italian kitchen secrets

Sicilian pesto (Pesto alla siciliana).

2011-04-07T09:17:00.000-07:00

As promised I'm here with a recipe.

This is a pesto recipe: I've already posted the genovese one, now it's time for "pesto alla siciliana"!

It's a lovely and tasty recipe, very quick and good for the summer season, you just need good cherry tomatoes and fresh ricotta cheese.

As often happens there are many version of this recipe: some don't include ricotta cheese, some use almonds instead of pine kernels son don't be surprised if you find the same recipe around with different ingredients.

4 servings:

1 garlic clove

a bunch of fresh basil

2/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil

1/2 cup grated Parmesan

1/4 cup pine kernels

2/3 cup fresh ricotta cheese (cow or goat)

2 cups cherry tomatoes

salt and pepper to taste

Open tomatoes in half and squeeze them to remove juice and seeds, put them into the mixer cup.

Add washed and dried basil leaves, pine kernels, oil, the garlic clove, Parmesan, ricotta cheese and oil.

Close the blender lid and mix for a while: you can choose pesto's thickness, if you like it creamy mix a little bit longer, if you prefer to taste pieces mix just few seconds.

Taste it and add salt and pepper, you can preserve it into a glass holder for about two days in refrigerator.

Cook the pasta you prefer, drain it and save a little cooking water, mix pasta with pesto and add water as needed to whisk well.

Easter surprise, I'm back!

2011-04-05T03:37:00.000-07:00

Lorenzo is almost one year old, this year has been full of wonderful moments and it has been really really hard sometime.

Now I'm starting to breathe once again, breastfeeding is at the end and I have some moments to write down something on this blog.

I received mails and comments, often very nice ones and they helped me deciding to come back.

I'm thinking about the recipe to post, I'll be back soon!

Welcome Lorenzo!

2010-06-20T11:32:00.000-07:00

On 29th May 2010 my little boy Lorenzo came to this world.

The hard final months of pregnancy and a predate childbirth are the main causes for my absence.

I don't really know when I' ll be able to write again because, you can figure, I have so much to manage with this new and deep experience.

I don't want to close this blog, I'm sure I'll be back one day, ready to write more and more recipes.

Feel free to leave your comments or suggestions, I'll read them for sure!

Take care!

Claudia

Bacon candies (Caramelle al bacon).

2010-04-25T09:07:00.000-07:00

I'm back for a while with a giant belly and a nice recipe I still didn't share with you.

It's an appetizer or an idea for a party, they're easy to prepare and really loved by children.

You need very simple ingredients and alluminium foil:

for about 20 candies you need:

a pack of sandwich bread (the white one, rectangular shaped)

bacon or italian pancetta

white creamy cheese like philadelphia

Spread cheese on the first bread slice, top it with another slice and spread cheese again, do the same untill last slice.

Now chop the bread tower with a long knife and make squares, mouth-sized.

Roll on each square a slice of bacon then close it into an alluminium foil giving the shape of a candy.

Do the same with all the squares then put in oven for about 15 min. at medium heat.

Serve hot or warm, they're fantastic!

Beer crostini ( Crostini alla birra).

2010-03-17T09:42:00.000-07:00

A quick recipe for a dinner with friends.

Beer- related to celebrate St. Patrick's day!

For 4 serves:

8 slices of stale- tuscan bread

3 1/2 oz. butter (non salted)

7 oz. cheese ( fontina or any other cheese that melt well)

1/2 cup beer

a sprinkle of black pepper

Toast bread in the oven then spread butter on the slices.

In a pan "bain-marie" let melt cheese chopped in cubes with beer mixing consistently.

Spread melted cheese on bread and add a sprinkle of black pepper then bake for 5-10 minutes at 345° F.

Have a nice time with this recipe!

2010-02-27T13:23:00.000-08:00

Today is time for a first course recipe.
It's quick, really savoury and saffron gives that chic touch that's never out of place.

This recipe is for 4 serves:

1 pound pasta ( short and big shape like rigatoni, fusilli, farfalle...)

8 oz. fresh sausage

1 bag saffron powder

1/2 cup fresh milk cream

salt and pepper

1 small onion chopped in tiny pieces

1 glass white dry wine

In a large saucepan fry lightly onion chops with a little oil then broke inside the pan the sausage in grains.
Let it cook and add the wine.
Meanwhile cook pasta "al dente".
When sausage is well cooked add milk cream and low the fire.
Let it simmer for few minutes and then add saffron: mix untill the sauce is evenly yellow.
Add salt and/or pepper if needed.
Drain pasta and pour into the saucepan.
Mix with the sauce on fire for a couple of minutes then serve.

Here we start to feel spring in the air, this dish is a sort of last cooking goodbye to winter and I'm quite happy because, even if I love cold and snow, this year we had too much of both.

Two-coloured ring-shaped cake ( Ciambellone bicolore).

2010-02-22T14:16:00.000-08:00

A nice recipe for morning breakfast or afternoon snack or...Well, whatever! LOL

I love it because I used to eat it when I was a child, my mum still often prepare it because it's quick, fast and have the smell of something made with love.

You need:

8 1/2 oz. all purpose flour

8 1/2 oz. sugar

3 eggs

4 1/2 oz. milk

4 1/2 oz. extra-virgin olive oil ( delicate taste)

1 bag baking powder

2 spoons cocoa powder

pearl sugar

Beat eggs with sugar untill smooth, add milk and oil and mix.

Add flour with baking powder and blend in.

Grease a ring- shaped cake pan and pour half of the mixture in it.

Into the half still in the bowl add cocoa and mix untill blended.

Pour gently over the first half and sprinkle with pearl sugar.

Put in preheated oven for about 40 minutes at 345 F°.

Oh now I'm starving to death for it, tomorrow I'll do a ciambellone! ^^

Hummus (Chickpeas sauce).

2010-02-18T01:58:00.000-08:00

I didn't write for so long but I had a lot to do: it's not only a matter of pregnancy, it's a matter of organization.

Medical check-ups, house revolution to change the guest room in baby room, storms into every baby-related shop to find the right stroller, the right cradle, the right everything.

Today I show you a recipe that's not Italian, it comes from Middle-east and it's common in Arabia as in Turkey as in many other countries around there.

I eat it quite often because a family friend teached me and I find it delicious on toasted bread or with raw vegetables like carrots, celery, tomatoes...

It's really really easy.

For 4 serves you need:

1 can boiled chickpeas

extra-virgin olive oil

salt

paprika or chili

1 garlic clove mashed

chopped parsley to decorate

1 spoon thaini (it's a paste made from sesame seeds, you can find it in ethnic shops)

Whisk all the ingredients untill you have a smooth cream, if it's too thick add a little water and mix well.

Sprinkle with parsley and serve room temperature or cold with toasted bread or raw vegetables.

Enjoy!!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

2010-01-01T04:00:00.000-08:00

2009 for me and my family has been a really hard year, lot of matters, unlucky and other ugly things.

I really really hope 2010 will be better, happy and quiet.

I wish the same to all the followers of this blog and everyone else.

Keep on reading...And cooking Italian way! ^^

Glass cookies ( Biscotti di vetro).

2009-12-18T09:22:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone!

I'm still here, hanging around my blogs: little time to post but I don't want to give up, really!

The pregnancy is going on very well but I still feel sickness even if I passed the first three months: it's a little trouble compared to the happyness of the event but it still could be a big trouble if you manage a kitchen blog. ;)

This recipe is easy as one two three, you just need shortcrust pastry to make cookies, cookie cutters and hard candies, the colours and the flavours you prefer.

Now spread pastry about 1/4 inch and cut the shapes you like.

Inside the shape cut another hole, the same shape but little or rounded, it depends only on your creativity.

Crush hard candies on a chopping board and with candy's crumbles fill the hole in the centre of the cookie.

Cook in preheated oven for about 15 minutes at 345 F°, the crumbles will melt and create a nice "glass" panel inside your cookie.

They're so beautiful you can use them to decorate your Christmas' tree...

They would be nice in heart shaped and red for Valentine's day!

Thanksgivings' little roasts (Arrostini del Ringraziamento).

2009-11-26T04:11:00.000-08:00

As I told to a blog reader in a comment in Italy Thanksgiving is not a holiday: we just celebrate Christmas.

This doesn't mean we don't know about this very important U.S.A. holiday and today on tv I saw a Thanksgivings' recipe really easy and fast that could be loved abroad.

Turkey is surely the main dish served during this day, turkeys are really big and I heard U.S. ovens are so big just to cook things like turkeys.

Is it true? :D

Our standard ovens are probably too little to cook a whole turkey, so this is my version of a classic recipe!

You need:

turkey's thin slices, 2 per person

some bacon in a single slice, how much depends on how many you are

1-2 red onions peeled and sliced

half a spoon of sweetcorn per person

a little dried prune without kernel per person

extra-virgin olive oil

salt

rosemary

white dry wine

all pourpose flour

string to tie meat on

Chop bacon in tiny pieces, put them in a pan with onions and stirfry for a while, then add sweetcorn and prunes and cook untill tastes are well amalgamated: this is the roasts' filling.

Spread a turkey slice and put a spoon of filling in it, close the slice with string, do it with every slice.

Pass the little roasts into the flour, then in the same pan where you stirfried the filling, add extra-virgin olive oil, heat it and put roasts in.

Let it cook with a glass of white dry wine and rosemary, add salt if needed.

Cook softly for about 25 minutes, then serve with mashed or creamed potadoes.

Happy Thanksgiving everybody!!

Mozzarella shots ( Bicchierini di mozzarella)

2009-11-24T12:15:00.000-08:00

Need a quick appetizer?

Do you want a nice "Italian style" entree?

This is what you need!

Take as many liquor glass (so, small and short) as the guests are, then you need:

mozzarella cheese (fresh, good, the one that if you cut you can see the milk dripping, not the plastic balls you find sometimes at supermarket)

a red and ripe tomato (more or less it depends on how many people you have to serve)

fresh basil leaves

extra-virgin olive oil

salt

PLEASE NOTE: this recipe is a lot better with "burrata" that is a special kind of mozzarella filled with milk cream and stripes of mozzarella itself.

It's a great cheese but I suppose it's not so easy to find abroad so I used mozzarella for this recipe.

If you find it anyway don't esitate: use burrata!

Crush the basil leaves with oil and a little salt untill you have a rough pesto alla genovese, put a coffee sppon of this pesto in each glass.

Now chop the mozzarella cheese in very tiny pieces, put them into the glasses, the same quantity in each, fill almost 'till the top.

Cut the tomato in very tiny cubes, season them with salt and oil, add a little spoon of them on top of mozzarella cheese.

Pay attention to put same quantity of the three ingredients in glasses, just to give all of them the same look.

Now you have a nice Italian flag appetizer, enjoy!

Yes, I' m alive.

2009-10-28T08:52:00.000-07:00

Yes, I'm alive, even if I don't write often.

To tell you the truth it's not my fault...

It's because I'm pregnant!

It's a big happy news, me and my husband (and the whole families and friends) are very very joyful and we feel so blessed!

Anyway pregnancy has got it's own side-effects...

I can't even think about food and recipes, even in abstract, because I suddenly feel so sick so I can't really face to update a food related blog :P.

I'm also quite tired and listless, I suppose it will gettin' better soon, I hope you don't stop checking this page!

With love,

Claudia

Onion soup ( Zuppa di cipolle)

2009-10-05T09:36:00.001-07:00

Maybe it's because the cold is slowly coming, maybe it's because I feel in need of comfort food but I'm here with a soup recipe again. :D

It' warm, creamy, tasty, cheap: anything better?

Don't worry about your breath, cooked onions don't make it smell!

For 4 serves you need:

2 tablespoon butter

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

15 small blonde onions

salt and pepper

4-5 cups meat (better) or canned broth

1 cup fontina cheese chopped in dices

1 1/2 cups grated Parmesan

8 big slices of rustic Italian bread, thick and stale

Heat in a big pan oil and butter, add finely sliced onions and let them stirfry mixing often.

Keep them on fire untill they're soft and golden.

Add salt and pepper.

In individual soup bowls put a dipper of meath broth, then a piece of stale bread, then cover with onions and add some fontina cubes.

Cover with another layer of bread and onions, add another little dipper of broth, spread a generous part of grated cheese.

Cover with an allumionion foil and put in preheated oven (around 375F°) and cook for about half an hour.

Check if the soup needs a little more broth, keep off the alluminium foil and cook 10 minutes more untill the grated cheese is brown, remove from the oven, let it rest for few minutes and serve hot or at least warm.

P.S.: You can use Pecorino cheese instead of Parmesan and another stringy cheese instead of Fontina if you can't find it.

Porcini mushrooms soup ( Zuppa di funghi porcini)

2009-09-28T13:07:00.000-07:00

Nice recipe to use one of the most delightful gift that come with the fall season.

I love mushrooms, any kind of mushrooms, porcini of course are favourite but not the only ones.

For 4 serves you need:

1 blonde onion

1 lb. cleaned porcini mushrooms

1 garlic clove

2 1/2 cups meat broth or canned broth

1 cup fresh milk cream

2 tablespoons butter

salt and pepper

fresh chopped parsley

rustic Italian style bread in slices

Mince onion and garlic, put them in a pan with butter and fry lightly.

Add porcini sliced in tiny slices, add them in the pan, let stew for a while.

Add broth and let it cook for about 10 minutes, add salt and pepper and parsley.

Remove 3 spoons of mushrooms from the pan, put what left in a mixer, add cream and mix.

Heat the soup you've obtained, puor in dishes, add the mushrooms you previously removed and serve with toasted bread slices seasoned with a little garlic and extravirgin olive oil.

Homemade chocolate and hazelnuts cream ( Nutella fatta in casa).

2009-09-22T13:14:00.000-07:00

Today I'm going to post the recipe of a famous Italian chocolate and nuts called "Nutella".

