that is needed to impart its delicate flavor to foie gras, pâtés, and omelet. The Sainte Alvère truffle market, held on Monday mornings, is a commercial and social event. In the market room crowds file past tables bearing the pungent lumps of fungi, as vendors carefully weigh out pieces for customers. While in the area, stroll through the nearby villages of Trémolat and Paunat, past medieval walls, courtyards, and ancient archways. Both towns have excellent restaurants where you can experience traditional Périgordine fare.

French Black Truffles

The winter black truffle found in the Périgord comes from the fungus Tuber melanosporum. It grows beneath the roots of oak and hazel trees and is found just below the surface to a depth of 8 in (20 cm).

A fresh truffle is blue-black in color and has a strong, earthy aroma. The outside is covered in lots of little bumps, which should be rounded if viewed under a magnifying glass. The flesh should be deep black with thin, white veins running through it.

Truffles are graded according to size and shape. Extra indicates large, perfect truffles; Category 1, smaller, whole, round truffles; Category 2, irregular-shaped truffles. Fragments, either broken or trimmed, are also offered for sale—make sure that they have no soft spots and that their aroma is still strong.

FRANCE

BURGUNDY GRAPE HARVEST

Traditional woven straw baskets are used for transporting the harvested grapes.

Every fall, the Burgundy vineyards of eastern France fill with teams of pickers racing to bring in the harvest.

In late September, Burgundy is a place of amber sunlight and dry heat. The grapes are ready to pick at the moment when the hills cradling the vineyards look their very best: full of rich, ripe color. For ten days, there is a thrill of excitement in the air as teams of grape-pickers descend on the vineyards to bring in the harvest. Grapes are cut from the vine by hand, not machine, as the human eye is considered the best tool for judging the grapes’ ripeness and the hand for ensuring that they are picked intact, without bruising or crushing—the crushing comes later! Many Burgundies are named after the village where they are grown and produced. Look out for Appellation Contrôlée (AC) on the labels. A label reading “Premier Cru” after the village indicates an outstanding vineyard; better still are wines where the name of the vineyard appears after the village name. The most prestigious wines are the Grands Crus, which display just the name of the vineyard on the label. The Côte de Nuits area, in the north of Burgundy, is where you will find the slopes that grow the finest Pinot Noir grapes, and which produce most of the Premiers Crus. Exceptional wine-producing villages, such as Gevrey-Chambertin and Vosne-Romanée, are found in this area. Farther north, the Chablis area produces fine dry white wines, and south of the Côte de Nuits, the Côte de Beaune produces reds and whites.

Burgundian Specialties

■ Boeuf Bourguignon is a rich beef dish, stewed gently for several hours in red wine with onions, mushrooms, and lardons (cubes) of bacon.

■ Oeufs en Meurette are poached eggs in a deeply savory sauce made from stock, brandy, and wine.

■ Escargots (snails) are a local favorite. Try them with breadcrumbs and garlic, or stewed in Chablis.

■ Jambon persillé is a jellied ham terrine with parsley, usually served as a first course.

■ Râble de lièvre à la Piron is saddle of hare, marinated in wine and eau-de-vie.

Italy’s Piedmont region offers tranquil roads that wind past vineyard-draped hills and farm-dotted valleys.

FRANCE

WILD CORSICA

Corsica’s pigs are allowed to roam free in the interior of the island, feeding on chestnuts and herbs, which give Corsican pork its distinctive flavor.

The herbs of the maquis fill the air on this rugged Mediterranean island and contribute to its unique cuisine.

Corsica, southeast of the French mainland and west of Italy, is France’s wild west. Corsicans protect their wild island fiercely, and the cuisine reflects their free-ranging, hunter-gatherer character. Completely surrounded by the Mediterranean and Tyrrhenian seas, Corsicans are unmoved by fishing and the fruits of the sea—although fish and shellfish are on the menu in coastal resorts—preferring the safety of the inland and upland refuges of Haute Corse and the natural produce to be found there. The maquis, the thick and aromatic vegetation that covers most of the island, flavors the flesh of Corsica’s free-range pigs, sheep, and goats, giving meat a very different flavor to that from farm-raised animals. Its herbs—rosemary, thyme, sage, mint, juniper, and myrtle, among others—and wild mushrooms are used in soupe Corse or as spices for roasts and stews, especially the famous civet de sanglier, or wild-boar stew. Even the brocciu—goat or sheep whey cheese often used with mint to flavor everything from trout to omelet—carries the distinctive flavor of the island’s herbs. Part of the island is covered with chestnut forests, and Corsicans have long used chestnut instead of wheat flour as a staple for making bread, polenta, and even beer. And wines from the Patrimonio region in Haute Corse are no longer the rough brews that once accompanied Corsica’s predominantly winter cuisine.

Charcuterie, Cheese, & Chestnuts

Corsican free-range pigs, often crossed with wild boar, produce highly esteemed sausages and charcuterie products nearly as lean as venison. Salsiccia is a peppered sausage. Coppa is a chest cut of solid meat, and figatelli are partly dried and smoked liver sausages usually grilled over coals. Lonzu is a smoked pork loin, while prisuttu is a smoked ham either eaten raw or grilled.

Many Corsican cheeses are too strong to eat indoors. Bastelicaccia is a soft, creamy sheep cheese; sartenais is hard and sharp; cuscioni is an unctuous sheep cheese with a dark, earthy flavor.

Chestnuts are a key Corsican ingredient, used for a cake called Castagna, panetta bread, dry biscuits, and powdered and sugared beignets (doughnuts) eaten on special occasions.

ENGLAND

STRAWBERRY SEASON

Fresh, sweet, plump strawberries are the ultimate symbol of the English summer.

Enjoy the king of summer fruit along the backroads of Kent, in England’s southeastern corner.

An English summer would not be summer without strawberries and cream. These sweet, scented berries, relatives of the rose, have somehow lodged themselves in the national consciousness. Cardinal Wolsey, chancellor to Henry VIII, was said to be one of the first people to pair wild strawberries with cream. Jane Austen’s Emma heads out on a strawberrying party, “Where strawberries, and only strawberries, could now be thought or spoken of. The best fruit in England—everybody’s favourite—always wholesome.” And for many visitors to the Wimbledon Championships, the tournament is as much about enjoying strawberries and cream, alongside a glass of champagne, as it is about the tennis. Wimbledon’s strawberries come from the county of Kent. Traveling through this rolling landscape, famous for pretty villages, fruit orchards, and hop gardens, you can feast on strawberries to your fill at roadside stalls and pick-your-own (PYO) farms. If you want to sample old varieties, such as Royal Sovereign, look out for them at PYO farms, where you will be given a small cardboard basket, or punnet, to fill and take away—and where you can snack on strawberries straight from the bush as you pick them. You may even be lucky enough to find intensely fragrant, small, wild strawberries along the edges of woods or, sometimes, at local markets.

Eton Mess

Named for the English school, Eton Mess might first have been made by boys stirring together strawberries and cream.

Rinse the strawberries, remove the stalks, and cut in half or quarters. Put the strawberries into a bowl, sprinkle with sugar, and stir to mix, crushing a few against the sides. Chill.

Whip the cream until it forms soft peaks. Crumble the meringues and add to the cream, then mix in the strawberries. Pile into a large serving bowl or individual bowls.