The Lighter Side of Italy

When you think of Italian food, visions of gelato, pizza, cheese and pastries dance in your head, right? Well, maybe that’s just me. Seriously, when people think of this food, they think of heavy, cheesy and calorie laden meals. But I have always wanted to change that idea. Italian food can be very healthy; you just have to know how to eat it and how much of it to eat.

When I was in Italy, I didn’t really eat all that differently than I do when I’m at home. My lunches and dinners started with a grilled vegetable plate with zucchini, eggplants and peppers or a beautiful salad with arugula and tomatoes. My mother and I usually shared one pasta, pizza or meat entrée. 

The thing in Italy is, pasta is not a main course. It is an appetizer. So when it comes to the table, don’t expect a huge bowl filled, if you order ravioli, you’ll probably get four. Pizza is made with a very thin crust, as opposed to all those thick crusts with the extra calories. Plus, all the food that I eat is prepared with natural, wholesome ingredients. Yes, there is cheese, chocolate and bread. But cheese in its purest form, bread, made with ingredients that you can actually pronounce. 

So, I want to share a few of the dishes that I enjoyed while in Italy and I hope it will inspire you to get on board with Healthy Italian La Dolce Vita Lifestyle!!

Spinach with Lemon

1 pound of baby spinach leaves

2 tbsp. olive oil

2 tbsp. chopped garlic

2 tsp. salt

1 tsp. black pepper

2 tbsp. lemon zest, grated

Start off by rinsing the spinach in cold water. Spin it in a salad clean to ensure that it is mostly dry. In a deep pot, heat olive oil and chopped garlic over medium heat, for around two minutes. Add the spinach, salt, pepper and toss. Cook for around 5 minutes or until spinach is wilted. Use a slotted spoon to serve spinach and top with freshly grated lemon zest. Buon Appetito!!

Grilled Vegetable Antipasto

3 red bell peppers, seeded and cut into sticks

2 zucchini, cut into sticks

1 large eggplant, cut into sticks

¼ cup olive oil

Salt and Pepper

1 clove of garlic, minced

Prepare a grill pan over medium heat. Add your sliced vegetables into a bowl and brush with the olive oil, salt, pepper and minced garlic. Begin grilling the vegetables in batches, depending on how big your pan is. All together, it should take around 30 minutes to grill.

Chicory with Lemon

2 heads of chicory (outer ribs discarded and the remainder cut into 2 inch pieces)

¼ cup of olive oil

2 cloves of garlic, chopped

2 tbsp. red pepper

1 tsp. salt

Lemon juice(quanto basta!)

Wash the chicory. Cook in boiling salted water. Stir, until tender for around 5 minutes. Drain.

In another pot, heat olive oil over medium heat. Cook garlic with red pepper, but don’t let it burn! Add the chicory, stirring until most of the liquid had evaporated, for around 4 minutes. Serve with a sprinkle of salt and a little lemon juice!!

Butternut Squash Fritters

Butternut Squash Fritters. Do I have your attention now? I thought so. I really look for any excuse to turn anything into a fritter. I’m not even kidding. I know fried food may not be the healthiest, but let’s face it, it tastes delicious. I want to make it clear that I don’t eat fried food terribly often, but when I do, I want it to be something really good. Enter my Butternut Squash Fritters.

These are so good and they are a nice change from the usual vegetable fritters made with broccoli or cauliflower. For one thing, butternut squash lends itself so well to sage, rosemary and thyme that it just seemed like the right thing to do. Imagine making a savory butternut squash pancake, that’s what these are, except that these are fried, so while they are definitely similar to a pancake, they are really crispy. These also have parmigiana cheese which just makes them even more amazing. 

I love the idea of serving fun appetizers for Thanksgiving that are a little different and I think these would do just perfectly. You might also like to try my Pumpkin Gnocchi or if you’re serving a soup, perhaps a bowl of my Pumpkin Sausage Stew. These are also great for a low carb, paleo or gluten free diet. I always love when you guys leave comments, so please let me know what you think!!

