Taste & Flair May 2022

ISSUE 146 DISTRIBUTED WITH THE MALTA INDEPENDENT ON SUNDAY

Feed your imagination FOOD · WINE · ART · ARCHITECTURE · INTERIORS

MAY 2022

Beautiful and Carbon Neutral

Joinwell Mill Street, Qormi +356 2278 2000 info@joinwell.com.mt www.joinwell.com.mt

T&F EDITORIAL

Welcome H

owever far and wide one travels, the cliché rings true – there is no place like home. In this issue, Michael Diacono returns to his culinary roots with his reinterpretation of traditional Maltese dishes which we shot against a backdrop of vintage floor tiles that Thomas Camilleri salvaged from townhouses slated for demolition and, in a wonderful example of upcycling, is giving new life as decorative objects. Anything that saves time is welcome, and when you can eat the results, that’s even better. For gatherings at home or on a picnic, Claire Borg’s seasonal salads take little time to prepare but make a wonderful spread and any one of them would make an easy homely meal. For the sweet-toothed, our fruit and nut desserts are simple but satisfying. If you’re wondering what to serve with a meal, Andrew Azzopardi has some advice on choosing quality wines.

On the home front, we visited a contemporary interior that had started life as an artist’s home-studio and has now been converted into a space for living and sleeping. In another transformation, an old, run-down house in a village core has been turned into a contemporary home that blends old and new elements while leaving the streetscape undisturbed. For a leisurely read, flick through to Megan Mallia’s article on a new exhibition that takes you on a voyage through the flower still-life genre.

If you missed any issue of Taste&Flair and want a copy, we may be able to help so please do get in touch with us by email, Messenger, or on Instagram.

Corinne

MAY 2022

Jan Davidsz de Heem, Vase of Flowers, c.1670. Canvas, 74.2 x 52.6 cm, Mauritshuis, The Hague (acquired by the Friends of the Mauritshuis Foundation with a major contribution from Hans Heinrich, Baron Thyssen-Bornemisza and the support of the Rembrandt Association, 1993). See feature starting on page 24.

ISSUE 146 DISTRIBUTED WITH THE MALTA INDEPENDENT ON SUNDAY

Feed your imagination FOOD · WINE · ART · ARCHITECTURE · INTERIORS

Publisher The Daphne Caruana Galizia Foundation 56 Melita Street, Valletta VLT1122, Malta Editorial Board Paul Caruana Galizia Andrew Caruana Galizia Matthew Caruana Galizia Executive Editor Corinne Vella Editorial Assistants Megan Mallia • Amy Mallia Art Director Ramon Micallef +356 9949 1418 ram@box-design.net Advertising Manager & Editorial Contributor Sean Ellul +356 7921 0705 sellul@independent.com.mt Advertising Assistant Christine Mifsud +356 21 345 888 ext 138 cmifsud@independent.com.mt Production Manager André Camilleri Production Assistant Conrad Bondin Prepress & Printing Print It All communication about Taste&Flair magazine should be directed to Corinne Vella at corinne.vella@gmail.com No part of any issue of Taste&Flair may be reproduced without the written prior agreement of the publisher.

Distributed with The Malta Independent on Sunday*.

The Malta Independent on Sunday is published by Standard Publications Ltd - Tel +356 21 345 888 *The surcharge on The Malta Independent on Sunday, or any charge for this magazine is retained by Standard Publications Ltd.

“Still life with artichokes in a silver gilt wine cistern and other silver objects”, signed and dated 1647 by the Flemish baroque painter, Alexander Adriaenssen (1587-1661)

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T&F CONTENTS

p56

p28

12

p46

Nature’s abundance Claire Borg’s seasonal salads

24

In full bloom A new exhibition celebrates women artists

28 p12

CONTENTS

Home comfort Michael Diacono’s fresh take on traditional Maltese food

42

A taste for quality Andrew Azzopardi on choosing quality wines

44

Weekend breakfast

46

Sweet dreams Cakes and desserts

56

The art of life An artist’s studio, reimagined

p24

68

The architect’s home Contemporary conversion

p68 8

ISSUE 146 MAY 2022

p42

THE ALL-IN-ONE SIMPLE TO USE GRILL The idea behind the Big Green Egg Kamado Grill goes back more than 3000 years ago in East Asia, where it was discovered by the Japanese who referred to it as ‘kamado’ meaning oven or fireplace. At the beginning of the previous century, American soldiers came across the kamado in Japan taking it home where the ancient model was further refined in Atlanta Georgia USA using innovative materials.

The secret of unparalleled great taste is a combination of heat reflection from the ceramic body shell, generating a perfect air flow that cooks the ingredients evenly at just the right temperature which can be controlled from 70-350 deg. C. to the finest degree. Results are exceptionally tender dishes.

CHL Ltd, Nigret Rd, Rabat RBT4601. Tel 2145 4861, 9942 8515. Email: info@chlmalta.com

T&F QUICK MEALS

EASY-PEASY

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QUICK MEALS T&F

SEASONAL SALADS Warmer weather and an abundance of wonderful produce are the perfect combination for a picnic or just dining al fresco in your back yard. All of these dishes may be served warm or cold.

Who can say no to seasonal produce, saturated with flavour and cooked up in minutes?

Food and photography: Claire Borg

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T&F QUICK MEALS

Roasted Vegetable and Spelt Salad

If you use dried spelt, first soak it in cold water for at least 8 hours or overnight. If you’re pressed for time, use tinned spelt, which is ready-cooked.

YOU WILL NEED

1 large aubergine 2 onions 2 sweet potatoes 2 red peppers 1 big handful of basil leaves 8-10 cloves of garlic olive oil salt 150g cooked spelt – I used tinned spelt, but you can cook your own

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C. 2. Wash the aubergine and peppers and dice them.

Peel the onions and sweet potatoes, dice them, and mix them together with the other vegtables.

3. Place the mixed, diced vegetables on a baking tray and stir in the whole cloves of garlic and half the basil.

Drizzle with a good helping of olive oil and sprinkle with salt.

4. Place the tray in the preheated oven and let it roast for about an hour. Stir the vegetables occasionally to cook them evenly and prevent them sticking. If you’re using tinned spelt, skip to the last step.

5. While the vegetables are

cooking, bring a pot of water to the boil. You will need three times as much water as spelt (around 450ml, in this case). Drain the soaked spelt, tip it into the boiling water and let it cook until tender.

If you’re using whole spelt, it will need around 40-60 minutes. Pearled spelt will cook in around 30 minutes.

6. Once the vegetables are well

roasted and browning nicely, remove the tray from the oven and let it cool for about 20 minutes. Next, mix in the remaining chopped basil leaves and spelt and serve at once.

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QUICK MEALS T&F

Potato Salad with Wholegrain Mustard and Parsley I used new potatoes for this recipe. They have a lovely texture which goes so well with the fresh-tasting dressing.

YOU WILL NEED:

6 large potatoes 1 large handful of fresh parsley 2 tabelspoons whole grain mustard 4 tablespoons olive oil juice of half a lemon 1 teaspoon lemon zest salt and pepper

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to the boil.

2. Scrub the potatoes to remove any soil or gritty bits and cut each one in half and then cut each piece into quarters.

3. When the water has reached a rolling boil, put in the chopped potatoes, cover the pan and let the potatoes cook until they are tender. (Poke them with a sharp knife or fork to check whether they’re done).

Drain the pot, and set the potatoes aside to cool.

4. Meanwhile, in a large bowl whisk together the mustard, the lemon juice and zest, and the olive oil.

Mix in the potatoes while they are still warm so they can absorb the dressing.

4. Add the parsley, season with salt and pepper, and mix well.

Serve warm or cold.

