Proud Italian Cook

Holy Panini!!

February 9, 2009 by Marie 65 Comments

There’s something about warm rich dark chocolate and fresh strawberries, melted between a buttery pound cake that’s been pressed in a panini grill. Can you say wonderful!

I can’t believe I never tried this special treat before!

A while back I received this award winning chocolate as a gift from my son, who after reading this article in Food and Wine magazine, quickly ordered some.

Amedei was founded in 1990 by Alessio and Cecilia Tessieri who just happen to be brother and sister, they work together in Tuscany using artisan skills, along with the finest cacao, in producing this award winning chocolate.

According to the Food and Wine article,

“The most famous Venezuelan cacao of all comes from Chuao. The trees of Chuao are shielded by mountains from all but the warm Caribbean breezes; the soil is naturally irrigated by three cascading rivers. Doutre-Roussel calls the region “one of the jewels of the earth.” Besides the microclimate, Chuao has centuries-old traditions of harvesting and preparing cacao. First it’s fermented to develop the compounds that will later blossom into rich aromatics, then it’s laid out on the parvis in front of the village church to dry slowly in the sun. Because the farmers worked together as a cooperative, Chuao is one of the only places where a chocolate maker could buy, at one stroke, 9 to 10 tons of uniformly excellent cacao. Until recently, that chocolate maker was Valrhona. Today every last kilo of cacao from Chuao goes to Amedei.”

Needless to say I was excited to try this! My son’s instructions were, ” Mom, make sure you taste this on a clean palette, you don’t want to try this after having onions or garlic, or anything else that would effect the true taste!” That’s exactly what I did, I snapped a piece off, and I was in chocolate heaven! Not bitter at all to me, in fact I found it slightly creamy and so rich in flavor, a most memorable chocolate experience! Thanks Tony!

I couldn’t wait to try this chocolate melted, warm and gooey so I decided to melt some between pound cake and use my panini grill. I just bought a good quality pound cake, because after all the chocolate is the star here, and some fresh strawberries.

I brushed my heated grill slightly with unsalted butter, laid the chocolate bar on one side of the slice of pound cake, along with thinly cut strawberry slices.

Gently bring the top down on your grill, you don’t want to smash this at all, it only takes a couple of minutes to melt. Gently remove it and let it set a minute.

Look at that dark glossy color! Believe me, it tasted as good as it looks!!

Now you don’t have to have Amedei chocolate to make this, you can use any favorite chocolate of your choice, of course a smear of Nutella would always do! Brioche, Challah, or even Ciabatta bread in place of the pound cake would be equally good as well.

Any way you make it, I’m sure you’ll adore this decadent dessert, wouldn’t this be great for your special Valentine?

Buon Appetito!!

Tilapia Piccata

February 3, 2009 by Marie 63 Comments

A couple of years ago I ordered this in a restaurant and instantly loved it, and ever since then I’ve been making it at home. I still love the classic chicken piccata, but piccata done with fish is high on my list of favorites! Not only does it taste delicious with that tangy lemon butter sauce, you can have it on your table in 20 minutes!! Great for midweek, and just as good for a special dinner party.

In a saute pan heat some butter and olive oil. Dredge your fish in some flour seasoned with salt and pepper. Nicely brown both sides of your fish, I prefer tilapia in this, I think it holds up really well and I like the “non fishy” taste.

Gently remove your fish, deglaze your pan with some white wine scraping up the brown bits. Squeeze a half of a juicy lemon in, more if you like, a nice splash of chicken stock, a couple tablespoons of capers, and a little more butter. After it reduces a while, put your fish back in along with some sliced lemons and fresh parsley. Cook a couple minutes more just till the fish is done, and the all the flavors blend together.

A couple of months ago I bought this hand held julienne peeler and put it in my kitchen drawer and forgot about it. I just saw it the other day when I was making this fish and decided to give it a try, much to my surprise I love it, my new favorite toy!! So easy to use, and the blade is nice and sharp, does the same thing as a mandoline would do, and it’s very inexpensive! I would highly recommend it to anyone. The one I have is an Oxo Good Grips.

I quickly sauteed the carrots and zucchini in olive oil and garlic, it literally took seconds till they wilted slightly and then they were done. A great side dish to go along with the fish!!

Can’t wait to try my new little gadget on potatoes next!

Buon Appetito!!

63 Comments Filed Under: Fish Tagged: oxo julienne peeler, quick and easy meal, tilapia piccata

Bite Size Pizzettes!

January 31, 2009 by Marie 36 Comments

Looking for some last minute Super Bowl snacks? These pizzettes should do the trick!
Mini bite size pizza’s made any way you like them. Just roll out some pizza dough, cut out rounds with a 2-3 inch cookie or pastry cutter. Place on greased baking sheet, top with your favorite ingredients, bake at 400F till crispy and golden, around 10 minutes.
My favorites are, artichoke and gorgonzola , and caprese style with tomato, basil and fresh mozzarella. The possibilities are endless, just make sure you make a bunch because they go quick!