Tag: school

Urbani Tartufi and the School of Italian Cuisine: a new partnership – Italian Cuisine

Learn about the great versatility of the magical product in the kitchen in two free online courses

The Scuola de La Cucina Italiana has a new partner who will accompany all of you to discover one of the most interesting products in Italy: truffles.
And with Urbani Truffles, a market leader in the distribution and processing of truffles, that the Scuola de La Cucina Italiana begins this journey of knowledge and tasting, starting with two free cooking courses, in live streaming, a new format conceived by the School to offer teaching also to distance. This will allow enthusiasts from all over Italy, and beyond, to try their hand at the preparation of various guided recipes step by step by the chefs of La Scuola de La Cucina Italiana. Two dates to mark: the February 16 and the March 16. Live from the school's kitchens from 18:00 to 19:30 participants will discover and will be able to create the recipes designed to best enhance the characteristics of Urbani Tartufi products supported by a moderator who will help them discover all the secrets for the best result.

A commitment for generations

It will continue then in the second part of the year with four thematic cooking courses in presence at the headquarters of La Scuola. All the recipes proposed during the events dedicated to Urbani Tartufi aim to enhance the characteristics of the Umbrian company's products to show, with simplicity, how truffles are really suitable for any type of preparation. "For generations we have been dealing with" searching ", Transforming and creating culture on truffles: whether we are talking about fresh or processed truffles, Urbani Tartufi has the task of highlighting and promoting the versatility of use that is typical of this ingredient", he claims Olga Urbani of the Urbani Group. "The collaboration with La Scuola della Cucina Italiana is part of this mission, a wonderful opportunity to continue to make culture on the world of truffles, not yet fully revealed, to make its properties and above all its taste known to an ever wider ". The demonstration took place in the online presentation of the partnership when Marco Cassin – chef of our school – has prepared two delicious dishes such as potato and thyme ravioli with artichoke and truffle sauce and beef fillet with truffle sauce, foie gras, potatoes and pine nuts, using the products of Urbani Tartufi.

Free participation

In addition, Urbani Tartufi will be throughout 2021 main sponsor of La Scuola de La Cucina Italiana providing the Institute with some of the symbolic references in the company's catalog for all courses held during the year. Protagonists in the stoves of La Scuola will therefore be produced like the classic carpaccio of summer truffle, for first or second courses of taste that also like to express a perfect aesthetic, peanuts and truffle almonds, gourmand dried fruit designed to make an aperitif special. To participate in the first two appointments it is necessary to register for the individual events, which will be published on the site scuola.gordon-ramsay-recipe.com. Participation is free.

In an Indian school, lessons are paid for with recycled plastic – Italian Cuisine

In an Indian school, students pay for their lessons with plastic waste to be recycled and receive innovative professional educational training in environmental education

In Dispur, the capital of the Assam region in the north east ofIndia, there is a truly innovative school, the Akshar Forum school, which is laying the foundations for a possible new and innovative method of teaching in Indian public schools and beyond. First of all Akshar students, instead of paying their tuition, are asked to deliver 25 plastic items a week for recycling (for a total of about 10 thousand objects per month), coming from household waste or those of the neighborhood. But the particularity of this school, one sustainability best practice which has attracted the attention of the international media press does not end there. In fact, at the Akshar Forum school, people are taught to respect the environment and to recycle, but at the same time they guarantee aprofessional environmental education and unconventional teaching methods are adopted, also aimed at combating child labor.

A new school concept, to save young people and the environment

According to the local non-governmental organization, the city of Dispur alone, which has just over a million inhabitants, produces almost 40 tons of waste per day; as if that weren't enough, the local population has the habit of burning much of the plastic used, causing highly toxic fumes. An alarming situation, which drew the attention of Mukhtar & Sarma, the young couple who in 2016 raised funds and financing from private donors to manage this school project. The goal, from the beginning, was to give life to a free school accessible to all that could stem the social and ecological problems of the area as much as possible, at the same time laying the foundations for an experimental and potentially replicable initiative elsewhere. The school, completely free, has included a recycling center, but the parents were reluctant to make a contribution in terms of household waste, precisely because they preferred to burn it at home. From there came the idea of introducing a mandatory tax which consisted of either a payment in money or the delivery of plastic waste. This policy of alternative tuition quickly took hold, so much so that it was quickly accepted by all parents.

