Seafood Soup Recipe + #ReadyChefGo Review - Real Italian Kitchen - Episo...

Ahhh... to steam in the oven. Wait. Say what?

That's what I thought when I first found out about the cooking bags by Ready Chef Go. Why would I steam in the oven? Well they have their reasons for thinking it's a good idea. Watch the video and find out!



Ok. Now that you've watched it, what do you think? Will this be a useful novelty to add to your cooking utensils or will it be another half used box that sits on your shelf?

I will definitely use this for soups and stocks, but not in the microwave and not to save time, that's for sure.

And to be honest, another thing that bothers me about this is the one time use of the bags. You know I don't like to waste, and this is a lot of plastic (or whatever these bags are made out of) that they are releasing in the environment!

So I'll give it a solid 2/5, because the quality of the steamed food is outstanding, but it looses stars when it comes to being environmentally friendly and for daily use.

I hope this was helpful!

Valentina
RealItalianKitchen

Fall salad with Roasted Butternut Squash, Feta, Dried Cranberries and other goodies of the fall

Fall Salad with Roasted Butternut Squash, Feta, Dried Cranberries, Pumpkin seeds, Yellow Tomatoes and Cucumbers. 

There. I think those are all the ingredients! 

A little tip for those people who are always in a rush and can't cook two days in a row: if you're making one salad, it takes very little effort to make two of them. Leave the cheese and the seeds out or put them in a separate container, and put the salad dressing on right before you eat it. You can put it in tupperware and leave it in the fridge for about a day and a half. 

I do this all the time, the vegetables won't spoil and it will make you so happy to see that you have a nice healthy meal waiting for you in the fridge! 

 Ingredients*: 

For two salads:
Half a butternut squash**.
10 yellow cherry tomatoes
1/2 cucumber
a handful of colorful dried cranberries
a generous block of your favorite feta cheese
seasonal organically grown greens
pumpkin seeds, toasted, unsalted

FOR THE VINAIGRETTE: Oil and lemon. No salt. The feta is usually salty enough, but if yours is not feel free to add some sea salt.

STEP BY STEP: 

1. Cut the butternut squash as best as you can leaving the skin on. You can even just cut it in half. If you're lazy you can buy the pre-cut one. 

2. Turn the oven on 375 F or 200 C and bake the squash till you can squish down the pulp with a fork (about 20 minutes)

3. Now the skin will peal right off! 

4. While the squash cooks prepare the rest. Put the salad (washed and dried) at the bottom of the bowl, cut the yellow cherry tomatoes in half, slice the cucumber in thin slices. Cut the butternut squash in cubes and add it to the salad. 

5. Crumble the feta cheese with your hands (which we have throughly washed, right?), and add the dried fruit and seeds. 

6. Prepare the vinaigrette in a separate small bowl with 1 and 1/2 tbsp of olive oil and a tsp of lemon juice per salad. Whisk the two together with a fork and pour on top of the salad. 

7. Stir the salad before eating. 

Enjoy!!! 

Valentina

RealItalianKitchen

*About the ingredients: these are all things that are still in season in the area I live in. Feel free to substitute any of these for whatever is in season in your area.  

**About the butternut squash: I usually bake the whole thing, and then keep it in the fridge for all my squash needs of the week. When I made my salad the squash was cold and it was very firm and easy to cut. Perfect and delicious for the fall salad. When is still warm I usually make soup with it.  Clic here to learn how to make home made Ravioli with squash from scratch! 

Clic here to learn how to make a beautiful Quiche! 

Steak Salad with Parmigiano and Balsamic Vinaigrette

This is a fantastic way to enjoy an old classic such as a grilled piece of meat and a salad.

As I was saying in one of my previous blogs, I rarely eat red meat and when I do I buy the best possible kind. This was an amazingly tender filet!

