Giorgio, his great menu and ... our pasta!

Last Tuesday was one of these day when nothing goes according to plan… but sometimes this also means that an unexpected phone call can change your night… and just in a better way.

This call in fact brought me to Locanda Locatelli, for me THE Italian restaurant in London and the one that I have never been to yet. The day was finally saved thank to Giorgio and my brilliant host!

The place is simple but elegant, the light is soft and relaxing and I felt really spoiled by the service and of course by the nice meal.

Homemade Parmesan breadstick and bread are brought to your table just to intrigue you.

I had Pan fried scallops, celeriac purée and saffron vinaigrette as a starter, a Locatelli special invention absolutely stunning for the combination of taste and texture.

The main needed to be Linguine with lobster, tomato, garlic and chilli. This Linguine ( like the Orecchiette) in fact are Pastificio dei Campi Linguine and they were just top in my opinion. I tried also the Cod parcels with chickpea purée and rosemary oil but there I understood I’m not a big fan of the fresh pasta filled with fish.

Then we ordered more fish and also if the Char grilled mackerel in herb crust it was good The Pan fried fillet of plaice in basil crust, potato, olives and tomato sauce was much more tasty and smooth and ... there was a perfect balance and combination of ingredients.

To close this amazing dinner we ordered some sorbets, and a Chocolate and pistachio fondant, with milk ice cream and toffee sauce, but they also gently brought a plate full of sweets from trulles to amaretti and mashmellow.

This was my PARADISE and in a day like hell, a dinner like this one can really save your soul. 

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The International Chef Congress  in Milan

We are in February and this means that one of our favourite food appointments of the year is starting again! Next weekend from the 5th to the 7th of February,  Pastificio dei Campi will be in Milan for Identita' Golose 2012,  an event all dedicated to the most famous chefs and their creations.

We couldn't miss this gourmet appointment, especially considering the theme of this year: "Oltre il mercato' 'Over the market', to underline the importance of the raw materials, of the content and of the simply, natural and high quality products.
To embrace the event in the best way, we will host  in our stand  everyday some great italian chef, who will cook our pasta following the great Neapolitan recipes... but it's not all.

We are also putting together the past and the future with a funny surprise that will have place on Monday in the "Sala gialla"...i can't wait for Mafaldina to tell me more :)

If you are passing by milan this weekend and especially if you are actually going to identitta' golose, don't miss our stand... The best from the italian cuisine all in one event!
And come to say hi!

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More than 6 dishes made with Pastificio dei Campi pasta.

As you probably know if you read this blog, on the 24^th of January a special event took place in Massimo Restaurant and Oyster bar , in the stunning Corinthia Hotel: a pasta night to die for! 

Massimo Riccioli decided to hold a night just dedicated to this  versatile and simple ingredient and he used of course  our Pastificio dei Campi Pasta from Food in the city, to realize 6 great recipes.

It was a real tour from the easiest Italian pasta dishes to the most elaborated ones, until the last minute sweet creation: Trofie with Mascarpone , ricotta, lemon zest, some orange juice and  a sprinkle of chocolate in powder.

But do you want to know what was served before? Have a look at these pictures (you will find all of them on my Facebook profile):

Calle dei Campi with Extra virgin Olive Oil and Parmesan : the simplicity made dream!

Spaghetti with two tomatoes sauce: reach and tasty as only the fresh tomato and a good quality of pasta can do.

Gnocchi sardi with spring onions, prawns, colatura di alici  (anchovy droplets) and bread crumbs…: stunning!

Kingdom of the two Sicilies: Linguine with fish ragu, aubergines and salted ricotta!

And from a roman chef I could not ask more than an original Amatriciana with Mezzi Paccheri (pecorino cheese, chilli, pork cheeks and tomatoes)

And the best element that brought life to all this dishes and to the night, was Massimo’s passion in cooking and the fact he wanted to make  everyone part of his secrets and experience…

Are you sorry you couldn’t make it? Don’t worries there will be soon another event!

Stay tuned!

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Then I had Rigatoni with butter and Parmesan.

 
The best comfort food for me is always the pasta “in white” as we call it in Italy: bad day, horrible meeting at work, you can’t stand your boss or colleagues? With this pasta you will get back to the time when you were little and everything was so simple and easy… and this pasta was your favorite dish ever.

