I remember a few years ago I entered a Twitter discussion with Divina Cucina on various ethnic culinary New Years traditions. Its interesting the similarities and differences that can be found between a African American soul food and Italian fare. I grew up eating the mandatory southern influenced black eye peas and greens to bring in wealth for the new year. The Italians celebrate with a gelatinous fatty salami that is slow cooked and lentils, which represent coins.
So boy was I happy when a representative from Creminelli asked me if I was interested in sampling some of their products. A little back story here, earlier in the year I had the fortune to actually meet the owner Cristiano Creminelli at a intimate tasting of his products in a local wine bar. It was very personal and the table got to hear his story of how his family , produced cured meats since the 1600’s in Italy. Cristiano ended up in Utah to spread the wealth of his family’s knowledge and artistry to the American consumer. I felt bad I didn’t write up a post that evening. I was late , my pictures were bad, and the daily grind just overwhelmed me. Now I have a chance to do the brand justice ! I received some wild boar Mortadella and the Cotechiono in the mail to try.
So for the New Year I want to share a recipe and give you a chance to sample the amazing artisan products from Creminelli for the US market. Now normally Cotechino is slow cooked for hours, but the Creminelli brand only requires 20 minutes of poaching in its plastic pouch.
- 1 8 oz bag of lentils
- 1 small onion diced
- 1 tablespoon duck or chicken fat
- 2-3 cloves garlic minced
- Bay Leaf
- 2 cups or water or stock
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 Creminelli Cotechino
- Cook the Cotechino according to the instructions. It should be boiled for 30 minutes in its plastic pouch and set aside until ready to plate.
- In a skillet heat the duck fat.
- Add the diced onion, garlic, bay leaf . Saute until softened.
- Add the dry lentils and stir to coat with the fat and minced onion, garlic.
- Add the liquid and bring to a simmer. Cover.
- Cook until tender about 30 minutes. Add more liquid if necessary.
- Remove the Cotechino from it's plastic pouch and remove the casing.
- Slice and place on the platter of lentils.
- Serve warm with mustard.
I will be giving away a Gourmet Artisan Salami Mix from Creminelli. Just leave a comment sharing your culinary New Years traditions and spread the word and follow me via twitter as well. If you already follow me that’s great too! Just Tweet ” I just entered to win a Salami Mix from @glamah & @creminelli ” and post the link for a chance at a second entry and leave a separate comment below. Each comment counts as one separate entry( the New Years tradition and the tweet).
- This giveaway is only open to US residents.
- The winner will be chosen randomly .
- The salami mix will be shipped by Creminelli and will consist of Barolo, Tartufo and Wild Boar salami (1.5 lbs) a $45 value. One basket per giveaway.
- No shipping to PO Boxes or overseas due to the sensitive nature of the products.
To all my readers Certain Someone and I would like to wish you a blessed New Year full of light and peace. Thank you for reading Coco Cooks throughout the years.