Ingredients: 
Fresh salad
Cherry tomatoes
a good piece of Parmigiano cheese
Steak or filet
Soy sauce
Balsamic vinaigre
Extra virgin olive oil (evo)

salt

1. I start with a very simple marinade for the meat: salt, soy sauce, evo, and pepper if you like it.
 Let it sit for a few minutes then grill it. I use a cast iron grill that I bought in the camping department (it's cheaper...!). Remember that meat should always be cooked when at room temperature. If it's too cold it becomes tough and..well...raw...!

 2. In a plate prepare the salad, the cherry tomatoes cut in half and very thin slices of Parmigiano cheese. I use a carrot peeler to achieve those thin slices.

3. The vinaigrette is 2 spoons of olive oil and one (or less) of balsamico. Salt to taste.

4. Cut the meat thinly and place it on the salad, then sprinkle with the vinaigrette.

Enjoy!!

Valentina
RealItalianKitchen

Low Cholesterol Cookies

This is a recipe that I tried for the first time for Christmas but I thought it would be ironic to make a low cholesterol cookie that is "good for your heart" on Valentine's Day!

Ingredients:

4 egg whites
200 gr flour
150 gr potato starch (fecola di patate. In american grocery store it's difficult to find and I buy mine at www.supermarketitaly.com)
1 tsp baking powder
150 gr sugar
4 tbsp of butter or peanut oil or vegetable oil. Remember that soy and corn in the United States are genetically modified unless it says ORGANIC USDA on the label.
orange zest (I used a mandarin instead and it made it smell very good)

Utensils: 

Whisk
Bowl
Cookie sheet
Oven set on 170 C or 300/325 F

For the step by step enjoy the video!

Find out how to zest in this video!

Tuna filet in sesame seed crust

This was sooo good, I can't wait to make it again!

Ingredients: 

-The most important ingredient is obviously a fresh piece of wild tuna. They usually sell it in steaks but if you ask they'll cut you a roast size out of the bigger chunk they have, like this one in the picture on the right.

The end of the tail is the best part because it's not too thick, you want it to be small enough so that there will be a good balance between raw and cooked part.

Tune should never be served well cooked. It's awful. If you don't like raw meets eat something else.

-Sesame seed, the golden ones, toasted.

-Extra virgin olive oil, salt and a little bit of spring mix salad for presentation.

I served it with wasabi, but that's optional. I bet pickled ginger would be good with it too.

Utensils:

A nonstick pan
Aluminum foil
Oven set to 250F/150C
a toothpick

Step by Step:

1. Toast the sesame seed in the pan (with no oil) if they are not toasted already.

2. Coat the tuna with the seeds, make sure it's a good layer, just like in the picture above.

3. Heat some olive oil in the pan and start browning the tuna on each side. The fire should be on medium high. You don't want it too cook in the middle but you also don't want to burn the sesame seeds. Don't leave this unattended.

4. Once you've seared each side of the tuna, wrap it up in the aluminum foil and put it in the warm oven.

5. Now you'll have to keep checking if the center is warm. How? With a long skinny toothpick (you don't want to poke huge holes in your wonderful fish...): stick it in the meat, pull it out and touch it. When the toothpick comes out warm it means it's ready.

6. Slice and serve.

Enjoy!

Valentina
RealItalianKitchen

Italian Fast Food: Tomato Salad Variation no 1.

What's the fastest and healthiest thing you can put on your plate?

A salad. With all those tomatoes laying around the house I decided to make this fast, simple delicious meal!

Ingredients for 2 people:
5 medium size plum tomatoes
1 mozzarella
a bunch of baby spinach
two spoons of Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Salt

Cut the veggies in big chunks and put them in a bowl with the mozzarella cut in cubes and some baby spinach that you have ripped with your hands.
Add oil and salt. Eat with bread or crackers.

Enjoy!
Valentina
Real Italian Kitchen

Italian Fast Food - Spaghetti Garlic, Oil and Hot Peppers

Or as they say in Rome: Aio, Oio e Peperoncino!
It might sound strange but you have to try it to believe how good it actually is.

