2. Medieval Food and the Fish Pirate

S1 E2: Program two reprises an introduction to the two women and the relationship between them, and takes another step in revealing the rich landscape of Le Marche to the viewer. Lia’s first dish is acciughe al verde, anchovies with parsley, so Lia and Tam get to meet one of Sarnano’s most engaging characters, a man they call “the fish pirate”. Stocky, strong and always wearing a bandana, he brings fresh fish from the nearby Adriatic to Sarnano twice a week. For vellutata di zucchini, a creamy soup of courgettes, we’re down in the orto, Sergio’s allotment, where everything grows at fantastic rate in the extreme climate of the central Italian mountains where summer heatwaves give way to massive snowfall every winter. And Lia’s dessert, crema di nonna Giudi¸ (nonnas, or grandmas, figure heavily in Italian country cooking) takes Lia and Tamsen to meet the extraordinary Silvano Scalzini who specialises in the mediaeval recipes of the region while running a delightful little restaurant in a ruined castle perched on the side of a hill.