Tag: fullest

What is bottarga and how to use it to enjoy it to the fullest – Italian Cuisine

The bottarga is an ancient product that is obtained from dried and seasoned fish eggs. Enriches the taste of many dishes, from the first to the second, of fish and not only

There are few ingredients that can give the dishes an intense flavor like the bottarga. Its origins are very ancient – we talk about one Preparation which is almost 3000 years old – and it was the Phoenicians who first carried this precious and delicious ingredient around the Mediterranean.

What is bottarga?

The translation of batārikh – the Arabic name of the bottarga – is literally "dried fish roe". This product is derived, in fact, from the drying and the subsequent salting of mullet eggs (the common mullet) or di tuna. To obtain it there is a need for a long and tiring process that starts with the extraction of fish eggs, their thorough cleaning and the subsequent one salting. The last step – after pressing and before marketing what is called "the Mediterranean caviar" – is the seasoning for at least 90 days, a period of time essential to give the bottarga the typical gold-amber color and the intense flavor that characterizes it.
Precisely because the process of making and maturing is very long and complicated, the bottarga has costs quite high. Depending on whether it is tuna bottarga or mullet (the most valuable and expensive) the price of a jar can vary from 50 to almost 300 euros.

Tuna bottarga and mullet roe

There are several types of bottarga. Tuna bottarga is the most common, with a color that goes from light pink to light brown. The taste is very intense.
The mullet roe is more fine, with a strong but more delicate compared to tuna, the consistency is compact and the color, a golden amber, must be uniform.

How to use bottarga in the kitchen

There are various uses of this prized ingredient in Italian cuisine. To taste it to full cut the piece of bottarga a thin slices and spread them on a toast of bread, seasoned with a thread of extra virgin olive oil. The most common way to use it (and even the simplest) is instead to grate it directly on the plates.

The bottarga is perfect for enriching appetizers of fish such as carpaccio and seafood salads, or in combination with a cheese like stracchino. The bottarga can also be grated on the oysters, then add the lemon juice. Moving on to the first courses, in addition to the famous ones spaghetti with bottarga and alle linguine with clams and baby squid, this product goes well with first courses of the sea – with cuttlefish black for example – and tasty second courses, always as an accompaniment to a main course with fish such as mullet, sea bream, sea bass and prawns, or a very tasty chicken with lemon to try absolutely.

Spaghetti with butter with lemon and bottarga

Returning to the first courses, there is another easy and quick recipe that has the bottarga as its protagonist. It's about a buttered pasta and lemon which is embellished with the bottarga. You will need:

300 g of spaghetti
80 g of bottarga
1 onion
2 lemons
60 g of butter, salt and black pepper

The preparation is very fast. In a pan, melt the butter slowly with the zest of a lemon. Then add the chopped onion and the juice of another lemon and cook everything very slowly. When the spaghetti is al dente put them in the pan and toss them. Season directly on the plate with bottarga and black pepper, the strong yet delicate flavor of this first course will win you over.

the foods to live it to the fullest – Italian Cuisine

The first sun, milder temperatures, the change of season begins to peep out.
From winter we move quickly to the spring, the season of the awakening of the body and the senses, of the physical and emotional rebirth, yet many times it is not so.
Our body is put to the test by changes; first of all the temperatures, and here it is easy to get sick or feel tired.

As he explains Valentina Bolli, dietitian “Il transition from one season to another it is often traumatic for our body. The most common problems are respiratory disorders, like colds and sore throat, lack of power is gastrointestinal disorders, such as tummy aches, colitis, poor digestion, reflux. That's why nutrition is very important. Every meal should be balanced, should be avoided long cooking and the high concentrations of fat; these are the first rules for feeling good. "

The right foods can make the right amount of power, promote the well-being of theintestine (because right here is the good bacterial flora, or our immune defenses) and help the digestion. Let's find out what they are.

Pasta and rice

The richest foods of carbohydrates, like pasta and even better rice, are a source of power immediately expendable for the body and easily digestible. Dr. Bolli explains "Pasta and rice moreover, they contain tryptophan, an amino acid that has a fundamental role for the well-being of the brain and the good mood, which sometimes are compromised by the change of season. In the form of salad, combined with protein and vegetables, they are a perfect single dish ”.

Blue fish

The blue fish is full of Omega 3, the good fats that have an anti-inflammatory action, useful in case of and support to ours immunitary defense. "I mass, an acronym for cod, anchovies, salmon, sardines and herring, are the fish that have the best amount of omega-3 and for this they should be preferred to other fish."

Almonds, walnuts and hazelnuts

Warns stamps "Even dried fruit is a great source of good fats. It also contains magnesium and it's excellent energy source. The right dose is 10 to 20 mg a day".
It can be eaten as a mid-morning / mid-afternoon snack, to embellish salads or to prepare sauces with which to flavor delicious first courses.

