Stufato di pollo arrosto e finocchio
(Roast Chicken in Stewed Fennel)

Recipe By: Platina, Riley, Daniel and Akiley
Serving Size: 8

1 7 lb chicken
1 whole lemon
1/4 cu olive oil
1 cu sweet white wine
1 cu water salt & white pepper (you're welcome, Bonnie.)

Rinse and dry the chicken. Salt and pepper it well inside and out. In the cavity, place 1/4 of a fennel bulb, and 1/2 of a lemon, itself halved. Place the chicken in a large roasting pan and cover with oil. Add the wine and water to the pan. Roast covered at 425 degrees for 50 minutes. While this is happening, chop the remaining fennel coarsely. At the 50 minute mark, add the chopped fennel to the roasting pan, and stir to coat with juices and oil. Squeeze the remaining lemon over all, replace the cover, and roast for another 40 minutes (basting if possible,) or until the chicken tests done.

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Notes: We actually tested this at Haemishes this past weekend and it was wondrous beyond all expectation. Cat despises the flavor of anise and LOVED this dish. That should reassure the faint of heart.

Recipe By: Martino di Como
Serving Size: 8

2 pounds turnips thinly sliced
1/3 cup sugar
2 teaspoons cinnamon ground
1/2 teaspoon mace ground
1/2 teaspoon clove ground
1 1/4 pounds muenster cheese thinly sliced
2 ounces butter

Boil the unpeeled turnips in water to cover until soft (30-40 min, depending on their size.) Drain, cool, and peel, and cut into large, round slices of no more than 1/8 inch thick, and preferrably thinner. Mix the sugar and spices. Heat the oven to 375.
Thickly butter a 9-inch cake pan, and arrange a layer of turnip slices in the bottom. Now add a layer of cheese (sliced as thinly as the turnips.) Sprinkle this with some sugar mixture. Repeat this until all ingredients are used, finishing with a layer of cheese and sugar, and dot with softened butter. Bake for 30-35 minutes until the top is browned. Let stand to cool for 10 or 20 minutes, and turn out onto a serving platter, like a cake. Sprinkle cinammon over the top in the shape of an escarbuncle.

Recipe By: Martino di Como
Serving Size: 8

1 pound red grapes seedless
1/4 cup bread crumbs unseasoned
2 tablespoons cider vinegar to taste
2 teaspoons cinnamon ground
1 teaspoon ginger freshly grated
1 teaspoon corn starch to taste

Pulverize everything but the starch in a food processor, adjusting the sweetness with vinegar. Place in a pan and simmer for half an hour. If the mixture is too thin, make a solution of the starch, and add. Boil for another 2 minutes or until thick. Add a little butter if desired.