Recent content by urmaniac13

Post pictures from around your home to let others see your perspective...

"Do unto others as you would have them do unto you" No I am by no means religious, however I religiously stick to this philosophy. Anything that people do/say which annoys me I make a point not to do/say the same thing to the others, even if the other party doesn't care or doesn't mind. I tend...

My favourite is crostata, or tart. Get a pie shell ready (including the blind bake part), pour custard, cover the surface with the berries, bake another 10 minutes or so until the fruit turns tender and slightly oozy. Also serving them with a pile of vanilla or custard ice cream with a whipped...

If she like those tuna from tin, how about making a nice real tuna steak if you can find a fresh quality fillet? That may well be her gateway to the world of seafood :cool: Usually those strong typical "funk" comes from the less than freshest fish, but if you live somewhere it is impossible to...

1 & 2 identical, rich variety of cheeses, wine, and wonderful authentic bakery products--croissants, cakes and pastries (but if I see anything intriguing and new I would love to try!) 3 naturalized American and have been living in Rome Italy for 7,5 years and counting

dried porcini are such versatile treasures, it's quite powerful so a little goes a long way too. Fresh porcini are quite expensive also in Italy, also quite seasonal, so dried ones are the practical option also for us. They do give lovely flavour to a gravy type sauce, but for a pasta sauce I...

I consider these two difference types of sauce CJ, and it depends on what kind of food goes with it. I use very little tomato paste on the second type (brown gravy type), and mainly with red wine and fondo bruno, with some herbs.:chef:

If you are going for an authentic Italian tomato based sauce, the #1 taboo is to mangle 500 different ingredients, spices and herbs. Italian cooking is all about simplicity. Instead, concentrate on using a quality, in-season ingredients. Ripe, fresh san marzano tomatoes (often known in the...

Ciao from the eternal city, Rome Italy:cool: Licia

Publishing in two formats would be a good idea. Ebooks may still look a little unpractical, but see how the technology has evolved, in music, films and other videos, cameras just to name a few, and excellent, practicable gadgets for ebook reading are coming out now. I dare say the age of...

Personally I don't care for the taste of oil in a cake I would never use it. I have made carrotcakes with melted butter many times and the result comes out great, never had any problem with its consistency or dryness. Also if you keep a cake in the fridge the cake lasts for a few days without...

Kayelle, while I am not a plant expert by any means, but from my own experience in growing a little basil on my window sill for several years, I can be fairly sure that basil also needs to receive a good amount of direct sunshine, in addition to sufficient amount of water. One year our basil was...

also, if you can find a good quality fresh mozzarella, insalata caprese is another summer staple. Simply toss the mozzarella with sliced tomatoes and fresh basil leaves, season with salt, pepper and a drizzle of good extra virgine oil. An easy, quick and delicious dish without suffering heat...

I also love and enjoy trying many variety of food from various cuisines, and it is impossible to pinpoint to one category. Living in Italy for 7,5 years I can easily say that "Italian cuisine" is a very vague and loose terminology, as each regional specialty, from Sicilia, Emilia Romagna to the...