Meet up with Chef Ange Cananzi, Stella Mare restaurant +Added to my favoriteItem already present

Idyllic is the word that best describes the setting of this place!  The large, seated terrace opens entirely on the Mediterranean Sea offering an impregnable panoramic sight on the ocean.

On the other side, you can see the beautiful landscapes of the Balagne region. Comfortably set up on the deck of this amazing ship, let yourself be transported by the lapping of the waves and let your taste buds travel to the heart of the island's flavours. The orders of this seductive ship are in the trustworthy hands of Chef Ange Canazi.

As a child in Santa-Reparata-di-Balagna, little Ange used to go fishing with his father and cook with him the fish they brought home. A few years later, his first working experience was in local bakeries and cookie factories that intoxicated him with their sweet smells.

Due to various connections with passionate professionals and the richness of Corsica’s products, it certainly started off his vocation that he developed at the School of Balagne when it had just opened its doors for hospitality degrees in 1985.

Once he got his diploma, he tried and worked in all types of restaurant. From pizzerias and snack bars to traditional restaurants, but the luxurious Signora kitchens in Clavi caught his eye and made him want to be apart of gastronomic and refined cuisine.

Shortly after he opened his restaurant Pasquale Paoli in Ile Rousse in 2007 and was awarded a star the following year, one that he would keep until 2016. For more than twelve years, this renowned address delighted the taste buds of many lovers of Corsican cuisine, well beyond the town itself.

In 2020, his partner Sabine Acquaviva, owner of the Stella Mare, offered him a Chef position at her restaurant and worked there from 2001 to 2005. The chef therefore made sure to put know-how at the service of Stella Mare and treat the lovers of the finest products of the island in this enchanting setting.

Since Corscia is known for its fresh products, the chef does not refrain from a certain modernity by bringing his creative touch to traditional dishes. As a passionate cook committed to the development of the land, Ange Cananzi's motto is to give his interpretation of the Corsican tradition, according to the seasons, through a relaxed cuisine between land and sea, developing a beautiful aromatic palette. Letting us dive into his universe, he gives us his interpretation of the famous recipe of quenelle "Storzapretti" with bruccio and chard that he accompanies with a spider juice and sea fennel.

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The chefs’ go to places

Charcuterie : François Albertini à Loreto di Casinca 

Suckling lamb, cheese, brocciu : François Fondacci in Monticellu

Beef: Jean-Marc Nobili in Nessa

Fruit and vegetables: Stéphane Graziani in Santa-Reparata-di-Balagna

Olive oil: Jérôme Cananzi in Avapessa

THE MENUS

Average price on the board 48 €.

Stella Mare

20220 Ile Rousse

Tel : 04 95 60 05 76

STORZAPRETTI WITH SPIDER CRAB JUICE AND SEA FENNEL

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Ingredients for 4 people:

 1 kg of brocciu • 1 bunch of chard • 400 g of spinach • 1 branch of thyme • 2 bay leaves • 1 branch of fennel (preferably wild) • 1 bunch of sea fennel or samphire • Nepita (or marjoram) • 6 fresh mint leaves • 5 cloves of pink garlic • 4 yellow onions • 1 spider crab • 2 large potatoes • 3 whole eggs • Wheat flour • 100 g of tomato concentrate • Salt • White ground pepper

• Corsican fruity olive oil.

Prep : 45 minutes/cooking time: 2h

For the spider juice: Clean the spider crab, brush it, cut it into pieces and fry it with the aromatic garnish until it is brown. Moisten with the tomato paste, softened with water. Cook for 2 hours over low heat. Strain the juice and reduce it to a syrupy texture. 

For the Storzapretti: Drain the brocciu. Wash the chard and spinach, cut them finely and poach them in boiling water. Cool in ice cubes, then squeeze out the water.

Put in a bowl: brocciu, chard, spinach, eggs, mint, nepita, salt, pepper and stir with a marysee. Make quenelles and poach them in simmering salted water. When they rise to the surface they are cooked. Strain into a colander. Keep warm.

To prepare: Place each dumpling individually in a soup plate. Pour in the reduced spider crab juice and place 3 quenelles per plate. Add the poached sea fennel and pour in the fruity olive oil.

Accord mets-vin  
Pitraïa 2019 - Domaine Bernard Renucci 

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