Tomorrow is a very special day for all Italian children, as we celebrate the day of the Epiphany and the visitation of the Biblical Magi to the baby Jesus. The night between January 5th and 6th is the night of Befana, who, in Italian folklore, is “an old woman who fills children’s stockings with candy…
Search Results for: sicilian
Carciofi alla Trapanese #SundaySupper
This week the Sunday Supper team is sharing recipes for lighter foods to balance out the indulgences that go along with all the feasting, parties and celebrations of the upcoming holiday season. And what better than artichokes to eat lighter, healthier but still delicious food? Did you know that the total antioxidant capacity of artichokes is one…
Sarde Allinguate
I know I have said this before, but sardines are my favourite fish ever. They are cheap and so good for you and I highly recommend you try them. I just wish I could find them more often here in Sydney! Today I will share with you a traditonal Sicilian recipe, very common in the…
Elsa’s Plait
I love savoury dishes much more than sweets, so I always make sure to have a few savoury options at parties as I know kids will need something more than sugary treats. I made this bread plait for Victoria’s Frozen party, to simulate Elsa’s long plait. It’s a soft bread filled with ham and mozzarella. …
Easter Recipe Roundup
Today’s post is not a recipe. As the title suggests, I will share with you my favourite recipes for Easter. In the Northern Hemisphere, Easter is in spring and many Easter dishes are linked to spring both in produce used and in theme. While we are in autumn down under, the people who migrated from…
3 YEAR BLOGIVERSARY!
Today we are celebrating my site’s 3rd blogiversary! It feels like yesterday that I started blogging. I still remember how hard it was to choose a name for the blog. I wanted something catchy, but easy to remember… and I wanted something that represented me. That’s how Manu’s Menu came about: I liked the way…
ARANCINE WITH SPINACH
If you have read my latest post, you will know that I am hosting this month’s challenge at the Daring Cooks! I chose to challenge my fellow daring cooks to make Arancine from scratch, including risotto! I also shared 3 different recipes with them: Arancine al Ragu’, Arancine al Burro and Arancine agli Spinaci. The…
THE DARING COOKS’ JANUARY 2014 CHALLENGE: ARANCINE
This month’s challenge is very special for a few reasons. For starters, our hostess, Manu, graciously stepped in with very little notice and created an entire amazing challenge in pretty much no time at all. Secondly, Manu managed to do all of this while publishing her very first e-cookbook. Seriously, you simply must check it…
GELATINA DI CAFFÈ – COFFEE JELLO
I have been blogging for almost 3 years now and when I look back at all the the things I learnt, I almost can’t believe it. I am talking about cooking techniques and also about computer skills and photography! But what I am the most grateful for are the friendships I made along the way. …
RICOTTA FILLED GRAFFE
Today’s recipe comes from the Sicilian town of Trapani, where my mother was born. These are similar, but not the same as the more famous Neapolitan graffe, the dough of which includes potatoes. Graffe in Trapani are like doughnuts, fried and then filled with the same sweet ricotta filling used for Cannoli, Sfinciuni di San…
COUSCOUS, OLIVE AND ORANGE SALAD
Ohhh I love couscous and I make it in all kinds of ways. My all time favourite is my mum’s (and grandma’s) traditional Fish Couscous, but I also make the pre cooked version and serve it as a side dish. And then there is leftover plain couscous. Which is like a white canvas that can…
BEEF AGGLASSATO
Today’s Regional Italian dish is yet another dish from Sicily! It is a very easy and delicious beef pot roast (kind of) made with onions and white wine. It is a recipe from Palermo that comes from my father’s side of the family. I have already shared with you the recipe for Chicken Agglassato, and this…
MATAROCCO
For this week’s Regional Italian dish I am going to take you back to Sicily. Today’s recipe is really easy and really tasty, it is one of those family recipes that we would always have during our summer holidays. It is hearty and delicious, full of “local” flavours as all the ingredients are easily available in…
RICOTTA CROSTATA
After showing you how easy it is to make “ricotta” at home, I thought I would also show you an additional way to cook with it. I love ricotta, both in sweet and savoury dishes. Sicilians are famous for their ricotta desserts and I must admit I love sweet ricotta. It is lighter (also in…
CASSATELLE TRAPANESI – CASSATEDDI TRAPANISI
Today’s recipe is another one of my Sicilian recipes. Cassatelle (or cassateddi in Sicilian) are sweets typical of the town of Trapani, where my mum was born. They are usually eaten in winter and spring, which is when the fresh local ricotta cheese is at its best. They are traditionally made with sheep milk ricotta,…
SARDE A BECCAFICO ALLA PALERMITANA
Today’s Regional Italian dish takes us back to Sicily… to Palermo to be precise. It is a very popular dish and like all popular dishes, every family has its own recipe or twist. Also each Sicilian city has its variations. This is my family’s version, from my father’s side… and it is the Palermo version. …
SPAGHETTI WITH HOME-MADE TOMATO SAUCE
I cannot believe it! I have blogged for over 2 years and I haven’t posted this recipe yet! Spaghetti with home-made tomato sauce form the BASE of Italian cuisine. So much so that Italians refer to this dish as pasta “al sugo”, which means “with sauce”, taking for granted that the sauce is tomato sauce. …
BUSIATI WITH EGGPLANT AND GARLIC & THYME BREADCRUMBS
Today’s dish is a recipe I came up with a little while ago. Do you ever have a day when you want to use up ingredients that are taking too much place in your pantry or fridge? It happens quite often to me and when it does, I take them all out, put them on…
PASTA CON LE SARDE ALLA PALERMITANA
I am quite sure I have said this already, but just in case you have missed that specific post, I will repeat myself… 😉 I like fish, but I am not a HUGE fish lover. If I had to choose only one thing to have off a menu, fish would always be at the bottom…
2 YEAR BLOGIVERSARY!
Today we are celebrating my site’s 2nd blogiversary! It feels like yesterday that I sat down at my computer and created Manu’s Menu! I still remember all the research I did and all the hard work I put into figuring out all the technicalities that are behind these pages! I have always cooked, but working…
PISTACHIO AND CARDAMOM SEMIFREDDO WITH ROSE CREAM
Today I want to share with you the recipe for a special dessert. A few weeks ago, my friend Abeer from Cake Whiz asked me if I wanted to be a part of a special project she was working on for Christmas. She asked a few of her favourite bloggers to come up with a Christmas…
BISCOTTI DI FICHI – FIG COOKIES
Today, as part of my series on Regional Italian Cuisines, I want to share with you the recipe for a very traditional Christmas Sicilian sweet: biscotti di fichi. They are made with the same dough and filling of Buccellato (the traditional Sicilian cake I have shared with you last year), but they are a bit…