Of course this receipe will give you the chance of making it at home, tasty and healthy, sweetened as you want and witha great hazelnuts flavour.

The recipe is easy and quite quick, the only thing you must pay attention to is nuts whisking: you must obtain a smooth cream and it takes quite long, even half an hour with electric mixer.

You need:

5 oz. whole toasted hazelnuts

3 1/2 oz. milk chocolate

7 oz. dark chocolate

3 1/2 oz. sugar

1/2 cup whole milk

1/3 cup peanuts oil

vanilla seeds from a fresh vanilla bean

Put hazelnuts and sugar into the electric mixer and start whisking: whisk untill you have a greasy cream (it's nuts' oil) then add the two kind of chocolate in tiny pieces and whisk again.

Add milk and peanuts oil then vanilla seeds then mix well once again.

Put on fire, cook in a bain-marie for about 15 minutes, untill you have a thick cream, well amalgamated.

Let it get cold then pour in glass jam jar.

Store in the fridge, use within about 2 months.

It's great in the morning on fresh bread, every child in Italy eats it, I think you can compare Nutella to the American peanuts butter.

P.S. : this is the real Nutella in its packaging:

http://www.buttalapasta.it/wp-galleryo/pandoro-alla-nutella/la-nutella.jpg

Treviso's radicchio lasagna (Lasagne al radicchio di Treviso)

2009-09-17T06:59:00.000-07:00

Of course abroad the most famous kind of lasagna is made with white sauce and meat sauce but it's not the only kind of lasagna you can make.

You can serve vegetarian lasagna made with white sauce and vegetable ragu' just for istance; today I'll give you an idea for a very refined dinner or lunch, a kind of lasagna that you maybe can't find usually in Italian restaurant worldwide (or maybe yes, I don't know, but making it at home is better ;) ).

For 4 serves you need:

1 lb. treviso radicchio (or a red radicchio-chichory)

10 oz. fresh pasta for lasagna

3 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

1 oz. butter

1 oz. bacon

1 small white onion

2 garlic cloves

salt and pepper

freshly grated Parmesan

For the white sauce:

1/2 cup whole milk

5 tablespoon butter

2 1/2 oz. flour

salt

nutmeg

Take the radicchio and cut it in thin stripes, then wash and dry it well.

In a big pan heat oil and butter with onion and garlic cloves, add bacon in stripes and let it fry for few minutes then add radicchio, salt and pepper, cover and let it cook untill it's stewed.

To make white sauce melt in a pan the butter, add flour little by little, mixing: when you have a sort of thick cream add milk, salt and nutmeg, cook on low heat for 3 minutes after it comes to boiling point.

Boil pasta sheets in hot salty water, spread some butter in a oven-proof dish then pour white sauce, stewed radicchio, pasta and grated Parmesan in layers, finish with a generous spread of radicchio, Parmesan and white sauce: put in the oven for 40 minutes, if it becomes too brown cover with a sheet of alluminium.

You can prepare it a day in advance then put in the oven just in time for the guests arrival or even prepare it then freeze: it last for 2 month.

It's a great thing to avoid the pressure of cooking everything last minute!

Grilled squid with potadoes and lemon aromatic sauce ( Seppia con patate e salsa al limone aromatica)

2009-09-13T02:45:00.000-07:00

Easy recipe I did just last evening, it's tasty and light and squids are a kind of seafood that don't cost that much.

The photo you see is mine, I'm trying to getting better with food photographs but it's not easy at all.

For 2 serves you need:

2 squids, cleaned and without tentacles

1 lemon

salt and pepper

2 big potadoes (or more, up to you)

extra-virgin olive oil

chopped parsley

Stew potadoes untill they're soft, pell them off and slice.

Open the squids and cut them in 3 pieces each.

Make diagonal cuts on the pieces with a knife, being careful not to cut too deep: they are just a way to avoid squid curling during the cooking; make the cuts the way to obtain a nice grid.

In a little bowl squeeze the lemon, pay attention to seed of ourse.

Add extra-virgin olive oil, chopped parsley, salt and pepper and mix energetically, let it rest for about half an hour.

Grill the squid slices on a hot griddle 3 minutes on each side, put the sliced potadoes on the serving dish, add squids and pour the sauce after another energetically mix.

Enjoy your seafood!

White veal stew (Spezzatino di vitello in bianco)

2009-09-02T07:42:00.000-07:00

Back with a recipe today.
You could say it's good because for too long I missed my duty. ^^
This recipe is good to warm the first chilly autumn days, I love it so much!
Be sure to have bread enough to mop up the sauce from the plate!

For 4-6 serves:

3-4 pieces of veal for each serve

4 carrots

4 potadoes

1 glass white wine

flour

2-3 sage leaves

meath broth (canned one is ok)

2 oz. butter

salt and pepper as you like

Peel and chop carrots and potadoes in pieces big enough to avoid melting douring the cooking.
Pass the veal pieces in the flour, in a big pan melt the butter, add sage then meat.
Brown the pieces, add the wine glass, let it evaporate then add carrots and potadoes too.
Pour two dipper of meat broth, cook untill it's absorbed then add two more.
Continue untill the meat is ready and the vegetables are soft.
Pay attention: don't let the sauce too liquid, it must be thick; if needed let it condense on fire at the end of the cooking, taking off the meat and vegetables.
Serve hot with a plain salad or, even if it's not an Italian tradition at all, with steamed rice.
I prefer salad and bread of course! ;)

20.000 VISITS!

2009-09-01T11:21:00.000-07:00

A little bit late but...
Thanks to everyone, this blog reached the goal of 20.000 visits and I'm so proud and happy.
The sweet and yummy banner here is a gift from my lovely friend Aramisdream: she's my official grafic designer :D

BACK HOME!

2009-08-31T10:07:00.000-07:00

Yes, I'm back.

Quite tired because of the long flight, because of the jet lag, because coming back from a holiday is always tiring.

I had a lot of fun making SITCA courses on Samui Island ( http://www.sitca.net/), it's a very very nice school, with every facility you can desire, even personal stove.

It's clean, the teacher speak a great english, she's also so fun and it's beautiful to share classes with people from worldwide.

I loved fruit carving so much!

It's not something you do perfect the first time but it's not as difficult as it can seems.

The proof is in the photo: this is my carved watermelon...My first carved watermelon.

It's not all that bad don't you think?

HO-HO-HOLIDAYS

2009-07-26T06:16:00.000-07:00

I'm still alive and healthy but summer holidays are near and I've got so many things to do.

Clothes to wash, places to go, a friends' wedding, luggages to pack, things to buy and home to clean up.

This mean so little time to think about recipes to post, think about translation and photos and everything.

This year Thailand once again, I think we'll have a really good time, enjoy the place and relaxing and I'm going to attend a Thai cooking course.

I'm looking forward!!

Don't know if I'll write again before departing, anyway I wish to all the readers a beautiful and regenerating August!

See you around September!!

Pasta salad with mozzarella cheese and tomatoes ( Pasta alla crudaiola con mozzarella e pomodori)

2009-07-09T07:45:00.000-07:00

This is probably the easier recipe of cold/warm pasta you can find.

Often here in Italy pasta salads are filled with so many ingredients that they become real calories bombs and, according to my experience, abroad is the same if not worse.

The same with rice salads and I don't really like that mix of different tastes, so many that you can't almost understand what there's inside (and sometimes, when you use canned pasta salad mixture, is probably better...).

This dish instead is plain, simple, with few but good ingredients and you don't need a lot of time to prepare it.

For 4 serves you need:

1 pound short pasta: penne, rigatoni, tortiglioni, farfalle ( 1 pound for 4 is quite a large dish, you can use less pasta)

1 big mozzarella cheese (if you can find mozzarella made from buffalo's milk is even better)

extra-virgin olive oil

3 medium red and ripe tomatoes

5-6 fresh basil leaves, washed

salt and pepper how much you like

Cook pasta at least 2 hours before serving if you want it cold, half an hour before if you want it just warm.

In a big bowl put tomatoes and mozzarella cheese chopped in tiny cubes, add basil leaves, salt and pepper and a generous pour of oil.

Mix well, add cold or warm pasta, mix again.

Store in fridge if needed, mix again before serving.

You can add a garlic clove to preparation to give a stronger flavour.

Yoghurt pudding with fruits of the forest ( Budino allo yogurt con frutti di bosco)

2009-07-08T12:11:00.000-07:00

Today is my sister's birthday and the recipe I'm going to post is her favourite dessert.
The photo shows my pudding, made last sunday to celebrate her birthday with the family.
You can serve it with forest fruits or chocolate or caramel or even plain: it's so beautiful so white and shiny!
In this photo I added blackberries, the mould used was a silicone mould.
For this pudding you need:

1 pound white sweet yoghurt

6 oz. milk cream

4 tablespoon sugar

1 oz. gelatine

forest fruits

Soften gelatine in a cup with a little water, drain it and melt on low fire adding yoghurt and sugar.
In a separate bowl whip cream untill it's well whipped then add slowly the yoghurt mixture.
Pour in the mould, beat lightly the mould on the table to avoid air bubbles and empty parts then store in fridge for at least 3-4 hours.
Serve with fresh forest fruits or any other topping you like: a nice idea is adding honey and nuts, as is often served greek yoghurt.

Sauteed clams ( Sautè di vongole)

2009-07-06T08:35:00.000-07:00

And once again I post something that fits the summer season.

Here the weather is terrible: really hot but it's raining at least twice a day.

Of course it increases air humidity and the temperature seems even higher.

Me and my husband really love fish in general and in summer we try to eat it often douring the week.

Tomorrow is our wedding anniversary (two years, we're still at the beginning of a long trip :D) and almost surely we'll indulge on a romantic dinner in a nice (and a little expensive but hey...the recurrence justifies it!) fish restaurant not far from home.

Probably we'll eat something particular and classy but as starter I almost always ask for sauteed clams: it's a cheap dish but it's so tasty!

For 4 serves you need:

2 pounds and 1/4 fresh clams

1 garlic clove

white dry wine

extra-virgin olive oil

fresh washed and chopped parsley

4 bread slices, grilled as you do with bruschetta bread

Clams must rest in a big bowl filled with cold water and stored in a dark place for few hours to purge the sand: if there's a lot of sand change water once or twice.

After this time put them in a large pan under high fire: it will make them open, dump the ones that remain close, it means they were already dead and then not fresh ( it happens, even if you have the most fresh clams you can reach you always have to throw away some).

In another large pan stirfry garlic with a generous pour of oil, add a little wine, let it evaporate then add 2 spoons of chopped parsley and the juice that came out of the clams filtered with a fine strain (this juice is quite salty, so don't add too much if you have a lot and don't add salt).

Add the clams too and let it sautee for 3-4 minutes.

Put in a soup plate a grilled bread slice then cover with clams and their juice.

Serve hot or warm.

Delicious!!

P.S. : You can serve this dish as a starter or as a main dish, even as complete meal, it depends on quantity.

Baked pineapple (Ananas al forno)

2009-07-01T09:05:00.001-07:00

The " quick and easy recipes saga" continues: with this hot weather who wants to spend hours cooking between hot ovens, boiling pots and all the rest?

Baked pineapple is the perfect conclusion for a summer dinner, tasty but light, it's even tastyer (but less light :P) if you serve it with an ice-cream scoops or two.

For 4 serves you need:

1 pineapple

rhum

raw sugar

Clean the pineapple keeping off the skin, the two ends and the centre, slice it in 1/4 inches tall slices and put them on a baking tin.

Pour on each slice a spoon of rhum then sprinkle raw sugar on.

Put in the oven with the grill function for few minutes untill the sugar is getting caramelized.

Put in dishes with the ice-cream scoops and serve.

Ps. You can prepare pineapple the same way but on skrews, the presentation will be even more beautiful.

Fried fish mix ( Fritto misto di pesce)

2009-06-30T08:02:00.000-07:00

This recipe is a must of holiday dinners, expecially in my zone ( Rimini- Adriatic Riviera).

It's so tasty, surely not dietetic but you know, when you're on holiday calories don't count...

You can see whole families at restaurants sharing generous portions of this fried mix: the most common mix is made of shrimps and squid rings but you can add anchovies (fresh, not salted), little fish of any kind, even some vegetables like courgettes' sticks.

For 4 serves you need:

7 oz. squid rings

7 oz. cleaned shrimps (just leave tails)

5 oz. anchovies

5 oz. courgettes chopped in sticks

flour

2 lemons

salt

frying oil

If the fish is wet dry it with kitchen paper, pass it in the flour and shake a little to keep exceeding flour off.

Do the same with courgettes' sticks.

Fry fish and vegetable in a large pan filled with hot frying oil, not too much fish altogether, rember that courgettes need few minutes more than fish to get ready.

Drain the oil putting the fried fish on kitchen paper, add salt and serve immediately with lemon segments.

In Italy there are many different fried mix, this is the most famous but sooner or later I'll post even others ^^.

Tomato salad with greek yogurt ( Insalata di pomodori con yogurt greco)

2009-06-26T07:47:00.000-07:00

I keep on going with summer and easy recipes, this one is so tasty according to me.

It remember me of my summers at university where I share an apartment not far from the sea with some Greek and English students: we had so much fun together, parties, tea times, plain dinners that became a fancy mix of food from our countries.

Now I start to become over-sentimental so let's go with the salad!

You can decide measures quite roughly, don't need weights :)

You need:

red and ripe tomatoes, I usually prefer San Marzano (the ones long and thin with less seeds that you can see in the picture)

fresh basil leaves

salt

pepper if you like

extra-virgin olive oil

a garlic clove if you like

greek yogurt, how much it depends on how many you are but I use roughly a big spoon of yogurt for each serve

Cut tomatoes in tiny cubes, put them in a bowl with their sauce, add salt, pepper, oil, garlic and the basil leaves well washed.

