This is the second dish from the menu that I have come up with to celebrate the 150 years of the Unification of Italy. It is the main dish of the theme menu and, like the entree already published -“Tricolore salad”- it also has the colors of the Italian flag: white, red and green. This…
“TRICOLORE” SALAD – INSALATA TRICOLORE
To celebrate the 150 years of the Unification of Italy I thought of creating a special theme menu. In the next few days I will post 3 recipes (an entree, a main and a dessert) with one thing in common: they will all have the colors white, red and green in honor of the Italian…
FRIED ZUCCHINI FLOWERS – PLAIN OR STUFFED
Zucchini flowers are a staple in my kitchen. I love them and buy them whenever I find them! The first time I made them for my husband he thought I was joking… “I’ll never eat flowers”, he told me straight away. So, I let him be… and started making them. Once ready, I brought them…
MANGO LASSI
This is definitely not an Italian recipe!! Lassi is a yogurt based Indian drink that can be savory or, like in this case, sweet. I had never drunk lassi before meeting my husband; actually I have to admit that I knew very little about Indian food before. He introduced me to many new ingredients and…
CASARECCE WITH TUNA AND LEMON TOPPED WITH GARLIC BREADCRUMBS
This is a very simple, yet flavoursome pasta dish. I ate it for the first time many years ago at a family friend’s house (Laura) and I have been making it ever since. What I love the most about this pasta is the contrast between strong flavours (lemon and garlic) and between textures: the softness…
CHIACCHIERE
This is a very special time of the year for all Italian children: it is “Carnevale”. It is the time to dress up as a princess or a super hero and go around town to play tricks on people or throw coriandoli (round shaped paper confetti) in the air. There are many famous Carnevali in…
BAKED PORK SCALOPPINE WITH GORGONZOLA
This is another one of my favourite dishes since childhood. Have I already said that I love gorgonzola (and any other blue cheese for that matter)? Well… I could eat it on anything, even as a dessert (yes, I do have a couple of aces up my sleeve on this)! This dish though is very…
PANZEROTTI
A panzerotto is very similar to a calzone, but it is fried. There is a little shop in the very center of Milano, just behind the famous Duomo (Wiki), that makes the best panzerotti ever. It is called Luini and it very famous among the locals. I would often eat there with my friends during…
FIRST EVENT AND… SECOND AWARD!
As all of you know, I am Italian. Even though I have been living in Australia for almost 5 years now, I was born and brought up in Italy. On March 17th 2011 Italy is celebrating its 150 years of Unification, so to celebrate I thought I would host a special event on my website. …
BUSIATI WITH PESTO TRAPANESE AND FRIED EGGPLANT – BUSIATI CULL’AGGHIA
This is probably the most traditional pasta you can eat in the area of Trapani, in western Sicily. Both the pasta and the sauce are, together with fish couscous, the most well known dishes of the area. The sauce is very easy to make and it is the Trapanese version of pesto. It is similar…
LIGHT BLUEBERRY MUFFINS WITH LEMON SUGAR CRUST
I know there are many blueberry muffins recipes out there. A couple of years ago I was looking for one, but I did not find exactly what I was looking for. So I came up with this one that is really a mix of 2 or 3 recipes. I tried to look them up on…
MY SPAGHETTI CARBONARA – SPAGHETTI ALLA CARBONARA ALLA MIA MANIERA
That’s right… “my” spaghetti carbonara. Carbonara is a very popular dish and it is well known all over the world. The name derives from “charcoal” (carbone in Italian) either as a tribute to the secret society Carboneria (whose members were known as Carbonari – Wiki) that fought for the unity of Italy in the 19th century,…
OSSO BUCO MILANESE – OSSOBUCO ALLA MILANESE
This osso buco (or oss bus a la milanesa) is another typical dish from Milan, the city where I was born, and it is traditionally served with Risotto alla milanese on the side. The ingredients are very simple, but the flavours are really intense, thanks to the gremolada, a mix of parsley, garlic and lemon…
SAFFRON RISOTTO – RISOTTO ALLA MILANESE
As I said in my post A special birthday with… an award, Risotto alla milanese is the first dish I have ever cooked all by myself. I remember watching my mother continuously stirring the rice in the pot as a small child and waiting impatiently for it to be ready. It surely was my favourite…
QUICK COCONUT CREME BRULEE – CREME BRULEE VELOCE AL COCCO
I love all sweets with a sugar crusty top… whenever I am in Spain, I always go for a Crema Catalana and in France I must eat Crème Brulée at least once! This is my version of a very quick crème brulée-style dessert. It is one of those dishes that I came up with not…
A SPECIAL BIRTHDAY WITH… AN AWARD!
