Grandma Menna’s Kitchen: bread, butter and anchovies

dicembre 16, 2009

The praise of simplicity: the snow-white colour of butter,the savoury and frank flavour of anchovies, the joyful vivacity of a caper. There are no more ingredients in this recipe that comes directly from my childhood.

Bread with butter and anchovies is a dish that has entered into our family lately, since in my Grandma family there is no trace of it. She probably learned to make it because someone told her about it, or because she read of it ina  cookery book or ina a magazine. SInce then, once in a while they pop up for a quick break in the afternoon or for a potluck lunch when we have unattended guests.
They are perfect since the butter cherishes your palate while the anchovy tickle your appetite.

They remind me of a summer afternoon: it was August, balm-crickets were singing aloud their monotonous tune and the light was white and blinding. My dad was filling the car boot and fastening our bikes over the car, ready to go to the seaside. I was waiting under the linden shadow, tantalized by its sweet smell and cradled by balm-crickets song My Grandma came out of the kitchen door with a plate filled with bread spread with butter and anchovies: such an unusual afternoon break! It was do to the fact that long car drives have always made me sick, so I needed something salty to hold my stomach!
Notwithstanding this summer memory, I suggest you these appetizers also for your Christmas day: easy, quick, no cooking at all! Just one advice: use quality ingredients, because there are no tricks nor deceits!

Ingredients:

• sliced Tuscan bread
  
• unsalted butter
  
• anchovies, in oil or salted
  
• pickles baby capers

Slice bread into 1cm thickness slices: you can toast them or use them as they are. I prefer a soft bread to exalt butter softness. Spread butter with generosity over bread.
If you want to use salted anchovies, rinse them under running water to remove extra salt and divide them into fillets, removing all the bones. If you use anchovies in oil, just make two fillets out of them and lay them over buttered bread.

And now, the final touch: a pickled baby caper in the centre, and – in less than 3 minutes – you have an unusual afternoon break or a fun anti-crisis and anti-panic appetizer for Christmas.

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You should be interested also in:

1. Grandma Menna’s Kitchen: tomato-bread soup
2. Grandma Menna’s Kitchen: bread soup
3. Grandma Menna’s Kitchen: i crostini neri
4. Grandma Menna’s Kitchen: leaf cabbage crostoni
5. Grandma Menna’s Kitchen: spleen crostini

Posted in Appetizers, Family recipes, Tuscan Recipes