Geri's Food - Italian Cuisine

Roasted Pepper Sandwiches

Geri — Thu, 17 Jun 2021 08:18:45 +0000

Not only are tea sandwiches fun to eat, but they are also fun to create, with a variety of flavours that can be put together. With different kinds served all together on one plate, they are truly a feast for the eyes.

Roast peppers from a jar have become my favourite summer time ingredient. I like to serve them as antipasti, add them to salads and in this case delicious cream cheese, roast peppers tea sandwiches.

Cream cheese is great with almost everything because of its moderate taste. In this sandwich, it goes so well together with the ready-made smoky roasted peppers and fresh parsley. Delicious!

Ingredients

3 slices giabata bread
3 tbsp cream cheese Philadelphia
1/3 cup roasted yellow & red peppers, coarsely chopped
Parsley, finely chopped

Method

1. Toast the bread in a toaster, and then, using a round food cutter, cut 3 circles.

2. Cut the marinated roasted yellow and red peppers into small pieces.

3. Spread the cream cheese on top of the toast, arrange the roasted peppers and sprinkle with parsley.

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Meatballs in Tomato Sauce

Geri — Sun, 23 May 2021 11:20:08 +0000

You can’t beat proper homemade meatballs cooked in a rich tomato sauce. This is our go-to recipe; it may look simple but it tastes incredible. It’s a perfect dinner party recipe for everyone to tuck in to. Or a quick, comforting, homemade supper that could be taken to the sofa with a glass of red wine.

Ingredients

Tomato Sauce

3 garlic cloves, chopped
1 bay leaf
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
2 tbsp olive oil
2×400 ml cans whole plum tomatoes
1 tsp sugar

Meatballs

2 slices white sandwich bread
60 ml milk
450 g minced meat pork & beef
150 g freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1 egg
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
1/4 cup (10 g) chopped flat-leaf parsley
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground fennel
1/4 tsp dried oregano
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes

To Serve

Spaghetti
Basil leaves

Method

1. Tomato Sauce: In a large non-stick skillet over medium-high heat, lightly brown the garlic in the oil with the bay leaf and red pepper flakes. Add the tomatoes and simmer for 30 minutes. When they begin to break down, coarsely crush the tomatoes using a potato masher. Season with salt, pepper and sugar. Keep warm. Take away the bay leaf.

2. Meatballs: Meanwhile, in a food processor, pulse the bread until the size of bread crumbs. In a large bowl, soak the bread crumbs in the milk for 5 minutes. Add the remaining ingredients and, using your hands, combine well.

3. Working with lightly oiled hands, shape each meatball using 1 tbsp of the mixture.

4. Place the meatballs in the tomato sauce, cover and cook for 10 minutes over medium-low heat, turning them a few times during cooking. Uncover and continue cooking for 10 minutes or until cooked through.

5. Serve the meatballs with spaghetti and fresh basil leaves.

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Puff Pastry Pizza

Geri — Mon, 19 Apr 2021 15:05:23 +0000

Pizza is all about the crispness of the dough, the sweetness of the tomato sauce and the heavenly combination of vegetables, meat and cheese on top. Could it be ever different? Opting for a healthy lifestyle I am making today the most delicious pizza ever, but with half the calories! A golden crunchy light-as-heaven puff pastry makes the pizza base. I am not using any sauce as it will make the pastry soggy. But instead, I am topping the pizza with roasted red and yellow bell pepper, green asparagus, delicious chorizo salami, goat cheese and green salad leaves. Done in 30 minutes, gorgeous, full of flavour yet amazingly light, this is the best pizza ever!

Ingredients

230g puff pastry
1 tbsp olive oil
100g chorizo
50g goat cheese
2 red bell peppers
1 yellow bell pepper
50g green asparagus
Salt
Black pepper
Handful of green salad leaves

Method

1. Heat the oven to 200C. Cover a baking tray with baking paper. Roll out the puff pastry on top and bend the edges towards the center. Press the border a with a fork and pierce the pastry so it will not lift up while baking. Place the tray in the oven and cook for 25-30 minutes until golden brown.

2. Meanwhile, wash and chop the bell peppers into chunks. Wash and trim the ends of the green asparagus. Cut them into pieces. Heat a table spoon of olive oil in a large skillet pan. Add the vegetables, season with salt and ground black pepper and toss for 10-15 minutes until they soften.

