Lindsay Marie Morris

Prized for its bulbs, leaves, and even seeds, fennel is the ultimate zero-waste food. It's also rich in fiber, potassium, vitamin C, and manganese. 

 

To explore the origins and uses of fennel, I reached out to "I Love Fruit & Veg from Europe," a global initiative that promotes the mindful consumption of high-quality European fruits and vegetables both within Italy and abroad. Their purview includes organic produce and products with PDO (Protected Designation of Origin) and PGI (Protected Geographical Indication) certifications, advocating for healthier, safer, and more sustainable diets. The initiative is supported by Italian producer organizations such as Agritalia, A.O.A., La Deliziosa, Meridia, and Terra Orti and is co-funded by the European Commission.

"I Love Fruit & Veg from Europe" Campaign Manager and Coordinator Manuela Barzan shared more about this flavorful vegetable.

 

 

Where does fennel come from originally?

Common fennel (F. vulgare) or finochietto is native to Southern Europe and countries bordering the Mediterranean Sea but has become naturalized worldwide. To the ancient Greeks, fennel was a symbol of victory, known as "marathon," lending its name to the Battle of Marathon (490 BC), where legend has it the battle unfolded in a fennel field. The Romans, too, embraced fennel as a symbol of achievement, fashioning its leaves into wreaths to crown champions in their games.

 

Florence fennel, or finocchio (Foeniculum vulgare var. azoricum), is a cultivated variety from the same family as wild fennel. Developed in 17th-century Italy, it resembles wild fennel at the top with similar stalks, fronds, and flowers, but at the base, it forms a white, layered structure often called a "crown." Although commonly referred to as a bulb, it's not a true bulb—its layers are crisp and carry a mild anise flavor.

 

Where and how is fennel typically grown?

India is the largest producer of fennel, which is grown for its seeds and is widely used in cooking and traditional medicine. Spanish missionaries brought fennel to North America, cultivating it in their medicinal gardens. In California, it is now commonly referred to as wild anise and grows abundantly along roadsides and in pastures across the U.S., where it is often regarded as a weed.

Bulb fennel (finocchio) is grown globally but thrives in warm, moist environments. Various cultivars can be harvested at different times based on their growing location, with the general harvest season in Italy spanning from spring to fall.

In the U.S., fennel is considered a cool-weather crop and is typically available from fall through early spring, although grocery stores stock it year-round. However, since fennel is a relatively minor crop in the U.S., any out-of-season supply not sourced from California or Arizona usually comes from a greater distance.

 

What parts of the fennel plant are used and how?

Every part can be used in some way! Bulb fennel is grown for its seeds, essential oil, fronds (leaves), and swollen leaf base, which is consumed as a vegetable. While the stalks can be tough and somewhat stringy, they are often used to flavor stocks. The fronds can serve as a garnish or be incorporated into marinades and sauces.

Common fennel is primarily cultivated for its seeds, which possess a more aromatic quality than those of cultivated fennel and have a robust flavor reminiscent of licorice.

 

What are the nutritional benefits of fennel?

Fennel is a nutrient-dense, low-calorie food that offers several health benefits, including:

• Rich in antioxidants: Fennel is abundant in various antioxidant compounds that help shield cells from damage caused by free radicals, potentially lowering the risk of chronic diseases such as cancer and heart disease.
• Colic relief: Colic, a frequent issue for newborns, can be effectively alleviated with fennel, whether used alone or combined with other herbs. Fennel seeds are commonly included in gripe water, a well-known remedy for this condition.
• Menstrual pain relief: Research indicates that fennel might lower the production of oxytocin and prostaglandin, hormones linked to painful periods.
• Enhanced digestion: Traditionally, fennel is consumed after meals in many cultures to support digestion and minimize gas. Studies suggest that fennel may help by reducing inflammation in the intestines and decreasing the levels of gas-producing bacteria. Additionally, fennel oil has been found to alleviate symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome.

 

What are some favorite Sicilian recipes that feature fennel?

• Sicilian sausage: Known as salsiccia, these sausages are made from coarsely chopped pork mixed with fennel seeds. They are typically sold in coils on skewers, weighed by the pound.
• Pasta con le Sarde: This dish is a staple in Sicilian cuisine. According to legend, when Euphemius of Messina returned from exile in Tunisia to lead a military campaign in 827, his Arab cooks created this recipe using the first ingredients they found upon landing at Mazara's harbor. The combination included wild fennel, raisins, pine nuts, and the freshest sardines available.
• Pork and fennel ragù: For this dish, start by removing the casing from Sicilian sausages, squeezing out the pork, and cutting it into pieces. Sauté shallots in a bit of wine, then add the sausage and combine it with tomato sauce and a teaspoon of fennel seeds. For a twist, you can substitute the tomato sauce with fresh ricotta. This ragù pairs beautifully with casarecce, a short, twisted pasta native to Sicily.
  
