Rosemary ( Rosmarino )

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)

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)

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!!

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)

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)

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)

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!!