Fried Calamari are one of the most popular Italian antipasto dishes ordered in restaurants over the world but what many don’t know, is how super simple they are to make. My fried calamari are deliciously crispy, with a salty tang and with the perfect squeeze of lemon really are a divine way to start off your meal. This fried calamari recipe uses semolina and a lemon marinade which make all the difference to the crunch and zest! Once you’ve tried this recipe, you’ll likely never order it out again – the restaurants just won’t compare!
Tag Archives | Italian food blog
Chocolate Cheesecake Pan di Stelle
CHEESECAKE PAN DI STELLE
Cheesecake made with Pan di Stelle, wonderful cookies I have been eating since I was a little boy. In Italy, the brown bag covered with stelle, or stars, is recognized and loved by everyone. For the bambini, Pan di Stelle cookies means an after school snack with some warm milk. For adults, it means re-living their childhood for brief moment as they dunk their biscotti in their morning caffe latte. This cheesecake version of the beloved snack is perfect for anyone, at any occasion. There is just one problem – you may need to make 2 because there won’t be any left for the next day!
Minestrone Soup
Minestrone soup is the most traditional Italian soup made in households all over Italy. Most families have their own version, but my absolute favourite is when the right mix of fresh vegetables and herbs come together in the pot and infuse to create the most mouth-watering broth – the most important part of the minestrone soup. Add some cracked pepper and a generous serve of pecorino cheese and you’ll warm hearts through every season!
Zeppole – Zippoli Calabrese
Zeppole calabresi are divine savoury donuts on high demand in our household! This zeppole recipe uses the traditional Calabrian method, taught to us by Nonna Maria. She has been making her family drool for these for years and while the original is with anchovies, there is a caprese surprise in store for you too. Make these fresh with your family and friends and eat them hot on a special occasion. No one will dream at stopping at one when you recreate this zeppole recipe.
Authentic Tiramisu
This authentic Tiramisu recipe will get your heart racing and will prove why this dessert is the most universally loved Italian “dolce”! Using biscuits as a light sponge dipped in freshly brewed coffee, mixed with layers of fluffy, sweetened mascarpone, this heavenly creation is finished with cocoa and grated chocolate to literally melt in your mouth..it’s also very simple! Try it during the festive season or for a special occasion and you will be begged to make it over and over…!
Roast Leg of Lamb
Roast leg of lamb is slowly cooked to absolute perfection. It will take your Sunday roast tradition to a whole new level and what’s better, it’s EASY! While you’ll need some patience with the cooking time, this roast leg of lamb is so easy to make and I promise, it will taste better than you can even imagine. With few ingredients, and care taken at every step, your family and friends will be begging you for more! Make this roast leg of lamb the centrepiece at your festive feast.
Cacio e Pepe
Cacio e pepe recipe is the original mac and cheese. This simple cacio e pepe recipe, originating in Rome uses four main ingredients but there are a few techniques to make it simply spectacular.
Chicken Broth
CHICKEN BROTH WITH CREPES:
Chicken broth served with parmesan crepes is a traditional recipe from my Nonna’s region of Teramo in Abruzzo. It is a deliciously tasty slow cooked broth served with light, thin crepes filled with salty parmesan cheese. This twist on classic chicken broth warms my heart (and my tummy!) with as it’s truly one-of-a-kind. Passing on this recipe to me felt like I was gaining a part of Nonna’s history and I will treasure it forever and hope you do too! While it’s a perfect dish for the changing weather, it can be enjoyed as an entrée in smaller portions and will surely become a family favourite in your homes too.
INGREDIENTS FOR CHICKEN BROTH:
½ organic chicken (cut into pieces)
5 pieces of veal
1 whole onion
3 celery stalks (complete with leaves)
1 carrot (peeled)
1 cinnamon stick
3-5 cherry tomatoes
Rock salt
INGREDIENTS FOR CREPES:
8 tablespoons of flour
8 eggs
Water
Pinch of fine salt
Grated parmesan cheese
UTENSILS:
1 XL pot
Knife
Chopping board
Small-medium size fry pan
Tablespoon
Extra virgin olive oil
Whisk
Ladle
Kitchen paper
Hand held sieve
METHOD TO MAKE THE CHICKEN BROTH:
1. To make chicken broth with parmesan filled crepes, put the pieces of chicken into your pot, add the veal and fill it almost to the top with water.
