Mother's day is near and Italy too

Thinking about a special present for your mum this year? If she has always been in love with Italy, you could think about offer her an holiday in Italy.

What if you can find Italy at your doorstep? 

Easy with one of our great MAXI CUBE Pastificio dei Campi: there is the one "To Taste" (50 euro) with a selection of pasta shapes already made for you; Then there is the "Customed Cube"(40 euro), if you already know your mum's favourite shapes of pasta and finally the  "Maxi Cube Selection Pastificio dei Campi"(65 euro), that is composed by pasta, Extra virgin Olive Oil L'arcangelo and a special kind of tomatoes, Miracolo di San Gennaro... so the best from the Campagna region. 

If you are interested in one of the 3 just let me know via Facebook and I will organize to send you one of the cubes.

If the present is not enough, why don't follow one of my recipe and invite your mum to a real italian pasta dinner all prepared by you? Here some of them.

And finally your italian day couldn't be easier than this: The Italian Cultural Institute in London has just started the new italian movie nights appointment from this friday: lot's of nice movies are in schedule in these days, all with subtitles and in a really beautiful environment.

Have a look here to chose the one your mum will be happy to watch and get ready for your Special italian Mother's day.

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3 days of food, music and fun for a unique festival.

As the majority of you, this year I could not attend this beautiful event, La festa della Pasta, the Pasta Festival that took place in the Campagnia region last weekend. In these days I was craving and just waiting for some pictures from the event. I was curious to see  what happened in Gragnano during the celebration.

If I was thinking that the last Festival could have been hard to overcome, these pictures from this year just told me the contrary: there was food, there was an enormous amount of people, there was music, special shows, magic in the air and of course the best pasta in the world with its never ending tradition.

With the help of the government of the region and with the participation of the Slow Food organization, the party was at its best! It's always nice to see people working in the production of this precious food, their family and friends, sharing all this with the people in love with the good food and who appreciate this fundamental element of our culture.

Here some pictures that from the italian blogger Giovanna Esposito and from Alessandro Savarese for E-comunica. Thanks to both of you for your beautiful images that catch the real vibe of this great party.

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A quiz and some tips to know a bit more about pasta.

Following the recent Oxfam survey that shows the pasta be the favorite food ever, we decided to play a bit with you.

Do you think to be a real pasta lover or an expert of italian pasta dishes? Here there is a little quiz (from the International Pasta Organization) for you and some interesting information: do you know the country that eat and produce more pasta? can you name all these shapes of pasta?

If you didn't guess all the name, don't worry. Here for you are some tips to help you a bit. As The National was reporting today: "The suffix often provides an indication of size: "oni" suggests large (as in conchiglioni - large shells or spaghettoni - thick spaghetti); "ette" or "etti" denote something small (as in spaghetti or cappelletti - small hats) and "ine"or "ini" suggest tiny (hence spaghettini )." Being italian I never thought about this, but now i can see this could bee a good start for you all.

This could be another easy tip to get the right pasta with the right sauce: "Slim, fine pasta (for example spaghetti, spaghettini, angel hair, linguine, linguettine) is best served with a smooth, quite thin sauce. This allows the sauce to coat the delicate strands, without overpowering the flavour of the pasta completely. Thicker ribbons of pasta (fettuccine, pappardelle, fettuce, perciatelli) can stand up to heavier, more substantial sauces, such as ragus or rich, creamy dressings. Shaped pasta (conchiglie, conchiglioni, orecchiette) or types with holes or ridges (fusilli, rigatoni, penne) work well when the sauce is chunky or if the there is a lot of it, as the pasta then holds the sauce"

And finally some other little curiosity: in Italian, fettuccine means ribbons; stelline means little stars; and capelli d’angelo means angel’s hair.

I think now you are ready to surprise your guests when you will cook pasta for them next time.

And if you want to have more news, stay tuned because you will see soon all the picture from the harvest.

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Pasta with asparagus, pancetta and pecorino cheese.

We are definitely in April... ok, maybe outside there is still a bit of rain and wind, but of course we hope in sunny and hot days soon!
 
Have you already been to your local fruit and veg shop or to your market, if you are so lucky to have one near? I did and I couldn't wait to buy some asparagus. They weren't the best ones yet, but at least fresh and in season!
 
I wanted to cook a recipe I have done once using rice. This time instead I wanted to use pasta so I needed to make it just a bit different: asparagus, pancetta and instead of the goat cheese, perfect to make the rice creamy, I added some pecorino cheese, salty and with a strong taste perfect for the pancetta and the delicate asparagus.

Here is this easy recipe to enjoy these spring vegetables:  
Ingredients for 3-4 people:

- 350 g di fusillata casareccia or pennoni (like mine in the picture) Pastificio dei Campi.

- 250 g wild asparagus.

- 100 g pancetta

- 1 onion

- 50 g grated pecorino

- Extra-virgin olive oil

- Salt and pepper  
Wash and chop the asparagus into small pieces, leaving the tips a bit longer. Slice the pancetta into strips and lightly cook them in a pan with a bit of olive oil.

Remove the pancetta and in the same pan, lightly brown the chopped onion, then add the asparagus. Taste for salt and pepper, add a few spoonfuls of water, and let cook for about 10 minutes.

Cook the pasta until al dente, then mix them in the pan with the asparagus and pancetta. Complete the dish with a sprinkling of grated pecorino, black pepper and serve!

For any other spring inspiration check here.

I hope you will enjoy!

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For you the Maxi Cube Tasting or the Maxi Cube Custom!

Finally it's the 8th of December. Today in Italy is holiday and the majority of the people will spend their  time decorating the Christmas tree or shopping for the latest presents still in the list.

