# Favorite Italian Recipes?



## triple7allstar (Apr 24, 2007)

I love italian food. Can't get enough - my waistline will attest - haha.

Anyone wanna share their favorite recipes? I'm always looking for Italian food recipes that I might not have tried.

Thanks


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## ninja_59 (May 2, 2004)

Welcome

This si my favorite now

http://www.cheftalk.com/forums/recip...-included.html

Enjoy


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## siduri (Aug 13, 2006)

Pasta with caprese:
mix together in a large bowl:
cut up good mozarella (buffalo is best, but any fresh one will do)
good in season red tomatoes, cut up
basil a few leaves
good olive oil
salt, pepper

Boil pasta - "short pasta" like penne, shells, etc, not spaghetti
When al dente, drain, put back into pot, and dump in the tomato mixture
mix up, let it sit a couple of minutes covered (NOT on the fire) to soften the mozzarella
variations
if your mozzarella is not the best, add a handful of grated parmigiano
If you want a real treat, smash the basil plus a garlic clove, salt and pepper in a mortar with a pestel, add the oil and mash some more. Use this on the tomato mixture. 

any leafy vegetable (vegetables are big here, people buy tons of them, eat big dishes of them daily. Italian food as italians eat it is NOT fattening!)
the best is broccoli rabe, but spinach, swiss chard, and others can be used the same way. 
clean and wash the vegetables. Boil a huge pot of salted water, add the veg and boil till just tender, still green.
Drain. 
you can refrigerate now, and use later, or prepare now. 
Put some olive oil in a pan, enough to cover the bottom maybe with about 1/16 of an inch of depth. Add several garlic cloves, sliced. Optional, a couple of hot peppers (small red peppers) or pinch of flakes. Cook over fairly low heat till the garlic starts to soften (don;t burn it!) and then add teh drained vegetables. 

Lentil soup 
fry some chopped garlic (4 or 5 cloves), onion, celery, carrot, chopped finely, in olive oil, slowly till tender, add lentils and water to cover abundantly. Salt and lots of black pepper. Boil till lentils are tender. Add about 1/2 pound of fresh spinach washed and cut up. Cook a couple of minutes. 
Toast some heavy rustic bread slowly till hard, rub with a clove of garlic, put in bottom of soup bowls, drizzle with olive oil (extra virgin please) and ladle on the soup. 
No need for meat with this complete protein. 
i could go on,.,,.,


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## shel (Dec 20, 2006)

Please do - I was looking for something to do with the "extra" lentis that have been hanging around the kitchen. Got some frozen spinach that I want to get outa the freezer as well ...


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## austin_ (Jun 17, 2006)

Roasted Shrimp with Lemon, Fennel, and Garlic over Pasta

1 pound of large shrimp, peeled, deveined, and tails cut off (ask your butcher to do this)
2 bulbs of fennel, diced
1 head of garlic, ripped into cloves, mashed, and minced
Drizzle of olive oil
Salt and ground black pepper, to taste
1 lemon, halved
2 1/2 pounds of penne pasta
1/2 stick of butter, melted
1/4 cup of parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons of chopped parsley

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a large bowl, combine shrimp, fennel, the whole head of minced garlic, and a drizzle of olive oil as well as salt and ground black pepper to taste. Place on a 9x13 inch baking pan in the middle of the oven rack as well as lemons, drizzled with olive oil and cook for about 12-15 minutes until shrimp is done. When shrimp is cooking, cook pasta according to package's directions. When pasta is done, drain well and combine with shrimp mixture, squeezing roasted lemon juice over the top. Add melted butter and parmesan cheese and chopped parsley. Serve hot.


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## siduri (Aug 13, 2006)

Pasta with cauliflower

take a head of cauliflower. Break into flowerets, and cut the stems up to divide them into quarters, the smaller ones can just be slit partway to allow them to cook quicker. 

Take 6 or 7 garlic cloves, sliced, and put in a large frying pan which you film about 1/8 inch deep with good olive oil. You can add three or four hot peppers (the small red ones, maybe half an inch long) . Put the garlic, hot pepper, and cauliflower in the pan and cover, cooking very very slowly till teh cauliflower is soft, stirring occasionally so it doesn;t burn. You shouldn't need water, it will exude water on its own. (You want to make sure to cook the cauliflower well, so it's almost mushy, so it flavors the pasta)

Meanwhile cook short pasta, and when cooked al dente, toss it with the cauliflower and grated parmigiano. Very good, one dish meal. You might not think you'd like cauliflower, but i guarantee you'll like this.


