Tag: hands

Allan Bay and the praise of eating with your hands: interview – Italian cuisine reinvented by Gordon Ramsay

Food journalist, historian, writer, Allan Bay he has just put down on paper in a book what many (if not all) think, but which we often don’t have the courage to say. At least not in public (so, let alone doing!). She remembered that eat with your hands it is one of the great pleasures of life, and how and why we should do it whenever we can, except for rare exceptions that make it impossible to use the thumb and forefinger to touch food, smell it and bring it to the mouth.

Is titled Praise of eating with your hands (The Assayer): clear from the title, it is a cultured and entertaining historical and anthropological journey that clears this very satisfying gesture that over the centuries social conventions have made appear “exotic”. Indeed – let’s say it – in certain circumstances a little rude.

As you will discover by reading it, until recently, forks didn’t even exist: they arrived on the tables of the European bourgeoisie only in the 19th century, after being invented in China. Then etiquette began to dictate the rules, limiting them to one There is a very narrow circle of foods that can be eaten without cutlery. This too is an entirely Western affair, considering that there is half the world – with many Asian and African countries leading the way – that often willingly do without cutlery. Allan Bay also tells this story and, to move from theory to practice, he gradually suggests tasty dishes recipes from «conlemanisti. Or rather, as he explains in this interview, “indications”, which certainly make reading his first “personal” book even more pleasant.

Interview with Allan Bay

Why is it a “personal” book?
«It concerns a passion of mine that few of my friends, the real ones, know about: eating with your hands, in fact. I have written many books, especially recipe books, which as such had a basic objectivity. This book is different precisely because it talks about me.”

What makes eating with your hands so enjoyable?
«As children we discover the world – and therefore also food – first of all through touch and smell, and this physical contact with what we eat remains the greatest enjoyment. But over time we tend to deprive ourselves of it because as we grow up we are taught that we have to use cutlery: we lock ourselves into patterns. The purpose of the book is to get out of these patterns and clear, when possible, this great pleasure of eating with your hands.”

How many would like to do it but don’t have the courage to do it or even just say it?
“I do not know. However, I know for a fact that several of my friends love to eat with their hands and that many use cutlery even in cases where there is no need. I think, for example, of those who eat pizza with a fork and knife and of the astonished looks of the pizza chefs while they do so. And then in Naples even spaghetti was once eaten with the hands: remember Totò?

Coronavirus, how to wash your hands to prevent infection – Italian Cuisine

Washing your hands is essential to prevent the new coronavirus, a respiratory disease that can also be transmitted by touching the mouth, nose or eyes with contaminated hands. Here are the rules to follow to stay away from the infection

Washing your hands is one of the fundamental rules dictated by the Ministry of Health to prevent the new coronavirus COVID-19. Like other respiratory diseases, new coronavirus infection can cause mild symptoms such as cold, sore throat, cough and fever, or more severe symptoms such as pneumonia and breathing difficulties. It can rarely be fatal. The people most likely to experience severe forms are the elderly and those with existing diseases, such as diabetes and heart disease. Washing your hands often throughout the day is able to prevent infection in case of contact with any viruses present in the environment. The new coronavirus is in fact a respiratory virus that spreads even by touching the mouth, nose or eyes with contaminated (not yet washed) hands. But how do you wash your hands to avoid getting sick? Here are some basic rules to follow to prevent Coronavirus.

What to use: soap or sanitizers

For hand hygiene according to the indications of the Ministry of Health, ordinary soap is sufficient. In the absence of water, alcohol-based hand sanitizers can be used. However, these products should be used when the hands are dry, otherwise they are not effective. If used frequently they can cause dry skin. There are medical-surgical and biocidal products authorized on the market with bactericidal action, but care must be taken not to abuse them. Prolonged use could encourage the development of resistance in bacteria against these products, increasing the risk of infections.

