Cuisine | Italy Puglia cooking classes and wine tours

What’s special at the market in Puglia in March: fresh fava beans! 0

Posted on March 06, 2010 by Stile Mediterraneo

It has been several months now since we started our “What’s special at the market in Puglia” section, where we write about seasonal and special products we find at the market in Puglia.

We have to admit that we were never happier to host our market section than today! This morning we finally found some fresh fava beans at the market and this means that the Spring has finally arrived!

The fava beans are still a bit small and so we have to wait a few days more, before we can make our delicious pasta with fresh fava beans, onions and mint.

However, when the fava beans are so small and tender they are perfect to be eaten raw in a salad, with the fresh pecorino sheep cheese, some Pugliese bread topped with good quality extra virgin olive oil!

It’s a fantastic starter!

What’s your favorite recipe with fresh fava beans?

For more information about our cooking classes and market tours in Puglia contact us at info.stile@gmail.com or subscribe to the Cooking School in Puglia Newsletter.

Tags: fava beans fava broad beans Italian starters Italy fava beans Mediterranean Healthy food Puglia fava bean
Category Food markets, Mediterranean Healthy food, Puglia, Vegetables & Legumes, cuisine, traditions

What you should not miss when you come to Puglia: the pasticciotto Leccese! 0

Posted on February 27, 2010 by Stile Mediterraneo

There is one thing that you should certainly not miss when you come to Lecce in Puglia: the delicious Pasticciotto Leccese! There is no other place in Puglia or in Italy where you can have it! People from other places in Puglia come to Lecce on purpose to eat the pasticciotto.

Pasticciotto is a pasta frolla (sweet pastry) tart filled with lemon cream. Pasticciotto is the typical pastry that people in Lecce have for breakfast. If you want to do what the locals do in Lecce that’s what you should order, together with the espressino coffee, while enjoying the sun in the Santo Oronzo Square in Lecce.

In Lecce almost every coffee bar will serve the pasticciotto. However if you want to eat one of the best, you should go to Ascalone in Galatina (on the way South to Gallipoli).

I and Marika were recently interviewed by Sharon Sanders for a beautiful article she wrote about our Stile Mediterraneo Cooking School in Puglia and which was published in the Dream of Italy newsletter. In this article we share our secrets and travel recommendations for Puglia. We tell Sharon the story that when Cinzia lived in Milan, Ascalone refused to sell her a tray of pasticciotti to be taken back to the North with her. The baker wanted the pasticciotti to be enjoyed warm! Read the Dream of Italy Newsletter to find out more!

For more information about our cooking classes and gourmet tours in Puglia contact us at info.stile@gmail.com or subscribe to the Cooking School in Puglia Newsletter.

Tags: italian espresso coffee Italian pastries Italian sweets italy pasticciotto lecce things to do Puglia things to do
Category Cakes & Desserts, Favorites, Puglia, Reviews, cuisine, lifestyle in Lecce, things to do in Puglia, traditions, travel tips

Take a personality test with food! 0

Posted on January 26, 2010 by Stile Mediterraneo

Take the following test and we tell you what personality you have.

The test is free and will take only about 1 minute to complete.

Don’t spend too much time considering your answer, your first impression is what we need. Please be completely honest in your response.

QUESTION:

What is your favorite food at lunch on your work days?

A) a caprese salad with tomato, mozzarella cheese, basil, extra virgin olive oil….accompanied by two slices of bread?

OR:

B) a delicious sandwich, with a super yummy mozzarella…some juicy tomatoes with fresh basil and… that warm bread, crunchy outside and soft inside?

————————————–

RESULTS

If your answer is A):

You are a calm person and enjoy every moment of your life. Work is good…but that’s not the most important thing in your life! You are also very social and you enjoy taking a good break at lunch with colleagues and people you like.

You understand how important it is not just to eat well and healthy…..but also HOW you eat….(see below).

If your answer is B):

You are a very dynamic person and very successful at work. You are a multi-task person. Your typical day looks more or less like this:

-gym very early in the morning

-meetings at work in the morning

-shopping at lunch…while having a quick sandwich panino standing in the coffee bar

-meetings at work in the afternoon

-aperitif and then dinner with friends

————————————-

Many times already, you may have heard that we are WHAT we eat!

Lots of medical reaserch demonstrates that what we eat can have a huge impact on our health in the long run.

I and Marika believe that what we eat is really important….but that’s not enough! Also, HOW we eat can have a huge impact on our health and well being.

There is a BIG difference between a sandwich with tomato, mozzarella and basil; and a caprese salad with tomato, mozzarella, basil and bread…..even though they are made exactly with the same ingredients and quantities.

The difference is that the caprese salad is eaten at the table. May be you are chewing slowly and may be you are relaxing while talking to someone.

The sandwich is very likely eaten in a couple of minutes, standing in a coffee bar.

We strongly believe that the Mediterranean diet is good….but to be more powerful, it needs to be accompanied by a slower lifestyle.

What do you think? we would love to hear about your experience and thoughts.