It's the most plain and simple pasta you could possibly make and it's perfect for those days when there's nothing in the fridge...!

Instructions:

-Brown the garlic in a pan with some hot peppers and extra virgin olive oil. Be careful not to burn it.

-In the meantime boil some salted water and cook your favorite brand of Spaghetti, mine is DeCecco, because it doesn't overcook easily.

-When the pasta is ready toss it in the pan with the flavored oil and fry it for a minute or two.

-Serve with parmigiano, or by itself.

Delicious.

Enjoy!
Valentina
Real Italian Kitchen 

How to make Italian Style Grilled Vegetables

Last night I had a dream I was Woody Allen's chef and I was making him Grilled Vegetables for Memorial Day... 

I'm always very happy to go to barbecues and find a side of vegetables. Salads are fine, but you need a fork to eat that. Grilled vegetables can be eaten with you hands and are a great addition to a burger. They also make a great side if you're having steak or fish.

For 2 people: 1 Zucchini, 1 Eggplant, 1 Pepper

What's good on the grill? 
Peppers
Eggplant
Zucchini
Yellow Squash
Onions
Tomatoes
Asparagus

For 2 people:
1 Zucchini
1 small Eggplant
1 Pepper
(see picture)





Prepare the vegetables
1. Rinse all the veggies.

2. Peppers: cut them in half, cut out the seeds inside and the white lining of the vegetable. Cut in even strips.
Zucchini: cut in long strips, a little on the thick side especially if they're going on an outdoor grill.
Eggplant: you can eat the skin but I like mine pealed. Cut "circles" out of it (like the picture) or cut through the length of it if it's a thin eggplant.
Tomatoes and Onions: start cutting circles from the "bottom"
Asparagus: leave it whole.

3. Season with oil and salt BEFORE they go on the grill.

Grill it!
Put it on the grill and once the griddle has made convincing marks on one side, turn them. On a medium hot grill about 5 minutes per side. Don't burn them.

Enjoy!
Valentina
Real Italian Kitchen

Seafood Salad - Summer's favorite

Seafood Salad - appetizer size

Today I would like to interest you in a wonderful warm dish that is served all over the coasts of Italy in the Summer Time.
The Seafood Salad is a bed of cold vegetables (and sometimes fruit) topped by simply cooked fresh seafood (shrimp, prawns, lobster, calamari, clams, muscles).

It's a little expensive, but the quality of the fish makes the salad, so don't go cheap on the fish choice, or your dish WILL suck. If you don't have a lot of money and would still like to enjoy such marvelous invention of culinary art, make it an appetizer and buy less fish.
I save it for special occasions. I like to pair it with a nice bottle of Champagne (Piper, Moet Chandon, Veuve Cliquot are the cheapest ones and they sell in the States for around $40) or a more affordable bottle of Vermentino, a wonderful italian wine peculiar of Toscana, Liguria. Actually at Wine and Spirits I recently saw for sale a Vermentino LUNAE, which is from the area where I'm from. I've visited their vineyard many times with my father (who's a sommelier) and I've always enjoyed their selections.

So, how to make a Seafood Salad. 

Raw vegetables cut in strips:
Carrots, celery, fennel, radish, tomatoes, peppers, mixed green. Pick and choose the ones you want to use or use all of them, for endless combinations.

Seafood:
shrimp, prawns, lobster, calamari, clams, muscles. The last time I made this I only chose shrimp and jumbo shrimp (carabineros) and it was amazing.

Cooking directions:
Shrimp, prawns, lobster, calamari: boil in salted water for no more then 5 minutes. If you overcook these things they get really tough. It's better to keep it undercooked, if it's fresh this stuff can be consumed raw, so you risk nothing.
Clams and muscles: cook in a large pan with a cup of water, cover with a lid until the clam inside is a more intense color (orange for muscles, light brown for clams).

Vinaigrette for 2 people:
3 table spoon of extra virgin olive oil
1 table spoon of lemon (freshly squeezed)
1 table spoon of orange juice (freshly squeezed)
1 tea spoon of mustard
salt and pepper to taste.

