Hearty Italian -- a naturally healthy cuisine (4)

Typical fettuccini al funghi
infused with organic essence

During the 9-day trip in Italy,
what actually impressed teacher Sophia the most
was a very authentic Fettuccine al funghi.

It was at a traditional Italian deli
where the delicious dish was served.

When it was first dished out,
from far it looked 'worse than a typical Singaporean Mee-poh'
topped with just a few pieces of brown mushroom.
But the texture and flavour were completely mesmerizing!

So, we spent the whole evening analysing and reverse-engineering
the ingredients behind;
and in the end,
we knew it were simply,
the quality olive oil, al dente fettuccine, common aromatic herbs
plus
gratitude
that gave the delizioso experience!!

Here is the recipe for Fettuccine al funghi
that I cooked for my good friends back in Singapore:

Ingedients:

Fettuccini .......................................... 2 servings
Olive oil, with basil infusion ............ 4 tbs
Brown mushroom, sliced .................. 4 pcs
Italian herb mix ................................. 1/2 tbs
Sea salt ............................................. 1/2 tsp
Asparagus ......................................... 4 stalks


Methods:

~ cook brown mushrooms in hot boiling water for 2min, drain away excessive water in a bowl, sprinkle with 1/4 tsp sea salt and 1/4 tbs Italian herb mix, mix with 1 tbs of olive oil to marinate for 30min

~ cook aspargus (whole stalk) in boiling water until soft

~ cook fettuccine until al dente, drain away water, sprinkle 1/4 tsp sea salt and 1/4tbs Italian herb mix, add in 3tbs of olive oil and mix.

~ serve fettuccine on dish, top with marinated mushroom and garnish with asparagus.



The recipe couldn't be simplier,
but in order to make it delizioso,
high attention is needed on the freshness and quality of the ingredients
-- organic ingredient will make a difference!


Hope you enjoy the Italain series so far :)


Happy experimenting,
Kee Yew
pureland2012-at-gmail.com





{Learning Holistic Wellness for Wisdom and Compassion}

Hearty Italian -- a naturally healthy cuisine (3)



Bruschetta
in its most simplistic form

 Another hearty Italian delicacy that I love is
pizza.

Not for the cheese, not for the crust, not even for the toppings..
-- these are all un-authentic images protrayed by fast food restaurants..

What I love about it is
the healthfulness of traditional Italian pizza.

Apparently, pizza was originally "developed" as a poor people's food,
where Italian in the old days just spread thin layer of tomato paste
and sprinkle a bit of olive oil on top of a thin layer of grilled bread
to serve as a simple meal.

I happened to taste this very original pizza at another small cafe in Roma,
where they simply serve thin crust pizza with only 3 ingredients:
tomato paste, olive oil and rosemary flakes.

Despite the simplicity, it's the best pizza I ever eve had.
Grateful!

Back in Singapore,
I had limitation of accessing to an oven,
also, I have a quirk not to work on anything with flour
(ask me personally!.. kekeke..)

So I decided to transform this nice
pizza idea into Bruschetta!!
-- because the bread can be readily bought from bakery :P :P


Bruschetta Semplice (Simple Bruschetta)


.o. Italian loaf ...................... ........................ 10 slices (grilled, optional)
.o. tomato, red ripen ..................................... 10
.o. sundried tomato .............. ........................ 3 slices
.o. balsamic vinegar ....................................... 1 tablespoon
.o. extra virgin olive oil ................................... 50mL
.o. rosemary flakes, dried .............................. a few teaspoon
.o. salt ........................................................... to taste




- put tomatos into vigourously boiling hot water and boil for 1 min. Take out the tomatos and cool for a few minutes, then peel off the skin. Cut peeled tomato into wedges and remove the seeds. (the seeds and peels can be used in Zuppa di Verdure)


- blend the peeled, seeded tomatos and sundried tomatos in a blender, and cook in a pot under medium/low fire, until the sauce thickens into a tomato paste. Stir in balsamic vinegar, 1-2 teaspoon of rosemary flakes and some salt to taste.


- spread 1 tablespoon of olive oil on the bread, followed by 1 tablespoon of tomato paste. Sprinkle some rosemary flakes and serve immediately.


Yummy :D
Kee Yew
pureland2012-at-gmail.com




{Learning Holistic Wellness for Wisdom and Compassion}

Hearty Italian -- a naturally healthy cuisine (2)



Italian cuisine that is enjoyed by
the natural essence of fresh veggies

When I was in Italy
with my teacher, Sophia, earlier this year,
I noticed that the food in Italy was actually very humble
-- whether to dine in a small deli or high class restaurant.

