Over the weekend, I was invited by Barilla Australia to one of their Hands-on Cooking Classes at Casa Barilla, here in Sydney. The class was about food from Emilia Romagna, home of many iconic Italian products like Parmigiano Reggiano, Prosciutto di Parma, Balsamic Vinegar and Mortadella, to cite just a few. It is a true…
Panino con la Salamella #SundaySupper
Today the Sunday Supper group is inviting everyone to a big Virtual Picnic! It is summer in the Northern hemisphere and a picnic is in order. Even for us down here, stuck in the coldest months of the year, picnic food is fun and always great to pin and bookmark. I love “dreaming” of summer time and…
Lamb Gozleme
I love Gozleme. Did you know that the name “Gozleme” comes from the word goz that means “eye” in Turkish? Apparently it derives its name from the little round black spots that form on the dough after cooking it! Since discovering this little tasty pocket of Turkish goodness, I have tried many different fillings and…
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…
MURUKKU – CHAKALI
Today I will share with you the recipe for an Indian savoury snack that is always eaten for Diwali, but that we also like to eat during the rest of the year at tea time: murukku – முறுக்கு (also known as chakali or chakli). Murukku is a Tamilian word that means “twisted” and even though these…
CHAI
Today is the time to share the recipe for one of the most comforting beverages ever: Indian chai. I see all kinds of chai drinks around and it’s become quite a fashionable drink… so much so that it’s often not the original Indian chai any more and it can get quite confusing. So, what is…
SHANKARPALI – SHAKARPARA
Happy Diwali! Today is the beginning of Diwali (दिवाली), the “festival of lights”, a 5-day Indian festival that celebrates the triumph of good over evil and light over darkness. Light is the symbol of the celebrations and many clay lamps filled with oil are lit during the 5 days of the festival. As you may know,…
SPINACH AND FETA GOZLEME
I have only recently discovered Gozleme. Sydney is full of little Turkish shops that sell amazing food, but I had always ordered a kebab or a pide. At least until a few months ago, when I had a spinach and feta Gozleme and I loved it so much, I have never ordered anything else. I…
FIRI FIRI
I am very excited about today’s recipe. During our recent holiday in French Polynesia (Tahiti), we ate some amazing food and we literally fell in love with these doughnut-like sweets. We first bought them at the Papeete Markets and we had no idea that they would become our staple for breakfast during the following 2…
MEAT FILLED APULIAN PANZEROTTI
I cannot believe it’s Carnevale time already! Didn’t we celebrate Christmas just the other day?? Anyhow, today’s recipe had to be related to this amazing festivity, which also happens to be the one I like the most. I soooo miss Carnevale… back in Italy we all dress up in masks and go around playing tricks and having…
ITALIAN STYLE HOT CHOCOLATE WITH WHIPPED CREAM
Italian winters can be really cold. I miss the short days, cosy evenings and heart warming food that we used to have during those cold months. The truth is, it never gets that cold here. One of the special treats we would have in winter was hot chocolate. The Italian hot chocolate is creamy, thick and sinful. …
JALEBI – जलेबी
Tomorrow marks the beginning of Diwali (दिवाली), the “festival of lights”, a 5-day Indian festival that celebrates the triumph of good over evil and light over darkness. Light is the symbol of the celebrations, so much so that many candles and oil lanterns are lit during the 5 days of the festival. Another very important…
BAKED EMPANADAS
Today’s recipe is not Italian as you may have guessed. Empanadas are a South American delicacy and are very popular in many countries. I have actually learnt that there are many different kinds of empanadas, many different fillings and doughs and different ways of cooking them too! I guess it is one of those dishes…
FOCACCIA AL POMODORO – CHERRY TOMATO FOCACCIA
After sharing with you the Basic Focaccia recipe, the recipe for Focaccia with Olives and the one for Onion Focaccia, today I am going to post the recipe for another one of my favourites: Focaccia al pomodoro (aka cherry tomato focaccia)! I remember as a child going to the baker right after school and buying a piece…
PAPRI CHAAT
So, here you have it! Today I am sharing with you the recipe of our favourite Indian chaat: papri chaat. As I wrote in my post on Sev, chaats are snacks served with chutneys (typically Hari chutney and Tamarind chutney) and spices. It is a very common street food that is sold from carts all…
SEV
I always talk about our favourite Indian restaurant in Sydney (Abhi’s), but there is another place that we love to go to. It is called Billu’s Indian Eatery and we like to go there on weekends when they serve some of the food we enjoy the most: Indian street food. They have some of the best…
BRIOCHE BURGER BUNS
I made these buns to serve with the Aussie Burgers I prepared for my “Come have some Aussie tucker, mate!” event that I organised as part of Foodbuzz’s 24×24 program. They were sensational! Soft and brioche-like… just like a burger bun should be. You can see what I mean from the pictures below… the dough…
GNOCCO FRITTO
Today’s Regional Italian dish comes from the region of Emilia Romagna, an area where you find some of the best Italian food. Prosciutto di Parma, Mortadella, Culatello, Parmigiano Reggiano, Tortellini, just to name a few, all come from here. It is “foodie heaven” and I cannot recommend it enough for a taste of amazing Italian…
ONION FOCACCIA
After sharing with you the Basic Focaccia recipe and the recipe for Focaccia with Olives, today I am going to post the recipe for my absolute favourite: Onion Focaccia! I love the taste of soft Focaccia topped with sweet onions… mmmm… I am getting hungry just by writing about it! The recipe is the one…
CASSATINE SICILIANE
These cassatine are the snack version of the bigger and more famous Cassata Siciliana. They are pretty much the same thing (apart from the lack of candied fruits on the top), only smaller and more “street friendly” as they are often consumed on the go on the busy streets of Palermo. They are delicious little…
PISTACHIO GELATO
Sicily is very famous for its nut production, especially almonds and pistachios. There is a town in the Eastern part of Sicily called Bronte which is reknowed for the quality of the pistachios that grow in the area. I wanted to make ice cream and serve it in a brioche (as it is typically served on…
SPIEDINI – SPITINA
My dad often tells me about his grandmother making Spiedini and Crostini when he was a child. She would spend the whole afternoon making these in the kitchen, having to feed them to her many grandchildren. My dad would sit next to her and watch. And that’s how he learnt how to make them. As…
CROSTINI
Picture this: slices of bread, covered with a thick meat sauce, topped with cheese, breaded and fried. Imagine eating one of these treats… with the slightly melted cheese stretching out into the rich sauce and the crunchy slice of fried bread. Is your mouth watering already? These are crostini and I made them as a…
RAVAZZATE
Ravazzate are yet another great street food dish from Palermo, in Sicily. They are soft buns, filled with a thick and delicious meat sauce, covered in sesame seeds and then baked. I love them! Among all sorts of fried (yet amazing) street food items to choose from, these never fail to be among the items…
RASCATURE
This dish was not originally included in my proposal to Foodbuzz for my 24×24 event on Sicilian Street Food New Year’s Eve Party: it was a spur of the moment decision. As they turned out great, I am sharing the recipe with you as well! It is really not a recipe per se, but it…
PANELLE
Panelle are, together with cazzilli and arancine, the most famous Sicilian street food, and that is why I immediately knew I had to feature them on the menu of the Sicilian Street Food New Year’s Eve Party I organised for this month’s Foodbuzz 24×24 event! They are delicious on their own when eaten hot, but…