Asparagus

Among the seasonal vegetables appear the asparagus, rich of phosphorus, that prevents mood disorders and contributes to energy production. "They contain other useful substances such as thiamine, which helps transform sugars into energy e riboflavin, that promotes the health of the mucous membranes, including the respiratory ones ”.

Chicory

In the spring also chicory stands out, detoxifying and useful forintestine.
As the doctor deepens "Chicory is precious for the high content of insoluble fibers, or the substances that represent the food of ours good bacteria, that help us not to get sick ".
Pan-fried in a savory pie, in the form of puree; there can be many ideas for using it in the kitchen.

Artichokes

Even the artichoke is one of the richest vegetables in fiber and for this reason it can be considered detoxifying and depurativo. "It is absolutely one of the vegetables with the most high amount of insoluble fiber, and also contains a significant amount of football".

strawberries

Among the fruit, strawberries can be consumed without guilt. "They very few calories, but they represent a good source of hydration, which with the first warm is essential to feel fit ”.
Just avoid wrong associations, like the one with the cream, which although greedy, is the enemy of the line and of our health.

Elisa Nata
April 2018
updated to March 2019

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Children at the table: 8 good habits to start the year to the fullest – Italian Cuisine

The year has begun and each of us has certainly focused on his good intentions for the months to come. The real difficulty? Keep them!

Yes, because, especially when it comes to children, habits change so quickly that it makes it really difficult for a mother or father to adapt to the situation. If then they concern the welfare and behavior of children at the table even more. We have collected 8 tips for you to try and establish one positive routine for the whole family.

Create a weekly menu

The real problem of the routine of work and family is to find time to dedicate itself to the table and so often we find ourselves at the last to put on fire the usual pot of water for a quick pasta. Creating a weekly menu and consequently stocking fruit and vegetables, and buying only what we really need for meals, already organized, of the week, saves money and avoids waste and jitters.

Let's meet

If you know that the menu for the next meal does not exactly contain your child's favorite dishes, do not be discouraged or forget about it. Come to terms with children, especially if they are older and therefore able to understand your proposal. For example? Offer in the same lunch a dish that they love very much, like Mickey Mouse Croccomagie of Pizzoli, combining them with ingredients that they appreciate less.

Do the shopping together with mom or dad

Do you think you have a baby in the supermarket that looks like a nightmare? Not even if this moment of sharing becomes an important habit to make the child understand the value of food and in general of the purchase. Involving children in spending is useful to choose together, of course with the guide of the adult, which products will be consumed during the week and encourage children to eat in a more varied and balanced.

A full of vitamins

Speaking of spending, do you know what the seasonal ingredients are? Always ask to buy fresh products, rich in vitamins, colorful and tasty (and even cheaper). For example, in the first months of the year, give priority to citrus fruit, for great sweet desserts, ideal for breakfast. And for a snack? Try the funny juices Santàl with Mickey and his friends, 100% of natural origin, with apricot, pear and peach flavors.

Go ahead to the imagination!

A simple greenish vegetable soup turns into a dinosaur soup, carrots and zucchini become nose and eyes of a hamburger, and so on. There are many ways to make children happy in the kitchen and ensure that they accept to eat even what they do not usually appreciate. Choosing products suitable for them then is essential, like the ravioli Squirrel-fresh pasta studied by the Marco Bianchi Foodmentor to taste Zucca & Carote or Pomodoro & Mozzarella in the version with Disney Frozen or with Spider-Man. To bring the magic to the table you can also try the fun pasta From the Costa, which incorporates Mickey Mouse, the Disney and Cars Princesses.

Cook together

To each his role: the little ones can set and clear the table, the biggest ones cut vegetables or other ingredients, mum and dad are the chefs. Turning the kitchen into a game it also makes meals easier and lightens the loads of effort of the whole family.

Short but intense lunches

It is useless to pretend that children stay at table for a long time and, often, parents' requests turn into whims and moments of crisis. Better to have short, well-organized lunches and dinners, both on weekdays in the family and on weekends with friends and relatives. Let the children behave as such: it is right that the time of lunch is respected and shared, without however requiring an effort that goes against their nature.

Television at the table goes out

It should be a fixed rule, but it is not always possible to respect, for the weariness of all the members of the family and for the whims of the little ones: television at the table does not look. Focusing on a cartoon will not allow the child to share the meal time with parents and siblings, or even to understand and savor what's on his plate. Rather, treat yourself to a sham rule every now and then. For example? A pizza in front of a film on Sunday evening to regenerate all together before the start of the week.