At Cookie we are going back to first principals to bring you some of the best Italian products and mix them with the best of Scotland. Things that you will hard to find even in Italy. All brought to you direct from the people that make them.

Simply the best of Italy.

We have a return of some favourite Cookie products such as Pecorino from Sardinia, “Fiore Sardo” the Flower Sardinia, of ready to marry with great British Pears. New treats like Ciauscolo from Vitto, a spreading salami, to cover Cookie crostini. Coppa to sit next to toast and a rocket and orange salad. Some of the things we bring in might be a bit obscure so here are some pictures whet your appetites and give you an idea of where they are from.

La Tuscia

We also have a Pecorino from the La Tuscia, once centre of the Etruscan civilisation, La Tuscia is North of Rome bordering on Tuscany and part of  the Maremma, home to the first cowboys. This pecorino is a slightly milder cheese mixed with goats milk. Great for runner beans when they come into season and for the moment with home made chutneys such as apple and mustered.

We have a whole range of Charcuterie from our friends in Umbria

Great Guanciale “pork cheek” for our pasta

Cured in red wine for 20 days rolled in fennel seeds pepper chilli and salt  stronger in flavour than Pancetta and the perfect base for a Carbonara or the non eggy version, Gricia or a great all’amatriciana.

Capocollo

Capocollo is a cured pork shoulder, soaked in white wine, salted and peppered and hung to cure.

Ciauscolo from Vitto

This soft sausage has a bold and assertive flavour and tenderness. It is made with shoulder and bacon meat, which is repeatedly minced to obtain a creamy texture. Mixed with black truffle and allowed to air-dry for 2 weeks. Delicious when spread on a slice of crusty Cookie bread and accompanied with slivers of green apple, or a little honey.

Corallina Salami

The original and most famous of Umbrian salami is made from the best cuts of pork following a traditional and age-old recipe. The meat is expertly hand-cut to obtain the correct balance of meat and fat. It is flavored with whole and crushed black peppercorns, garlic and salt, hand-tied in the pork gut and aged for up to 40 days.

Coppa di testa

This is a cooked meat like a marbled terrine with a delicate aromatic taste.

It is cut wafer thin like ham, it is seasoned with garlic, black pepper and salt, orange peel and lemon, it is steamed in a jute bag.

It can be served in thin slices with rucola and mature pecorino, toast and a slice of orange on the side to add to that citrus edge. It goes well with a glass of robust red wine. 

 

 

il divo Sunday the 9th at Cookie 7.30 pm

We will show a little of our Italian side this Sunday with antipasti, pasta red wine and a great film at Cookie.

With nick names like, the Hunch Back, Black Pope and Beelzebub, Giulio Andreotti, 7 times prime minister of post war Italy, is one of the most interesting personas of the Italian Republic. Even if you know nothing of Italian politics and recent history this is a very entertaining film which can be enjoyed on various levels. As always Sorrentino’s sound track is impeccable.

Italy is finding itself again as a film making country after many years of sentimental nostalgia, directors like Sorrentino are finally giving voice  to contemporary society.

We were all very pleased about getting such a great review from Joanna Blythman. One of the great things about it for the team was the technical content. She is professional and it is about the food. She captured what we are trying to do and in doing so gave us great reward for our effort. She speaks with knowledge and understanding.

Her focus on our Italian products made us think, maybe we should tell the story behind some of the products we have at Cookie, as each one has a story to tell. …read more…

Last weekend in February

Over the weekend of the 26th-27th and 28th Cookie will be taken over and run by an Italian farmhouse kitchen. The whole farm moves from Umbria to the South side of Glasgow just for this weekend, bringing with them their own wine, oil and home grown produce. They will be making home made pasta, roasting their own chicory, bottled tomatoes, ducks and guinea fowl and serving up the original flavours of an Italian farmhouse kitchen.