Risotto con zucchine e gamberetti from Lombardy In Italy, it used to be said that if you ordered risotto in the South and pasta in the North then you would get exactly what you deserve – wallpaper paste. This may have been true at one time as risotto certainly hails from the Milan area and…
Tag: Italian Food
Rich man’s carbonara
Carbonara con salmone affumicato Sorry it’s been a bit slow again over the past few days, I’m really not feeling well at all to tell the truth – sore throat, no voice, impacted wisdom tooth… the list of my health woes goes on, but that isn’t what anyone wants to read so now I’ve got…
Learning how to eat
Sounds daft, doesn’t it? Eating should be natural, in fact it is natural and in the Western world many of us do far too much of it. However, there is a difference between simply eating mindlessly and REALLY eating, savouring the aromas, textures and nuanced flavours. I am quite lucky really in that I grew…
Cuoppo – Italian fish and chips
Sometimes I really miss fish and chips. Honestly I do. Especially really GOOD fish and chips like the ones you get at Anstruther – fresh fish, cooked to order, single portions of chunky chips cooked to order in fresh oil and plenty of salt and vinegar… especially sitting at the harbour overlooking the sea. So…
Pasta with cream of avocado and lime
They say that necessity is the mother of all invention, and nowhere is that more true than in the kitchen. When the fridge was almost empty and I suddenly realised at 10pm that I was hungry… well rather than calling for a pizza (again) I decided to rack my brains for something to make. I…
Pasta, Parmesan and Parma Ham
La Vecchia Taverna in Oliveto Citra As some of you will no doubt have realised by now, many of my favourite restaurants in Italy are truly rustic. This is because, in my experience and humble opinion, the most rustic restaurants are the ones which tend to serve the best food, created with the freshest, top…
Summer spaghetti – zucchini e fiori di zucca
Summer is here and it is hot hot hot, so the last thing that you want to do in 40°+ heat is spend ages in front of the stove cooking some elaborate dish. Firstly because it would be torture. Secondly because in this heat you probably wouldn’t even enjoy eating it anyway. The solution is…
Amalfi by Vespa
The only way to see the Amalfi Coast, and I mean REALLY see it, is by vespa. Why? Well the wind in your hair, the sun on your face and the delightful smells of the wonderful Mediterranean vegetation all have something to do with it, but most of all it is just such a terribly…
Blogging and tomatoes
So, why have I stopped blogging? Very simply put, tomatoes. Yes, tomatoes. Damned red fruit… As some of you may know, I work for a company which cans tomatoes. This means that the summer, aka The Tomato Season, far from being idyllic and relaxing, is an absolute madhouse and by far the busiest time of…
Paccheri with swordfish and aubergine
It’s been over a month since I published anything, and I’m quite ashamed of that fact. Therefore I am making a promise to myself and to anyone who sees this to publish ten articles this month. There. I have to do it now… Paccheri con pesce spada e melanzane from Sicily I am a huge…
Rustic Restaurants, punctures and snow in Southern Italy
Il Brigante, Sieti (SA) The name of this restaurant is “the robber”, but it won’t run away with your money, honest! This was one of the very first restaurants I came to with the Italian boy and friends, and where I first experienced a group meal “the Italian way”, that is to say with a…
Pastries with ricotta
La sfogliatella from Campania If you ever go to Naples then there are a few must-tries. Obviously that includes pizza, espresso, spaghetti with clams and rum baba. There is one delicacy for which there is no translation into English however, and it is one of my absolute favourite sweets, and one of the best breakfasts…
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