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Fried zucchini rounds

Fried zucchini rounds are almost as good as fried zucchini blossoms 🙂 The batter I make with flour and cold sparkling water gives the fried zucchini a very light and crispy coating almost like tempura.

prep time 15 min     cooking time  10 min total
ingredients
  • 1-2 zucchini
  • 3-5dl peanut oil
  • 1dl flour
  • 2 dl COLD sparkling water/mineral water
  • pinch of salt

Disclaimer: the quantities are very approximative.

1. Wash and cut the zucchini into thin even slices with a mandoline slicer  or a knife and pat them dry.

2. Heat the oil in a heavy bottom pot or pan over medium high until the oil is hot but not smoking.

3. In the meantime make the batter: Take the water out of the fridge just before using it. Blend the batter to the consistency of a heavy cream.  Add a pinch of salt.

4. Dip or soak the zucchini rounds in the batter and fry them in batches for a few minutes on each side until golden brown and crispy.

5. Drain on paper towels or better yet on brown paper sheets for fried food, season with salt and serve hot.

BUON APPETITO!

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Nourish bowl

An extremely healthy lunch option with various raw veggies and legumes.  Add some good condiment, preferably good extra virgin olive oil and lemon juice or white wine vinegar. For a completely vegetarian alternative, leave out the tuna/chicken.

prep time  15 min
ingredients
  • tuna/cooked chicken
  • carrots
  • cucumber
  • avocado
  • baby spinach
  • pickled beetroot
  • hard boiled eggs
  • cannellini beans
  • red peppers
  • cabbage
  • pomegranate seeds

other options:

  • sweet corn
  • peas
  • string beans
  • artichoke hearts
  • arugula
  • button mushrooms
  • nuts and seeds
  • tomatoes
  • zucchini
  • olives

Chop, slice and cut your veggies and eggs, arrange them in a large salad bowl to your liking.  Add tuna or chicken, pour on top your condiment and voilà, your nourish bowl is ready to go.

BUON APPETITO!

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Fried zucchini flowers Roman style

I love fried zucchini flowers. There are many ways to prepare zucchini flowers depending on the cook and the region. My favourites are Roman style deep fried flowers. There are also different ways to prepare the batter. Mine is prepared with flour and cold sparkling water to obtain a very light and crispy coating.

Fry up a batch, enjoy them fresh, then do more. That way they stay crisp and light. You want male flowers which have stems. Females are attached to the squash. Ask for flowers at farmers’ markets and in specialty food shops. Be sure the blossoms are from zucchini as other squash flowers often have strong, unpleasant flavors.

If you need to wash the flowers, do it very gently and dry them suspended upside down. I never wash them, gasp! Use a cold-pressed vegetable oil (peanut or grape seed oil are best), if possible.

prep time 10 min     cook time 15 min
ingredients for 12 flowers
  • 12 male zucchini flowers
  • 3-5dl peanut oil
  • 1dl flour
  • 2 dl COLD sparkling water/mineral water
  • 12 pieces, about 1 cm, of anchovy
  • 12 pieces, about 1 cm, of mozzarella
  • salt

It is very hard to give exact quantities because I make the batter without measurements so bear with me. I’ll illustrate with photos.

Take the water out of the fridge just before using it. Blend the batter to the consistency of a heavy cream.  Add a pinch of salt.

Gently remove the pistil from each flower. Here it is removed.

Heat the oil in a heavy bottom pot or pan over medium high until the oil is hot but not smoking.

Place one piece of anchovy and mozzarella in each blossom.

Dip the blossoms in the batter

Fry two to three blossoms at a time on both sides for a few minutes until crispy and golden brown.

Drain on paper towels or better yet on brown paper sheets for fried food, season with salt and serve hot.

BUON APPETITO!

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Chicken veggie bean soup

This soup is easy to make like most of my recipes. It is full of flavour and very filling especially if you add rice or couscous or even tiny pasta to cover your grain/carb intake. You can easily add or substitute some of the veggies.

prep time 10 min     cook time 40 min
ingredients for 4
  • 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 big onion, diced
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 500g skinless, boneless chicken breast, cut into bite-sized pieces
  • 2 carrots, diced
  • 2 green peppers
  • 125g baby spinach
  • 4-5 big button mushrooms, halved or quartered
  • 1 can (400g) drained red beans
  • 1 small can (200g) diced or crushed tomatoes + some water
  • peperoncino (optional)
  • basil and or parsley
  • salt and pepper

1. Heat olive oil in a Dutch oven or a heavy bottom pot over medium high heat. Add onion, garlic and chicken and sauté for 5 minutes or until lightly browned.