Many of the food that we tasted in Italian eateries
were cooked from very local produce and
seasoned with large amount of
tomato, balsamic vinegar, Italian spices and olive oil.

While some people may call it "boring",
I perceive that as pure food tasting,
because Italian doesn't need a lot of stimulating elements in their cooking
and they get contented just with the natural essence of fresh veggies and fruits.

One of the dishes I had in Italy that impressed me was
not anything fanciful or exotic,
but world reknown Italian minestrone soup / vegetable soup.

At this small little cafe at Venice airport,
I was surprised that how they cooked the soup
with so many nutritious ingredients.
Amazingly also, by the Yin-Yang analysis of the food, it's very balanced!

At such a small cafe, the Italian cooked with sincerity and wisdom.
That's what that touched me.

Looking at the recipe below,
you will understand how balanced and nutritious the soup is.
Basically it's a complete meal
(I just had it for lunch, thanks to my Thermos thermal cooker :P).


Zuppa di verdura  (vegetable soup)


Ingredients:


Part 1: Seeds* (Yang)
.o. whole wheat
.o. big barley (coarse variety)
.o. kidney bean
.o. lentil
.o. mung bean
.o. chickpea
.o. black eye bean


-- 1 heapful tablespoon for all of the above
* do soak for 8 hrs, better if sprout for 24hr, before cooking for higher energy and removal of acidity.




Part 2: Vegetables (Yin)
.o. Carrot, diced ................................. 1 root
.o. Brocolli, diced ............................... 1 handful
.o. Cabbage, shredded ....................... 4 pieces
.o. Potato, diced ................................ 1 small
.o. Tomato, diced ............................... 7 ripen ones
.o. Celery,diced .................................. 1 stalk


Part 3: Spice/Seasoning
.o. Oregano, dried .............................. 2 tbs
.o. Rock salt ....................................... to taste
.o. Balsamic vinegar ............................ 4 tbs / or to make soup taste tangy enough
.o. Extra virgin olive oil (optional) .........3 tbs


Methods:

-- Put in 3 bowls of water to cook all the ingredients (except olive oil) until soft (on medium fire) before adding in more water gradually to top up to 5-7 bowls (depending on how thick the soup you would like it to be). Cook for another 15min. Stir in olive oil just before serving to minimise damage to good oil.



Well regards,
Kee Yew
pureland2012-at-gmail.com



{Learning Holistic Wellness for Wisdom and Compassion}

Hearty Italian -- a naturally healthy cuisine (1)



Humble Italian style salad
made organic vegan

Just about a week ago,
I cooked for a a few good friends
an organic vegan Italian meal.

As it was the second time
I prepared a full course Italian cuisine
in my entire life
(the first time was 8 years ago!),
I didn't know what the outcome would be :P

So, when I invited my friends,
I kept making disclaimer that it was a pure experiment!!

In the end,
with great help from my good friend, Siaw Wei
(who also kindly provided a cozy venue for the precious gathering),
and some local condiment brought back from Italy,
I managed to replicate a few authentic Italian dishes.

I had to say I was very pleased =)
-- because, not only the presentation,
the taste was also very close to that I had Italy! :D

One of my favourite dishes,
is the Italian salad.

Tho' very common (probably can find hundreds of entries on google!)
I would like to share the recipe,
for it may be helpful when one suddenly runs of out idea ;)
-- also because it's so simple and tasty!



Insalata da Roma (Roman Salad)
[a pleasant delight on the day I touched down in Rome hence the name]


Salad mix (pre-washed) ................................... 1 plate
Orange ............................................................ 1 slice
Cherry tomato (round)  .................................... 2
Firm tofu (diced) .............................................. 3 cubes
Balsamic Vinegar  ............................................ 1 tablespoon
Extra virgin olive oil .......................................... 1 tablespoon
Balsamic Glaze*................................................ 1 squirt

Mix everything but serve beautifully :P



Buon apetito!
Kee Yew


* here is a generic sample of Balsamic Glaze sold online :P
-- it's traditional Italian sauce made from grape must, and balsamic vinegar :)
`` just an example, I didn't use this particular brand, mine was brought back from Rome :P


{Learning Holistic Wellness for Wisdom and Compassion}