Have you already bought all your presents or you are just starting to think about them? But especially, are you the one who loves doing and receiving surprises or you prefer to buy or receive something requested?

We could stay here discussing hours about that and I personally prefer people who try to guess your taste and give you something, also little, but with an effort, than who is asking you 'what do you want for Christmas?". This sounds to me a bit lazy and simple. And there is no comparison with the surprise to open a packet and find something you didn't expect!

However for all of you, Pastificio dei Campi has a great solution: you can finally shop for your favorite shape of pasta on the same website, clicking on the e-commerce section.

Here you will find 3 options:

The Maxi Cube Tasting: a perfect pack for those who want to know (and be surprised by) the production of the pasta factory and loves to try many different formats. It consists of five kilograms of pasta Gragnano IGP, bronze drawn and slowly dried at low temperature, given in 10 different sizes selected from among those that best represent our company: paccheri, calamarata, pennoni, candele spezzate, penne ziti lisce, penne mezzani rigate, orecchiette, tubetti, spaghetti, linguine.  A nice gift idea for all lovers of pasta.

The Maxi Cube Custom:  a customizable package, designed for people who already know our Pasta Gragnano IGP or for those that have very decided tastes. Choose the contents of your package: this is left entirely to you. 8 packages of pasta, 500 grams Gragnano IGP in most popular formats.

Then of course, it's almost Christmas and you can also buy the fantastic gourmet gift box,  made in limited edition for Christmas 2010. Here the pasta di Gragnano IGP is accompanied by two other symbols of the south gastronomic tradition, an high quality extra virgin olive oil and tomatoes as explained here. (And the first five to leave a comment on the post will receive a 15% discount to buy this Cube).

So undecided or  ready to choose your  pasta shapes and Maxi Cubes?

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At their best in this season, you can't miss to try this dish

Last weekend I went to Portobello Market, because I had a friend visiting me and I decided to bring her in one of the most typical market here in London.

So while she was lost between all the antiquities and second hand dresses stands, I had the chance to buy some fresh products to cook in the evening. Between all the fruits and vegetables available, I was really undecided  about what to pick up, but the artichokes are one of those ingredients so rare to find, that I couldn't stop myself from buying them.

In Italy the artichokes have normally two seasons: one in these months and another one in spring, and they are a classic also in my family's Christmas dinner. There are so many ways to eat/cook them: you can serve their leaves like they are and dip them in vinaigrette, you can grill or fry them... or you can finally use them as an ingredient for your pasta.

Here some tips and a little recipe to enjoy them in the best way.

Ingredients for 4 people:

- 3 artichokes: Pick artichokes with well-coloured, undamaged, tightly-closed leaves. Smaller artichokes have more tender leaves; larger ones have bigger hearts.

- 380-400gr Pennoni Pastificio dei Campi

- 3 spoons of single cream or even semi-skimmed milk for something light.

- Extra virgin olive oil, salt, pepper and a vegetable stock

- 3-4 garlic cloves

- Parsley and a bit of lemon juice

- Parmesan cheese

Remove the toughest of the outer leaves. Snip off any sharp leaf tips. Snap the stalk off at the base and remove the tough fibres running into the base where possible. Cut them in four pieces. Pull out the central cone of thinner leaves to reveal the inedible fibrous 'choke' (this may not be present in smaller baby artichokes). Carefully scrape this out with a teaspoon, leaving the prized heart in place. Then put the artichoke in acidulated water (e.g. water with a good squeeze of lemon juice added) for around half an hour.

Place the garlic cloves in a pan with some olive oil. When they starts to get goldish, take them out and add the artichokes and some finely chopped parsley. Cover with some stock water and leave it cook for about 40 minutes. Add other "brodo" or stock water if needed. Artichokes are cooked when you can easily pull out an inner leaf and the stem is tender.

Prepare now the water for the pasta and then pass the half of the artichokes in a mixer with the milk, pepper, salt and some grated Parmesan. If you prefer to use the cream for your dish, don't add the milk to the mixer. When the sauce is done, put this back in the pan with the rest of the artichokes until the pasta is cooked. Here you can add the cream if you want, with some other salt and pepper.

When the pasta is ready, drain it and add the sauce with some Parmesan flakes and a touch of parsley.

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All the best flavors from the autumn for a vegetarian pasta 

- 600gr pumpkin already clean (it's better the taste of the bigger pumpkin respect to the little ones)

Put the dried mushroom in a container and cover them with warm water. Wait around 20 minutes and drain them, being careful to keep the water from the mushroom. 

Put some Olive oil in a pan with the chopped onion. Cook it until goldish and then add the pumpkin cut in little pieces. Let it cook a bit in the oil and then add the sage, the rosemary, some salt, pepper and the white wine. The pumpkin will take a bit to cook and get soft (at least 20 minutes) and you will need to add the water from the mushroom every now and then to let it cook.

In another pan you will prepare the mushrooms: put some olive oil with the garlic cloves and let it cook until goldish. Then take the garlic off and add the fresh mushrooms in slices with some chopped parsley. Let it cook in the garlic oil until ready.

Prepare the saucepan for the pasta with some a good quantity of water and salt and add the pasta when boiling.

At this point add the Porcini and the fresh mushrooms to the pan with the pumpkin and finish to add the mushroom water or some stock water if this is already finished. Let it cook until is all mixed and the pumpkin is soft and then taste it, to see if you need some more salt, pepper or chili. You can even add some Parmesan now, if you like it.

Drain the Pennoni and toss them with the sauce. Let them absorb the flavors and serve it with a last touch of parmesan on the top. 

What do you think? was it enough of a treat to avoid the Halloween tricks?

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