Food, Love and Family
Something is cooking this December …. and both Nonna & I cannot wait to tell you all about it!
If you love our recipes please stay tuned because we are going to share more recipes and secrets with you
Here is a little taste 🙂
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=78bCoTOmxAo
What’s your feel good food? That kind of food that can lift your spirits immediately, that doesn’t only feed your body but your brain 🧠 too with positive vibes and awesomeness 😍 Everyone has one, no matter what our age is, we all have that special food that we crave, that we love and that will put a smile on our face straight away 💕 mine has to be MELANZANE 🍆 /MEH-LAN-TSAH-NEH/ Aubergines 🍆 I would choose them over everything else 💚 here they are: “Baked Aubergines with Garlic Breadcrumbs” 👌🏻super easy, fresh and delicious 💚 this is a vegetarian dish that can be eaten hot or cold, with rice, with a fresh salad, even in a bun as a substitute to burgers 🙂
Nonna has always taught us to eat as many vegetables as possible and no many people are familiar with aubergines, please give it a try and let Nonna know what your feedback is 🙂 this recipe is just perfect for everyone to be eaten hot or cold.
Summer we missed you so much! To celebrate the beautiful sunshine I would like to share a very simple and versatile salad dish that you can have as a starter, a main or a side dish. I learned that freshness and simplicity are always the key to a successful meal….most of all if you are feeding some hungry teenagers 🙂
I made this salad for a few events that I held in our local community, the exciting thing thing for children is to prepare all the ingredients and to assemble together but the best thing is that children (and grownups) LOVE this dish as it’s full of flavour, freshness and colours.
If you are a vegetarian and you don’t eat fish, you can leave the tuna out and add a handful of cherry tomatoes 🙂
Nonna has always taught us to keep our dishes simple and fresh, this recipe is just perfect for everyone to be eaten in a hot day like today.
This is a little different to my previous recipe 🙂
It’s my first cooking video and I wanted to share it with you.
I am cooking for my friends and I am Bringing Nonna to their home sharing with them all her precious advice.
I must say it was harder than I thought, being in front of the camera and trying to be as natural as possible….. Hope you’ll enjoy 🙂
Serving 3 people
Ingredients
250g Arborio rice
800ml Vegetable stock
pinch of salt,
knob of butter
tbs olive oil
half onion
handful of asparagus, sliced
a tsp saffron
Preparation
Place the butter on a no-stick pan, the olive oil and melt in on a low heat, add the onion and simmer until golden. Add the rice and stir it. The rice will start roasting and it’s important that it doesn’t burn. Have your stock ready and make sure it’s hot, alternatively melt the gelatine cube in the hot water and mix it thoroughly. Gradually add the stock in the pan and keep stirring the rice, repeat this until you have used all the stock. Add the asparagus Sprinkle the saffron and mix it throughly. Cook for another 2 minutes. The rice will look creamy and will taste “al dente” . Serve it with some fresh parmesan, shavings or grated. Pronto!
Sun is out ☀️and we want to share some beautiful freshness 💚 what a great boost for those that are working out 💪🏻 and keeping fit 💪🏻💚
I called this Salad “Salad for Champions” : Tuna, potatoes, eggs and green beans….carbs, proteins, vitamins and sunshine all in one ONE dish.
How can only a few ingredients make a dish so tasty? Well, this is exactly what Nonnas do, they only use what it’s going to be good for you and they cook it in the simplest way ❤️
This salad is truly delicious and my whole family love it. It’s also a great idea for pack lunches too 😊
Serving 4 people
Ingredients
2/3 medium potatoes (peeled and diced)
300g fine green beans
4 eggs (1 egg per person)
1 tin of tuna ( in oil )
Juice of 1 lemon
Olive oil, 3 tbs
Salt, pinch
Preparation
Put the potatoes in a large pan, cover with water and bring it to the boil. Boil for 5 minuets and then add the green beans in with the potatoes. Boil for another 5 minuets ( or less if you like your beans “al dente”).
While the potatoes and green beans are cooking, place the eggs in a smaller pan, cover with water and bring it to the boil, cook for 8 minuets. Drain the vegetables and place them into a large serving dish, add the tuna (flake it with a fork). Peel the eggs and halve them. Prepare the dressing: mix the olive oil, the lemon juice and salt and pour it all over the salad. Pronta!
When it’s cold outside you need a recipe to warm up the whole family, Hunter Chicken is just perfect! In italian we say Pollo all Cacciatora “Hunter Chicken” /POH-LOH AH-LAH CAH-CHAH-TOH-RAH/ and it is another great recipe that will bring the family together. It reminds me of a winter’s day, about 27 years ago (I would have been 15 years “young” ) and like every teenager coming home from school it was the highlight of my day!! I was always looking forward to coming home, most of all after all those tests and long hours learning about what I though it was boring ( at that time I thought all teachers were evil, I wonder if it’s what my students think about me now!!) … as I walked in, the whole house smelt divine but I was far too tired to chat about my day. A huge pot of Hunter Chicken was ready on the table with some fresh bread to mop up the dishes ( SCARPETTA /SCAR-PEH-TAH/ ) , the first bite and slowly I got my speech back. It was my kinda comfort food, when I say “Comfort” it means that not only did it bring the family to sit together but it also brought the comfort I needed as a teenager to speak up, to chat, to talk….
