Tagliatelle with Mushrooms and Peas sauce

Tagliatelle con salsa ai Funghi e Piselli

Try this recipe, it is one of my last minute creations! It’s easy to prepare and it tastes truly great!

Preparation time: 5 minutes
Cooking time: about 1 hour
Class: economy, healthy

Serves 2–3

Ingredients:

4 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
2 shallots, peeled and chopped
14 oz. (400 g) Porcini mushrooms, sliced
2 cans Italian peeled tomatoes, approximately 14 oz. (400 g) each, mashed with a fork
Salt, about 1 tsp. + 1½ tbsp.
1 cup (250 ml) frozen or fresh peas
10 cups (2½ L) water
½ lb. (approximately 250 g) tagliatelle pasta
½ cup (120 ml) freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano (or Grana Padano) cheese

Method:

1.     Heat the oil in a large pan. Add the shallot and sauté gently. Add the mushrooms and let cook about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the tomatoes and 1 tsp. of salt. Bring to a boil, and then lower the heat and let simmer for about 1 hour, stirring occasionally.
2.     At this point, add the peas to the sauce and let cook together another 4-5 minutes. Then, taste the sauce and add more salt if needed.
3.     When the sauce is cooked, bring the water to a boil in a large pot. Add 1½ tbsp. of salt. Add the pasta and boil it, stirring often, until al dente. Drain the pasta and transfer to the pan with the sauce. Mix well and serve immediately with a sprinkle of Parmigiano cheese on top of each serving.

Notes:

·        You can use other kinds of Italian pasta like fettuccine or penne in place of the tagliatelle.

 

Tuna Cutlets

Cotolette di Tonno

I made this recipe last week and the cutlets turned out excellent. My guests absolutely loved this  healthy and tasty dish.

                                 

Preparation time: about 10 minutes
Cooking time: about  30 minutes
Class: expensive, healthy

Serves 3-6 (depending on how many tuna cutlets you like to put in each individual plate)

Ingredients:

about 1 cup (250 ml) breadcrumbs
2 eggs
6 slices of Tuna fillet
some cups vegetable oil (enough to fry)
salt to taste
2-3 tbsp. freshly grated ginger
1 lemon

Method:
1.        Put the breadcrumbs in a flat plate, then beat the eggs in a bowl.
2.        Gently dip each slice of tuna fillet into the eggs, then transfer to the plate with breadcrumbs; pat down, turn, and pat on the other side, to coat each piece with breadcrumbs.
3.        Heat the oil in a non-stick pan and fry the tuna cutlets on each side until they become golden brown; drain on paper towels.
4.        Season with salt and serve the cutlets with a sprinkle of grated ginger and a squeeze of lemon juice on top.

 

 

Orecchiette with Celery Pesto sauce

Orecchiette al Pesto di Sedano

This dish is a welcome diversion from the most popular pasta with basil pesto sauce; it is tasty and healthy, and because celery is available all the year, it is perfect in winter or every time of the year.

I don’t add salt to the celery puree because the celery is naturally salty.

  

Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: just the time to boil pasta
Class: cheap, healthy

Serves 2–3                                                          

Ingredients:
5 oz. (140 g) fresh celery
Extra virgin olive oil, about 7 tbsp.
2 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped
3 tbsp. sunflower seeds
2 oz. (60 g.) Parmigiano Reggiano (or Grana Padano) cheese, chopped
8 cups (2 L) water
1 tbsp. salt
½ lb. (approximately 250 g) orecchiette pasta

Method:

1.     Prepare the celery pesto: Blend together the celery, oil, garlic, sunflower seeds and cheese, reducing to a thick puree. Set aside.
2. At this point, bring the water to a boil in a large pot. Add 1 tbsp. of salt. Add the pasta and boil it, stirring often, until al dente. Drain the pasta and return it to the pot. Add the celery puree to the pasta and mix well. Serve immediately.     

Avocado salad

Insalata di Avocado

This salad is rich and tasty. It’s a quick and easy meal which is a welcome diversion from the most popular salads.

I like to serve this salad into the avocado peel. To preserve the peel, my method is the following: With a knife, carefully cut the avocado in half lengthwise around the seed. Holding the avocado in the palm of one hand, use your other hand to twist, rotate and separate the two halves apart. Remove the seed and discard. You can use your fingers or a spoon to scoop out the seed. At this point, you can either scoop out the avocado flesh with a spoon or take a small knife and gently make cuts in the avocado flesh. Then use a spoon or your fingers to separate the avocado segments from the peel.