Serve with the veggies on the bottom, the fish nicely displayed on top and the vinaigrette on the side or right on top of the food.

Enjoy!
Valentina
Real Italian Kitchen 

Meal Substitution: Smoothie Recipe: Papaya, Banana & Frozen Yogurt

It's been a couple of very busy weeks for me but I'm glad that the moment I start writing my food blog again is when the temperature starts rising..!

The first thing I did on the first day of extreme heat (yesterday 30 degrees Celsius!) was make myself a delicious smoothie.

Smoothies are a great way of eating fresh fruit, there are many different combinations you can try, they are so nutritious sometimes they can even substitute a meal.

This recipe is very sweet, for all those people that want a healthy sweet dessert, but can't have any...

For 2 people:
1/2 Papaya (mine was gigantic, use a whole one if you can find a small one)
1 Banana
3 scoops of frozen yogurt

Throw everything in the blender, liquefy it, and let the heathy snacking begin!

The frozen yogurt makes it kind of heavy in texture: to make it a little more liquid use milk or almond milk or soy milk.

Enjoy!
Valentina
RealItalianKitchen
(new video coming up soon!) 

Italian Fast Food: Rainbow Trout and Baked Vegetables

This is a healthy fast food, but nonetheless super FAST! Did I mention is cheap? Oh, and one more thing: totally restaurant worthy..!

Ingredients:

For the Fish:
-You can buy a Rainbow Trout at the fish market for about $6. Mine was a little over a pound fed two people. I always have them clean it for me, gutting fish makes me dizzy, I must have been a fish in my past life...
-Salt
-Rosemary (if you have it, I didn't have it today)
-Garlic
-EVO (extra virgin olive oil)
-a splash of white wine

For the Veggies:
-1 large potato
-1/2 zucchini
-5/6 cherry tomatoes
-EVO
-Salt
-chopped garlic

Oven temperature: 350 F, 180 C

Preparation:

Rinse the fish, put it in an oven pan with some olive oil under it and on top. Clean a clove of garlic, slice it and put it where the guts of the fish used to be, along with some salt and rosemary. Salt the outside of the fish too. DO NOT MAKE CUTS IN THE SKIN.
Add a splash of white wine. Cover with aluminum foil and bake for about 10 minutes.

The veggies: slice thinly the potatoes, the zucchini have to be cut a little thicker (so they have the same cooking time as the potatoes and you don't risk burning dinner), half the tomatoes and sprinkle them on top. Salt, oil, the chopped garlic mostly on top of the tomatoes and on the zucchini.
Bake for about 20 minutes.

TIMING TIPS: put everything together in the oven. The fish will be done before the veggies but you'll have to clean it. With a spoon and a fork remove the skin, remove the meat starting from the center and gently pushing towards the outside, following the direction of the bones. If you use this technique the meat won't have any bones by the time it hits the plate. Trout has very large, long bones, it shouldn't be a problem to spot them.
By the time you're done cleaning the fish, the veggies will be done cooking and you can go eat!

Baked Rainbow Trout during cleaning process

Baked Vegetables

How to serve it: 

Serve one side of the fish per person, put it on a plate and with a spoon gather some of the broth at the bottom of the baking pan and put it on the meat. Set some vegetables on the side.
Serve with a good glass of chilled white wine. And for dessert? A serving of your favorite seasonal fruit: I had an orange today, it that was as sweet as candy :-)

Enjoy!
Valentina
RealItalianKitchen

Meal Substitution: Celery and Pear Juice - Real Italian Kitchen

I have a show in two weeks and I have to fit in a dress that should be illegal in most countries....BUT I"M SO BLOATED!!!!!!!!! From weeks and weeks of cookies, cakes, chocolates and red meats. I've been a bad baaaad girl. Not good.

Here's my remedy: besides putting myself on a healthy diet again, I'll start each day with a freshly made JUICE! I'll try to do it for at least two weeks, until the day of the show, we'll see what happens!

