crostini

Cooking up a storm in Florence: review

  Have you ever dreamed the Italian dream? Waking up, let’s say in Florence, on a Saturday morning; taking a stroll to the local market to buy fresh produce; making fresh pasta with your own hands; having an aperitivo with friends before sitting down to enjoy the fruits of your culinary labours? Last week, I …

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Salsa tartufata: truffle sauce (recipe)

  It’s black summer truffle season here in the Tuscan Valtiberina and these alternative fruits of the forest are everywhere. Less pungent than in some other areas of Italy they are often served grated over pasta or grilled meat in abundance. There’s one restaurant in the village where the set menu looks like its own …

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The Other Face of Florence: Review

  Last week I was invited by Eating Italy Food Tours to take part in their new guided tour, The Other Side of Florence. The tour covers two quarters of the Oltrarno area, San Frediano and Santo Spirito on the southern side of the river, and area not usually visited by tourists despite their proximity …

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Crostini agli asparagi: asparagus toasts (recipe)

This recipe is from Tuscany. Crostini are an important part of Tuscan cuisine and feature as the antipasto on high days and holidays. They consist of small pieces of lightly toasted bread topped with a variety of ingredients. Last summer I did a post about the traditional toppings which you can read here, however you …

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Quick guide to Italian ingredients: ‘Nduja

This article is about Calabria.   ‘Nduja (pronouned ‘in-doo-ya’) is an incredibly spicy salame from the Calabrian village of Spìlinga. It’s made from pork mixed together with a high proportion of Calabrian chile (peperoncino), which gives it a bright red colour and fiery taste. It’s very soft which makes it easily spreadable on bread, which …

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Salsa all’aglione: Garlic and tomato pasta sauce

In my video about bringoli, I promised you a sauce recipe to serve with them, and here it is. This is one of the most traditional ways to serve pici, pinci, bigoli, or bringoli—as I said in the video, take your pick. All’aglione translates as ‘with a lot of garlic’ and that’s the key to this …

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