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T&F QUICK MEALS

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QUICK MEALS T&F

Pasta salad with a pistachio, pumpkin seed, hemp and artichoke pesto

During the peak of the artichoke season, I make sure I have a good supply of hearts in my freezer which I use later in the year. I first clean the artichokes to be left with the hearts, then I quickly cook them with fresh garlic, olive oil and a little water. I usually freeze these in batches of 12 to 15 pieces and use then when needed. They came in very handy for this recipe. Artichokes should still be in season, so you’re still in time to freeze a few batches to use later. If you don’t have time for freshly cooked artichokes, use tinned artichoke hearts or some which you’d frozen. Just cook them to give them a better flavour.

YOU WILL NEED

100g raw shelled pistachio, powdered with a spice mill 80g pumpkin seeds – dry toasted, cooled, then powdered with a spice mill (you can keep some whole for serving) 50g shelled hemp seeds 12 to 14 artichoke heart halves (save a few for serving) 2 tablespoons chopped parsley 1 clove of garlic olive oil 6 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese freshly ground pepper pasta of your choice.

1. Place the artichoke hearts in a pan with in

a little garlic and olive oil and a bit of water and let them simmer, covered, for 10 minutes.

Save the cooking juices. You’ll need them.

2. Place the cooked artichoke hearts and some of the cooking juices into a food processor. Set the rest aside as you might need to adjust the consistency later.

3. Add the chopped parsley, one clove of garlic, 6 tablespoons of olive oil and half the hemp, pistachio and pumpkin seeds to the processor and blend everything together until you have a smooth paste. You might need to add some more liquid from the artichokes if it’s too dry.

4. Fold in the cheese and add a little more olive oil, if needed.

5. Bring a large pot of salted water to the boil, add

the pasta and let it cook until it is al dente.

6. Drain the pasta and stir it into the artichoke paste.

Season, and sprinkle with the remaining hemp, pistachio and pumpkin seeds, and the reserved artichokes halves. Serve this warm or cold as a salad.

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T&F QUICK MEALS

Hummus with a black chickpea and fresh bean salad I served this together with cheeses, olives, mixed nuts, crackers, roasted veggies and other bits I had in my fridge. This makes a beautiful lunch and is ideal for nibbles with drinks.

FOR THE HUMMUS

1 can of chick peas (reserve the water from the can and set it aside) 1 tablespoon tahini 2 tablespoon olive oil 1 clove of garlic a sprinkle of ground cumin FOR THE SALAD

1 can black chick peas a handful of broad beans (peeled twice) 1 clove of garlic 1 handful of parsley 1 teaspoon sugar salt and pepper olive oil white wine vinegar

1. First, make the hummus.

Put all the ingredients into a food processor and blitz to a very smooth paste. If the mixture is dry, add some of the chickpea water to loosen it, and blend it well.

2. To make the salad, first drain and rinse the black chick peas and put them in a large mixing bowl.

Add the broad beans, grated or minced fresh garlic, finely chopped parsley and sugar, and mix everything together.

3. Drizzle with olive oil and a tablespoon of vinegar and season to taste, stir and serve with bean salad over the hummus.

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T&F QUICK MEALS

Broccoli salad

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QUICK MEALS T&F

Serve this with hard-boiled egg, cold chicken or smoked fish. There’s very little cooking involved so don’t be put off by the long list of ingredients.

YOU WILL NEED

10 baby potatoes, unpeeled 1 small broccoli, boiled whole for 2 minutes, cooled quickly in cold water and drained 1 avocado ½ an apple a small red onion ½ a cup of frozen or tinned garden peas - rinsed 1 can of chickpeas 1 tablespoon smoked paprika ¼ teaspoon turmeric ¼ teaspoon garam masala olive oil 2 tablespoon white wine vinegar 1 tablespoon Greek yoghurt (or a vegan option if you prefer) lemon zest and juice 1 small handful of fresh mint leaves 1 small handful of fresh dill 100g of fresh baby spinach leaves

1. Bring a pot of water to the boil.

Add the unskinned baby potatoes and cook them until tender. Drain the pot, let the potatoes cool down properly and then cut them in half.

2. Prepare a bowl of iced water. Bring another pot of water to the boil and cook the broccoli for 2 minutes until it turns bright green. Remove the broccoli from the pot and plunge it into the iced water to stop it cooking, then drain it and set it aside.

3. Drain the chickpeas and drizzle them with olive oil. Sprinkle them with the turmeric, smoked paprika and garam masala, and toast the mixture in a dry pan for about 5 to 8 minutes until all the spices are absorbed. Set the pan aside.

4. In a large bowl, whisk together 5 tablespoons of olive oil, 2 tablespoons of vinegar, 1 tablespoon of Greek yoghurt and the lemon juice and zest.

Add the potato halves, the chopped broccoli and the herbs and toss well.

5. Now, add the finely chopped

onion and apple, the spinach, avocado, chick peas and peas, and season the salad to taste.

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T&F QUICK MEALS

Roasted Cauliflower with Rosemary This can be served warm or cold, and is really easy to prepare.

YOU WILL NEED

1 small cauliflower some olive oil salt spice mix of your liking (I used a steak seasoning spice mix) fresh rosemary

1. Preheat oven to 190°C.

Wash the cauliflower well and break it up into florettes. Rinse the rosemary sprigs and shake them to remove excess water.

2. Put the cauliflower pieces into a large mixing bowl and drizzle them with olive oil. Sprinkle with the spice seasoning and salt and toss until well coated.

3. Place the seasoned cauliflower on a baking sheet. Remove the rosemary leaves from their stems by running the sprig between your thumb and forefinger. Sprinkle the leaves over the cauliflower.

4. Now, place the tray in the preheated oven and let the cauliflower roast until it turns golden at the edges. This will take about 15-20 minutes.

5. If you are serving this

warm, quickly spoon the roasted cauliflower onto a warmed serving dish.

If serving cold, simply set the tray aside to cool down completely.

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ISSUE 146 MAY 2022

T&F ART

BLOOMING LOVELY

It is rare to discover a masterpiece painted by a woman – not for lack of talent, but because women were treated more as muses than masters throughout history. It is a real treat, then, to hear of an exhibition that celebrates art work by women, and spotlights not only their artistic talents, but also their contributions to science.

Jan Davidsz de Heem, Vase of Flowers, c.1670.

Canvas, 74.2 x 52.6 cm, Mauritshuis, The Hague (acquired by the Friends of the Mauritshuis Foundation with a major contribution from Hans Heinrich, Baron ThyssenBornemisza and the support of the Rembrandt Association, 1993).

Article by Megan Mallia. n Full Bloom is one of the special exhibitions commemorating the Mauritshuis’ bicentenary.

The works – which include around thirty paintings, alongside prints, drawings, and florigelia (gorgeously illustrated botany books), coming from the museum’s own collection and elsewhere – span the period between roughly 1600 and 1725, and at least a third of them are by women. Considering that male artists dominate the world of art history books, this is a refreshing change.

Women artists were actually celebrated in their own time and their work even entered royal and noble collections. Yet posthumously, their names were either forgotten or – based on the notion that a woman simply could not have painted so beautifully – their works were attributed to male contemporaries. This happened despite the prevalent opinion that the flower still life was a woman’s genre, with Dutch Golden Age painter and art theorist Gerard de Lairesse proclaiming in his 1707 Groot Schilderboek (“Great Book of Painting”), that no subject was “so feminine, or a woman’s most characteristic”. The still life has been considered the appropriate genre for women to work in, just as – or perhaps because – it has always been regarded

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as the lowest form within the artistic hierarchy. Women were barred from studying human anatomy and were thought to lack the knowledge and creativity needed to execute biblical or mythical scenes. Flowers were something they could handle, or so the thinking went.

Still life scenes were indeed devalued. In Looking at the Overlooked: Four Essays on Still Life Painting, art professor Norman Bryson argues that these domestic and seemingly trivial representations were feminine spaces.

The “male gaze” entered them through paraphernalia suggesting power and control – “masculine” attributes – such as maps and watches, on top of the fact that the painter might have been a man.

In this way, Bryson argues, the paintings may be read as the masculine world overriding the female perspective. But it is tempting to say that we could also read them as a redefinition of what it really means to be female – or male, for that matter.

