Learning ABout Italian Culture, Food Through Italian Food Blogs

Italian food blogs are the perfect source of inspiration for those who want to learn how to cook Italian food and know more about Italian cuisine. These blogs cover a wide range of topics concerning Italian food recipes, restaurants, food markets, food trends, up and coming chefs and several other food-related topics. It is also actually a great source of information on all things concerning Italian culture food. For as long as I can remember, I have always been drawn to French and Italian cuisines but the latter wins by just a small margin simply because the cooking methods involved are quite simple and relatable. Not that I’m a lazy cook but I’m pretty simple with my everyday food choices and if there’s one thing that Italian cuisine is known for, it is its simplicity.

So being a fan of Italian dishes, it is no wonder I gravitate towards Italian food blogs. I find it very helpful, informative and entertaining. It is also fun to be able to take a peek into the lives of some of the bloggers and be able to connect with fellow Italian food enthusiasts from all over the world. These blogs allow me to vicariously experience Italian culture food without flying all the way to Italy. And that’s not a bad deal for people like me who really can’t afford to travel to Italy right now. Of course, I keep telling myself that someday, I will have the heart and means to cough up x amount of money for a lovely Italian vacation but the last time I checked, I still have a long, long way to go before I can make it happen.  At least, I already have an idea on what to generally expect if and when the time comes for me to visit the country.

Helpful Tips

Thanks to the trusty Italian food blogs I read, I have come to know a few things about Italian culture food I’m sure many will find helpful:

1. I have come to learn that Italians are sticklers for fresh, simple and healthy dishes.
2. A lot of them still balk at the idea of eating out of season foods.
3. Lunches are the highlights of their days. They really take the time to gather around the dining table to catch up with one another and savor their foods. Their lunches last for hours.
4. Italians find it acceptable to drink take out coffee. To them, coffees should always be drunk while properly seated in a cafe.
5. Eating at any Italian establishment will show you just how much they leisurely enjoy their meals. Patrons are never made to feel like they need to hurry up and finish their meals even if there are other patrons waiting to be seated in the dining establishment. It is just not part of their culture to just simply eat, pay, and leave.
6. It is unheard of for the locals to drink anything other than water and wine when taking their lunches and dinners.
7. Cappuccino is only taken during breakfast and afternoon breaks.
8. Touching fresh produce when shopping for food is not allowed. They are particular about food hygiene so you either let the shopkeeper do the work for you by pointing out the produce you want to buy or make use of the disposable plastic gloves on hand in groceries in gathering the produce.
9. Their pasta dishes are mostly misrepresented in other parts of the globe because Italians don’t really go for creamy and cheesy sauces.
10. Depending on the region they are, Italians only use olive oil or butter for cooking.
11. Pizzas come in one size - 10 inches. Each serving is good for one person only. While we are on the subject of pizzas, contrary to popular belief, not all dining establishments serve pizzas. There are certain places such as pizzerias that serve pizza.
12. Bars in Italy are open as early as noon.

I came to know all of these pieces of information by avidly reading Italian food blogs. It is really not surprising why blogs of all kinds are extremely popular these days. Apart from the useful and pieces of information we can get from blogs, it also feeds our voyeuristic nature. It allows us to see snippets of a blogger’s life. And because of this unique combination of chronicling mundane stuff, voicing opinions and giving out information in an informal way, many fashion/food/music/art superstars are born because of blogging. Endorsements, Joint Ventures, and collaborations of all kinds from various industries are just some of the amazing perks you can get from blogging. Money is also another draw. But really, blogging should come from the heart. Being an active netizen, I have come across way too many blogs that lack magic and feel and look pretentious. The blogs I keep coming back to are the ones that know how to keep things nice and easy. I read blogs during my downtime so I mostly want to read about posts that entertain and inform. I want substance but I don’t want any of the heavy angst-y stuff unless I’m in the mood for it. Reading blogs have become some sort of therapy for me, a form of escape.

