Jewish cooking

Treasures from the Monferrato Jewish kitchen

The recipes "book" of Rosina Leblis Donati, born at Casale Monferrato in 1849. Four hand-written pages, stitched together by a poor string, a paper cover heavily stained by time and use, casual scratches and traces of everyday work. Here you can see how material tradition was transmitted in a typical Piedmontese Jewish middle-class home. "Jewish" (where everybody, men and women, had to learn how to read and write, in order to be part of the community) and "middle-class" (the social and political class that led Italy to unification and flourishing). A legacy left by a housewife who, in an age when writing was still a privilege of a few, felt a need to leave a trace of herself.
Recipes

Zucchine ripiene
con salsa di pomodoro by Laura Magro Carmi

Ingredienti:
Olio di oliva, 6 zucchine, 2 etti di carne tritata di pollo o di tacchino, basilico, pomodori pelati, 1 o 2 scalogni a piacere, 1 uovo, 1/2 cucchiaino di zucchero, sale e pepe.

Preparare le zucchine tagliandole a pezzi di circa 4 o 5 cm. Svuotarle con l'apposito strumento. Impastare la carne tritata con l'uovo, sale, pepe e basilico tritato. Con questo composto riempire le zucchine. In una padella far soffriggere leggermente nell'olio d'oliva (5 cucchiai) 1 o 2 scalogni già tritati, aggiungere i pomodori pelati, sale, zucchero e far cuocere 15 minuti. Sistemare le zucchine, incoperchiare e far cuocere lentamente, rivoltando i tronchetti ogni tanto, fino a cottura ultimata.