focaccia ligure

This is the recipe of the typical focaccia from Genova (it is a kind of bread, like pizza dough for example) that a friend of mine (Mauro!) gave me (he is from Genova, so I trust him!).

I have to admit I have never tried it yet, because it takes a lot of time to prepare it. You will need at least 30 minutes to prepare it, 4 hours for rising, 1h30 for cooking.

Ingredients (for 4 people):

500 gr of flour (for bread),

250 gr of water,

a spoon of olive oil,

salt,

sugar (a pinch),

a cube of brewer's yeast,

50 gr of lard (to make it more tasty if you want).

Dissolve the yeast in warm water with a pinch of salt. Mix the flour with the water and the yeast in a bowl (a big one! it will rise!). Add the olive oil, the salt and knead the dough until it is smooth and compact. If you want to add the lard you have to mix it with the other ingredients.

Leave the dough to rise for 4 hours. Here is a secret: if in your house is a bit cold, turn on the oven (60°C should be enough), when it reaches the temperature turn it off and leave the dough inside. Pay attention not to cook it!

After 4 hours oil a square baking-pan and roll out the dough on it. With a fork make some holes in the dough and with the fingers leave some prints on it! Mix well some olive oil with water and spread it on the dough (with a kind of paintbrush usually...). Let the dough rise in the pan 40 minutes more. Heat the oven to 200°C and cook the focaccia for 30 minutes.

You can use it as bread or for preparing very good hors d'oeuvre. It is served in square pieces.

coniglio alla cacciatora (rabbit the hunter style!)

This is a main dish. It is very easy, it takes 30 minutes to get ready if you find the right ingredients.

The recipe I give you is for 2 people, but it is not too much if you prepare only this dish: an italian or a greek man would not be satisfied! It is a delicate dish, but mind that not all the people like (and eat) rabbit meat.

Anyway, here are the ingredients:

1/2 rabbit already cut in pieces,

garlic (2 cloves),

rosemary (1-2 springs),

tomato puree,

olive oil,

1/2 glass of white dry wine,

salt, pepper.

Put some oil in a pan, so that you cover all the bottom of the pan. Peal the garlic and cut each clove in 2 pieces, put them in the pan with the washed rosemary springs. Put the pieces of rabbit in the pan. Put the pan on the stove in a middle position and cover the pan for 10 minutes. Uncover the pan and add the wine, then let it cook until the wine is soaked. Then add some tomato puree (don't exaggerate, because it will be sour then) and mix well with a wooden spoon; add the salt, the pepper (on both sides of the pieces of rabbit) and let it cook for other 5 minutes. Don't forget to turn the pieces of rabbit from time to time!

Now try it with a good red wine (like Chianti for example) or a dry white wine!