Strawberries...the Tears of Venus

Spring is almost here and that means the appearance of this beautiful red fruit.

Legend has it that when Adonis died, Venus shed tears that turned into strawberries..for this reason they  were  enjoyed by Romans at feasts held in his name. Shakespeare called strawberries food worthy of  fairies..and King Louis XIV had them planted in the gardens of  Versailles...

Anticipation..anticipation..for Spring and Strawberry season..
Here is a recipe from the Gourmand World Cookbook Award winner The Basic Art of Italian Cooking: Holidays &Special Occasions

Risotto alla Fragole (risotto with strawberries)


4 cups vegetable broth

3 tablespoons olive oil

2 leeks chopped finely

1 cup arborio or carnaroli rice

1 tablespoon butter (unsalted)

pinch of salt

1 cup Prosecco, Spumante or dry white wine

10 ounces fresh strawberries, washed and cut in half

Heat vegetable broth till boiling. Place olive oil in large saute pan. Place in chopped leeks and saute till leeks are just about golden. Place in rice and toast till rice is coated with oil and all liquid is evaporated. Add in wine or Prosecco. Stir till all liquid is evaporated. Place in ½ cup of vegetable broth and stir till all liquid is evaporated and repeat placing in ½ cup liquid til evaporated till rice is al dente (approximately 15 minutes).


Puree strawberries. When rice is almost done, place in strawberry puree. Stir in well. Remove from heat. Let stand for 2 minutes. Place 1 tablespon of butter on top and stir till melted. Serve ,top with grated parmigiana-reggiano cheese. Decorate plates with strawberry garnish.



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An Apple A Day.....

 We have all heard the old adage, "An apple a day keeps the doctor away." 
We all know that fruits and vegetables are essential to good health.  There has
been much talk today about the benefits of antioxidants which include everything
from prevention of certain types of diseases as well as the slowing of the aging
process.  However, besides the antioxidant benefits did you know that apples
have been known to protect post-menopausal women from osteoporosis and increase
bone density.  Boron, an ingredient in apples strengths bones.  Also apples have
been found to be instrumental in such diseases  as asthma and alzheimers.  There
are many other benefits as well.  Apples have been proven to lower cholesterol,
help to lower your risk of lung cancer as well as colon, breast and liver
cancer.  Besides that they are a quick and delicious snack.  With  peak apple
season now upon us from September to November now is a great time to pile the
family in the car and set off on your apple picking adventure.  Whether you prefer the do it yourself method or the store bought one I'm sure you'll be happy with the many possibilities this fruit lends itself to.
  With over 7,000 varieties of apples available, yes 7,000, one might be in a
quandry as to which variety to choose.  Golden Delicious, and Paula Red are
considered perfect for applesauce as well as canning.  Braeburn, Gala,
Gravenstein, Rome Beauty and York Imperial are best for baked apples.  Granny
Smith, Jonagold, Macintosh, Northern Spy, Romes and Winesap are considered best
for pies.  Other varieties such as Baldwin, Cortland, Fuji, Gala, Golden
Delicious, Red Delicious, Stayman and York Imperial are best eaten as is. 
For recipes and more go to http://www.gomestic.com/Cooking/Eat-Your-Way-to-Health-with-Apples.309207
Join me this Saturday at WHole Foods Jenkintown, Pa for a book signing and cooking program. Cooking on a Budget with The Basic Art of Italian Cooking. Call the store at 215-481-0800 or for more info email: events@marialiberati.com
Join me in Italy
More recipes and articles

Buona San Valentino..

Happy San Valentino! Keep the spirit of this day alive by celebrating love..for everyone..
If you'd like to make a special dinner,here is my suggestion for a luscious seafood risotto with Orvieto classico
http://www.marialiberati.com/blog2
For a simple dessert-a scoop of chocolate or vanilla gelato or ice cream in a glass of champagne or Spumante..
See Valentine's Day around the world

Dark chocolate..(not milk chocolate)with at least 70% cocoa gives you the healthy benefits of eating chocolate -a delicious aphrodisiac.

Keep the dinner Simple & Sweet!!
Join me for two The Basic Art of Italian Cooking by Maria Liberati tm Cooking school events at Whole Foods in Marlton, NJ on February 18th at 6 PM for a class on pasta nd their sauces and a book signing and/or Whole Foods in Philadelphia on February 19th at 6 PM for a book signing and cooking class on 'Cooking on A Budget" the Basic Art of Italian Cooking way..

If you'd like to hone your cooking skills in Italy stay at our villa in Umbria for 7 days, cook with me, visit local vineyards, artisan producing food purveyors, sightsee, and enjoy La Dolce Vita in the hills of Umbria! For more info email us at :
events@marialiberati.com to register or for more info.Dates are Sept 23-Oct 6th.Only 12 spots are available so hurry and reserve your place!!

