Italy
To start:
Minestrone rustica.
Or
Carpaccio alla Gorgonzola.
Seafood:
Scampi alla Livornese:
Or
Segiola all’ Italiana
Main courses:
choose from
Salatimbocca
Abbacchio brodettato
Fettine di Maiale alla Sorrentina.
Coniglio al vino Blanco.
Filetti de Pollo alla Valdostano
Coda di bue con Sedano
Caponata Palermintana
Pudding:
Zabaglione
Strange to remember that what we now know as Italy was just a mass of minor, and often warring states until they all amalgamated into one country in 1861, just a background that may help to explain the diverse and quite distinct cuisines that can be encountered from the Lakes of Garda to the once kingdom of Sicily. The huge wheat plains in the north, the Po and its rice valley the almost Island nature of the body of the country, from the alpine North to the volcanic south have left a people of widely different temperaments all welded together with a mutual hate of politicians and an absolute determination to make lunch last at least three hours and have it with as many members of their “family, of all ages,” as can be rustled up and seated - preferably outside.
Mention Italy and its food and at once huge heaps of “Spag – bol” or “Pizza” comes to mind with a bucket full of Chianti, whilst the latter is warmly welcomed the former has no place in the Italian kitchen, however large amounts of the most delicious pasta of all shapes and flavours certainly do, and they have never forgiven the Americans for putting pineapple on Pizza.
If you chose to Eat out Italian by staying in, the following selection of goodies could encourage your entire bloodline to your dining table, best to keep stum and enjoy yourselves.
Things you may need in the kitchen:
A pasta machine -get one they are great fun for home made Pasta is a wonderful flavour and achievement; whole pieces of Parmesan cheese and a good grater that can “shave” as well as various grades of grating; a big coarse grinding peppermill, tomato puree or passata, Olives- black and green, fresh basil, Vermouth and a masala wine.
Minestrone Soup
Assemble:
A frying pan
A large saucepan with lid
A wooden spoon
Ingredients:
4 ounces of sliced green cabbage
1 medium onion
One carrot
2 sticks of celery
2 courgettes
2 large “beef” tomatoes, blanched, skinned and deseeded
2 ounces of streaky bacon or better still pancetta
2 tablespoons of Italian olive oil
2 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
3 pints of water in which is dissolved a vegetable stock cube
Half a tin of kidney beans, drained and rinsed
Sage and fresh basil leaves, torn, not sliced
2 ounces of thin vermicelli
A tablespoon of fresh parsley
2 tablespoons full of freshly grated parmesan cheese
Then you:
• Fry the diced bacon in the oil with crushed garlic and chopped onion, until the onion is soft, then transfer into the large sauce pan
• Add the chopped carrot and celery and fry with the rest of the oil in the saucepan for about ten minutes, stirring often - again transfer to the large saucepan.
• Add the water to the large saucepan and then the courgettes, sliced cabbage, pulped tomatoes and kidney beans and bring to the boil
• Simmer for about twenty minutes and then add the vermicelli and the sage/basil mixture and cook for a further ten minutes.
• Stir in the grated cheese a little at a time and adjust the seasoning.
• Serve with more grated parmesan and slices of rustic bread and a little, or better still, a lot of Verdi.
Carpaccio Alla Gorgonzola
Raw Beef Fillet With Blue Cheese And Parmesan Dressing
This is delicious and looks great on the plate, however like many things if you are told what is actually being served, in this case raw beef, the preconceived prejudices that seem to haunt us from youth come tearing in with “ not for me thank you” and we miss such goodies, anyway do not ask for this dish “well done”
Assemble:
A wooden bread board
A wooden meat mallet
A pastry brush
A cheese shaver
A small bowl for serving the sauce
Ingredients:
6 slices of fillet steak cut wafer thin
A teaspoon full of freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 tablespoonful of Italian Olive oil
2 ounces of tiny button mushrooms
2 tablespoons full of good mayonnaise
2 ounces of ripe and soft Gorgonzola cheese
Tablespoonful of double cream
Some flat leaf parsley for garnish
Then you:
• Trim any fat from the fillet slices, cover with cling film to stop the meat tearing, and wet the mallet head and beat the slices wafer thin.
