Frittata di maccheroni, spaghetti frittata

Frittata di maccheroni

This is a very old Neapolitan recipe, that many centuries ago the local people would prepare and take down to the beach during the summer months.
It's usually prepared with left over spaghetti that are then prepared cold with other ingredients and then cooked as a frittata. I remember getting my grandmother to prepare it for the scampagnata (the day when family and friends head for the country for a pic-nic).


For 4 people
Ingredients:
Left over spaghetti 400 gr.
7 eggs
Grated Parmesan or pecorino cheese
Salt and pepper
4 spoons of olive oil

Peppe
If you can prepare the spaghetti al dente the day before, best is to have a nice tomato sauce to go with it for lunch and cook extra for the next day, when drained separate what you need for the frittata and cool down and store in the fridge.
Then the next day in a large bowl add the eggs and the cheese with a sprinkle of salt and a bit of pepper, then put in the spaghetti cold from the fridge and mix slowly, in a frying pan warm the oil on a medium low heat and add the mixture, cook for three or four minutes on both sides and serve hot or cold.
If you want to make it more fancy you can add tomato sauce or mozzarella cheese, pancetta, salame or what you prefer, better if you add it on the day before and refrigerate!
Hope you enjoy this recipe and use it soon!

What's Cooking with Peppe: MOZZARELLA IN CARROZZA (Mozzarella served in a ca...

What's Cooking with Peppe: MOZZARELLA IN CARROZZA (Mozzarella served in a ca...: Mozzarella in Carrozza This is a great and simple dish to prepare for a light summer lunch or early evening, great with some fresh tomato,...

MOZZARELLA IN CARROZZA (Mozzarella served in a carriage)

Mozzarella in Carrozza

This is a great and simple dish to prepare for a light summer lunch or early evening, great with some fresh tomato, rocket and red onion salad, or if you fill like going all the way make your self some chips and a cold glass of white wine.
This summer is been great and in over 14 years I lived in Glasgow it certainly is the one to remember, for the heat but also because is lasting so long and really make you enjoy Scotland for all the beautiful scenery.
So as soon as you get the time try this recipe and enjoy a little taste of Campania, and don't forget the wine!!!!!!!!!

For 4 people:

3 eggs
a little milk
400 gr slice white bread (better if stale bread)
450 gr of buffalo mozzarella
plain flour
olive oil for frying


When making this recipe try to find buffalo mozzarella that has more fat content and is going to be less watery, that will help the end result, and if you want an extra flavour from Sorrento grated lemon zest added to the eggs, milk and salt mix will make it even more special.
So start by mixing the eggs with a little milk and salt in a large bowl, then slice the mozzarella, same thickness as the bread slices and make a sandwich, then flour each one and soak in the egg mixture until well covered.
In a large frying pan add enough olive oil (not extra virgin) to cover half of the sandwich, so when golden on one side you can turn it over and finish the other half, or if you have a fryer even better bring it up to 180c and fry one at the time.
Served it with a nice salad or chips as a main course, or cut in half and serve with a little rocket as a starter, and enjoy in a sunny day it will bring you all the way to the Sorrento coast.

Peppe

What's Cooking with Peppe: SEA BASS WITH POTATO AND OLIVES

What's Cooking with Peppe: SEA BASS WITH POTATO AND OLIVES: Filetti di spigola patate e olive Hi, today I have a nice recipe for you that is easy to prepare, and will be perfect for a weekend at hom...

SEA BASS WITH POTATO AND OLIVES

Filetti di spigola patate e olive

Hi, today I have a nice recipe for you that is easy to prepare, and will be perfect for a weekend at home with friends.
I will give you the recipe for fillets of sea bass or sea bream because I know that most people like to have their fish served without bones, but you can make it also on the bone and it will take a bit longer but it also will taste better.

