Under the Tuscan Gun

Porcini Carpaccio

Porcini mushrooms are truly a gift of nature, and a blessing for anybody with a passion for food. Leonardo Da Vinci is quoted saying that “Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication”; nothing could be more true about this wonderful ingredient.

The following recipe for the carpaccio is extremely quick and easy, and in its incredible simplicity will deliver the pure flavor of the Earth to your palate.

Homemade Pasta

Making fresh home made pasta is easy but a little lengthy. For the most part, in hour house we use regular dry pasta for all of our recipes however, when the right ingredients like a fresh hunted duck or a succulent chunk of Boar come around, nothing better than prepare some fresh pasta to go with it, on the spot!

When I learned to make my very own fresh pasta from my grandmother we never used a scale, a measuring cup or a pasta rolling machine. She used to have a metal spoon, like the ones you used to find in groceries stores that sold beans, lentils and other dried goods… Continue Reading…

Straccetti con Speck e Porcini

Porcini Mushrooms are a “Northern Hemisphere” delicacy that can be purchased fresh from mid Autumn until mid Winter, depending on temperature and rain precipitation. These Fungi should preferably be eaten fresh, but given the limited time they can be sourced through the year, it is very convenient to purchased them dried which makes for easier storage and convenience of use.

Needless to say, if you know mushrooms there is no comparison between the fresh Porcini and the Dried ones, however if we exclude recipes that call for raw mushrooms like salads and carpaccio, both version are totally interchangeable. Continue Reading…

The Sweet Chinese – Italian Connection

The 2012 year of the dragon, Chinese New Year is quickly approaching on January 23rd (4710 in the old calendar as I calculated from Wikipedia).  And so, I started to wonder if there were any real relevant connections between Chinese and Italian food.  My curiosity, led me to do a little bit of light research which resulted in a much more interesting tale than I could have imagined.

Of course we all know the Marco Polo story.  Our boy starts off in Italy, makes his way to the Orient, kicks his heels back a while and then finally returns about 17 years later with noodles in hand.  And presto!  Macaroni is born. Continue Reading…

Roadside Marketing

We had to admit it. She was a damned good saleswoman. After driving around Cape Cod for a week, buying sweet corn for 50 cents an ear at every roadside stand we passed, we just had to stop at the one in Sandwich. Their corn was $1 an ear. What on earth could justify that price?, we wondered.

The owner’s answer was simple, a query with a Quahog accent: “Ya tried ah cahn?” Continue Reading…

Extra Virgin Wins “Best Home Chef in a TV Series” at The Taste Awards

When Debi and I started posting our Tuscan family recipes on Youtube about 5 years ago we never thought about “What Could Happen”. It has always been a labor of love and joy, a way to keep our family traditions alive, a game to do with our daughters and a creative outlet… a delicious one!

Then the Cooking Channel came around, and thanks to the vision of Bruce Seidel, at the time VP of programming at the Network, our home project was turned into a real TV show, with all the bells, the whistles and the added production value that it needed. Debi and I had the fantastic opportunity to shoot 26 episodes in the past couple of years; we have learned a lot, we have grown, we have developed so many new fantastic recipes, and we finally got to share it all with a wider audience. Continue Reading…

Tiramisu’

Let’s not be of any disgrace to the common Italian Stereotype, and introduce this recipe for what it is…
Tiramisu’ is the Italian food equivalent of Viagra, and it comes without the risk of the “4 hours” side effect!
Eggs, creamy cheese, sugar, cookies chocolate and coffee; in the right proportions this recipe will keep you going for a few days. Just remember, in case you have kids, to use decaffeinated coffee (or prepare two separate trays of cake)… On adults the effects of this cake are spectacular, on kids however, it would not be excessive to describe them as catastrophic! Continue Reading…

Prosciutto, Taleggio and Radicchio Sandwich

In Italy Panini are everywhere. In every bar, at any roadside stand and gas station… It is our go to quick fix in between meals, and very often a preferred lunch substitute.

It is true that in general Italian Sandwiches are extremely simple; this has to do with the incredible amount of cold cuts, cured meats and cheeses that you can source throughout our peninsula. Good meats and good cheeses do not require much company when trapped between two slices of bread. In Tuscany for instance unsalted bread is the favorite way of preparing most of our panini, that allows us to enjoy the flavor of whatever we put inside at its best. Continue Reading…