This week’s recipe idea. Trout, farmed and sustainable, cheap and flavorful. Great choice over (often) poorly farmed Salmon. Cooked the way Dad sometimes did when he came home from one of his fishing trips with an actual fish. (Always wondered if trout fishing was maybe just an excuse to hang out in huge gumboots in wild places). In oven, with rasher of pancetta or streaky bacon on either side and inside cavity, wild thyme, sage and rosemary, black pepper. The earthy flavors suit the inland nature of the fish. Cook - from 20 to 30 mins depending on size - till skin peels off easily. Recipe in Italian in this week’s @cipiacecucinare #fishideas #sustainablefish #beyondsalmon #farmedincentralitaly
There is a smell for every place, a palette for every season, and life is full of simple joys like letting the first spring breeze lick bare ankles from an open door. Thank you @rachelaliceroddy for putting your (special) copy of @gremkoska ‘s delightful book ‘From Field and Forest’ into my hands. It’s keeping me company during those lovely blank morning spaces (when they happen) and reminding me to read things other than the newspaper in the morning. Found myself in so many of your descriptions Anna, of wood piles, of the sun moving across the sky and slanting into your studio, of the joy of ripe figs and grown things. And the water colour and ink drawings, ah, I want to finish the book and cut them out for the walls. #bookswaps #anartistsyear #inpenandpaint #morningreading
Broccoli Bread, with lemon and parmigiano. So happy to share this one, one of my best ever recipe creations for @cipiacecucinare, and a great one for using up that extra head of broccoli bobbing around in the fridge. Loads of parmigiano and some lemon zest and woo hoo, a tasty savory cake for breakfast or a snack. Based on the standard ciambellone/yoghurt cake that I was so dismissive of as a 24 year old and came to love thanks to @rachelaliceroddy. So, for a roughly 20 cm loaf tin: 300 g broccoli, 250 g plain flour, 7 g baking powder, pinch salt, 100 ml di sunflower oil, 120 g yogurt, 100 g grated parmigiano, 2 eggs, zest of an untreated lemon, ground pepper. Break broccoli into florets, discard thick end and peel and dice trunk. Boil in lightly salted water for 10-14 minutes, till completely soft, and drain well (sure, nutrients are lost here, but we are making a cake not a health shake). Preheat oven to 180C. Mix half the zested lemon with about 10 g of parmigiano and ground pepper, set aside. In a large bowl or stand mixer combine first the flour, baking powder and pinch of salt and then add the mushed broccoli, zest, lightly beaten eggs, yogurt and parmigiano. Mix well and pour the oil in gradually as you mix. Pour into a buttered and floured loaf tin, sprinkle with the lemon/parm mix and bake for approx 50-55 minutes. Skewer in to check that it is cooked, then remove from tin and cool on a rack. Just the business toasted with a lick of butter. More broccoli ideas in this week’s @cipiacecucinare, on newsstands. #broccoli #savourycakes #vegetablecakes #cooktheseason
Turn the sound up for the happiest music. Kids in the playground, with spring sun. This post is to say GRAZIE to everyone, from @giuseppeconte_ufficiale to the ministers, school administrators and principals, professors, maestri, collaborators and EVERYONE who has worked and continues to put in huge effort to keep Italian schools open throughout the pandemic. Italy has made keeping kids at school a priority, and the system to stem infection rates is very solid. Not perfect but lots to be grateful for. Onwards. #keethematschool #vivalescuoleitaliane #grazieConte #forzaMario
Getting in on the frying action. Castagnole are little (chestnut sized) balls of fried cake batter rolled in sugar, part of the extensive line up of Italian Carnevale treats. Sometimes I find the bought ones a bit heavy on the booze and the artificial flavorings, but home made you can really go for it with the lemon zest and just fried they are light and fluffy and of course win points with all family members. I used one of my favorite ‘grammers, Stefano @italianhomecooking ‘s recipe and cooking tips, including watching the size and cooking time to make sure the inside cooks. They will probably be gone before dinner so might make pancakes (crepes) with lemon and sugar after dinner, just because I am nostalgic, and that’s what we always had as kids. If you have a last minute urge for Castagnole Stefano’s recipe is about 4 posts back in his Instagram, Francesca @pancakesandbiscotti also has a lovely Castagnole with ricotta recipe and @heartrome the cookbook has a super simple recipe too. #buoncarnevale #shrovetuesday #italianfryingfest
Perhaps the best biscuit ever, walnut crescents. Mum told me the story of how she inherited the recipe when I called her this morning, from an Australian-American Association cookbook from 1958, via a sister and a MIL. Hadn’t ever heard this recipe tale, a goodie, would have loved to have heard it over a cup of tea though. Will try hard not to polish the lot off before 6pm, and will share recipe next week on my almost finished website. #themumfiles #walnutcrescents #nutsandbutter
Back in the studio days (sigh), I used to make farro salads when someone was coming for lunch. @labnoon was a particular fan of this one. Farro, butternut pumpkin and chunks of sweet Acquaviva onions from Puglia, both roasted, soft robiola cheese marinated in thyme and garlic, toasted walnuts and lemon zest. Generous sea salt, Good extra virgin and a couple of drops of balsamic. Pretty complex for me, made during the week because kids only like farro with tomatoes and tuna. Photographed on a pile of junk to catch the light. Better recipe coming soon. #farrosalads #ancientgrains #roastpumpkinforever #butternut #zuccaviolino
