Italian Eats

Ciao!  

     I have been on another hiatus due to busy schedules at work aaaaaaaaand I just returned from a 3 week adventure in Italy with my best bud.  Wow, I could write an entire blog about Italy. Oh wait, we did! (Private blog for family & friends...FYI, a great way to document travels). We began our travels in Venice and over to the Ligurian coast, down to Florence, through Tuscany & Umbrian and, down to the beautiful beach town of Positano and ended our adventures in Rome.
     But today I want to give you a quick glimpse of my travels through the lens of food (and my iPhone). Aaah yes, the food. The way the cappuccinos became your first desire in the morning, the pizza each having its own distinguishing features, pastas with the most delightful combinations of flavors, wine going down so smooth and the gelato. Wow, the gelato. I tried 21 different flavors! I am no food photographer, so be forewarned about the amateur shots. But enough talking, let me show you how delicious Italy is.

Venezia: a style of its own, thin crust pizza, pasticcerias, the introduction of the "spritz" and cicchetti e apertif

          

un litro di vino & pizze diavola (spicy salame) 

 

 

 Giant cake/brownie like Venetian cookies: Pan dei dogi cioccolata

 

Prosecco apertif & cicchetti (small bites in Venice) 

 

Aperol & Campari "Spritz"

 

Sandwiches a gratis? Sure!

 Agnolotti alla Bolognese 

(stuffed half moons with spinach & ricotta...mmm)

Cinque Terre:  Ligurian pesto, fresh seafood, sunny day treats and a dessert wine that will warm you from your earlobes to your tippy toes

 Cozze Ripiene

 Linguine alla'Lampara: Swordfish Linguine

 Sciacchetra & Biscotti

 

Ricotta e fichi (fig) & Bacio gelato  

Green Olive Focaccia

 

And when exhausted from a day of travel, 

we could count on a meal of local salami, pecorino and pane for under 10 euros.

 Florence: rich with flavor, small markets, simplicity, macellerias and fresh homemade pasta

 

 Colazione tipica: a typical breakfast of cafe, cheese & a roll, jelly and yogurt

 

 Pecorino on a rainy day

At least 1 macelleria (butcher shop) on every block

 

Always fresh ingredients... 

We made that!

Stuffed pork panini followed by Noce e Cioccolata (Walnut & Chocolate)...delizioso!

 

Best panini of my life: Proscuitto, truffle spread, pecorino spread, arugula & fresh pane

ooh, yes..wine always accompanied eats 

Tuscan & Umbrian hill towns: wild boar, cheese, lots of local wine and the best cappuccino stop ever

 Cinghiale (boar salame), herb pecorino, mandorla (almonds) & a bottle of San Gimignano Vernaccia

Positano: primi & secondi, sicilian olives, seafood, pizze napoletana & fresh fruits!!

 Pillowy, billowy gnocchi

Calamari alla griglia (grilled squid)

Linguine alla Scampi

 

Pizze vegetale

 

Daily Positano breakfast with <squeal>...Fruit!

Roma:  fresh mozzarella, greens and radicchio, meat & seafood cravings, 
                                                                           and everything under the roman sun

Proscuitto, radicchio fusilli, pomodoro e mozarella....and a few glasses of vino bianco

Bresaola e verde oliva panini

Beef shank ravioli...As American as that sounds, it was incredible!

Gelato al Caramello Salato (right)

Ultimo gelato: Pistacchio, Mandorola e Cardamom & Thumbelina 

(Pistachio, Almonds with Cardamom and Rose Petals & Lavender with Walnuts)

 

Apertivo tipico: Spritz, mini bites, potato chips, pretzels & peanuts

             

The final meal:  Bresaola & melt-in-your-mouth Mozzarella

Linguine pesce spada & Spaghetti all'amatriciana

E tutto! That's all folks!

Until next time Italy...

Cin cin, 

Belle

Venetian Rice & Pea Soup

Oh my! I can't believe it! In one week, I will almost be in Venice, Italy. 

I made this incredible soup last year from my Williams & Sonoma Soup of the Day cookbook, 

I've been wanting to post it and well.... whadda ya know??

 I will get to eat authetic Venetian Pea Soup soooo soon!  

  I've been thinking about this soup a lot. But I gave up cheese for lent and there is a nice scoop of Parmesan cheese in this soup, so now I reeeeally can't stop thinking about it. 

.......mmmm...cheese.......

Okay, I am done daydreaming. Back to reality, sitting on my couch in San Diego.

Here's the lowdown on this comforting soup.

Venetian Rice & Pea Soup: 

 2 Tbsp unsalted butter

1 shallot, minced

1 celery rib, chopped

1/2 c Arborio rice

3 c chicken broth

2 c fresh or frozen peas

1/2 c Parmesan cheese

1 Tbsp minced flat-leaf parsley

Salt & fresh ground pepper

In a large, heavy pot, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the shallot and celery and saute until the shallot is translucent (about 2 minutes).  Add the rice & cook, stirring until the grains are translucent with a white dot in the center (about 1 minute).  Um... starting to notice Williams & Sonoma likes to cook until things are translucent for some "close-to" amount of time.  

