Tag: salads

Of salads and babà: when Sanremo goes to the table – Italian Cuisine

A few years ago, it was 2017 and the possibility of a global pandemic only existed in the head of Bill Gates, the French group Phoenix released a tribute album to Italy, I love you. The presence in the band of two brothers with an Italian father must have helped, so the singer Thomas Mars (and this is where you have to remember who he is married to Sofia Coppola), rattles off lines that contain languid little words pronounced in a slightly drawn-out Italian, This melted ice cream, Champagne or Prosecco?, references to Battiato And Lucio (Lucio par excellence is Baptists; the other is From the), and especially Well I'll show you how to win / My Sanremo festival. The video is just as full of good old clichés that concern us: the Trevi fountain, the beaches, a beautiful checked table set with plates of spaghetti and red wine. If we have to go all the way, then let's go all the way, the Phoenix must have thought; getting it right, including spaghetti and Sanremo, the appointment that blocks a nation in February, effectively kidnapping it.

And spaghetti, and the Festival, together? When did it happen, in the homeland of good cooking and bel canto, that the two things came together?
It happened, and that of food and drink in Sanremo is a story that starts from far away, from the dawn of the Festival, with a crackling start to say the least. Second edition, 1952; Nilla Pizzi repeats the triumph of the previous year with Fly dove, but it is in Poppies and ducks, who came second – at the time the same singers presented more songs in the competition, and Nilla also came third – who sings, in lysergic verses that hint at a markedly vegetarian predilection: Dad, eat the poppies, how do you do it? / Why do you want to eat poppies, Dad said / And then he added, pecking at the salad / What are you going to do with it, this is life, with a pedagogical synthesis destined to mark generations of children.

In this regard, years ago a newspaper even took the trouble to analyze all the songs presented at the festival to see how many contained references to food. Result, perhaps a bit disappointing: thirty, out of one thousand six hundred, because in Sanremo, you know, it is love that reigns supreme, or maybe why MasterChef all in all it is still a novelty when compared to the very long festival tradition. On the other hand, artists have passed nomen omen, as Piero Focaccia, Tullio Pane, the dear Mango, Sugar And Milk and honey, Genoese progressive band in the seventies. In any case, when the Sanremo song becomes edible, the diet is rigorously devoid of meat, as was already the case with Nilla Pizzi's poppies and salad; a rule that also applies if the tone changes to the brilliance of a Rino Gaetano, when participating in the 1978 edition with Gianna sang that the same, in addition to supporting theses and illusions, he had an exceptional flair for truffles.

Guest at the Black & White Festival of Sanremo, circa 1950. (Photo by Archivio Cameraphoto Epoche / Getty Images).

Staying on the subject of brilliance, food becomes metaphor and parody when in 1996 Elio and the tense stories they sing to the Ariston The land of persimmons (a fruit moreover beloved by Giuseppe Verdi, it seems), throwing down – with a very Italian and singular melody – the tower of national malpractice, from indifference to easy indignation, from bombs to pliers in the pits of medical malpractice up to the inevitable and self-absolving "Volemose bene" summarized in the refrain: Italy yes Italy no Italy gnamme, se famo du spaghi / Italy sob Italy prot, the land of persimmons / A pizza in company, a pizza alone / a total of two pizzas and this is Italy. And before getting to the cafe of Fiorella Mannoia (Hot black coffee) or those hypertrophic of Alex Britti (7000 coffees), in Sanremo there is time for a drink by Achille Lauro in Rolls Royce, which isn't actually a drink, but it is Paul Gascoigne, the alcoholic English footballer of Lazio in the nineties. Or, again, text in hand, to the real culinary song of Sanremo: Baba is serious business from Marisa Laurito, where the goodness of Italian cuisine is considered the only valid reason not to emigrate to America or to Mars (To me what consoles me / And the addore d’a pummarola / Because what cheers me up / Songo 'e zite with ragù / And yes to a bitter life if it does / It sweetens cu nu babà!).

