Sparkling melon cocktail and prosciutto and mascarpone bruschetta
For Starters: Prosciutto and mascarpone bruschetta
For Starters: Sparkling melon cocktail and prosciutto and mascarpone bruschetta
For Starters: Sparkling melon cocktail
After a long hard day in the office (I call the TV studio, radio studio, and kitchen my office) I like to unwind by watching some quality entertainment on my television screen. I was going to call it a “TV set” but I don’t think they are actually sets anymore. Today they are mostly flat monitors.
Anyway, I like to watch TV and thanks to modern technology we no longer HAVE to watch only what the stations are providing at that current moment. We get to use services like On Demand, Netflix, TiVo, DVR’s, etc. to watch not only what we want, but we get to watch it when we want. One of my favorite things to do is to start with a particular TV series pilot and continue watching each episode in order until I’ve watched them all. The reason I like to do this is because I enjoy character development. I like to start by essentially meeting the characters and then getting to know them and how they change over a period of time. It’s really quite interesting if you pay attention to the small details.
This got me thinking: not only is it fun to watch the characters develop, but it’s even more exciting to watch them develop in regard to one another. The relationships they form and how one character affects another. Some are friends, some are enemies, and some frankly never have anything to do with one another but are affected by association. Some of the great characters can even cause the “MIND BLOWN” response. That’s when you know you have something special.
With this bit of information in mind I did some research (keep reading, I’ll get to where this relates to food in a paragraph or so) and found something fun to share:
What do these names mean to you?
n Archie Bunker and Michael “Meathead” Stivic
n Bert and Ernie
nCliff Clavin and Norm Peterson
n Dwight Schrute and Michael Scott
n Johnny Carson and Ed McMahon
n Kermit The Frog and Miss Piggy
The answer: The above names are just a few of the 30 included on TV’s Most Dynamic Duos list compiled by Nielsen Media Research.
With this in mind, I have taken the liberty of compiling my own list. My list though is called: Food’s Most Dynamic Duos (this too is only a sample of the complete list):
n Peanut Butter and Jelly
n Macaroni and Cheese
n Garlic and Bread
n Proscuitto and Melon
n Spaghetti and Meatballs
Dynamic Duos are extremely important when it comes to food. Pairing different foods is something that each of us does everyday and we all have our own preferences. However, there are those exceptions that transcend personal preference and ascend into public acceptance.
One of these duos on the list caught my attention for this week’s column. It is of course – Proscuitto and Melon. It is summer time after all and the fresh sweetness of melon works magically with the delightful saltiness of prosciutto. It is an all-time classic combination that is a first-ballot food hall of famer in my book!
I found some interesting information regarding prosciutto and melon and I am going to quote an excerpt from one of my all-time favorite food books entitled “Italian Food” by Elizabeth David. Miss David says this when it comes to prosciutto and melon:
“To serve Parma ham, have it cut in the thinnest possible slices. Serve fresh figs or slices of melon with it. When neither of these is in season, the very best butter should be eaten with Parma ham – not with bread, but simply a little piece of butter with every mouthful of ham.”
In case you are a bit confused, Parma ham is simply another name for prosciutto. It is a dry-cured ham that is thinly sliced and served uncooked – called prosciutto crudo in Italian. Prosciutto cotto is the Italian term for a cooked ham as we are used to having on the holidays here in America. Parma is actually a city in Italy located in the region of Emilia-Romagna and is famous for it’s prosciutto, cheese, architecture and surrounding countryside.
As you can see from the excerpt above, we have all of our bases covered in our recipes below. The melon is in the form of the cocktail and is quite refreshing on a hot summer day. The hors d’oeuvre contains prosciutto, butter and even figs as mentioned above. I would implore you substitute fresh figs for the dried figs in the recipe if possible. If not, dried figs are certainly better than no figs!
One other note – I know the excerpt says “not with bread” but the bread is the vessel that I used to carry all of the other flavors to the party – the horse they road in on so to speak. The recipe needed something to make it easy to eat while socializing and enjoying the cocktails and the bread accomplishes just that. I like ciabatta for this, but feel free to use a good sourdough or hearty Italian bread if you feel so inclined.
These recipes are truly some of my favorite as they take me back to the weeks I spent in Italy as a child. I will always remember watching the prosciutto being meticulously sliced paper-thin with what looked like a coping saw and the fresh melons, figs and cheeses that would accompany it. It was truly a magical experience that left a lasting imprint on my young and impressionable palate. Please enjoy these recipes and let them take you to places you dream about! Always remember that when in doubt – Just Cook It!
Mario J. Porreca of Belle Vernon is a food personality, author, and the host of Just Cook It on WMBS Radio 590 AM. He can be reached via his website at: www.JustCookItRadio.com.