As I searched through the refrigerator for items near their perish date — before leaving for the island for a few days — I found some heirloom carrots and Treviso radicchio, the same ingredients Laura had used a few weeks ago in a delicious dish from Marcella.  I decided to make it again, to supplement the leftover pasta from last night.

Simple ingredients: four carrots (three different colors), two small pieces of Treviso, olive oil and salt.

Slow cooking of the carrots, cut into 1/4″ disks, in 4 Tbs. of olive oil on medium-low heat for 30-45 minutes, to evaporate the moisture that dilutes the flavors and to caramelize the carrots slightly for a richer flavor.  Note that the original recipe says cook carrots for one to one-and-a-half hours.  Perhaps her heat was lower, but this worked well.

Subtle is the effect of introducing the bitter radicchio leaves into the dish most of the way through the cooking, both to soften their bite and to contrast with the sweetness of the carrots when cooked in this manner.

Sumptuous is the result on the palate when all the essences are slowly combined in the sauté pan and enhanced by a small amount of Kosher or sea salt heighten the sensations.

The match with Occhipinti SP68 was very good indeed.