Talking About Italian Culture, Food

Just a few days ago, I was relaxing in a coffee shop with some friends and I couldn’t help but share my thoughts on how the world wide web has spun its web (no pun intended!) to bring people around the world closer to and more familiar with each other.  A perfect example of this would be the blogs I read. From my favorite Italian food blogs, I have discovered many things about Italian food I wouldn’t have known if I weren’t living in Italy. My favorite fashion blogs do the same for me. They keep me up to date with the latest trends and happenings in the fashion industry. When I read blogs, I feel as if I’m in the thick of things when in reality, I’m miles away from the action. These musings lead me to wonder how we were able to get by with our lives pre-blogging era. I know it rings true for a lot of people who can never let a day pass without going online.

These days, whenever I want to try a new Italian dish, I consult the many Italian food blogs on the web. I have to say I was not surprised at all with the presence of thousands of blogs dedicated to Italian food and culture. That is how popular Italian cuisine is. Case in point: Every country has come to adopt certain Italian foods like pizzas and pastas as their own. So whenever I have a hankering for Italian dishes done the authentic way, I know exactly where to go to get recipes and tips. I just make sure to stock my pantry with a few staples in Italian cooking like olive oil, balsamic vinegar, butter, cooking wine and a few packs of top of the line ready-made pastas (for when I don’t have time to spare to make fresh pasta) so I can whip up Italian food in a jiffy.

For the love of good food

Apart from the amazing dishes Italians are known for, I also admire how they seem to grasp the importance of properly savoring meals and how they choose to spend quality time with their families and friends by way of sumptuous lunches and dinners. I can just imagine how fun it must be to spend a meal with an Italian family. I like it how they observe and practice Italian culture food while still keeping things fun. Meals are accompanied by animated conversations and are known to last for hours on end. Sundays are big for Italians and they almost always spend it with their immediate families, relatives, and friends. These famous Sunday lunches are known to last for hours and may very well be extended until dinner time. In my head, I imagine that a typical Sunday lunch involves women gathering in the kitchen to cook, gossip, and fuss about the food while the men are seated in the dining table having wine and cigars talking about guy stuff and the children running to and fro while occasionally sneaking into the kitchen to take small bites of food.  An image like that certainly has the power to warm the heart and whet the appetite.

The good thing is I don’t have to travel all the way to Italy to recreate that image. I can be an Italian for a day and host a Sunday lunch gathering with friends and family. I have got an arsenal of food recipes at my disposal so I can easily prepare an Italian feast. And with my loved ones gathered around on the table, I just know that the conversation will flow naturally and it may also very well extend until dinner time. I should get around to doing this soon. That way, we can all get a little slice of Italian culture food.

Candies that captivate the heart of Italy

Credits to the owner

Growing up in Sicily is one of the best and most remarkable experiences of my life. I cant even begin to tell you how formative my childhood was in shaping me to the person that I am today. Every time I think about my younger years I cant help but also think about my favorite Italian confection and how my Papa would always indulge me on weekends for being such a good and helpful boy. I would help out at the farm after school and do chores with Mama and as my rewards I could help myself to as much Italian Candy as I could eat after church on a Sunday. I was smart enough to realize at young age that if I ate too much candy I wouldn’t be able to enjoy dinner and growing up in such a deeply rooted Italian family, no growing bambino would pass up their Mama’s delectable dinner for a sugar high. Italian food is soul food and match that with a good helping of candy- each weekend was pure heaven.

Last Wednesday a colleague of mine got a package from his sister who is currently in Sardinia and he was kind enough to bring some treats that he received to the office. One of the things that sparked my memory lane was a handful of chocolate eggs that he passed around. It reminded me of the great Sundays I had with my family and those sweet, delicious rewards that my Papa lovingly awarded me. This reminded me of some of my favorite Italian food and the best candy- chocolate bars, sweet lollipops and of course the best kind – the home made kind. Holidays and special occasions would always be extra memorable because my Mama would make Torrone for us, a traditional Italian candy that is made from sugar, eggs whites, honey and drizzled with toasted nuts. I remember I would horde my share so I could enjoy them well beyond the holidays. Now to be absolutely authentic when enjoying your Toronne you have to do it how Italian families would normally do. Toronne is mostly packed in long rectangular shapes and the almonds can be seen covering the candy. It looks like a super-sized candy bar that is traditionally eaten after meals. There are many different variations of torrone, some make them soft and chewy others make it hard and crunch but it is always served with bitter liquor such as a Sambuca or Strega.