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## cookie jim (Apr 24, 2007)

triple7allstar. This is very rich. Goat cheese&sundried tomato croustini. 1 loaf italian bread,1 lg. log or 2 sml. goat cheese at room temp,1 jar sundried tom.packed in oil,asortment of 3 fresh herbs (basil,rosemary,.thyme, oregano etc.),good olive oil and fresh ground pepper.preheat oven 375*, slice bread on bias 1/2"thick,lightly brush both sides of slices with olive oil.bake till light brown.Put goat cheese in mixing bowl.thin slices sundried tom.to make 1/2 cp.. chop herbs coursley to make 1/4 cp.ea.herb,or more depending on taste.Add black pepper.mix throughly and spread thick on croustini.return to oven to heat through around 3 min..remove and lightly drizzle with olive oil. enjoy as appetiser or with your meal.I like them too much and believe me they are not waist friendly..lol...good cookin...cookie


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## allanmcpherson (Apr 5, 2007)

Its all about Timpano.


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## shel (Dec 20, 2006)

http://www.cheftalk.com/forums/recip...sala-wine.html

Try it - you might like it ...

Shel


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## triple7allstar (Apr 24, 2007)

yumm yumm yummmmm - where do I start. Broccoli rabe is great - lentil soup amazing - my mother used to make it - love it. Thanks everyone for the feedback. I think I've got enough here to keep me busy.


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## bhc (Mar 9, 2007)

Giada's Braciole (on the Food Networks' website) is one of the best I have ever had and I try them all! I plan to try it with some spinach added.........

I do one with veal breast rolled with a little pancetta browned off, fresh parsley, shaved parm, my own roasted red peppers and pine nuts. I like to serve it at the holidays since it slices up red, green and gold. I serve it with a marsala sauce or a good red I make myself.

Getting hungry..........!


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## bluezebra (May 19, 2007)

oh man! This is one of my favorite dishes for everyday! I love it with orrichete (sp?) pasta! Man I was gonna make a curry tonight with my cauliflower but I may have to make pasta and cauli instead! I am out of th orrichete but have some penne that will do! Thanks for reminding me! (It's also great with a handful of green peas thrown in too!)


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## bluezebra (May 19, 2007)

You know, I used to not like her until I saw her biography and saw how hard she worked on her cooking skills to get to where she is today. New respect!

I made one of the dishes I saw her prepare and it was delicious. I made pan seared salmon in a lemon brodetto with a green pea and mint puree. It was delicious and so quintessential of spring!


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## bluezebra (May 19, 2007)

One of my favorite meals is a quick saute, veggie based pasta. I use it for a 30 minute meal when I'm in a pinch! I largely eat vegetarian for a health problem I'm having right now and although I love and miss my meat, it's dishes like this that still give the "umami" to me or the savory comfort I look for in big meaty comfort foods.

It's so simple.

Recipe #1: Zucchini and Tomato Pasta

Zucchini
Fresh Roma Tomatos
Fresh Mushroom
Onions or Shallots or Green Onion
Garlic
Fresh Basil
Lemon Zest, Fresh Lemon Juice
Parmigiano 
Pasta of your choice and an olive oil of your choice. We use an extra virgin.
Saute the veggies until al dente with olive oil and garlic. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Add some red pepper flakes in there for heat. Toss with al dente pasta (we love linguini and penne with this). Add more olive oil if necessary, add lemon zest and the juice from 1/2 a lemon and the parmigiano and eat it hot! It's also good cold as leftovers!


Recipe #2 Eggplant Parmesan
I also love a great eggplant parmigiana made with grilled eggplant instead of the breaded and fried variety. I sometimes add slices of grilled zucchini to this as well. Then cover with my homemade marinara sauce a tiny bit of mozzarella cheese and bake till bubbly. Top with parmigiano reggiano cheese and red pepper flakes and ohhhh my!

Recipe #3 Roasted Ratatouille
I also love doing a ratatouille (hehe some think this is French but it's more Mediterranean the way I do it). I just saw on another website someone calling it the "new ratatouille" but I've been doing it this way all my life. Can't stand the cooked to high heavens ratatouille. This is awesome as a main dish or side dish. Hot or cold. It's gorgeous.
Eggplant - sliced
Zucchini - sliced
Red or Yellow or Orange Bell Pepper - seeded and flattened
Roma Tomatoes - halved and seeded
Green onions - whole/cleaned
Onions - sliced
Garlic Cloves - sliced and reserved for sauteing (don't grill these)
Olive Oil
Black olives - pitted (salt/oil cured Italian varieties are nice for this)
Parmigiano regianno cheese
Fresh basil.
Lemon zest/juice

