Tag: Kitchen

Does the burrata make you fat? – The Italian kitchen – Italian Cuisine

How many calories does it contain? Can it be consumed on a diet? A nutritionist explains how to consume her at the table without risking taking extra pounds

Soft and tasty, the burrata It is a fresh cheese with a soft texture that easily combines with the table. Similar to mozzarella, it is a practical and quick second course. Moreover, in the kitchen it is a very versatile ingredient capable of giving an extra touch to appetizers, first courses, salads and other dishes. But can the burrata be eaten even if you have a few extra pounds or do you get fat? Let's find out with the help of the doctor Laura Ferrero, surgeon specializing in nutrition science.

What it contains

«From the nutritional point of view, the burrata provides proteins of high biological value, that is easily assimilable by the organism. In addition, it provides calcium, useful for bone health; phosphorus, excellent for brain functioning; and retinol (vitamin A), a friend of the skin. The burrata, however, is highly energetic: in 100 grams it can contain up to 450 calories, of which 60% is made up of saturated lipids that make it unsuitable for those with problems in the line or high cholesterol. That said, no food, however caloric, makes you fat if consumed in moderation and occasionally. The important thing is to maintain a healthy and balanced overall diet, "explains Dr. Laura Ferrero.

When to eat it

«The time of the ideal day to consume the burrata is lunch: in this way you still have half the day to dispose of its high caloric intake, being careful not to combine it in the same meal with salami. To complete the nutritional framework with fibers and carbohydrates, the ideal is to combine it with salads, salads, bruschettas, fresh tomatoes or pasta . Attention then to the quantities. "Because of its high caloric content, it would be preferable to occasionally consume a portion between 50 and 100 grams".

How to choose quality

«The burrata is a very fresh dairy product, difficult to preserve. The ideal would be to consume it artisanal and in places close to those of production to avoid degrading it in transport. In some cases it is still preserved in asphodel leaves, as per tradition, that if they are green they become synonymous with freshness of the product. Conservation is the aspect to pay more attention to when buying. The ideal is to keep it between the 4th and 6th degrees and consume it, if possible, all at once and in any case no more than 48 hours after opening, otherwise it risks becoming acidic. The use of preservatives must be avoided on the label. A quality burrata, if cut, pours stracciatella into the dish and keeps the heart soft .

Who must avoid it

"The burrata contains rather significant amounts of lactose, so those who are intolerant to this sugar can not consume it. Even those who have problems digesting milk should be careful because they have a long and quite difficult digestion .

Superfood in the kitchen: all the properties of the Renetta apple – Italian Cuisine

Rich in polyphenols, Melinda's Renetta apple is perfect in the kitchen, both in sweet and savory recipes. Not surprisingly, it is the apple most loved by connoisseurs!

Unmistakable in its shape and flavor, the Renetta apple puts everyone in agreement: cooks, doctors and gourmets. In the kitchen it lends itself perfectly to both sweet and savory recipes. Acidulated and with a soft pulp from raw, it maintains an excellent consistency from cooked, giving off sweetness.
But there's more: with its very high concentration of polyphenols, it is considered a real superfood. In 100 grams of Renetta apple there are as many as 212 mg of polyphenols, almost twice that of Granny Smith apples for example. And with the other fruits? There is no race! The same weight of kiwi contains only 54, 38 papaya and 31 banana.

Mela Renetta, Melinda's superfood

What are polyphenols for?

Cells, as we know, grow old. A process that we can not interrupt but that we can slow down. Such as? With anti-oxidants, for example. The best ones are natural ones and they are taken in vegetables and fruit. And in this field, nobody beats the Renetta apple! The test of the nine? By cutting one of these apples you will notice that its pulp blackens faster than other apples. This happens precisely because of the concentration of polyphenols which speed up the oxidation process.
And if it is true that an apple a day keeps the doctor away, two Renetta apples a day guarantee the right daily intake of anti-oxidants, equal to 1 gram. Such as? Here are some ideas to bring them to the table, both in the sweet version and in the savory version, for a complete menu.

Two recipes for a sweet … superfood!