I'll post a new combination everyday, so if you decide you want to do this with me keep checking :-)

Today's juice:

2 oranges
3 stalks of celery
1 big apple
1 juicy pear
1/2 lime

Peal the oranges and put everything through the juicer. The pear is plenty sweet so don't add any sugar.

The taste: the pear is predominant, but you can still taste the orange. The apple gives it a nice texture and makes it pleasant to drink. You can't even taste the celery but it's so so so good for you!

Why is fresh juice important?
It has been clinically proven that fresh juice speeds up your metabolism. It's also a very filling snack, so you don't feel the need to eat anything else after a big glass of fresh juice. It's rich in fibre which will stimulate your digestive system. It's rich in vitamins, which will make you stronger against the seasonal flue. Lately I have even heard from a YouTube guru that it will help wash out inflammation in your joints and loosens your tighten muscles. Pair it with some effective exercise and fresh juice will be the panacea of all problems!

Spring is coming, invest in a juicer.

Valentina
http://www.youtube.com/RealItalianKitchen

Creative Salad with Pistachios Green Apples and Sheep Cheese

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8VftRMEjNTA

At the link above you can find the video recipe of my new salad idea.

You need:
fresh mixed greens
1/2 cucumber
1/2 green apple
1 slice of sheep cheese "Sfizioso", you can find it at www.supermarketitaly.com
pistachios
2 tb of e.v.o. oil
1 scarse tb of balsamic vinegar

After rinsing everything off lay on a plate the greens first, then the thinly sliced cucumber and apple with or without the skin.

Cut the cheese (hi hi) in cubes and sprinkle it on top.

Prepare the vinaigrette in a separate bowl with the oil, balsamic and salt (just enough). Stir it with a fork and then pour it on top of the salad.

Top with pistachios.

Enjoy!

Valentina
youtube.com/RealItalianKitchen

Minestrone Recipe- Authentic Italian Style - Winter seasonal vegetables

Yesterday I made an awesome Minestrone.
In the best spirit of the original recipe I used all the leftover vegetables that I had in the fridge!
The only vegetables that I tend not to put in Minestrone are peppers and eggplants because their taste is too strong and it would dominate over the other veggies.

I change the ingredients to my Minestrone with each change of season, according to which vegetables are available. Using seasonal vegetables is a cheaper and healthier way to go. I also make a tun of it and then freeze it for when I feel lazy and I don't want to cook! Minestrone makes a complete meal, especially if you add some protein to it like beans or lentils.

For 8 servings
Winter vegetable choices (because in Philadelphia PA right now is winter):
1 small Fennel
1 green or yellow squash
1/4 cabbage (any kind will do)
1 cup green beans
1/2 cup spinach
1/2 mushrooms
1 large potatoe
1 cup of lentils previously cooked and reduced to a cream
4/5 carrots
1onion
2 stalks of celery
Extra vergine olive oil
Salt

Put some olive oil in a large soup pot. Chop all the vegetables into even cubes, leave the leafy ones whole. Put everything in the pot with the oil. Cover with homemade broth or water. Adjust with salt. Cover and let it cook on medium to high heat for about 20 minutes.

Add some toasted rustic bread for your dose of carbs.

Buon Appetito. Writing this made me hungry, I think I'm actually going to go get myself a cup of my delicious Minestrone!

Valentina
www.youtube.com/realitaliankitchen

3 ways to cook Eggplant

Eggplants are one of my favorite vegetables. There are a couple of ways I like to cook them, I'll start from the heavy one and tell you the diet friendly version next!

Here's a recipe that my grandmother taught me, it comes from Napoli and it's called

1. Melanzane Fungitiello.

Ingredients for 2 people:

1 large eggplant

2 cloves of garlic

2 small hot peppers

1 large fresh tomato or 4 cherry tomatoes (diced)

2 spoons of tomato sauce or tomato paste

1 spoon of water

salt

and...

wait for it....