Toss all veggies with olive oil and sprinkle with dried oregano, basil and thyme, salt and pepper and a pinch of sugar. Grill over a hot fire. You want the outside to have nice charred grill marks and the inside to still be al dente. Remove from grill and allow the veggies to cool. Once cool, cut into bite size pieces. You want this to be chunky chunky. Heat a saute pan with olive oil and add sliced garlic cloves. Cook garlic until crisp and just barely gold. Add veggies and quickly toss to heat through. You want it warm but not cooked any more. Add olives, a chiffonade of fresh basil the zest from one lemon, and the juice from 1/4 to 1/2 of lemon. Toss with the parmigiano and more olive oil if necessary. Serve warm or cold. Adjust for salt and pepper (I also add a little red pepper flakes).

Option - sometimes I add a couple or 3 anchovie filets to my olive oil and garlic and allow it to cook to pieces like in a bagna cauda. Then I add the veggies and toss to coat. 


I have tons other but I will stop before I bore you silly!


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## siduri (Aug 13, 2006)

Hi bluezebra, this ratatouille (peperonata) sounds good. I, too, can;t stand boiled-to-death veggies, and especially anything boiled with tomatoes, and peppers boiled with anything. Yuck.
This sounds really good. I'll try it soon. thanks.


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## bluezebra (May 19, 2007)

Hahahahaha! siduri thanks so much for this. I never realized it had an Italian name! I just assumed I was making something more Provencal or Mediterranean into an Italian-ized dish! I just googled peperonata and there are so many variations! One recipe adds potato to this and that would be very fun and delicious. 

Thanks for teaching me one of my new things for today!

Another thing I adore is to do mussels or small clams in a onion or shallots, garlic, red wine and fennel and roma tomato along with a bit of fish stock and olive oil and steam them in it then serve with a gorgeous bread or a slice of pizza bianco made with fresh mozzarella, garlic and basil. Wow! Now I want this for dinner instead of the pasta and cauli!  I am prolly safe because we don't get mussels or small clams down here that I would trust...


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## deltadoc (Aug 15, 2004)

Penne alla Matriciano

Saute in 4 TBSP Olive Oil until onions are translucent and bacon is browning

1 bunchScallions, ¼” dice
1 Med.Large Yellow Onion, ¼” dice
¼ lb.Italian Prosciutto, 1” dice
¼ lb.Thick Slab Bacon, 1” dice
¼ lb.Fresh Diced Portabella Mushrooms (Optional)
1Whole Bay Leaf

Deglaze pan with generous amount of Dry White Wine, remove bay leaf

Add 
1/8 tspCayenne pepper
1 Qt.Marinara Sauce
2 TBSPSugar

Simmer Sauce 5 minutes


Boil
1 lb.Penne Pasta, al dente

Drain, do not rinse, and immediately add to Sauce, ladling until Penne is well coated.

Season with Salt and Black Pepper, Simmer about 2 more minutes

Serve with generous amounts of freshly grated Parmesan

Recipe derived from dish served at Mangere Italian Restaurant, Dorado, Puerto Rico by:

doc


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## bhc (Mar 9, 2007)

My DH's grandmother's ricotta cheesecake! How could I forget.............It's the best I have ever had.....not too sweet, perfect texture........

I will dig up the recipe and post it once I find it. I have tried a lot of others when researching for my cafe and I just never found one that was quite as good.


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## longislandtommy (Aug 16, 2007)

This is more of a tip that a recipe, but for a great marinara sauce fry up some fat back (2 to 3 ounces) in the olive oil till it gets to a clear like color should take only about 5 to 10 mins, than take it out of the sauce and trash it. Marinara sauce is a base for a lot of great italian recipies, that fat back gives it a great flavor.


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## joujoudoll (Aug 29, 2007)

Giada De Laurentiis makes an awesome dish called Fusilli with Sausage, Artichokes, and Sun-Dried Tomatoes on the food networks website... i would post a link, but I can't post links yet. 

.<3
Stephanie


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## nowiamone (Jan 23, 2005)

Bhc, Don't forget to share grandmother's recipe.


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## bombayben (Aug 23, 2007)

Pasta Indian style - very very simple and scrumptious!!

Boil pasta al dente. Drain then add a good glug of olive oil, finely chopped LOTS of fresh coriander, hot ground chilli powder. Good glug of lemon juice. Toss and enjoy! mmmmmmmmmm:lips:


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## harpua (May 4, 2005)

Tuscan soup with bread and eggs

sorry, no recipe right now


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