Sometimes I get the inspiration for a new dish from something I’ve enjoyed in a restaurant. Very seldomly I try to copy a dish exactly, but I do use the combinations of ingredients or preparations. At two Michelin star restaurant … Continue reading Grouper Sous Vide with Vanilla and Lemon Zest
At Lo Stuzzichino we enjoyed a wonderful dessert that was simply called Lemon Delight, showing off the fantastic lemons from nearby Sorrento. It is layers of sponge cake with a lemon cream, garnished with lemon zest. I decided to make … Continue reading Lemon Delight
Brisket is a big deal in Texas. There are brisket smoking competitions. It takes hours to smoke a perfect brisket, tending the fire to keep the temperature just right, and spraying the brisket with liquid (such as apple juice) to … Continue reading Smoked Brisket Sous Vide
Ossobuco is a classic Italian dish from Milan: braised veal shank, often served with a saffron risotto on the side (which is the exception to the Italian rule that pasta or rice (primo piatto) is not served together with meat … Continue reading Ossobuco Sous Vide Time and Temperature Experiment
A classic and delicious dish from Venice is pesce in saôr, which does not mean ‘sour’ fish but ‘flavored’ fish (saôr comes from ‘sapore’). The recipe was invented in Venice as a way to preserve fish, and even though we have … Continue reading Mackerel ‘in Saor’ (Sgombro in Saor)
In the Sorrento peninsula, famous for the Amalfi Coast, bell peppers are stuffed with a mixture of eggplant, olives, capers, bread, basil, and parsley. We enjoyed this humble but tasty vegan antipasto at Lo Stuzzichino. It is a bit of … Continue reading Peperoni imbottiti alla Sorrentina (Stuffed Bell Peppers alla Sorrentina)
This is a dish that I’ve enjoyed a lot on holiday in France. Strip steak is not as tender as ribeye and can be a bit tough. But since I like it on the rare side of medium rare, cooking … Continue reading Faux Filet Grillé aux Herbes de Provence (Grilled Strip Steak with Provençal Herbs)
This dish was inspired by the ravioli we had at Lo Stuzzichino during our latest vacation to Italy: ravioli filled with ricotta perfumed with lemon zest, served with vongole. Although making your own ravioli from scratch requires some practice, this … Continue reading Lemon Ricotta Ravioli with Clams (Ravioli al profumo di limone con vongole)
Brasato al Barolo is a classic dish from the Italian region of Piemonte of beef braised in Barolo. Barolo is also known as the king of Italian wine, and is the most important wine from that region. Traditionally a beef … Continue reading Brasato al Barolo Sous Vide (Beef Braised in Barolo)
Although we have been to Campania a number of times, during our latest trip in September it was the first time that we got to enjoy a slice of Torta Caprese, which was at Villa Rosa. It is a flourless … Continue reading Torta Caprese (Chocolate Almond Cake)
Monkfish wrapped with prosciutto is a classic combination. By dry brining the fish first and then cooking it sous vide, the fish will be tender and juicy. It is important to remove the membrane of the monkfish, as it contracts … Continue reading Monkfish With Prosciutto Sous Vide
In Italy at Villa Rosa di Nonna Rosa, I enjoyed sea bream with a squash velouté. I really liked this combination, so I decided to make this at home. Sea bream (orata) is a type of fish that dries out … Continue reading Sea Bream with Squash Velouté (Orata con Vellutata di Zucca)
If you cook octopus sous vide, you will get tender flavorful octopus, as well as a lot of flavorful liquid in the bag (more than a third of the original weight of the octopus, see this post). Het is a … Continue reading Octopus Risotto (Risotto al Polpo)
Originally posted on Stefan's Gourmet Blog:
Note added August 28, 2022: This was one of the first recipes that I published on my blog, over 10 years ago. This still remains one of my favorites, even though I don’t… Continue reading Tiramisù
Salmon mousse is a festive appetizer that is delicious yet easy to prepare. The only equipment you need is an immersion blender. You can serve it in small glasses like I did here, but it is also excellent for canapés: … Continue reading Salmon Mousse (Mousse di Salmone)
