Clark The Italian Kitchen

More than 100 delicious recipes, from arancini to zabaglione
1. Auflage 2025
ISBN: 978-1-78879-693-4
Verlag: Ryland Peters & Small
Format: EPUB
Kopierschutz: 6 - ePub Watermark

E-Book, Englisch, 192 Seiten

Over 100 recipes for the BEST-LOVED dishes and a masterclass in Italian cookery from hugely experienced author and teacher MAXINE CLARK. EXPERT step-by-step instructions to achieve PERFECT RESULTS every time you cook. Choose from ANTIPASTI, PASTA, GNOCCHI & POLENTA, PIZZA & BREAD, plus salads, vegetables, meat and sweet things. With good ingredients, a little basic cooking knowledge and a big warm cook's heart, you will be ready to cook the best Italian food. Italian cooking techniques are simple, because good natural ingredients need nothing much done to them to create great food. Beginning with the basic principles and moving on to more sophisticated recipes, the masterclasses included cover everyday foods as well as more ambitious dishes. In addition, mini step-by-steps offer professional tips on preparing key Italian ingredeints, guaranteeing perfect results every time you cook. Choose from elegant Antipasti such as Fresh Tuna Carpaccio, rustic Soups like La Ribollita, classic pasta plates like Pasta all Norma plus meaty offerings such as Meatballs with Porcini Mushrooms & Pecorino. Italian Chocolate Truffles and Zabaglione, to name just a few, finish off this collection of authentic recipes.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Clark, Maxine

Leseproben

bruschetta

The word bruschetta is pronounced broosketta NOT brooshetta. The word may come from bruciare – the Italian word meaning to burn, and it is said to have originated in Lazio or Abruzzo. A satisfying rustic snack made with the simplest of ingredients to satisfy a hunger pang. Toasted bread like this was often placed in the bottom of a soup bowl with the soup poured on top to make a more satisfying meal. Whatever their size or shape, all these snacks should be freshly made with the best ingredients to hand – there’s simply no excuse for a soggy bruschetta (or an overcooked, rock-hard one!).

traditional peasant tomato and garlic bruschetta

fettunta

The word fettunta comes from the Tuscan dialect and derives from Latin, meaning ‘anointed slice’. It is a slice of bread grilled over hot coals, rubbed with garlic and drizzled with olive oil. To be authentic you should use only the finest Tuscan extra virgin olive oil. The ripe tomato is just crushed in your hand and smashed onto the bread, then eaten immediately. This is bruschetta at its simplest and best. This is a more civilized version, but you should try the real thing – it’s great fun! Use only the best and freshest ingredients for this.

4 large very ripe tomatoes

4 thick slices country bread,

preferably sourdough

2 garlic cloves, halved

extra virgin olive oil, for drizzling

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Serves 4

Roughly chop the tomatoes and season with salt and pepper.

To make the bruschetta, grill, toast or pan-grill the bread on both sides until lightly browned or toasted. Rub the top side of each slice with the cut garlic, then drizzle with olive oil.

Spoon the tomatoes over the bruschetta and drizzle with more olive oil. Eat immediately with your fingers!

crostini

Crostini are smaller and more refined than bruschetta and make great vehicles for just about any combination of ingredients so let your imagination run riot! They are most often baked in the oven or fried until crisp but they do vary from region to region – in Tuscany, only one side is toasted, the topping being spread on the untoasted side. In the Veneto, crostini bases are crunchily fried or grilled/broiled golden polenta, making a very filling mouthful indeed displaying an interesting contrast of textures – crisp on the outside, but soft on the inside. Crostini are usually elegantly served with aperitivi and appear as a matter of course in Italian bars. Crostoni are just larger crostini.

white bean and black olive crostini

crostini ai fagioli e tapenade

Here, the combination of bland creamy beans and sharp, rich, salty tapénade makes a sublime mouthful. You can use any type of canned bean for this, but the whiter they are the prettier they look. If you like, chop up some more black olives and sprinkle them on the bean purée or crumble some crisply cooked bacon over the top for extra crunch.

1 Italian sfilatino or thin French baguette

extra virgin olive oil, for brushing chopped flat-leaf parsley, to serve

Italian black olive tapenade:

175 g/1½ cups oven-dried (Greek-style) black olives, pitted

2 garlic cloves

3 canned anchovies, drained

2 teaspoons capers, drained

1 tablespoon olive oil

white bean purée:

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 garlic cloves, finely chopped

1 teaspoon very finely chopped rosemary

1 small fresh red chili/chile, deseeded and finely chopped

400-g/14-oz can cannellini beans, rinsed and drained

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Serves 6–8

To make the crostini, preheat the oven to 190ºC (375ºF) Gas 5. Slice the bread into thin rounds, brush on both sides with olive oil and spread out on a baking sheet. Bake in the preheated oven for about 10 minutes until lightly golden and crisp.