• Combine the olive oil and lemon in a cup by beating with a fork and pour over the finely sliced mushrooms and grind the peppermill twice into the mixture
• Place three slices of beef on each plate and brush over with oil mixture and portion half the mushrooms to each plate.
• Combine the gorgonzola, double cream and mayonnaise in a bowl and beat with a fork until smooth.
• Garnish the plate with flat leaf parsley and shave parmesan cheese over the meat.
• Take to the table with the sauce in a roman toga with laurel crown and, of course, open toed sandals.
Sogliola Alla Veeziana
Venetian Sole With Courgette Sauce
The Venetian has a greatly developed appreciation of sea food, which is hardly surprising as it runs past most of their front doors. This recipe calls for little sweet soles and the favored vegetable - the courgette, using plaice makes the dish look the same but nothing tastes quite like sole – that what they say about Venetians they are all sole ( o mio) !
Assemble:
A heavy based frying pan
An ovenproof casserole dish with lid
2 fish slices
Ingredients:
2 medium sized sole filleted by your fishmonger
2 tablespoons of extra virgin Italian olive oil
1 medium onion finely chopped.
3 tomatoes peeled and deseeded
A teaspoon full of tomato puree
4 or 5 leaves of freshly torn basil
3 smallish courgettes, sliced thinly
Seasoned flour for “dredging” the fish fillets
A good knob of butter
2 tablespoons full of freshly grated parmesan cheese
Then you:
• Heat half the oil in the frying pan and fry the onions until soft, then add the pulped tomato, the tomato puree, torn basil a little salt and pepper then simmer at a medium heat for about five minutes.
• When the tomato and onion are nicely combined add the sliced courgettes, cover with the sauce and simmer for ten minutes or until the courgettes are nearly tender. Reserve to a warmed dish.
• Clean the pan thoroughly and dry
• Dredge each fillet front and rear in the seasoned flour.
• Heat the rest of the oil and butter in the frying pan until it’s frothing hot. Introduce the fillets and fry for about five minutes on each side until each has a golden colour.
• Transfer to a casserole dish using the fish slices to maintain the shape of the fillets and then pour over the reserved courgette sauce and sprinkle with parmesan cheese and grill until nicely and uniformly brown.
• Serve at once singing “O solo mio” with a big white hanky in your top pocket of your XXXL dinner jacket.
Scampi Alla Livornese
Having only one landside border, the Mediterranean and Adriatic Seas provide a plentiful supply of fish, however langoustines and prawns are much sought after and command premium prices, hence the addition of the tin of tuna in the following recipe , the dish when served with fluffy white rice will be worth every penny . Buy the largest scampi you can find - IQF (individual quick frozen) if you are buying frozen.
Assemble:
A heavy based sauce pan
A small saucepan for the rice
A sieve and wooden spoon
A mixing bowl
Ingredients:
12 medium size scampi - more if you’re hungry
Half pound of large ripe tomatoes blanched, peeled and deseeded
1 clove of garlic crushed
A small tin of tuna in sunflower oil
3 slices of pancetta or streaky bacon
1 tablespoon of Italian olive oil
A heaped tablespoon of plain flour
A teaspoon of tomato puree
A pinch of celery salt
A teaspoon of dried oregano
A heaped teaspoon of caster sugar
6 ounces of risotto rice
Salt and a peppermill
A cup of vegetable stock
Then you:
• Heat the oil in the sauce pan and fry the bacon and garlic for about three minutes then sieve in the flour and stir to blend and cook.
• Add the stock slowly stirring all the time, when fully blended add the tomato pulp, tomato puree, celery salt, oregano and the sugar ( to take the bitterness from the tomato), bring to the boil, turn to simmer and adjust seasoning with the salt and peppermill.
• Place about three pints of boiling water in the small saucepan and add a little salt, introduce the rice and continue to cook at just below boiling for about ten minutes.
• Flake the tuna into the tomato sauce and turn with a wooden spoon. About five minutes before the rice is done, put the completely unfrozen scampi into the sauce and make sure all are covered and stir often, remember that the more you heat protein the harder it will become, and you do not want the scampi to be chewy, just heated through.
• Test the rice by squeezing a grain between finger and thumb; it should be just firm, cook till it is to your taste.