Contact us for more information at info.stile@gmail.com or subscribe to the Cooking School in Puglia Newsletter.

Therefore we wish you have lots of Caprese slow moments with your friends….may be with a good glass of wine from Puglia!

Tags: bread Italy caprese salad focaccia mediterranean cuisine Mediterranean Healthy food Puglia Extra virgin olive oil tomatoes
Category Cheese & Mozzarella, Focaccia & Bread, Mediterranean Healthy food, Puglia Extra virgin olive oil, cuisine

Carnival for foodies in Puglia in February! 2

Posted on January 25, 2010 by Stile Mediterraneo

If you come to Puglia in February, you should definetely not miss one of the Carnival celebrations which take place almost everywhere in Puglia.

The Carnival in Putignano is one of the oldest, dating back to the end of the 14th century. It became very famous because it was the longest, starting on December 26th and ending on the Shrove Tuesday, in February.

This year there will be lots of concerts, exhibitions and events almost every day from January 31st until February 21st. However, the parades are the main attractions, which take place every Sunday and on Tuesday Feb 16th (Martedì Grasso). Masked people dance in the streets following huge trucks where famous politicians made of papier machè throw sweets at kids.

Anther beautiful, and less “crowded” (only locals know about it!!), Carnival parade is the one taking place in Gallipoli. This year there will be two parades on Feb 7th and 14th in the main streets.

In addition to the parades, one of the best parts of the Carnival celebration in Puglia is tasting all the delicious sweets which are only made during this holiday. The most traditional Carnival sweets are a kind of Confetti, called “Ricciareddi“, made of almonds and sugar, with a very funny curly shape and in many different colors. You can only find them at Carnival time!

Also, very traditional are the “Chiacchiere“ fried or baked pastry strips, covered with icing sugar; and the “Struffoli”, fried little balls covered with honey.

All these sweets are supposed to be for kids, but they are so good that it is impossible to resist!!

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Tags: Gallipoli italy carnival italy sweets puglia carnival putignano carnival
Category cuisine, things to do in Puglia, traditions

Tell us about your favorite pizza in Italy 2

Posted on January 18, 2010 by Stile Mediterraneo

If you travel around Italy, you will certainly notice that food and recipes change completely from region to region and most of the times also from town to town. Even pasta, which is always thought of as the typical Italian food, is made with different ingredients depending on whether you are in the South or North of Italy.

Pizza is certainly one of the few national Italian dishes. Pizza was first made in Naples, but now you find it anywhere in Italy. The pizza dough is always made with the same ingredients: water, yeast, flour, salt, extra virgin olive oil.
What changes from region to region is the thickness of the dough or may be the topping variety.

We are putting together a list of some of the best pizza places in Italy. Please tell us where in Italy you had your best pizza!

For more information please contact us at info.stile@gmail.com
Subscribe to the Stile Mediterraneo Cooking School in Puglia Italy Newsletter

Tags: bread Italy focaccia Italian cuisine Italy cooking pizza Puglia cuisine
Category Focaccia & Bread, Mediterranean Healthy food, Reviews, cuisine

Should Italian food taste like garlic? 0

Posted on January 14, 2010 by Stile Mediterraneo

Our guests attending our cooking classes in Puglia are always surprised at the fact that in the Pugliese cuisine we use garlic in a very delicate way.

Our guests’ usual comment after the first bite is: “mmmh…but I don’t taste garlic in my food!“. And we use to reply that if it did taste like garlic, than it would not be authentic Italian food (at least not from Puglia!).

I and Marika are big fans of garlic! We like it because of its flavor and most of all, its health benefits. During our cooking classes Marika loves explaining how good and healthy garlic is for cholestorol, blood pressure, digestion etc.
We use it in many successful recipes. However, it is true that we use it in a very delicate way, without letting garlic cover our food.

Most of the times we sweat a whole garlic clove in olive oil and then we remove it after a few minutes before adding the other ingredients.

Very rarely we use garlic, if we are already using onion in a recipe.

Lastly, if we need to use garlic (as in our famous veal meatballs), we prefer to chop it with a knife instead of crushing it.

And you, do you like the garlic taste? How much garlic do you use?

What was your favorite food with garlic you had in Italy?

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Tags: Cooking tip Italy cooking Italy Cooking classes mediterranean cuisine Puglia cooking classes Puglia cuisine
Category Cooking tip, Mediterranean Healthy food, cuisine, traditions

Lucky lentils with orzo and Happy New Year! 0

Posted on January 01, 2010 by Stile Mediterraneo

There is one dish that cannot miss on Italian tables at midnight on December 31st.

This is the Lentil soup! Because they resembled coins, in the past they were thought to bring financial prosperity in the year to come. Nowadays, we associate them to general good luck, in any field. I and Marika had lentils for three days in a raw….just to be sure!

Usually lentils are prepared with cotechino (pork).

Instead, I and Marika prepared a much healthier recipe with lentils, orzo and extra virgin olive oil.
Really easy and really delicious!