2. Add carrots, peppers, peperoncino if using, and tomatoes. Rinse the can and add the water on top. Bring to a boil and let simmer. Add salt and pepper.

3. After 15 minutes add drained beans and mushrooms and cook uncovered for another 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

4. Add baby spinach and basil (and/or parsley)for the last few minutes.

5. Serve hot adding the grain of your choice.

6. Keeps well in the fridge up to 2 days.

BUON APPETITO!

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Rainbow roasted veggies

These healthy rainbow veggies are an easy way to add color, tons of vitamins and flavors to your meal in one sheet pan. They are a fantastic side dish for chicken, beef, lamb or pork. You can omit the oil, if you want to. I always use a little bit of extra virgin olive oil. I have two variations. And both times I forgot to take a photo of the cooked veggies. Prep time and cook time are the same.

prep time 15 min     cook time 30 min
ingredients for 4 (option 1)
  • 2 sweet red peppers, chopped
  • 1 yellow bell pepper, chopped
  • 3-4 carrots,  cut into sticks
  • 2 onions, quartered
  • 2 zucchini, cut into rounds
  • 1 sweet potato, chopped
  • handful of parsley, dried rosemary and dried thyme
  • salt and pepper
  • 2-3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1. Preheat oven to 200 C.

2. Place vegetables onto a baking sheet. Season with salt, pepper and herbs. Drizzle oil on top.

3. Bake for about 30 min until the vegetables are cooked but still a little bit crunchy.

ingredients for 4 (option 2)

  • 2 sweet red peppers, chopped
  • 1 eggplant, chopped
  • 4-5 carrots, cut into rounds
  • 350 g mushrooms, chopped
  • 2 red onions, quartered
  • 2 zucchini, chopped
  • dried herbs: thyme, rosemary, oregano
  • salt and pepper
  • 2-3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Other than the above mentioned vegetables, you could choose some of these:

RED: tomatoes, beets, radishes

YELLOW: yellow beets

ORANGE: orange bell peppers, pumpkin, butternut squash

GREEN: green beans, asparagus, broccoli, brussels sprouts, snow peas

PURPLE: purple carrots, purple cabbage

You can also add potatoes, but I hardly ever mix potatoes with the veggies, instead I make a whole baking sheet of potatoes.

tip: try to make one layer of each vegetables, they will roast better.

BUON APPETITO!

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Stir fried yellow bell peppers

Peperoni alla Nonna is one of the all time favourites in our home. The recipe is from my late mother-in-law hence the name Grandma’s peppers. Super easy to make and can be used as an appetizer or a side dish.

prep time 10 min     cook time 20 min
ingredients for 4
  • 3-4 yellow bell peppers
  • 4-5 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
  • handful of Gaeta olives
  • salt
  • 4-5 tablespoons grated Parmesan

1. Cut peppers into strips and pat them dry.

2. In a large skillet heat the olive oil. Start frying your peppers in batches. Do not crowd the skillet. You may find a splash guard useful at this time.

3. After 4-5 minutes on high heat, turn the heat to medium and turn the strips. Season with salt. The peppers need to start turning brown.

4. Keep cooking until peppers are soft, about 8-10 minutes.

5. Move the first batch onto a plate and repeat with the others.

6. When done, put all the peppers in the skillet once more and add the olives, pitted if you want. Now add the “secret” ingredient which is the grated Parmesan. Stir to coat and turn off the heat after 1-2 min.

7. Serve warm or cold.

BUON APPETITO!

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Fasolakia

The traditional Greek green beans recipe (Fasolakia giaxni) is hearty, healthy and bursting with fresh and vibrant colors and flavors. You can find many variations of this traditional Greek dish, with the most popular being the classic version with green beans only and others with broad beans with potatoes or sweet potatoes and sometimes with zucchini. Feel free to experiment by adding different types of vegetables.

The traditional fasolakia recipe falls under the category of Greek dishes called “Ladera”, meaning Greek dishes prepared only with olive oil, with no addition of other fat. So make sure to use some good quality extra virgin olive oil, which will give its own, unique taste to this dish! Enjoy this delicious fasolakia as a hearty vegetarian meal or as a delicious side dish. 
prep time 10 min     cook time 40 min
ingredients for 4
  • 50-70 ml (1/4 cup) extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 onion finely diced
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 can (400ml) crushed tomatoes
  • 500 g green beans or Romano pole beans or flat beans
  • 1 carrot, cut into rounds
  • 500g potatoes or sweet potatoes, in chunks
  • 1 bunch flat leaf parsley, finely chopped
  • 4-5 tablespoons fresh mint, dill, oregano finely chopped
  • 0,5 l water
  • salt and pepper to season
  • 200 g feta

1. Trim, wash and drain the beans.

2. Heat oil in a large sauce pan over medium-high heat, add onion and garlic and cook till soft, about 2-3 min. Add the tomatoes and cook for another 5 min. The traditional recipe for Greek green beans calls for fresh ripe tomatoes, but you can substitute them with canned chopped tomatoes.

