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By Root 467 0

—is technically a grana, a somewhat hard and grainy cheese bearing little resemblance to the packaged, grated product in supermarkets. Genuine Parmigiano-Reggiano is handmade in five northern Italian provinces from partly skimmed, raw milk that is produced only between April and mid-November. It comes in huge wheels weighing more than sixty pounds, with the name etched in small dots all around the rim. It is aged from eighteen months up to several years—the older the cheese, the greater the flavor. Straw-colored, moist, and crumbly, it should properly not be cut from the wheel with a knife, but scored and then pried off in chunks as if being quarried.

One of the world’s great cheeses, it has a tremendous, irresistible, and slightly salty flavor either eaten whole or grated. It should never be bought already grated, however, as the flavor dissipates rapidly. For pasta it is best coarsely grated and finely grated for soups and other dishes. The fat content, because of the skimmed milk, is unexpectedly low, about thirty percent.

Parmesan should be stored, wrapped tightly in several thicknesses of aluminum foil and/or plastic, in the lower part of the refrigerator and be brought, still wrapped, to room temperature before serving. Afterward, it should be freshly rewrapped. If the cheese becomes dry or begins to whiten, wrap it in moistened cheesecloth first and put it away for a day in the refrigerator. Clean off any mold.

CAHORS

Cahors is a beautiful town, a provincial capital, surrounded on three sides by a river. Like much of southern France, it was famous in Roman times, and boasts a remarkable seven-hundred-year-old bridge, with the stone piers of its arches pointed into the flow of the river like prows.

A lesser-known but distinctive wine is produced here, one we often buy, unmistakable because of its dark color and pronounced tannic properties. Cahors wine, if drunk early, within five years or so after it is bottled, tends to be harsh, but when mature is well-balanced, rich, and has an elegant fragrance. The vineyards of Bordeaux are not that far off, along with greatness, perhaps, but this is a very good wine.

SIMPLE DINNER IDEAS

A good recipe is one thing, but a complete dinner is another. When there is no time and nothing has been prepared ahead, it can be worthwhile to have a few full menus, easy to prepare, listed in the back of your cookbook—guests can sit around and drink while you’re doing dinner.

Among ours is:

BRUSCHETTA (TOASTED ITALIAN BREAD RUBBED WHILE STILL WARM WITH GARLIC AND SOME OLIVE OIL)

CAESAR SALAD WITHOUT EGG

FILET MIGNONS ENCIRCLED WITH BACON STRIPS AND THEN SKILLET-BROWNED

BAKED POTATOES

SORBET

COFFEE

MUSHROOMS

In 1959, Jacques Pépin, well-known chef and writer on food, moved from France to the United States, having apprenticed first in his parents’ restaurant near Lyon and then in Paris before serving as personal chef to three French heads of state, including de Gaulle. When he arrived in New York, he was amazed to find that there were no mushrooms for sale in American supermarkets. Twenty-five years later, there were little white ones in boxes, but unfortunately they had no flavor. Now another twenty years have passed, and a food revolution has taken place. Mushrooms are plentiful.

The familiar white ones are cultivated, of course, but the same is true of most varieties of mushrooms that once grew only in the wild. This makes them available year-round, either fresh or dried. The most abundant among them are members of the boletus family, including the Italian porcini, the Japanese shiitake, and the French cèpes. Used in dishes such as soups, stews, stir-fries, and even as a meat substitute in sandwiches, they’re also delicious sautéed on their own.

Chanterelles are large with a vivid orange color and are most often stewed. Another showy variety is the bright red lobster mushroom, which is best when sautéed.

The tiny enoki mushrooms of Japan are used in salads and stirfries, more for their texture than their flavor, which tends to be bland.

Oyster mushrooms,