This is our 4th dinner at Torre del Saracino in Vico Equense with view on Mt Vesuvio and the Gulf of Naples. The previous time in 2011 we took a flight just to eat here. And so we had high … Continue reading Dining in Italy: Torre del Saracino** (2018)
Don Alfonso 1890 is situated in the town of Sant’Agata sui due Golfi, on the Sorrentino peninsula in the hinterland of the Amalfi Coast. It has three forks from Gambero Rosso and two Michelin stars. On the photo you see … Continue reading Dining in Italy: Don Alfonso 1890**
The last trattoria with tre gamberi (see yesterday’s post) is Al Convento in the fisherman’s town Cetara on the Amalfi Coast. The most important local product here is alici, anchovies. Al Convento has nice outside seating (in the town center, … Continue reading Dining in Italy: Al Convento
A trattoria is an Italian restaurant that is less formal than a ristorante, with lower prices and often larger portions. There is no official definition of the distinction and many trattorie call themselves ristorante, to make it more confusing. The … Continue reading Dining in Italy: Angiolina
Reservations for all other restaurants worth writing a blog about have been made well in advance, but Cala del Citro is a new restaurant that we discovered by chance. It belongs to the hotel of the same name and was … Continue reading Dining in Italy: Cala del Citro
La Tavernetta is the restaurant of the San Lorenzo si Alberga hotel in the national park of Sila, in the mountains of Calabria, close to Lago Cecita. This is not only a change of scenery but also a change of … Continue reading Dining in Italy: La Tavernetta
This is a recipe that I made on the same day that I read it on Paola’s blog, because I happened to have all the ingredients, and needed to use up the carrots. What better recipe to use for such … Continue reading Pasta with Carrots and Almonds (Pasta con carote e mandorle)
Ceraudo is one of the best wineries in Calabria (the ‘foot’ of Italy). It produces wines in the Val di Neto IGP, mainly from local grape varieties pecorello for white and gaglioppo for red. They also have an agriturismo, which … Continue reading Dining in Italy: Dattilo*
The next stop in our culinary tour of southern Italy is La Locandiera in Bernalda, near Matera in the region of Basilicata. Gambero Rosso has awarded it tre gamberi (three shrimp), which is the highest rating for a trattoria. We … Continue reading Dining in Italy: La Locandiera
This dish was inspired by something we had in a restaurant in Corsica last year: roasted eggplant, zucchini, and bell peppers, that are subsequently baked with a generous amount of cheese. The Sardinian pecorino I used for my own rendition … Continue reading Baked Vegetables with Cheese
Già Sotto l’Arco is one of the best restaurants in Puglia according to the Gambero Rosso, who awards it two forks, and it also has one Michelin star. It is located in a nice old palazzo on the main square … Continue reading Dining in Italy: Già sotto l’arco*
Moscardini are baby octopus, and it is not often that I can get them fresh in Amsterdam. And so when I saw them, I grabbed them at the market (this was before we left to Italy, but I am typing … Continue reading Pasta Shells with Baby Octopus (Conchiglioni ai moscardini)
There are many restaurants in Italy called Antichi Sapori (Old Flavors), but the one owned by Pietro Zito in Puglia (in Montegrosso, near Bari) is probably the most famous. We’ve already had the pleasure of eating there in 2008, and … Continue reading Dining in Italy: Antichi Sapori (Pietro Zito)
We are touring the coast of southern Italy, and our first stop is in Brusciano, just outside of Naples. Taverna Estia has two Michelin stars and three forchette from Gambero Rosso. The dining room has full view of the kitchen … Continue reading Dining in Italy: Taverna Estia**
Spareribs are often more about quantity than about quality: “all you can eat” with cheap meat that gets all its flavor from aggressive spices and a lot of sauce. Not to mention that it is mostly fat and bone with … Continue reading Spareribs Sous-Vide