• Sieve the rice, add a little olive oil on top and put into a warmed serving dish then pour over the scampi with all the sauce, garnish with parsley.
• Then serve with a horizontal stripped shirt, flared black trousers and straw boater ( leave the pole in the water feature in the garden.)
Ragu Au Bolonga
Rich Beef Sauce
A bit like Spain the fine lines between beef and veal can be a bit blurred, however on the whole the Italians are great carnivores and love eating dead cattle of all ages. This next recipe is basically for a sauce which can be served with all kinds of pasta, rice, meat or even fish if you’re pushed. It is often masqueraded as the infamous “Bolognese” as in Spag – Bol, as if hijacked by the good burghers of Bolonga, not so - its found lurking in all the dark corridors of Italian cooking just ask Mama , any Italian Mama, she will have a better recipe than this, but you will have to marry her daughter to get it.
Assemble:
A large heavy based saucepan
A wooden spoon
Ingredients:
1 ounce of unsalted butter
4 slices of pancetta or unsmoked streaky bacon, diced
1 medium onion chopped finely
A small carrot diced
A stick of celery diced
1 pound of decent braising steak minced by your butcher
4 ounces of chopped chicken livers
A wine glass of dry martini or Nolly Prat vermouth
Half a pint of beef stock or a cube dissolved
1 tablespoon full of tomato puree
A nutmeg to grate
Salt and a peppermill
2 tablespoons full of double cream
Then you:
• Melt the butter in the saucepan and when hot add the diced pancetta (bacon) , onion, carrot and celery and fry for fifteen minutes stirring so the mixture does not “catch” the bottom of the pan – if it does you will have to start again as you will never lose the charred flavour.
• Add the minced beef and flatten into the pan so it evenly browns, when done on one side turn with a fish slice. When both sides are evenly brown, stir in the chicken livers and the vermouth, stirring strongly to thoroughly mix, bring to the boil and cook until only a small amount of liquid is left.
• Now stir in the tomato puree and add the stock, again stirring to unify the mixture, check seasoning and then grate a generous pinch of nutmeg into the mixture.
• Bring back to the boil and reduce heat to a gentle simmer, stir and cover with the pan lid, stir every fifteen minutes.
• Check the seasoning again and adjust if required, now fold in the double cream, until fully absorbed.
• Pour into a large pre heated dish full of your favourite cooked pasta, take to the table taking care to pinch the old girl’s bottom whilst giving her the wink – Good luck !
Abbacchio Brodettato
Casserole Of Spring Lamb With Egg Sauce
Young lamb is a highly prized meat, a bit like suckling pig in Spain. As you can tell by the recipe Abbacchio is for such a young lamb, or often kid (difficult to find in England). However for the sake of a month or two you can use spring lamb, best to get the fillet at the top of the leg, ask your butcher to remove the bone and give it to you, why I hear you ask - you are going to cook it in the casserole but not gnaw it- gnaw what I mean Harry ?
Assemble:
An oven proof casserole dish with lid
A mixing bowl
A small whisk
A wooden spoon
Ingredients:
About a pound of fillet leg of young lamb trimmed and cut into small cubes
The bone cut from the fillet of lamb, should be open on both sides so you can see the marrow
2 tablespoon full of Italian extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons full of unsalted butter
A small onion peeled and finely chopped
2 good cloves of fresh garlic, peeled and crushed
2 tablespoons full of fresh sage - if you have to use dried
2 wine glasses of dry white wine
Half a cup of chicken stock
2 lemons
2 large fresh egg yolks
Then you:
• Melt the oil and butter together in the casserole, when hot stir in the cubed lamb and continually stir until uniformly brown – reserve to a warmed dish.
• Add the onions and garlic to the pan and sauté until the onions are soft then add the sage, stock and wine and marrow bone if you still have it, and bring to the boil.
• While the liquid is still boiling reintroduce the browned lamb, cover with the lid, reduce the heat so the casserole just simmers, and stir every quarter of an hour, after about an hour and a half the lamb should be tender to the touch.
• Grate the zest from one of the lemons and set aside. Squeeze the lemons’ juice into a dish and add the two fresh egg yolks whilst whisking the mixture, when fully integrated add the reserved lemon zest.