Mix well, add the greek yogurt, mix again and let rest in fridge for about a couple of hours mixing now and then.

Greek yogurt is really thick but mixed with oil and tomato sauce it will get dilute and your tomatoes will be covered with a tasty creamy sauce, quick and really healthy!

It's perfect with grilled meat or fish, with hamburgers or other dishes.

Salami nests (cestini di salame)

2009-06-23T04:25:00.000-07:00

Today I'm going to post a salami-based recipe.

This is because I've seen my recipe of chocolate salami posted on a site that celebrate the day of salami ( http://www.salamiday.com/ ).

I'm proud when I get quoted and I decided to add another sami-related idea.

This is too easy to be called recipe but it's a great informal party idea.

You just need large diameter salami slices, thin, as many as you need and a muffin mould.

Reverse the mould on a baking pan (this is to avoid salami's grease spreading on the bottom of you oven) then put a slice of salami on each mould's dome and press a little to give the shape of a little basket/nest.

Put in the oven for 10 minutes at 325 F°, the salami must be thick and crispy when you take it out of the oven.

Gently take the slices off the mould and now you can fill them with...

Whatever you want I can say.

Chips, olives, cheese cubes, mushrooms salad, russian salad...

Of course the nests must be prepared not too early and keep them fresh stored!

Potado cutlets ( Patacotolette)

2009-06-18T03:11:00.000-07:00

I'm back!

Tired and sick of this hot wheather (hot douring the week then raining on the week ends I plan to spend to the seaside...Lucky me) but relaxed enough to translate and post a new recipe.

This is quite unusual but funny, nice for children and quite healthy if you use a good frying oil and don't let it burn.

For 4 serves you need:

4 chicken breast's slices

1 potado, grated raw

2 eggs

7 oz. breadcrumb

2 tablespoons grated Parmesan

salt

frying oil

Prepare the crumble mixing grated potado, breadcrumb, cheese and salt.

Beat the 2 eggs apart then dip the slices in.

Once they're egg-covered pass them in the crumble, then once again in the beaten eggs then a last time in the crumble pressing a little with hands to stick the crumble at best.

Fry in a lot hot frying oil, serve with a green salad and a lemon slice.

So easy and quick!

You can of course change the kind of meat: turkey, veal or pork are suitable; you can also use grated Pecorino cheese instead of Parmesan.

Back from Milan!

2009-06-15T09:29:00.000-07:00

Oh what a nice week end Ihad in Milan!

Took the chance to see the Monet exhibition at Palazzo Reale, then I've just spent my time with friends, I had the luck to gather some of the best friends I have there and now I'm just a little bit in the doldrums because I have very few occasion to see them douring the year.

As soon as possible I'll start again with recipe posting, meanwhile I wish you a good week!

Very busy!

2009-06-07T09:54:00.000-07:00

In this period I haven't so much time to update my blogs: sometimes I write on the Italian one ( http://www.pavellina.splinder.com/) because of course writting in italian is easier and quicker.

To tell you the truth, work speaking, it's a very "empty" moment but just because of it I took so many different commitments from everyday swimming-pool course to some medical visits, from a friends-dedicated week end in Milan to cookie cooking for a hen party of a friend of my sister-in-law.

So...

Less work but a lot more to do.

It seems impossible but I swear it's true!

Now I'm preparing a nice recipe, one of the first I ever posted in this blog: http://italiankitchensecrets.blogspot.com/2008/04/vegetable-pastries-fagottini-con.html .

I hope my DH will be pleased, he loves them!

See you soon!

Salted mullet roe spaghetti ( Spaghetti alla bottarga)

2009-05-30T02:52:00.000-07:00

Salted mullet roe ( called "bottarga" in Italian) is a food speciality that comes from Sardinia island.

It's also called Mediterranean caviar because it's just fish eggs ( mullet ones are very esteemed because of their gentle taste but you can find bottarga made with tuna eggs and others) salted, pressed and matured.

Once bottarga was the lunch of fishermen when they were all day long on their boats: eggs and fish entrails were a property of "tonnarotti" ( fishermen who fish tuna), nowadays it' s a common pasta season: it must be grated the same way you do with Parmesan and it's the best way to serve and taste it.

For 4 serves you need:

1 garlic clove

extra-virgin olive oil in plenty

a piece of bottarga (about 2 1/2 oz.)

1 pound spaghetti

fresh parsley if you like, washed and chopped

Cook spaghetti in boiling water with salt (less than usual because bottarga is already salad).

Meanwhile grate bottarga, take a large bowl (large enough to serve pasta), pell the garlic clove and rub it on the whole inside of the bowl, then leave it on the bottom.

Add oil in the bowl, a lot of oil, grease the sides of the bowl too then sprinkle sides and bottom with a part of grated bottarga.

Drain spaghetti "al dente" with a big fork and put them in the bowl (don't use the classic colander because it could dry pasta too much).

Add the rest of bottarga, some more oil if needed, parsley.

Mix well and serve.

P.S. : you can find bottarga already grated or fresh, vacuum packed: prefer the second one, the aroma is better preserved than the first one!

Veal rolls with Parma ham and dates (Involtini di vitello con prosciutto e datteri)

2009-05-27T07:49:00.000-07:00

Im back with an unusual recipe, it's so tasty and could be served as warm starter or a second dish (well, I prefer it as starter).

For 4 serves you need:

4 thin veal slices

4 whole slices of Parma ham

8 dates (more or less, it depends on how big they are)

salt

black pepper

sage

mustard sauce

Beat the meat if necessary to make it regoular and thin.
Spread on each slice some mustar sauce, cover with a slice of parma ham, add a date (without stone) and roll the meat.
Close with a toothpick or even better with those silicone laces that close so well and can be removed without break the roll.
Add salt and pepper, heat a pan with some extra-virgin olive oil and sage, cook rolls and serve warm.
If rolls are too big for an appetizer cut them in half with a well sharped knife.

Icing cookies ( Biscotti glassati) second try

2009-05-17T14:18:00.000-07:00

This is not a recipe post but a "show off" about what I made this week end, taking inspiration from Pam ( http://cookiecrazie.blogspot.com/ ).
I've piped them, unluckly I have only one sac a poche so I can manage just one color at time...It's not so comfortable, next time I'll try to have more material to work with.
I think I'll not have the heart to eat the ones with my name and my husband's name on :)

Spelt salad with tomatoes, arugula, grated Parmesan and balsamic vinegar (Insalata di farro con pomodori, rucola, Grana e balsamico)

2009-05-15T02:38:00.000-07:00

Today an easy and tasty recipe that fits the need of something fresh and light we have with the first really hot days of the year.
Spelt is a cereal, quite common in Italy, very used in some regions like Tuscany and Umbria.
It grows even in poor grounds, it's the less calorific cereal and contains about the 15 % in proteins.

For 2-3 persons you need:

7 oz. spelt

salt

extra-virgin olive oil

some red and ripe tomatoes (great the cherry ones)

a bunch of fresh arugula

3 spoons of freshly grated parmesan

3 spoons of good balsamic vinegar

Let the spelt soaking all night long, then cook it in salty water the time written on the packaging.
Drain it and let it get cold, meanwhile cut tomatoes in little cubes, if you have cherry tomatoes split them in 4 parts.
Put them in a bowl and add cold spelt, olive oil as much as needed, Parmesan and balsamic vinegar.
Mix very well then put on the serving dish.
You can spread it or put it into a big round-shaped cookie cutter to give it a most elegant presentation.
Put on top of spelt fresh arugula well washed then add another drizzle of oil and vinegar.
Isn't it tasty and nice?
Enjoy it!

Mother's day (Festa della mamma)

2009-05-10T09:44:00.000-07:00

I hadn't so much time to go in search of presents and to tell you the truth we're not so involved in this kind of celebrations (quite more an occasion to spend than to celebrate...).

But today we had to go to my grandma's house for lunch so I decided (yesterday at 11 p.m., I should have decided some hours earlier...But I'm a sort of night bird) to make a cake.

Something easy & peasy, just a shell of pastry with egg custard inside but because some pastry remained and I was so excited about my new purchases of food colours and sac a poche pipes I decided to make some heart cookies and two big flower cookies.

I decorated them with pink icing and these on the photos are the results.

Do you like them?

Fillo pastry rolls with cheese and honey (Caramelle di pasta fillo con formaggio e miele)

2009-05-07T07:57:00.001-07:00

I'm back with a really easy recipe great as appetizer or part of a buffet table.

For about 10-12 serves you need:

1 roll of fillo pastry

1 pack stringy cheese

honey

extravirgin olive oil

Cut the fillo pastry in little squares, sized them to fit the mouth in one bite.

Brush the fillo's sheets with olive oil, then put a cube of cheese and close the roll (the shape you prefer).

Bake in oven 120 F° for about 10 minutes then brush them with some honey while they're still hot then serve.

Nice blogger

2009-05-03T09:41:00.000-07:00

This is my first blog prize: given by Mariagrazia ( http://sempreincucinaconallegria.blogspot.com/ ) make me so proud!
The prize rules are easy: just write a joke or a funny anectode on your blog then spread the prize to other 5 bloggers.
I prefer personal stories to jokes and this is mine:

I was at the very first of the relationship with the man who's now my dear husband.
We were far from each other fot the first time and we were on the phone chatting like only two newly lovers can do.
He said: "oh I miss your eyes, coloured like sea".
I (quite angry because my eyes are of a greenish brown) : "what are you saying? My eyes aren't bloe!! Who are you speaking about??"
My love, quite astonished: "but my dear...I live in Rimini, here the sea has got exactly that greenish-brown colour..."
I laughed for a week...
He was totally right!

Now the five blogs that, according to me, deserve this prize:

http://cookiecrazie.blogspot.com/ Pam from Cookie Crazie who helps me so much with my experiments in icing cookies

http://newlywedcooking.blogspot.com/ Sharon from Culinary adventures of a new wife

http://bellociccolato.blogspot.com/ Cynthia from Bello ciccolato

http://hanaaskitchen.blogspot.com/ Hanaa from Hanaa's kitchen

I hope the nice blogger I nominated will enjoy this prize!

P.S. : in Italian simpatico = nice ^^

http://tonispastries.blogspot.com/ Antonella from Toni's pastries

No-knead bread (Pane senza impastare)

2009-04-28T08:38:00.000-07:00

I didn't do it still, I discovered this recipe just yesterday evening but it seems great.

The recipe isn't Italian but from the photos I've seen this bread is ok to make great bruschette or croutons so why don't share this recipe with you?

It's long because of raising but it's also so easy!

You need:

3 cups all-purpose or bread flour, more for dusting

¼ teaspoon instant yeast

1¼ teaspoons salt

cornmeal or wheat bran as needed

In a large bowl combine flour, yeast and salt. Add 1 5/8 cups water, and stir until blended; dough will be shaggy and sticky.

Cover bowl with plastic wrap.

Let dough rest at least 12 hours, preferably about 18, at warm room temperature, about 70 degrees.

Dough is ready when its surface is dotted with bubbles.

Lightly flour a work surface and place dough on it; sprinkle it with a little more flour and fold it over on itself once or twice.

Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let rest about 15 minutes.

Using just enough flour to keep dough from sticking to work surface or to your fingers, gently and quickly shape dough into a ball.

Generously coat a cotton towel (not terry cloth) with flour, wheat bran or cornmeal; put dough seam side down on towel and dust with more flour, bran or cornmeal.

Cover with another cotton towel and let rise for about 2 hours.

When it is ready, dough will be more than double in size and will not readily spring back when poked with a finger.

At least a half-hour before dough is ready, heat oven to 450 degrees.

Put a 6- to 8-quart heavy covered pot (cast iron, enamel, Pyrex or ceramic) in oven as it heats. When dough is ready, carefully remove pot from oven.

Slide your hand under towel and turn dough over into pot, seam side up; it may look like a mess, but that is O.K.

Shake pan once or twice if dough is unevenly distributed; it will straighten out as it bakes.

Cover with lid and bake 30 minutes, then remove lid and bake another 15 to 30 minutes, until loaf is beautifully browned.

Cool on a rack.

P.S. The recipe is the original from New York Times, here it's the link to how-to-do video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=13Ah9ES2yTU

Chiken baked into the salt (Pollo al sale)

2009-04-20T11:28:00.000-07:00

First of all I have to say this is, more than a recipe, a way of cooking.

It's very tasty and very healthy because it doesn't need any kind of fat.

You can cook this way also fish like salmon or trouts, turkey or other kind of white meat in quite big pieces.

You need:

a whole chicken, cleaned inside

cooking salt about 8 pounds (it depends on how big is the chicken)

1 lemon well washed, preferably organic

rosemary

pepper

garlic

Put the lemon into the chicken, cover it and fill it with some rosemary and ground some pepper on the meat.

Put into a capacious pan a layer of cooking salt, put in the chicken then cover it with the rest of salt untill the meat is well sealed.

Put in the oven at high temperature, about 500°F for 1 hour and 15', then let it rest 30 minutes out of the oven.

Crush the salt crust with a knife handle or something hard then keep off the salt and serve chicken.

It will be tender and juicy because nothing was evaporated douring the cooking.

Of course the cooking time depends on the weight of the piece you're going to cook: pay attention!^^

Cuttle fish and potadoes in red (Seppia con patate in rosso)

2009-04-16T06:53:00.000-07:00

Great fish dish, not too expensive and good for children or elders because it's quite soft (if cuttle fish are cooked well).

You can use also squids, they're bigger, maybe a little less tasty but (here at least) even less expensive.

For 3-4 serves:

18 oz. little cuttle fishes

18 oz. podadoes

7 oz. peeled tomatoes

1 garlic clove

extra-virgin olive oil

1/2 glass of white wine

cooking salt

pepper (if you like)

black olives chopped (if you like)

chopped fresh parsley or thyme

Wash and clean cuttle fishes, cut it in tiny stripes.

Peel potadoes and chop them in pieces (not too big).