Yet, as even the most die-hard antagonists of the great Sanremo bandwagon are forced to admit, many shades of Italy pass on the stage of the Festival, not only those of strapaese, as this brief musical-gastronomic review also explains. Including the beloved ones who was capable of intoning the other Lucio, Lucio Dalla, when it was 1972 and he was singing in Sanremo about a hungry homeless man in one of the many Italian squares, There are no saints who pay for my lunch / On the benches in Piazza Grande / But when I'm hungry for merchants like me, there aren't any / I sleep on the grass and have many friends around me / The lovers in Piazza Grande / I know everything about their troubles, their loves, wrong and not; thus recalling that Italy is not only that of the sweet babas.

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Salads, what to add to the dish to make them super detox – Italian Cuisine

Some ingredients thanks to the antioxidant and diuretic action are excellent allies to cleanse yourself of toxins and excess fluids. Here are the ones that help the most

Easy and quick to prepare, salads are the ideal dish for those who have little time to devote to the stove and want to stay fit and healthy. Prepared with the right ingredients, such as whole grains in grains, seasonal vegetables and protein foods, especially fish, lean meat or legumes, they can be transformed into a nutritious and complete single dish with a detoxifying and purifying action. «They allow you to stock up on nutrients that are not only able to promote a sense of fullness and satiety, but are also valuable for disposing of waste and toxins that must be metabolized every day and can promote swelling, water retention and disorders. Detoxification is nothing more than a process that the body constantly carries out through biochemical mechanisms that require the support of certain micronutrients ", says the nutritionist Nicoletta Bocchino, which here suggests what to put in salads to make them super detox.

Olives

A handful of natural (unsalted) olives are the ideal dressing to increase the detoxifying properties of salads. "The lipids they are rich in allow for better absorption of vitamin A and vitamin E present in vegetables, which have an antioxidant action. These vitamins together with the polyphenols of which they are particularly rich facilitate the activities of the liver, the leading organ in the disposal of toxins , says nutritionist Nicoletta Bocchino.

Red radish

Radicchio, consumed mainly raw, is super for the disposal of waste and liquids. "It has a choleretic and hepatoprotective action: it increases the production of bile produced by the liver, useful for the digestion of fats". Its leaves are also a concentrate of flavonoids, in particular anthocyanins, antioxidants that favor the purification of the body for various reasons. "They make the elimination of waste substances easier, protect the circulatory system and can intervene in the balance of the lipid profile, which if altered, in addition to favoring the onset of numerous disorders, can slow down the" cleaning "of the organism" .

Rocket salad

Thanks to its diuretic action, rocket facilitates kidney function. "Contains water and good amounts of minerals such as potassium and magnesium that facilitate the elimination of excess fluids and support kidney function". It also ensures many prebiotic fibers, excellent allies in the purification and health of the intestine. The advantages? "They facilitate the digestive processes, favoring intestinal transit and nourish the microbiota, which plays an important role in the proper functioning of the body".

Kiwi and oranges

«Both of these fruits are very rich in vitamin C, which thanks to its antioxidant action, helps the liver work. Finally, it protects the tissues from inflammatory states, which can slow down the purification mechanisms and favor the stagnation of waste substances in the body ".

In the gallery the other ingredients to add to salads to make them super detox

the salads to be cooked – Italian Cuisine

Crunchy and colorful, they perfectly match the intense autumn flavors. As soon as they are rinsed or blanched for a few minutes in boiling water, the salads (those to be cooked) are enriched with soft sauces, croutons, seasonal vegetables, cold cuts or cheeses, turning into delicious but healthy dishes, to be served as appetizers or strictly cooked side dishes. Let's get to know all the varieties better together

Chicory

Chicory belongs to the family of Asteraceae or Compositae, the same as for different types of salads, radicchio and vegetables. All the various types have a slightly bitter taste due to the content of chicoric acid. They can be eaten raw to prepare rich salads, or cooked in water or steamed, but also to prepare delicious savory pies.