• To the lemon and egg mixture add about three tablespoons full of the casserole liquid, beating with the whisk all the time.
• Remove the bone from the casserole and gently beat into the casserole the egg and lemon mixture and heat quietly for about a couple of minutes or until the sauce thickens, a final taste to adjust seasoning if required.
• Adjust your Spartacus neat little leather skirt and serve waving your gladiator’s trident to the adoring multitude with thumbs up.
Fettine Di Maiale Alla Sorrentina
Sorrento Style Pork Chops
In most European countries you can find a series of recipes that involve pork which seem to lend themselves to wintertime, it is thought that this dates back to almost pagan times when the village pig was ritually slaughtered for salting and sausage making before winter set in, so try this hearty casserole from Sorrento when the nights draw in.
Assemble:
A large heavy based frying pan
A serving dish
A wooden spoon
Ingredients:
2 boned loin pork chops cut to your appetite
2 tablespoons full of extra virgin Italian olive oil
A large clove of garlic crushed
2 large green pepper deseeded and sliced into thin strips
3 large tomatoes blanched, skinned and deseeded
2 teaspoons full of tomato puree
Quarter of a pound of button mushrooms thinly sliced
Salt and a peppermill
A tablespoon of chopped parsley
Half a cup of vegetable stock.
Then you:
• Heat the oil in the frying pan and when nice and hot, fry the garlic until it starts to brown, when it does remove with a slotted spoon and give it to the dog.
• Dry the chops with kitchen towel on both sides and then lightly sprinkle a pinch of salt on each side and make a series of small cuts around the perimeter of the chops ( to stop them curling as you fry them) Fry in the pan of hot oil until uniformly brown on both sides, reduce the heat and continue to lightly fry for a further twenty minutes, then reserve to the warmed serving dish.
• Add the strips of pepper and the pulped tomatoes to the pan, mix in the tomato puree, stir to thoroughly combine then cover with the pan lid and gently cook for twenty minutes after which time add the sliced mushrooms, adjust the seasoning, cover and cook for a further five minutes.
• Add the cooked chops back into the pan, cover with the sauce then pour in as much stock as you think fit to achieve the sauce texture you require and simmer until all is at a uniform heat. Serve in the warmed serving dish , garnishing with the chopped parsley.
• Adjust your voice to a mellow tenor and take to the table warbling “Come back to Sorrento” with a couple of tickets to Capri in your top pocket.
Coniglio Al Vino Blanco
Rabbit Casseroled In White Wine
They love a big bang our Italian hunters (don’t we all?) and have some of the best sporting gun manufacturers in Europe, and you thought Martini was just a drink! This is a simple country recipe and tastes of the hills and mountains when you use fresh herbs, so it’s worth the trouble finding them if this is to be on your menu, you have a day to find them whilst the rabbit is marinating, get your hiking boots on!
Assemble:
A large bowl
An oven proof casserole and lid
A slotted spoon
A holding plate
A serving dish
Ingredients:
A young rabbit butchered for the “pot”- your butcher will do this.
2 pints of water
2 tablespoons full of vinegar
4 tablespoons of unsalted butter
2 tablespoons full of olive oil
A medium onion sliced
A Garlic clove
A large carrot
2 sticks of celery
A large cup of dry white wine
Fresh Oregano and rosemary
Butter and flour mixed – (Beurre manie)
Then you:
• Pour the water and vinegar into a bowl and having rubbed salt around all the joints place the rabbit into the mixture and leave for eight hours turning twice.
• When the time is up remove the rabbit pieces from the marinade and discard the liquid. Pat the rabbit dry with a dry cloth.
• Heat the butter and oil in the casserole and add the crushed garlic and cook until just brown, then remove and add the rabbit then fry turning until the pieces are a uniform brown colour, then reserve to a holding plate.
• Now add the onions to the casserole dish and fry until they are soft, then add the chopped celery and carrot and fry for a further five minutes. Tear the herbs into the casserole, pour in the wine to cover and bring to the boil.
