Everydayguy » italy

Just a Man in His Kitchen: Tomato Sauce

Frank — Tue, 23 Oct 2012 02:07:46 +0000

When it came time to decide which recipe I would share first, I strained my brain for days. Where would I begin this culinary voyage? So many options… so many possibilities… In the end, I decided to lean toward my Italian roots (and when it comes to cooking I seem to lean toward my Italian side a lot). Any Italian dish can live or die by the sauce that blankets it, so I figured why not start with this basic, yet essential, element: the tomato sauce. My tomato sauce has not let me down yet, so let us begin here. Here’s what you’ll need to make your tomato sauce, or gravy as they like to call it:

1 cup diced red onion
1 cup diced carrot
1 cup diced celery
3 cloves minced garlic
1o Roma tomatoes
1 12-oz can tomato paste
1 cup chicken stock
1 cup red wine
1/2 cup chopped fresh basil
1 tbsp dried oregano
1 tbsp dried thyme
1 tbsp sugar
olive oil
salt
pepper

The dish starts with a simple “stewing” of tomatoes. Fill a stock pot with water and bring to a boil. Add 10 Roma tomatoes to the boiling water. Slice an X in the bottom of each tomato before adding it to the water (not too deep now, just a nice shallow X to get that skin wanting to jump off the tomato). Boil for about 10 minutes. You will see the skin begin to peel off. Remove the tomatoes from the boiling water and place them immediately into a bowl of cold ice water. Let them rest for about 10 more minutes and the skins should finish peeling off. Remove the tomatoes from the water and peel any skin remnants. Cut off the tops of the tomatoes and slice them. They’re gonna be very juicy and that tomato juice is going to want to run everywhere so be careful slicing them so as not to lose all that juice; you’re gonna want that in your sauce! Place the tomato slices and juices into a bowl. Add one tablespoon each of salt and sugar. Stir, and then place into the refrigerator for an hour or so until you are ready to use them.

In a large stock pot add olive oil and then one cup each of diced red onion, diced carrot and diced celery (this is the French mirepoix, the base for many Mediterranean sauces and dishes – See! You learned a little French too!). Also add about 3 cloves of garlic, minced. Allow to cook down for about 5 minutes or so until softened. Add in one tablespoon each of dried oregano and dried thyme leaves. Add a little salt and pepper. Stir regularly until softened. Add in the tomatoes from the refrigerator along with one cup of chicken stock (or broth). Stir and cook down for about 5 minutes or so. Use an immersion blender to break down the tomato and vegetables, then add one large can of tomato paste. Stir to incorporate the paste into the vegetables and stock. Add one cup of water and one cup of red wine (I recommend Chianti, Cabernet Sauvignon or Syrah). Lastly add in about ½ cup of diced fresh basil. Stir all the ingredients together and allow to simmer for about 15 minutes or longer, stirring regularly.

Voila! You have a tasty, basic tomato sauce that you can use as a base for a lot of different Italian dishes!

>Capri – Arival and surroundings

wally — Wed, 31 Dec 2008 22:45:00 +0000

Click to Play

Getting to Capri and accommodations!

Capri is a wonderful place! Spent some time there. Enjoyed the Marriott.

A little about the island from Wikipedia!

Capri (Italian pronunciation: [ˈkaːpri], pronounced /kəˈpriː/ in English) is an Italian island in the Tyrrhenian Sea off the Sorrentine Peninsula, on the south side of the Gulf of Naples, in the Campania region of Southern Italy. It has been a resort since the time of the Roman Republic. Features of the island are the Marina Piccola (the little harbour), the Belvedere of Tragara, which is a high panoramic promenade lined with villas, the limestone crags called sea stacks that project above the sea (the Faraglioni), Anacapri, the Blue Grotto (Grotta Azzurra), and the ruins of the Imperial Roman villas.

Capri is part of the region of Campania, Province of Naples. The town of Capri is the main centre of population on the island. It has two harbours, Marina Piccola and Marina Grande (the main port of the island). The separate comune of Anacapri is located high on the hills to the west.