How do I describe Torrone? Hmm think about a sticky yet sweet and crunchy candy that is bursting with flavor and a toasty after taste. Torrone is at the heart of every Italian family and is most popular during the Christmas season but you can enjoy it any time of the year if you wish. The origins of this favorite Italian confection is quite unclear, No one really knows who invented it and where it originated from. Unlike the Panettone for example, which is proudly Milanese as every Italian will attest to, the origins of torrone is murky and unclear. Its been said that various similar confections have been prepared long since the early Roman times but the first notable mention of torrone is from the Renaissance era from the Spaniards. Would that mean that torrones actually came from Spain and arrived at the shores of Italy via the Sicilian coast? Others have speculated that torrone is not an original Italian food and came from Egypt or somewhere in North Africa since these regions are known for enjoying sweetened candies that are rich in honey and sesame seeds. There is one certain fact about torrones that is irrefutable: it has been part of ancient Italian Christmas tradition and is made of the same ingredients, no matter what region of Italy it is prepared.

With the popularity and Italy’s love of torrone, these places have perfected the creation of this confection and have been hailed as the best places for torrones anywhere in Italy: Sardinia, Sicily, Abruzzo and Calabria are distinguished for their superb torrones particularly for their flavorful hazelnuts that grow in the region. The kind of nuts used and the toasting process affect the taste of torrones significantly. I am going to share my family’s recipe for torrones. I hope you will find the same joy in this confection as have my family for many years. I try to make small batches of them whenever I have the ingredients and the time. Making torrones just connects me back to my roots and reminds me of a fun-filled childhood filled with Italian Candy. When it comes to Italian food, this traditional candy is a true gem.

Ingredients

2 cups of Italian honey

3 cups of grated, Italian hazelnuts

A cup and a half of almonds

A cup and a half of sugar

3 egg whites

1 large lemon

Some grated orange rind.

Paper thin wafers

Cooking Directions:

1) Prepare your double boiler and place the honey into the pan while simmering for about an hour and a half, while constantly stirring with a wooden spoon or ladel.

2) Start toasting your nuts in the oven, about 15 minutes will give you a nice golden color and transfer to a bowl to cool. About 10 minutes before your honey is done, place your sugar into a small pan and add seven tablespoons of water and caramelize over low heat.

3) Beat the egg whites using a spoon until soft peaks form and slowly fold it into your honey. Mix it thoroughly for three minutes and slowly add the caramelized sugar and mix thoroughly once more.

4) Add your nuts and proceed to add your grated lemon and orange rinds while mixing for three minutes.

5) Take the mixture and pour it into a baking dish that is lined with paper thin wafers. In Italy its called an ostie and can easily be found. If you are short of supply you can use buttered cooking paper or rice paper substitute depending on your preference. Now cover your mixture with your

lining and flatten the mixture by pressing it down using a spatula.

6) Try to put some weight on top of your torrone mixture to keep it flat for about an hour.

7) Once the candy is cooled and hardened you can turn the pan upside and cut it into your preferred size.

8) Store your torrones in a suitable candy box or jar and line each torrone with wax paper. I am really happy that I got to share one of my favorite treats. Of course not all of us are not mavericks in the kitchen but that doesn’t mean that you cant enjoy the best flavors of Italian Food. For those who are now wizards in the kitchen and would like to savor a taste of Bene italia the easy way I remembered one of my favorite confections growing up. Anyone can appreciate the taste of fine chocolate but nothing spells the grandeur of Italian chocolate for me than the Gardini Bitter Chocolate and Gianduia with Sea Salt.