Now that I am a Mamma I am on the other side of the table, preparing my Hunter Chicken for my family, hoping that it’ll help my teenage children to open up and talk about their day. Bringing families together is what my food is all about 🙂
Serving 6
Ingredients
1 kg Chicken (thighs and/or drumsticks)
3 carrots, diced
3 celery sticks, diced
1 small onion, diced
1 garlic clove, whole
handful of rosemary
2 tins of plum tomatoes
100g white wine
100g cappers
salt 1/2 tsp
olive oil, 3/4 tbs
Preparation
In a large saucepan heat the the olive oil and add the chicken. Cook for 5 minutes until the skin is golden. Add the carrots, celery, onion, salt, garlic and rosemary. Pour the wine and cook until the alcohol evaporates. Add the tomatoes , the cappers and cook on a low heat for 40 minutes. If needed add more salt. Pronto!!
Serve with a loaf of bread and steamed or panfried vegetables. Roast potatoes are great too!
Polpette = Meatballs = Italian Comfort Food 🙂
Nonna and Mamma used to make Meatballs all the time and I can still remember the excitement about dinner time!
In a cold day I used to love coming home from school to find one of my favourite dishes, Pasta and Meatballs in a rich tomato sauce…. awww it tasted amazing!!!
Today I am making this dish for my family and I hope I can inspire your family too!
#BringNonnaBack and Bring Families Together ❤️
Serves 4/6 people
Ingredients for the Polpette-Meatballs
250g beef Mince, good quality
250g pork mince
1 egg
100g bread crumbs
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
handful of parsley, finely chopped
l pinch of salt
sunflower oil for frying
Preparation
In a large bowl place the mince and add the egg, parsley, garlic, salt and bread crumbs. Mix all together with a fork or with your hand making sure you combine all the ingredients. If the mix feels too wet you can add some more bread crumbs, if it feels too dry add a splash of milk. Once the mix is smooth you can start rolling it into small balls, size of a 10p coin. I tent to make them a bit small as it’s easier for the children to eat them all in one go!
Option 1: Heat some sunflower oil in a large pan (filling all the bottom of the pan )and place 6/8 meatballs at the time. Cook them for 4/5 minutes, keep stirring them until golden. Prepare a large dish with some kitchen roll on the side and once the meatballs are ready to come out the pan, drain them and place them on the kitchen roll to rest and to lose some of the oil. Add a pinch of salt. Keep doing the same until you have cooked all the meatballs.
Option 2: Preheat the oven at 200 degrees, place the meatballs on a flat oven tray and put the in the oven for 25 minutes until golden.
For the Sugo-Sauce
Ingredients
Half of a medium white onion, finely chopped
800/900g of plain tomato Passata (You can find passata in any good supermarket, it’s in a carton or in a bottle)
A handful of fresh basil, roughly chopped
Olive oil, 2 tbs
Salt, a pinch
Sugar, a pinch (to lower the acidity of the tomatoes)
Preparation
Heat a large pan, add the olive oil and the onion. Simmer the onion only for a few minutes untill golden, don’t cook it for too long as it can easily burn.
Add the passata, the salt and sugar and cover with a lid.
PLAN B: if you haven’t got any passata 2 tins of chopped or plum tomatoes will do! Blend them first if possible and pour them into the oil, follow the instructions as before
Turn the heat down and let it cook for 10 minutes, stirring it every now and again.
Finally add your basil and let the sauce embrace the leaves… your Sugo is ready!
Place the meatballs into the sauce, make sure they are all covered, put the lid on and keep cooking the sauce and the meatballs for another 10 minutes on a low heat.
Enjoy your Polpette with some fresh bread or pasta. Buon Apettito!
This is a great recipe for a healthy and tasty snack that the whole family would love!
In Italian we call them ZUCCHINE /ZOO-KEY-NEH/ = Courgettes and they are the star of this simple dish. People often think that courgettes are plain and tasteless…. did you know that they are:
They are very popular in our Mediterranean Diet and you can cook them in so many different ways!
My Nonna used to bake (or fry) many other vegetables in bread crumbs (aubergine, pepper, cauliflower..), she even made her own version of mozzarella sticks! Today we are using courgettes. The best bit about it is that my little girl made them from scratch, she loves cooking and she is a very quick learner. Children love engaging with food most of all if they can get their hands dirty! 🙂
Serving 4
Ingredients
2 large courgettes, cut in length ways
2 eggs
handful of Parmesan cheese, grated
handful of dried origano
200g homemade breadcrumbs
Pinch of salt
Olive oil, 3 tbs
Fresh Rosemary to decorate
Preparation
Preheat the oven at 190 degrees. Whisk two eggs and add the courgettes in. Mix well. In a different bowl mix the parmesan, the oregano, the bread crumbs and salt. Put the courgettes into the bread crumbs and mix. Put the courgette sticks on a tray, add a little olive oil and bake for 15 minutes or until golden. Pronto!
