Italian food is good for the soul! Despite great regional diversity, northern Italy and southern Italy are united by passion for fresh produce, pasta and the shared table. I love the simplicity and seasonality of la cucina Italiana. Here are some of my favourite Italian recipes.
Mostaccioli Calabrese Sometimes called mustazzoli or mustazzuole, depending on the dialect, mostaccioli are super hard biscuits that are popular at Christmas and often shaped like fish (an ancient symbol of Christianity). They come in many other shapes, some quite elaborate, including baskets, horses and hearts as well as a simple S. These simple Calabrian honey […]
Spaghetti alle Vongole al Cartoccio Spaghetti alle vongole is the classic Italian clam dish. Vongole means ‘clam’ in Italian and I use the small South Australian vongole that are closest to Italy’s vongole veraci, but you can use any clams or other bivalve for this dish, including mussels. I first had spaghetti alle vongole al […]
Armando’s Panettone with Berries Armando’s panettone with berries is a festive dessert made with Italy’s traditional Christmas cake, panettone. Chef Armando Percuoco created it to add a bit of moisture to this brioche-like bread, which some people find a bit too dry. We’ve used berries and mint for a red and green Christmas theme but […]
Grilled Zucchini with Stracciatella Grilled zucchini with stracciatella is a simple dish that’s great as a starter or part of an antipasti. It’s inspired by a dish I had at Bert’s at Newport – the first time I ever tasted stracciatella. This wonderful southern Italian cheese is shredded mozzarella mixed with cream – it’s what’s […]
Snapper with Pine Nut & Herb Stuffing I didn’t really care for stuffings until I cooked this snapper with pine nut & herb stuffing, inspired by a dish Giovanni Pilu served me. Herbs, including rosemary, thyme and oregano grow wild throughout Sardinia and are known as ‘erbette di campo’, herbs of the field. They add […]
Salmon with Fregola Salad This baked salmon with fregola salad is a great dinner party dish as it’s both easy and impressive. The fregola salad was taught to me by chef Giovanni Pilu, from Pilu at Freshwater, who usually serves it with lamb (see video below). Fregola is a reminder of the Arabic influence in […]
Prawns with Bottarga Butter Prawns with bottarga butter is perfect for a quick and tasty dinner – even more so if you keep a roll of bottarga butter in the freezer! Use this recipe as inspiration for all sorts of flavoured butter to melt over seafood, meat, poultry or vegetables – or toss through freshly […]
Octopus Cooked Ossobuco-style With its firm texture, octopus lends itself perfectly to the long slow braise that makes traditional ossobuco so delicious and fall apart tender. Large ‘hands’ of octopus tentacles can be cooked this way as well: cut them into large bite-sized pieces and bake for 2½ hours covered then 20 minutes uncovered. Octopus […]
Involtini di Tonno Tuna is a great pescatarian alternative in red meat dishes, especially ones like a classic Italian involtini where it’s wrapped around a tasty filling and poached in a rich tomato sauce. Traditional veal involtini often includes meat in the filling, but cheese, herbs and umami-rich porcini make for a delicious vegetarian stuffing […]
Baked Ocean Trout with Mushrooms Catching freshwater fish (like trout) and foraging for mushrooms are both popular pastimes in northern Italy, and the fruits of these activities come together deliciously in this simple dish of baked ocean trout with mushrooms. Use whatever mushrooms are available just as they would in Italy, I love wild pine […]