How long to spend on proper hand hygiene

To wash your hands correctly if you use soap and water, the washing should not last less than 40-60 seconds. If instead of using alcohol-based sanitizers, the operation must last no less than 30-40 seconds.

When to wash your hands

For proper hand hygiene it is important to wash them often throughout the day. But there are times when doing so is critical to preventing contagion. For example, before eating. Even before handling or consuming especially raw foods, especially meat, fish, poultry eggs it is important to do so. Coronavirus is transmitted through the respiratory tract, including the nose and mouth. Hands should then be washed before applying or removing contact lenses, before and after using the bathroom, after throwing out the trash or taking means of transport. To prevent infection, hand washing is a fundamental operation after coughing, sneezing or blowing your nose. Even after touching animals it is important to wash your hands as well as before or after changing a diaper and in many other situations of everyday life.

How to wash your hands with soap and water

According to the indications of the Ministry of Health, you must first wet your hands with water and apply enough soap to cover the entire surface of the hands. Then rub your hands palm against palm. For correct hygiene, place your right palm over your left back, interlacing your fingers together and vice versa. Then rub the back of the fingers against the opposite palm keeping the fingers tight between them. Rub your hands palm against palm back and forth by interlacing the fingers of the right hand crossed with those of the left. Then rub your right thumb keeping it tight in the palm of your left hand and vice versa. Rub by turning the fingers of the right hand back and forth, held together in the palm of the left hand and vice versa. Then rub the wrist by rotating the fingers of the right hand back and forth between them on the left wrist and repeat for the right wrist. Rinse your hands thoroughly with water. Dry your hands thoroughly with a disposable towel. And finally use the disposable towel to close the tap.

How to wash your hands with alcohol solution

To wash your hands, pour enough solution into your palm to cover the entire surface of your hands. Rub your hands palm against palm, then the left palm over the right back intertwining the fingers between them and vice versa. And still rub well palm against palm and the backs of the hands with your fingers. Rub your right thumb keeping it tight in the palm of your left hand and vice versa. Rub by turning the fingers of the right hand back and forth, held together in the palm of the left hand and vice versa. Then rub the wrist by twisting the fingers of the right hand back and forth between them on the left wrist and repeat for the right wrist.

The spisigona cake, the sweet from Piacenza to be broken with the hands – Italian Cuisine

It resembles Sbrisolona in appearance and consistency, but has different ingredients and preparation. Excellent at the end of a meal, the spisigona cake is also perfect for morning's development. And then get ready in an instant!

There spisigona cake it is a dessert of the rural tradition of the province of Piacenza, and its name derives from the dialectal voice "Spisigar" what does it mean nibble. And this is exactly how this cake is prepared, squeezing the dough into small tufts, which give the cake an irregular but very inviting appearance. The way in which it is eaten is also unusual: its consistency requires breaking the spisigona cake With the hands, mouthful after mouthful.

Spisigona or sbrisolona?

The texture of these two cakes it is very similar, hard and brittle at the same time, both have poor origins and are free of any filling. There crumble Cake however, in addition to flour, eggs and butter, it is also prepared with almonds, which give it a more intense flavor. Once, as well as with almonds, the dough was also enriched with chopped hazelnuts, easier to find.

spisigona cake

Spisigona cake recipe

Ingredients: 500 g of 00 flour, 250 g of butter, 250 g of sugar, 5 eggs, a pinch of salt.

Method: leave the butter at room temperature to soften, then knead it in a bowl with the sugar and flour. Add a pinch of salt and then the egg yolks, one at a time, so that the mixture becomes homogeneous. Continue to work until you have obtained an elastic and soft dough, then cover it with a film and leave it in the fridge to rest for at least 30 minutes. Once removed from the fridge, knead for a few more minutes, then grease a baking pan of 24 cm in diameter, flour it and begin to chop the dough with your hands, then put the cake back together in the pan. When finished, bake at 170 degrees for about 45 minutes. Once removed from the oven, wait for it to cool before chopping it and serving it to your guests.

Gordon Ramsay Recipes