My favorite Italian chocolate

Gardini Extra Fondente Gianduia Salata is probably heaven in each bite. Purchasing it outside of Italy may be a little pricey with some gourmet stores retailing it for about fifteen dollars for four ounces but its an experience that you don’t want to miss. The cacao beans are imported from  Venezuela but are processed and flavored in Italy. This chocolate has won quite a few awards

and righteously so!

Upon tasting this amazing confection you can enjoy the robust cacao chocolate shell that’s infused with hazel nuts which give it a true toasty experience. You wont have any hit of sugar or oil in this chocolate bar, since its prepared perfectly, making the taste truly balanced with no aftertastes or slimy feeling in your tongue.

Gianduia Salata

Another chocolate bar that I absolutely adore, this is a more concentrated dark chocolate variety that is truly plentiful and delectable to the palette. This chocolate bar is quite huge, think of a super-sized Hershey bar. The packing for this is fairly idyllic, wrapped in a simple cellophane wrapper it does its job of slightly masking the chocolatey surprise that is waiting to be enjoyed.

What is really amazing about this chocolate bar is what you will find in each of it’s domes. Each dome of this Italian candy is filled with a ground hazelnut paste that is made from choice nuts, sea salt and milk components. This marries well with the semi-sweet balance of the dark chocolate.

Once the chocolate bar melts in your mouth it presents with a soothing creaminess and leaves a woody bouquet with traces of wild cherry and fig. The hazelnut paste is truly remarkable, it presents a buttery and smooth texture that doesn’t leave any stickiness. The sea salt is the icing on top providing an exotic finish to this rich and divine treat. The roast of the nuts is also a notable quality, with a delicate warmness that merges with the creaminess of cacao.

Panettone – The Iconic Italian Bread

Iconic breads/cakes for Christmas can be found all over the world. For instance, the British have their rum cakes and yule logs, and in the United States, they have fruit cakes. For Italians, the panettone is the cake to serve at Christmas and Easter.

It is a distinctly Italian cake, and should be protected under the Protected Designation of Origin, as well as the Italian Denominazione di origine controllata. It is quintessentially Italian food, it originated in Milan, and the Milanese call it paneton. Unfortunately, because of its popularity and also due to the Italian migration, it is also popular in Southern France, Switzerland, Germany, and in South America. Nowadays, South America exports a lot of panettone. There is the possibility that soon, people will think that this special cake is from South America instead of Italy.

Expertise Required

There is a lot to love about panettone. Much of the attraction comes from the difficulty in baking

this cake. It starts with the curing of the dough. The dough itself is acidic like sourdough. It has to be proofed for several days. It uses a natural yeast starter and during the proofing period, it has to be fed at regular intervals and a constant temperature, which is slightly above normal room temperature.

When making the dough, it should not come as a surprise that you should use good butter. This is one of those breads, where the use of good butter is discernible, and worth the little extra cost. Care should be taken during the mixing. There is a particular technique used during the mixing and there is no hurrying this process. The goal of the mixing is to be able to spread the dough so thinly that it is able to maintain a gauze-like thinness which is transluscent when held against the light.

The dough is proofed or allowed to rise in molds for several hours before baking. The distinctive height of the panettone is achieved through a different cooling process. After baking, the bread is hung upside down for several hours to ensure that it does not collapse on itself.

Simply Delicious

To paraphrase a saying, the proof of the panettone is in the eating. These little touches which sound superfluous and unnecessary make the difference in the final product. The curing slowly converts the sugars in the dough. The proofing allows for the slow rise of the dough in the mold, and hanging the cake upside down helps keeps its shape while it slowly cools. This is a delicate cake and there really is no shortcut to making it.

