Just as the chill sets in and cold salads start to lose their appeal, we can turn to a cozier vision of the genre from Cesare Casella, chef and dean of Italian Studies at International Culinary Center.
It’s a warm hug of a salad, much like ones that you imagine Casella — a man famous for carrying a bushel of rosemary sprigs in place of a pocket square — himself would give.
Though Insalata Pontormo probably sounds unfamiliar, Casella has been making variations on this recipe since 1978, first inspired by the painter Jacopo Carucci (Jacopo da Pontormo). “I read a story about what he could see when he looked out upon his surroundings from his room,” Casella told me. “He said that he could see: the chicken coop, a garden with lots of lettuces growing, and pieces of carne secca (like pancetta) hanging from the ceiling. It was these visuals that inspired me to create the Pontormo salad.”
It defies everything we expect out of salad — which is probably why it has more pull than most. You’ll want it to be your whole dinner tonight, and you won’t need anything else.
We're so well-trained to not mistreat our lettuce; this recipe mocks our dedication. Usually we do all we can to keep our greens pristine and untrampled by dressing or climate or time. We're careful not to toss it too early or weigh it down, to dress the vessel and not the greens, to eat it from giant mixing bowls to keep the leaves free and unencumbered. Just like with an especially volatile friend or when dating someone moody, we condition ourselves not to put too much pressure on it.
But lettuce can take some well-intended roughness. You can pour a pan of hot, crispy pancetta and scrambled eggs on it, and it won’t collapse in ruins. It will warm, then soften, then settle in to the rich bath.
Like the lettuce and tomato on your burger or the oyster crackers in your chowder, there is a fleeting, liminal moment where opposing forces of hot and cold, crisp and soft hit a happy balance that's infinitely better than if they'd stayed with their own kind.
Should salad have this much pancetta in it? (Not to mention rendered, but not discarded, pancetta fat?) How about all those muscular wintry herbs, singed into the meat? Is it still a salad? Well, who’s going to tell you no? A little loose richness does amazing things for feeling sated and restored, in ways that no amount of kale ever will.
It’s a dinner that you’ll want to scoop up faster and faster as you go, volleying tugs of bright acid and salty meat and slippery greens and soft eggs spurring you on. This is the salad to get us through the winter, but we might not want to stop there.
Cesare Casella’s Warm Salad with Pancetta and Egg (Insalata Pontormo)
From Salumeria Rosi Parmacotto in New York
Serves 1
1 Tbsp. olive oil
2 1/2 oz. diced pancetta
1 1/2 Tbsp. chopped parsley
1 1/2 Tbsp. chopped fresh marjoram
1 1/2 Tbsp. chopped fresh thyme
2 eggs
1 oz. mesclun or other delicate lettuce, cut into 3/4-inch strips
1 Tbsp. red wine vinegar
1 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar
Salt and black pepper, to taste
In a small skillet over medium-high heat, combine the oil, pancetta, and herbs. Cook to render some of the fat from the pancetta, but do not brown. Crack the eggs into a bowl, but do not whisk. Pour the eggs into the pan and cook, stirring over medium-low heat with a rubber spatula, until the eggs are lightly scrambled and still very soft. Season with salt and pepper.
Remove the pan from heat to keep the eggs from overcooking. In a bowl, toss the lettuce with a drizzle of both vinegars. Add the eggs and toss. Season with salt and pepper, and serve immediately.
This article originally appeared on Food52.com: http://food52.com/blog/11612-cesare-casella-s-warm-salad-with-pancetta-and-egg-insalata-pontormo
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