For 4 people:

8 fillets of sea bass (ask your fishmonger to prepare it for you)
2 cloves of garlic
half glass of white wine
300 gr of potatoes
12 cherry tomatoes
8 tbsp of extra virgin olive oil
60 gr of black olive (better if they are large and whole)
20 gr of capers (if you are not very keen you can leave it out)
salt
fresh chili
flat parsley
flour
half glass of water

Start by pealing and slicing the potatoes  thinly like small dish of half cm. and boil in salted water until aldente, then drain and keep ready to use. Now put the flour in a large plate and coat the fillets on both sides, then heat a large deep pan and add the oil with the crushed garlic cloves until lithely coloured and then add the fillets skin down putting your fingers or a kitchen pallet over it so that they keep flat and don't curl up.
After half minute add the capers, olives and wine and cook until evaporated, then add the cherry tomatoes halved and the potatoes, then season with salt a pinch of chili and the water, cover for a few minutes and cook on a moderate heat. when it is nearly ready take the lid off sprinkle with chopped flat parsley and reduce the sauce, serve on ceramic plates with a  fresh mix leaves salad dressed with olive oil and lemon juice.

Buon appetito

Peppe

Ziti pasta with aubergine, basil, cherry tomatoes and mozzarella

Ziti con Melanzane e Mozzarella

This recipe is going to bring you to the sunny south of Italy, with incredible colours and taste that you can experience when you are on holiday there or by following my instructions.
Many of you probably don't usually like aubergine and are not prepared to taste it or order dishes that are prepared with this beautiful vegetable, but try this recipe and you will change your mind!

For 4 people:

360gr of ziti pasta
2 large aubergines
350gr cherry tomatoes
250gr fresh mozzarella
80gr grated Parmesan cheese
12 basil leaves
6 tbsp e.v.olive oil
salt
(if you don't have a fryer 120ml of olive oil)
To garnish: shaved Parmesan and truffle oil optional


Start by cutting the aubergine into cubes of 2 cm each and sprinkle with salt and leave in a colander for 30 minutes until some of the bitter water will come out; then rinse fast and dry with a tea towel and leave for 5 minutes. 
If you have a fryer set it on 180 and fry until golden and soft, if you don't have a fryer heat up a large frying pan until hot, then add the olive oil and then when hot add the aubergine and fry until golden and soft, then drain on kitchen paper and start cooking the pasta in boiling salted water.
The pasta will take around 9 to 10 minutes  (if you don't find ziti you can use penne or rigatoni) meanwhile in the frying pan heat up the e.v.olive oil and add the cherry tomatoes cut in half and cook for 1 minute, then add the aubergine and half of the basil. Season with salt and cook for a few minutes on medium heat. Cut the mozzarella in small cubes and drain the pasta still al dente and add to the sauce, mix well and finish by adding the rest of the basil, Parmesan cheese and mozzarella, cook for 1 minute and serve in some nice bowls.
To finish you can sprinkle some shaved Parmesan and a drizzle of truffle oil.

Buon appetito

Peppe 

Scialatielli con cozze, rucola e pomodorini

Home made Scialatielli pasta with mussels, rocket and cherry tomatoes


This type of pasta comes from my region of Campania, and from the area around the Sorrento and Amalfi coast.
Some people believe that the recipe is very old, others that was invented by a very special and famous chef born in Amalfi but that became very popular in one of the best restaurant in Sorrento.
Since the late 70's the recipe is been used in our region and now all over Italy, and many have changed a bit the way of preparing it, but here is the one a believe to be the original version prepared with fresh basil leaves.
This recipe is used mainly with seafood, but sometimes also with strong meat ragu and rich tomato and aubergine sauces, so ones you have made it a few times, you can experiment and try different combinations to choose the way you prefer it.