  

How do you recommend preparing fennel to bring out its best flavors?

Fennel bulbs can be prepared in various ways, including steaming, grilling, roasting, or braising. They are often served with olive oil or butter. They offer a sweet, subtly anise-like flavor that pairs especially well with fish.

To enhance the flavor of Florence fennel when using it raw in salads, slice the bulb and let it soak in ice water for an hour in the refrigerator.

Antonio Carluccio said in Complete Italian Food, "Fennel has such a sweet taste and pleasant aroma that it was often served at the end of a meal as a dessert in Italy. It is delicious in every form, raw or cooked, and indispensable in pinzimonio [tender spring vegetables served sliced and raw to dip in newly pressed olive oil with a little salt and pepper]." 

 

Can you share any tips for selecting the best fennel?

When selecting fennel bulbs, look for those that are white or pale green, firm, and heavy. Steer clear of any that appear yellowing, dry, or starting to shrivel. The fronds should be vibrant and crisp, not wilted.

As fennel ages, it becomes drier and tougher, with a more intense anise flavor. However, removing the outer layers will make the inner part less tough.

 

How do you store fennel?

Sturdy fennel bulbs and stalks can be stored in the refrigerator for an extended period. However, the fronds may lose their crispness, so it's advisable to detach them, wrap them in a paper towel or newspaper, and place them in a container in the fridge. Keeping the fronds dry can help extend their freshness.

 

What other ingredients complement fennel in recipes?

Fennel pairs especially well with fish.

The chopped young leaves can enhance the flavor of salads and various dishes, and they are commonly enjoyed alongside oranges.

 

Why should people try fennel?

Fennel is a highly versatile vegetable that can be enjoyed raw or cooked. It is easy to incorporate into various dishes without generating waste. It is rich in fiber, low in calories, and boasts numerous health benefits. 

Here are some common ways to include fennel in your meals:

• Sip fennel tea, a soothing herbal infusion made by steeping fennel seeds in hot water. This traditional remedy is often utilized to promote digestion and reduce bloating and gas. You can find it in tea bags or make it by steeping whole fennel seeds.
• Incorporate fennel into salads for an extra crunch.
• Substitute fennel stalks for celery in soups or stews.
• Wrap fennel with other root vegetables in foil and roast in the oven until tender.
• Use the bulb, stalks, and fronds as a flavorful base when roasting chicken or pork.
• For a tasty side dish, roast fennel wedges seasoned with salt, pepper, and butter.

 

 

 If you enjoyed this article, consider subscribing to my newsletter for more content and updates!

Potatoes are not commonly used in Sicilian cooking. For my nonna, there were two exceptions: her insalata vastasa and a main dish called gattò di patate. 

The name gattò comes from gâteau, the French word for cake. The rich dish was created in the late 18th century by French chefs who served at the Bourbon court. These so-called monsieurs or monzù were brought to the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies by Queen Maria Carolina of Habsburg, wife of King Ferdinand IV of Bourbon and Marie Antoinette's sister.

 

I recently stumbled on a recipe for a gattò created by Letizia Mattiacci, a Rome-based food writer, cookbook author, and Madonna del Piatto cooking class instructor. While Letizia uses ham, this potato cake can easily be made vegetarian by substituting spinach.

 

Letizia and I spoke about her winding path from entomologist, a biologist who studies insects, to agriturismo owner and then cooking class instructor. She told me about her gattò recipe and shared tips and tricks for achieving the perfect gattò structure.

 

 

What is your background?

I was born in Perugia, but my mother was from Librizzi, Sicily. She moved to Perugia in the 1960s for work, and there, she met my father, who was a local in Umbria. So, I spent my youth there. 

 

Then, I started a Ph.D. program in insect ecology. I didn't speak a word of English, and I had never been anywhere. In the second year of my Ph.D. program, I took a plane for the first time to move to the United States for six months of lab work. And that was the first big adventure of my life.

 

I worked in a couple of labs in Washington, D.C. I worked in Beltsville, Maryland, at the USDA lab, and then I worked at Texas A&M University. I loved it so much that I went back in the second summer to finish some of the experimental work I had done there. 

After that, I started traveling for work. I found my first postdoc in the Netherlands. I met a lovely, tall, and skinny Dutch guy who, at some point later, I married. He's also an entomologist. 

We worked as scientists in the Netherlands for three years and did some field work in Zimbabwe. I worked with the United Nations in Vienna and then got a job as an associate professor in Switzerland.

By then, we both had jobs in Switzerland and spent five years there. But then we discovered that an academic career with all the politics involved was not really our calling. So we did the romantic thing: We bought a farmhouse back in Umbria, in a beautiful place above the hills of Assisi. 

