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.
Fregola Risottata with Clams & Chickpeas Like this recipe? Join me on an Italian food & wine tour to discover more regional specialties! Slightly larger than North African couscous, fregola is a reminder of the Arabic influence in Sardinia. It’s delicious in salads and soups and especially tasty as fregola risottata, stirred with the cooking […]
Passatelli Pasta with Brown Butter Join my small-group food & wine tour to northern Italy to discover more regional specialties. Passatelli pasta is a specialty of Romagna as well as the northern part of neighbouring Marche and Umbria. I was introduced to it at one of my favourite Romagnolo restaurants, Osteria La Corte in San […]
Risotto Milanese (Saffron Risotto) Join my small-group food & wine tour to northern Italy to discover more regional specialties! Risotto Milanese originated in Milan, where it’s the traditional accompaniment to ossobuco. Lombardy is the home of risotto, and my friend Alessandro Pavoni is the king of risotto making. He was born in Brescia in Lombardy […]
Primo Sale Cheese (Ricotta-Style) Like this recipe? You’ll love my online Italian cooking class inspired by Giovanni Pilu! Primo sale is a fresh Italian cheese, sometimes aged for a few weeks, sometimes resembling ricotta or cottage cheese. Traditionally it’s made from sheep milk though some versions today use cow milk or a mixture of cow, […]
Truffle Risotto Like truffles? Join me for a hands-on truffle hunting food & wine weekend! While truffles are indulgent, a little goes a long way and they have such a short season that it’s worth indulging while they’re around. You can buy a small one online from around $75 (with delivery) from Fish River Truffles […]
Pesto alla Genovese Join one of my food & wine tours to Italy to discover more Italian regional specialties! Although pesto means ‘to pound’, the classic Ligurian pesto alla Genovese, from the port city of Genoa, is traditionally made by crushing – rather than pounding – the ingredients in a marble mortar using a wooden […]
Hand Rolled Pasta: Lombrichi & Cicciones Join my food & wine tour to Rome & Southern Italy to discover more Italian regional specialties! This simple hand rolled pasta dough can be used to make several different rustic pasta shapes with a lovely chewy texture. Lombrichi are a traditional hand rolled pasta from Sardinia. The name […]
Tomato Sauce Master Kitchen Basics & Explore New Cuisines & Ingredients with My Online Cooking Classes A good tomato sauce is a basic in every Mediterranean cuisine. Use it to poach Lebanese stuffed zucchini, to dress a simple pasta or gnocchi, layer into eggplant Parmigiana or lasagne or add a pinch of hot smoked paprika […]
How To Cook Pasta Like A Nonna Master Classic Pasta Recipes Pasta comes in two basic forms: dried and fresh. Both are good, but suitable for different sauces. Fresh pasta, typical of more affluent northern Italy, usually contains egg. It’s most often served with rich meat ragùs and creamy or buttery sauces. Some fresh pasta […]
Piadina, Stracciatella, Figs & Balsamic Vinegar Learn to Make Piadina at Casa Artusi in Romagna on my Small Group Italian Food & Wine Tour In Emilia-Romagna the flatbread Piadina Romagnola (plural: Piadine Romagnole) is often served with the local cream cheese squacquerone. In Australia I like to use the creamy stracciatella from Vannella Cheese, it […]