Raise the heat to a medium-high, add the broth and 2 cups water & bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer until the rice is tender (about 15 minutes).  Add the pears and cook, stirring occasionally for 5 minutes.  Stir in the Parmesan and parsley, season with salt and pepper and serve!

 

Your belly should now be warm & satisfied. 

Salute,

Belle

Cocoa-Crusted Pork Tenderloin

  
    Earlier this month, I hosted a Chocolate themed dinner club with my girlfriends.  The original plan was to make homemade chocolate croissants, but I was pressed for time that weekend and decided to stick with an old fave: pork tenderloin.  I read through dozens of cocoa-crusted recipes and finally found this one on The Daily Meal. I always like an excuse to try a new tenderloin recipe.

      I know I have talked about pork tenderloin before, but it is a nice meat that doesn't take much work and usually has wonderful results.  I was even excited to use a new meat thermometer I got for Christmas.   The recipe used a cocoa rub and a cherry sauce, so I prepped both of those the night before dinner club.  Then the morning of, I was ready to rock! Let's get cooking...

 

Trim up your tenderloins and lay out on baking sheet for a good rubdown

Heavily sprinkle on spice rub and cover whole tenderloin. You should be smelling of cinnamon now.

They look so innocent and unknowing.

Do a quick sear on both sides, careful not to burn the cocoa.  As you can see, I might need a new, larger frying pan.  Then place back on baking sheet and pop in oven.

 

This is the best shot I could get out of the oven, and although its nice and brown on the outside it was the perfect temperature and light pink on the inside. 

Once your sauce base is ready, stir in cherries and serve over pork! 

 

Here's what you'll need:

Cocoa-Crusted Pork Tenderloin with Cherry Sauce
Pork:
1 tablespoon ground white pepper

1 tablespoon ground coriander

4 tablespoons ground cinnamon

2 teaspoon ground nutmeg 

1 teaspoon ground cloves

4 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa

4 tablespoons kosher salt

2 tablespoons olive oil 

Two 2-pound boneless pork tenderloins

 

Cherry Sauce:

2 teaspoons olive oil

2 large shallots, minced

2 tablespoons fresh garlic, minced

8 sprigs fresh thyme

¼ cup red wine

¼ cup dried cherries

2 cup veal or beef stock

2 teaspoon sugar

2 teaspoon kosher salt

Cooking instructions

Mix all the dry ingredients together. Place tenderloins on a sheet pan and coat well with rub. Let sit for 2 hours.  Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Heat the olive oil in a skillet over high heat. Once hot, place the pork in the pan and sear all sides until brown, being careful not to burn the cocoa. Remove pork from skillet and place in a baking dish and bake in the oven for 20-30 minutes, or until internal temperature reaches 140 degrees.

For the sauce:
Heat oil in a skillet over medium heat.  Add shallot, garlic and thyme and sauté for about one minute.  Deglaze with red wine. Reduce red wine by half and add stock. Reduce by half again and add sugar and salt to taste.  Strain and set aside.  When ready to serve, heat and add cherries.

         As seen earlier at my Chocolate dinner club, serve up with some greens & veggies and enjoy!

Cheers,
Belle

Chocolate Dinner Club

Chocolate. Who doesn't love chocolate?  

         Every month, 11 friends and I get together for dinner club.  The host will choose a theme for the month and everyone brings a dish to share. It was my turn this month! I wanted to do something cute with Valentine's Day but didn't want to over do it with hearts or red & pink foods. So as I was browsing quotes about love, I stumbled upon this one.  Funny that I have always loved Charles M. Schulz, the Peanuts creator. His comics carry such good memories for me. He always blended sweet lessons with humor so well, very fitting that he would blend love and chocolate and set the perfect scene for my dinner club. 

      The only requirement was to to include a chocolate ingredient because...

     "All you need is love, but a little chocolate now and then doesn't hurt." 

 

The lineup included:

Drink

Chocolate martinis

   
Appetizer  

Mini Chocolate Machaca Breakfast Burritos

Fruit with Creamy Chocolate Dip

Salad & Veggies

Mixed Greens with Warm Cacao Nib Crusted Goat Cheese

Cocoa Spiced Roasted Vegetables

Main Dishes

Beef Paleo Chili

Cocoa Crusted Pork Tenderloin with Cherry Sauce

Pinto-Bean Mole Chili (Epicurious)
  

Dessert

Fudge Mint Brownies 

Chocolate Chip Pancakes & Strawberries

 Here are a few of the girls enjoying lunch!

January was Prohibition theme: a hidden alcohol ingredient and March the dishes must be made with local grown food. I can't wait to see what other themes come up throughout the year.  

Food makes for such great conversation and the company doesn't hurt either!

See the recipe for Cocoa Crusted Pork Tenderloin here.

Cheers,
Belle

Birthday Blessings

A birthday can make us think about, reflect on and appreciate many things. 

Today as I celebrate my 31st birthday, I am overwhelmed with thoughts about how blessed I am. 

