I just got back from a vacation in Tuscany and I need to reproduce a
pasta dish I had at a little resturant there. The pasta was Fiocchi
(little purses) filled with a pear and cheese puree and topped with a
cheesy walnut sauce. I asked the waitress (In my limited Italian)
what the cheese was, and she stated that it was Pecorino (though I
doubt I can get the milder Toscano version here in the U.S., so a good
substitute may be needed).

> ha scritto nel messaggio
...
>I just got back from a vacation in Tuscany and I need to reproduce a
> pasta dish I had at a little resturant there. The pasta was Fiocchi
> (little purses) filled with a pear and cheese puree and topped with a
> cheesy walnut sauce. I asked the waitress (In my limited Italian)
> what the cheese was, and she stated that it was Pecorino (though I
> doubt I can get the milder Toscano version here in the U.S., so a good
> substitute may be needed).

Look harder for the cheese, because last time I cooked with pecorino in the
US it was horrible and I said never again, but I've been told that at least
in the Wash DC area you can get a wider variety at some of the higher end
shops now.

You mention two cheeses, one inside and one or more outside. The
traditional recipe is pears and Gorgonzola and there are lots of online
recipes, at least in Italian. Similarly there are lots of recipes for
saucing pasta with a Gorgonzola and walnut sauce, but I've never seen one
using Pecorino.

These are cool weather recipes. Try again when pears come into season,
because the type of pear will alter it enormously. And do think Gorgonzola,
even if the waitress said Pecorino, since the match is classic. Try both
and see which you think works.
(I hate pears, so I have no personal recipe to offer.)

On 2008-07-03, Giusi > wrote:

> Look harder for the cheese, because last time I cooked with pecorino in the
> US it was horrible........

Was it US produced pecorino? The only pecorino I've found is aged 18-24 mos and
imported from Italy. I love the stuff.

nb

"notbob" > ha scritto nel messaggio > On 2008-07-03,
Giusi > wrote:
>
>> Look harder for the cheese, because last time I cooked with pecorino in
>> the
>> US it was horrible........
>
> Was it US produced pecorino? The only pecorino I've found is aged 18-24
> mos and
> imported from Italy. I love the stuff.
>
> nb

It said imported from Italy, but I can't think why anyone in Italy would
waste the time to make such bad cheese. Maybe it was really from Elbonia.
It was soapy and acid and salty. Nasty. It ruined the dish.

Giusi > wrote:

>"notbob" > ha scritto nel messaggio > On 2008-07-03,
>Giusi > wrote:

>>> Look harder for the cheese, because last time I cooked with pecorino in
>>> the
>>> US it was horrible........

>> Was it US produced pecorino? The only pecorino I've found is aged 18-24
>> mos and
>> imported from Italy. I love the stuff.

>It said imported from Italy, but I can't think why anyone in Italy would
>waste the time to make such bad cheese. Maybe it was really from Elbonia.
>It was soapy and acid and salty. Nasty. It ruined the dish.

That's unfortunate. I love a good pecorino. My favorite is
making pasta pecorino -- penne, percorino, some parmesan,
a few sauteed mushrooms, and finish it with white wine
vinegar and olive oil. If you happen to have an excellent
white wine vinegar (and of course a good percorino) this combination
is heavenly.

Steve