3. Once the puff pastry is ready, cover the top with the roasted vegetables, add chorizo slices and return for 10 more minutes in the oven.

4. Before serving, cover the pizza top with goat cheese and fresh salad leaves.

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Mushroom & Pancetta Tagliatelle

Geri — Sun, 18 Apr 2021 08:20:22 +0000

A little pancetta goes a long way to adding richness and depth to the flavours in this tasty pasta dish. But the magic does not stop there. A dreamy cream cheese sauce adds a luxurious feeling to the tagliatelle. The salty hint of parmesan cheese delights the taste buds. Fresh parsley leaves add a contrast. And the real pièce de résistance, freshly grated lemon zest, revives the senses. A wonderful plate of food for a party dinner, weekend Sunday lunch or an everyday crowd pleaser!

Ingredients

400g tagliatelle
½ tsp of basil olive oil
200g cream cheese Philadelphia
400g mushrooms, chopped
100ml cream
1 vegetable stock cube
75g pancetta, chopped
50g parmesan cheese, finely grated
1 lemon zest, finely grated
¼ cup parsley leaves, finely chopped

Method

1. Cook the tagliatelle in a large saucepan of boiling, salted water and a few droplets of basil olive oil following packet directions, until tender.

2. Meanwhile, heat a dry pan and add the chopped pancetta. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 6 minutes or until it is crisp. Place a side.

3. Chop the mushrooms and add them in the same pan where the pancetta has been cooked. The pancetta will release fat, but if needed add one table spoon of olive oil. Add the mushrooms and cook for 10-15 minutes until golden brown. Add the cooked pancetta, the cream cheese and the cream. Stir until all is combined. If necessary loosen the sauce with some of the cooking liquid from the tagliatelle. Add a vegetable stock cube and let the sauce simmer for 5 minutes. Season with black pepper and salt.

4. Drain the tagliatelle and add to the mushroom sauce. Toss until well combined. Remove from heat.

5. Add parmesan, lemon zest and fresh parsley. Serve.

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Butternut Squash Pasta

Geri — Fri, 30 Oct 2020 09:49:43 +0000

Autumn is such a beautiful season. It glows with so many unspoken fairy tales. It invites the soul to slow down and rest. Follow the dance of the falling leaves. Listen to the whispers of the stormy wind. It stirs within us something ancient and deep. Just like my Roast Butternut Squash Puree Pasta with Fig Balsamic Mushrooms today. Served with Goat Cheese, Walnuts, Sage and Rocket Salad leaves and drizzled with Truffle Oil it really hits the autumn spot. And why ever not? Beauty could be found in almost everything.

I am starting by dicing half of my butternut squash into cubes. I am saving the rest for a delicious veggie soup, but today only pasta is on the menu. I add the diced butternut squash and two garlic cloves with the skin on in a baking tray together with some sage leaves, olive oil, salt and ground pepper. Roasted in the oven for an hour, they gain such a deep, fragrant scent. I am taking the garlic skin off and add all baked tray ingredients in a blender. The butternut squash pieces might be slightly hard, but adding a hot cup of boiling pasta water softens and blends the puree into a delicious mixture.

Normally, will just bake the chestnut mushrooms with some butter and a few thyme strings, but being adventurous today, I am deciding to try something different. I bake the mushrooms in olive oil instead and only when they are ready I glaze them with rich fig balsamic vinegar. Shining in a delicious sweet-sour glaze, the mushrooms gain a kick that fits so nicely with the roast garlic butternut squash puree.

Once the pasta is ready, I drain the water and mix with the puree. To serve, I plate the pasta, top with the mushrooms, a some goat cheese to mellow all the strong flavours, a few walnuts and fresh sage and rocket salad leaves, and at the end, drizzle a few droplets of truffle oil. What a delicious feast! A perfect meal for glorious golden autumn day.

