I will never forget the first time that I tasted the realness. I was working at the Park Avenue Cafe and it was a component on one of our app specials. I remember tasting it and thinking, wow, now I see what all the fuss is about. It really opened my eyes to the importance of quality ingredients. I am speaking of course about Mozzarella di Bufala, or Buffalo Mozzarella. Buffalo Mozzarella is a fresh, unripened cheese made from the milk of water buffalos which were first introduced into Italy from Asia in the 7th century. It is a very flavorful, slightly tangy, slightly salty amazing cheese made primarily in the Campania region and mainly in Salerno and Casserta. The cheese is Denominazione D'Origine Protetta which means it is made under strict rules and regulations which allow it to be called Mozzarella di Bufala.
When first made, the cheese has a slightly firmer texture. If it is allowed to sit in the whey that it is packed in for a couple of days it's texture takes on new qualities. Three distinct layers form. The first being a slightly stringy skin that forms as an outer layer. Under that there is a thin creamy layer that forms, followed by the internal layer which makes up the majority of the cheese. Juicy and truly outstanding.
In the U.S. we are more familiar with Fiordilatte, or mozzarella made from cows milk. In my humble opinion, there is no comparison. Fresh mozz from cows milk is pretty flavorless and the texture is really lacking. I know that Buffalo Mozz is available in the states and even though it is a bit pricey, if you see it, I highly recommend snatching some up so you can at least try it once. It's worth it.
All is well here. It has been super slow and hot as blazes!!!! It has been so hot that full bottles of top quality extra virgin olive oil have been exploding. The first time it happened, it was really cool because I was looking right at the bottle when it exploded. We were working out side for a wedding and I was staring at this bottle of oil while cleaning my station and it burst all over! At first I thought that I did it with my mind and I was like "Yes!! Yes!! I knew it!!I knew it all along!! I knew I had the power!!!" But of course Chef dashed my hopes by telling me that this happens from time to time when it gets really hot. What a let down.
The next couple of times weren't so cool. They happened while they were in the cupboard, indoors, during service. No fun at all. I was just working away when I heard a loud pop followed by a cascade of oil from out of the cupboard all over the station and all in the mise en place. What a mess. Luckily the cupboard door was closed or else I would have taken shrapnel to the face. If we were busy it could have been a disaster, but fortunately things were slow so we were able to recover with out effecting service.
I hope that everyone is enjoying their summer. Thanks so much to everyone for all of the encouraging emails. Ciao!
I just read through this and realized that many people may not know what mise en place is. It is a french term meaning literally "put in place", but in kitchen talk it refers to everything for my station. My salt and pepper, my diced zucchini and tomatoes my julienned carrots and so on and so forth. There is also a broader meaning involving mental preparedness, but there is no need to get into that now. Ciao ancora!!!
