Italian cuisine is very regional. Italy has 20 regions that are further subdivided into 107 provinces. The provinces are usually named after the main city or town. Each province is proud of its culinary tradition and has its own piatti … Continue reading Tordelli al Ragù (Ravioli from Lucca)
Next week, August 21-23 2020, the second Sous Vide Summit of the International Sous Vide Association will be held. Because of COVID it will be a virtual conference, so the good news is you can join from anywhere. And I … Continue reading Pollo alla Cacciatora Sous Vide
Picanha is a cut of beef that is very popular in Brazil and Argentina, that is known as “rump cap” in the United States or as staartstuk in the Netherlands. It is a tender and flavorful piece of beef from … Continue reading Picanha Sous-Vide with Chimichurri
This post is another example of how good very simple dishes can be. I had never thought of tomato risotto, and saw it for the first time on Le Ricette di Baccos. I tried it, and it was absolutely wonderful. … Continue reading Tomato Risotto (Risotto al Pomodoro)
This vegetarian pasta dish is a fancy version of the more rustic Sicilian Pasta alla Norma, and perfectly suited for a dinner party. Although the flavors are summery, the ingredients are available year-round so it is ideal to get a bit of summer in your house while it is snowing outside. The flavor of the eggplant is enhanced in a well-known Italian way called “trifolato”: it is sautéed with parsley and garlic. Rather than sautéing the aubergine raw which would make it very oily, I bake the eggplant first so only a minimum amount of oil is needed. The ravioli are served with … Continue reading Ravioli with Eggplant and Ricotta (Ravioli di Melanzane e Ricotta)
A well-known and excellent antipasto (that I haven’t posted about yet, but I will at some point) is involtini of roasted eggplant, mozzarella and basil. Years ago I thought it would be nice to combine this with veal scaloppine and a bit of tomato sauce. I really loved the result and made it often when I had guests over for dinner. I hadn’t made it for a few years until yesterday, and liked it as much as before. It’s not difficult to make but the taste is very impressive. Ingredients For 4 servings 4 veal scaloppine (around 120 grams/4 oz each), … Continue reading Veal scaloppine with Eggplant and Mozzarella (Scaloppine alla Melanzana e Mozzarella)
This is one of those dishes where the quality of the main ingredient makes all the difference. If you use really good prosciutto (Spanish jamon iberico will also do) that has been aged for at least two years and is sweet rather than salty, this dish will be amazing. If you use cheap prosciutto, it will end up being so salty it’s hardly edible. Good prosciutto is expensive, but even good prosciutto comes in a natural shape and thus there are pieces of the ham that are less attractive to be sliced. For this recipe you will chop it anyway, … Continue reading Tagliatelle al Prosciutto
This pasta dish was inspired by a dish on the menu of my favorite trattoria in Amsterdam: Lo Stivale d’Oro. They have “tagliatelle alla pugliese” on the menu, which is tagliatelle with peppers, salami and tomato sauce. (I have never seen this dish in Puglia, so my guess is that it is called pugliese because they use hot salami from Puglia.) I like it better with penne and prefer to use a type of salami that is not as hot. The taste of the dish is determined to a great extent by the salami used. I prefer to use a … Continue reading Penne with peppers and salami (Penne peperoni e salame)
Kees felt like having pizza and I had picked up lots of vegetables and so decided to go for a veggie pizza for a change. It turned out great! Ingredients For 2 thin pizza crusts 250 grams flour (preferably Italian 00) 150 ml lukewarm water 1.5 tsp salt 1 tsp sugar 10 grams fresh yeast 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil For the toppings 1 eggplant (aubergine) 1 zucchini (courgette) 1 bunch of green asparagus (450 grams/1 pound) 2 red peppers 175 ml (2/3 cup) passata (sieved tomatoes) 250 grams (1/2 pound) mozzarella 1-2 tsp dried oregano salt and freshly … Continue reading Pizza with roasted vegetables
Stefan's Gourmet Blog 