Despite the general undervaluing of the genre in art history, the Dutch flower still life flourished during the seventeenth century, and not just among women artists. Until around 1630, the “impossible bouquet” was a hugely popular style. The painted bouquet was “impossible” because the artist

brought together flowers that bloomed at different times of the season, not to mention that it seemed to defy the laws of physics. Arranged as though all of the blooms were at the front of the vase, it would have toppled over before the artist could reach the easel.

Perhaps this magical thinking was part of the appeal, as well as the fact that each flower was meticulously painted from nature. For his Vase of Flowers in a Window (c. 1618), Ambrosius Bosschaert, for example, crafted the bouquet from flower sketches he had done throughout the year. The wealth of flower varieties depicted in “impossible bouquets” was a reflection of the exotic luxuries entering the Netherlands during the Dutch Golden Age. A shift in style came around 1630.

Bouquets grew less symmetrical; imperfection more attractive. Hans Bollongier’s 1639 Floral Still Life came out of this period. It illustrates how balance can still be achieved through an asymmetrical composition and, unlike the impossible bouquets, it has a sense of depth through clever variations in lighting. Perhaps it is no surprise that it should feature a fabulous host of tulips, a flower which, though considered quintessentially Dutch, actually came from Asia. Tulip mania was in the air, a fever in which some varieties of tulip

ART T&F

could cost as much as a canal house in Amsterdam. By the middle of the century, the more detailed and visually arresting the still life, the better. The “flower firework” was born. This style was all about spectacle and extravagance: ornate and opulent vases surrounded by insects and lizards, glimmering with light, dazzling with colour.

The vase in Jan Davidsz de Heem’s Vase With Flowers (c. 1670) can barely contain its copious blooms, and, typical of the fashion of the period, the painting contains a special detail: the sky and studio windowsill are reflected in the glass vase.

It was a return to more subdued depictions rather than fireworks that heralded the turn of the century. And it was during this time that some of the successful women still life artists worked. Rachel Ruysch painted until she was 85, marking a career spanning over six decades, during which time she also brought up ten children. In her life, she surpassed Amsterdam’s most notable flower painter, Willem van Aelst, to whom she was apprenticed around the age of fifteen or sixteen.

Her sister, Anna, painted in a similar style. Their father was a botanist and supervisor of the Amsterdam botanical garden, among other things, so they likely drew inspiration from there.

Far fewer paintings done by Anna are known because, unlike Rachel, she painted for pleasure rather than as a profession, and in addition, as was then common, she rarely signed her work.

Some 150 paintings by Rachel are still known today, one of which depicts a bouquet past its prime. The flowers in her 1700 Vase With Flowers have begun to wilt, and the head of the one in the centre has been snipped off. That detail lends the painting more depth – both literally and metaphorically. Some read depictions of imperfect still life scenes as metaphors for the passage of time, as if they distil life into a simple scene.

If nothing else, cheeky touches like the chopped flower remind us that there is always a person behind the painting, wanting to be heard.

Maria Sibylla Merian is another woman worthy of note. She was an artist

but also a botanist and entomologist, whose oeuvre is comprised of botanical drawings and scientific publications. In 1699, at the age of 52, she travelled with her daughter from the Netherlands to Suriname in South America to study the insects of its jungles. From this voyage bloomed her magnum opus, Metamorphosis Insectorum Surinamensium (“The Metamorphosis of the Insects of Suriname”), which contained around sixty engravings illustrating the insects on or around their host plants. That she travelled in order to observe her subject in its natural habitat was significant. The still life genre which, after all, was traditionally considered ideal for women, had no need for mobility because of its easily accessible subject matter. Yet mobility was invaluable to any early modern artist for training and networking. Merian, then, shattered expectations.

In her own way, so did Agnes Block.

In 1687, the horticulturist and art collector managed to do something that nobody else in Europe had ever done before: she grew a tropical pineapple, in her own Amsterdam greenhouse.

Block collected hundreds of rare and exotic plant species, and though she did not paint herself, she invited others to her garden to do so. Several of these guest artists were women, including Merian. What a marvellous sight it must have been, groups of artists – men and women – gathered in a garden, stilling life in their art.

The Mauritshuis’ In Full Bloom promises to be an exhibition with something to delight everyone: beautiful flowers, nature in all its glory, science, and talented women. Even the walls of the exhibition room are a sight, made as they are from flower waste from the bulb industry – look closely enough, and you will be able to make out the delicate structures of leaves and petals.

A true work of art.

The Dutch flower still life flourished during the seventeenth century, and not just among women artists.

In Full Bloom runs at the Mauritshuis in The Hague in the Netherlands, until 6th June 2022. Living true to the exhibition’s name, the museum’s façade will be gradually transformed over the year into an ‘impossible bouquet’ with imitation flowers being added every few weeks.

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T&F PROMOTION

Hank’s.

An Institution Some things only get better with time and age.

Just a few things admittedly - like wine, (a few) cheeses, whisky, a leather jacket, or an antique piece of jewellery, and, it must be said, Jon Hamm.

I

t gets a little harder when trying to recall places that age gracefully. Most of the ones that come to mind are those delightful time-capsule spots that remain untarnished by the throes of modernisation.

Henry J. Beans may not have been around as long as some other places. It is, however, decidedly a staple, a fixture, a well-loved spot by people of all ages, which has remained a constant on this ever-changing island, for over 26 years.

So much so, that anyone who was born or has lived on the island for a decent number of years would have, at some point, visited Hank’s - as it is more affectionately known. It could have been for a birthday party, or a stag night. It could have been for after-work drinks with colleagues, or simply an excuse to indulge in happy-hour-and-a-half (between 5.30 and 7 pm). Your visit might have revolved around watching the next big match, or it could have even been for one of the legendary games nights.

Whatever the reason, this American-style diner oozes character. From its cosy and intimate leather-seated booths, to the often-retro playlist, to the propaganda posters and

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PROMOTION T&F

vintage memorabilia, there’s a vibe that is quintessentially, and unmistakably Hank’s.

For those craving summer and a well-deserved dose of Vitamin D, al fresco dining is available on the outdoor terrace, where you can relax, sun yourself and enjoy the sea breeze while enjoying your meal.

And then there’s the menu which teases your taste buds.

Every restaurant and eatery has its signature dish, and at Henry J. Bean’s that would be the “Rackin’Ribs” - smothered in a secret BBQ sauce, smoked Chicago style, and served with steakhouse fries and coleslaw. There is also a popular grill selection which includes a number of premium cuts cooked to perfection.

As far as the food selection goes, the menu is varied: with traditional American-inspired favourites, including loaded nachos, chicken wings, beer-battered onion rings and corn dogs, as well as a few lighter options such as wraps and salads.

Thank goodness there are a few good things that last. In a time where change is the only constant, Hank’s stays the same - reliable, trustworthy, and always a lot of fun.

Henry J. Bean’s offers patrons complimentary parking.

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T&F CUISINE

HOME COMFORT Michael Diacono reinterprets traditional Maltese family recipes for contemporary taste.

Styling and photography: Brian Grech Wine recommendation: Andrew Azzopardi Vintage tiles: Lazarus Tiles

A

fter many years of cooking and experimenting with different cuisines, lately I find myself exploring the Maltese kitchen much more. Yes, admittedly as a country we are restricted by our size and lack of agricultural land and, yes, history has not been kind to us culinary-wise. But, as with language, a national kitchen evolves and changes over time. Maltese cuisine, in my opinion, is now more outward looking, modern and fresh. A wondrous blend of what was and is, is now being created.

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CUISINE T&F

Tiles Top: Bauhaus Mattew, salvaged from an apartment on Amery Street in Sliema Bottom: Kappara Rosaria, from Triq Santa Katerina in Qormi

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T&F CUISINE

QARNIT MOQLI There are many ways that we cook octopus here in Malta, but simply frying it with a few good quality local ingredients is still my favourite. When it is in season, the strong flavour of Maltese radish (ravanell) just goes so well with the fried octopus in this dish.

