Tag: pantry

Summer in a jar: the winter pantry – Italian Cuisine

Tomatoes, peppers, and many other vegetables that make us feel summer even when it's over: here's how!

Every year, the end of summer and the return to routine brings with it a hint of nostalgia for the sunny days and intense flavors of the summer season. That same magic, made of bright colors and unmistakable aromas, which we can find in a jar to open when needed. Here are some tips to prepare a rich one winter pantry with oil, vinegar and more!

Tomatoes

Protagonist of the "pack from down" of students and workers from all over Italy in all formats and types. The infinite varieties of tomato preserves are a must for mothers, grandmothers, aunts from the south who make it their summer pastime. Impossible to try to decree definitive recipes because there are hundreds of variants, but the big star it is always the tomato in all its facets.

The simplest is undoubtedly the puree (usually from San Marzano, Regina or Pera d'Abruzzo) indicated for the preparation of sauces or creams, in which the tomato must act as a "basic element" to which only salt is added, but which can be flavored with basil or oregano.

It is flanked by peeled tomatoes and chunks perfect for filling pizza or being used in preparations that require a thick and full-bodied sauce.

But there are also more typical variations that include the addition of other vegetables, for example in Abruzzo peppers, an essential basis for a typical winter dish of peppers, tomatoes and eggs "in Purgatory".

Datterino, corbarino, Pachino and yellow tomatoes, on the other hand, can be preserved by intertwining the twigs of the bunches. It is essential to dry them in a dry and cool place, without covering them, to be able to enjoy them until Christmas, for example on bruschetta or to flavor soups.

The same types of tomatoes, as well as the fiaschetto, the pizzutelli and the nickel free tomatoes, today increasingly sought after due to the spread of food allergies, can be cut in half and baked in the oven, to then obtain the pulp to be stored in a jar with just adding a little salt: they are perfect for seasoning pasta or preparing a bruschetta.

Due to its intense flavor, the datterino is perfect confit: cut in half and put in the oven for slow cooking at low temperature, seasoned with salt, pepper and sugar. It is then stored in glass jars where it is possible to add chopped garlic and thyme or basil.

Vegetables

Peppers, aubergines and courgettes are inevitable on our summer tables and lend themselves very well to storage in jars.

In particular, the aubergines, cut into slices that are not too thick, can be roasted and placed in glass jars, seasoned with salt and garlic or enriched with small pieces of tuna and unsalted capers, and preserved in oil.

The courgettes, cut into very fine slices, are left to blanch in water and vinegar for a few seconds, then left to dry and placed in glass jars, with the addition of salt, chopped garlic and parsley or mint and oil. They are perfect for an aperitif or a side dish.

Aromatic herbs and chilli

Aromatic herbs and spices, whose scent floods our countryside, gardens and balconies from late spring to late summer, are essential in Italian cuisine.

There are various ways to try to preserve its fragrance. Basil, for example, can be preserved for months and in an optimal way in glass jars to keep in the refrigerator: after having washed and dried the leaves well, just put them away, avoiding crushing them, in glass jars with plenty of extra virgin olive oil. .

Thyme, rosemary, marjoram, oregano, sage and bay leaf can be dried in a cool place, taking care to cut small twigs or leaves, and placed in strictly glass jars, so as not to change the flavor, to be kept in the pantry.

There are endless ways to store peppers and chillies.

It is possible to prepare a necklace to be left to dry well in the sun for a few days or to dry them in the oven at a low temperature, after having placed them on a well-spaced tray, and then stored in airtight jars.

A very practical way is to freeze them, in bags or containers, after letting all the air escape, to use them even without the need to defrost them.

Finally, two classic methods: cut into small pieces and fried in abundant extra virgin olive oil or always preserved in extra virgin olive oil, after having salted them and eliminated all traces of water to avoid the formation of mold.

In both cases stored in this way, the peppers last more than a year, just put the jar in the fridge once opened.

Lots of ideas to fill up on summer vegetables and spices and enclose their goodness in a jar, but also an excellent gift idea for friends and relatives. They will love you!

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A butterfly-proof pantry – Italian Cuisine

In the spring period these insects nest in our foods making them unusable. Here are all the strategies to take action and reduce the risk of it happening

You may have to face a nightmare situation if you do not decide to run for cover in time: the problem would be having to deal with a strange flutter of insects inside your food storage and immediately afterwards in the entire kitchen. We are talking about butterflies, those hateful insects that nest in food packs in the spring and which can give you torment for weeks.

Who are these insects

They are called food butterflies, but they are also known as flour moth and feed on all the grains, whether whole or ground. Flour, pasta, rice, but also biscuits, dried fruit, breakfast cereals, rusks: everything is a possible food for these insects that nest their larvae in the folds of the packs. Once the products have been affected there is no remedy, everything must be thrown away. This is why it is essential act in advance.

butterflies-in-pantry

A butterfly-proof pantry

The first step is to empty everything disinfect. The larvae may have already infested the shelves of your pantry and then everything could be useless. Then emptied shelves and wardrobes and with a rag soaked in water e vinegar pass all the surfaces: in this completely natural way you will have disinfected every corner of the pantry. The second step is to pass each pack to the microscope, especially those already open: if you see small larvae, even if only on the surface of the packets, throw everything away, there may also be some inside.

