Arantxa making sugar roses with fondant video

This is my second entry, featuring Arantxa, for this month's Sweet New Zealand, hosted by The Kitchen Maid. I hope that you will like it! 

Photos and Recipes by Alessandra Zecchini ©

Marinated strawberries with Greek yogurt and dried lychees

This is a super easy and super yummy sweet treat, gluten free and low in sugar too. Hull and cut the strawberries into halves (or quarters, if very big) then place in a bowl with a tbsp of sugar and 2 tbps of lemon juice. Stir and let them rest at room temperature for a few hours stirring from time to time to get more juice out, then refrigerate until serving time. To assemble place a few strawberries and their juice in tumblers, top with 1 tbsp or 2 of Greek Yogurt (I used this one) and finish with a dried lychee. 

This is my first entry for this month's Sweet New Zealand, hosted by The Kitchen Maid. I may have a few more, as I really feel like having a Sweet November! :-).

Photos and Recipes by Alessandra Zecchini ©

Stuffed mushrooms (pity they shrink so much!), Taste magazine, and a story about quail eggs and great service

When I started these mushrooms were three times this size (I used the 'breakfast' Portobello type) but never mind, the flavour was all there and this is a great way to cook them!

Clean the mushrooms and remove the stalks (set them aside) and top skin if you can (discard). Place the mushrooms on a baking tray lined with baking paper, cap side down, sprinkle with salt and a drop of olive oil and bake on medium for 15 minutes. Turn and bake for other 10 minutes. In the meantime clean the stalk, chop the very end bits off and discard, and them chop the rest with a couple of garlic cloves and plenty of Italian Parsley leaves. Add one egg to the mixture (vegans can omit egg and add a little more oil instead), a pinch of salt, a tbsp of olive oil and enough breadcrumbs to get a malleable consistency, like for croquettes. Remove the mushrooms form the oven and stuff with this mixture pressing down well at the top. Place back into the oven and bake until the tops look golden and crunchy. Serve hot, as a main with salad on the side, or warm as appetizers/finger food at a party.

On the magazine front, this month you can find my work in Taste, one of the longest spreads I have done recently in fact (11 pages, usually I do 5 or 6), and this time there were 6 models, all children. Here are a couple of photos on set, in the studio of photographer Toaki Okano.

Yes it all looks glorious, but the reality behind a photo shoot is that it requires a huge amount of work and planning, even for the simplest recipes. When I go on set I load my car with what seems to be half of my kitchen, and as we start early I need to do all my shopping and propping the day(s) before. And here I need to tell you a story. I needed some quail eggs, not something that you find often in my area, I have a friend with quails but she lives far away, and farmers market are on the weekend (the photo shoot was on a Friday) but I know that I can always find them in this supermarket, so I drove there, even if it is half an hour from my house. I got the quail eggs and a few more things that I needed for the photo shoot and I went home to do some cooking, starting with boiling of the eggs that I had to dye overnight in beetroot juice. But NOOOO! I could not believe it, the eggs were not in the bags. I called the supermarket (I was a bit stressed by then) and said that my quail eggs were missing, and guess what? The manager said "Don't worry Madam, someone will bring them to you immediately". I told him that I lived 30 minutes away and he told me that in that case someone would bring them to me in 30 minutes. If it hadn't been for the fact that I needed them for work I would have just said that I was going to get them next time I was in town, but in that moment I felt really grateful for a supermarket with such a great costumer service. And here is the feature.

Photos and Recipes by Alessandra Zecchini ©

New record for pageviews (topped the 1100 mark!) and some really nice photos of the Festival italiano

Photo by Right Hand Corner

Ciao! First of all I would like to celebrate the first day where my pageviews (according to google statistics) topped the 1100 mark! Pageviews yesterday

1,108

Edited 8 Nov, today I did 1228... new record
Edited 11 November 1,305... new record :-)
Edited 15 January, 12,587!

So, taking advantage of this moment of high traffic I would like to direct you all to the Dante Blog, and show you some lovely photos of the Italian Festival kindly offered by Right Hand Corner.