INGREDIENTS
1 lb lentils (the very small)
1 lb orzo
2 carrots
parsley
extra virgin olive oil
sea salt
chilly pepper

RECIPE
Soak the lentils overnight and then rinse them. Put in a pan with the orzo and cover with water. Add the sliced carrots and cook at low flame for 1 hour and half while stirring and adding water if necessary. Add sea salt and chilly pepper.
When ready switch them off and add parsley and extra virgin olive oil.

The extra virgin olive oil is the key ingredients for the success of this recipe. It must be intense fruity and bitter.

During our cooking classes in Puglia we teach in more details how to taste the extra virgin olive oil and how to pair it with food.

What are your New Year’s culinary traditions?

WE WISH A WONDERFUL 2010 AND NEW DECADE TO ALL OUR READERS!

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Tags: cooking schools Puglia Italy Cooking classes legumes mediterranean cuisine Puglia cooking classes Puglia cuisine
Category Favorites, Italy Cooking classes, Mediterranean Healthy food, Pasta & Rice, Puglia Extra virgin olive oil, Recipes, Vegetables & Legumes, cuisine

Almond Fish: traditional Christmas sweet from Puglia 0

Posted on December 26, 2009 by Stile Mediterraneo

I and Marika don’t eat lots of sweets (apart from tons of the famous hazelnut ice cream from Lecce we already wrote about!).

However, we love the traditional Christmas sweets, just because they are really specific to this festivity and so we make them in Puglia only once per year. And this has been the same since always.
Our favorite Christmas sweet is a fish made of almond. In many families and countries it is a tradition to eat fish at Christmas time. In Puglia we also have fish as a dessert!

This sweet is very simple to prepare. We make the dough with sugar, almond and chocolate. Then we stuff the fish with Marika’s pear jam, biscuits and liquor. We decorate the fish eye with a coffee bean.
However, as for many other almond sweets we prepare during our cooking classes in Puglia, the almonds we use are what make the difference.

The fish we made for our family’s Christmas lunch weighed 1 kg. We understood that everybody liked it since there was none left.

And you, what are your favorite Christmas culinary traditions?

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Tags: cooking schools Italy cooking schools Puglia Italian cuisine Italian recipes Puglia cooking classes Puglia cuisine Puglia traditions
Category Cakes & Desserts, Favorites, cuisine, traditions

Delicious dorade in sea salt crust! 2

Posted on December 19, 2009 by Stile Mediterraneo

One of the most typical fish from the Mediterranean sea is the Dorade.

If you come to Puglia, this is something you should not miss. Our favorite place where to eat is in Otranto, just by the Adriatic sea.

A dorade can be prepared in so many different ways.

I and Marika love the dorade baked in sea salt crust: this recipe allows us to appreciate the freshness of this fish and its particular taste.

We don’t add any flavor, herbs, lemon or olive oil.

The only ingredients we use are: dorade and coarse sea salt.

As always the most important thing is the quality of the ingredients we are using.

It is extremely important that the dorade is freshly caught and most of all that it is coming from the sea (and not farmed).

During our cooking classes we will teach how to recognize whether the dorade is coming from the sea or is farmed.

INGREDIENTS
2 servings
1 lb 3 oz dorade
coarse rock salt (as necessary)

PREPARATION

Preheat the oven at 200 °C.
Clean the fish.
Place a layer of sea salt on the bottom of a large baking pan.
Lay the fish on top of the salt and cover it with sea salt.
Cook for about 25 minutes.

For more information about our Mediterranean cooking classes please contact us at info.stile@gmail.com or visit our Classes Calendar Page
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Tags: cooking schools Puglia Italian cuisine Italian recipes mediterranean cuisine Puglia cooking classes Puglia cuisine Puglia recipes
Category Cooking tip, Favorites, Fish & Meat, Mediterranean Healthy food, cuisine

Sweet and sour peppers: summer is back in Puglia! 0

Posted on December 05, 2009 by Stile Mediterraneo

It’s unbelievable! We are in December and we are still enjoying a fantastic mild weather in Puglia. Even at the market we can still find summer vegetables, which are not imported but produced by the local farmers.

Today I and Marika decided to take advantage of this fantastic weather and prepared one of our favorite summer dishes: the sweet and sour peppers (peperoni in agrodolce).

This recipe testifies the Arabic influence in the Pugliese cuisine.

INGREDIENTS:

4 servings

4 bell peppers (a combination of red, yellow and green) seeded and cut into strips

1 tbsp (15 ml) extra virgin olive oil

1 tbsp (15 ml) sugar

1 tbsp (15 ml) wine vinegar

1 tbsp (15 ml) capers

1 tbsp (15 ml) black olives, pitted

1 tbsp (15 ml) bread crumbs

parsley

salt, to taste

PREPARATION:

Place the olive oil and sugar in a pan over medium-low heat and cook gently for one or two minutes.

Add the pepper strips, cover the pan and simmer until the peppers are softened, but still firm, about 20 minutes.
Add vinegar, capers, olives and keep cooking another 10 minutes over low heat. Remove from heat and add bread crumbs and parsley.

Allow to cool before serving.