Apple tart with hazelnut crumble

Ingredients

800 g 3 Renetta apples, 350 g flour, 200 g butter plus a little, 120 g granulated sugar, 115 g peeled toasted hazelnuts, 15 g dried biscuits, 3 egg yolks, lemon peel, brown sugar, salt

Method

Knead the flour with the softened butter and a pinch of salt. Chop the hazelnuts in very fine flour and add 100 g to the mixture. Then add the granulated sugar and the egg yolks and knead to obtain a smooth dough. Let it rest covered in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour (short pastry). Roll out the pastry, keeping aside a quarter; roll it with a rolling pin about 5 mm thick and line the bottom and the edge of a buttered hinge mold (Ø 26 cm). Trim the edge about 1 cm below the edge. Peel and cores the apples, cut into small pieces and collect them in a bowl; scent with a little grated lemon peel and mix with 2 tablespoons of brown sugar. Sprinkle the bottom of the cake with the remaining hazelnuts, mixed with the crumbled biscuits. Then fill with the apples and cover the surface with the pastry aside, crumbled or grated with a grater with large holes (crumble). Bake the tart at 180 ° C for about 30 'in the static oven, then for another 15' in a convection oven. Remove the tart and leave it to cool, before draining it. For a super refreshing and delicious snack, serve it with hot chocolate and whipped cream.

Puff pastry with poppy seeds

Ingredients

150 g flour, 50 g butter plus a little, 30 g raisins, 30 g walnut kernels, 2 eggs, 1 apple Renetta Melinda, cinnamon powder, poppy seeds, bread crumbs, brown sugar, salt.

Method

Mix the flour with an egg, the very soft butter, a pinch of salt and about 15 g of water, obtaining a mixture. Work it on the work surface until it becomes homogeneous and elastic. Then let it rest covered with a hot pot for about 40 minutes. Cut the apple into cubes, without peeling, removing the core. Mix it with 2 tablespoons of brown sugar and 2 of breadcrumbs, the raisins and the chopped walnut kernels, obtaining the filling of the strudel. Roll out the very thin dough and cut it into a rectangle (30 × 40 cm). Brush it with soft butter and sprinkle with a little 'cinnamon and poppy seeds. Finally, arrange the filling by forming a small leaf on the short side of the rectangle. Roll the dough around the filling and then on itself, doing 3 rounds, in order to obtain the "peeled" effect. Place the roll on a plate covered with baking paper. Brush it with a beaten egg and sprinkle with brown sugar and other poppy seeds. Bake at 160 ° C for 40 minutes.

Origins: the Val di Non PDO

La Renetta is one of the three DOP varieties of Melinda. It grows in Val di Non and Val di Sole, in Trentino, where it finds perfect weather conditions. Thanks to two thousand hours of sunshine a year, the apples that grow in this area have truly unique characteristics, both from an aesthetic point of view and from an organoleptic point of view. La Renetta is a superfood that has no equal to indulge in the kitchen!

How to reduce salt in the kitchen – Italian Cuisine

The tips of our chefs to reduce the use of salt in the kitchen and ways to add flavor to your recipes

Reducing salt in the kitchen is the nightmare of those suffering from hypertension you hate cellulite. In fact, overuse can lead to health risks, which is why it is sometimes useful flavor dishes in alternative ways.
With the advice of The School of Italian Cuisine this venture will become simpler and more creative.

The spices and herbs aromatic, or ingredients such asgarlic and the onion, they certainly help us to decrease or even eliminate salt, adding flavor, but it is not the only way.

To keep intact or intensify the natural flavor of some ingredients, you need to follow the tricks also about the cooking methods used.

Cooking without salt: cooking to avoid

The cooking to be avoided for a low salt diet is definitely the boiling or the sbianchitura. Boiling foods in fact involves the dispersion of many nutrients and minerals, making it inevitable to add more salt in the cooking liquid.

The ideal cooking for a kitchen with little salt

The cooking methods to be used to reduce the salt are steamed (in a pressure cooker or in a bamboo basket) and roasted.

In general, the steaming keeps the properties of the raw material intact. The humidity that develops during steam cooking allows the chosen ingredient to cook without too much mineral salts. Furthermore, cooking water can be used flavor with herbs, spices, citrus peel, tea and so on.

In cooking roast instead, the sugars will tend to caramelize and consequently to intensify the flavor. In a meat sauce, for example, brown the meat well with a small fat part until you get a nice hazelnut color: the taste of the final sauce will be stronger.

How to reduce salt with aromatic herbs and spices

As we said at the beginning, the aromatic herbs and spices give a much more significant flavor. You can use them for marinate the ingredients before cooking, or at a later stage, but following some rules.

Basil, parsley, mint, thyme, oregano: to preserve their fresh taste herbs they must be added at the last moment, especially if they are very fine, otherwise they would burn.

The spiceson the other hand, they should be lightly toasted, in order to better release the aroma, thus obtaining a more decisive result. Have fun with turmeric, paprika, curry, cinnamon, saffron, cloves … so on and so forth!

Discover many other tips for cooking classes at La Scuola de La Cucina Italiana.

Texts by Alessandro Pirollo