At Ubin restaurant in Costa Rica we enjoyed tuna that had been seared with fennel seed and coriander seed. I really liked this combination and wanted to try it at home. The photo was made with my phone in bad … Continue reading Seared Tuna with Coriander Seed and Fennel Seed
One of my favorite foods to cook on a charcoal grill is a lobster tail. Although it is not much of a recipe, I should photograph it so I can blog about it. If you start with whole live lobsters, … Continue reading Lobster Fettuccine (Fettuccine all’Astice)
When I saw boneless venison short ribs, I thought they would be perfect to make venison burgers. I prefer beef short ribs to make my own beef burgers from scratch, because short ribs have a good meat-to-fat ratio for burgers … Continue reading Venison Burger
This is a very simple recipe that I found in the Italian book “Le ricette di Osterie d’Italia”. The zucchini are boiled in the marinade and then left to cool. It can served as part of a spread of antipasti, … Continue reading Marinated Zucchini (Zucchine marinate)
When we visited Milano last year, we had a lovely evening with Bea of Viaggando con Bea and her husband Gigi. Bea brought me a very thoughtful gift: a book (in Italian) with recipes from Brianza (“Brianza in cucina: storia, … Continue reading Italian Chicken Pot Roast (Pollo nello stovin)
Risotto alle Rape is a simple risotto that is prepared with turnips in Italy, but can just as easily be prepared with kohlrabi (which is a close relative with a very similar flavor). As always with risotto, the quality is … Continue reading Turnip or Kohlrabi Risotto (Risotto alle Rape)
Char siu is one of my favorite dishes to prepare sous vide, because it is so easy and delicious. Because the pork is cooked for 24 hours in the marinade, I had always assumed there was no use in marinating … Continue reading Experiment with marinating before sous vide
There are already two similar recipes on this blog, ravioli with green asparagus and goat cheese and white asparagus ravioli with prosciutto, but the combination of white asparagus and goat cheese is so good that I wanted to share this … Continue reading Goat Cheese and White Asparagus Ravioli
Vignarola is a stew of the vegetables that grow around Rome at the end of Spring, beginning of Summer. I was reminded of this dish by Jo’s Frascati Cooking That’s Amore. Vignarola can be a contorno (side dish), minestra (hearty … Continue reading Vignarola (Roman Vegetable Stew)
This dish looks and sounds very simple, but it requires a lot of ingredients and a lot of steps. They are worth it though. For this stir fried beef with ginger and scallions I used the recipe from Chinese Cooking … Continue reading Chinese Stir Fried Beef with Ginger and Scallions
I often get inspiration for dishes from wine pairings. I like rack of lamb with a red Burgundy, and aged red Burgundy can have a hint of cauliflower. And so I created this dish of rack of lamb with slow-roasted … Continue reading Rack of Lamb Sous Vide with Slow-Roasted Cauliflower
Tonno di Coniglio is a classic Italian recipe from the region of Piemonte. It literally means “Tuna of Rabbit”. In Italy, tuna is preserved in glass jars with olive oil, and this recipe is rabbit prepared as if it were … Continue reading Tonno di Coniglio Sous Vide (Italian Marinated Rabbit)
Fried steak is a typical dish from the Italian region of Piemonte. Morsels of beef are breaded with flour, eggs, and breadcrumbs, and then deep fried until golden brown and crispy on the outside and tender and juicy medium rare … Continue reading Fritto Misto alla Piemontese (Fried Steak, Mushrooms, and Zucchini)
In Costa Rica we enjoyed this physalis liquor at Ubin restaurant, and decided to purchase a bottle to bring home with us. Physalis is a fruit from the Andes that has many names, including goldenberry and cape gooseberry (because they … Continue reading Physalis and Chocolate Tartlets
When I make ravioli, usually I put most of the ingredients in the filling and serve them with a simple sauce. But when I had ravioli stuffed with ricotta and seafood ragù at Pepe Nero, I realized that the other … Continue reading Ravioli di Ricotta al Ragù ai Frutti di Mare
