Maria Grazia's teaches The Recipe Hunters her light version of the Bagna Cauda Recipe. The bagna càuda is a typical dish made in Piedmont, Italy. Traditionally it is comprised of salted anchovies, garlic, and extra virgin olive oil all mashed together and heated to form a dipping sauce. It is a dish that represents the convivial spirit of Piedmont to celebrate the grape harvest and the end of the farming season. Friends gather around the terracotta bagna cauda bowl dipping their winter vegetables or bread accompanied with wine. We were adopted by Grazia, our Piedmontese Mamma, who taught us the modern day trick to precook the garlic in milk to avoid garlic breath. We made the bagna càuda with panna (cream) and drizzled it over a zucchini and egg flan. This dish is so engrained in the Piemontese culture that there is a festival called bagna càuda where you can spend three days trying various bagna càudas in the wine taverns of Asti and the surrounding areas.