As I have mentioned in the post Ricotta gnocchi with three sauces, yesterday was my birthday, so I was even happier when Elyse from The Cultural Dish told me that she had awarded me with the “Stylish Food Blogger Award”. Getting my first award ever surely is a great way to celebrate! Thank you so…
RICOTTA GNOCCHI WITH THREE SAUCES – TRIS DI GNOCCHI DI RICOTTA
What can I say? Ricotta gnocchi is one of my favourite dishes… and for my birthday, I thought I deserved a triple treat! The classic way to serve ricotta gnocchi is with butter and sage, but I love them with lots of different sauces. Have I mentioned that gorgonzola is my favourite cheese? So, I…
BOILED SALMON WITH PINK SAUCE – SALMONE LESSATO CON SALSA ROSA
After all the Valentine’s Day sweets I needed to eat something healthy and simple… and what’s healthier than fish? This is a very quick and easy fish dish. I have always liked boiled fish with mayo… must be because when I was a child I had a nursery rhymes book about food and one of…
LIGHT CHOCOLATE MOUSSE WITH ORANGE LIQUEUR – MOUSSE DI CIOCCOLATO “LIGHT” AL LIQUORE D’ARANCIA
I love everything chocolate… and what’s better than a chocolate mousse to celebrate Valentine’s Day with the one you love? This is a lighter version than the traditional chocolate mousse because it does not require cream: I just use egg whites to make it fluffy. I usually make this mousse with rum, but this time…
CANDIED ORANGE ZESTS – SCORZETTE D’ARANCIA CANDITE
This is a typical Italian winter sweet and is often (but not only) used as a decoration for other desserts or served at the end of a meal with some coffee. My mom used to make lots of them for Christmas because that is the time of the year when oranges are at their best. …
“CAT’S TONGUES” BISCUITS – LINGUE DI GATTO
These biscuits are a classic of Italian cuisine. Every pastry shop sells them and they are very often served with ice cream. Their name literally means “cat’s tongues” as their shape and size resemble a cat’s tongue. I simply love them… they are thin and crispy and the aroma that they create while baking takes…
BAILEYS ICE CREAM – GELATO AL BAILEYS
A couple of days ago, my dear friend Nat asked me to publish this very recipe. I had actually thought of posting the recipe of another sweet for Valentine’s Day, but this request gave me an idea. Why not publish both recipes? In the southern hemisphere it is still very hot, so ice cream is…
PENNE WITH SAUSAGE SAUCE – PENNE CON SUGO DI SALSICCIA
This is one of my family’s favourite pasta sauces! The first time I have eaten this dish was many years ago, at some family friends’ house in Sicily. Their names are Giovanni and Giovanna. It is a very earthy pasta dish and my girls love it. Do not worry about the Brandy/Cognac shot… the alcohol…
ALMOND COOKIES – DOLCETTI DI MANDORLE
This is a recipe of traditional Sicilian sweets. Sicily is renowned for its citrus fruits, its pistachio nuts and almonds. All these products make fantastic ingredients for sweets. Whenever I go to Sicily, the little mountain top medieval town of Erice (Wiki) is my favourite spot to enjoy almond based sweets. This is a very…
"LIGHT" SWEET AND SOUR CAPSICUMS – PEPERONATA "LIGHT"
I love all things “sweet and sour”, or as we say “agrodolce”. There are many versions of this dish… I could say that probably every family has its own. In our home, we have 2 recipes! This is the “light” version, as the capsicums are not fried. It is really tasty and its tangy flavour…
VERMICELLI WITH ANCHOVIES AND ROASTED BREADCRUMBS – VERMICELLI ALL’ACCIUGHINA E “MUDDICA ATTURRATA”
This is one of my husband’s favourite pasta sauces. It is very simple indeed. It is what we call a dish for the “poor person”, as in the past not everyone could afford fresh fish or meat or cheese. In fact, it is made with anchovies and instead of eating it with grated cheese, we…
STEWED TURKEY MEATBALLS – POLPETTE DI TACCHINO IN UMIDO
This is one of my grandma’s dishes that got passed to me by my parents. I have to say, I love “polpette”… and this particular dish brings back many sweet childhood memories, so it is particularly dear to me. I hope you enjoy it just as much as I do.