How to properly store food

Once you have made sure that you have no food affected by the butterflies, pour the contents of the bags already open in jars, preferably glass, with an airtight cap. In this way you will be sure that the hateful butterflies will not contaminate anything.

In the tutorial some other tips to keep the butterflies away from your pantry

here are the foods that should not miss in the pantry – Italian Cuisine

To defend our body, the immune system must be strengthened as never before. To do this, foods that have beneficial properties and are versatile for home cooking must be included in the diet (or must be increased in their use). here they are

Hot water is discovered to emphasize that there are no miraculous foods. Maybe there were! But in normalcy, and even more so in the situation we are experiencing, there are foods that are good for and "must" enter the diet regularly like others that must be tasted from time to time (and we add, these days represent the best opportunity to indulge in some whims among the home walls). In the first case, nutritionist biologists remember that for strengthen the immune system it is essential to keep the intestine healthy, because it is the "second brain" of the body and the focal point of the immune system. In addition, the frequent use of various antibiotics, anti-inflammatories and antacids and foods facilitate intestinal dysbiosis (physio-pathological state that predisposes, according to numerous studies, to a large number of pathologies) creating fertile ground for pathogens or viruses.

From lemon to extra virgin olive oil

According to the latest trend in nutritional biology, the new target in the immune field is to find theintestinal bacterial ecosysteminterface that regulates exchanges, absorption, filters good and bad substances for our body and regulates innate and adaptive immunity. Keeping the intestine in balance (condition of eubiosis) means preserve 70% of our immune system. And here nutrition comes into play: by regularly taking the right amount of prebiotic and probiotic foods you can fortify the intestines. And here is the importance of leafy vegetables and cereals, the value of dried fruit (often forgotten for caloric reasons) and yogurt – or kefir – to be preferred to milk. And then the lemon and extra virgin olive oil: two very Italian products, a hymn to our country that will recover.

Lemon

Rich in vitamin C, very important in cell defense processes. The ideal would be to take a juice every day with a pinch of potassium bicarbonate (alkalizing, fungicidal and digestive properties) in the right amount of hot water, because heat affects the virus.

Flax seed

They are an important source of alpha-linoleic acid, a fatty acid from the omega3 family. The ideal is to add them – raw – to milk or smoothie, and why not, even over the fruit, with a crunchy sprinkling. They are also pleasant with salads.

Plant extracts

In the roots and leaves of the plants there are prebiotic fibers (xylans, glucans …) capable of feeding 90% of the intestinal flora. So go ahead to the preparation of "green extracts" with many vegetables and little fruit.

Oats

The cereal that should never be missing from the diet. Rich in fiber, it helps to regulate the intestine, give satiety and regulate blood cholesterol levels. It is found in grains, flour and flakes. Hence a great versatility in the kitchen. In addition, excellent vegetable milk is obtained from oats, which is increasingly popular in organic shops.

Green leafy vegetables

Chard, turnips, chicory, spinach. But also leafy cabbages – the black one in particular – and watercress. They do well, the best method is to steam them to facilitate digestion and preserve their numerous antiviral and antibacterial properties.

Probiotic supplements

They are living and active microorganisms that strengthen the intestinal ecosystem; each disorder must be integrated with the right probiotic, this because each part of the intestine has a different Ph suitable for a specific strain. So, it is always better to get advice from a doctor or an expert.

Dried fruit

It is a real mine of prebiotic substances (minerals, amino acids and omega3), essential for strengthening the immune system. Consumed in “nature”, or used for desserts, they are a certainty. Also keep in mind the oil seeds (pumpkin, sunflower, chia) which can be a small snack.

Kefir and yogurt

Natural sources of probiotics, rich in microorganisms (about 52 different strains) that help to rebalance the intestinal bacterial flora and reduce the perennial condition of dysbiosis. Both foods can be prepared at home thus avoiding the absorption of sugars and preservatives.

Buckwheat

Gluten-free, but rich (95%) of Phytolessin, it is a polyphenolic compound, one of the many molecules that plants produce to protect themselves in stressful situations. The cooked beans can be added to soups and soups, but also to vegetable meatballs or cold salads. The flour is very versatile: it can be used to prepare gluten-free bread, dark polenta, tarts, crêpes, pancakes …

Extra virgin olive oil

The king of the Mediterranean diet, but not only: composed mainly of fatty acids and phospholipids, plays a fundamental role in rebalancing the membrane of the white blood cells, the lymphocytes. The secret is to take a fresh oil (rich in polyphenols): always read the production date.