Making panettone the traditional way takes a lot of effort and love. There are a few recipes which use a short cut but again, there would be a distinctive difference in taste. In a very real way, the Italians know how hard it is to make panettone, and they have the patience to make one for Christmas and New Year. The detailed method of creating this wonderful cake should be enough to put it in the protected list of products. Panettone should really be a region-specific product.

Italian Tomatoes: Tracing its Colorful History

If you like to cook Italian food, one of the ingredients that you will have to use and try in a major way are tomatoes. There are thousands of food and different types of dishes that make use of tomatoes as the principal or main ingredients or the basis for the recipes. Tomatoes are used mainly due to its color, flavor and versatility. The tomato is widely utilized all over the world because of the taste and its health benefits.

Tomatoes Everywhere

In case you don't already know, there are many species of this fruit. These tomato fruits are belong to the so-called nightshade family of plants. The plants can normally grow to as high as one to three meters in height. One of its characteristics is that it has weak stem system that regularly spreads all over the earth which is why growers make use of pegs or trellises for it to climb on. This plant is known to be perennial because of its innate habitat. Nevertheless, the plants are often grown outdoors with temperate climates. If you will harvest tomato fruits, you will get an average of 100 to 105 grams in weight.

It was during the 1600s where people started utilizing tomatoes in their dishes. One place in

which tomatoes are widely and extensively used in cooking is in Naples, Italy. The people here have mainly used Italian tomatoes in their cooking and they have been enamored by the bright red hue of this ingredients plus its distinct aroma.

Scientific Enhancements

The Italian tomatoes, which are also called the San Marzano tomatoes is one of the several

varieties of plum tomatoe. Most of the great chefs all over the world are considering this kind of tomato to be the best and ideal tomatoes when it comes to cooking- especially for gourmet foods. The San Marzano tomatoes are characterized by its pointed and thinner appearance in comparison to other tomatoes. The flesh of these plum tomatoes have a much thicker appearance and has fewer seeds. When it comes to taste, it has a stronger, less acidic and sweeter taste. In fact, there are people who describe the taste of this San Marzano tomato as bittersweet.

As the demand for San Marzano tomatoes increased, studies were conducted on it. In the United

States, these San Marzano tomatoes have been subjected to genetic studies which also served as the basis of genes for the creation of another famous paste tomato called the Roma tomato. The Roma tomato is basically a cross breed between the San Marzano one and two other species. One of the two is a variety or hybrid of the San Marzano tomato. This Roma tomato was presented in 1955 by the ARS or the Agricultural Research Service.
 
In Italian food, tomatoes (especially the San Marzano and Roma) are widely used in various dishes especially pasta, salads and soups. There are so many ways to cook tomatoes – it can be used in as it is in salads, in sandwiches, and be made as the main ingredient in cooking gourmet and main courses. The only limit is your imagination!

What Type of Italian Tomatoes Should You Use?

Not all Italian food revolves around tomatoes. It just seems like much of it. Tomatoes have made their mark on Italian cuisine. It has become a very important ingredient in pasta, sauces, and in salads. There are a lot of tomato dishes which make a fairly common appearance in the Italian diet.

There are recipes for tomatoes stuffed with eggplants, or with meat. There are also recipes for cherry tomatoes, not just in salads, but also in pasta dishes and sauces, either whole or chopped. Whole tomatoes are also used in a variety of dishes from meat, pork, poultry and fish. Soups and sauces use tomatoes in its many forms.

Minestrone soup is a basic soup with a variety of vegetables and offal. There is no set recipe, and it can be made with meat or chicken. The base is a bean soup, and all other vegetables are optional. A bit of pasta or rice is also optional. It is a hearty meal in itself, and it is a stock recipe in every Italian kitchen. That is, every Italian mamma has her own minestrone recipe.

To get the most of Italian tomatoes, also called roma tomato, there are several ways of canning
tomatoes:

Whole tomatoes – Tomatoes are cooked, and canned in whole. The tomato is peeled after cooking and then canned immediately.

Tomato filets – tomato filets are tomato slices, without the seeds and the skin.