We bought this place in '97, and it took us five years of hard work in Switzerland to finance the renovation. Then we went back to Umbria, had our baby, whose name is Tea, and started the adventure of innkeeping and cooking classes. 

We had friends everywhere, and I've always loved to cook. I discovered that people always ask you for a recipe when you are Italian. 

I always cooked with my mom or with my family. My Sicilian family mostly lived in Perugia, so we always had big Sicilian parties.

 

We had an agriturismo for more than 22 years, and it was marvelous, but we had to stop for many reasons. We sold it, and we moved it to Rome. 

 

Tell me about your gattò recipe.

In the south of Italy, you won't find many recipes with potatoes. The original gattò was made with some sausage there, probably some salami. But my mother made it with cheese and ham because when we grew up in the 1960s, the concept that you should have had lighter food started to come in slowly. By the mid-70s and 80s, food had probably started to be less oily and less rich, while between the 1960s and the 1970s, it was very rich. 

My mother made this lovely potato puree. She cooked the potatoes and then riced them with a vegetable mouli. She then added eggs, a bit of olive oil, and quite a bit of Parmigiano. She then layered it in an oil pan with breadcrumbs and put some cheese and some ham in it. When you cut it in the middle, you have this sort of melting cheese that comes out of it.

My daughter is also very fond of the dish, so this is a tradition. I probably make it once every three weeks or so in the winter. 

 

Can you speak to the 18th-century history of this dish?

In that period, a lot of things happened. There is a dish called sartu, a rice dish. This is another dish that comes from French chefs and has been adopted in southern cooking. For a very long time, rice was not especially popular in Italy, and it was considered a food for the sick. 

Then, the French cooks at the Bourbon court elaborated on these exotic ingredients. They realized they had to offer them in a way that reflected the local tradition. Most likely, the French wouldn't have made a rice casserole with tomato sauce, but they put tomato sauce in it, which made it more palatable for the local court.

What are some other Sicilian potato recipes you would recommend?

While in the past, potatoes were indeed not common in Sicilian cuisine, there are a handful of recipes that might be nice to consider. My grandmother Rosaria made whole-baked potatoes stuffed with meat and cheese.

 

Here are a couple more examples:

• Patate Vastase from Trapani
• Patate apparecchiate from Siracusa

 

What are some important tricks for achieving the right gattò structure?

It's important to cook the potatoes just right so they don't absorb too much water, and it's important to have good-quality potatoes. Your equivalent in the U.S. would be Yukon Gold potatoes. If you have floury potatoes, they will absorb too much water, and your gattò will not have the right texture because you want it to be fluffy. In recent years, I have microwaved the potatoes because they do not absorb any humidity except their own.

If you boil your potatoes, do so with the peel on so they don't absorb too much moisture. If you feel they've gotten a little bit overcooked, you could put them in the oven and dry them a bit after that. 

It's important to do a good job with the ricing. Just smashing will not give you a good structure. The easiest way is actually using a vegetable mouli. 

Then, you beat the eggs in there quite soon while the potatoes are still warm. You beat all the ingredients together, but what matters is the eggs because they will hold it together.

After that, you can just put it in a bowl so it doesn't stick and let it cool off. This is the most important part. It's also important to taste it for seasoning because it has to be sweet. If you use ham, it is sweet; if you use some melting cheese, it is also sweet. If you don't give it a little bit of salt and pepper and maybe a dash of nutmeg to contrast, then you will have something that is a bit bland.

  

The rest is very easy. Oil or butter your pan and sprinkle it with breadcrumbs—good breadcrumbs, not store-bought. [Get Letizia's breadcrumbs recipe here.]

To keep the shell whole, take two spoons and spoon the potato all over the top. Then, wet one of the spoons and very lightly push it down. If you start moving your potatoes around, the crust will break.

For my recipe, I normally make three layers of potatoes, so you also have to decide how many potatoes to use for that size of pan. I like to use a Pyrex circular pan, but it works in many different pans. 

 

Then, I layer my cheese and ham. I like to use Scamorza, but it's not easy to find in the United States. A good-quality cow's milk cheese that melts easily without becoming watery is ideal. 

I make two layers and then sprinkle again with breadcrumbs, a little bit of Parmigiano, and a few dots of butter. 

 

What do you hope at-home cooks will take away from your gattò recipe?

This is an easy family food. It is good the day you make it and gives you good leftovers. You can make it for a party. It is a very easy, practical, and inexpensive dish to make nowadays. And it makes children very happy.

After a certain age, we worry about calories and blah blah. But it is good food; I don't know anybody who doesn't like it.

 

>>Get Letizia's gattò recipe here!<<

 

 

 

If you enjoyed this article, consider subscribing to my newsletter for more content and updates!