Tag: Spoon

Weighing without scale, here's how to do it with spoon and glass! – Italian Cuisine

Weighing without scale, here's how to do it with spoon and glass!


The scale in the kitchen is essential, but what if we don't have it available? Here's how to weigh the ingredients with spoons and glasses!

It may happen that you do not have the right tools in the kitchen and find yourself having to weigh without balance all kinds of ingredients: flour, milk, sugar, but also cocoa, oil, rice … How to do it? Nothing could be simpler! With a few tools that we all have at home, weighing without a scale is very easy. No more grams or milliliters, the units of measurement become one teaspoon, a spoon, one coffee cup from coffee or a glass.

However, weighing without a balance requires attention. First, a teaspoon of flour does not correspond to a teaspoon of sugar, in fact each ingredient has a different composition and a specific weight. For this we have collected below some of the most used ingredients in the kitchen, indicating for each the correspondence between grams, milliliters, spoons and glasses.
This method is also useful for converting units of measurement Angol-Saxon recipes, but remember: weighing without a scale is an excellent solution when there is no other choice, but – especially in pastry – the quantities are fundamental and it is therefore ideal to weigh them precisely.

How to weigh flour without a balance

A teaspoon of flour corresponds to 10 g
A spoonful of flour corresponds to 20 g
One cup corresponds to 35 g of flour
A cup of flour corresponds to 170 g
An average glass corresponds to 130 g of flour

Weigh the granulated sugar without balance

A teaspoon of granulated sugar corresponds to 5 g
A spoonful corresponds to 20 g of granulated sugar
One cup corresponds to 60 of granulated sugar
One cup corresponds to 250 g of granulated sugar
An average glass corresponds to 200 g of granulated sugar

How to weigh milk without a balance

One teaspoon corresponds to 6 g of milk
A spoonful corresponds to 12 g of milk
One cup corresponds to 60 of milk
One cup corresponds to 250 g of milk
An average glass corresponds to 220 g of milk

How to weigh potato starch without scale

One teaspoon corresponds to 8 g of starch
One spoonful corresponds to 20 g of starch
One cup corresponds to 120 g of starch
A medium glass corresponds to 100 g of starch

How to weigh without balance: cocoa or icing sugar

One teaspoon corresponds to 7 g of cocoa or powdered sugar
One spoonful corresponds to 15 g of cocoa or icing sugar
One cup corresponds to 120 g of cocoa or icing sugar
A medium glass corresponds to 100 g of cocoa or icing sugar

Weigh the cream without scale

One teaspoon corresponds to 6 g of fresh cream
A spoonful corresponds to 10 g of fresh cream
One cup corresponds to 60 of fresh cream
A medium glass corresponds to 220 g of fresh cream

How to weigh butter without a balance

One teaspoon corresponds to 7 g of butter
A spoonful corresponds to 15 g of butter

How to weigh without balance: oil

One teaspoon corresponds to 6 g of oil
A spoonful corresponds to 12 g of oil
A medium glass corresponds to 220 g of oil

How to weigh rice without a balance

One teaspoon corresponds to 9 g of rice
One spoonful corresponds to 20 g of rice
One cup corresponds to 80 of rice
A medium glass corresponds to 165 g of rice

These units of measure for weighing without scales are to be considered with a full glass or spoon and are indicative, as they are may vary slightly based on the size of the tools you have available.

Discovering traditional Greek spoon desserts – Italian Cuisine


Discovering the traditional Greek spoon desserts, many varieties of fruit in a jar characterized and enriched with local ingredients

Since ancient times the Greeks have been experts in fruit preservation, developing and gradually refining techniques and recipes that constitute an essential part of traditional cuisine. THE spoon desserts (glyko tou koutaliou), very popular and widespread throughout the country, they are made with a wide range of fruit which, in addition to seasonal and local fruit, can be enriched and flavored with other ingredients such as honey, flowers, spices, herbs and dried fruit during preparation. There are also special recipes that Greek families pass on from generation to generation. So let's go find out characteristics and varieties of traditional Greek spoon desserts, including recipes typical of some areas and islands of Greece.

