Bagna Cauda — Italian Fondue
Feel free to hold the bread underneath the dipped vegetables to catch any excess sauce. Then, enjoy the sauce-laden bread!
INGREDIENTS | SERVES 4
- 1 small head broccoli
- 4 ounces anchovies
- 1 small head cauliflower
- 4 garlic cloves
- 2 cardoon stalks (or 2 celery stalks)
- 4 tablespoons butter
- ½ cup olive oil
- 4 tablespoons cream
- 2 red peppers
- 1 loaf Italian bread, sliced
- 1 zucchini
Wash the vegetables. Blanch the broccoli, cauliflower, and cardoon stalks briefly in boiling water and drain thoroughly. Cut all the vegetables and fennel bulb into bite-sized pieces.
Drain and separate the anchovies. Smash, peel, and mince the garlic.
Melt the butter and keep warm on low heat.
Heat the olive oil in a frying pan over low heat. Add the garlic. Cook on low heat for a few minutes, and then add the anchovies. Continue to cook on low heat, gently mashing the anchovies and mixing together with the garlic. Add the melted butter. Stir in the cream.
Transfer the Bagna Cauda to a fondue pot and set on the burner. Serve with the vegetables — or with your own favorite combination of mixed vegetables — for dipping. Eat with the sliced bread.
Bagna Cauda
The name of the dish says it all: “Bagna cauda” comes from the Italian words bagno caldo, meaning “warm bath.” Garlic and butter combine with golden olive oil to make a flavorful warm sauce, while anchovies take the place of salt as a seasoning. Originating in the mountain regions of southern Italy, bagna cauda makes a frequent appearance at buffet dinners on Christmas Eve. Traditionally, one of the vegetables served with bagna cauda is cardoon, a white-stalked vegetable with sharp edges that resembles celery. Cardoons can be hard to find, and celery may be used as a substitute.