This was my day yesterday: cold, busy and actually miserable. The cherry on the cake was that I just wanted a celeriac pasta soup: come on it's even the season for celeriac!!!
No, instead it was just impossible to find any celeriac in town, and on top of that… my fridge was empty.  
How did I made up my day? With the most gorgeous and simplest taste!... Pasta with butter and Parmesan (you have always these basic ingredients in the fridge).Try and you will feel in peace with the world again.

I used Rigatoni Pastificio dei Campi,a chunky and ribbed shape. I let them cook al dente and after serving them in a plate I added some good spoons of butter and lots of freshly grated Parmesan. A bit of fresh grated black pepper and the night is yours.

I lighted up a candle I opened my new book and I enjoyed my pasta!

 
I wish you a nice evening too!

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Pin pin pin all the things you like!

Pinterest is a new social tool available online. I know we have plenty of them now but this one is literally taking the web by storm in these days: more and more people are signing in and  have started to... Pin!

A kind of new version of the famous DIGG, i would say, much more 2.0, easy to use, to share, to love. It's really addictive. With this you can simply like and fix on your profile forever all the things you find online and that you would like to have always with you.

You will just need to get an invitation, then sign in (also with your Facebook account) and download the PIN button in your browser tool bar. After this you will be ready to pin whatever you find online and place it in different categories, with your own description.

In the search area you can insert any interest you have and of course i couldn't resist to type food and recipes and you can't imagine what came out ... a paradise of pictures and ideas.

And waiting for my invitation, look what i found!

Look especially the first recipe on the left side.... :)

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...alle cime di rapa or "broccoli rabe"

Let's comeback to the healthy diet and let's cook something at home!
This is a great recipes even for children who maybe don't like vegetables, because I think no one can resist to this dish.

This is a typical south italian recipe but I love it so much because the consistency of Orecchiette with the bitter taste of the vegetable enriched by the chili, the garlic and the nice taste of the anchovies... it's unique!

It's one of this pasta dishes that base all its taste on the real ingredients and the olive oil... No cheeses to combine the ingredients or to give the last touch. So healthy and fulfilling you can be sure a portion of this can just do good to yourself. I hope you will trust me!
 
The ingredients for 4 people are:

400gr Orecchiette Pastificio dei Campi
6 fillets of anchovies
2 garlic cloves Broccoli rape?(already clean) 600 g
6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
and some chili and salt

Take the broccoli rabe already clean, remove the largest leaves or the hardest parts of the stem, taking precisely the more tender parts. Cut all into pieces, and wash them and [place them to boil for some minutes in some salty water.
 
In the meantime in a pan place some olive oil, the 2 garlic cloves, the pepper cut in little rings and with the chopped anchovies.
When the broccoli leaves are ready, drain them but keep aside the cooking water, to boil the orecchiette.
 
When the garlic is browned and the anchovies almost melted, add the turnip greens and let them take all the flavors for a few minutes. When also the orecchiette will be al dente, drain them and  add them to the pan.
Toss everything for some minutes and add some more oil or cooking water and then enjoy!

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An exclusive event with the Chef & Pastificio dei Campi

I have a great news for all of you today: I’m proud to announce a very special evening taking place on the 23^rd of Januray at Massimo, the London’s new speciality fish restaurant and oyster bar.

Italian chef Massimo Riccioli, of the celebrated La Rosetta in Rome, will help you to forget the winter blue with a night dedicated to Pastificio dei Campi.

 "Join Massimo and Niccolo Bittante of Food in the City on Tuesday 24th of January at 7.30pm (£25 pp) for an exclusive evening and see the chef create his famous signature dishes with pasta by Pastificio dei Campi (Gragnano, Naples). 

To book your place, call our reservations team on +44 (0) 207 998 0555 or email tables@massimo-restaurant.co.uk"

In love with this chef since I was in Rome, he recently opened his new restaurant in London between Trafalgar Square and Embankment, in the Corinthia Hotel and I can’t wait to comeback to say hello.  The restaurant offers a great Mediterranean menu specializing in the highest quality seafood and he is the most adorable and nice person I ever met.

It will be a great night and I just tell you… don’t miss it.

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