Butternut Squash Fritters

1 ½ cups of pureed butternut squash

2 eggs

½ cup coconut flour

2 tsp. baking powder

½ tsp. salt

1 tsp. black pepper

¾ cup of parmigiana

2 tsp. chopped fresh sage

2 tsp. chopped fresh rosemary

1 tsp. chopped fresh thyme

1 cup of neutral oil for frying

In a medium size bowl, combine butternut squash and eggs. In another bowl, combine coconut flour, baking powder, salt and black pepper. Mix into butternut squash mix. Add parmigiana, sage, rosemary and thyme. These will be pretty moist, but don’t be startled, they will stay together and fry perfectly!!

Prepare a deep pot over high heat and add your oil. Once it is hot enough, form into balls, 2 tablespoons full and put in the oil. You may want to flatten them a little once they are in the oil as I did or you can keep them as they are!! Fry each side for around 3 minutes. Once they are all done, put on a wire rack so any excess oil drips off. Buon Appetito!! 

Ricotta Pancakes

Ahh, lazy Sunday mornings. A time to relax, catch up on some reading, go to the gym, relax some more and indulge in some pancakes.

I have always loved my heavy carbohydrate breakfasts. I honestly only started eating eggs in the past few years, so for me, it was always about French toast, waffles, oatmeal, you get the picture. But, I have found a way to have my pancakes and eat them too. Well, obviously. These pancakes are ricotta based and made with nut flour, therefore they are gluten free. I use hazelnut flour, which gives them a very nice texture and a slightly nutty taste, which really works with the ricotta. You can use whatever gluten free flour you like though or regular white or whole wheat flour if you have no gluten allergy.

They are light and fluffy and the edges get nice and crispy, just the way that I like my pancakes. These are fantastic for anyone. If you are allergic to gluten or if you’re on a low carb diet, you can enjoy these and they will satisfy you just as much as classic pancakes.

I have to tell you, I’ve served these to a lot of people. I’ve never said a word about the ingredients and I’ve always gotten rave reviews. No one has suspected a thing. They think they are just regular buttermilk pancakes.

If you are not watching your sugar intake you can have them with a little drizzle of maple syrup or honey and if you are, I like to whip together a little ricotta with a splash of milk and vanilla extract and serve it on top or serve with a nice pat of butter or a dash of cinnamon. Anyway you have, I guarantee you will love them.

Ricotta Pancakes

½ cup of hazelnut flour
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
Pinch of salt
1 ½ cups of ricotta cheese
4 eggs
4 tablespoons of butter (Two for the batter and two for the griddle)

First, heat a nonstick griddle over medium-high heat. Then, separate your yolks and whites. Mix together the flour, vanilla, ricotta, and yolks in a large bowl until thoroughly combined. Beat your egg whites in a separate bowl until stiff. Fold the egg whites into the ricotta mixture. Put the butter on the griddle. You can make these pancakes as big or as small as like. Cook each side for around 2-3 minutes. Eat them while they are still nice and warm. Please let me know what you think, I love to hear from you all! Buon Appetito!!

Tuscan Grilled Lemon Rosemary Chicken

Today we will be traveling to Tuscany for supper.  You have the time, yes? Well, if you don’t, then just preparing this dish will bring a little piece of Tuscany right to your home.

I adore Tuscan cuisine. It is all about simplicity and fresh ingredients. Tuscan food is traditionally rich with legumes, fish, meat, fresh herbs, fruit and vegetables. As you can see by the ingredients, I find Tuscan cuisine lighter than some of the other regional cuisines (not that there is anything wrong with that, who doesn’t want a lot of cheese now and then?) so this is the perfect food if you are watching what you eat. This dish is perfect for almost all diets. High protein, low carb or healthy eating in general.

For today’s meal, I have prepared Tuscan grilled lemon rosemary chicken over a bed of fresh arugula. This chicken is so tender, moist and juicy. It is flavored richly by the marinade. It takes a bit of prep time, but that is part of what makes it so delicious, so don’t skimp on the time that you marinate it. I also use half chickens so that I can grill it under a brick, which is a Tuscan style of cooking. It flattens the chicken and somehow, I just find that it makes it taste better.

So, I invite you to my table to take a little bite of Tuscany with me.

Tuscan grilled lemon rosemary chicken

2 half chickens

Garlic (chopped, as much as you like, I love a lot of garlic)
½ cup of oil
Salt (Quanto basta!)
Pepper
Rosemary
3 lemons
1 box of fresh Arugula

Start off by rinsing your chicken in saltwater and letting it sit there for around 20 minutes.

