Category Archives: Keste

January 28, 2019 · 2:37 am

Neapolitan Pastry at Kesté

Over 10 years ago Michele had the opportunity to meet Sabatino Sirica and see him demonstrate his pastries. She said that they were some of the best she had ever had.

Michele D’Amelio and Sabatino

Recently Roberto Caporuscio of Keste Pizza and Vino Wall Street invited me to an event called “Made in Italy: Slow Cooking at Keste.” A demonstration and tasting by Sabatino Sirico was on the schedule and the translating was going to be done by Michele D’Amelio, an Italian pizzaiolo that works for Caputo Flour in America. I was happy to attend and finally get a chance to taste the pastries.

It was a two day event and I attended the second day and Sabatino demonstrated how to make Graffe and Babà. Graffe are Neapolitan style donuts sometimes called ciambelle. Cavaliere Sabatino Sirica has a Pasticceria, Rosticceria and Gelateria in S. Giorgio a Cremano, Naples. Michele and I will try to visit the shop when we are in Naples next month.

The Graffe ready for frying

After frying

Ready to Eat

Graffe

Here are the ingredients. Note that the flour is Caputo’s Chefs flour”00″

500 grams of 00 flour

500 grams Manitoba flour

25grams sugar

150grams butter

40 grams yeast

2 eggs

250 milliliters milk

200 milliliters water

Vanilla

Grated orange and lemon zest

Next Sabatino prepared the Baba’, a sweet yeast raised pastry soaked in rum or other liqueur flavored syrup.

Sabatino preparing the dough for Baba’

Sabatino putting the dough in the molds

Sabatino showing how light the dough is and easy to stretch

Finishing filling the molds

Frying the pastry

The finishd Babá

Ready to Serve

For the Baba, Sabatino used 50% Caputo Nuvola Super “0” and Caputo Chef’s flour “00”. The ingedients were:

Babá

1kg of flour

100 grams sugar

40 grams salt

350 grams butter

4 kilograms eggs(not sure about the eggs)

Syrup

1 Liter water

500 grams sugar

50 grams strong rum

There were other pastries, including sfogliatelle.

Palmier cookies, layer cake and a cut baba’ to show the texture.

Sweet buns.

I have spent a lot of time in Naples and start every day with pastries like these. Sabatino’s were as good if not better than those I have had before! I am looking

forward to visiting him.

Pastry, Pizza and Pasta Demonstrations at Kesté Wall Street

The “Made in Italy 2019 Cooking Show” at Keste and Vino Wall Street was a two-day event featuring pasta, pizza and pastry making demonstrations.

There were four presentations altogether and they were repeated on the second day.

Sabatino with the dough for the Baba

The first demonstration was a Pastry Presentation: Italian Pastry Techniques with Sabatino Sirica from Sirica dal 1976 in S.Giorgio a Cremano, Naples. Sabatino made Baba’, a yeast raised cake typically soaked in rum syrup, though other liquors, such as limoncello can be used. Baba’ is a very typical Neapolitan sweet.

Vincenzo Ianucci from Caputo preparing the pizza

The second presentation, using Nuvola Super “0″ Flour by Caputo: Contemporary Flour for Contemporary Pizza Making with Vincenzio Iannucci, a pizzaiolo who works for the Caputo company in Italy. Other topics were: New Age of Contemporary Pizza and Pizza in Teglia alla Romana.

Giorgia preparing the dough for frying

Next session, Georgia Caporuscio of Keste Pizza and Don Antonio featured The New Age of Frying. She gave us insights on frying, using the right oil and techniques.

The last demonstration was for Garofalo Pasta: New and Innovated Pasta Dishes and was presented by Pastificio Garafalo, Pasta di Gragnano.

The event was very interesting and informative and I will write about all of the events I attended. Next time Italian Pastry Techniques with Sabatino Sirica making Baba’, Graffe’, Brioche Dolce, and more.

Pizza with Roberto Caporuscio and Tipo 1 Flour

About a month after returning from Naples, I went with some friends to Keste Wall Street for pizza. Roberto Caporuscio, the owner and master pizzaiolo, wasn’t there when we arrived, but we ordered a few pizzas. As I ate, I realized that something was different. The pies did not taste the same as the last time we were here. Everyone agreed with me. Had the ingredients changed or was it because the pizzamaker was different?

When Roberto arrived I told him that I thought the pizzas were different. He said he changed the type of flour. In the past he he used Type Double Zero flour but now he uses only Type 1 flour. Roberto said he believed that Type 1 flour was healthier because it makes a lighter pizza that is more digestible. We made a date to come back again and Roberto said he would be sure to be there and would personally make all the pizza for us using Tipo 1 flour so that we could give him our opinion.

We went to Keste this week and Roberto was already there. I went to watch him make the pizza.

He showed me the dough and I noticed it was a very light beige and it had tiny specks in it. Robert said the specks were wheat germ because Type 1 flour is less refined than the pure white Double Zero. The wheat germ is what adds to its nutritional value.

Robert made the following pizzas for us using Caputo Tipo 1 flour:

Bianca Romana focaccia filled with mortadella, pistachio cream and caciocavallo cheese

Pizza Pasquale (Pizza Fritta), named after Pasquale Torrente, master chef at Ristorante “il Convento” because of his skill in frying. The dough was deep fried using a special sunflower oil containing rosemary. The fried crust is topped with homemade stracciatella cheese, anchovies and fresh lemon.

Rodi the topping is a spread made with anchovies, and white bread soaked in limoncello, with slices of lemon, basil and buffalo mozzarella

Regina Margarita made with buffalo mozzarella, tomato sauce

Pizza Noci and Zucchine, topped with a spread made with walnuts and mascarpone with baby zucchini and smoked buffalo mozzarella

Padrino mild soppresata, cacciocavallo ragusano, chili oil and Gaeta olives.

Even though some of the combinations on the pizza did not look like they would work they were all excellent. The problem was with the margarita pizza. After I explained this to Roberto he invited me back again this time to Keste and Vino on Bleecker St. He would make one Margarita using Type 1 flour and one using Type 00 and we would have to guess which was which and which one we liked better. He would also more thoroughly explain the difference between the two flours. I am always up for a pizza challenge.

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December 26, 2017 · 4:29 am

Celebrating UN Recognition of Neapolitan Pizza at Keste

Last week I received a text from Roberto Caprouscio of Kesté Wall Street that he had invited 8 pizzaioli from all over the country to make pizza with him. The occasion was a celebration of the fact that the tradition of Neapolitan pizza making was being granted World Heritage Status by the United Nations and being added to UNESCO’s “Intangible list. ” I saw the text at 1:00 and the event started at 4:00. Roberto said that they had decided at the last minute. Some of the pizzaioli did not know until the night before and had just flown in that morning. It was a offer I could not refuse!