Tag Archives: Walnuts

Gorgonzola Salad With Rustic Bread.

June 15, 2014Low-fat Recipes, Side Dishes, VegetarianGorgonzola cheese, hard-boiled eggs, Low-fat meal, Rustic bread, Salad, Side dishes, Summer salad, Vegetables, Vegetarian, WalnutsSerena @ foodfulife

This week we have been hit by a heat wave and the thermometer has risen dramatically! With this hot, sticky weather, I really feel like having a lot of raw fruits and veg, but I don’t want to compromise on creativity or flavours….So there isn’t anything like a tasty gorgonzola salad when it comes to freshness and flavour!

This salad is a light, complete meal, but also as a dish that stands somewhere between healthy and comfort food…You will love it! I kept it simple, but you can add toasted walnuts for extra flavour. Walnuts and gorgonzola work perfectly together! So many things can be prepared with these two wonderful ingredients.

But, of course, if you don’t like smelly cheeses, then this dish is definitely not for you! So, look away now!!! 🙂

Gorgonzola Salad with Rustic Bread.

Ingredients

Preparation: 15 minutes

Easy

Serves 2

crispy lettuce leaves, washed and dried

2 hard-boiled eggs

2 stalks of celery, washed and cut into small cubes

2 large ripe tomatoes, washed and sliced

a few sliced of rustic bread

100 g (3.5 oz) gorgonzola cheese

5 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

salt and pepper to taste

Method.

1. Bake the slices of bread in the oven (at 200 ° C , 392 °F), until very crispy.

2. Place the lettuce leaves, the sliced tomatoes, the celery and the gorgonzola on the plate (alternate all the ingredients). Slice the eggs in half and place them in the center.

3. Add the bread (cut into small pieces) and season with extra virgin olive oil, salt and pepper.

Insalata al gorgonzola.

Preparazione: 15 minuti

Facile

Per 2 persone

alcune foglie di insalata croccante (lavate e asciugate)

2 uova sode

2 gambi di sedano (lavati e tagliati a cubetti)

2 pomodori maturi (lavati e tagliati a fette)

alcune fette di pane rustico

100 g di gorgonzola

5 cucchiai di olio extra vergine d’oliva

sale e pepe q. b.

Preparazione.

1. Fate dorare le fette di pane in forno (a 200°C).

2. Appoggiate le foglie di insalata, le fette di pomodoro, il sedano e il gorgonzola sul piatto, alternando tutti gli ingredienti. Tagliate le uova a metà e sistematele al centro.

3. Aggiungete il pane croccante (tagliato a cubetti piccoli) e condite tutto con abbondante olio extra vergine d’oliva, sale e pepe.

Nota. Aggiungete delle noci tostate per arricchire ulteriormente l’insalata.

Super Tasty and Healthy Rocket Pesto

April 11, 2014Condiment, How to, Pasta and Rice, Raw / Mainly RawAlmonds, Arugula, calcium, Condiment, Food, Food photography, Hazelnuts, Healthy, Iron, Pasta, Pesto, Photography, Potassium, Raw / Mainly Raw, Recipe, Rocket, Sauce, Vitamin C, WalnutsSerena @ foodfulife

The most famous Italian pesto is made with fresh basil and is a traditional Genoese dish. In Italy, however many variations exist of this lovely condiment.
My mother, for example, prepares a delicious rocket pesto made with pine nuts and Parmesan, using the plants she has in the garden. Today I am going to share this lovely recipe, but instead of pine nuts I am using a few hazelnuts, walnuts and almonds.
Pesto is a very healthy condiment that you should definitely have in your fridge.
The rocket leaves are rich in vitamin C and also contain potassium, iron, calcium and phosphorus. They have a slightly bitter peppery flavour, which I love.

Tips.

1. Making pesto is very easy. Use an immersion blander and mix all the dry ingredients first and then add the extra virgin olive oil at the end. Add just a couple of tablespoons of iced water with the dry ingredients when you first use the blender, because this will cool the blades down and avoid ruining the leaves.

2. In the traditional Genoese pesto recipe we use Parmesan cheese and Pecorino Sardo. You can buy both cheeses nicely-aged, which is important because they have a distinctive strong taste. However, if you can’t find aged Pecorino Sardo you can replace it with Parmesan. Both these cheeses are quite salty, so it is very important to put just a pinch of salt in the recipe, then you can always add it at the end, if needed.

3. In order to get a creamier pesto, when you cook the pasta you can dilute your condiment with a couple of tablespoons of cooking water (the water in which the pasta is cooking), just before serving.

Rocket (Arugula) Pesto.

Preparation: 10 minutes

Easy

Ingredienti

For a cup of pesto

1/2 clove of garlic

60 g (2.11 oz) rocket (arugula), washed

30 g (1.05 oz) aged Parmesan cheese, cut into small pieces

30 g (1.05 oz) aged Pecorino Sardo cheese

6 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil

2 walnuts, shelled

2 almonds, shelled

2 hazelnuts, shelled

a pinch of salt

pepper to taste

Method.

1. In a tall container, put all the ingredients, without the extra virgin olive oil.

2. Using an immersion blender, chop the ingredients for a few minutes, adding just a little bit of iced water to cool the blade in the process.

