This stuffed pasta dish is the second of my series of posts dedicated to my Foodbuzz 24×24 Christmas in July event. Italians always have some sort of stuffed pasta at Christmas, especially at their Christmas Eve dinner (at this meal we traditionally do not eat meat). This does not mean the meal is light though! …
FOODBUZZ 24×24: CHRISTMAS IN JULY
Since I moved to Australia from Italy 5 years ago I haven’t gotten used to the “reversed” seasons yet. For someone who has spent the majority of her life in the Northern hemisphere where it is summer in July and winter in December, I have to live with the seasons reversed and believe me, it…
ORECCHIETTE CON VERDURA RIPASSATA – ORECCHIETTE WITH SPICY VEGGIES
Steph from Stephfood was our Daring Cooks‘ July hostess. Steph challenged us to make homemade noodles without the help of a motorized pasta machine. She provided us with recipes for Spätzle and Fresh Egg Pasta as well as a few delicious sauces to pair our noodles with! Needless to say I couldn’t have been more…
MOUSSAKA
This is definitely not an Italian recipe. As everyone knows moussaka is a traditional Greek dish. I still remember the first time I ate it. I was in Paris with my parents and we went out for dinner in the area of Saint-Germain-des-Prés, an area filled with little French and foreign restaurants. I was a…
SPAGHETTI WITH TUNA AND CAPSICUM
This is a very simple pasta dish. I like it because it is really tasty, colourful and easy to prepare. I usually make it when I do not have a lot of time, but feel like eating something flavoursome and healthy. Try and make it as a mid week dinner, I am sure you will…
BAKED SWORDFISH
This is one of the easiest recipes to make delicious and healthy fish. It is also the way I prefer eating swordfish as it reminds me of my childhood. My mom would always make it this way at home and when there was swordfish for lunch or dinner I would always be happy. This is…
BEEF AND VEGETABLE PATTIES
Do you have fussy eaters at home? I sure do… my preschooler just refuses to eat any vegetables at all. So, like many moms out there with the same problem, I have to think of ways to make her eat her veggies. I often “hide” them in foods that she enjoys eating and these patties…
PASTA WITH CREAMY BROCCOLI AND PINE NUT SAUCE
I have always liked broccoli (which in Italian are referred to as “broccoletti” to differentiate them from the big roman or purple broccoli), even as a child. Then again, I also used to like brussel sprouts, so I guess I was not a fussy child when it came to eating my veggies. Anyhow, this very…
MARINATED LAMB CUTLETS
This is a very simple lamb dish that I came up with since moving to Australia. Lamb in Italy are much smaller than they are here and it is not easy to find some cuts of meat. I don’t remember seing this kind of cutlets at the supermarkets in Italy… but I haven’t been back…
PAPPARDELLE WITH PORCINI MUSHROOMS
This is a classic dish. It is very easy to make and will impress even the fussiest eater! Porcini mushrooms are the key here. Their flavour and aroma has no comparison. I consider them to be the “king of all mushrooms”. In my opinion, no other mushroom gets even close to them in flavour. They…
POLPETTONE – STUFFED MEATLOAF AND A BUNCH OF AWARDS
Everyone has his/her signature dish… and this is definitely my mother’s. She is a very good cook and I have learnt a lot from her. I have always liked watching her preparing food in our kitchen back in Italy and I would help her any time I had the time. She can prepare all sorts…
FRIED PIZZA – PIZZA FRITTA
This is not a recipe for the faint hearted. It is not light and it is fried… but it is the most delicious of pizza’s! It is my nonna’s (grandmother) recipe and she used to make it for her children and grandchildren quite often. I actually do not remember her making a baked pizza ever……
Spaghetti with Fish Sauce
Make pasta night special with a bowl of Spaghetti with Fish Sauce. Each forkful combines savoury sauce and tender fish for a light and satisfying meal at home.