The etymology of the name Capri is unclear; it might either be traced back to the Ancient Greeks (Ancient Greek kapros meaning “wild boar“), the first recorded colonists to populate the island. But it could also derive from Latin capreae (goats). Fossils of wild boars have been discovered, lending credence to the “kapros” etymology, but on the other hand the Romans called Capri “goat island”. Finally, there is also the possibility the name derives from an Etruscan word for “rocky”, although supposedly the Etruscans never actually ruled the island, making that etymology less likely.^[1]^[2]

Capri Italian Paradise

wally — Wed, 31 Dec 2008 07:01:00 +0000

Click to Play

We rented a power boat for the day and cruised around Capri. The island is simply stunning

>Sardinia – Italy ’08

wally — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 05:57:00 +0000

Click to Play

The extended family owns a time-share next to Porto Cerbo (Sardinia) Italy and was lucky enough to spend 2 week this summer all across Sardinia.

This video is from an inter island cruise.. And it is Paradise

Linguini alla Sorrentina – Paola

wally — Sun, 09 Nov 2008 13:13:00 +0000

>Ingredients (for 2 people):

- 1 pack of Linguini imported from Italy (Barilla or DeCecco)
- 5 medium-sized vine tomatoes or 7 small vine tomatoes
- 4 garlic cloves
- 5 miniature spanish white onions
- 1 1/2 fresh Mozarella di Buffalo imported from Italy
- Romano, Pecorino or Parmigiano Grated Cheese
- Salt
- Dry hot pepper
-Extra Virgin Olive Oil imported from Italy
- 1-2 leaves of Fresh Basil

Preparation:

Chop oinions in small pieces and slice each garlic cloves in 3-4 pieces. Simmer in the olive oil over high heat until garlic and oinions are about to become sligthly golden. Chop tomatoes in 4 and add to pan when garlic and oinions are slightly golden. Add salt and lower the heat to low. Add fresh basil.

Bring water to boil in a large pot with salt. Boil pasta until it is a bit less cooked than ‘al dente’. Drain pasta. Place back in pot, add olive oil and hot pepper.

When sauce is ready, add to pasta. Slice mozzarella into small pieces and add to pasta so that it melts in the pasta. Add Pecorino, Romano or Parmigiano cheese to pasta and toss.

Pasta is ready to serve. More Parmigiano, Pecorino or Romano can be added according to taste.

Torri del Benaco – Verona – Italy

wally — Sun, 28 Sep 2008 15:39:00 +0000

This Ancient fishing village, which sits on a characteristic cone-shaped hill where Monte Baldo gently slopes towards S. Vigilio Point, is quite charming with its small port, square, narrow streets and old buildings painted in the same warm shades of Venice. Surrounded by olive groves are new homes, camping sites, tourist resorts and hotels that provide fine accommodations all year round. A ferry service for cars, buses and passengers that unites Torri and Maderno (on the west shore) is available all year round.
The Port
At one time it was the center of trade in the town: cargo ships traveling between Desenzano and Riva and “bisse”, typical fishing boats of Lake Garda, used to dock there. On the northern end of the port sits the 15th century “Palazzo della Gardesana”, the seat of the “Gardasana dell’Acqua” council, a federation of ten communities that also had the task of suppressing and controlling smuggling on the lake during Venetian rule. The Council chapel in the nearby S.S. Trinita Church still conserves 14th – 15th century frescoes of the Veronese School. Beneath the porticos, caulkers built and repaired boats. The vaguely shell-shaped quay is considered to be from the Roman period.

Malcesine
Clustered around the foot of the castle and the “Captains’ Palace”, the old town with its small port, squares and streets filled with shops, bars and picturesque restaurants has a magical charm. With more than a hundred hotels, over three hundred apartments, numerous rooms to let, villas and twelve camping sites, Malcesine in one the most elegant and well-equipped holiday resorts on the lake. The pleasant mild climate all year round permits walks and excursions in the hinterland and on Mount Baldo, which is known as the “Botanical Garden of Europe” due to its huge variety of plant species. The community covers about 68 square kilometers and also includes the towns of Cassone (3 Km south, in the direction of Brenzone) and Navene (3 Km north, in the direction of Torbole), an important location for sailing buffs and windsurf fans.