For 4 people

For the fresh  pasta:

1 egg
4 basil leaves (finely chopped)
320 gr. of strong 00 italian flour
salt
1 tbsp of pecorino cheese (grated)
110 gr. full fat milk


For the sauce:

400 gr. of mussels
200 gr. of cherry tomatoes from Italy
80 gr. of extra virgin olive oil
150 gr. of wild rocket
salt
fresh chili
2 cloves of garlic



Start by preparing the pasta on a wooden board or a kitchen cold surface, first the flour and then add the rest of the ingredients in the middle and use your hands to bring it together and create a compact pasta dough, then leave to rest under a damp cloth or covered in clean film  for half hour.
Ones the pasta as rested start to roll it out until it is 5mm thick,  then with a knife cut it in 5mm wide and 10cm long strips,set aside and sprinkle with some semolina flour that will help to keep it loose when you are going to cook it.
Now in a large frying pan heat up the oil and add the garlic (chopped) and a bit of chili if you like your food hot, then the mussels that need to be nice and clean and cover for 1 minute, after add the cherry tomatoes and cook for 2 to 3 minutes taste and add salt to season.
When you are preparing the sauce in a large deep pot, boil lots of water with a pinch of sea salt, and cook the pasta until al dente, then transfer to the pan with the sauce and add the fresh rocket, cook for another minute and serve with a sprinkle of olive oil.
Hope you will enjoy this recipe, and get a real taste of the Campania region.
Buon appetito

Peppe

Polipetti affogati

Polipetti affogati or braised baby octopus in tomato sauce

Octopus is one of my favourite seafoods and a must when I return home to visit my dad in Sorrento.
Many people when they hear or see octopus make a funny face and a bad comment, and this is one of the most common response you get in the UK, to this most loved fish all over the world.
Then what am I saying? Yes, just be adventurous and you will learn to love this amazing gift of the sea.

For 4 people:

1 kg. of baby octopus
3 Garlic cloves
A hand full of flat leaves parsley
1 glass of white wine
salt
A pinch of chili
Extra virgin olive oil
400 gr. of cherry tomatoes (you can also use tinned plum tomatoes)

When you buy the baby octopus bring them home and give then a good wash (if frozen defrost properly and then wash through)
Then peel the garlic and with a knife press and then chop roughly. In a deep pan add enough oil to cover the bottom heat it up and add the garlic and the pinch of chilli. When you can smell the garlic frying but before it gets too much colour add half of the chopped parsley and then the octopus and stir through, it will be a couple of minutes before you can add the wine, then simmer until the alcohol has evaporated and then add a plash of water and the cherry tomatoes that you have cut in half.
Leave for 10 minutes then season properly and cook for another 20 to 25 minutes until tender and then add the rest of the parsley. I love to serve it with some grilled ciabatta slices covered with a little bit of oil, it makes a wonderful antipasto (starter) or in larger portions a great main course.
So be adventurous and make this wonderful dish for your guests, at your next dinner party and wish them a Neapolitan Buon appetito.

Peppe

Gamberetti, rucola e scaglie di parmigiano

Today's Fish Recipe:

Prawns, rocket salad and shaved parmesan cheese

"This is a great dish for the nice weather that hopefully is arriving soon, fresh and delicate, wonderful with a cold glass of Greco di Tufo" (white wine from Campania).

For 4 people:

800gr of medium size fresh prawns
4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 lemons
150gr shaved Parmesan cheese
300gr fresh wild rocket salad
salt
flat leaf parsley
1 glove of garlic


Get some nice fresh prawns and ask your fishmonger to de shell them for you, or do it your self if you have done it in the past, and steam gently for around 3 to 4 minutes.
Then let it rest for 10 minutes and then in a large bowl dress with a pinch of salt, olive oil, lemon juice and the garlic and flat parsley that you will have chopped in advance. Set aside and let it marinade for 10 minutes.
Then wash the rocket and place it in a large serving bowl, cover with the prawns and add the Parmesan shaving and some lemon wedges before serving.
I hope you will try the recipe and enjoy it as much as a do, buon appetito,