Tomato chunks – these are large cut tomatoes, crushed unevenly. The can contains most of the tomato sauce and pulp of the tomato
 
Tomato sauce – The tomato is crushed and processed to a fine but thick consistency. Tomato
sauce does not have any lumps, and is good to use for pasta and soups.
Tomato paste – This is tomato processed to a fine consistency and then cooked till is a very
thick consistency. San Marzano is an Italian tomato variety considered to be the best plum
tomato varieties for making tomato paste.

Italian tomatoes are the most common seed variety for home gardens, as well as for home canning. These also known as Italian plum tomatoes and are slightly elongated, egg-shaped varieties with few seeds and are good for canning. Other tomatoes commonly used for Italian food include cherry tomatoes, and Italian heirloom tomatoes. The cherry tomatoes are used for salads and for pasta with olive oil type of dishes. The Italian heirloom tomatoes can be used as fresh tomato garnish or for stuffed tomatoes.

Tomatoes are a big part of Italian food, and if possible, Italians use fresh tomatoes. An exception is made for the San Marzano tomato, as this is produced only in the San Marzano region of Italy. In most instances, the only way to get San Marzano is in a can. When using canned whole San Marzano tomatoes, it is recommended to use the canning liquid separately. This can be used for soups or other recipes. The whole peeled San Marzano tomato retains its distinct flavor and used whole in a variety of recipes. Fresh San Marzano tomato is hard to find, but when available is well worth the price.

Torrone

The famous Italian nougat candy called torrone is one of the many traditional items in Italian cuisine. Just like the panettone, it figures most prominently during the Christmas season, usually as a dessert or a gift item. Traditionally, it is eaten as a dessert after lunch and dinner beginning on Christmas Day right up to Epiphany.

The torrone is a sticky candy that usually comes in a long rectangular shape like an oversized candy bar. It consists of whipped egg whites, sugar, honey and vanilla and filled with almonds, hazelnuts or pistachios. Although seemingly simple, making this confection requires a bit of precision in order to achieve the right consistency.

The history behind this popular candy is quite cloudy. There are stories that date the torrone back to ancient Rome based on writings by Roman poets referring to a similar confection called cupedia. But a more popular story takes it back to 1441 at the wedding of Francesco I Sforza and Bianca Maria Visconti when the confection was supposedly first introduced, and from which it gained its name as a reference to the tower-like form it was shaped into to serve as wedding cake for the aristocratic couple.

 






Other speculations regarding the history of the torrone attribute its Italian origins to Sicily via Spain where the first documentations of this candy during the Early Renaissance period were discovered. Presently, some of the best torrones in Italy are also said to be made in Sicily, mostly because the best nuts are also grown there.

Because of its muddled past, it is not truly established whether the torrone is an originally Italian food. More so because other places around the world such as Spain, France, Greece, Northern Africa, Asia and Latin America have their own version of a nougat candy. But whatever its origins, Italy has definitely claimed it for its own by incorporating it into its holiday traditions. It is now typically served after meals with a digestive liqueur such as an amaro or a sambuca, whether it’s Christmas or not. It also comes in several varieties with citrus or chocolate flavorings, in soft chewy or hard brittle form, and more.

Here’s a recipe if you’re interested in making your own version.

• In a double boiler, simmer 1 ½ cups of good quality honey for 1 ½ hours, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon

• Toast 3 cups of almonds for 15 minutes in a 350 degree pre-heated oven until they are golden brown

• Caramelize 1 ¼ cups of sugar in a small pan with 6 to 8 tablespoons of water
• Beat egg whites into firm peaks until a spoon can stand on its own in the middle. Fold into the honey until well combined, and add the caramelized sugar. Mix well.
• Add in the almonds and the grated rind of 1 lemon and combine well.
• Line a rectangular baking pan with baking parchment and pour in the torrone mixture. Flatten and level out the top with a spatula. Let stand for about an hour.
• Once done, turn over the torrone onto a board and cut into small rectangular pieces. Store in an airtight container separated by wax paper.