Due to the hot climate, Spain has many recipes for chilled soups. Ajoblanco (or Ajo blanco) one is from the southern Andalucia and a great way to use up stale bread, and quite filling. It is more traditional to garnish it … Continue reading Ajo Blanco (Spanish Chilled Almond and Bread Soup)
To my surprise I had not yet blogged my recipe for risotto ai frutti di mare. That needed to be rectified as soon as possible, and it is certainly no punishment to have to eat this. There are two important … Continue reading Risotto ai Frutti di Mare (Seafood Risotto)
The inspiration for this dish came from my recent dinner at 212 in Amsterdam. I really liked the cod with red wine sauce, and thought it would be nice to prepare something similar. If only because everyone seems to think … Continue reading Turbot Sous-Vide with Red Wine Sauce
A sweet spinach tart? Yes, really. It is delicious. I have discovered this original dessert from the North-Italian town of Reggio Emilia thanks to Simona who is from that region and has the wonderful Italian food blog Grembiula da Cucina … Continue reading Erbazzone Dolce (Sweet Spinach and Almond Tart)
Stefano Arturi is an Italian food blogger who lives in the UK and has blogs in both Italian and English. He always has interesting traditional recipes and does a lot of research about the historical background of recipes. Recently he … Continue reading Scarpaccia Salata (Savory Zucchini Cake)
Chefs Richard van Oostenbrugge and Thomas Groot left Bord’eau (where they had earned two Michelin stars within three years) and started there own restaurant: 212. The name refers to the address of their new restaurant (Amstel 212 in Amsterdam) and … Continue reading Dining in Amsterdam: 212
It is really too warm to be cooking, especially to turn on the oven, but after hardly anything new for weeks I really felt like cooking something. The recipe for this filling is pesto-inspired, with basil, pine nuts, parmigiano, and … Continue reading Zucchini Stuffed with Pine Nuts and Basil
You may have noticed I’ve been posting less lately, and that is because we’ve been having such extraordinary good weather. Summer in the Netherlands tends to be a hit and miss affair with often ‘four seasons in one day’, but … Continue reading Grilled Fennel (Finocchi Grigliati)
My Italian blogging friend Paola has dedicated her food blog (in Italian) to recipes and tips to avoid wasting food. Her recipes are always simple and tasty, and I often take inspiration from her. Like in this case, when she … Continue reading Fusilli with Fava Bean and Saffron Ragù (Fusilli al ragù di fave allo zafferano)
Nathan Myhrvold, known for the 2,500+ pages Modernist Cuisine, has done it again and has published Modernist Bread, another 2,500+ pages reference book. It consists of 5 volumes, 1 with history and fundamentals, 1 about ingredients, 1 about technique, and … Continue reading High Hydration Bread
Homemade ice cream has many advantages over store-bought: it tastes better, it only has natural ingredients, and you get boasting rights for making it yourself. If you own a simple ice cream maker, it is quite easy and not a … Continue reading Coconut Ice Cream
Four years ago I thought I had perfected lobster ravioli, but meanwhile I have developed an alternate version that is at least as good (and is an even better pairing with high quality oaked Chardonnay). This version has more texture … Continue reading Lobster Ravioli with Bisque Sauce (Ravioli all’Astice)
This is how sea bream (daurade) was served to us in Corsica: cooked in the oven with some colorful vegetables. When ordering fish on Corsica, be careful about the price. On the menu this daurade was listed as 12 euros … Continue reading Oven-Baked Sea Bream (Daurade au Four)
There are already several variations of pasta with broccoli on this blog, but this version stands out because it is literally not much more than pasta with broccoli. Other than those two ingredients, there is only water, salt, pepper, and … Continue reading Pasta with Broccoli
Friends, co-workers, and reader of this blog ask for my advice regarding wine, wine pairing, or recipes on a regular basis. Sometimes a friend is in a restaurant and sends me a photo of the wine list and asks for … Continue reading A Reader’s Question: How to Create a Menu for a Wine Dinner