In a saucepan pour oil and add garlic, stirfry it for few minutes then add peeled tomatoes and their sauce.

Cook for about 5 minutes, add potadoes, cooking salt ( be carefull, not too much!) and let it cook for about other 10 minutes then add wine and let evaporate.

Now add cuttle fishes and thyme or parsely and cook again for about 20 minutes: it should be enough but it depends on how big are cuttle fishes so check them if they're still hard.

Four cheeses pasta ( Pasta ai quattro formaggi)

2009-04-14T03:22:00.000-07:00

Here we are, still sad but strong and hopefully.

Today a quick recipe, in poor words a tasty way to season pasta.

Gorgonzola cheese is quite savoury, if you don't like you can omitt it and use double parmesan or another cheese you like.

For 4 serves:

1 pound pasta (dried one: fusilli, maccheroni, penne or any kind of short shape)

1/3 cup grated parmesan

1 1/2 cup heavy cream

2 tablespoons butter

3 oz. gorgonzola cheese in crumbles

4 oz. fontina cheese in crumbles

3 oz. mascarpone cheese

black pepper if you like

Cook pasta the usual way untill it's al dente.

Meanwhile in a large saucepan heat butter and heavy cream on low heat.

Add cheeses and stir untill they're completely melted, then add pepper.

Drain pasta, pour it into the saucepan, stir and cook on medium heat for about 2 minutes, put in dishes and serve hot.

This sauce is great to season potado gnocchi too.

SILENCE

2009-04-06T09:00:00.000-07:00

I usually write only about food and cooking on this blog but sometimes there are things that can't be ignorated or untold.
In the middle of the past night a devastating hearquake hit a part of Central Italy, the Region of Abruzzo, the city of L'Aquila and its surroundings.
Too many people died, too many are still under rubbles: alive or not is hard to say.
In this scene of disaster solidarity from all the country comes to help: in the morning was asked for blood donating, in the afternoon the minister appeal to stop because was donated more blood than the hospitals in the whole region can stock.
At 6 o.c. in the morning the local rugby team was rescuing elders from a retirement home carrying them on their backs out of the house.
Everyone who can is helping now, I think of my friends there, they're ok but have so many relatives and friends without a home.
It's so painful.
No recipes today, you can understand.

Rice crispies and Mars cake ( Torta al riso soffiato e Mars)

2009-04-02T07:34:00.000-07:00

I suppose you well know what a Mars snack is.

To tell you the truth I can't find it tasty even if I'm fond of mou cream.

This cake is something that, according to me, only children can love...

But for their parties it's so useful because it's quick and can be stored for a long time, it doesn't need spoons, plates or forks and it's totally junk :P

You need:

6 mars snacks

8 1/2 oz. rice crispies (white or chocolate ones)

3 1/2 butter

Divide mars in little pieces, put in a pan with butter and let it melt "bagnomaria".

When butter and melted mars will be well amalgamated add rice crispies and mix, keeping on low heat always "bagnomaria".

Take a baking tin (better if it's one with border that can be opened), pour the mix and press well with a spoon or even hands.

Let it get cold at room temperature, before serving take it out of the tin and cut with a long knife in slices or squares or brills.

If you want to decor the cake put on the bottom of the cake tin coloured chocolate coriandoli then pour the mixture: they will remain sticked to the cake.

P.S. : I rember this recipe from my childhood, especially in birthday parties but I never did it personally.

On the web the measures vary a lot so try this one than seems to me a good proportion then adjust the recipe following your taste (more mars, less butter or whatever).

Giant homemade Oreos ( Biscotti al cioccolato accoppiati)

2009-03-30T09:31:00.000-07:00

Oreos are sold in Italy too but not very loved.

I know that abroad, instead, they're really really appreciated, especially in the English-speaking world ( U.K., U.S.A. ...).

This is a funny and easy recipe to have really big kind of Oreo cookies, perfect for children and teen-ager parties but even for unformal meetings with friends maybe for a tv- movie night.

For 4 serves you need:

3 1/2 oz. dark chocolate

6 oz. all purpose flour

1 egg

2 oz. bitter cocoa powder

1 1/2 oz. butter

2 oz. sugar

1 oz. icing sugar

vanilla flavour

a sprinkle of salt

1 cup milk cream

Chop chocolate and let it melt "bagnomaria".

Mix butter with sugar very well then add vanilla flavour, egg and the melted chocolate.

Add then cocoa, flour and a sprinkle of salt; mix again untill you have a smooth dough.

Stretch it with a roll-pin in a layer of about 1/4 inch, if it's stitcky don't add flour but icing sugar.

With a cookie cutter round shaped or a glass cut biscuits in even number.

Put them on a buttered baking tin and cook for about 8 minutes in pre-heated oven at 345°F.

Let them get cold, then whip milk cream with icing sugar, spread whipped cream on a cookie then cover with another.

Put in fridge for at least 2 hours then serve cold.

P.S. If you want to give a spicy touch you can add at the cookie dough a generous sprinkle of red chili pepper powder.

It fits great!

For adults only ;)

Vegetable burgers ( Hamburger di verdure)

2009-03-29T03:50:00.000-07:00

This is a great recipe for vegetarian and for children who don't love vegetable.

It's easy, quite quick and tasty, you can prepare mixture in advance.

For 4-6 serves you need:

about 2 lb mixed vegetables ( carrots, leeks, spinach, courgettes, green beans...)

7 oz. potadoes

2 eggs

1 egg white

4 tablespoons grated cheese

breadcrumb

basil

salt and pepper

frying oil

Boil potadoes in salted water.

Clean vegetables, chops them in pieces and boil "al dente".

Drain them then mince and let the remaining water drain.

Pass potadoes in the potadomasher.

Mix vegetables with potadoes, add eggs , cheese and minced basil plus salt and pepper.

Create little burgers, pass them into the egg white then in breadcrumb.

Heat oil in a pan then cook burgers untill they're gold on both sides.

Serve hot with a plain salad or into a sandwich like a meat hamburger.

Beans, tuna and red onion salad ( Insalata tonno fagioli e cipolla)

2009-03-24T09:50:00.000-07:00

Nothing easier, nothing faster this recipe is a informal appetizer or a quick single course.

It's common along all the Peninsula but you will not easily find it in restaurants because it's considered a little bit coarse...

But the taste is great and almost everyone, at home, prepare it now and then.

Of course you can omit onion if you don't like it or use the white one if you can't find the red.

For 4-6 serves:

4 cups cooked beans (Cannellini or Borlotti, in this preparation I prefer Borlotti but it depends on you; the canned ones work great)

2 medium cans oil packed tuna

1 small red onion sliced thin as much as possible

salt and pepper

extra-virgin olive oil

Drain beans from their water and tuna from its oil, put the beans in a big bowl and crush tuna to avoid too big pieces and add it to beans.

Add the sliced onion and season with salt, pepper and extra-virgin olive oil.

Mix well and serve.

If you want you can add a sprinkle of chopped parsley.

Potato masher's cake with ricotta cheese ( Torta dello schiacciapatate con ricotta)

2009-03-21T11:30:00.000-07:00

This recipe is easy peasy, quick and a sure success for any kind of meal, with family, friends, colleagues...

The cake in the photo misses of the last icing sugar sprinkle but I wanted to take the picture immediately :P

The potato masher I mean is like this:

http://www.tescoma.com/pic/643566.jpg

You need for the shortcrust pastry:

10 1/2 oz. all purpose flour

5 1/5 oz. sugar

3 1/2 oz. butter

2 eggs

1 bag baking powder for cakes

For the stuffing:

25 oz. ricotta cheese

3 1/2 oz. sugar

Decoration:

dark chocolate chopped in irregular pieces

icing sugar

Mix all the ingredients to make the pastry and divide the loaf in two parts of the same wheight.

Put one part in the potato masher, take a baking tin of about 10 inches diameter and press untill strands of pastry fall down.

Spread them quite evenly but don't worry if you see holes between the strands: the dough, rising, will close them.

Mix ricotta cheese with sugar then pour on the base of pastry's strands, put the other half of the loaf in the potato masher and cover ricotta with the same process, once again don't worry about holes :)

Heat the oven at about 345° F, before putting in the oven sprinkle icing sugar on top of the cake and add chocolate chops.

Bake for 45 minutes.

The result will be the one in the photo...Enjoy! :D

Extra-Virgin olive oil cake ( Torta all'olio d'oliva extravergine)

2009-03-19T13:51:00.000-07:00

Problems with cholesterol?

Do you wan to to avoid animal fats or just to try something unusual?

This is a plain cake, perfect for breakfast, afternoon break or just to treat yourself and your family.

Please consider only extra-virgin olive oil for this cake: other oils aren't healthy enough to gain benefit from their use, expecially when they have to be cooked.

This recipe has a lemon flavor but you can choose to put some cocoa powder to half of the mixture then pour in the baking pan first the white mixture then the cocoa one and passing a pick to give the cake a marbled effect or add 3 apples chopped in tiny pieces.

You need:

3 eggs

2 1/2 cups of sugar

1 1/2 cups of milk

a sprinkle of salt

1 1/2 cups extra virgin olive oil

3 3/4 cups all purpose flour

1 bag of baking powder

zest from one lemon (only the yellow part)

2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice

icing sugar to serve

In a large bowl, mix together the eggs and the sugar.

When well blended add the oil, milk, lemon juice and zest and mix well.

In a separate bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder and salt.

Add the first mix to this mixture, and stir just until blended.

Pour into a baking pan.

Bake for about 40 minutes at 350° F or until a pick comes out clean.

Cool and remove from the pan.

Dust with powdered sugar.

You can serve with fresh fruit, egg custard, whipped cream or melted chocolate or eat it plain.

HAPPY ST. PATRICK'S DAY!

2009-03-17T03:42:00.000-07:00

Happy St. Patrick' s day to everyone!

It's not a holiday in Italy but due to globalization and the fact people here travel often to English speaking countries to learn English we know how much is important for Irish people in Ireland and abroad.

A little curiosity that comes from Wikipedia: St. Patrick used the shamrock, a three-leaved plant, to explain the Holy Trinity to the pre-Christian Irish. The wearing of and display of shamrocks and shamrock-inspired designs have become a ubiquitous feature of the saint's holiday.

To tell the truth the colour that was long associated to the Saint was blue but because of shamrocks and because green is the predominant colour of Ireland from about 1750 D.C. there was a change.

Salty buckwheat pancakes with cabbage and speck ham ( Crepes di grano saraceno con verza e speck)

2009-03-15T09:01:00.000-07:00

This is a great recipe I took from my mother.

It's quite particular, made with ingredients typical from North of Italy (speck ham, buckwheat, cabbage).

The result is great and quite refined even if the basic ingredients come from farmer's cooking.

For 6 serves you need:

for pancakes:

1 1/2 cups milk

2 1/2 oz. buckwheat flour

2 1/2 oz. all purpose flour

salt

1 egg

1 oz. butter

oil to cook pancakes

For the stuffing:

10 oz. cabbage washed and cutted in little pieces

3 1/2 oz. speck ham

1 1/2 oz. grated pecorino cheese

for the bechamel/ white sauce:

1 oz. butter

1 1/2 oz. all purpose flour

1 1/4 cups milk

grated nutmeg

1 oz. grated pecorino cheese

Melt butter and mix to it all the ingredients to make pancakes.

Beat well to avoid lumps.

Cook very thin pancakes (crepes) in a pan of about 10 inches diameter.

With this quantity you should obtain 6 pancakes.

In a pan sautee chopped cabbage with a little salt, pepper and butter plus 2 water's spoons untill they're soft.

Make white sauce putting in a pan butter and flour, mixing and cooking utill you have a golden mixture then add milk little by little then nutmeg and pecorino cheese.

Cook and mix untill bechamel becomes dense (about 10 minutes).

Put in each pancakes some sauteed cabbage, some speck ham chopped in pieces, some white sauce and a little grated pecorino cheese.

Close the crepes the way you prefer and put them in a oven-proof dish.

Cover with the rest of cabbage, bechamel and grated pecorino cheese.

Put in the oven at medium heat untill you have a golden crust on top.

Serve hot!.

THANKS EVERYBODY!!

2009-03-06T07:25:00.000-08:00

No recipes today but a big thanks to everybody.
Why?
Because this little blog has a lot of readers: I see it through the counter that grows everyday of about 100 visits.
And the counter's introduction is quite recent.
I also see that visitors come worldwide and it's a great proud for me.
The only regret I have is that I see very few comments: I really would like to know if someone try my recipes and how they turn out...
I hope to continue this blog's updating through the time giving you all the best of Italian recipes, from great classics to unexpected dishes: I love doing this and my English say thanks because I keep on practising it : )

Green sauce ( Salsa verde)

2009-03-05T08:38:00.001-08:00

This sauce is perfect for boiled meat, grilled chicken, grilled or boiled seafood.

I love this sauce so much I use to put it on bread slices all alone too. ^^

It's perfect on bruschetta according to me but it depends on tastes!

This recipes comes from Piemonte, a region in the North- West of Italy famous for truffles, asparagus and hazelnuts with whom they produce a great chocolate called " Gianduia".

You need:

red wine vinegar

1 slice tuscan /italian bread

1 cup extra-virgin olive oil

1 garlic clove

1 hard boiled egg

1 big bunch fresh parsley

salt and pepper

Soak the bread in enogh vinegar untill it's soft.

In a food processor mix parsley and garlic untill they're chopped extremely fine.

Add the hard boiled egg (someone uses only yolk, someone uses the whole egg, it depends on taste), the oil and the drained bread, mix again a little, untill you have a smooth cream.

Add salt and pepper to taste, store in refrigerator untill use.

The sauce is even tastier if you prepare it 1-2 days in advance.