All white chicory

One belonging to this category is the Belgian endive it's a variety of chicory white which is collected betweenAutumn and thewinter, and to be precise between September and the end of November. Its origins are Nordic, its more common name reveals it, such as for example chicory from Brussels or Witloof, which literally means "White leaf". This last and unmistakable peculiarity is due to the cultivation technique to which it is subjected: the Belgian endive is in fact grown in the dark, so that the fibers of the leaves can remain candid, soft and certainly more palatable. Very tasty if sautéed in a pan with which you can try your hand at delicious recipes:rack of lamb with endive with cider or roasts with Belgian endive. It can also be a very good accompaniment for lasagna, curry stew or for a vegetable stew

How to prepare it

Remove the piece of core at the base of the head with a small knife or a digger. Remove the whole leaves if you want to enjoy them stuffed or in pinzimonio, or cut the head into strips and serve in a salad. For an elegant presentation, you can line the salad bowl with whole leaves and collect the fillets in the center.

Sugar Loaf

The Sugar Loaf it is also a vegetable of the chicory family and not of lettuce as one might think. Typically winter, thanks to its particular resistance to frost. One of its particular characteristics is that of having large leaves that form a cylindrical cap. These cooked and boiled, seasoned with oil and lemon are very good. Even stewed, however, it can be a very simple side dish, but at the same time very tasty and ideal for lovers of vegetables with a bitter aftertaste.

How to prepare it

Trim the head by cutting off the ends of the leaves. Open it slightly and wash it under running water. Drain it well and cut it "into slices" eliminating the final hard part. Unroll the strips obtained and pass them to the salad spinner to dry them well.

With the same procedure it is possible to prepare another variety of white chicory: "The White of Milan" which, however, is usually more suitable to be eaten raw rather than cooked.

The escarole

This is another variety of endive which belongs to the chicory family. The tufts have broad leaves of a intense green outwards up to the very light green soft heart. The escarole that we find on our markets and is entirely an Italian product. The crops are concentrated in Puglia (30%) followed by Marche, Campania, Abruzzo and Lazio. In the north the most important region is the Veneto. The cultivated varieties are hybrids, different from each other in size and harvest times, but similar to those common in our national territory: Giant of gardeners and Fiorentina (with broad leaves), a A croissant (with clenched tufts) e Blonde (with large head and light leaves). The escarole holds up particularly well when cooked: in fact it is excellent cooked in a pan, baked or au gratin.

An absolute goodness that you cannot give up and that you absolutely must try? The endive pizza or focaccia. This is in fact one of the typical dishes of Neapolitan gastronomic tradition, a green variant of pizza that is prepared with stewed escarole, raisins, pine nuts, extra virgin olive oil, anchovies and a few other ingredients. A real highlight of Neapolitan cuisine, now very popular everywhere.

Contrary to what the name might suggest, this has nothing to do with Spain. It is always a type of chicory, more precisely chicory asparagus, grown in Veneto and Lazio during the autumn period. Catalonia tends to be consumed cooked: first thing you need remove the outer leaves if withered or damaged. Then you have to eliminate the base is cut the leaves into pieces, even large and rinse it under water current, moving the vegetables with your hands in order to remove all the earth present. The easiest preparation requires the catalonia to be immersed in cold water, brought to a boil and left to cook for about 15 minutes. After having drained it well, you can taste it seasoned with a little oil, a little lemon juice, finely chopped garlic, a little salt and some capers.

One of the best known and most widespread varieties in Italy is the Catalonia of Chioggia, characterized by wide and white ribs with the typical serrated leaves. While the catalonia of Gaeta, from Lazio, is characterized by jagged leaves with slightly longer stems. Some tasty recipes that we can recommend are: the Crupa with catalonia, spicy pie with catalonia and anchovies.

Radicchio

A variety of chicory it produces "Rosettes" compact with red leaves or variegated in red and with white ribs. The best known are the chicory of Chioggia PGI, with a large and round head, and the radicchio di Treviso IGP, with an elongated and thinner head. Its use with salmon is highly recommended. Obviously also cooked on the grill or in the company of a nice risotto is a great delicacy. Excellent on salads, to be munched on its own or mixed with other varieties and of course it can also be grilled or used for a very particular flavor risotto. You can indulge yourself with radicchio because it is suitable for many recipes: rolls with late radicchio in balsamic vinegar and honey, radicchio cannelloni with bacon and hazelnuts , Smoked scamorza cheese and radicchio studel

Do you need some advice on how to clean a radicchio? Do not hesitate and click here.