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12 Italian Food Secrets from Eataly

Posted by Jerry De Luca on Thursday, September 10, 2015

Italian Food


Eataly is the largest Italian marketplace in the world. It comprises a wide assortment of food and beverage counters, restaurants, bakery items, and a world class cooking school. There are presently locations in New York City and Chicago, with more planned for Los Angeles, Boston, Philadelphia and Washington DC.  There are 16 locations in Italy and many more worldwide. Below are some of the best highlights and samples taken directly from the best seller How To Eataly: A Guide To Buying, Cooking, and Eating Italian Food.        

The Italian Way with Matching DRIED PASTA & SAUCE

---- Long and thin spaghetti, bucatini, and linguine matches with oil-based sauces, smooth tomato sauces, and seafood sauces

---- Cup-shaped conchiglie (shells) matches with sauces with peas or small bits of meat or vegetables, which get trapped in the cups to delicious effect

---- Short and tubular penne and rigatoni matches with meat sauces such as ragu.

---- Complex shapes like fusilli and rotelle matches with cream sauces, sauces with peas or small bits of meat or vegetables.

How To Determine PASTA IS COOKED AL DENTE

1)    Cut a piece of pasta in half.

2)    If there is still a rather large chalky white area in the center, it’s not ready yet.

3)    When it is al dente, the center will remain slightly lighter in color, but most of the pasta will be the same color.

How To Stretch PIZZA DOUGH

1) Place one ball of dough on the work surface. Flatten the top with the palm of your hand.

2) Cup your hands and position them inside the perimeter of the dough. The section of the dough that remains beyond your hands will remain thicker and form the crust.

3) Gently pull your hands outward and away from each other, flattening them as you go, while turning the dough.

4) Repeat until you have a thin, even circle of dough with a thicker edge.

The Italian Way With Potato Fritters

Peel potatoes and put them through a potato ricer, then combine the riced potatoes with beaten egg, grated Parmigiano Reggiano, salt, and pepper. Form the mixture into small balls or patties, dredge them lightly in flour, and fry in olive oil until golden and crisp.

The Italian Way With Roasted Potatoes with Rosemary

Peel potatoes and cut them into 2-inch chunks. Toss with salt, pepper, lots of fresh rosemary needles, and olive oil. Spread on a baking sheet or baking pan in a single layer and roast at 350 degrees Fahrenheit until crisp.

The Italian Way With GARLIC SPINACH

Steam spinach, dry and chop. Brown 2 – 4 crushed garlic cloves in a generous amount of olive oil, then add the spinach and toss over medium-high heat until warmed through. Season with salt and pepper and serve warm.

The Italian Way With ARUGULA SALAD

Combine Arugula leaves (tear if large) with a handful of toasted walnuts and peeled, cored, and quartered pears. Toss with olive oil and salt and top with a few shavings of aged cheese.

The Italian Way With Stuffed Peaches

Halve and pit (don’t peel) peaches and scoop out a little of their flesh. In a food processor fitted with a metal blade, grind amaretti cookies with the peach pulp. If dry, moisten with a little water or wine. Stuff the peaches with the amaretti mixture. If the peaches aren’t perfectly ripe, bake them briefly in a pre-heated 350 degrees Fahrenheit oven to soften.

The Italian Way With Breadcrumbs

For bread that has gone hard and stale, cut into breadcrumbs. Place into a metal blade food processor and grate with rosemary and/or sage, black pepper, and nutmeg to the desired consistency. Drizzle in a little olive oil, then gently toast the breadcrumbs in a pan until just golden before using to stuff a whole fish, top baked cardoons or other vegetables. Also use as extender in meatballs or meat loaf, or toss with pasta.

3 Italian Ways With HONEY

---- Combine 8 parts honey to 1 part amaretto liqueur and warm in the top of a double-boiler, then stir in toasted slivered almonds, serve with cheese.

---- Blend honey with room temperature lardo or ricotta until smooth and serve as a spread with toasted bread.

---- Brush a small amount of a dark, savory honey such as fiori delle alpi on meat before roasting to create a caramelized crust. 

Mario Batali with Martha Stewart at Eataly New York



Eataly Chicago




How To Make the Perfect Pasta | Tips from Eataly




  Grilling Tips from the Experts at Eataly



A Bar for Nutella @ Eataly




Oscar Farinetti, How To Eataly: A Guide To Buying, Cooking, and Eating Italian Food, Rizzoli Publishers, 2014

Photo:  https://deluxeroma.wordpress.com/tag/eataly/    CC     

Jerry De Luca is a Christian freelance writer who loves perusing dozens of interesting and informative publications. When he finds any useful info he summarizes it, taking the main points, and creates a (hopefully) helpful blog post.

2 comments :

  1. Jerry, we just went to Eataly today and had the hot cbocolate (similar to hothot pudding). Ciobar is a mix you can get in Italy - do you know where to buy it here? Or do you have a recipe?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sandra: I don't know where else to buy it but here is the recipe .... http://www.food.com/recipe/ciobar-thick-hot-chocolate-374459

      Delete

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