1. Place the still frozen octopus into

a large pot. Cover with it water and bring the pot to the boil. Cook the octopus for approximately 1 hour until it is tender, then turn off the heat and leave it in the pot for another hour to cool in the cooking water.

2. Drain the pot and cut the octopus into pieces.

Serves: 4 as a starter

Preparation & cooking: 150 minutes

Recommended wine: A Maltese or Mediterranean style rosé

YOU WILL NEED

1.2kg local octopus, frozen for at least 1 week Maltese extra-virgin olive oil 4 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped (you may reduce the amount) chilli finely chopped parsley a little chopped fresh marjoram (merqtux) sea salt and cracked pepper 2 tablespoons fresh breadcrumbs 4 radishes, sliced thinly and placed in a bowl of cold water TO SERVE

lemon wedges fresh ftira

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3. Heat some extra-virgin olive oil in a large frying pan and add the chopped garlic and as much chilli as you like. Stir fry for 1 minute, then add the octopus followed by the chopped parsley and marjoram.

Season with salt and pepper. Fry the octopus for a few minutes, turning it over once to colour both sides.

4. In a separate pan, fry the breadcrumbs in extra-virgin olive oil until they are golden and crunchy.

5. Serve the octopus with all the pan

juices to mop up with ftira, sprinkle it with the fried bread crumbs and garnish it with the sliced radishes.

CUISINE T&F

Tiles Top: Ottagonu Mużajk, salvaged from St Ignatius Junction in Sliema Bottom: Sqallija Terracotta, from Triq San Pawl, San Pawl il-Baħar

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T&F CUISINE

S T U F FAT M A LT I This is one of my mother’s crowdpleasers. The resulting sauce is so ‘dangerous’, as it cries out for mountains of Maltese bread to mop it all up. If any of her stuffat was left over, my mother would heat it up the next day and serve it with eggs poached in it.

Serves: 4 generously

Preparation & cooking: 2 hours

Recommended wine: A Maltese Gellewza blend

YOU WILL NEED

1.4 kg piece of fresh pork belly, skin off (use the skin in another recipe) olive oil, to fry 2 large onions, peeled and chopped 4 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped 1 tablespoon thick tomato paste 2 tins tomato pulp 3 good quality cinnamon sticks 1 teaspoon grated nutmeg 4 fresh bay leaves 1 tablespoon sugar (add more later, if needed) salt and pepper medium-sized waxy potatoes, peeled and halved

1. If you wish, ask your butcher to

remove the skin in one piece and save it for the “pulpettun” recipe.

Ask the butcher to slice the meat. I leave the bones in and am not fussed about how the meat is cut as long as the pieces are not too thin. About 3cm should do the trick. Have all your ingredients ready for cooking.

2. Heat olive oil in a large, deep casserole pan with a lid. Fry the pork in 2 or 3 batches till they colour on all sides. Season each batch with salt and pepper. Do not overcrowd your pan at this stage as you will not achieve a good sear.

Remove the cooked meat and place it in a bowl. Repeat the process till all the pork meat is browned. Add more oil to the pan, as necessary.

3. When all the meat is coloured, stir fry the onions and garlic in the same pot for 5 minutes till the vegetables are just starting to colour.

Next, add the tomato paste.

4. Stir fry the mixture for 2 minutes, scraping the bottom of the pan at the same time to remove any stuck bits, which will have a wonderful flavour.

5. Empty the tomato tins into the pot.

Fill up one of the cans with water then pour this into the other can before emptying the liquid into the pot.

6. Add the cinnamon, nutmeg, bay

leaves and sugar and season with salt and pepper. Next, add the potatoes.

Bring the pot to the boil, then reduce the heat drastically so that the sauce simply simmers gently. Cover the pot and let it cook for 90 minutes, stirring every so often, until the pork is very tender. Serve this piping hot with plenty of Maltese bread.

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CUISINE T&F

Tiles Top: Bauhaus Mattew, salvaged from an apartment on Amery Street in Sliema Bottom: Kappara Rosaria, from Triq Santa Katerina in Qormi

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T&F CUISINE

Tiles

FRITTURI TA L - Q A R A’ Ħ A M R A My father used to love these simple slices of Maltese red pumpkin fried in semolina which my mum used to make as a side dish. I have changed the recipe slightly by using flour instead of semolina for a lighter finish and served them with fresh mint to brighten up the flavours. I love them even served as a starter with some of that aioli used with the sfineċ.

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1. Cut the peeled pumpkin into

1cm-thick slices and season the flour with salt and pepper.

2. Heat a good amount of olive oil in a pan (I find a non-stick pan works wonders when I’m making these).

YOU WILL NEED

Serves: 4 as a starter or a generous side dish

500g Maltese red pumpkin 2 eggs, lightly beaten flour Maltese sea salt freshly milled pepper olive oil to fry fresh mint and parsley to serve

Preparation & cooking: 30 minutes

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Recommended wine: A light and fruit-forward Cru Beaujolais

3. Working in batches, start by

Persikarja Saffi, salvaged from Triq Santu Wistin, iż-Żejtun. This marbling technique has sadly been lost - possibly due to the extra time needed for each tile during production, making them very expensive to produce.

running the pumpkin slices through the flour, then through the beaten eggs and once again through the flour before placing them into the hot oil.

4. Fry the fritters on moderate heat for about 3 minutes on each side.

Be very careful as, if the heat is too high, the pumpkin slices might brown before they are ready. They should be golden brown and still just slightly al dente. You might need to wipe the pan clean between batches.

5. Drain the cooked pumpkin slices

on kitchen paper and keep them warm until serving time. Just before serving, sprinkle them with Maltese sea salt and a good amount of fresh mint and chopped parsley.

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T&F CUISINE

SFINEĊ TA L - I N Ċ O VA Little balls of heavenly goodness. The saltiness of the anchovies is balanced by the addition of lemon peel into the batter. The aioli on the side to dip into just seals the deal.

Serves: 4 as a small appetiser

YOU WILL NEED

200g plain flour 1 teaspoon baking powder ½ teaspoon local sea salt ¼ teaspoon cracked pepper grated rind of ½ lemon 1 tablespoon chopped parsley 250ml still water approximately 16 anchovy fillets oil to deep fry FOR THE AOILI

1 whole fresh egg 1 teaspoon dry mustard powder 1 tablespoon white wine vinegar 1 teaspoon sugar salt and pepper 2 cloves garlic 100ml vegetable oil

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Tiles

Preparation Recommended & cooking: wine: 150 minutes A refreshing and (including batter slightly sparkling resting time) Basque Txakoli

ISSUE 146 MAY 2022

Ħarrub ta' Ġuda Aħdar, salvaged from Vjal il-Ħelsien, Ħaż-Żebbuġ.

1. Sift the flour and baking powder

into a large mixing bowl and season with salt and pepper. Add the lemon rind and chopped parsley. Mix well, then pour in the water while stirring till the mixture forms into a thick paste. Keep stirring until the paste is smooth, without any lumps.

Cover the bowl with cling film and let it stand for about 2 hours.

2. Meanwhile, prepare the aioli.

I make this in the jug that came with my stick blender. Place all the ingredients into the jug. Push the stick blender all the way down to the bottom of the jug before you turn it on. Then, pull the stick up to the top slowly while blending.

The sauce emulsifies quickly and is ready to use at once.

3. To make the sfineċ, have a small bowl ready-filled with water and prepare 2 tablespoons by dipping them in the water. Heat a good amount of vegetable oil in a deep pot or use a deep fryer.

4. Place the anchovies into the batter one by one and use the 2 wet tablespoons to scoop out small balls of batter and the anchovy into the hot oil. Fry for 4-5 minutes till golden then drain on kitchen towel before serving hot.

5. I garnished these with wild

local rocket (gargir) and served them with the aioli on the side.

T&F CUISINE

Tiles Top: Orkida Ħamra, from Triq iċ-Ċimiterju, Ħaż-Żabbar.