Preparation, characteristics and varieties

The so-called spoon desserts are therefore a preparation in which the fruit, left whole or cut, is boiled in the sugar syrup with a zest or lemon juice and a possible addition of flavorings, spices or other ingredients, and then poured into jars of sterilized glass, such as jam. A good spoon dessert requires that the fruit be solid and juicy and the syrup in which it is immersed clear, dense and very aromatic.
The procedure differs slightly depending on the main ingredient, since some fruits may require different quantities of sugar and water as well as different cooking times. The fresh fruit used can differ from season to season, but in general there are some of the most used bitter oranges, grapes, figs, black cherries, cherries and quinces, while among the aromas used in the boiling phase and then removed we have herbs such as mint and marjoram, various spices including cinnamon and cloves, or even flowers and plants that can include rose, jasmine, lemon flowers and vanilla. Also during the boiling, a small amount of blanched dried fruit is poured in flakes or whole, generally nuts or almonds, so as to add flavor and crunchiness to the final product.

In short, preparing spoon desserts is an art and the variations can be many, as the many typical specialties scattered throughout the country. Among these the best known are the one made with unripe pistachios from the island of Aegina, the one with pumpkin and almonds from the island of Milo, the one with unripe whole nuts, honey and cloves from the island of Andros, the flavored one basil from the island of Naxos, the one made with black cherries and walnuts on the island of Icaria and, finally, the preserved unripe citrus fruits from the Peloponnese. The specialty made with rose petals is also much loved by the Greeks (a traditional ingredient often used also for loukoumi sweets), of which the one produced by the monastery of Taxiarchon in Lakonia in the Peloponnese is particularly well known.

History and evolution of a dessert with ancient origins

Spoon desserts have always been synonymous with tradition, hospitality and welcome, all concepts historically rooted in the culture of Greece. In fact, these desserts have their roots in antiquity, an era in which a type of healthy and balanced diet gradually took shape, today known as the Mediterranean diet, characterized among other things by a large use of fruit and dried fruit, but also of herbs aromatic, spices and various seasonings. Not surprisingly, it turned out that the ancient Greeks invented various forms of fruit preservation, including the boiling followed by storage in honey or grape molasses and only later in the sugar syrup. One of the oldest recipes for spoon desserts was called melimilon and consisted of quinces boiled in wine and then placed in jars full of honey. Historically, the golden age of these desserts was in the 50s, when the jar in which it was kept was a source of pride for the housewives and eating these homemade desserts, served to guests on crystal saucers accompanied by tea spoons and a glass of cold water was an important ritual.
If, in the 1960s, thanks to the introduction of the electric refrigerator, their fame declined sharply, they gradually returned to being rediscovered and appreciated, along with many other home cooking preparations that were decidedly healthier and less caloric than those that had spread. It was then that great-grandmothers and grandmothers of our times resumed this tradition, experimenting more and more and using fruits and vegetables produced in different places and in different seasons, including figs, quinces, watermelons, but also zucchini, aubergines, tomatoes.
Nowadays this homemade practice is less widespread than before, but still present and there are many spoon desserts produced in Greece, with every type of ingredient and characteristics.

To taste this specialty, in addition to buying artisanal ones, you can find spoon desserts on the menu of some restaurants and cafes, in general served in summer as a garnish for cups of fresh creamy yogurt or Chios mastic flavored ice cream.

Photo: typical Greek spoon dessert_Veranet.jpg
Photo: Greek spoon dessert with cherries_Greekbreakfast.jpeg
Photo: spoon dessert grecia_giorgos tsoulis.jpg

What is bruschetta with a spoon? – Italian Cuisine


The idea to copy comes from the MiCasa toasteria in Milan and is perfect for receiving friends. Especially when they are numerous

Copying chefs' recipes is often impossible, frustrating and unsatisfactory. Copying ideas as a presentation or a combination, however, is often very feasible. This time the inspiration comes thanks to one of the menu proposals of the MiCasa toasteria, but it is not a toast. The first toasteria of Milan – like the Enigmista Week – boasts countless attempts at imitation and opened in the NoLo district in the distant 2013. It obviously serves toasts that look like club sandwiches, bread spread with jam or chocolate and some salads. Everything revolves around the bread, and when it advances it becomes crouton.

The bruschetta in the glass

The bruschetta in the glass is a dish of recycling, a crispy panzanella, a deconstructed classic. They make it with pieces of toasted and crunchy bread, seasoned tomato and a robiola cream and aromatic herbs. Very easy and modifiable with other ingredients, adding cucumbers, onion, black olives and feta, grilled vegetables and flaked almonds, or combining raw zucchini, lemon and mint …
Practical, you can prepare it with a little advance, it is perfect for a standing aperitif, a picnic or a buffet. At the toasteria MiCasa they serve as an appetizer, as an aperitif, or just during lunches and catering that they organize around the city. With their Spritz al Tabasco slightly spicy, it's great.

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