Category Archives: Italian Recipes

Bucatini Matriciana

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Ingredients:
12 oz. Bucatini Noodles,
8 ounces of Pancetta,
1 medium onion,
1 red hot pepper,
5/6 ripe plum tomatoes.
4 onces Pecorino Romano cheese,
2 tablespoons of Antica Ex Vir olive oil,
pinch of salt (dash of red wine optional)
Cook the fettuccine until “al dente”. Meanwhile, melt the butter and garlic in a large sauce pan, and add the cream  slowly (make sure cream has been out of frigerator for about 10 minutes) then add wine, parmesan, salt and pepper to taste.  Stir over medium heat till cheese has melted and sauce has thickened. Add drained, cooked pasta to sauce, stir till coated.  Place on a large pasta platter and add fresh parsley, ground pepper, and grated Parmesan cheese.  Serves 4.

 

Eggplant Parmesan

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Ingredients:
1 large eggplant-sliced, 2 tbsp coarse salt, 2 jars tomato & basil sauce, 3 cups Antica extra virgin olive oil  -for frying, 12 oz, Bufala Mozzarella cheese (thinly sliced), 2 1/2 cups grated,Parmesan or Romano cheese, 1/2 tsp. oregano and rosemary, 1 large minced garlic clove.
Peal the eggplants and cut in 1/4 inch thick slices and sprinkle with coarse salt. Place in a colander and weight with a heavy dish. Leave for at least 1 hour for eggplant to drain. Pat dry with paper towels. Heat olive oil in a large sauté pan and fry eggplant till golden brown. Drain on paper towels.
Cover bottom of casserole dish with tomato sauce, layer eggplant, a layer of Mozzarella, grated cheese, a little bit garlic and spices. Repeat until you have several layers of each. Reserve a little tomato sauce and grated cheese for top.

 

 

Pasta e Fagioli (Pasta with Beans)

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Pasta e Fagioli (Pasta with Beans) 

Ingredients: 2 tablespoons ANTICA extra virgin olive oil; 1 large onion, diced; 1 can ANTICA cherry tomatoes; 1 can cannellini beans (white beans); 2 cups plain water, 1/2 cup  Pasta di Gragnano  (Ditali), 1 cup freshly grated parmesan, dried parsley, salt and pepper, 2 garlic cloves chopped, 1 tsp. dried basil, 1/2 tsp. dried oregano. 

Set a 3-quart soup kettle over medium heat and add the extra virgin olive oil. When the oil is hot but not smoking add the diced onion and let it sauté  for 3 minutes until translucent. Add the tomatoes and spices. Cook for 15 minutes until the tomatoes soften. Add the beans and the water, bring the soup to a gentle simmer and add the pasta, cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Season with salt and pepper to taste. At this point the pasta is “al dente,” sprinkle with grated Parmesan. Serve immediately.  Serves 4

 

Bruschetta with Tomato and Basil Recipe

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Bruschetta with Tomato and Basil Recipe 

Prep time: 15 minutes | Cook time: 10 minutes

Ingredients

  • 6 or 7 ripe plum tomatoes (about 1 1/2 lbs)
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
  • 6-8 fresh basil leaves, chopped.
  • Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
  • 1 baguette French bread or similar Italian bread
  • 1/4 cup olive oil

Method

1 Prepare the tomatoes first.  Parboil the tomatoes for one minute in boiling water that has just been removed from  the burner.  Drain.  Using a sharp small knife, remove the skins of the tomatoes.  (If the tomatoes are too hot, you can protect your finger tips by rubbing them with an ice cube between tomatoes.)  Once the tomatoes are peeled, cut them in halves or quarters and remove the seeds and juice from their centers.  Also cut out and discard the stem area. Why use plum tomatoes instead of regular tomatoes?  The skins are much thicker and there are fewer seeds and less juice.

2 Make sure there is a top rack in place in your oven.  Turn on the oven to 450°F to preheat.

3  While the oven is heating, chop up the tomatoes finely.  Put tomatoes, garlic, 1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil, vinegar in a bowl and mix.  Add the chopped basil.  Add salt and pepper to taste.

4 Slice the baguette on a diagonal about 1/2 inch thick slices.  Coat one side of each slice with olive oil using a pastry brush.  Place on a cooking sheet, olive oil side down.  You will want to toast them in the top rack in your oven, so you may need to do these in batches depending on the size of your oven.  Once the oven has reached 450°F, place a tray of bread slices in the oven on the top rack.  Toast for 5-6 minutes, until the bread just begins to turn golden brown.

Alternatively, you can toast the bread without coating it in olive oil first.  Toast on a griddle for 1 minute on each side.  Take a sharp knife and score each slice 3 times.  Rub some garlic in the slices and drizzle half a teaspoon of olive oil on each slice.  This is the more traditional method of making bruschetta.

5 Align the bread on a serving platter, olive oil side up.  Either place the tomato topping in a bowl separately with a spoon for people to serve themselves over the bread, or place some topping on each slice of bread and serve.  If you top each slice with the tomatoes, do it right before serving or the bread may get soggy.

Serves 6-10 as an appetizer.  Or 3-4 for lunch (delicious served with cottage cheese on the side.)

Yield: Makes 24 small slices.