3. Add the potatoes and stir thoroughly to combine. Add some salt and pepper. Add the beans ON TOP of the potatoes but do not stir.

4. Add herbs and enough water to just cover the beans. Allow to cook for 15 min, stir all the ingredients, season with more salt and pepper and lower the heat to a low setting. Cook for further 30 min (45 min total) till the beans are tender.

5. Serve it with a block of feta cheese and good crusty bread. It’s mandatory to use the bread to wipe up all that beautiful sauce.

BUON APPETITO!

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Roman style puntarelle

Puntarelle is the name given in Italy to tender sprouts of Catalogna chicory (or asparagus chicory). They can be eaten boiled, sautéed or raw. Puntarelle alla Romana is crunchy, curly chicory salad dressed with anchovy vinaigrette.
photo from the internet
On the left the Catalogna chicory plant, on the right it is trimmed and cleaned, which is the way I prefer to buy it 🙂 If you want, you can find instructions on the internet on how to clean and trim the chicory. Puntarelle is a lovely side dish and especially good with lamb or pork.
prep time 10 min
ingredients for 4
  • 500g cleaned puntarelle
  • 1-2 garlic cloves
  • 4 oil-packed anchovy fillets (drained)
  • 3-4 tablespoons red wine vinegar
  • 4-5 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
  • salt

1. Dry the ribbons and place in a large bowl.

2. Combine the anchovies, crushed garlic, red wine vinegar and emulsify with oil to make the vinaigrette. Or just mix the cloves and anchovies to the salad and add the oil and vinegar like I do. Some people use lemon instead of vinegar. I am not one of those even though I love me a good lemon or two almost anywhere. Here I think the slightly tangy taste of puntarelle calls for red wine vinegar. Adjust salt – you probably don’t need it at all depending on your anchovies.

BUON APPETITO!

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Two winter salads with spinach and fruit

Today I have two variations of the same winter salad to present. Just changing the legumes and a few other ingredients you obtain another salad. In the first one I’ve used cannellini beans and in the second chickpeas as protein.

prep time 10 min
ingredients for 2
  • 1 bag (125g) baby spinach or 1/2 baby spinach and 1/2 mixed lettuce
  • 1 can (400g) cannellini beans
  • 1 grapefruit
  • 1 avocado
  • 4-5 sun-dried tomatoes
  • handful of almonds
  • 4-5 tablespoons pomegranate seeds
  • 3-4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
  • 3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
  • salt

1. Rinse the beans, peel and cut the grapefruit into mouth size bites, cut tomatoes into stripes, deseed the pomegranate unless you have done it previously and slice and peel the avocado.

2. Place all the ingredients apart from the dressing on a bed of baby spinach and toss them together with the dressing.

variation

Substitute the cannellini beans with chickpeas and the almonds with sunflower seeds. Omit the sun dried tomatoes.

BUON APPETITO!

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Creamy pumpkin soup

Creamy pumpkin soup or as they say in Italian vellutata di zucca is sooo good. Creamy, delicate, slightly sweet with the addition of spices this soup is an ultimate comfort food.

prep time 20 min     cook time 35 min
ingredients for 4
  • 1 kg pumpkin
  • 1 large potato
  • 1 l vegetable broth
  • 1 onion, chopped
  • 2 tablespoons extra vergin olive oil
  • salt and pepper
  • dash of cinnamon
  • dash of nutmeg
  • fresh thyme to garnish
  • 50 g pancetta or bacon, strips or cubes
  • a few slices of toasted/grilled rustic bread

1. Clean, deseed and cut the pumpkin into relatively small cubes. Peel and cut into cubes also the potato.

2. Warm the oil in a soup pot over medium-high heat and add chopped onion. Let cook until soft, about 5-6 minutes over medium heat. Don’t let it burn. Add pumpkin and potato and as much broth needed to cover the vegetables. Adjust salt and pepper.

3. Let simmer on low for about 25-30 min checking from time to time and adding broth. When the vegetables are cooked, blend the soup with immersion blender until smooth and creamy. Add a dash of cinnamon and nutmeg and mix. Ladle the soup into bowls.

4. Fry the pancetta strips and add them with some fresh thyme and grilled bread to your bowl.

FOR VEGETARIAN ALTERNATIVE: leave out the pancetta

FOR GLUTEN FREE ALTERNATIVE: leave out the bread or use appropriate bread

BUON APPETITO!