Sunshine on a plate
Spring in Scotland is a mix bag of weather and, consequently, moods. One second seems autumn with fine rain that goes on for hours, then when the sun comes out is fairly warm, sometimes to the point that seems like summer. And the mood change constantly with the weather, at least mine mood! The recipe is quite simple but require a little bit of stirring, this will make sure that all the starch in the rice is extracted. The final part of the recipe, the “mantecatura”, is very important to make sure that the risotto is creamy and “all’onda” (when you stir it it should make small waves like the…
Delicious meatballs and the power of the language.
A few days ago I was delivering a lesson in collaboration with a Modern Language teacher and her pupils whom are learning Spanish. The class was making different kind of Spanish food amongst which also some meatballs and I started thinking that my meatballs are never round, spherical, ball shape and I don’t actually care as in the Italian word for meatballs, polpette, there is no sign of their shape. A while ago I watched a Ted Talk on how the language we speak can actually influence the way we think and I started thinking about my triangular shape meatballs and the fact that I don’t even try to make…
My ultimate passion … bread!
I love making bread, taking few simple ingredients like flour, yeast, salt and water and create magic! Bread is at the base of every community. In Italy, as in many other countries, the mill and the wood oven used to be shared by many family to mill their grains and then bake their goods. Bread used to be the most consumed food in UK centuries ago and now is relegated to a small piece of bread at the beginning of the meal. I have to say that I miss the big bread basket that is forever present on the Italians tables and that in restaurants is removed only when the…
Dauphinoise potatoes … my family must have dish for every occasion
I finally have some head-space to post in my favourite place … my blog. The past few months have been emotionally and physically very intense and demanding. Although in the past months I cooked and tasted amazing food, I posted more on my Instagram account than here. But a few weeks ago I promised that I would post at least a recipe each month but January is all about to get me thin and fit and I wanted to post one of the most indulgent side dishes I ever prepared. So I decided to wait for the beginning of February and some of the coldest days of this winter. And this…
Shakshuka
First wintery weather call for emergency measure! While beautiful wintery sceneries are popping up in my social media feeds more and more often in the last few days. Like this picture of Balmoral Castle with a light dust of snow on the grounds. I crave summer food and the beach. Last week I had to scrape the ice off the car for the first time and from this weekend the nights will get darker. I like autumn and winter; I love the cosy night and the hearty food, the problem is that I don’t think I’m ready yet. I still crave the warm sun that stays high in the sky…
Upside-down cannelloni
Many years ago I visited a beautiful village in the north of Italy called Valeggio Sul Mincio. Valeggio is not only renown for its beauty and historical importance, but it’s also a gastronomical hotspot for fresh pasta and tortellini. One of the last time I went there I bought a tray of filled tubes of pasta, like cannelloni, with various filling each and topped with a light bechamel sauce. Since then my cannelloni are always upside-down. This version has a simple ricotta and spinach filling, I usually add some nutmeg but nor this time as in the white sauce, the besciamella, I added the smoked garlic Arran cheese I bought…
WOW 2018 and the recipes for Homesickness
Last weekend was great, it started very well when I received this lovely book about the less renown history of many Scottish women. The authour will be at the Blairgowrie book festival this weekend but unfortunately, I will not be able to go so I’m enjoying the book instead. It’s a very interesting reading and it showcases the women contribution to forging the Scotland we know today. Then this inspiring weekend continued as I was in the panel of the event “Motherhood conversation cafe”, one of the many events of the WOW festival Perth. We have been very lucky to have the WOW festival in Perth for 2 years in a row especially as it’s the…
Pesto salmon and veggies parcel
Another amazing meal with Scottish ingredients and Italian flavours to celebrate the Sottish Food and Drink Fortnight. For this recipe, I used my pesto recipe (that you can find it here). I found this recipe on this amazing blog www.cookingclassy.com, and I changed it very very slightly. The picture is not the best, but I couldn’t wait to taste it, and everyone was sitting at the table just waiting for me, including a nice glass of white wine (chilled Soave was just the perfect accompaniment with this dish). So please try this recipe as I’m sure you will love it 🙂 And to finish the meal we tried the newest flavours’ ice cream from our…
Pesto and Trenette alla Genovese
For many years I ran cookery classes at the local college. The first course I organised proved to be very popular and has been sold out for many many times. I think the secret of the success was because it included food from nearly every Italian region. This gave a great variety of recipes, flavours and options to the student who participated. (If you come to one of my Taste of Italy cookery classes at Perth College, let me know which one is your favourite recipe so I can add it to the blog.) That’s one of the reasons why Italian food is so popular, we don’t have a national cuisine, but every…
Home-made Doner Kebab
I love a Doner Kebab, especially enjoyed with a cold drink, but often is fatty and I’m never sure of the quality of the meat they use. I did this recipe many times and my family love it; it’s from the TV programme “Eat well for less”. It’s very important to slice the meat really thinly like they do in the takeaway shops. Serve it with warm pita bread, salad and sauces like sour cream or, in this case, mint and yoghurt sauce. Yoghurt Sauce 1/4 cup plain yoghurt1 tsp freshly chopped mint1/2 tsp freshly chopped parsley1/4 teaspoon ground cuminSalt, as needed Mix the yoghurt, mint, parsley and cumin in a…