My year of 30 was not what I expected, weird and surprising tough times but a lot of high times too.  I could not have gotten here today without the support of my amazing friends and family, so this year..instead of wishes for myself, I have some wishes for those who have been there for me & by my side.  I am so excited to see what this year has in store for me, so thank you from the bottom of my heart. I am truly lucky to be here living this wonderful life today.

A few fun highlights of my 30th year of life:

A fabulous 30th birthday bash in a swanky speakeasy

 

Sharing cocktails poolside with my best bud

 Watching my elementary school best friends become beautiful mothers 

and spending time with their baby boys!

Sailing for the first time

 Running through a ridiculous amount of colored paint

 Rappelling into a cave

 Becoming a triathlete

Seeing my goddaughter turn 1!

See...when you stop and think about, there are so many little things that can make a moment great. 

Since we are talking about great moments, these are the moments I look forward to in my 31st year. Seriously, how lucky am I?

Upcoming special moments:

* Traveling to Italy with my best friend

* Opening myself up to more risks & life

* Welcoming new babies into this world

* Reading many more books

* Continuing to blog about Love, Luck & Purpose

So cheers to this upcoming year! I wish all of you the blessings I have been bestowed and hoping to a fabulous year ahead!  

Cheers, 

Belle

Puff 'n' Stuff Cookies

As a Valentine treat for someone sweet, I made up some new cookies. Easy & extremely delicious!

 

I took the Tollhouse Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe and added in a few fun items!

A cookie stuffed with so much goodness... I decided to name them Puff 'n' Stuff Cookies... yummo! 

Puff 'n' Stuff Cookies:

• 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup shortening or softened butter
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 3/4 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract (My secret is 3 teaspoons!)
• 2 large eggs
• 2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1 cup mini marshmallows
• Sprinkles

Preheat oven to 375° F.

Combine flour, baking soda and salt in small bowl. Beat butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar and vanilla extract in large mixer bowl until creamy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Gradually beat in flour mixture. Stir in morsels and marshmallows.

 

Scoop tablespoons of dough and roll into 1-1/2 balls.

 

Dip balls into a small bowl of sprinkles.  

 

Bake for 9 to 11 minutes or until golden brown. Cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes; remove to wire racks to cool completely. 

Enjoy and Share!

Cheers,
Belle

The Case of Too Many Carrots

The Case of Too Many Carrots: Solved

 Make Carrot Cake Bars. 

I love fresh produce. I hate throwing out fresh produce. So, I noticed I had a lot more carrots in my fridge then I could eat in the next few days. I shredded those carrots and put on my thinking cap. Carrot Cake Muffins were definitely going down... but what else could I make. With a family gathering coming up, I went sweet and decided on these carrot cake bars.  They were really easy and tasted so yummylicious!!! 

                                    

Not paleo, not healthy, but man.. they were good. I have been trying to use up all the dairy, flour and sugars I bought for the holiday family recipes I make. And when you know that your home eating is still on track, it's okay (at least to me) to splurge and indulge at times.

Also exciting, I used my KitchenAid Mixer for the first time in years. Maybe 3 years. It's been just collecting dust in the corner of my kitchen. I just prefer the ease of grabbing my hand mixer and a bowl.  Okay, enough blabbing... let's get to the good stuff.

Carrot Cake Bars:

• 1 cup sugar
• 3/4 cup vegetable oil
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup freshly shredded carrots
• 1/2 cup chopped pecan, walnuts or sunflower seeds
• 1 can (16 ounces) cream cheese frosting or homemade Cream Cheese Frosting

Step One: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Dust off old mixer. Or just get out a bowl and hand mixer  

Step Two: In a large bowl using an electric mixer, beat the sugar, oil and eggs until light.

Step Three: Stir in the flour, cinnamon, baking soda and salt until well combined. Gently stir in the carrots and nuts/seeds. (I just continued to use the mixer on low speed, worked fine!)

           

Step Four: Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 25 to 30 minutes. Transfer the pan to a wire rack and cool completely. 

 

Step Five:  Spread the bars with enough of the frosting to cover completely. You can drag a fork through the frosting on a diagonal to decorate. I just spread on a nice thick gooey layer and called it a day. Cut into 2-inch squares and remove from the pan. 

Step 6: Try not to eat them all!!! 

 

I also had extra cream cheese from another holiday recipe I did, so I went for the homemade frosting. I usually don't like cream cheese frosting so I altered the recipe & added a little more vanilla and sprinkled in a little lot of cinnamon. 

Cream Cheese Frosting:

• 4 ounces unsalted butter, softened
• 4 ounces cream cheese, softened
• 2 cups powdered sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract (I did 2 teaspoons)
• 2 teaspoon cinnamon (my addition)

In a large bowl, beat together the butter and cream cheese with an electric mixer. With the mixer on low speed, add the powdered sugar a cup at a time until smooth and creamy. Beat in the vanilla extract and cinnamon. Then use for your recipe... mmmm mmmm good.

I may have changed my own mind about cream cheese frosting. Wowzer!