ZUCCHINI AND RICOTTA QUICHE
The other day some friends came over for lunch and I wanted to make something quick and tasty that could be prepared in advance, so that I could spend more time chit chatting with them instead of being busy in the kitchen. I like making all sorts of quiches, which in Italy are called “torte…
LAMB KORMA
Lamb Korma is one of my husband’s favourite curries. It is a delicious, creamy and mild curry. When cooked well the lamb is so soft that it should melt in your mouth. I have been looking for years for the perfect recipe for lamb korma and, as it often happens, I found it by chance. …
KASHMIRI PULAO
When we first moved to Sydney we did not know any good places to dine out in the city, so we asked around and received a few great suggestions. One of these quickly became one of our favourite restaurants: Abhi’s Indian Restaurant. The food is fantastic and some of their dishes are just plain delicious. …
PUMPKIN AND BARLEY SOUP
My mom used to make this pumpkin soup often in autumn and winter, when pumpkin is in season in Italy. It is a comforting and tasty soup, perfect for a cold winter evening. If you are vegetarian you can make it without speck. If you do cook it with speck though, try and find the…
FOCACCIA DI RECCO
This focaccia is typical of a little town called Recco which is near Genoa, in Liguria. It is not the same focaccia that you would normally see. It is not thick and fluffy, as it is not made with yeast but it hides a very tasty and creamy “secret” inside: stracchino. Stracchino is a soft…
Poached Chicken Breasts in Mint Sauce
Light and tender Poached Chicken Breasts in Mint Sauce bring a refreshing taste of summer, ideal for warm lunches or easy outdoor gatherings.
CHICKEN COTOLETTE WITH CHEESE AND A SHOWER OF AWARDS
This is the chicken version of my cotolette recipe with a couple of differences. In this case I coat the chicken with flour before putting it in the egg wash and crumbing it. And, above all, I add cheese to it. It is a very easy dish that your kids and you will love. This…
PENNE WITH ZUCCHINI AND SPECK
This pasta brings back lots of wonderful childhood memories. I still remember the first time I ate this pasta even though I was only 7 years old. It was a very cold winter evening and I was on a ski holiday, a “settimana bianca” (literally a “white week”) as we call it in Italy. We…
COUSCOUS SALAD
Couscous is one of those ingredients that I have always loved. To tell you the truth I have discovered the pre-cooked version only in recent years. My mom is from Trapani, a city in western Sicily that is renowned for the most delicious fish couscous on the planet. I have grown up eating (and enjoying)…
SPINACH RISOTTO – RISOTTO AGLI SPINACI
I love all risotti. This one used to be one of my favourite as a child. I liked its colour so much! Yet, I hated spinach… this was the only spinach dish I would eat. So it is a great way to make fussy kids eat their veggies. It works well with my 3 year…
RIANATA
A while ago I published the recipe for sfincione, which can be considered to be the pizza of Palermo. Today I am going to give you the recipe for the pizza from Trapani: rianata. There are a few versions of this pizza, some are made only with oregano (the name rianata comes from origanata which…
LAMB STEAKS WITH SUN DRIED TOMATOES, FETA AND BAKED POTATO
Being that Easter will be here in 2 days, I thought of making a lamb dish for Easter. In Italy we traditionally eat lamb for Easter. I have to admit that while growing up I did not like lamb. I thought it tasted too strong… I changed my mind when I met my husband and…
STROZZAPRETI WITH SPECK AND PISTACHIO PESTO
The last time I went to Italy was in 2008. We went during summer, so we also went to Sicily to spend some time at the seaside in a small village called San Vito Lo Capo (Wiki). Our eldest daughter was 1 year old then and my husband and I could finally leave her with…
“AGGLASSATO” CHICKEN – POLLO “AGGLASSATO”
This is a family recipe for cooking chicken that my dad brought with him from Palermo. The Sicilian term “agglassato” (in Italian “glassato”) means glazed and it refers to the glazed look that the onion sauce gives to the chicken. The onions give the chicken a sweet taste that is balanced by the slightly tangy…