• Return the rabbit to the casserole and baste each piece, put on the lid and cook in a moderate (180) oven for an hour, then turn the pieces and cook for a further half hour or until the rabbit is tender. Remove to a warmed plate
• Put the casserole on the top of the stove and bring to the boil, reduce the heat and stir in the butter and flour mix and more torn herbs, and stir until the sauce thickens.
• Add the rabbit to the thickened sauce and take to the table on a small motor scooter with black helmet, and a Burberry scarf and shades the size of dinner plates.
Filetti De Pollo Alla Valdostano
Chicken Breasts Stuffed And Served With Ham And Cheese
Go out to any Italian restaurant and you will find at least one offering of something “alla Valdostano” maybe veal, turkey or as here chicken. It’s fairly simple to nail a bit of ham on something spread over a bit of cheese and bang it under a grill – however there is something more to it if you want to do it properly, maybe that’s why you’re doing the cooking and going out by staying in ( only better!)
Assemble:
A small dish in which to break and beat an egg
A bread board
A large heavy based frying pan
A grill with rack
A flour duster
A side plate
Ingredients:
2 plump chicken breasts
A dusting of plain seasoned flour
A tablespoon of unsalted butter
A tablespoon full of extra virgin Italian olive oil
4 slices of dry cured ham, Parma is good
4 ounces of Mozzarella cheese
A clove of garlic
A grating of zest of lemon
A pinch of Paprika
Then you:
• Chop the garlic clove finely and cream with a little salt on a saucer, then add a knob of butter, the lemon zest and combine into a paste. Then break a fresh egg into the cup and beat with a fork until combined, and pour onto a plate.
• Place the chicken breasts on the board and with your sharpest knife make an incision in the centre side of each breast lenghtways to form a pocket.
• With a teaspoon put half of the garlic butter in each pocket.
• Dust your board with the seasoned flour and dredge the breasts to coat both sides, and then dip into the beaten egg again to coat both sides.
• Heat the oil and the rest of the butter in the frying pan, when hot fry the breast for about five minutes a side or until they are golden, then transfer onto the grill rack
• Now place a piece of the ham onto the top of each chicken breast, and then cover with the sliced mozzarella and from about two feet sprinkle a pinch of paprika over each fillet and place under a hot grill, for about a minute or until the cheese is bubbling.
• Put on your best Inter Milan shirt and serve chanting “INNNNNNTTTTERRRR”
Coda Di Bbue Con Sedano
Braised Oxtail With Celery
You may or may not regard Oxtail as offal, either way it’s an often discarded piece of the animal carcass and qualifies for some title. The Italians love this full and unique flavour, perhaps because the joints within the tail are supposed to confer magic powers. This dish is best cooked and then kept in a cool place for a couple of days to allow all the flavours to mingle before you then reheat and serve.
Assemble:
A large frying pan
A deep ovenproof casserole with lid
A heat proof dish
A skimming spoon
A bread board
Ingredients:
8 pieces of Oxtail chopped into about three inch pieces (ask the butcher to do this for you)
Plain flour seasoned for dredging the oxtail
3 tablespoons full of extra virgin Italian olive oil
A large onion peeled and sliced
2 cloves of garlic peeled and crushed
A large glass of strong red wine
A cup of beef stock
3 large tomatoes, blanched, skinned, deseeded and pulped
A tablespoon of tomato puree
A fresh boquet garni
A bay leaf
5 sticks of celery chopped
A teaspoon of cornflour mixed in half a tablespoon full of cold water
Then you:
• Sieve the seasoned flour onto the bread board and dredge the oxtail pieces in it until they are fully coated.
• Add half the oil into the frying pan and when hot introduce the oxtail pieces and fry. When they are all evenly brown all over, remove to the casserole dish.
• Clean the frying pan with kitchen towel, add the remaining oil and the chopped onion and chopped garlic and fry until the onions just start to brown
• Pour in the wine, turn up the heat and let the liquid boil, then turn down the heat and simmer until the liquid has been reduced by half, stirring all the time.
• Now pour in the stock into the reduced liquid and bring to the boil, stirring constantly.
• Pour the boiling liquid over the oxtail pieces in the casserole dish and add the tomato pulp, tomato puree, bay leaf , bouquet garni, now bring to the boil and then cover with the lid and braise in a moderate oven (170) for four hours
• Blanch the cut celery stalks with boiling water and leave for five minutes before draining, add to the casserole and cook for a further half and hour.
