| ||||||||||||||||
"Se non è vero, è ben trovato." (If it's not true, it's a good story.) Welcome to another recipe edition from Adriana's Italian Bakery! This week's Italian recipes:
All of us at the bakery here in Santo Stefano Quisquina sincerely hope you enjoy this week's recipes! Arrivederci e a presto! Yours Truly,
"Italian Buccellati" A soft and chewy fig cookie with a crisp outside and tender inside. Made exclusively from our own home grown natural figs, almonds, the freshest farm eggs, milk, flour and sugar. No preservatives, additives, artificial colors, nor flavors. Serves 5-7. 900 grams (2 lbs.) is only 10.49 Euro ($14.00-$14.50) + Shipping. Example Order: One order to anywhere in the USA costs 10.49 Euro plus 8.70 Euro for Global Priority Mail shipping (7-8 days) for a total of 19.19 Euro ($25.75-$26.25 U.S. Dollars).
Braised Lentils with Spinach
Ingredients: Directions: Pour enough cold water over the lentils, onions, carrots, celery, and bay leaves in a 3-quart saucepan to cover by three fingers. Season with salt and bring to a boil over high heat. Adjust the heat so the water is at a gentle boil and cook until the lentils are tender, 20 to 25 minutes. Drain the lentils, discard the bay leaves, and transfer to a large skillet. Pour in the chicken stock and olive oil and season lightly with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil and cook until the liquid is reduced enough to coat the lentils, about 3 minutes. Scatter the spinach over the lentils and toss just until the spinach is wilted, about 1 minute. Taste and add salt and pepper if necessary. Serve immediately. Makes 6 servings. That's it!
Spaghetti with Tuna, Tomatoes, Capers, and Basil
Ingredients: 1 and 1/4 lbs spaghetti
Directions: Gently mix first 6 ingredients in large bowl. Season tuna-tomato mixture to taste with salt and pepper. Let stand 1 hour at room temperature. Cook spaghetti in large pot of boiling salted water until 'al dent', stirring occasionally. Drain; return to pot. Add tuna-tomato mixture and basil. Toss to combine. Season with salt and pepper. Transfer to bowl and serve. Makes 6 servings. That's it!
Slow Roasted Lamb Shanks with Braised Lentils
Ingredients: 1/2 cup dry red wine
Braised lentils Directions: Preheat oven to 500°F. Spread onions, celery, and carrots over bottom of large roasting pan. Rub thyme and mint over lamb shanks; sprinkle generously with salt and pepper. Place lamb shanks atop vegetables. Drizzle 3 tablespoons olive oil over. Roast uncovered 30 minutes. Pour 1 cup chicken stock over lamb and vegetables in pan. Reduce oven temperature to 425°F. Continue to roast uncovered until lamb is very tender and almost falls off bones, adding 1 cup stock to pan every 30 minutes and turning and basting lamb occasionally, about 3 hours longer. Using tongs, transfer lamb shanks to bowl; cover to keep warm. Transfer vegetables and pan juices to large saucepan; skim fat from surface. Add remaining 1 cup stock, wine, juniper berries if desired, and bay leaf to saucepan. Simmer 10 minutes to blend flavors. Strain, pressing on solids to extract as much vegetable pulp and liquid as possible. Return strained liquid to same saucepan; bring to boil. Mix flour and butter to blend in small bowl. Add to saucepan; whisk until sauce thickens slightly and is reduced to 2 cups, about 2 minutes. Season sauce with salt and pepper. Spoon braised lentils onto 4 plates. Drizzle remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil over lentils. Top each serving with 1 lamb shank. Spoon sauce over lamb. Makes 4 servings. That's it! Printer Friendly Version :: Submit Your Thoughts
"Only In Italy" is a daily news column that translates and reports on funny but true news items from legitimate Italian news resources in Italy. Each story is slapped with our wild, often ironic, and sometimes rather opinionated comments. And now, for your reading pleasure: Doctors Will Not Report Illegal Aliens Rome - February 6, 2009 - Catholic doctors will not report illegal immigrants who show up for treatment despite a government move encouraging them to do so, the head of their association told Vatican Radio Friday. Vincenzo Saraceni said doctors would not have to become 'conscientious objectors' in order to go against the government's wishes. He noted that a crime bill which passed from the Senate to the Chamber of Deputies Thursday does not require doctors to report illegals but only lifts a previous ban on them doing so. It is therefore left up to individual doctors to decide, he said. Saraceni however voiced the hope that the Chamber of Deputies would remove the "absolutely inopportune" measure from the crime bill. The center-left opposition and doctors' groups have warned that the fear of being reported would stop illegal immigrants seeking care with serious health risks for the community. "Grazie Dottore Grazie!" I feel much better. Give me 5 minutes head start before you call the polizia.
It's about time we see a little sense of responsibility and benevolence coming from our quack population.
Hard to believe Italy has the highest number of doctors per head of any country in the world (one for every 160 inhabitants). However, if you filter out the lazy, clumsy and rat-bastards who are involved with the Mafia, the number comes crashing down.
And if Italy is overrun by a huge number of doctors as it is with illegal aliens, why is it so hard to find one? "'Fanculo", why does one need the help of an illegal alien to get a doctor's appointment?
Medical students in Italy spend an estimated 10-12 years studying medicine but around 30 per cent of registered doctors are in jobs that do not correspond with studies completed both academically and also in terms of salary. In other words, you'll find highly qualified and experienced physicians dedicating their time with politics and the construction industry while the incapable and dense ones are performing open heart surgery instead of shaving sheep.
Italy's spending on health is only around 6 per cent of GDP, and expenditure per head is among the lowest in the European Union. State hospitals, particularly in the south, are notoriously bad, a situation made worse by Mafia-inspired corruption and doctors escaping to find work in better equipped and run hospitals in northern Italy, Libya, Morocco and the North Pole.
Despite the shortcomings of our crappy health service, we are generally healthy and have one of the highest life expectancies in Europe (around 82 for women and 76 for men) which is attributed in large part to our healthy Mediterranean diet.
Although, we always debate as to why the hell we would want to live this long in a country that is trying to kill us off.
"Only In Italy" Subscribe today and you'll discover why the last improvements to Italy were made by Julius Caesar and why it's been downhill ever since! Click Here to Subscribe!
|
SilverFromItaly.com
Read Past Issues
Submit Your Thoughts
Subscribe! Insalata di Pasta alla Siciliana Minestrone Pesce all'Acqua Pazza Ricotta Dumplings in Broth Risotto di Finocchio e Gamberi Scaloppine alla Pizzaiola Spinach, Prosciutto and Red Bell Pepper Crostini Tagliolini alla Checca Torta di Carmelina Vitello alla Capricciosa Wild Fennel and Calamari Salad Zucchini con Cannella e Aglio
Questions: Need more Italian recipes? How about Italian gift ideas? Or just plain Italian fun? Subscribe to these interesting newsletters from our closest and trustworthy Italian affiliates located here in Italy? Just click the sites that may interest you and sign up:
Silver From Italy.com
Copyright ©2000-2009 FromItaly di Ciccarello. ISSN: 1724-7985. All Rights Reserved. Please read our Privacy Policy This newsletter is powered by Libero. It no longer uses NOR does it recommend the services of Tiscali S.p.a. |