Chop your garlic and put it in a bowl. Add the oil, salt, pepper, rosemary and squeezed lemons with the garlic. Whisk together.

Put the chicken in the bowl with the marinade (or you can put the marinade and chicken in a zip lock bag, but be careful, it could get very messy!!). Let the chicken marinate for at least one hour!

Now, start preparing your bricks. Wrap your bricks in a lot of foil. Also take two extra pieces of foil t put directly on top of the chicken. Next, get out your flat grill pan and set on medium heat. Put the chicken skin side down on the grill pan, put the extra piece of foil on top of the chicken and then put the brick on top. Cook the first side for 30 minutes and then very carefully turn it to the other side and cook for another 30 minutes.  Once the chicken is done, take it off the pan to cool.

The chicken is so moist; I actually like to tear the chicken with my bare hands, as opposed to using a knife. You of course can use a knife though. On each portion, put a handful of fresh arugula on the plate and put the chicken directly on top of the greens. If the chicken is slightly warm, it will wilt the greens very nicely and all of the marinade from the chicken will act as a bit of a dressing.

Might I suggest this dish with a glass of Vernaccia di San Gimignano? It is considered Tuscany’s best white wine, so only the best for us, right? Buon Appetito!!

Grilled Vegetable Antipasto

In keeping with some of my recent posts about healthy food options (stuffed Italin pepper) and the healthy Italian lifestyle. today I would like to share with you my recipe for Grilled Vegetable Antipasto. To call it a recipe seems a little silly, since it is really just vegetables grilled with oil and garlic, but nonetheless, I will call it a recipe just so you know exactly how to prepare it to ensure that they come out perfectly.

Antipasto translates to before the meal.  It is a traditional first course of an Italian meal. Most antipasto features a lovely spread of olives, cured meats, mozzarella or provolone and grilled mixed vegetables like eggplant, zucchini and artichoke hearts.

The contents of an antipasto vary a lot according to regional cuisine. In the South of Italy they have saltwater fish and southern meats like soppressata (an Italian dry salami), but in the north it will have other cured meats and freshwater fish. The cheeses also vary depending what region you’re in.

I love antipasto because it is a wonderful way to start a meal. Vegetables, cheese and olives are a wonderful beginning to anything, right?? This version is completely vegan, but I will be sharing many different antipasto recipes in the next few weeks so everyone can feel included. I use eggplant, zucchini, red and yellow peppers that I got at my local farmers market. I also used some Brussels sprouts which are not Italian; I just really like Brussels sprouts. Most people don’t however, so I’m not going to include them in the actual recipe. You may use whatever vegetables you like, but I really suggest eggplant and zucchini, they lend themselves very nicely to this preparation.

This of course can be used as a side to some pasta or some nice grilled meat as well. You can also put it on some ciabatta, add some mozzerella and grill. However you prepare it, I guarantee you will love it.

Grilled Vegetable Antipasto

1 large eggplant
2 medium sized zucchini
2 red bell peppers
2 yellow bell peppers

¾ cup of olive oil

1 full head of garlic (chopped)
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon pepper

First start off by cutting your eggplant, zucchini and peppers, the thinner they are cut, the faster they will grill.

Next chop all of your garlic. Add your olive oil, salt and pepper. Put the oil mixture in a zip lock bag and add the vegetables. Make sure all of the vegetables are thoroughly coated in the marinade. Let it sit for about an hour.

If you have a flat grill top, I would recommend using that. If not, a regular grill pan will do just fine. Heat it over medium heat. Add the eggplant first since that takes the longest to cook. I usually leave the eggplant to cook for around 15 minutes before adding the other vegetables. Next, add the zucchini and peppers. I like my vegetables very, very grilled (almost to the point that you would think they’re burned, but I assure you, they’re not!!) All together, let them cook for 45 minutes. Take off the pan and put on a serving plate and lightly salt. Let me know what you usually like in your antipasto! Buon Appetito!!