Pork loin in milk sauce ( Arista di maiale al latte)

2009-03-04T03:47:00.000-08:00

This is a good "sunday recipe".
Easy to make, delicious, tender.
My mum was used to prepare it when I was little and even now, even if less often cause me and my sister are old enough to eat also different things ^^.
This roast is made in a pot, on stove and not in the oven: here in Italy is often the privileged cooking solution for roasts.

For 4 serves you need:

1 1/2 pounds boneless pork loin tied with string

3 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil or butter

2 garlic cloves

salt and pepper

4 cups fresh whole milk

1 sprig fresh rosemary

a little carrot, chopped tiny

In a heavy pot heat the olive oil with garlic and carrot pieces and brown the roast well on all sides.
Add salt and pepper.
Add the milk and bring to boil, then turn the heat to low and let the meat cook for about une hour and half, turn the roast now and then and mix the sauce to prevent burning.
When the meat is ready the sauce should be thick, of a golden brown colour, with some kind of grumes, really tasty.
Wait untill the roast is cold before slice it, it's even better if you prepare it one day in advance then cut sometime before serving, heat again meat and sauce and serve slices with souce on top.
It's perfect with sauteed spinach or mashed potadoes.

Granny cake ( Torta della nonna)

2009-03-03T03:32:00.000-08:00

I've seen that "granny cake" in english means a pineapple cake: this is something else but I wanted to translate the Italian name literally.

This cake is one of my favourite, it's so easy, plain but rich in flavour and so "country" to see.

You need:

For the shortcrust pastry:

12 oz. all purpose flour

1 bag baking pownder

4 oz. butter

6 oz. sugar

1 egg

1 yolk

a sprinkle of salt

For the cream:

3 1/2 cups milk

peel of half a lemon

7 oz. sugar

8 yolks

1 1/2 oz. all purpose flour

1 vanilla pod (or vanilla aroma)

For the decoration:

pine kernel

icing sugar

Put milk, vanilla and lemon peel in a pan, put on medium heat.

In a bowl beat the yolks with sugar untill you have a foaming cream, then add flour and mix well.

Add hot milk to the yolk cream little by little, mixing then put the liquid again in the cooking pan and put on light heat mixing untill the cream become dense: at this point cook other 5 minutes then turn off fire.

Keep off vanilla pod and lemon peel.

Let it get cold.

Now knead shortcrust pastry: mix flour with baking powder, add soften butter and knead.

Add also egg, yolk, a salt sprinkle and sugar, knead again untill you have a a smooth dough loaf, close it in a clin film and let rest in fridge for at least one hour.

Stretch the shortcrust pastry on the bottom and sides (let some dough more out of the tin) of a round baking tin, prick the bottom with a fork, pour the cream, spread it well, cover with pine kernel, refold the plus of dough on the cake.

Put in hot oven at 345 F° for about 40 minutes, let it cold and cover with icing sugar.

Bolognese cutlet ( Cotoletta alla bolognese)

2009-03-01T07:25:00.001-08:00

This recipe is really ancient and so important in our typical cooking that is deposed at Bologna's chamber of commerce by Italian Cooking Accademy (Accademia della Cucina Italiana) a national cultural istitution.

If you know Milanese cutlets or the Wiener Schnitzel you'll probably find in the Bolognese version a richer and luxury variation.

For 4 serves you need:

veal rump, about 8-9 oz. divided in 4 slices

2 oz. butter

3 1/2 oz. Parmesan in slivers

2 oz. Parma ham in slices

1 egg

breadcrumbs

a glass of meat broth

salt and pepper

frying oil

Thump meat slices to softner them, add salt and pepper (not too much salt, ham and cheese are salty enough).

Pass them in the breadcrumbs, then into beaten egg, then in breadcrumbs once again.

Fry on both side for few minutes then put the slices in a oven pan, on each one put a slice of ham, enough Parmesan slivers, pour the broth glass and butter in small chunks.

Heat for about 7-8 minutes at 345 F° then serve with a light salad and or mashed potadoes.

This recipe with little variation of some black truffle slivers on top (put at the end of cooking) is called Cotoletta alla Petroniana ( Petroniana cutlet).

This name comes from Petronio (Petronius) who is the patron saint of Bologna city.

My special pizza toppings (Condimenti speciali per pizza)

2009-02-24T09:24:00.000-08:00

As told in the post before it's time for my special pizza toppings.

The first two com from my husband's family (grandma and mum), they're great for buffets and parties because the pizza must be room temperature so you can prepare it when you want and just add topping minutes before serving.

Consider just a piece for each person because these topping are really really "heavy" and you can't really have a full meal only with these so prepare something else or more different pizza's type. :P

The third is great hot from the oven but is really easy to prepare and so tasty!

First topping:

for a rectangular baking tin

2 tin canned tuna

1 red onion

mayonaise ( enough to mix ingredients and have a creamy mixture)

a little ketchup

Ina a bowl put the tuna (drain exceeding oil), break it into small pieces, cut the onion in thin slices, add it to tuna then add mayonaise enough to make a creamy mixture.

Along with mayonaise add ketchup enough to make cream pink coloured.

Spread this mixture on a pizza base at room temperature baked with only tomato sauce (no mozzarella cheese).

Cut small squares and serve.

Second topping:

for a rectangular baking tin

a bounch of fresh arugola washed and dried

mayonaise

ketchup

Cut arugola to reduce leaves in pieces, mix mayonaise with ketchup (some more ketchup than in the recipe before).

Put arugola on a red basic pizza at room temperature then pour the "cocktail sauce" on .

Cut in small squares and serve.

Third topping:

for a rectangular baking tin

1 potado

1 pack robiola cheese (if you can't find it you can use any kind of creamy cheese like philadelphia)

4-5 slices smoked cooked ham

Before baking the pizza put on top, instead of tomato sauce and mozzarella cheese, thin slices of potado (use raw potado, at least pass the slices some minutes into microwave) then add creamy cheese (it's not important if you can't spread it, when it will be hot will be soft enough to be spread easily).

Bake like a normal pizza, once it's out of the oven spread cheese and add smoked ham.

Serve hot!

Pizza dough (Pasta per pizza)

2009-02-23T07:14:00.000-08:00

This is the recipe to make your own pizza at home.

This dough could be freezed with success, just take it out of the freezer the morning for the evening.

Please consider I don't make the classic round-shaped pizza but the one here is called "pizza al taglio" (pizza on a cut, take away) that comes in rectangular baking tin then cutted in squares (as you can see in the picture).

The pizza results soft and not really thin but it's how it's made in Naples, where pizza was born.

You can even make different seasoning in the same tin if they aren't too contrasting (like ham and anchovies).

In the next post I'll give you 3 pizza seasoning that are a family's well kept secret, they probably seem strange or even disgusting but give a try then tell me what you think!

For 4 medium oven tin:

2 cups warm water (if you need more add little by little)

7 cups all purpose flour

1 1/2 teaspoon salt

1 oz yeast

2 tablespoons extravirgin olive oil + some to grease tin

Melt yeast in a cup of warm water, then mix all the ingredients together little by little, being sure to have a smooth ball of dough (you have to knead for at least 20-25 minutes by hands, if you have a kneader you're lucky, I usually use my beloved bread machine knead program: here is a quite diffused kitchen appliance).

When you have your elastic and smooth dough you can choose: or you stretch it out in the baking tin (grease it with a little olive oil) then cover with a clean kitchen cloth and let it rest for 4-5 hours in a dark room without air draught or you can put the loaf in a bowl, cover with a clean kitchen cloth and follow the same procedure, after 4-5 hours stretch the dough in the tins and let rise for half an hour more in the tin.

The turn out of rising depends a lot from the enviroment, temperature, air humidity: the more you make dough the better you can calibrate the yeast quantity.

When the time for cooking comes preheat the oven at around 520 F°, drizzle the dough with a little extra virgin olive oil, add tomato sauce (if you prepare it 2-3 hours before using canned tomato pulp, salt, a little basil or oreganon-fresh, freezed or dried-, a little garlic -fresh or dried- and some more olive oil it's perfect, no need to cook it ), mozzarella cheese (finely chopped, not sliced) and the seasoning you've choosen (if it's a delicate topping like parma ham or artichoke hearts add it just 2 minutes before removing pizza from the oven, if it's something more resistent or that needs longer cooking like wurstel (frankfurter) put them on before.

The cooking time dipends on the oven: mine is quite new and heat very well so 10-15 minutes are enough; anyway to see if pizza is ready look at borders and use a knife to look at the bottom, if they're gold coloured pizza is ok.

Cocoa and vanilla liquor ( Liquore cacao e vaniglia)

2009-02-22T03:06:00.000-08:00

Another liquor recipe, easy to prepare and perfect as present for adults even for the incoming Easter.

It's ready to drink, no need to wait weeks or months.

If you live in a hot place better store it in a cold place or fridge.

You need:

2 cups skimmed milk

1 cup pure alcool

3 1/2 oz. bitter cocoa powder

1 vanilline bag

1 pound sugar

Heat milk but do not let it boil, add cocoa and mix untill there are no lumps.
Add sugar too and let it melt into milk.
Now you have a sort of "cream" , let it cold then add alcool in which you have melted vanilline.
Mix again and put in bottles, then close.

Beef steak with arugola salad and Parmesan chips (Tagliata di manzo alla rucola e scaglie di Parmigiano)

2009-02-20T12:59:00.000-08:00

This is one of the most popular ways to eat beef steaks here in the North of Italy.

Maybe you can't believe that arugola Parmesan and beef is a winning trio but trust me it is!

If you want to give a class touch you can drizzle the completed dishes with some balsamic vinegar.

So tasty now I feel like eating that! ^^

4 medium sized good quality steaks at least 1 and 1/2 inch

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

2 bunches fresh arugula well washed and dried

sea salt

black pepper if you like

parmesan chips

Grill the steaks sprinkled with pepper and oil on a grill, bbq or on a steak pan for about 4 minutes on each side.

The steak shoul be pink inside, rare.

Cut the steaks into 1/4 inch slices, put each steak on the dish on a bed of arugola dressed with some more oil and salt, put a little salt on the steak too and cover with some Parmesan chips.

Garlic and chiles spaghetti (Spaghetti aglio olio e peperoncino)

2009-02-18T09:58:00.000-08:00

Today "the easier the better": this is a dish that everyone can do, even if he/she knows nothing about kitchen, it's really really cheap and made with ingredients you always have at home.

Not by chance it's a classic " emergency dish" and "student dish" with canned tuna tomato sauce pasta.

For 4 servings you need:

1 pound spaghetti

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

2 garlic cloves, finely minced

3 red hot chili peppers, crushed

1/4 cup fresh parsley, finely chopped (if you like it)

Cook pasta as usual, in boiling salted water.

Meanwhile heat in a large pan olive oil, add garlic and peppers, cook untill the garlic is soft, almost undone but not brown.

Remove from heat, when the pasta is "al dente" drain it keeping a little cooking water apart.

Pour spaghetti in the pan, mix well over medium heat, add a little cooking water if it seems dry, add parsley, mix again and serve.

Shrimps cocktail ( Cocktail di gamberetti)

2009-02-17T08:22:00.000-08:00

This is probably a recipe well known worldwide, I'm not even sure it has Italian origins but surely it's a common find in fish restaurants' menus.

To tell the truth sometimes you find places where the shrimps cocktail is made of lot of lettuce, lot of sauce and 3 shrimps...

So why don't do it at home?

For 4 serving you need:

1 pound shrimps, without heads and tails, well washed.

2 spoons finely chopped fresh parsley.

8 1/2 oz. mayonnaise.

1/2 tablespoon cognac.

1/2 tablespoon sugar.

1 tablespoon worchestershire sauce.

2 tablespoon ketchup.

some fresh and washed lettuce leaves.

Mix all the ingredients with mayonnaise, adding cognac at last.

Cook shrimps in salted hot water for 5 minutes, drain them and let getting cold.

Mix shrimps with sauce, put the mixture on lettuce leaves and sprinlke with parsley.

If you like you can also take a mature avocado, cut it in cubes, sprinkle with lemon juice and add it to cocktail mix.

You can choose to serve the cocktail on a dish or, even better, into a glass goblet: really chic and up to date.

It's a perfect entree' for a fish themed dinner, just pay attention to calories because shellfishes and mayonnaise (and avocados) are fatty!

Sweet pastries fried and sprinkled with icing sugar (Sfrappole - Chiacchiere - Cenci)

2009-02-15T10:04:00.000-08:00

This is the most popular Carnival sweet here in Italy.

They're known with many different names from North to South, them most common is probably chiacchiere.

They're crunchy, fried, easy to prepare, really loved by children, perfect fot their parties.

You need:

2 oz. butter

12 oz. all purpose flour

2 eggs

1 vanilline bag

1 oz. icing sugar + some to sprinkle on top of sfrappole

milk as much as you need to knead well

frying oil

knead all the ingredients untill you have a smooth and elastic dough loaf.

Let it rests covered by a cleaned dishcloth for half an hour.

Spread the dough with a roll-pin, not very thin, about 1/8 inches and cut stripes of dough of about 4 X 1 inches and with them make "knots" (you can also let them plain or cut bigger squares).

Heat a pan with frying oil, when it's hot fry the dough pieces 3-4 a time, let them cool on blotting paper.

When cold put them on a tray and sprinkle with icing sugar.

Happy Carnival party!!

Roasted tomatoes (Pomodorini confit)

2009-02-11T08:57:00.000-08:00

For this easy and budget recipe you need tomatoes at their best: fresh, ripe and flavourful so maybe it's more a summer recipe but if you find some good plum or cherry tomatoes you can do it anyway.

You can use them on pasta, on bruschetta, into salads or just as tasty side dish from informal meals (they're great with grilled meat so bbq's are welcome^^) to formal ones (with tuna fish fillet, for istance).