• Remove from the oven, take off the lid and leave for about half an hour, after which time skim all the “scum type matter”from the top of the casserole, leave for another twenty minutes and clear any remains from the surface
• Mix the corn flour with the cold water in a cup and stir into the casserole, bring to the boil and cook for two minutes, until the liquid is smooth and thick
• Serve wearing your best Medici doublet and hose, with the big hat with an ostrich feather in it.
Caponata Palermitana
Vegetable Casserole Palermo Style
After the “toe” of Italy comes the ancient Kingdom of Sicily, whilst The Kings have gone their successors and local rulers are regarded as “family”, just ask Marlon Brando. This, sweet and sour concoction is often eaten as a main meal in the late evening garnished with quails eggs – fear not you can use hens eggs without penalty.
Assemble:
A small sauce pan
A colander
A frying pan
A large heavy based frying pan
A wooden spoon
Ingredients:
2 aubergines
2 sticks of celery
3 tablespoons full of extra virgin Italian olive oil.
A medium onion peeled and chopped
4 large vine tomatoes, blanched, peeled, deseeded and pulped
2 teaspoons full of tomato puree
2 tablespoons full of red wine vinegar
2 tablespoons full of caster sugar
2 tablespoons full of chopped capers
9 stoned green and four stoned black olives, halved
2 hardboiled eggs cut into eight
A sprinkling of flaked almonds
Then you:
• Remove the stalk end of the aubergine and cut the rest into cubes of about half and inch, put into a colander over a pan and sprinkle over a generous pinch of salt, covering all the cubes. Leave for an hour then rinse under cold water and pat dry with kitchen roll. Discard any liquid in the pan.
• Put the cut celery into a pan of boiling water and cook for half and hour, then drain.
• Heat the oil in the large frying pan and introduce the dry aubergines and fry stirring often for about ten minutes till they are tender, then reserve to a warmed dish.
• Clean the frying pan with a piece of kitchen roll and add the remaining oil. When hot add the chopped onions and cook until they are soft,
• Now add the celery and cook for two minutes before adding the tomato pulp and tomato puree, stir and simmer gently whist the onion and celery cook through, adjusting the seasoning as required.
• Now add the reserved aubergines, capers, and olives stirring to mix, then add the vinegar followed by the sugar and adjust for sweet or sour flavour to your taste with more vinegar or sugar.
• Reserve to a cool serving dish and chill before garnishing with the egg pieces and flaked almonds, serve and make the old girl an offer she can’t refuse hinting at horse’s heads.
Zabaglione
Egg Yolk And Wine Custard
Without doubt the pudding by which all Italian cooks are judged and each will have a “secret ingredient” handed down from her/ his mother. This is the basic format and you will be able to invent your own little “secret” recipe to hand down to your bemused children when the will is read – “to my beloved... I bequeath my Zabaglione recipe”
Assemble:
A heat proof glass bowl
A “balloon” whisk
A small pan to use as a holder for the basin (test it first !)
Two long stemmed wine glass
Ingredients:
The yolk of 4 fresh eggs
2 ounces of very fine caster sugar
A vanilla pod (my secret)
6 tablespoons full of Marsala wine
The zest of a fresh lemon
Sponge fingers as garnish
A lean time in Pisa
Then you:
• Very carefully separate the yolks from the whites of the fresh eggs, using only those that have the best “marigold” colour, into the glass bowl.
• Open up the vanillas pod length ways and scrape out half the seeds with the back of a knife and put into the basin.
• Add the sugar a little at a time whilst whisking constantly, keep whisking until the mixture is thickening and starting to colour pale yellow.
• Heat some water in the pan to just below boiling and then put the basin of egg mixture on top of the pan – the bowl MUST NOT touch the water, then whisk in the Marsala a little at a time.
• Continue to whisk vigorously until the mixture expands and forms a foamy thick mass that just holds its shape when the whisk is lifted through the mixture.
• Pour into the wine glasses and arrange the sponge fingers on the saucer around the glass’s base.
• Serve to any Rossini overture, with your Casanova frilly shirt open to the waist and thigh boots nicely polished.