Tag: magic

The magic of the cribs returns to Sutrio – Italian Cuisine

In this ancient village at the foot of the Zoncolan, just 1200 inhabitants and part of the authentic villages of Italy, every Christmas more than 50 nativity scenes are displayed in the courtyards of the historic center, filling it with Christmas spirit and magic. Even this year

With explosive colors in autumn (as we told you and showed you in the piece on foliage), the Carnia, in Friuli-Venezia Giulia, is ready to be admired even in winter, thanks to the exhibition Villages and Nativity Scenes by Sutrio. In this ancient village at the foot of the Zoncolan, just 1200 inhabitants and part of the authentic villages of Italy, are exhibited every Christmas more than 50 nativity scenes in the courtyards of the historic center, filling it with Christmas spirit and magic.

The event, in full compliance with anti-Covid regulations and therefore in a reduced form, will still take place this year, as a symbol of rebirth and hope. The appointment is from 20 December to 6 January 2021, when the stone-paved streets of the village, and the ancient squares, will come alive with reproductions in wood (and not only) of the nativity. The whole town, for the occasion, is festively decorated, with adults recycled wood Christmas trees created by the artisans of the country, lights, wreaths and Christmas compositions. The nativity scenes are made not only by artisans and artists, but also by the inhabitants of Sutrio, who display them in front of their homes, on the windowsills, in the niches of the walls.

The most evocative piece of the event is certainly the Nativity scene of Teno, a true masterpiece of craftsmanship (and patience), created in thirty years by Gaudenzio Straulino (1905-1988), a local master craftsman. Exhibited in an old town house, it reproduces in miniature the traditional uses and customs of the village, which are animated thanks to a series of mechanical gears, with the alternation of day and night, the figures in motion, the water in the streams. More than a crib, that of Teno is an interesting one ethnographic insight on the traditions, life, jobs, customs of the Carnic mountains.

For those who decide to spend a holiday here in the name of tradition and folklore, theWidespread Hotel Sutrio Zoncolan, a perfectly successful combination of modern hospitality and ancient accommodations in characteristic houses to live and breathe the authenticity and simplicity of life in an ancient village in Carnia.

Chia pudding with figs: the magic summer pudding – Italian Cuisine

Only two ingredients for the base and a lot of imagination to make this preparation beautiful and good from breakfast to dessert

From breakfast until after dinner the chia pudding is the easy, fresh and light dessert you were looking for. We do this with the figs?

What is chia pudding?

Chia pudding is a pudding which is prepared without cooking and with only two ingredients: i Chia seeds and the milk.
Just mix them and store them in the refrigerator for a few hours to get this delicate and light cream perfect for breakfast or even for a spoon dessert.

Magic seeds

THE Chia seeds they are amazing because not only do they have many nutritional properties, but they can be used in a variety of ways.
For example replace the eggs in vegan recipes because they have a thickening power. Chopped and immersed in water, they release a gel that has the same consistency as egg white.
For the same reason they can be used to prepare the chia pudding. In fact, mixed with milk they transform it into a cream.
Finally, they can be added to soups, salads, smoothies, and bowl of fruit and yogurt for breakfast, as a crunchy and nutritious part.

Chia pudding recipe

To prepare the chia pudding you must first mix it 30 g of chia seeds with 200 ml of milk, preferably vegetable.
You can also use cow's milk or even simply water, but we suggest the vegetable milk with almond because it is very tasty and particularly creamy.
Let this mixture rest in the refrigerator overnight and in the morning compose your bowl of chia pudding or make small bowls for several people.
You can sweeten with honey, agave or maple syrup, but if you add figs it will be naturally sweet.

Fresh or caramelized figs

This chia pudding with figs it is a delicious dessert in the summer and you can simply prepare it with fresh figs for breakfast or with caramelized figs for an after meal to serve to friends.
You can make cups alternating layers of chia pudding and plain yogurt, or to the taste of your choice, and complete everything with raspberries and chopped almonds.

The perfect breakfast

For an energetic awakening we suggest you mix chia pudding with your favorite yogurt to make it even more nutritious and add a protein part.
You can also enrich it with i oatmeal to have a mix between a Porridge and a pudding.
Complete with plenty of fresh fruit and dried fruit grains because a crunchy part cannot be missing.

The magic of Casole Castle – Italian Cuisine

A small jewel in the Tuscan hills in the province of Siena surrounded, as far as the eye can see, by the orderly alternation of woods, olive groves, vineyards and fields.

Climb with placid slowness along the road bordered by cypresses, which reaches the top of the hill where the Belmond Castle of Casole. We are in Val d’Elsa, near Siena, San Gimignano and Volterra, less than an hour's drive from Florence.
The oldest part of the structure dates back to 10th century (the tower is dated 998) when there was a small village here with an oven, church, mill, warehouse for wine and oil, but the archaeological excavations in the early decades of the 1800s, commissioned by Bargagli family, owner of the estate, unearthed Etruscan finds of great importance, one of which is the Testa Bargagli, now housed in the Civic Archaeological Museum and the Collegiate Church of Casole d’Elsa.

As soon as you arrive, you can breathe that sense of quiet that gives the impression of having reached home.
The charm, unchanged over the centuries, is found in every corner and glimpse of this resort and the wind that comes from the sea gracefully caresses the hill.
Relaxation (the spa and gym are housed in some of the oldest buildings in the "village"), walks on the estate (1700 hectares of property partly cultivated under organic conditions, partly left in the woods) and good food are an unmissable trinomial.
From breakfast to after dinner, you can rely on the inspiration of chef Daniele Sera «Mine is a cuisine based on simplicity, made of a few recognizable ingredients, from the territory and beyond, processed with the utmost respect. I say my cooking, but it is not correct, because it is certainly not just me who cooks, the brigade of Tosca (the restaurant) is the real strength behind our dishes .

The Belmond Castello di Casole is a magical place and gradually reveals its wonders, but the sunset, which can be enjoyed from the terrace of the Tosca restaurant, from the tables of the Visconti cocktail bar (named in homage to the family of the director Luchino who bought it after the war) and from the wonderful infinity pool, it certainly does not go unnoticed.
Following a path made of small pebbles, you just enter the wood and under the branches of a centenary tree there is a suspended table, an enchanted table. This is the ideal place to start dinner with an aperitif based on some of the proposals «fingerCuisine: mini tacos with courgette cream, the" fake tomato ", quail egg with potato and truffle cream, beef fillet tartare with mushrooms and parmesan flakes.

The chef, of a Florentine mother and a Ligurian father, with great experiences in Italy and abroad, had no doubts when he had the opportunity to come here "Castello di Casole is a place where life follows the simple rhythms of rising and setting of the sun and the flavors are the genuine ones of the earth. In estate we produce oil and wine (Castello di Casole supplies the Italian Belmond with these two products) and soon we will also have a large one vegetable garden where to grow the ingredients for the kitchen. This year for the first time, we will have our wildflower honey for breakfasts and desserts ".
The vegetable garden is not the only project that will soon be realized, there is another, perhaps even more ambitious: to dedicate 6 tables (and a brigade on purpose) to new gourmet restaurant Di Sera which will open next year. Only in the evening, in fact, you will be able to enjoy a cuisine capable of wandering and experimenting with grace, without forgetting the roots of the territory.
To try today, without a doubt, the Ravioli with potatoes, Taggiasca olives, redfish and cacciucco sauce and the Maialino di Cinta smoked cauliflower and citrus fruits. What about next year? All that remains is to wait while anticipating future surprises.