You need:

15-20 good tomatoes

2 finely minced garlic cloves

1 spoon of sugar

1 tablespoon dried oregano

1/4 cup of extra virgin olive oil

Preheat oven to 275 F°, cut tomatoes in half, sprinkle with salt and put them on a dish with the skin up (they have to lose some water) for an hour.

Now put them with skin side down on a baking sheet and add garlic, pepper, more salt, sugar and oregano sprinkling, then drizzle with abundant oil.

Bake in the oven for about 2 hours or untill they're dried but still soft.

Serve hot, warm or cold: anyway is a good way for them!

Mussels in garlic butter sauce ( Cozze in intingolo bianco)

2009-02-10T07:22:00.000-08:00

Easy way to cook mussels, prepare a lot of plain crusty bread slices to serve with it because you have to sup up in the sauce!

This quantity is intended as a starter dish (the most part of the wheight are shells) but often people here could have a whole meal with mussels and crusty bread so don't worry and abound^^.

So delicious!

You need for 4:

2 pounds fresh and cleaned mussels

2 minced garlic cloves

a bunch of finely chopped fresh parsley

4 oz. butter (unsalted)

salt & pepper

a glass of white dry wine

Put in a large pan the mussels with butter, garlic, parsley salt and pepper and wine.

Light the stove up, high heat, let the mussels stew for about 15 minute.

Turn off the fire, check the mussels and discard the ones that do not open, put the good ones in a serving bowl then filter the sauce with a strain (this is because often moussels, even if cleaned, leave little pieces of dirt/shell/sand and so on) and pour over the mussels.

You can serve also in individual little bowls, in this case divide equally the sauce and add bread crouton aside and a little bunch of fresh parsley to garnish.

Tenerina cake (Torta tenerina)

2009-02-08T05:28:00.000-08:00

It's Valentine's day period, everyone is looking for presents, flowers, chocolate.

I read everywhere of women and girls in search of chocolate treats for their men so I decidet to post the recipe of a very particoular cake, Tenerina cake.

It's a typical dessert from Ferrara city (not far from Bologna, I've got there my uncles and cousins, it's a little and quiet city, perfect for a slow kind of life, for bicycles, famous for the ferrarese bread).

This cake remains very short, humid: it's normal, it's quite a sort of brownie to tell the truth.

You need:

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup butter

1/3 cup all purpose flour

8 oz. dark chocolate

1 1/2 oz. milk

3 eggs

salt (a sprinkle)

Chop chocolate then melt it with milk "bagnomaria" (in a double saucepan).

In a bowl mix butter and sugar untill you obtain a cream then add 3 egg yolks and flour.

Let the chocolate getting warm then add to the cream mixing.

In a bowl apart whip the egg whites up with a sprinkle of salt (the egg whites should be at room temperature) then add them to the chocolate mixture mixing carefully and slowly.

Pour it in a buttered cake tin and cook for about 25 minutes at 300 F°.

When the cake is cold sprinkle with icing sugar, you can also make or buy a heart-shaped stencil and use it to decor the cake with sugar; you can serve it with whipped cream aside.

Cappuccino cookies (Biscotti al cappuccino)

2009-02-04T12:27:00.000-08:00

I saw I post so many sweet recipes...

It's strange to tell you the truth because I prefer salty dishes: pasta, meat and so on.

But maybe it's because making sweets is so funny!

These biscuits are great in the morning, soaked in a creamy cappuccino.

I love cappuccino so much but a lot more "latte macchiato" ( stained milk): it's very similar to cappuccino but there's more milk and not a whole espresso inside.

Unluckly I'm really sensitive to coffee and it turns my stomach upside down if I drink too much :(

You need:

4 ounces dark chocolate chopped

1 cup brown sugar

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 tablespoon grinded coffè

1 teaspoon baking powder

a sprinkle of salt

3 large eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup toasted hazelnuts coarsely chopped

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

In a food processor, blend together the chocolate and brown sugar until fine.

Mix together the flour, espresso powder, baking soda and salt.

In a separate bowl, blend the eggs and vanilla until the mixture is light and fluffy.

Add half the chocolate mixture and blend at low speed.

Add half the flour mixture and blend.

Repeat blending just until mixed.

Stir in the hazelnuts and mix throughout the dough.

With a roll-pin stretch the dough and cut biscuits of the shapes you prefer.

Bake the cookies for about 25 to 30 minutes or even less or more, it depends on the oven you have: they must results quite dry but of course not burned.

Cool the biscotti completely and then store in a biscuit box or a jar.

Fried custard (Crema fritta)

2009-02-01T09:44:00.000-08:00

In Italy, douring Carnival period, there's the tradition of fried sweets: there are many, fried custard is a typical delight of Bologna and surroundings.

Often is served as side dish in a speciality called "fritto misto alla bolognese" (deep fried mix Bolognese style) with fried apples, courgettes, cauliflowers, carrots, onion rings and sometimes other ingredients.

It's a mix of sweet and salty flavours, anyway fried custard could be served alone as dessert.

You need:

4 1/2 oz. all purpose flour+ some to dust

2 1/4 cups of milk

5 eggs

3 1/2 oz. sugar

1 vanilla stick

breadcrumbs

frying oil

lemon peel

icing sugar

Open 3 eggs in a bowl, add sugar and beat untill the cream is foamy then add sieved flour and mix.

Put milk in a pan with cutted vanilla stick and lemon peel taking it near to boiling point.

Take off vanilla stick and lemon peel and pour milk in the egg cream slowly, little by little, mixing.

Cook the cream on light heat for 5 minutes mixing.

Soak a oven paper sheet then drain and cover a a baking thin.

Pour the cream in it and spread with a spatula untill you have a uniform layer of cream, about 1 inches thick.

Put the baking thin in the fridge for about 4 hours, it must be well solidified.

When it's ready, using a knife, cut the custard in diamond-shaped pieces about 2 x 2 inches, rinsing everytime the blade under cold water.

Open remaining eggs in another bowl and beat them lightly and in two different dishes put flour and breadcrumbs: flour costard pieces, pass them in the beated eggs then in breadcrumbs.

Heat a copius quantity of frying oil in a pan, when it's hot fry the custard turning the pieces untill the're gold and crispy.

Drip the pieces on blotting-paper and keep them warm, sprinkle with icing sugar and serve.

Pasta with arugula and bacon (Pasta alla rucola e pancetta)

2009-01-28T09:12:00.001-08:00

Today it's time for a quick firts course, perfect for mid-week meals.

You can substitute bacon with ham or sausage if you prefer or even anchovies if you like them!

For 4 persons you need:

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

1/3 cup diced bacon

1 large clove of garlic, coarsely minced

salt and pepper

juice from 1 lemon

1 bunch fresh arugula well washed and chopped

1 pound spaghetti (or rigatoni as seen in the photo!)

freshly grate Parmesan

In a saucepan, heat the oil, and add the diced pancetta.

Cook until it is brown and starting to crisp.

Remove from the heat and add the garlic.

Season with salt and pepper (as often saind I don't love pepper very much so I avoid it).
Cook the pasta until it is "al dente".

Drain pasta and return it to the pot.

In the pasta pot, combine the hot pasta, the bacon and garlic, the lemon juice, and the chopped arugula.

Cook briefly over medium heat until it is well mixed, and the arugula has wilted.

Serve hot, topped with shaved parmesan cheese.

Yummy!

Risotto with Dry Porcini Mushrooms (Risotto ai funghi porcini secchi)

2009-01-23T08:41:00.000-08:00

Risotto is surely a famous Italian preparation; it's not quick to prepare but often eaten here on Sundays or when people have time to prepare it and to taste it.

Abroad it seems to me it's considered a refined dish, so I suppose you can try this recipe when you have guests.

You need:

1/2 oz dry porcini mushrooms, soak in warm water funtil soft

5 cups broth (even canned broth), hot or at least warm

3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

3 + 2 tablespoons butter

1 medium onion, finely chopped (or even better 2 green onions)

1 garlic clove, finely diced

1 bunch Italian parsley, finely chopped (if you like)

1 1/2 cups arborio rice

1/4 cup dry white wine

salt and pepper

4 oz parmigiano reggiano cheese, freshly grated

In a saucepan put the extra-virgin olive oil and 3 tablespoons of the butter.

Turn heat to medium.

When the butter starts foaming, add the onion and garlic, and sauté until the onion becomes soft.

Add the mushrooms (well drained but keep their water apart) and half of the parsley, and sauté for few minutes.

Add the rice stir for about 2 minutes until well coated.

Add the wine and stir to evaporate it.

Add ¼ cup broth (more or less, no need to be very accurate), and salt and pepper.

Stir to prevent the rice from sticking to the pan.

When the rice begins absorbing the liquid add more broth.

Repeat this step of adding the broth and stirring, keeping the rice at the consistency of a dense paste.

Also stir in half of the mushroom soaking water (filter it, sometimes dried mushrooms have got a little residue).

After about 18 minutes stir in the parmigiano reggiano cheese, and 2 tablespoons of butter. Continue stirring and adding a small quantity of broth.

The rice will be ready in about 2 more minutes, the grains must be firm but not too soft or overcooked.

Cooking time may vary, taste the rice now and then to adjust the salt and control the cooking.

When the risotto is ready, top with the rest of the chopped parsley.

Caramel milk pudding (Creme Caramel)

2009-01-18T12:42:00.000-08:00

This is a tasty, sweet and nourishing dessert, quite common in Italian homes and family restaurants.

It's seemingly a recipes that comes even from ancient Rome where it wasn't sweet, then in Middle Age it was prepared with honey.

Cristoforo Colombo took this recipes douring his journeys: probably it's because of this that creme caramel, with different names and variations is common and prepared in Latin America.

For 8 persons you need:

3 cups whole fresh milk

1 3/4 cups fresh cream

1 lemon

10 ounces sugar

10 yolks

2 eggs

1 sprinkle salt

Put in a capacious pan the yellow part of the lemon peel, milk and 4 1/2 ounces sugar.

Let it gently boil then continue cooking with very light heat, untill milk will be reducted to the half of the initial quantity more or less.

Put eggs in a bowl, add yolks, the salt sprinkles and 3 1/2 ounces of sugar, mix well without whipping.

Add cream little by little, then milk without lemon peel (filter it) then mixing.

Put a little less than 2 ounces of sugar in a little pan, add a couple of drops of lemon juice and a spoon of water.

Cook the sugar untill you have an amber caramel.

Pour the caramel into a pudding mould, spread it well on the bottom and on the walls.

Pour the mixture in the mould then transfer it into a baking tin with tall edges filled with hot water.

Put everything in the owen, cook for 1 hour and halfat low heat (275 F°), let it get cold, cover with kitchen foil, put the pudding in fridge for about 12 hours then pull out of shape (really easier if you use that new silikon moulds!)

Veal escalopes Roman style (Saltimbocca alla romana)

2009-01-14T08:52:00.000-08:00

This is a great classic of Roman cooking.

It's delicious, easy to prepare, children loves it.

Serve with a fresh plain salad or mashed potadoes.

If you prefer you can substitute white wine with Marsala wine or Brandy and veal meat with pork or turkey: everyone has his own version and recipe...

You need for 4:

14 ounces of veal in thin slices (about 1/4 inches each)

3 1/2 ounces Parma ham in thin slices

a handful of sage leaves

1/2 a glass of white dry wine

1 ounces butter

salt and pepper

flour

Flour the veal slices, put on each one a slice of Parma ham (same size more or less, help yourself with a scissor if you need) and over the ham put a leaf of sage.

Fix everything with a toothpick.

Heat a large skillet, add butter, when it fries add the escalopes (if they're too many for the pan cook in more than one times: take the cooked ones in the warm on a plate near the stove), salt and pepper and the white wine.

Cook for 2 minutes on each side, serve hot with the side dish.

Swordfish with almonds sauce (Pesce spada con pesto di mandorle)

2009-01-12T08:07:00.000-08:00

Quick recipe today because I'm always in a hurry.

I have so many things to do between work and housekeeping...

Today I made food shopping: I usually love it but when I run out of food at home and I have to buy tonz of things I go crazy!

You need:

4 slices of swordfish (about 7 ounces each)

2 1/2 ounces peeled almonds

1 ounces parsley

1 garlic clove

1/2 ounces breadcrumbs softened in a little vinegar

1 potado

salt and pepper

2/3 cups extravirgin olive oil

Mince into a mixer almonds, garlic, parsley, a little salt and pepper untill it has a smooth texture.

Boil the potado chopped in little cubes into salt water, mash it, put the sauce in a bowl, add the mashed potado and the breadcrumb well squeezed.

Mix very well, add oil little by little untill the sauce is well blended.

Cook the swordfish slices on a hot skillet two minutes per side, put the fish on each plate and add the sauce.

You can garnish with whole almonds and parsley wisps.

Noodles with Parma ham and Parmesan (Tagliatelle al crudo e Grana)

2009-01-06T13:11:00.000-08:00

A different way to serve noodles, the proof that here in Bologna we don't only know Bolognese sauce ;)

According to me it's a very refined dish, perfect for a special dinner.

Remember to add salt to boiling water but not in the sauce: this is beacause sauteed ham and Parmesan are salted enought!

You need for 4:

18 ounces egg noodles

1 ounces butter

1 leek

4 spoons freshly grated Parmesan

3 1/2 ounces Parma ham in 2-3 thick slices

pepper if you like

Cut the ham in sticks of about 1/2 inches then clean the leek and cut it in very thin slices.

Put the ham in a pan with butter, brown it for 2-3 minutes then low fire, add leek and cook for other 4-5 minutes.

Boil noodles just slightly firm, drain them and take aside 3-4 spoons of cooking water: put noodles in the pan with sauce,light fire, add 2 spoons of Parmesan, pepper, cooking water and saute' for one minute.

Put in dishes , add the rest of Parmesan and serve.

You can garnish the plate with a wisp of parsley.

Italian style onions omelette ( Frittata alle cipolle)

2009-01-03T09:21:00.000-08:00

It's an old old dish, often prepared in the past in the countries of Italy from North to South, it's made with simply and cheap ingredients that every family could afford.