Starting from the bottom to form the eco warriors of the future

The school currently has over a hundred students, aged between 4 and 15. Many of them, before starting school, were laborers at nearby stone quarries, where they made about $ 2.50 a day. Mukhtar & Sarma, in addition to the ecological cause, also had at heart the one linked to fight against child labor and in this sense too they have come up with an unconventional solution. They devised a one-of-a-kind learning model by recruiting kids who could tutor the children and establishing a reward system for students that consisted of fake banknotes to use in local stores to buy snacks, clothes, shoes or toys. . The monetary incentive, which goes hand in hand with the achievement of academic results, is proving to be a powerful motivator for the community. In this way, children are motivated to go to school and welcome it with interest professional environmental training which is made available to them; the students, in fact, attend carpentry and electronics workshops, learn to install solar panels and, above all, carry out outdoor recycling, for example transforming waste plastic supplied by households into ecological bricks. Thanks to this project, the children have convinced their families not to burn plastic anymore, and in general in the community there is a greater awareness of environmental issues and a greater sense of responsibility. In short, the success and positive impact of Akshar's school model have been such that the government has decided to entrust Mukhtar & Sarma with five other schools, and it is not excluded that this is only the beginning of a great change at the national level. .

Whatever happens in India, this initiative is the demonstration that, thanks to a few simple school and training initiatives, much can be done to transform the new generations into eco warriors champions of the environment and sustainability.

Photo: Indian plastic recycling school_dhakatribune.jpg

Cooking school: lentils, how to clean and cook them – Italian Cuisine

Lentils, good and healthy, are a special ingredient for auspicious recipes. Find out how to use them in the kitchen.

Did you know that lentils are the oldest legume cultivated by man? Since 7000 BC there are traces of their existence, from the small and tasty mountain ones to the brown and red ones of the southern regions. Now they are preparing to triumph on our tables in the New Year's Eve.

Find out how to treat legumes and vegetables for successful dishes by participating in our course

The countless beneficial properties of this legume

Lentils are also known as la meat of the poor, as sources of potassium, iron, phosphorus, folic acid, zinc, copper, magnesium, pantothenic acid, thiamine, niacin and vitamin B6. All these properties make them more digestible than other legumes, also due to their thinner skin. After sowing in January and harvesting in August, we find them dried all year round and in all colors: red, orange, yellow, black and brown.

How to clean lentils in the best way

Like all other legumes, lentils go too wash in cold running water before use, taking care to eliminate waste. A simple trick to understand which lentil to keep and which not, is to eliminate all the shriveled seeds that float once immersed in water. In general, after soaking, it is best to remove the water and rinse them well before cooking.

The importance of slow cooking

Preparation and cooking times vaccording to the size of the legume: for small lentils, such as those from Castelluccio, just half an hour of soaking and twenty minutes of cooking in plenty of boiling water. If you use large lentils, soak them for two hours and then put them to boil for an hour. If you owe them instead accompany with cotechino, boil them for 40 minutes and then finish cooking (at least another 40 minutes), with the meat over low heat. In fact, it is essential for all legumes to cook very slowly, over low heat so that the water "quivers". If cooked over a high flame they never become tender, they break and are emptied. Traditional cooking in clay pots or flask even better as the Tuscan tradition wants for example, they are among the best. Cooking in an earthenware pot gives the dish a special flavor, but takes longer. When cooking with the flame at a minimum it is important to simmer and never boil, continuing to add hot water if necessary. In addition, throughout the cooking, the lentils must be constantly covered by water. To reduce the time you can use the pressure cooker: you proceed by skimming the lentils and closing only when no more foam is formed.

One of our favorite recipes with lentils

To enhance the flavor to the maximum, one of the best recipes is also the simplest and fastest one: the soup. Just fry a clove of garlic with a little chilli in extra virgin olive oil, add the lentils directly and continue adding water until cooked. And finally, serve with croutons and a drizzle of raw oil.

Text by Giulia Ubaldi