Please watch our video 🙂
People often ask me if it is possible to cook from scratch delicious and healthy dishes when time is an issue. My answer is very simple: Time Management.
Planning an healthy meal is very simple and it will save you lots of time for sure! Firstly I always make sure I have the basic staples (such as pasta, rice, couscous, flour, semolina….) in my cupboard and pantry, also fresh herbs and vegetables are a must in my kitchen.
Today I am making a classic, “Gnocchi di Patate” (Potato Gnocchi) the easiest and quickest pasta dish that everyone will love. I would always freeze half of the gnocchi and I would cook them on a school night when time is definitely tight. Just like my Mamma and Nonna would do I love planning my meals on a daily base, when you are busy with the children, work, school runs and all the sorts of things a Mum needs to do I can guarantee you being organised in the kitchen makes your life better.
So are you ready? Have you got all the ingredients for this delicious dish?
Serving 4-6 people
Ingredients
4 large potatoes (1kg)
300g strong white flour
1 egg
salt
Preparation
In a large pot with just enough water to cover the potatoes, boil them with their skins on for about 20 minutes or until fork tender. Try not to over boil them.
Remove potatoes and drain well. Peel boiled potatoes and use a potato ricer to mash them until all completely smooth (alternately you can use a potato masher)
Place the riced potatoes into a large mixing bowl (or you can place them straight on a dry work top). Add the flour, the salt and the egg and start mixing with a fork.
Transfer the mix on a dry work top and pull together ingredients. Knead to form dough. Be careful not to over-knead. Be weary of adding flour at this point. Too much flour will give you hard gnocchi. Knead just enough for the dough to come together. Dough should have a loose airy texture, not gooey or dense. Shape dough into a long, wide cylinder for cutting.
Quarter dough. Roll each piece by gently pushing with fingers spread. The goal is to make an evenly-distributed rope.
Using a pastry cutter or non-serrated knife, cut dough ropes into 2cm pieces. To prevent sticking, keep gnocchi in a cool area. Toss them with extra flour while they are waiting to be cooked or frozen. Gently shake away any excess flour and place finished gnocchi in a large pot of salted boiling water. Cook the gnocchi until they float to the top, about 2-4 minutes. Gently remove them with a slotted spoon, drain very well. Toss them in a saucepan with your favorite sauce and cook together for about 2 minutes.
My children’s favourite Gnocchi dish is in a simple basil and tomato sauce but today I wanted to be more adventurous and I made a creamy mushroom sauce with garlic and thyme.
It was DELIZIOSO!!!!!!!
I hope I made Mamma and Nonna proud 🙂
What is #BringNonnaBack?🇮🇹
Nonna is the Italian word for grandmother.
In Italy, Nonna is the queen of the kitchen and her recipes are passed from generation to generation.
Nonna is in charge of the feeding for the whole family and they are trained to cook for a regiment of family, friends and guests from an early age.
They would start cooking at 7 o’clock in the morning and by the evening they would have already planned lunch and dinner for the next day! They would cook their traditional recipe (every Nonna has her own traditional recipe) and they are very proud of it. We learn from them not to waste any food and to keep recipes simple and fresh. They would encourage everyone (including their young grandchildren) to learn some basic cooking skills. They would spend the weekend baking bread and making fresh pasta and they would always make sure everyone is fed….
Growing up following the Mediterranean Diet taught to eat absolutely everything with Moderation! I learnt to cook not because I come from a family of chefs but because both my Mum and my Grandmother taught me how to cook. Cooking was our family time, eating together at the table was a must and IT STILL IS.
My Nonna is now 95 years old and Lilly’s Nonna is 70 years old..they are both very pleased we are keeping the family tradition alive ❤️Lilly and I love cooking together, we make recipes up, we cook from scratch and we use very simple and fresh ingredients. We are never too busy, too tired, too bored…we just love what we do ❤️
With #BringNonnaBack I would love tell you all about what I am doing to bring back the old ways, getting grandparents and children together, involving them in the kitchen, using simple fresh and ingredients, helping to keep those old recipes alive, so we are not just fighting child obesity but dementia too. I am sad to see that families that don’t spend time together anymore….. child obesity unfortunately is also caused by the lack of care and love towards what we eat and the time we spend whilst we are eating.
My Nonna’s message is to inspire families to a way of life, not a diet.
Please can you help us spread #BringNonnaBack we are sure all the Nonnas out there would love to see how we can keep old traditions still fresh in the modern society 😊 GRAZIE NONNA xx
BringNonnaBack 