Nowadays it could be a complete meal served with fresh salad and tomatoes or an informal appetizer if cutted in tiny blocks sticked on a toothpick.

you need:

6-8 egg for 6-8 for 4-5 persons

a nut of butter

salt and pepper

3 little red onions

2 tablespoons of water

2 tablespoons of extravirgin olive oil

3 tablespoons freshly grated parmesan

Put in a pan the butter, turno on medium heat, cut in very thin slices the onions then put them in the pan.

Let them stir-fry, add a little water if needed, when they are soft and golden let them warm.

In a bowl beat eggs with salt, pepper and parmesan.

Put another pan on the fire with extravirgin olive oil, add onions to the bowl with eggs, mix then pour in the hot pan: shake a little to let the mixture spread, cover with a lid, turn the fire to light then wait.

When the omelette is solidified you have to turn it on the other side: how it's up to your ability...

If you're a good at you can rotate it in the pan with a good wrist movement, if you're like me (not so skilled in acrobatic cooking) put a dish on the omelette, keep it firmly then turn the pan.

Now the omelette is on the dish upside down, let it slip in the pan once again, add a little more oil if needed, finish the cooking.

If you want to cut the frittata let it get cold, if not you can serve it hot or warm, as you like.

Frittata, like omelette, is a versatile food: the one with onions is typical here but not the only one.

You can add mozzarella cheese cubes, chopped stirfried bacon or ham, stuffed broccoli, stirfried courgettes or leeks, sausage and everything you want.

If sometimes any pasta left from a lunch or a dinner, the next meal often present a "frittata di pasta " (pasta omelette): with the same procedure just add the pasta left (spaghetti are the best) mix well with the egg mixture then pour in the pan.

It's yummy!!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

2009-01-01T03:50:00.001-08:00

Here we are, the first day of a new year.

2008 brought many problems worldwide, I think everyone is hoping for something better this year and so I: then I wish you all the best for the next twelve months and a lot of fun and cooking training reading this blog!

With love, Claudia

Egg liquor (Bombardino all'uovo)

2008-12-30T02:35:00.000-08:00

The perfect treat for cold days and nights, delicious if warmed a little, great if drunk with Christmas sweets.

Ingredients:

3 cups of non skimmed milk

29 ounces sugar

6 egg yolks

1 cup alchool

1 cup sweet rum

1 vanillin sachet

Boil the milk with half of the sugar gently mixing now and then.

Let it cook a couple of minutes after boiling, then turn off the heat and let it warm.

In a big bowl mix egg yolks with the other half of sugar untill they're creamy and frothy: now add little by little the warm milk, mixing very well to avoid lumps: to be sure you can filter the liquid at this point.

I didn't do it anyway.

Add vanillin, alcohol and rum liquor, mix again then pour in bottles and close them.

Wait about a week before using, shaking the bottles sometimes.

Potado gnocchi (Gnocchi di patate)

2008-12-28T10:26:00.000-08:00

Potado gnocchi are a quite famous Italian dish: it's prepared in the whole peninsula but more often in the North of Italy.

They could be dressed in many ways, the most commons are: tomato sauce, genovese pesto, bolognese sauce.

To make gnocchi you need (for about 4-5 persons):

2 lb whole potatoes unpeeled

2 cups flour

1 egg

1 tablespoon salt

Place washed potadoes in a large stock pot filled with water and bring to a boil.

Cook until the potatoes are soft.

Peel immediately while potatoes are still hot (ok, I know it's not funny but the peeling is easier) then mash them on a work surface using a food mill.

When the potatoes are still warm (but cool enough to be handled), shape them in a mound with a hole in the middle and add inside the flour, the egg and salt.

Draw the ingredients together and mix to form a dough.

If the dough is sticky sprinkle a little more flour and work the loaf of dough. add flour and work again untill the dough is no longer sticky.

Cut the dough into four pieces. Sprinkle the work surface with a little flour, and place the first piece on it.

Roll the dough into one or two long sticks approximately 3/4 inch in diameter.

Cut the sticks in little pieces (about 3/4 inch each).

Roll the pieces along the the surface of a cheese grater.

Work this way every piece of dough, work always on a lightly floured surface.

Fill a stockpot with water, bring to a boil, and add salt.

When the water is at a fast boil, drop the gnocchi in.

The gnocchi will fall to the bottom of the pot: after about 2-3 minutes the gnocchi will come up to the surface, this mean they're cooked.

Drain them then saute' for few moments in a pan with the choosen sauce.

Add a spoon of fresh grated parmesan and enjoy your gnocchi!

Bruschetta (Toasted garlic bread)

2008-12-24T09:38:00.000-08:00

I think Bruschetta is one of the most famous Italian appetizer worldwide: it's simple, low cost, yummy, customizable.

Count about 2 slices per person, the bread must be sliced in thick pieces (approximately 3/8 inch ).

The oil is the king of the ingredients in this recipe so you absolutely need extra-virgin olive oil, a good one.

You also need salt and a garlic clove.

Preheat an oven, broiler, or toaster; grill the bread on both sides until golden brown.

Lightly rub the garlic on the surface of the bread.

Pour a thin stream of olive oil on the bread, and sprinkle with salt.

Serve hot or at least warm.

This is the basic bruschetta but surely not the only way to serve this kind of bread: on top you can add thin slices of pork lard (like Colonnata lard) and Rosemary, tomatoes chopped in tiny cubes with some basil leaves, sliced green olives, sundried tomatoes in slices, dried red pepper powder or slices and whatever else your fantasy and your taste decide.

Egg custard (Zabaglione or Zabaione)

2008-12-18T11:24:00.000-08:00

Zabaione is a sweet egg custard very tasty, flavoured with Marsala wine.

It's often made douring Christmas holidays, when you spend time with friends and family.

You need:

4 egg yolks1/2 cup

sugar1/2 cup

Marsala wine (or Port or Madeira if you can't find Marsala)

Beat egg yolks until fluffy in a heatproof bowl over a pan of simmering water (this kind of cooking is called Bagnomaria).

Add sugar and beat again, then Marsala and beat.

Whisk over simmering water, until the cream thickens but don't let it boil, turn off the fire a little before.

Let the cream cool (room temperature) then serve in glass or glass bowls, decorate with biscuits, fresh fruit or/and whipped cream.

You can also use this cream to fill tarts, cakes or as a sauce for other sweets like Christmas cakes.

Rome sweet Rome

2008-12-11T08:06:00.000-08:00

I'm back from the stunning city of Rome.

It's so beautiful, so full of history and heritage that sometimes you feel overwhelmed.

I know Rome is a target for many tourists worldwide so I'll give you the site of the hotel (bed and breakfast) where we stayed.

http://www.hotelsandanielebundi.it/

It's between Coliseum and Fori imperiali, in the heart of the city (you can visit main attractions like Trevi fountain, Piazza di Spagna, Piazza Navona and many others on foot, anyway the metro station is near).

You can book directly from the site, they don't have a breakfast room but they'll give you a prepayed ticket and with this you can have a good breakfast in the bar right under the hotel.

It's also quite cheap, it's not a luxury hotel or a pretentious one but it's clean, quiet at night, with anything you need to recover from your visits around the city.

I hope I gave a good hint for your next trip! ^^

ROME IS WAITING !!!

2008-12-04T12:30:00.000-08:00

Tomorrow I'll leave to Rome for a week end with my sister in law and a friend of her.

I'm really excited because it's a beautiful city and because I really need some rest and relax with friends: I have a lot of mates there but I can see them seldom.

We've already organized a dinner^^.

Unluckly I had an awful week and I had no time to be prepared, it's ten pm and I still have to pack luggage :S

Orange and fennel salad ( Insalata di arance e finocchi)

2008-11-30T09:51:00.000-08:00

It's a very peculiar recipe, light and tasty, great to break the long series of heavy lunch and great dinners of the Christmas period.

It's a winter recipe because oranges and fennels are typical winter vegetables, it's most used in the South of Italy where citrus grown.

If you like the two main ingredients you'll love it!

I had a housemate at univeristy than used to eat it almost everyday...

For two persons:

2 oranges

2 fennels

salt and pepper

3 - 4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

Slice the oranges (peel them carefully and keep off the white part) and arrange them in a serving plate.

Clean the fennels, cut them very thin then transfer the fennels in a bowl to season them with oil salt and pepper.

Transfer the fennels on the oranges, dizzle with a little more extra-virgin olive oil and serve.

If you like you can slice thin a little red onion too and add it to the salad.

Rosemary focaccia ( Focaccia al rosmarino)

2008-11-28T04:58:00.000-08:00

Another Italian must where rosemary is protagonist, very popular as street food, a good treat for children douring school break, the delicious focaccia.
It seems a little bit demanding, the recipe is long but it's longer to read than to prepare!
If you have a bread machine or something similar you can prepare the dough with it then spread it in the pan and let it rise once again, it's even quicker.
You can eat it plain as snack or you can serve it diced in squares, warm, with salami, ham, cheese...
It could be a strong appetizer of an informal dinner if served with that sort of things or a great, cheap, quick idea for party buffets (even children party).

You need:

2 - 1/2 teaspoons active dry yeast

1 - 1/3 cups water lukewarm

6 tablespoons extravirgin olive oil

2 teaspoons salt

3 - 1/4 cups flour

1 tablespoon coarse salt

2 - 1/2 tablespoons fresh rosemary leaves

Dissolve the yeast in the lukewarm water.
Set aside for a few minutes.
Add 3 tablespoons of the extra-virgin olive oil to the mix.
In a large mixing bowl, add the 2 teaspoons salt to the flour.
Add the yeast-water mixture into the flour.
With a spatula or wooden spoon, stir vigorously stir to combine.
Knead with your hands until soft dough is obtained.
Lightly spread another large bowl with olive oil, transfer the dough into the bowl.
Rub the dough around the walls of the bowl to cover its surface with oil.
Cover the bowl with oiled plastic wrap, and place the pan in a warm corner of the kitchen (like the oven, turned off) to rise for about 1 hour, or until about doubled in size.
Spread extra-virgin olive oil lightly on a 12 x 16 inch baking pan.
Invert the dough from the bowl into the pan.
At this point the dough is very light and soft.
Avoid pressing or stretching it too much or it will not rise weel in the oven.
Flatten the dough with the point of the fingers until it reaches the edges, and the pan is fully covered.
Dimple the focaccia with your fingertips to create small depressions.
Cover the dough with oiled plastic wrap, and place the pan in a warm corner of the kitchen to rise for 1 more hour.
Preheat oven to 450 F °, spread the remaining olive oil, the coarse salt, and the rosemary leaves uniformly on the surface of the focaccia.
Bake the focaccia on the lower shelf of the oven for about 25 minutes, until the surface is golden and the bottom is gold.
Lift a corner of the focaccia to check readiness before removing it from the oven.

Grilled chicken breast (Petto di pollo grigliato)

2008-11-27T04:14:00.000-08:00

Grilled chicken breast: anything easier than this recipe?

Or more banal?

No, but you can create a tasty dish if you take care of the preparation and of the ingredients, the preparation is quick and you can surely afford and recover the things you need.

It's a light second course, ideal for the ones on a diet: low fats, digestible.

You need:

2 chicken breasts

2 tablespoons extravirgin olive oil

salt and pepper

a stick of fresh rosemary

1 garlic clove

half a lemon

Slice each chicken breasts in 3 thin slices.

Pound the slices with a meat pounder to make them thin and tender.

Cook the chicken on a simple grille or even a non-stick pan.

Do not use any fat or oil to grease the pan, just rub the garlic clove on the whole pan few times to give a light garlic smell.

Season with the extravirgin olive oil, add salt and freshly grated pepper if you like then some rosemary needles and a squeeze of lemon juice.

Serve warm with plain fresh salad or with stirfried spinach.

Rosemary ( Rosmarino )

2008-11-22T08:21:00.000-08:00

It's time to speak about another herb: Rosemary.

Frequently used in Italy, well known abroad too; it is a resistant plant, it growns especially in Mediterranean zones but it's acclimated to colder places.

You can cultivate it in the garden or even on terraces or just out of the window in small pots.

From flowers you can obtain good honey, Rosemary is famous for its medical properties ( it's a good tonic and purifyier).

Rosemary is great on roasted potadoes, on red meats (especially on roasts), with some kind of fish, on bruschetta, on borlottis' or chickpeas' soup.

Yesterday evening I ate a good appetizer: on a thick slice of bread there was a spoon of grated cheese (Parmesan ), then a spoon of porcini mushrooms stirfried in a pan with butter, then a generous sprinkle of Rosemary needles: the "crostino" was crisped in the oven.

I don't love the marriage mushrooms/Rosemary but with Parmesan and good bread it's really an happy mix.

You can also prepare a plain bruschetta and add some Rosemary on top.

So tasty!

Soon I'll post the many variations I know to make crostini and bruschetta: they're a must as appetizer in my zone you could be sourprised because of the variety!

Teryaki chicken with leeks (pollo teriyaki con porri)

2008-11-06T02:31:00.000-08:00

Ok maybe it's not an Italian recipe, you can called it "fusion" but I use to cook with ingredients I discover during my travels.

I've been in Japan during my honeymoon and I loved it so much.

I've tried this recipe in a small food stand in the old part of the Kyoto's station, I loved it, my husband loved it and once at home we would like to eat it once again: it's not the very same of the japanese one but it's ok, tasty and quick to prepare.

It' really really easy: chop chicken breast in small pieces, put it in a bowl with teriyaki sauce, mix well and let it rest in fridge for about 2 hours.

Then prepare a pan, add extravirgin olive oil, leeks cutted round ( don't add the green part of course), salt and chicken with the sauce.

Stirfry untill leeks are tender and chicken is well cooked, if it dries add a little more teriyaki sauce and a sprinkle of sesame seeds on top.