Middle: Raġġiera, salvaged from Triq Ġuże Pace in Ħamrun.

Below: Ingliża Storja, salvaged from a skip in Norfolk Street in Sliema.

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CUISINE T&F

S I Ċ Ċ B I L - PATATA L - FO R N The norm here in Malta is to serve cuttlefish stewed in tomatoes, or in its own ink, on a plate of pasta.

Admittedly, it’s delicious and I have absolutely no problem with this.

But then, I thought, our neighbours much further north serve this on polenta. Why not try it with our delicious roasties? They’re excellent.

Serves: 4 persons

Preparation & cooking: 120 minutes

Recommended wine: A Bordeaux blanc (white)

YOU WILL NEED:

1 kg fresh cuttlefish, ink sacs retained extra-virgin olive oil 1 large onion, peeled and diced 4 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped chilli salt and pepper 1 glass dry white wine 1 tin tomato pulp 2 teaspoon sugar FOR THE ROAST POTATOES

800g waxy potatoes, peeled 1 onion, peeled 2 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped 2 medium tomatoes, thickly sliced 1 teaspoon fennel seeds about 10 basil leaves 2 sprigs fresh thyme, leaves stripped from stalk sea salt and pepper A good drizzle extra-virgin olive oil

1. Trim and wash the cuttlefish, then

cut them into thick strips. If they are large, cut the heads in half. Heat some extra-virgin olive oil in a deep pot and then add the diced onion and chopped garlic together with some chilli, according to taste.

2. Stir fry the mixture for a few minutes until the onions have just started to brown, then add the cuttlefish and fry it for 5 to 8 minutes. The fish will release liquid which you need to reduce before adding anything else.

3. Season the mixture with salt and pepper and douse it with the white wine. Reduce the wine, then empty the tomato cans into the pot. Fill the can with water and then pour this into the pot. Add sugar. When the sauce starts to boil reduce the heat, cover the pot and let it simmer for about 1 hour till the cuttlefish is tender.

4. You might want to wear gloves for this step. Place the retained ink sacs into a small bowl. Usually, I then pierce them with a sharp knife or scissors and add a small amount of water to the bowl to loosen the ink.

5. As the cuttlefish is cooking,

preheat the oven to 190°C, cut the potatoes into 1cm-thick slices and transfer them to a baking pan. Top the potatoes with the rest of the ingredients and mix them in lightly.

Add 1 small glass of water to the dish, then bake it, uncovered, for 40 minutes. You might need to toss the mixture once during cooking.

6. Add the ink to the cooking pot

and stir it in at once. Scrape out the small bowl into the sauce and let the sauce simmer for about 5 more minutes only. Serve hot.

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T&F CUISINE

PULPETTUN FIL-BRODU I always loved pulpettun, our answer to meatloaf. My mother would wrap hers in mindil (caul fat) and bake it in the oven with roast potatoes. My version is a bit unusual, and maybe a bit richer, as I wrap the meat in pork skin and then boil to produce an unctuous broth.

Tiles Torka Dehbija, from Triq il-Palma, ir-Raħal Ġdid

YOU WILL NEED:

Serves: 6 persons

Preparation & cooking: 180 minutes

Recommended wine: An unoaked fresh-style Chenin Blanc

500g mixed pork and beef mince 200g fresh pork liver, cut into small cubes ½ a stale loaf of Maltese bread, crust removed and turned into crumbs salt and pepper 80g grated Parmesan 3 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped a handful parsley, chopped 2 eggs to bind 2 hard boiled eggs 1 large piece of pork skin 1 onion, peeled and chopped 2 carrots, peeled and chopped 2 marrows or zucchini, chopped a few stalks and leaves of karfus (Maltese celery)

1. Place the mince into a large mixing

bowl and add the chopped liver and breadcrumbs. Season well, then mix in the cheese, garlic and parsley. Bind the mixture with the two raw eggs.

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2. Place the pork skin on a flat board.

Spread the meat mix all over it. Cut the hard-boiled eggs into quarters and lay the quarters along the longest end. Roll up tightly and tie and secure the meat with kitchen twine.

3. Place the “pulpettun” into a large pot. Add the chopped vegetables and karfus then cover the meat with water.

Season the pot and place it on the heat. Cover it, and when the water reaches a boil, reduce the heat and let the pot bubble away slowly for 2 hours. Add a little water, if needed.

4. When done, serve the soup as a starter followed by the thickly sliced meat. Thick, chunky fries go particularly well with this.

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T&F WINE

IN SEARCH OF

QUALITY

In a world awash with wines of varying origins, Andrew Azzopardi has some advice on how to select a quality wine.

D

e gustibus non disputandum est. The Latin proverb rightly states that there can be no disputing one’s personal taste. If you enjoy the taste and flavours of a particular wine, let nobody tell you otherwise. This is not to say you shouldn’t experiment with new wines, but be confident in what you like and what you don’t and don’t be surprised if this changes over time or with experience.

My personal preferences vary not only depending on the company I’m in and the food that is served, but also on the context. This means that I may enjoy a particular wine simply due to the people with whom I’m sharing it, on the situation we’re in at the time, or on other factors that have nothing to do with the inherent quality of the wine itself. In other words, my go-to wine at a party is very different to my wine of choice when having dinner with a couple of friends on a Saturday night.

Using personal preference as the yardstick for quality is immeasurable and much too flexible when establishing what is a quality wine, however. In theory, quality is an

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objective matter and should be measurable and explainable.

Yet, in practice, it is extremely difficult to separate quality from subjective taste and understanding quality is crucial to taking your wine appreciation to the next level. The aim of international ratings is to give the consumer an unbiased score of quality for a wine, to help the consumer choose wine and better understand what to expect. Ratings don’t necessarily reflect how a wine’s taste. The focus is more on the quality of production and the wine’s typicity, that is, the traits of a particular wine that typify the style and region it is from.

Wine ratings were popularised in the 1980s by Robert Parker, a wine-author who went against the grain when rating wines for the consumer. Though not everybody agrees with his style and ratings, his 100-point system worked so well that he is still the most internationally recognised wine critic and his point-system quickly became the standard when rating wines.

Most international critics base their rating scores on six main characteristics: balance, intensity of flavours, complexity, clarity, typicity and length of finish.

WINE T&F

Balance refers to the harmony

and symmetry among all the wine’s components, without any one component overshadowing another.

Each component is so well integrated that the whole becomes greater than the sum of each component. For example, high enough acidity needs to be present to balance out the sugars for the wine not to be “cloying” or sickeningly sweet. One of the most famous sweet wines in the world – Sauternes – can have sugar levels up to 150g/litre, yet the wines are refreshing and enjoyable because their high levels of acidity balances out the sweetness. Other examples of balance include the integration of oak without overpowering primary fruit aromas.

Intensity of flavours refers to the concentration of aromas and flavours which are defined and easy to distinguish.

Clarity is where the precision of

Typicity – an outstanding

Complexity - excellent and complex wines are multi-layered. They showcase a variety of different flavours and nuances that evolve and change over time, unfurling different layers of aromas. Each flavour is gradually peeled away to unveil new aromas.

This sense of revealing new flavours and aromas is akin to discovering new clues to solving a mystery, prompting you to keep returning to the wine to discover yet another encapsulating flavour. On the other hand, simple wines are one-dimensional, possibly showcasing one straightforward and direct flavour. Though complexity is a sign of quality, there are some pure varietal expressions – such as Prosecco, or even Sancerre – that are intended to showcase clear and linear fresh fruit flavours, and not detract from the quality. These are still great wines.

Finish refers to the taste and sensations after you have swallowed (or spat out) the wine and describes the length of time and intensity that these sensations linger on. This trait is also extremely important in leaving a lasting impression of a wine which would invariably add to its quality. A wine with a “short” finish could never leave the same lasting impression as one with a longer finish.

each flavour is clear and unobstructed.

This is often compared to a perfectly tuned radio whose sound is without disturbance or interference of any sort.

This approach to tasting and evaluating wine has simplified the consumer’s search for quality, but it also has its own shortcomings.