Peppe

Coccio all'acqua pazza

Coccio all'acqua pazza

Hello again,

COCCIO ALL'ACQUA PAZZA

Today I will give you the recipe for a very special dish that comes from my region and is believed to have started with fishermen in the Neapolitan bay many years ago!
Normally you will use a type of fish common to that bay and is called Coccio (Garnet in English) ask your fishmonger he will be able to help you, you can use other fish like monk fish or even sea bass or cod.
The words acqua pazza translate to 'crazy water' and is believed to be because coming back from fishing and using some seawater and local cherry tomatoes from the slope of the mount Vesuvius, the color of the broth is always changing and never the same. There is also another version: some old peasants that used to mix the left over from the wine production with water and attained a drink of a very strange colour.
As I already wrote in my recipe in the past my grand mother (nonna) came from the island of Capri and that's where the dish became very famous in the 1960s, and was prepared not only in the local homes but served to very wealthy tourists.
Anyway this is the recipe from my nonna, but you may also find variations in the north where they have changed some ingredients with local ones more easy to source.

Ingredients:

for two people
1 garnet around 650gr (make sure it is fresh and ask your fishmonger to prepare it for you)
2 cloves of garlic
200 gr of cherry tomatoes (try to buy Italian tomatoes and very ripe)
3 tsp of extra virgin olive oil
flat leaf parsley
salt
2 glasses of water
1/2 glass of dry white wine
flour extra


You can make this recipe without flour but if you use it as I do you will get a more thick and creamy broth!
Dry the fish and lightly flour it, then heat the oil in a deep pan even a terracotta one is good as the old fishermen will have used, then add the crushed garlic and don't chop it so you can remove it in the end.
When it starts to lightly colour start frying the fish on both sides and then add the wine, evaporate it and add the cherry tomatoes chopped in half and the water. Cook for 3 minutes and then season with salt and a little of the parsley.
Continue to cook covered for another 15 minutes on a medium heat or in a hot oven, when it is ready the large bones on the spine will come of easily and the flesh comes of the main bone easily ( please when dealing with very fresh fish don't over cook it much better less than more, the fish will still continue to cook for another minute anyway when off the heat and will remain moist). Then make sure the seasoning is right and clean the flesh from the bone place in a deep plate and cover with the broth finishing with chopped parsley.
Last thing, in our area, we also serve this fish broth with pasta, just when ready take the fish out and debone, meanwhile reduce the broth and add pasta (Linguine or Paccheri are some of the best combination), when it has cooked from al dente in the sauce for a minute add the fish and serve.
Another thing you can do is to add boiled potatoes to the broth and you have a great main course, we used to serve it in the restaurant and it has always been a great dish that all custumers loved!

Buon appetito

Spaghetti alla chiummenzana

Today after many months, I have found the time to sit down and write another recipe on my blog.
This recipe is simple and an old favourite of my family, comes from the  famous island of Capri where my grand mother was born and brings back many memories.
My wife asked me tonight to prepare some pasta and I decided to make something simple and very tasty so while the sauce is cooking I came and started to write it here on my blog!
The recipe started with many fishermen and sailors from Capri that when out at sea could take only a few dry ingredients with them without the use of a refrigerator, and so they used to prepare this great dish.

Ingredients for four:

500 gr. of plum tomatoes (or if you can find it, fresh Neapolitan cherry tomatoes very ripe even better)
400 gr. of  spaghetti
6 tsp of extra virgin olive oil (from Campania if you can find it)
5 basil leaves
2 large and fresh garlic cloves
a pinch of fresh chilli
salt

start with boiling water in a large pot and add course salt so that the pasta while cooking gets flavour, then in a large pan start to heat the oil and add the garlic that you will have chopped in advance.
When the garlic starts to flavour the oil but before it takes colour add the chilli and the tomatoes, lower the heat and add oregano, basil and salt to taste. You will leave it on a low to medium heat for the 9 minutes that you need to cook the spaghetti in the boiling water, then drain the pasta al dente and cook together with the sauce for 40 seconds.
Serve with a fresh basil leave and a sprinkle of olive oil, Buon Appetito