You can serve it with white rice, it's perfect!

Homemade mascarpone cheese (Mascarpone fatto in casa)

2008-11-01T11:34:00.000-07:00

This is a great thing to impress your friends when you serve Tiramisu' dessert or other dishes made with this creamy and yummy cheese.

"I did the mascarpone cheese too": oh yes, it's impressive!!

It's easier than you can think: for about 24 ounces of cheese just take 1.6 quart of fresh milk cream and half a teaspoon of citric acid (fresh lemon juice).

Put the citric acid into the cream then put on the stove: it must be hot but not to boiling point.

Turn off the fire then mix well, pour the mixture into a colander covered with a clean dishcloth and let the serum drains for about 12 hours.

Now you must store the cheese into the refrigerator, it has no preservatives so you must use it quite quickly, in about 3-4 days.

At least you can freeze it and then it's good for about 3 months.

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!

2008-10-31T08:09:00.000-07:00

No time to update my blog, many things to do, a new bakery course, work, relatives to visit, friends to keep in touch with.
But not too busy to forget a happy halloween to everybody!!!

Canned tuna tomato sauce (Sugo al tonno)

2008-10-14T02:17:00.000-07:00

Surfing the web I saw we are all on the same boat: financial crisis is a global matter and families with low incomes and on a budget are a lot here in Italy and abroad.

So today I want to post a cheap sauce for pasta, so cheap and easy that here is quite famous as "student dish": ingredients don't need to be refrigerated and everyone can afford them.

Ingredients:

half a bottle or a can of tomato sauce

salt

basil (even dried one)

garlic (even dried one)

1 can of tuna (with oil if you like or just steamed if you want a light dish)

chili pepper if you like

extra virgin olive oil

Put in a pan two spoons of oil, add garlic and let it fry for a while.

Add tuna, well crushed, mix then add tomato sauce.

Let it boil gently for half an hour then add salt basil and chili as much as you like.

Here you are your sauce, it's perfect with spaghetti, penne, rigatoni, farfalle.

Chocolate salami dessert (Salame al cioccolato)

2008-10-08T08:53:00.000-07:00

The shape it's the one of salami, it's served sliced like a salami...But it's not a real salami!^^

Today it's time for a chocolate delight, a sweet dessert easy to prepare, you can even involve children, for their joy!

I remember when I was little and I had the occasion to prepare it with my mum, I always had had a lot of fun!

Ingredients:

3 onces cocoa powder

1/2 once hazelnuts

3 1/2 onces sugar

2 1/2 onces butter

5 onces biscuits (plain ones)

1 egg + 1 yolk

icing sugar

Bake hazelnuts in the oven untill they're toasted (if they're not still), break them in little pieces.

Put biscuits in a plastic bag for food and crush them with a rollpin or something similar: they must be well broken but not completely pulverized.

Keep off the butter from fridge and let it getting soft.

Put in a bowl the egg and the yolk, mix them with sugar untill you have a smooth cream.

Add cocoa powder and butter and mix again very well.

Add hazelnuts and biscuit, mix untill everything is well amalgamated.

Pour the mixture on a big oven paper sheet, give it the shape of a big salami and put in the fridge for at least 3-4 hours.

Before serving keep off the paper and powder the dessert with icing sugar, then slice it and make your family and guests happy! ;)

Cheese and courgettes tureen (Terrina di formaggi e zucchine)

2008-10-05T07:57:00.000-07:00

This recipe comes from a cooking magazine I book every month: it's pocket, well organized and it's also have menus and shopping list for the whole month.

It's called "Cucina no problem", Mondadori ediction: maybe you can find it abroad, I see on the first pages foreign prices...

For this recipe you need:

a tureen plum cake shape

9 onces ricotta cheese

7 onces robiola cheese (or philadelphia or any similar creamy cheese)

4 courgettes

3 eggs

nutmeg

5 spoons of grated parmesan

1 garlic clove

butter

extravirgin olive oil

salt and pepper

Wash and clean courgettes, cut in thin slices, then stirfry them in a pan with oil and the garlic clove for about 3-4 minutes.

Keep off garlic and add salt and pepper.

Open eggs in a bowl, add ricotta cheese, robiola or philadelphia, 5 spoons of grated parmesan, a little grated nutmeg, salt and pepper.

Mix ingredients with a fork untill you have a smooth cream.

Pass butter on the tureen walls, cover bottom with the cream, then add half of the courgettes and another cream layer and finish with courgettes.

Cook putting the tureen in another saucepan with a little water ( it's called "bagnomaria" here in Italy) at medium heat in the owen for about 45 minutes.

Let it getting warm before serving, you can decorate with chopped mint leaves if you like or put ham or bacon between layers.

Light and healthy but tasty!!

Perch fish with lemon sauce (Pesce persico al limone)

2008-09-30T11:51:00.000-07:00

Today I have a very quick and easy recipe, light and tasty, a great solution for dinner when you don't want to cook for hours.

Take a perch fish fillet (one per person), flour it on each side, put it in a pan where you melted a little butter with a garlic clove, let it golden then add the juice of two lemons and salt.

Let it cook for a while (perch is really quick to cook), keep off garlic and at the end add a little parsley if you like.

Here you are the dinner!

So fast and so good...Isn't it easy?

If you don't like lemon you can do the same with white wine.

Of couse you can serve it with any kind of side dish, boiled potadoes and carrots are the best according to me.

Stuffed mushrooms with sausage ( Funghi ripeni con salsiccia)

2008-09-24T10:08:00.000-07:00

Another mushrooms recipe today: we're in the season and I love them so much I buy them almost every week.

Stuffed mushrooms are ok as appetizer or side dish, count about 2-3 each person, now we count about 8 persons.

Ingredients:

24 mushrooms (champignons, not too big)

5 oz sausage

parsley finely chopped

salt and pepper

3 tablespoon milk cream

1/2 glass white dry wine

extravirgin olive oil

1 tablespoon grated parmesan cheese

Clean mushrooms and keep off the stems.

Leave the caps apart, chop in very tiny pieces stems, stirfry them in a pan with oil, salt, pepper, parmesan and the white wine, then add ginned (? I'm not sure about the word) sausage, add parsley and milk cream at the end.

Put everything in the mixer and give a quick turn, then fill the caps with the cream and put in the oven, bake at medium heat for about 15-20 minutes.

They're really great, one leads another!

Pot roast with porcini mushrooms ( Arrosto ai funghi porcini)

2008-09-23T08:40:00.000-07:00

To celebrate Fall today I post the recipe of a great "sunday special": pot roast with porcini mushrooms.

You can use any other kind of mushrooms of course but porcini are definetely the most yummy according to me!

I often prepare this pot roast when I've friends for dinner: it's always loved.

Ingredients:

2 lb beef roast

2 garlic cloves

2 tablespoon butter

2 tablespoon extravirgin olive oil

1/5 oz dried porcini soaked in warm water

1/2 lb fresh porcini, chopped or frozen chopped porcini

1 tablespoon of finely chopped parsley

1/2 cup white dry whine

1/2 cup meat broth (or canned broth)

salt

pepper

Sprinkle meat with salt and pepper, in a saucepan put the butter, the oil and the garlic cloves turn the heat (medium) and when the fat starts foaming add the meat.

Brown the meat on each side add wine and let it evaporate.

Drain the soaked porcini and chop them, filter the brown water and add it to the roast with broth and mushrooms.

Add also fresh/ frozen porcini and turn the heat to moderate.

Turn the meat a couple of times during the cooking, let it cook covered until the meat is tender, near the end add parsley .

To slice the meat you must let it become cold or at least warm: then put it again in the pan with sauce and warm it, then serve.

So good with roasted potadoes or potadoes puree!

Have a nice fall!

CONVERSION!

2008-09-14T02:58:00.000-07:00

I've converted all the quantity in U.S. measures: enjoy my recipes in an easier way!

It's not simply, I just had had a little bit of time and will...

But now everything it's ok.

If I missed something let me now!

Tiramisu' dessert (Tiramisu')

2008-09-13T02:43:00.000-07:00

Tiramisu' is a very famous Italian dessert but it's quite new even on our tables.

It hasn't got a long history but, because of it's own great taste, everyone loves it.

Tiramisu’ can be prepared in advance and kept in the freezer.

Remember to remove it from the freezer enough time in advance to serve it cold but soft, not frozen.

Ingredients:

1 cup and half of espresso coffee

about 40 savoiardi biscuits (ladyfinger cookies)

4 egg yolks

4 egg whites, whipped

1 lb. mascarpone cheese

1/2 cup of sugar

cocoa powder or chocolate chips/ drops

1/2 cup of marsala wine (if you like, it's an optional, I never use it)

Prepare espresso and let it be cold (you can sugar it when it's hot and mix but I don't love very much too sweet desserts so I don't usually do it).

With a rubber spatula mash mascarpone cheese untill it's creamy, mix yolks and sugar untill sugar is melted and pour the mixture in the bowl with mascarpone.

Beat very well, untill everything is well mixed, if you want add marsala wine now.

Whip the whites and add them to mascarpone: fold the whipped whites in the cream mixing up and down (not round) gently.

Now take a glass container of about 12 X 8 inches, soak ladyfinger one at time and places them in a layer on the bottom of container.

Pour and spread half of the mascarpone cream over the cookies, repeat the step with a second layer of biscuits and top with the rest of the cream.

Sprinkle with cocoa powder or cover with chocolate chips (my favourite!).

Refrigerate for about 3-4 hours.

You can also choose individual servings in glass cups, here just put one layer of ladyfingers and then a generous quantity of cream, in this case 2 hours in the freezer are enough.

Meat broth ( Brodo di carne)

2008-09-08T08:32:00.000-07:00

Meat broth is often used to cook risotto, to give flavour to roasts and dishes: I don't know if it is usually served as a soup abroad but it's how we mainly eat it in Italy.

If you use it for cooking no one will blame if you use canned broth (better the pownder one than the cubes, less chemical things in the first) but if you want to serve it with pasta (tortellini, angel hair or other tiny shapes) you have to prepare a good homemade meat broth.

It's easier than you can think: the longest part is the cooking but you don't need to take a lot of care of it while it's boiling...

You need ( I found the conversion in gallons and pounds, sooner or later I'll change even the meaures of the ingredients of past recipes):

a large stockpot

a gallon of water (more or less)

2 lb. of meat ( beef with a little fat, bones, hen) in big pieces

1 whole onion

2 whole carrots

2 celery sticks

1 whole tomato

1 tablespoon salt

You can add:

a little bunch of parsley

nutmeg freshly grated

2-3 cloves

To be honest I don't use these ingredients because they give broth a too spicy flavour that not always fits what I put in it.

Place the meat in the pot, add tomato, onion, carrots and celery then fill with water.

Add salt and bring the water to a boil.

Cook untill the meat is tender, for 2 lb. of meat you probably have to wait 2-2 1/2 hours, let it gently boil, not too strong or the water will evaporate too soon and too much.

When the meat is ready remove it from the pot (don't throw it, it can be eaten or used in other recipes: the meat from the broth boiling it's called "lesso").

Filter the broth through a fine strainer to clarify it and remove all the small particles. Let the broth cool at room temperature.

When the broth will be cold, the fat will solidify on the surface.

Remove most of the fat with a spoon, how much dipends on you: some people here love fat bubbles in the hot broth, my husband does, I don't (can you imagine the battle when I prepare it?^^ "Leave fat!", "No, it's too much!" and so on...).

Now the broth is ready: just cook in it what you prefer, if you don't use within two days you can preserve it in a bottle in your freezer on into ice forms if you need small portions.

Genovese pesto (Pesto alla genovese)

2008-08-31T10:52:00.000-07:00

As said few posts ago it's time for basil: what recipe can give all the best from this herb if not Genovese pesto?

It's worldwide famous but often the one you buy at supermarket is: expensive, made with low quality oils, low percentage of basil or dried basil, cashew nuts instead of pine-kernels.

Having a good and healthy pesto is not that difficult, so why don't you give a try?

To prepare a real pesto you should have a lot of patience and a marble mortar and pestle.
Probably you don't have it (I don't have it!) and then I'll give a quick solution at the end of the recipe, but it's an Italian kitchen blog so let's have the traditional recipe first!

Ingredients / 6 persons:

about 20 oz.. pasta ( trofie as seen in the photo are the best but you can also use linguini, spaghetti, gnocchi, penne)

a big bunch of fresh basil (tradition says 30 basil leaves each garlic clove, of course it's up to you at the end)

a glass of extravirgin olive oil

2 garlic cloves

1 spoon pine-kernels

3 spoons of grated cheese ( parmesan, grana padano or pecorino from tuscany, sicily or sardinia: your choice)

a little salt

Important things to know before starting: you should end the preparation as soon as possible to avoid oxidation and having it at enviroment temperature.

Wash basil leaves in cold water, let them dry on a kitchen napkin.

Put a garlic clove in the mortar, crush it and then add, little by little, the leaves: the movement of the pestle should be round and gentle, you haven't to crash leaves, it's the only way to let basil's essential oils spread at their best.

Add salt (big grains, just some).

When you see a green juice comes from leaves it's time to add pine-kernels: they help to mix the sauce and give a gentle flavour.

Turn pestle again and again and then you can add cheese and oil very slowly while mixing.

Now your pesto is ready to give taste to your dish, just remember to save some spoons of the cooking water when drain the pasta: they'll help amalgamating pesto sauce and pasta and have a creamy and soft Italia dish.

Ok now...What can you do if you don't have a mortar and/or no time to act like a 19th century cook?

Whas the leaves, put all the ingredients into a mixer and then mix untill you have a fine cream.

Not to much or the basil and oil become hot with the mixer's turning and it's really bad.

It's not the perfect way of which a Ligurian would be proud of , but it's good enough to invite your friend for dinner and save your wallet and your health in a tasty way!