A LOT of extra virgin olive oil! 

Pour a generous serving of oil into the frying pan. Add the garlic, let it brown. 

Break the hot peppers and add them to the oil and garlic. 

Cut the eggplants in cubes and fry them in the pan with everything else. The eggplant is like a sponge, it will absorb all the oil but it will give it back later once it's cooked. 

Add the fresh tomatoes,  the tomato paste, the water.

Adjust with salt. 

Cover and let it cook for 6/10 minutes. 

Serve hot by itself, on a piece of toasted rustic bread, as a side, or with your favorite pasta. It's delicious. Plan on digesting it slowly...

2. Grilled Eggplant with Spicy Fresh Tomato Spread (diet friendly)

For 2 people:
1 eggplant sliced for grilling

about 7 cherry tomatoes 

a few leaves of basil

hot peppers

evo

salt

Put some salt and just a tiny bit of oil on the raw eggplants before grilling them. Cooking time about 5 min per side. Make sure the grill is really hot before you start cooking them otherwise they boil and they turn out disgusting...!

On the side prepare my special fresh tomato spread. 

Basically just throw the tomatoes, hot peppers, basil, oil and salt in a blender/mixer and turn it into a cream. 

Now that everything is ready lay the grilled eggplant on a plate and put a teaspoon of tomato sauce on each slice. mmm... delicious! 

The tomato spread puts a whole different spin on grilled vegetables, you're not gonna be able to eat them without it anymore! 

3. Eggplant Pizza (diet friendly)

For two people:

2 small eggplants, nice and firm

1 tomato

mozzarella

basil

oregano

evo

salt

Set the oven on HIGH. 

Cut the eggplants down the length. With a sharp knife cut squares into the pulp without breaking the leathery skin. Now push the eggplant in the opposite way of its natural shape. At this point thanks to all the cuts you've made you should be able to take it out of the "shell" and put it in a pan. 

Sear it in olive oil, a spoon of water and garlic. Add the tomatoes cut into cubes. Let it cook. Adjust with salt. Add basil. 

Put some olive oil in the shells and put them on a cookie sheet and in the oven until the pulp it's cooked. 

Take the shells out of the oven. Place a spoon of the seared eggplant back in it's shell, add the mozzarella on top and the oregano. 

Set the oven on BROIL and let the mozzarella brown. A-mazing! This seems like a difficult and long process but it's not. It takes longer to explain it then to do it. I hope you had the patience to read the whole thing...! 

Enjoy!! 

Valentina

RealItalianKitchen

Have a great day! 

Tuna Steak with Basil/Caper sauce and a light salad

Thank goodness I remembered to go to the store this week before the snow started coming down!

Today I put together an awesome meal. I'm sorry. I'm never full of myself. But today I'm proud. I finally cooked a tuna steak to perfection!

Tuna Steak with Basil and Caper sauce and small fresh Arugula Salad.

Ingredients:
Fresh tuna steak, 1 inch thick (I like to buy the ones that are particularly red)

for the sauce:
20 big leaves of fresh basil
2 table spoons of capers
white vinegar
1 slice white bread no crust
extra vergine olive oil
salt
1 table spoon of water

for the salad:
fresh rainbow carrots
fresh arugula
organic multicolored cherry tomatoes
1 table spoon of oil per serving
1 tea spoon of balsamic vinegar per serving
salt

How to cook the steak:
Get a non sticky pan very hot, so hot that smoke starts coming out of it. Put the steak in and cook 4 minutes per side. If you're buying a thinner steak, cooking times are going to be 3 minutes per side.
Do not season the steak before it goes in the pan.

How to make the sauce:
Wet the bread with the white vinegar and a spoon of water, add the capers, the basil, oil and salt and mix everything until smooth and creamy.

Arrange in a beautiful presentation: top the steak with a teaspoon of olive oil, salt and pepper, put the salad on the side of it and leave some room for the sauce.

Amazing.

Enjoy!