Blog of Italian recipes, in many cases contaminated by a Sabadell native eager to give them a touch of her own. Here you can also find recommendations of places in Rome and surroundings where to eat or buy good products, without having to fight with tourists affected by a serious sunstroke, after having kicked the Forum + Palatino without a cap in the middle of August.

Recipe for Anchovy, Tomato, and Ricotta Mille-Feuille | Easy and Quick Starter

 19 October 2023
  Category: Main courses, Recipes
  Tags: ~ ~ ~ ~

Mille-feuille filled with anchovy, tomato, and ricotta: This simple and quick recipe turns out to be very appealing, ideal as a starter or, in small portions, perfect for an appetizer. About the Ingredients: As I highlight in the video, one of the key ingredients of this dish is the pane Carasau. Originating from Sardinia, this bread is characterized by being extremely thin, almost like a sheet of paper, and very crispy. It is used as traditional bread, however, it offers the possibility to create quite interesting recipes. An example is the type of mille-feuille that I present to you today, which in reality you can fill with any combination of ingredients, canapé style. You just need some kind of spreadable cheese or cream to maintain the layered structure. Ingredient Substitution: Since pane Carasau can be hard to find outside Italy, unless you reside in a city with Italian shops, I opted to use crackers. The result is equally or even more delicious than with Carasau. Any type of thin and crispy bread will do. Presentation Tip: Attention! This recipe should be plated almost at the moment of serving it. Otherwise, the filling could moisten the bread too much, causing it to lose its crispy texture. Enjoy your meal!   An easy and quick recipe for mille-feuille filled with anchovy, tomato, and ricotta, perfect as a starter or appetizer.

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Seafood spaghetti (Spaghetti alla marinara or allo scoglio): A feast for fish lovers.

 3 September 2023
  Category: Main courses, Recipes
  Tags: ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Pasta a la marinera, in this case, spaghetti. A simple recipe, but with more steps to follow than the ones I usually post. However, I assure you that taking a little longer to execute it has its reward: It is one of the queen pastas, a festival for fish lovers, in short, I am already salivating remembering how delicious it always turns out. First of all, the name of the recipe. In Italy there are three fish pasta recipes with more or less the same ingredients, but different names: Allo scoglio, alla pescatora, la marinara. It is a bit of a mess, because it is as if there is no consensus around which is which, what fish can/must each one carry, but what is clear is that, if it is allo scoglio, it must necessarily contain clams and mussels. So, in Italian I am very clear that I am talking about pasta allo scoglio, but in Spanish, to simplify and not confuse you, I have put a la marinera, so that it is better understood what it is about. The type of pasta with which it is prepared is spaghetti or linguine, but in some areas they use paccheri. In our favorite restaurant in the neighborhood where we lived in Rome, “Mamma Angelina”, they prepare it precisely with Paccheri and every time I return to Rome, on the way I already dream of a whole plate, because they prepare it wonderfully. As I have already told you, it is not a difficult recipe, it only involves following quite a few steps and, being very clear at all times that we do not want to mistreat the fish, that we must control the cooking time of each element so as not to end up with dry prawns or rubbery clams. Some simplify the recipe a bit, perhaps they are not so demanding with what they expect from the fish or, like some people I know and love, but I find it hard to understand, they are lovers of dry fish. What can we do, but if you like everything at its point, follow my advice. Enjoy your meal!       Pasta a la marinera. An easy recipe, but with more steps to follow, than the ones I usually post. It is one of the most popular pastas, a festival for fish lovers.        

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Swordfish Sicilian style (pesce spada alla siciliana)

 24 July 2020
  Category: Recipes, Second courses
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  Today we have Sicilian swordfish. This one, literally, is prepared almost without realizing it, and even the most clumsy in the kitchen can execute it perfectly, without making the least effort. Who doesn’t dare? I had never eaten swordfish until I lived in Italy. Although nowadays it is not difficult to find it even in supermarkets, let’s say it is not one of the most popular fishes in the Iberian Peninsula, or at least in Barcelona and surroundings.     On the other hand, in Italy and especially in the south, it is very common. When I went to Sicily, I visited quite a few markets and the abundance of swordfish caught my attention. In some places you could see directly how they cut the whole bug to pieces, it was quite impressive, because they have big heads and huge eyes, as you can see in this picture we took in the Isle of Ortigia, Syracuse.     The truth is that it’s delicious. If you have never tasted it, I recommend you try the recipe I propose, typical of Sicily. Normally it is prepared with cherry tomatoes, but as I didn’t have any and I had some San Marzano tomatoes left over from another recipe, I took advantage of it and it is just as good. Buon appetito!   It's prepared, literally, almost without realizing it, and it's delicious. If you have never tasted it, I advise you to do so with the recipe I propose.

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Roman style artichokes (carciofi alla romana)

 9 June 2020
  Category: Appetizers, Recipes
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In the traditional Roman cuisine the artichoke is on the podium of the most used vegetables, especially the mammola or carciofo romanesco variety. They are huge, with tender leaves and you can take advantage of more flowers than those we have around here. It is almost impossible to eat in Rome, especially in the Ghetto, and not to try artichokes Roman style or Jewish style, as a starter or a side dish.   Both are an obsession for me. The first thing I eat when I return to Rome in artichoke season is the one I dream about on my way there. Here in the photo I was at the Mercato centrale, which has a little stall where they only cook vegetables and has become the place to quickly and immediately satisfy the craving even if it’s ten o’clock in the morning: one of each!     Soon I will also show you how they prepare the Jewish style ones, completely fried, but as today we wanted something lighter, we started with the Roman style. Ah, for reasons that are not relevant, it was impossible for me to find fresh mint and I used a pot one. Obviously, it’ s better to use fresh one. If someone does not like mint, no problem, because there are also those who prepare the dish without it. Buon appetito!         They are very low in calories, healthy, quick to prepare, and I can serve them if I have vegan guests. What more could you ask for?  

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Fava beans, peas and artichokes (Vignarola alla romana)

 31 May 2020
  Category: Main courses, Recipes
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  The Vignarola, one of the most famous Roman spring recipes, as this is the time of year when you can find fava beans, artichokes and fresh peas. A delight for the lovers of these vegetables, suitable, once again, for vegans.     An almost obligatory element, which I have not included in the recipe, is the romaine lettuce. Because of unrelated stories, it has been impossible for me to find any lettuce, but since I didn’t want to spoil the rest of the fresh ingredients, I have made it this way. Anyway, if you want to add it, take half a romaine lettuce, cut it into strips and add it at the last minute, with the parsley and mint, which is cooked with the residual heat, or almost reduced to nothing.     There is a more powerful variant of Vignarola, which includes guanciale in the recipe. The truth is that it is very tasty and is the favourite of those who need to disguise their vegetables a little. If you want to try it, follow the same instructions I give you, but fry 50 g of guanciale cut into strips in the pan, before adding the onion.     Many accompany it with toast and it is delicious with pasta. Simply stir-fry the pasta with the Vignarola, together with a ladle of pasta cooking water and finish it off with a little grated pecorino. Buon appetito!   The Vignarola, one of the most traditional Roman recipes. Fava beans, artichokes and fresh peas. A healthy and vegan-friendly treat.  

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