3. Pour in the extra virgin olive oil (a little at a time) and blend everything together, until you get a creamy mixture.

4. Serve with your favourite pasta.

Pesto di rucola.

Ingredienti

Preparazione: 10 minuti

Facile

Per un vasetto

1/2 spicchio d’aglio

60 g di rucola, lavata e asciugata

30 g di parmigiano reggiano (tagliato a pezzi piccoli)

30g di pecorino sardo stagionato (tagliato a pezzi piccoli)

6 cucchiai d’olio extra vergine d’oliva

2 noci, senza guscio

2 nocciole, senza guscio

2 mandorle, senza guscio

un pizzico di sale

pepe q.b.

Preparazione.

1. In un contenitore alto e stretto mettete tutti gli ingredienti, senza l’olio.

2. Usando un frullatore ad immersione, tritate per qualche minuto gli ingredienti, aggiungendo un po’ d’acqua molto fredda, per evitare che la lama si scaldi.

3. Versate anche l’olio extra vergine d’oliva nel composto (poco alla volta e continuando a tritare), fino ad ottenere una consistenza cremosa.

4. Condite la pasta e servite.

Deliciously soft bavarian cream with chocolate-caramel sauce.

March 23, 2013Desserts, Gluten-free, VegetarianBavarese, Bavarian, Budino, Caramel, Chocolate, Cioccolato, Cook, Crema, Custard, Dessert, Desserts, Dolce al cucchiaio, Food, Home, Recipe, Sauce, Walnuts, Whipped creamSerena @ foodfulife

A few nights ago I had a couple of friends round for dinner, it was a special occasion, so I prepared a simple and delicious dessert recipe. I made a soft vanilla bavarian cream which I divided into individual portions and garnished with chocolate-caramel sauce and a few toasted walnuts. This dessert is very easy to prepare, very satisfying and deliciously creamy. A bavarian cream is basically a rich but delicate custard, blended with gelatin to have a light and airy texture. The chocolate sauce served with walnuts adds crunchiness and flavour to the cream. We spent a wonderful evening and the dessert was fully appreciated…

Bavarian cream with chocolate-caramel sauce.

Ingredients

Serves 4

250 ml (8.45 fl. oz) whipping cream

150 ml (5 fl. oz) milk

50 g (1.76 oz) sugar

2 gelatin leaves (5 g)

2 egg yolks

2 drops vanilla extract

For the chocolate-caramel sauce

100 g (3.52 oz) brown sugar

1 teaspoon cocoa powder

6 toasted walnuts (toast the unshelled walnuts in the oven on a tray for 5 minutes at 190°C, 374 °F)

1 teaspoon of dark rum

100 ml (3.38 fl.oz) of milk

Preparation method.

1. Soften the gelatin in warm water for 10 minutes.

2. In a saucepan, work the eggs with the sugar until creamy. Gradually add hot milk and the vanilla extract, stirring on low heat.

3. Drain the gelatin, melt into the creamy mixture and continue to stir on low heat for about ten minutes (do not boil). Let cool. Stir the whipped cream very gently into the mixture.

4. Pour the dessert into molds and put in the refrigerator to set for at least 3 hours.

Preparation of the caramel sauce.

1. Pour the sugar (100 g) with the cocoa powder into the milk (100 ml), add some rum and stir. Melt the sugar at a low heat and cook until the sauce has thickened.

2. Garnish the bavarian cream with a few toasted walnuts and serve with the chocolate-caramel sauce.

Crema bavarese con salsa di caramello al cacao.

Ingredienti

per 4 porzioni

250 ml di panna da montare

150 ml di latte

50 g di zucchero

2 fogli di colla di pesce (5 g)

2 tuorli d’uovo

due gocce di estratto di vaniglia

Per la crema di caramello al cacao

100 g di zucchero di canna

1 cucchiaino di cacao

1 cucchiaino di rum scuro

100 ml di latte

qualche noce tostata per guarnire

Preparazione della crema.

1. Fate ammorbidire la colla di pesce in acqua tiepida per 10 minuti. In un pentolino, lavorate le uova con lo zucchero fino a creare una crema spumosa.

2. Continuando a mescolare, allungate gradualmente il composto con del latte bollente. Aggiungete l’estratto di vaniglia e fate cuocere per dieci minuti a fiamma molto bassa.

3. Scolate bene la colla di pesce e fatela sciogliere nel latte ( continuando a mescolare). Spegnete il fuoco e lasciate raffreddare.

4. Unite la panna montata al composto, mescolando delicatamente dal basso verso l’alto. Versate la crema negli stampi e mettetela nel frigorifero a solidificare per almeno 3 ore.

Preparazione del caramello.

1. Versate lo zucchero (100 g) con il cacao e un cucchiaino di rum in 100 ml di latte. Fate sciogliere lo zucchero a fiamma bassa e fate ritirare fino ad ottenere una salsa densa. Lasciate raffreddare.

2. Servite la crema bavarese con la salsa di caramello al cacao e guarnite con qualche noce (fatta leggermente tostare prima) sopra.