A Recipe a Day..

While working in The Basic Art of Italian Cooking Kitchen here in Italy we are working on a new recipe a day.. Todays' recipe is inspired by tartufi (truffles) the mysterious 'fungus'. Tartufi (truffles) are abundant in many regions of Italy certain times of the year.
It has become almost a tradition to leave tartufi in my kitchen as a present ..and what a wonderful present. In Abruzzo here, many people have dogs that hunt for truffles and they leave an extra one or two for me so that I find them in The Basic Art of Italian Cooking Kitchen waiting to be used in a special recipe.

Today's special dish:
Risotto with Tartufi & Oysters..You can find it here (titled 'Tartufi, food of the Gods'):
http://www.marialiberati.com/blog2

For more great recipes get your copy of the best selling book The Basic Art of Italian Cooking at http://www.marialiberati.com

Risotto again ...but with Radicchio and Trebbiano

copyright 2007,2008, Maria Liberati, The Basic Art of Italian Cooking by Maria Liberati
As I am continuing to work on my chapters on risotto (as you have probably guessed with all this mention of risotto) today's favored risotto that we selected to eat for pranzo (lunch) was a radicchio risotto.
Sauteed with radicchio, this risotto has an interesting flavor thanks to the radicchio. It does give the dish a slightly bitter, nutty taste, but the sweet,creamy parmigiano-reggiano cheese added right before serving balances the bitter flavor.



Since I do favor working with white wines in my risottos, I used a Trebbiano D'Abruzzo from a local vineyard here in Abruzzo.
If you'd like to try this delicious but also healthy dish, I am printing the recipe here before it is published.

If you would like to see what a powerhouse of health this vegetable is, here are some great reading sources:


http://www.gourmetsleuth.com/radicchio.htm
http://www.radicchio.com/
and if you want to know about Trebbiano white wine, go to:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trebbiano


Risotto with Radicchio
(for 2)
*1 tablespoon extra virgin oilive oil
*2 slices finely chopped onion
*1 cup of arborio or carnaroli rice
*4 cups of vegetable broth
*1 cup of dry white wine
*2 tblsps of freshly grated parmigiano cheese
*1 small head of radicchio, washed and pat dry, and cut into thin strips
(optional- 1 tsp of butter added when finished cooking).
Saute in saute pan- olive oil, chopped onion. When onion begins to turn golden, place in rice and toast for a minute, toss around pan with wooden spoon. Place in radicchio, 1 cup of white wine, stir until liquid is absorbed, then place in 1/2 cup of vegetable broth until all liquid is absorbed and add in more broth. Repeat this, consistently stirring with wooden spoon for approx 18 minutes or until rice is 'al dente'. Be sure all liquid is absorbed. Remove from heat.Place in (optional) butter and stir until melted. Place in individual serving dishes, top with freshly grated parmigiano-reggiano cheese and enjoy with a dry white wine.

Buon Appetito..
Ciao for now,
Maria
http://www.marialiberati.com/
Don;t forget to get your copy of the bestselling book The Basic Art of Italian Cooking at http://www.marialiberati.com/ and recieve $5 off retail price and free shipping now for a limited time.

Midnight..mezzanotte.. and almost ready to leave the office. With music loudly playing in the piazza -a block away from my window-I can barely concentrate. The end of the summer is drawing near and everyone is trying to soak up every last drop of the pleasures of the summer- the weather, the warm summer nights, the air, the food ,the fun..

Anyway, as I set out to do before I go home tonight, I want to send you a souvenir of my day here. Besides working and writing, and meetings, eating and cooking takes up some part of the day. The souvenir I can send today is the wonderful taste of today's lunch. I made a simple’ risotto con funghi’ with the fresh mushrooms. I was able to find them at at the market early this morning walking to the office.
I prefer to eat risotto in the winter time since it does require 20 minutes of concentrated stirring over the gas range. But withstanding the heat for 20 minutes was well worth the results!! Enjoy.

1 cup of carnaroli or arborio rice
4 cups of broth
1 slice of fresh onion
a small handful of freshly chopped parsley
2 tblsps of olive oil
2 tblsps of parmigiano-reggiano cheese
1 cup of dry white wine

Saute onion slice in olive oil till golden, place in sliced, washed mushrooms. Pour in some broth and simmer for about 5 minutes. Pour in cup of rice, then cup of white wine. Put timer on for 16 minutes. Continuously stir and add broth in as liquid dries up. When timer goes off, taste. If not finished, add more broth until al dente.
When finished, place in serving dishes and top with fresh parsley and freshly grated parmigiano-reggaino cheese.

Serve with chilled white wine.
Ciao for now
Maria
http://www.marialiberati.com

Copyright, Maria Liberati 2006, 2007- The Basic Art of Italian Cooking