You can also find more photos in their FB Page. I would also like to ask you to support the voluntary work of the Dante Alighieri Society in Auckland by adding your name to the followers' list, but I don't know if it is working these days... I have been trying to follow other blogs myself and an error 404 always come up, making it impossible to add my avatar with google connect or other accounts. Did any of you experienced the same fate? Or do you know anything about it? 

Thank you and ciao

Alessandra

Pears, Rocket and Parmesan Salad with Extravecchio Balsamic Vinegar of Modena

At the Festival Italiano I received a very special present from Naomi of Aceto Downunder: a bottle of ABTM (Aceto Balsamico Tradizionale di Modena), the extra vecchio (25 years +). This Balsamico is the real thing, only sold in specially designed 100ml bottles, expensive but worth it, every drop of it.

The first thing I made was this classic Italian salad: Rocket leaves (fresh from my veggie garden), shaved Parmesan, thin slices of crunchy pears, and a drizzle of ABTM. This salad is absolutely delicious, and perfect as an entree or a sophisticated yet easy and light summer main course. Thank you Naomi!

Photos and Recipes by Alessandra Zecchini ©

Easy Parmigiana with zucchini and eggplants, step by step

Slice the eggplants and 'sweat' with salt for at least an hour. Rinse and pat dry. Slice the zucchini into long strips, you can also sweat the zucchini for 20 minutes to take away any bitterness and make them soft, if you like. Step two will be to either fry the vegetable slices (with olive oil) or to grill/bake them. If you fry them they are tastier, but a bit greasy (remove excess oil with kitchen paper) and it does take time! If you decide to grill them or bake them just put them on a baking tray lined with kitchen paper, brush with olive oil and add a pinch of salt. Place under the grill or in fan oven at 180°C until they look cooked on one side, turn them over and cook them on the other side. The grill is quicker, the oven tends to dry them up, so when I turn them I also cover them with more baking paper so that they keep some 'steam'. I prefer the baking method but for special occasions I fry!! Once you have all your veggies ready start assembling them like this:

In a roasting pan make a first layer of fried/baked zucchini (don't need to grease the pan,
the zucchini have been cooked in oil.

Add a little passata (Italian tomato sauce).

Add a second layer of fried/baked eggplants.

Add some more passata.

Add more zucchini.

Add some more passata and top with mozzarella. Bake until the mozzarella melts.

Eat.

Photos and Recipes by Alessandra Zecchini ©

Eggplant, tomato and mozzarella

I could almost call these mini parmigiana, but there is no Parmesan, so I am not quite sure. Still, same principle, but they are little individual portions, and they look quite good for a party, entree or fancy dinner.

Slice the eggplants and 'sweat' with salt for at least an hour. Rinse and pat dry. At this stage you can either fry the eggplant slices (with olive oil) or grill/bake them. If you fry them they are tastier, but a bit greasy (remove excess oil with kitchen paper) and it does take time! If you decide to grill them or bake them just put them on a baking tray lined with kitchen paper, brush with olive oil and add a pinch of salt. Place under the grill or in fan oven at 180°C until they look cooked on one side, turn them over and cook them on the other side. The grill is quicker, the oven tends to dry them up, so when I turn them I also cover them with more baking paper so that they keep some 'steam'. I prefer the baking method but for special occasions I fry!! Once you have your cooked eggplants add a little Italian tomato passata sauce on top, and a bit of mozzarella (I got mine from Massimiliano il Casaro). Place back in the oven until the mozzarella starts to melt. Serve individually or stack two together (like I did). Top with fresh basil, or fresh thyme or oregano (I used thyme). Eat hot or warm. I had them cold too, ok but not as good as hot! Variations are endless, and they look like mini pizzas, but without the dough!

Photos and Recipes by Alessandra Zecchini ©

Italian Festival in Auckland

These are the first Auckland Dante Alighieri Society's photos of the Italian Festival 2012

Photos by Livvy

Festival Italiano Tomorrow!!! See you there!

Mango and banana ice-cream, only two ingredients, again!

