Tag: Kitchen

Do chickpeas make you fat? – The Italian kitchen – Italian Cuisine

How many calories do they have? Can they be consumed on a diet? Here's how to eat them to lose weight

Delicious and versatile, chickpeas are excellent in the kitchen. They can be prepared in many ways and used in a variety of recipes: soups, soups, cream, salads, meatballs and puree like hummus. From a nutritional point of view, then, they are a mine of beneficial substances allied to health. Yet, often when you want to lose a few extra pounds you tend to exclude them from the menus, with the belief that they make you fat. But is it really like that? Let's find out with the help of nutritionist Nicoletta Bocchino.

That's why chickpeas are good

The chickpeas are excellent allies of the weight. «They have an excellent diuretic action: they make fibers, which favor the regularity of the intestine. They are, then, a good source of B vitamins. In particular, they are rich in Vitamin B3 and B9, useful for metabolism, the mechanism that causes calories to burn. Moreover, even if they contain high amounts of carbohydrates, because of the abundance of fibers they contain and which allow a slower absorption of sugars and a prolongation of the sense of satiety. Moreover, they are a concentrate of minerals useful for the proper functioning of the organism. They contain, for example, calcium, indispensable for bone health, magnesium, selenium and zinc, which are precious for the nervous system and iron, which helps to combat tiredness, "explains Dr. Nicoletta Bocchino, a nutritionist biologist. "Then they bring tryptophan, an amino acid that promotes good humor".

How to eat them

One hundred grams of cooked dry chickpeas bring about 150 calories. "To take stock of their virtues for the benefit of the line, the advice is to eat them two or three times a week. Fresh chickpeas have fewer calories, but they are not consumed frequently so buckets are preferred. Although the latter are richer in protein and minerals, they are more caloric and have less water and vitamins, due to the drying process, "suggests the nutritionist Bocchino. «If you choose to use buckets it is better to limit their consumption to a portion of 50-70 grams, while if you choose fresh 150 grams suggests the expert.

How to combine them at the table

Chickpeas are a good source of vegetable protein. «Even if the latter are incomplete compared to those of meat, fish, cheese and eggs, just eat them in the same meal together with carbohydrates for example pasta or whole grains to get proteins of high biological value, useful for putting on lean mass Suggests the nutritionist Bocchino. Better to avoid combining them in the same meal with meat, fish, eggs and dairy products. «The risk is to exaggerate with proteins suggests the expert.
Would you like to know more? Discover the other benefits of chickpeas in the gallery.

Coffee in the kitchen (starry) does not come just after a meal – Italian Cuisine

Coffee at the restaurant does not come just at the time of dessert but is an ingredient on which research is done. The chef Marcello Trentini, Nespresso coffee sommelier, is a pioneer: he cooks and serves it as a cocktail combined with his tasting menu (and with this contemporary finanziera)

The coffee at the restaurant it is always an unknown quantity, often it does not measure up and literally leaves a bitter taste in the mouth. It is not the fault of the mixture, but of impromptu baristas and old machines, maligned and working too little – which means a bad espresso. And a bad memory of a dinner.
"The importance of coffee in the restaurant has increased exponentially and is a more sophisticated and versatile ingredient than it may seem" – explains "Il Mago ", aka chef Marcello Trentini of the Magorabin restaurant in Turin, a Michelin star – "As with all the other ingredients there has been continuous research and there is much more awareness on both sides, so much so that it is increasingly difficult to find customers who do not understand the difference between a good product and any one".

Nespresso Coffee Sommelier since four years, Trentini has a close relationship with this ingredient, and clear ideas. "Coffee is a pop ingredient in Italy, but it can not be cheap. Now it is clear: rather than eating a poor caviar, a very good onion better. Arabica or Robusta do not mean anything, flavor and aroma depend on the variety, the roasting, if it is in purity or is a blend … a universe of nuances and aromas that enrich your kitchen and your cultural baggage of cook, without prejudices. From Turin I can say that coffee is part of us, we are the inventors of Italian espresso. We have a very Turin-style, canonical approach to coffee, which is why I like to discover new horizons. For years I have dedicated at least one dish to a specific cultivar and I use it together with wine ".

Coffee and fish? It can be done

In the kitchen the coffee is used with meat: "Deer, lamb, chicken .. In Stockholm, at the end of the course to become Nespresso Coffee Sommelier, I used it together with fish. I cooked a fillet of white fish at low temperature in cooking oil with green apple cubes, shitake mushrooms, coffee reduction and coffee powder as pancakes over fish. Over the years I made a cod with coffee and a risotto with coffee: a real caffelatte, rice cooked in buffalo milk and creamed with peel and lemon juice and then served with a truffle of cocoa mass and coffee to be grated over it".

Not just wine: coffee as a pairing

You drink it, but not necessarily at the end of a meal. In a journey combined with the tasting menu, in addition to pairing with wine, other solutions are sought to balance the flavors with care, but also the alcoholic performance of the evening.
One of the historical dishes of the Magorabin card is Agnello / Nocciole, a leg of lamb in Lazio cooked at low temperature, then lightly smoked in a vacuum and burned in the barbecue. "It has a very crispy crust but keeps a pink flesh inside, the contrast is strong, and we serve it with a natural hazelnut cream. Simona (Beltrami, sommelier, partner and wife of the Magician) has studied for this dish two pairings, one alcoholic and one non-alcoholic coffee-based ".

Nicaragua Master Origin, in a drink

On the occasion of the launch of the new Nespresso Master Origin, the Magorabin maître, Alberto Bonanno, has created a cocktail with Nicaragua to combine with Contemporary financier with prawns, cauliflower and almonds of the chef. It is prepared starting from this unique coffee based on Arabica Black Honey, with aromas reminiscent of caramel, linden honey, grilled bread and gianduia chocolate. The coffee is cooled in a mixing glass with ice, stirring with a stirrer, drained, mixed with extra virgin olive oil of Nocellara del Belice 100%, and garnished with an orange twist and a sprig of thyme.

5 Smeg refrigerators that we would like to have in the kitchen – Italian Cuisine

When technology is design blend with the sympathy of comics and with the spectacularity of art authentic masterpieces are born: in this case 190 refrigerators to be left open-mouthed.

Smeg and Disney: 90 fridges dedicated to Mickey Mouse

A union that smells of great celebrations, for Smeg and the 70th anniversary and for Disney the 90th birthday of Mickey Mouse, so how to celebrate better? Creating 90 limited edition refrigerators that reproduce a original sketch of Mickey Mouse that, on tiptoe, tries to reach the handle of the refrigerator. A refrigerator for every year, from the birth of Mickey Mouse in 1928 to today. Here are 90 Smeg FAB28 refrigerators, in the white version as a white sheet, on which the cute Mickey Mouse was designed. Together they witness common values such as friendship and family, celebrating it in the kitchen, where the best moments of conviviality and fun are consumed by emptying fridges rich in delicacies, to cook and eat in company.

Smeg and Dolce & Gabbana: 100 fridges inspired by Sicily

After Sicily in my love, Dolce & Gabbana and Smeg they decide to confirm their love for Italian traction, Sicilian craftsmanship, style and innovation, transforming the FAB28 model into a work of art. Exactly 100 art refrigerators, hand painted by Sicilian artists, expert connoisseurs of their land and a decorative art that tells the Sicilian folklore in all its forms. Battles and knights, songs, dances and cheerful people, lemons and other delicacies, the Sicilian cart and the puppet theater, all elements that drag the observer into a colorful world witnessing creativity and craftsmanship.

If you want to be transported in these fantastic worlds, look at the gallery with the 5 Smeg refrigerators chosen for you.