Most experienced wine critics generally agree on the production quality of the wine, but there are often variations in the ratings of exceptional wines. I believe this is when personal taste comes into play. No matter how unbiased you try to be, it is very difficult to rate something that tends to arouse emotions.

Robert Parker was famous for enjoying big, bold, and plush wines and regularly awarded the more opulent wines higher scores. On the other hand, the British wine author and critic Jancis Robinson usually veers towards the more subtle and discreet wines, possibly even penalising wines that Robert Parker would have scored highest. When assessing wines, it is important to understand the source of the wine scores and to take the habits and taste of the scorer into consideration.

I habitually find myself preferring those wine critics whose wine preferences are closer to mine.

Due to the huge number of wines around the world, many wines are simply not rated. Avoiding these wines will undoubtedly lessen your overall wine experience. Unrated wines are not necessarily bad. Most of the best bargains I have ever got were from relatively unknown, unrated wineries that do not have the resources, history or contacts to be rated by international critics.

In the context of rating wine, I think it would be snobbish of me not to mention the popular Vivino app, an online marketplace and wine-tool which you can download on your Apple or Android device. You can use it to snap a photo of a bottle of wine and rate it out of 5 stars, and possibly add

wine is a quintessential example of its place of origin. These wines are true to their terroir and embody the style or place where they originate.

However, there are some wines that are intentionally made to be different from or atypical of their region and it would be unfair to use typicity alone as a quality indicator.

a description of your liking. You will have access to ratings of over 12.5 million different wines and the approximate price tag for each. The concept is great, especially if you use the app as a means of recording all the wines you’ve tasted and how you personally rate them. However, bear in mind that, similar to other community-based apps, like TripAdvisor, on Vivino anybody can rate a wine irrelevant of the extent of their personal experience or knowledge. The results are unfiltered which can skew ratings or show fewer scores for wines that may be complex to the untrained palate. That said, I do believe that, on the very popular wines, the app is generally quite close to most international critics’ scores. However, the price tags are often inaccurate, so check the actual price through other sources before you buy.

Wine ratings are a useful tool for every wine-lover and have improved the overall experience of wine for the everyday drinker. But those shortcuts have somewhat lessened the beauty of the poetry and passion that is, ultimately, the experience of wine. How can someone describe a qualitywine full of mystery and complexity that evokes emotion with a set of seemingly mathematical formulae? I have often had this discussion with fellow wine-lovers. While we may agree that ratings lack the heart, soul and character of experiencing a wine, nobody has found a better alternative yet for assessing a wine’s quality without trying it first. That means wine lovers will still need to explore wine quality personally. I’ll drink to that.

Andrew Azzopardi is a wine specialist certified by the Wine and Spirit Education Trust.

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T&F BREAKFAST

Baked Eggs Boiled, fried, or scrambled eggs are an easy breakfast.

Baked eggs take a bit more time and are ideal for a lazy weekend breakfast.

Serves 2 YOU WILL NEED

2 eggs 1 loose handful of mint leaves 8 spears of baby asparagus 2 generous handfuls of baby spinach leaves extra-virgin olive oil salt and pepper

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1. Rinse the spinach leaves and

asparagus and pat them them dry.

Cut off the heads of the asparagus spears about 4cm from the tip and roughly slice up the rest of the stems.

2. Heat some olive oil in a large pan

over a low heat. Toss the asparagus tips for a minute until they turn bright green. Remove and set aside. Add the rest of the chopped asparagus and let them cook, while stirring, until they start to brown.

Remove from the pan and layer them into lightly oiled ramekins.

3. Wipe down the pan and drizzle in a little more oil. Add the spinach leaves and stir them gently until they soften and wilt. Quickly transfer the wilted leaves to the ramekins.

4. Crack a fresh egg into each ramekin and season lightly with salt and pepper. Place the ramekins on a baking tray and transfer to a hot oven.

5. While the eggs cook, wash the

sprigs of mint leaves, and shake off the excess water. Strip the leaves from the stems and chop them finely. Put them in a small jug and add a glug of olive oil – just enough to form a loose mixture.

6. When the eggs are done to your

liking, take them out of the oven and drizzle them with the mint and oil mixture. Serve immediately.

© 2022 McDonald’s Corporation. All pictures shown are for illustration purposes only. Actual products may vary.

T&F DESSERT

Sweet DREAMS Turn some fresh fruit, nuts, and chocolate into a spread of moreish desserts.

PHOTOGRAPHY: CORINNE VELLA

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DESSERT T&F

Lemon yogurt cake with lavender Serves

6-8

YOU WILL NEED

275g granulated sugar 150g plain flour ½ teaspoon baking powder ½ teaspoon baking soda ¼ teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon edible lavender 225g Greek yogurt 2 eggs 110ml sunflower oil zest of 1 lemon 1 tablespoon lemon juice FOR THE ICING

120g icing sugar, sifted 1 egg white 1 teaspoon lemon juice

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C and line

a baking tin with non-stick paper.

2. Use a pestle and mortar to crush the lavender into the sugar. Sift the flour into a bowl and stir in the baking powder, baking soda, salt, and lavender sugar.

3. Lightly beat the eggs, then use a fork to stir in the yogurt and sunflower oil. Add the lemon zest and juice, stir, and pour the liquid into the dry ingredients. Mix lightly until all the ingredients are well combined.

4. Pour the cake batter into the lined baking tin and bake in the preheated oven for 50 minutes. Remove the cake from the oven and let it stand for a few minutes. Then remove the cake from the tin and put it on a wire rack to cool down completely.

5. Beat the egg white lightly with a fork, then

stir in the icing sugar until it dissolves. Add a teaspoon of lemon juice and stir. Drizzle the icing over the top of the cake, letting it run down the sides. Let the cake stand until the icing sets.

6. Serve this garnished with lavender flowers.

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T&F DESSERT

Strawberries with chocolate and caramel almonds YOU WILL NEED

400g fresh strawberries 75g dark chocolate 50g blanched almonds 50g white caster sugar juice of two lemons FOR THE COULIS

150g fresh strawberries 30g fine sugar 4 teaspoon lemon juice

1. To make the coulis, wash, hull and chop the

strawberries. Put them in a pan with the sugar and lemon juice and simmer them gently for around 10 minutes. Let the mixture cool, then blend it until smooth. Run the mixture through a fine sieve and store it in the fridge until needed.

2. Put the sugar in a pan and let it melt over a low heat, tilting the pan occasionally to ensure the sugar doesn’t burn. Once the sugar starts to colour, add the almonds and stir them till they’re evenly coated. Turn out the coated almonds onto a dish lined with non-stick paper, spread them out and set them aside to cool.

3. Wash and hull the remaining strawberries and cut the larger ones in half. Toss them with the freshly squeezed lemon juice.

4. To serve, put a ‘puddle’ of coulis onto a serving plate. Top that with strawberries, drizzle with any remaining lemon juice and sprinkle with chocolate flakes and caramelized almonds.

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DESSERT T&F

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T&F DESSERT

Orange salad with mint and pistachios YOU WILL NEED:

5 blood oranges 1 handful fresh mint leaves pistachio praline (see walnut cake recipe) 2 teaspoons caster sugar 2 tablespoons water orange flower water

1. Warm the water gently in a small

pan. Add the sugar and stir it until it dissolves. Remove the pan from the heat and let it cool down.

2. Place a few shards of pistachio

praline between two sheets of nonstick paper and use a rolling pin to crush them. Alternatively, chop them finely using a very sharp knife.

3. Slice the oranges thinly and trim the skin off each slice, reserving the zest.

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4. Reserve a few mint leaves for garnish and chop the rest finely.

5. On a platter or individual serving

plates, layer the orange slices sprinkling with chopped mint and crushed praline.

6. Add a few drops of orange flower

water to the syrup and drizzle it over the orange. Garnish with whole mint leaves and orange zest, and store in the fridge until serving time.