Now I don't know which one tastes better: this one, or the berry-banana ice cream? Same principle again, but I used some Indian canned mango puree (this is sweetened, so I cannot say that this ice cream is actually 100% sugar free, but if you have fresh soft mangos they would be perfect too!). I sliced two bananas and froze them (keeping the slices separated by kitchen paper, so they didn't freeze together), I also froze about one cup of mango puree, directly inside the white container for my upright blender (this container has become my new instant ice cream machine, perfect dose for 4!). Then I added the frozen banana slices, blended everything, and this was the result! I think that you can guess how good it tasted just by looking at it! And once again, two ingredients, vegan, and very creamy!

Photos and Recipes by Alessandra Zecchini ©

The easiest sorbet ever, almost an ice cream in fact, but vegan, sugar free, gluten free, basically just two ingredients!

This is so easy and simple that I wasn't even sure if it was worth publishing, but then the other day I was reading this post from Sue and I though yeah, why not! I have been making instant frozen berries sorbet for years, but at first I used to make it with the frozen berries blended with a little sugar. It was good, maybe a bit watery, but good. I also tried with yogurt, but still needed sugar. But then I tried to add a banana, and I never turned back! A banana makes the sorbet creamy like an ice cream, and you don't need any sugar! I made it a few times and then the other day I discovered frozen banana slices, and for this I have to thank Sue. Yes yes of course I heard about froze banana before, but the way Sue made her ice cream was inspiring and really made me think that maybe frozen banana slices were what I needed all along to 'upgrade' my recipe!

And yes, I can confirm that it is better to use frozen bananas! The sorbet/ice cream stays 'frozen' for longer, and it tastes amazing.

So, all you need is one big banana, cut it into slices and freeze it (try to keep the slices separate, do not freeze it as a block!). The put the slices into a container, add about one cup of mixed frozen berries, (or just frozen raspberries, or blueberries... your choice) and blend with an immersion blender. This is the result. It looks like an ice cream, taste like and ice cream, and can be eaten immediately. 

So thank you Sue, here is another entry for Sweet New Zealand!

Photos and Recipes by Alessandra Zecchini ©

Win a flight to Italy and other wonderful prizes at the Italian Festival

Photo by Alessandra Zecchini ©

Ok, I know that I haven't been posting too many recipes recently, please forgive me, but the Italian Festival preparations are taking up all of my spare time now (and a bit more than that actually). But it is going to be a great day, and a chance for all the Italians in Auckland to get together, and all the Kiwis to live like an Italian for a day. And if you live in Auckland please come along, info in the poster below.

In occasion of the Festival Italiano the Dante Alighieri Society is also raising money for the Italian School for children (open to all children who wish to learn Italian, regardless of their ethnic background). The Dante is a non-profit registered charity, totally self-founded, and aims to keep the cost of the children classes really low. To help paying for tutoring and buying material raffle tickets will be on sale at the Festival, and you can also buy them at the Dante rooms in Freemans Bay community centre from Monday 15 October, 1 for $5 or 5 tickets for $20. And yes, I am selling them too, remind me if you meet me in the street! Only 3000 tickets printed, so more chances to win. 

Thank you to our generous sponsors this year's prizes are:

First Prize: $2000 voucher from STA Travel

 Second Prize: $200 (4 x $50) restaurant vouchers from Gina's 

Third Prize: One bottle of Aceto Balsamico Tradizionale di Modena valued at $180 from Aceto Downunder

Fourth Prize: one $150 gourmet hamper from Sabato

Fifth Prize: $50 worth of Giapo ice cream (5 x $10 vouchers)

Prize draw at the Festival Italiano, 28 October 2012, 3:30pm.

Winners, if not present at the draw, will be notified by telephone.

Thank you for supporting the Dante Italian school for children, and 

Buona Fortuna!

Frankfurt Book Fair, a few photos

Very happy to have my book Party Food for Girls at the Frankfurt Book Fair (did you know that New Zealand is the guest of honor?). Here is a photo with New Holland Publishers NZ MD Belinda Cooke (Belinda you look radiant!)...

And here is a photo of Peter in front of our stand, Oratia Media / Libro International.

A present

A present from Harriet, from her chucks, from Spring. 

Aren't they beautiful?

 Just perfect, 

they look like Italian Confetti (sugar almonds). 

Have a wonderful day!

(or night...)

Photos by Alessandra Zecchini ©