Put all the ingredients for the tapénade into a food processor or blender, and blend until smooth.

To make the bean purée, heat the oil in a small frying pan/skillet and add the garlic. Cook gently for 2 minutes until golden but on no account brown. Stir in the rosemary and chili. Remove from the heat and add the beans with 3 tablespoons water. Mash the beans roughly in the pan and return to the heat until heated through. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Spread the crostini with tapénade and then add a spoonful of bean purée. Scatter with the chopped parsley and serve while warm.

pear, pecorino and pea crostini

crostini alle pere, pecorino e piselli

An uplifting combination of fresh spring flavours and colours, and one of my favourites. Puréeing the peas gives a sweet, earthy base on which to sprinkle the combination of salty, nutty Pecorino (Parmesan would work very well here, too) and fruity pears, which are tossed in a few drops of balsamic vinegar for sharpness. For an even fruitier finish, try to find vincotto ai fichi (a deliciously concentrated condiment of grape must, wine vinegar and figs).

1 Italian sfilatino or thin French baguette

extra virgin olive oil, for brushing and moistening

250g/2 cups shelled fresh or frozen peas freshly grated nutmeg

1 small ripe pear

a drop of balsamic or sherry vinegar or vincotto ai fichi

125 g/1 cup fresh young Pecorino or Parmesan cheese, diced

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Serves 6

To make the crostini, preheat the oven to 190°C (375°F) Gas 5.

Slice the bread into thin rounds, brush on both sides with olive oil and spread out on a baking sheet. Bake in the preheated oven for about 10 minutes until lightly golden and crisp.

Meanwhile, blanch the peas in boiling water for 3 minutes if they are fresh or 2 minutes if they are frozen. Drain them, refresh in cold water and drain again. Purée the peas in a food processor or blender, moistening with a little olive oil. Season with salt, pepper and freshly grated nutmeg.

Core and finely chop the pear. Mix with a drop of balsamic vinegar, then add the cheese and mix well. Spread the crostini with a mound of pea purée and top with a spoonful of the pear and cheese mixture. Serve immediately.

courgette and mint fritters

frittelle di zucchini e menta

This is my favorite way with courgettes/zucchini! It changes their watery blandness into sweet and crunchy mouthfuls with just a hint of mint. Salting the courgettes before adding them to the batter draws out the water, concentrating the flavour. The batter is very light and, if fried at the correct temperature, it doesn’t absorb any oil at all.

600 g/1¼ lb. courgettes/zucchini

finely grated zest of 1 lemon

2 tablespoons freshly chopped mint

light olive oil, for frying

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

lemon wedges, to serve

batter:

2 eggs, separated

2 tablespoons olive oil

200 ml/1 cup lager-style beer

140 g/1 cup plain/all-purpose flour

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

an electric deep-fryer (optional)

Serves 4

To make the batter, put the egg yolks in a bowl, beat well, then slowly beat in the olive oil, followed by the beer, then the flour. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Cover and let rest for 1 hour.

Meanwhile, grate the courgettes coarsely, toss with salt, put in a sieve/strainer and let drain for 10 minutes. Rinse them well, then pat dry with paper towels. Put them in a bowl, add the lemon zest, mint and salt and pepper, and stir well.

Just before cooking, put the egg whites, salt and pepper in a bowl and beat until firm. Gently fold into the batter. Heat the light olive oil to 190°C (375°F) in a deep-fryer or a large saucepan with a frying basket. Mix the grated courgettes with just enough batter to bind them.

Working in batches, slide about 6 small spoonfuls of the battered courgettes at a time into the hot oil and fry for 2–3 minutes until golden and crisp. Drain the fritters on paper towels, sprinkle with salt and serve hot with lemon wedges.

choosing courgettes

Buy courgettes when the skins are taught and shiny – a courgette should snap if bent – if not, and it just bends, then you have a sad, tired courgette. Choose smaller courgettes as they contain less water and have more flavuor. Don’t worry about scratches and blemishes on the skin – it is thin and damages easily. Italians prefer them at their best, picked from the fields in summer.

However, if the courgettes in the bottom of your refrigerator drawer have seen better days – don’t throw them out, all is not lost! Take a large bowl and fill with cold water, add a good handful of salt, and add your sliced or grated courgette. Leave to soak in the refrigerator for 1 hour and the flagging vegetables will have perked up. Drain them through a colander, rinse in cold water and pat dry as before.

Good Italian varieties to try include Striata di Italia, cream speckles or stripes on a mid-green background is the favorite in Italy; Tonda di Nizza, brilliant dark green and round –-for stuffing; Verde di Milano, the usual green one; Bianca di Trieste or Sarda are very pale green and sweet. There are many, many more.

spinach and ricotta timbales with sun-dried tomatoes, olives, capers and herbs

timballi di ricotta, spinaci e condimenti

These are little savoury cheesecake towers, served warm with a drizzle of olive oil or a small...