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T&F DESSERT

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DESSERT T&F

Walnut and orange cake with pistachio praline Light, simple, and perfect for accompanying freshly-brewed coffee.

YOU WILL NEED:

180g walnuts 180g golden caster sugar 3 eggs grated zest of 1 large orange 50g raw pistachios, unshelled and unsalted 50g white caster sugar

1. First, make the praline. Line a baking tray with

non-stick paper. Put the white caster sugar into a small pan and let it melt over a low heat. Tilt the pan occasionally to ensure all the sugar melts evenly.

2. When the sugar begins to colour, pour in the pistachios and stir them gently once to ensure they’re evenly coated. Quickly pour or spoon the pistachio praline onto the lined baking sheet and spread it out using a metal knife or the back of a spoon. Leave it to cool and set.

3. To make the cake, begin by lining a baking tin with non-stick paper and preheating the oven to 200°C. 4. Grind the walnuts coarsely and set them aside.

Next, whisk the eggs with the golden caster sugar until the mixture is thick and pale-coloured. Whisk in the orange zest, then fold in the ground walnuts.

5. Pour the mixture into the lined baking tin and bake the

cake until it is firm to the touch (around 35 minutes).

6. After removing the cake from the oven, let it

stand for several minutes, then remove it from the tin and let it cool down completely.

7. To serve, top the cake with shards of pistachio praline and a sprinkling of orange zest

Serves

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T&F DESSERTS

Serves

6-8

Berries in lemon syrup and zesty yogurt YOU WILL NEED

1 punnet blackberries, washed and chilled 1 punnet blueberries, washed and chilled 1 punnet raspberries, washed and chilled juice of 2 lemons grated zest of two oranges 4 tablespoons caster sugar 6 tablespoons Greek yogurt 3 tablespoons ground walnuts

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1. Warm the lemon juice.

Melt the caster sugar in a pan.

When it starts to caramelise, add the warmed lemon juice and stir gently over the heat for 3 minutes, until well combined. Set aside to cool.

2. Place the berries on serving plates and pour over the lemon caramel.

3. Mix the orange zest into the yogurt and place two tablespoonfuls of yogurt onto each serving plate.

4. Sprinkle the ground walnuts over the yogurt, and serve at once.

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T&F CONTEMPORARY DESIGN

The large artworks on the left are by Frank Portelli and once hung in one of Malta’s larger hotels. The wooden pin board still bears notes in the artist’s own handwriting. The woodworks, including the stairs, the terrace decking, and the custom-built kitchen, were supplied

by Brands International. The pendant light by Reggiani belonged to Frank Portelli, who was the brand's first international importer in the early 1960s. The other contemporary light fittings are from Elektra.

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CONTEMPORARY DESIGN T&F

OF

La Serenissima started life in an artist’s imagination. The studio that the late Frank Portelli designed for himself and in which he worked has now been transformed into a home for the next creative generation.

Architecture: Valentino Architects • Photography: Ramon Portelli

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T&F CONTEMPORARY DESIGN

“T

here’s a lot of family history in this place. Frank Portelli was an innovator who wasn’t afraid of experimentation. The home-studio he designed for himself is representative of this approach. We knew it was an exciting space as soon as we entered, and having already been familiar with the bold geometry of its exterior, we knew the interiors would be interesting to work with,” the architect, Peter Valentino, says. “Our task was to convert the artist’s studio at the top of his home into a space for living and sleeping.”

Frank Portelli, had designed the studio at the top of his house to be flooded with light. “There are several west- and south-facing windows, which made the space susceptible to heat gains, especially in the hot summer months,” Peter Valentino says. “This building was designed as an artist’s studio, and in a time when there was less awareness towards environmental considerations. Overall, we needed a solution that would convert a capsule for art-making into a comfortable, contemporary home.”

The design rationale developed out of the need to mitigate exposure to heat gain from direct sunlight. There is an expanse of exposed glazing with 45° angle skylights. The architect needed to create shade for comfortable interior, and the idea of building a terrace emerged from there. “The back wall was two metres high. Portelli had no need for views while he was making his art, and the studio wasn’t designed with openings low enough to look out from. This is not ideal in a living space where one would be more comfortable with a view out,” the architect says.

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This was an enjoyable design process rather than a difficult one.

CONTEMPORARY DESIGN T&F

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T&F CONTEMPORARY DESIGN

“T

his was an enjoyable design process rather than a difficult one. Our client – who is the current homeowner and actually Frank Portelli’s granddaughter – was also exceptionally open. Having a professional proximity to the design world herself, she was able to put a lot of trust in our decision-making. The success of the design was in large part built on the strength of that faith.”

The result is a new outdoor space, building a raised timber deck and new glass perimeter, set back deeper into the plan.

By removing the glazing from the angled skylights above the deck, the new raised space is converted into an outdoor terrace. The recessed south-facing glass shades the interiors from the intense summer sun, letting the lower winter sun in during colder months. With the deck being raised, this also meant that people could now look over the perimeter wall and gaze out at the view.

“The space beneath the deck is deep enough to form tree planters, bringing an element of green and a play of light and shade into the interior,” Peter Valentino says.

“One of our main intentions was to blur the boundaries between outside and inside. We therefore wanted a consistent material palette that would be warm, tactile and organic – timber was a natural choice in achieving this.”

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T&F CONTEMPORARY DESIGN

The triangular motif that features in much of Frank Portelli’s art, is carried throughout the interior, including in the door handles of the cupboard doors that now define the bathing, sleeping, and dressing areas. The joinery and decking are by Brands International.

“W

e had to be very sensitive to the fact that the studio was a very well-designed space already but needed to be transformed it into a comfortable residence. We wanted to retain Frank Portelli’s original, wall-sized pinboard. It’s where he developed his ideas, and it still carries his handwritten notes. Reusing all of the furniture that had been left in the studio was a no-brainer,” he adds. “Every dust-sheet we removed while looking through the space was a revelation. There were incredible pieces, original ones from the 1960s, like the pendant lamp over the dining table, and the Arco lamp. They were designer pieces we’d want to work with anyway, if we hadn’t found them there.”

For Tammy, the current owner, the pieces also had sentimental value. There’s a desk which her grandfather had designed and built himself, and designer pieces he had imported as a business venture that was too far ahead of its time, leaving behind a legacy of designer furniture and original light fixtures and fittings that have now found a permanent home where they once lay in storage. “He started importing at a time when Malta didn’t appreciate them,” Peter Valentino says. “He ended up with unsold stock. Fortunately, they were kept and have been restored for this project.”

The floor in what was the main working area was in terrazzo tile and not in a good condition, so that has been covered with a resin floor. In the central area, the original floor tiles designed by Frank Portelli are still there. “They were cut into triangles and made into beautiful pattern that echoed his cubist artistic style,” Peter Valentino says.

“Frank Portelli used a lot of triangular motifs in his art and in the house and studio he designed for himself.”

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Every dust-sheet we removed while looking through the space was a revelation.

T&F CONTEMPORARY DESIGN

One of our main intentions was to blur the boundaries between outside and inside.

T

he triangular motif is carried throughout the interior, right down to the door handles of the cupboard doors that have been installed to redefine the bathing, sleeping, and dressing areas and to create privacy in a space that had been designed as a studio and flooded with light and glass windows. The part under the skylight is now the dressing area and the spaces on either side, shielded from the large skylight, is for the sleeping quarters.

The conservatory to the side of the living area was also susceptible to heat gains and has been partitioned off to protect the interior against the summer heat. In the summer, the inner door is closed and the exterior door kept open so that heat is expelled. In winter, the order is reversed - the inner door is left open and the outer one kept closed, so that the trapped heat is drawn inwards, warming the interior.

“The bones of this living space had remarkable quality to them, and therefore we were working with foundational material that was universally valuable – strong composition, beautiful proportions, and innately stylish design details. Peter Valentino says. “It really did come out of an artist’s mind.”