2. Put the pot on the stove at a medim heat, and once it starts to boil, you will notice foam at the top of the water. This needs to be skimmed off the top and discarded.
3. Leave this to boil for up to 10 minutes and keep removing the foam.
4. To add extra flavour to your chicken broth, add 1 whole onion (skin peeled off), the celery, carrot, cinnamon stick and cherry tomatoes, along with a generous pinch of rock salt.
5. Leave this to boil for up to 2 hours.
METHOD TO MAKE THE CREPES:
1. To make the crepes filled with parmesan cheese for your chicken broth, start by placing 8 tablespoons of flour into a bowl.
2. Crack open the 8 eggs into a separate bowl and whisk well. Then, add a pinch of salt to flavour and keep whisking.
NONNA IGEA’S TIP: One of the eggs will be used as a measure. Try to crack it open from the very top, so it remains almost whole. Rinse it out with water, and this will be used to add the water to your crepe mixture.
3. Next, to make your crepe mixture, add a handful of flour at a time, and sprinkle it into your mixture while whisking it at the same time. Do this carefully to avoid lumps!
4. Now, add 8 “egg-fulls” of water to your mix, and keep whisking through really well.
5. Leave this crepe mixture in the fridge for approx. 5 minutes.
6. Now it’s time to cook the crepes! Get a small-medium size pan and place it on the stove at a low heat, add a few drops of extra virgin olive oil to the pan, and using kitchen paper, wipe the excess off, making sure the pan has enough left on it so the mixture doesn’t stick!
7. Using a ladle, scoop up some of the crepe mixture, hold the fry pan in the other hand, then pour the mixture inside and quickly flick your wrist making the pan move in a circular motion to spread the mix around creating the form of a crepe.
8. Try not to have any holes in each crepe and remember, the more you make, the better you will get!
NONNA IGEA’S TIP: Don’t add too much crepe mixture to your pan as the crepes should be kept nice and thin. The more you practice, the better these will come!
9. After 10-20 seconds (depending on how hot the pan is), use a fork to gently scrape all around the each of the crepe, and if its cooked it will start to peel away, then once ready, flip it over and cook the other side.
10. The crepes will be ready on no time as they are very thin and your pan is hot! Once ready, prepare a tablecloth on top of your table/board and place them on top, next to one another covering them with a tea towel so they don’t dry up.
HOW TO SERVE THE CREPES AND CHICKEN BROTH:
11. Get each crepe, one at a time, and sprinkle parmesan cheese over the top of one side – all over.
12. Now, roll it up gently, and nice and tight, before placing it into a large soup bowl (for serving).
13. Layer them tightly next to one another in one direction until the bottom is covered, and then the other direction, with a layer on top.
14. When you are ready to serve, take the chicken broth off the stove, and using a ladle, scoop out the broth in one hand and pour it into a sieve, over the top of the bowl of crepes, so that none of the vegetable pieces go into the soup.
15. Add another sprinkle of grated parmesan cheese to the bowl and enjoy while its nice and hot!
E ora si mangia, Vincenzo’s Plate…Enjoy!
Pasta al Limone
Pasta al limone is a quick and easy recipe that is refreshing and simple but the mix of lemon and mint will take your tastebuds on an Italian Summer holiday! Keep this delicate dish which comes from the south of Italy, for a mid-week treat; add some Italian music in the background to spoil someone special and surprise yourself with this flavour bomb!
Roasted Chicken with Potatoes
Roasted chicken: it sounds simple because it is! But there are a few tricks to getting this Sunday lunch of roasted chicken with oven crunchy potatoes absolutely perfect; so I asked my Nonna Igea to share her secrets so that you can taste the real flavours I grew up enjoying at her house with my family. Crispy skin roasted chicken with golden potatoes will absolutely warm your heart. Watch my recipe with Nonna now, make them ASAP, then share photos with me later as I would love to see you eating this with your whole family.