Preparation time: about  10 minutes
Cooking time: -
Class: cheap, very healthy

Serves  2

Ingredients:
1 ripe avocado
½ onion, peeled and finely chopped
fresh chives, chopped (optional)
1 hard boiled egg, chopped
1 tbsp. sunflower seeds
3 tbsp. fresh squeezed lemon juice
6-7 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
a pinch of salt
black pepper to taste (optional)

Method:

1.    Peel the avocado, then slice it and put into a bowl. Add onion, chives, egg, sunflower seeds, lemon juice and extra virgin olive oil. Season with salt and balck pepper, and gently mix all together. At this point, taste the salad and add more salt if needed.
2.    Then, transfer the salad into the avocado peel or to a salad bowl and serve immediately.

 

Genovese Pasta with Onions and fresh Tuna

Pasta alla Genovese con Cipolle e Tonno

This dish is a welcome diversion from the most popular genovese pasta with meat. It is for the tuna fish lovers. It is a rich and tasteful dish, perfect in winter time.

 

Preparation time: 20 minutes
Cooking time: about 2 hours
Class: expensive, healthy

Serves 2–3

Ingredients:
20 oz. (560 g) onions, peeled and chopped
Water, 10 cups (2½ L)
4 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
11 oz. (300 g) fresh Tuna fillets, diced
½ can Italian peeled tomatoes, approximately 7 oz. (200 g), mashed with a fork
Salt, about 2 tsp. + 1 tbsp.
½ lb. (approximately 250 g) penne rigate pasta

Method:
1.     Put the onions in a large bowl. Add 2 cups (500 ml) water to the onions and, with an immersion blender, coarsely blend them. Set aside.
2.     Heat the oil in a large pan. Add the tuna and let brown a little, then remove from the pan and set aside. Add the tomatoes and the onions mixture to the pan. Season with 2 tsp. of salt.
3.     Cover the pan, bring the sauce to a boil, and then lower the heat and simmer for 1 hour. Remove the cover, add the tuna to the sauce and cook on medium-low heat for another 30 minutes or until the sauce thickens and becomes creamy. Stir occasionally. At this point, taste the sauce and add more salt if needed.
4.     When the sauce is done, bring 8 cups (2 L) water to a boil in a large pot. Add 1 tbsp. of salt. Add the pasta and boil it, stirring often, until al dente. Drain the pasta and return it to the pot. Add the sauce and let cook all together for another 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Serve immediately.

 

Pasta with Carrots and Cheese cream

                           Pasta con crema di Carote e Formaggio
Hello! After a short break here I am!
Did you know there are dozens of different pasta shapes in Italy? Well, for this recipe I use Casarecce because this kind of pasta shape retains the sauce and the dish that comes out is amazing good! Although for us it represents a first course, you can serve it as a main dish because it is complete, it has a bit of everything— carbohydrates, protein, vegetables. Buon appetito!

Preparation time: 5 minutes
Cooking time: about 15 minutes
Class: economy, healthy

Serves 2-3

Ingredients:
6 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
1 shallot, peeled and finely chopped
5-6 medium carrots, peeled and chopped
A bunch of sage leaves
3 oz. (80 g) cream cheese
½ cup (125 ml) heavy cream
Salt, about  ½ tsp. + 1 tbsp.
8 cups (2 L) water
½ lb. (approximately 250 g) Casarecce pasta
 
Method:
1.     Heat the oil in a large pan. Add the shallot and sauté. Add the carrots and sage, cover and let cook for 10 minutes or until tender.
2.     Then remove from the pan about 3 tbsp. of carrots to use as garnish and set aside. Add the cream cheese, heavy cream and ½ tsp. of salt to the pan; mix well and let cook another 2-3 minutes or until the cream cheese melts. At this point, with an immersion blender, blend all the ingredients, reducing them to a thick puree. Then, taste the sauce and add more salt if needed.
3.     Meanwhile, bring the water to a boil in a large pot. Add 1 tbsp. of salt. Add the pasta and boil, stirring often, until al dente. Drain the pasta and transfer to the pan with the carrots and cheese cream. Let cook together another 1-2 minutes, stirring constantly. Then, add the reserved carrots and mix well. Serve immediately.