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CONTEMPORARY DESIGN T&F

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T&F CONTEMPORARY DESIGN

Photographer Ramon Portelli, who took the shots of La Serenissima, is a grandson to the artist, Frank Portelli. We asked him what it was like looking at a familiar space through his creative lens.

The studio at the top of my grandparents’ house was like a treasure trove to me when I was a child. I have good memories of visiting with my parents and running up there while the adults were chatting downstairs, and rummaging around to see what I could find. It was a creative space, with tubes of paint lying here and there all stuck together, diaries of notes of my nannu’s ideas, and sketches and other notes stuck to the pin board that still lines the wall. There were always canvasses pinned up, but the space was always changing, an artist’s working studio and really interesting. It was my haven.

The house is unique. I don’t think there’s another with that type of glass ceiling. The design of the space goes well with my style of photography and it’s almost like my grandfather designed it with my style of photography in mind. I like photographing geometric shapes with strongly defined lines and colours, elements which are very prominent in his own work which I’m sure had a strong influence on my style of photography. It’s almost like things have come full circle. 30 years ago, “Frank Portelli the artist” designed this house which I ended up photographing.

I normally take scouting shots before shooting big projects to decide what time of day is best and to familiarise myself with the space beforehand.

This was different because I knew the place very well already, and a bit different to my usual projects because I knew how my grandad used the space. Photographing an interior or architecture project is usually about finding the best composition. With this, I wanted to show what was most important to my nannu as an artist, mainly the living and kitchen area which is where he used to do most of his work. The pin board on the wall still includes his notes in his own handwriting. I wanted to show the space as he would have wanted to show it.

I also rarely include people in my interiors – and when I do they might be blurred or barely recognizable – but I wanted to include my cousin, Tammy, in these photographs because it adds to the significance. Our nannu’s studio is more or less where we grew up and she lives there now. Of course, there’s the aspect of what the architect, Peter Valentino, wanted to show. Peter was there throughout the shoot and it was a creative, two-way conversation.

As we were going along he pointed out the parts of the project that were most important to him. For example, there was one shot – which was quite difficult – of the axis of the place and which was quite important, so it was good to have the architect there.

I can’t say I put in more effort into this shoot than I usually do, but it wasn’t just another interesting project for me. There are memories attached to it, to certain notes on the pin board in nannu’s own writing, like when he was finishing the cupola in Isla and he planned the work on the pin board.

He was older and ailing at the time, so there’s a lot of emotion attached to what is still there. The studio was his creative space, but also his unfinished dream. He designed the metal staircase, for instance, but hadn’t finished it.

I remember nannu drawing the plans freehand, sitting at the dining table at the family summer home in St Paul’s Bay, discussing technical details with my father, who is an architect. He designed the house with his own vision in mind and now it’s been given an extension of life. If it hadn’t been converted the way it has, it wouldn’t be the same. It could have easily been done insensitively.

It feels good seeing the way the studio has ended up, staying within the family, and to see it being appreciated. This also happened to be the first project I shot that has been featured internationally. It feels special knowing it was my nannu’s vision that helped me achieve this personal milestone and it’s extremely satisfying seeing Peter Valentino give it the conversion it deserved.

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HOME OF

CONTRA In the heart of a centuries-old village core, a contemporary home hidden behind an unassuming façade blends old and new with stunning effect.

Architecture: Daniel Scerri Periti • Structural engineering: Perit Ivan Buttigieg • Photography: Tonio Lombardi

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he tangle of streets at the heart of a Maltese village can seem impenetrable, shielding mysterious interiors behind thick walls and closed wooden doors. If you went inside, you might expect to find a jumble of rooms that were thrown together over centuries, filled with shadowy corners, flaking walls caused by rising damp, and a collection of furniture accumulated through necessity or convenience. Or you might be pleasantly surprised.

Behind one particular conventional façade in the old village core of Zejtun is a brightly-lit, sleek interior that opens out onto a pool and garden.

The building is part of a cluster of homes that have huddled for centuries around their own secluded patches of green in a quiet quarter. It was this peaceful feeling that had attracted the current owner to the place.

u The owner retained the idea of a traditional internal courtyard, realizing the concept as a double-height space at the heart of the house.

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he project brief was to create a contemporary family residence with the conveniences of the 21st century, while respecting the long history of the house. In practice, it entailed raising floors, building an upward extension, opening up the back façade of the house, and installing an insulated and ventilated system around the house’s outer shell to draw out moisture and humidity from the old walls and isolate the interior from heat losses and gains – all while retaining and restoring the original structure and street façade.

Transforming a 500-year old building into a comfortable home is not for the faint-hearted. Where does one begin? In the end, it seems it was the Mediterranean sunshine that set the scene here. The garden behind the house backs onto those of the neighbouring dwellings, creating a quiet oasis bathed in sunlight and shaded by trees, with wild grass that attracts birds and butterflies. The owner decided to open up the back façade, focusing the house onto the garden. The façade at that end of the house is south-facing and exposed to sunshine most of the day, all year round. The owner decided to open it up completely but needed to shield the house from the intense glare and potential heat gain of the sharp summer sun.

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old, traditional limestone work and the lighter contemporary interventions are complemented by a rich mix of textures, natural materials, and neutral colours.

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ustainability was a fundamental criterion when planning and designing the home, so the architects studied the movement and angles of the sun to determine how to shield the interior during the summer while allowing sunlight into the whole house in the winter months, when the sun is low. The owner kept the idea of the original traditional internal courtyard that serves to ventilate a house and keep it cool, realizing the concept as a double-height space at the heart the house. On hotter days, cool air can be drawn up from the basement while any heat generated inside the house escapes naturally as the warm air rises from the living area at ground level, up through the open floors to the roof where apertures are positioned to enable cross ventilation whichever way the wind blows. In cooler months, the ground floor fireplace and exposed chimney radiate heat at all levels of the house.

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he insulation on the outer shell prevents heat gain in summer and retains internal warmth in winter, helping to maintain a comfortable temperature. Rising damp and internal humidity, the bane of all old houses, is managed through a raised, ventilated floor. The space beneath the floor prevents ground damp from rising up the walls into the house by trapping the humidity and funneling it out through the natural air movement of a system of hidden pipework.

An old wall that could not be removed, dividing the main spaces of the home, was treated as a design feature, its thickness emphasised by deep, dark door jambs that serve an additional purpose – one was converted into an inbuilt bookcase, another into a breakfast bench area.

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…a quiet oasis bathed in sunlight and shaded by trees, with wild grass that attracts birds and butterflies.

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he old, traditional limestone work and the lighter contemporary interventions are complemented by a rich mix of textures, natural materials, and neutral colours. The hardness of exposed steel and fixed installations and apertures in dark bronze and grey contrasts with the warmth of raw wood and natural stone and with the softness of the woven fabric wallpaper. The old parts of the building remain visible, the contemporary interventions are visually identifiable, but both old and new are blended into something that is greater than the sum of the individual parts.

Outdoors, the once wild and untended garden has been transformed with the four natural elements in mind – earth, wind, fire, and water – and disarmingly simple planting that is carefully planned to offer shade, colour, and fragrance throughout the year. The pool is designed to emulate the shimmering appearance of the sea and is the result of painstaking experimentation with a blend of seven colours.

This house conversion project won a Commendation Award in the 2021 Interior Architecture Award for Residential Projects (MASP Awards).

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The pool is designed to emulate the shimmering appearance of the sea

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T&F TRENDS

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The next issue will be out in June with The Malta Independent on Sunday.

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p Marc Sadler explores the infinite possibilities of Slamp’s technopolymers with Accordèon, conjuring the image of a textile plissé or an accordion’s bellows. The newly launched battery-charged table version features a transparent shade finished in satin white, ensuring uniform lighting, and a white or matte black base and a semi-matte satin anodised aluminum stand, ensuring additional stability. Accordèon is perfect alone to illuminate an intimate dinner, or in multiples for events. The battery lasts up to 60 hours and can be recharged in multiples using the designated station. Find SLAMP exclusively available at ESS Ltd in Imriehel, with up to 20% off throughout May.

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