La Brinca
Via Campo di Ne 58, Ne
For over 25 years the osteria La Brinca has been synonymous with good, honest Ligurian cooking, based on local, seasonal produce and a skillful combination of rural tradition and innovation. It was back in the 1930s that the current owners’ grandfather Tugnin, together with his wife Virginin, first opened a small osteria, which soon became a gathering place for the inhabitants of the small town of Ne. But it was brothers Sergio and Roberto Cirella who officially opened La Brinca in 1987, and since then the whole family has been working on continuing a story of passion, dedication and good food.
Serves: 4
For the pastry
flour
salt
extra virgin olive oil
water
1 Val di Vara free-range black rooster (Slow Food Presidium)
For the pie filling
day-old bread
PDO Parmigiano Reggiano cheese
chicken stock
saffron pistils
onions
sage
lardo
eggs
salt
pepper
For the sweet and sour fruit garnish
cherries
pears
Carle apples (Ark of Taste)
vinegar
sugar
cinnamon,
cloves
Gut Val di Vara black rooster and boil in a stock of water, celery, carrots and onions for at least 2 hours. Meanwhile, make pastry dough by kneading the flour with a little water and a drop of oil until firm and even. Leave in the fridge for at least 2 hours, then roll out.
Leave rooster to rest and cool, then bone and dress meat with oil and aromatic herbs.
For the pie filling, soak day-old bread in the rooster cooking stock, then amalgamate in a meat grinder, with lardo, PDO Parmigiano Reggiano, saffron, sage, eggs and onions. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Assemble the pie by lining a rectangular mold with pastry dough and filling with chicken mixture. Bake in the oven at 150°C for 1½ hours. Leave baked pie to rest and cool then remove from the mold.
For the sweet and sour fruit garnish, wash fruit and chop to the size of your preference. Cook in a solution of one part white wine vinegar to one part sugar, aromatized with cinnamon and cloves. Bring to the boil and store in sterilized airtight jars. Leave to rest for at least 2 months.
To assemble the dish, cut Torta Lavagnexe into 2-centimeters slices and allow to reach room temperature. Serve on plates with sweet and sour fruit garnish.
The pie goes well with a full-bodied white wine such as Portofino Cimixa DOC (Ark of Taste)