Ingredients

1/2 Butternut Squash
500g Chestnut Mushrooms
250g Goat Cheese
Pasta
2 tbsp Olive Oil
a few droplets of Truffle Oil
1 tbsp Fig Balsamic Vinegar
Rocket salad
Sage leaves
Thyme strigs
handful of walnuts
ground black pepper
Salt

Method

1. Boil the pasta in plenty of water with a pinch of salt and a few droplets of olive oil.
2. Pre-heat the oven to 200C. Dice 1/2 butternut squash into cubes. Add the butternut squash and two garlic cloves with the skin on in a baking tray. Season with a few sage leaves, salt and ground black pepper and drizzle over a few droplets of olive oil. Bake for 1 hour, mixing in-between. Once baked, remove the garlic skin. Add all ingredients in a blender plus half a cup from the boiling pasta water and blend until smooth.
3. Wash and cut the mushrooms into disks. Heat one tablespoon of olive oil, add the mushrooms, a few thyme strigs, salt and ground black pepper and mix well. Bake until the mushrooms become golden brown then glaze with a tablespoon of fig balsamic vinegar. Discard the thyme strigs.
4. Once the pasta has been boiled, drain the water and mix with the butternut squash puree.
5. To serve, plate the pasta, topped with mushrooms, goat cheese, walnuts, fresh sage and rocket salad leaves, and drizzle with a few droplets of Truffle Oil.

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Spaghetti Alla Puttanesca

Geri — Fri, 26 Jun 2020 14:34:57 +0000

The pear tree is casting a gentle shade in the garden. Half-light, half-dark. Cool enough to protect from the burning sun and warm enough to invite us for a lunch outside. It is a perfect summer day and we are eager to set the table underneath the brunches. A plate of delicious food, a glass of chilled rosé, bird songs and butterflies, transform the day into pure magic. Who new that life could be so simple?

My husband doesn’t stop to smile or to compliment the cooking. He takes a bite and marvels how home cooked spaghetti could taste so divine. We both take second helpings, eating more than we should, but with the flower scented setting and our eyes full of green, is seems perfectly alright. The spaghetti are so sweet and light. Home made sauce and a plate full of garden veggies – tomatoes, paprika, croquette and aubergine. All the basic recipe ingredients of the famous spaghetti alla Puttanesca!

Most people consider making a tomato sauce a difficult task. Yet, nothing could be further from the truth. Frying a minced garlic clove, diced onion, chopped tomatoes and paprika is all that it takes. The vegetables do the cooking. Adding a few dry herbs and spices brings everything together and before you know it you have a home made spaghetti sauce. I guarantee, it is sweeter and lighter than anything you may choose from the store. Once the sauce is ready, I add the pre-cooked vegetables and the boiled spaghetti mixing well. Serving with plenty of fresh basil leaves elevates the flavour of the dish, making it all Italian. Easy and delicious every day cooking, but when made with love, it is always turning into something more.

Ingredients

Store bought spaghetti
Olive oil
1 garlic clove, minced
1 large onion, finely chopped
1 courgette, chopped into cubes
1 aubergine, chopped into cubes
1 red paprika, chopped into cubes
5 ripe red tomatoes, chopped into cubes
pinch of salt
ground black pepper
1 tsp of sugar
1 tsp dry oregano
1 tsp red paprika powder
1 tsp dry basil
fresh basil leaves

Method

1. Boil the spaghetti in a deep pot full of water, a pinch of salt and a few droplets of olive oil.
2. Cut all vegetables in cubes.
3. Heat two table spoons of olive oil in a frying pan and add the aubergines. Fry on a medium heat until they become soft and golden brown. Take the cooked aubergines out of the frying pan and set aside.
4. Add a table spoon of olive oil in the same pan and dry the courgette until soft and golden brown. Take out of the pan and mix together with the aubergines. Set aside.
5. In the same frying pan, if needed add more olive oil and the onion, garlic and red paprika. Season with the red paprika powder, the dry oregano and dry basil. Fry for a few minutes until the onions and paprika become soft. Add the cubed tomatoes and a table spoon of water. Cook the souse for 10 minutes or until the tomatoes have disintegrated and have mixed well into a harmonious souse. Season with salt, black pepper and sugar.
6. Once the sauce is ready, add the already cooked courgette and aubergine. Cook for additional 5 minutes allowing all flavours to combine. If needed, add more salt and black pepper.
7. Add the spaghetti to the sauce and mix everything well.
8. Decorate the spaghetti with some fresh basil leaves. Serve warm.

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