The Scents of Summer: Sausage and Peppers

If you have ever walked through a street fair during the hot days of summer, you are met with the lovely, various scents of all the food around you.  Zeppoles, funnel cake, falafel, cotton candy, corn on the cob. But nothing quite makes my mouth water like the aroma of sausage and peppers.  You know exactly what I’m talking about. The smell of the roasted peppers, the caramelized onions, the hot and spicy smell of the sausage. Pure perfection. Honestly, as silly as it may sound, that smell always makes me think of summer, usually because that’s when the street fairs are around.

So, this past weekend for dinner, I made a classic sausage and pepper stir-fry. Nothing fancy. No tricks up my sleeves. Just prepared the classic way. Some things don’t need a new twist and to me, this is a perfect example. It’s simply amazing the way it is. One of the great things about sausage and peppers is that it’s very easy to prepare, there’s not a lot of prep time and not a lot of steps. Another thing I love about sausage and peppers is how many different ways you can use it. Of course, the classic street fair style is served on a nice, toasted Italian hero. You can also have it with pasta, over polenta, a salad, on top of pizza, use it instead of Bolognese in lasagna. I’ve also been known to go a little nuts and add it to an omelet with some mozzarella or make an Italian quesadilla with some parmigiana and mozzarella. Anyway you have it, it’s delicious.

Sausage and Pepper Stir Fry

1/2 lb Italian Sausage (sweet or hot, whatever you prefer)
1 Red Bell pepper, sliced fine
1 green bell pepper, sliced fine
1/2 of 1 large red onion cut
2 cloves of garlic, minced
Vegetable oil, for stir frying
Salt and pepper (Quanto basta)

Heat the vegetable oil in a large skillet pan over medium-high heat, I recommend around 1-2 tablespoons of oil, since sausage is naturally pretty oily, you don’t need too much. When the oil begins to simmer, put the whole sausage in the pan. Continue cooking until sausage is browned on all sides and no longer pink in the center.

Drain sausage and let it cool for just a few minutes and then slice. I like thin slices, but you can obviously cut it the way that you like it. Add another tablespoon of vegetable oil to the pan and continue to heat. Add garlic and cook, make sure the garlic gets nicely roasted, but not burned. Put the sausage back in the pan. Add sliced peppers and onions and cook, stirring, until peppers are softened and onions are caramelized.

Season with salt and pepper and serve! Buon appetito!

Nonna's Fried Cauliflower

Buongiorno ! Today I will be serving a delicious savory cauliflower pancake. 

Il Contorno (side dishes)

As I mentioned in one of my previous posts, cauliflower is one of my favorite vegetables. When I taste cauliflower, no matter how it is prepared, the taste always bring back memories of my Nonna’s fried cauliflower.

Until recently, I was in charge of baking and my mom was the cook (an amazing one at that.) So, whenever I wanted fried cauliflower I would have to ask her to make it for me. I usually saved it for special occasions, like my birthday.

Preparing fried cauliflower is a decent amount of work, so I created this recipe that I can easily prepare for myself which gives me the taste of fried cauliflower. It is a fried cauliflower pancake. It is crisp and crunchy made with pieces of cauliflower. I make mine with ricotta cheese to keep it light.

Nothing will ever taste like my grandmas but this will do for now.

Cauliflower Pancakes

6 tablespoons of olive oil (divided)

½ head of cauliflower

2 eggs

¼ cup almond flour

½ ricotta cheese

Salt

Pepper

1 tsp. dried Italian seasoning

Chop you ½ head of cauliflower coarsely into small pieces. Heat a pan with 3 tablespoons of olive oil and put your cauliflower in the pan. Allow to cook slowly for around half an hour or until soft. Take off the heat and let cool.

In a large bowl, add 2 eggs and almond flour. Mix well. Add the ricotta cheese, salt, pepper and dried Italian seasoning. Add the cauliflower and stir together.

Use a deep pan since you will be frying. Prepare the pan with 3 tablespoons of olive oil and let it get hot. Take 2 tbsp’s of the mix and shape into round little pancakes and put in the oil. Allow each side to cook for around 4 minutes. I find that these cook quickly, so you do not want them to get overcooked. Take out of the pan and put it on a plate covered with a paper towel to drain the extra oil.

You can serve them as they are or with pesto or a balsamic reduction.

Enjoy these as a side dish to your main course or as wonderful little snack! Buon Appetito!

P.S. Let me know if you have a favorite food that evokes special childhood memories.  I would love to hear your stories!