Having recently sampled some of Italy's delicacies in the country itself, Vintage Bakehouse would like to share with you what it considers to be a few of the best and most traditional Italian foods.
SICILY
Although neighbouring Italy, the Island of Sicily has inherited many if its culinary traditions from the Greeks, Arabs, Normans and Romans.
Siclian cuisine mostly derives from agricultural practices introduced to the island by the Greeks, who invaded and settled in Sicily during the 8th Century BC. The Greeks introduced olive trees, wheat and vines, from which they produced sweet wines called Malvasia, from both dried and fresh grapes. They also made desserts from honey, nuts, milk and flour, and introduced grapes, figs, pomegranates, walnuts, hazelnuts and ricotta cheese to Sicilian cooking.
The Arabs swept out of Africa and rapidly conquered much of the Mediterranean, including Corsica, Sardinia, Spain, and Sicilia. With them they brought apricots, sugar, citrus fruits, rice, saffron, raisins, nutmeg, pine nuts, almonds, pistachios, cinnamon and oranges to Sicilian cuisine. As they combined fruits, meats, nuts and vegetables with spices such as cumin, saffron and sumach, the foods of Sicily were to become a little hotter, sweeter and spicier than those found in the mainland.
Sugar cane was probably one of their most significant contribution to the Islands cuisine. Whilst sugar revolutionised European confectionary as a whole, Sicilian sweets and desserts developed with an additional authentic taste acquired from Middle Eastern ingredients such as almonds, pistachios, sesame seeds, honey, candied fruit, figs, pomegranates and citrus fruits, along with flowers such as orange blossom, jasmine ad rose flower waters.
Arancini
On the menu in many of Sicily's cafes is a snack of North African origin called arancini, introduced during the Arab rule. It is a ball of rice stuffed with ragu of meat in tomato sauce, coated with breadcrumbs and then deep fried. Originally, the Arabs prepared arancini using rice flavoured with saffron and stuffed with meat, peas ad carrots. The saffron gave the snack it's colour, pertaining to the name 'arancini', which means 'little oranges' in Italian. Today, there are many variations of arancni; some stuffed with mushrooms, some aubergine and some with pistachio. The appearance of this snack also varies from round to a more conical shape, usually dependant upon whether you are on the east or west of the island.
http://www.jamieoliver.com/recipes/member-recipes/Arancini%20(Sicilian%20Stuffed%20Rice%20Balls)/1212
Cannoli
Translated as 'little tube', cannolo or cannoli is a Sicilian pastry served throughout the Island and Italy. Traditionally given to friends and family during carnival time by the wealthy families of Palermo, this tube shaped shell of fried pastry dough is filled with sweet and creamy ricotta cheese, mixed with dried candied fruit, then decorated with glazed cherries or pistachios.
http://allrecipes.co.uk/recipe/13692/classic-cannoli.aspx
Martorana Fruit
Considered jewels of most Sicilian patisseries, martorana fruits, also known as pasta reale or frutta reale are marzipan treats. The name 'martorana' comes from the martorana church, which began its life as a place of worship for Palermo's Greek Orthodox community. Here, one Easter, nuns shaped and decorated marzipan to resemble real fruit, then hung them in dormant trees to impress a visiting bishop.
Martorana fruits are made purely of marzipan and sugar, which is then set in moulds to give them the shape of various natural fruits.
http://www.manusmenu.com/marzipan-martorana
Pistachio cookies (Dolcini di mandorla pistachio)
The pistachio nut cultivated on the island of Sicily has a strong taste and is used to give distinct colour ad flavour to many of the Island's cakes and pastries.
The pistachio biscotti comes in many varieties: nobbly. smooth, round, long, soft and with or without candied fruits. Vintage Bakeouse have included its favourite recipe for you below:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/foodanddrink/recipes/9615662/Sicilian-pistachio-cookies.html
Although neighbouring Italy, the Island of Sicily has inherited many if its culinary traditions from the Greeks, Arabs, Normans and Romans.
Siclian cuisine mostly derives from agricultural practices introduced to the island by the Greeks, who invaded and settled in Sicily during the 8th Century BC. The Greeks introduced olive trees, wheat and vines, from which they produced sweet wines called Malvasia, from both dried and fresh grapes. They also made desserts from honey, nuts, milk and flour, and introduced grapes, figs, pomegranates, walnuts, hazelnuts and ricotta cheese to Sicilian cooking.
The Arabs swept out of Africa and rapidly conquered much of the Mediterranean, including Corsica, Sardinia, Spain, and Sicilia. With them they brought apricots, sugar, citrus fruits, rice, saffron, raisins, nutmeg, pine nuts, almonds, pistachios, cinnamon and oranges to Sicilian cuisine. As they combined fruits, meats, nuts and vegetables with spices such as cumin, saffron and sumach, the foods of Sicily were to become a little hotter, sweeter and spicier than those found in the mainland.
Sugar cane was probably one of their most significant contribution to the Islands cuisine. Whilst sugar revolutionised European confectionary as a whole, Sicilian sweets and desserts developed with an additional authentic taste acquired from Middle Eastern ingredients such as almonds, pistachios, sesame seeds, honey, candied fruit, figs, pomegranates and citrus fruits, along with flowers such as orange blossom, jasmine ad rose flower waters.
Arancini
On the menu in many of Sicily's cafes is a snack of North African origin called arancini, introduced during the Arab rule. It is a ball of rice stuffed with ragu of meat in tomato sauce, coated with breadcrumbs and then deep fried. Originally, the Arabs prepared arancini using rice flavoured with saffron and stuffed with meat, peas ad carrots. The saffron gave the snack it's colour, pertaining to the name 'arancini', which means 'little oranges' in Italian. Today, there are many variations of arancni; some stuffed with mushrooms, some aubergine and some with pistachio. The appearance of this snack also varies from round to a more conical shape, usually dependant upon whether you are on the east or west of the island.
http://www.jamieoliver.com/recipes/member-recipes/Arancini%20(Sicilian%20Stuffed%20Rice%20Balls)/1212
Cannoli
Translated as 'little tube', cannolo or cannoli is a Sicilian pastry served throughout the Island and Italy. Traditionally given to friends and family during carnival time by the wealthy families of Palermo, this tube shaped shell of fried pastry dough is filled with sweet and creamy ricotta cheese, mixed with dried candied fruit, then decorated with glazed cherries or pistachios.
http://allrecipes.co.uk/recipe/13692/classic-cannoli.aspx
Martorana Fruit
Considered jewels of most Sicilian patisseries, martorana fruits, also known as pasta reale or frutta reale are marzipan treats. The name 'martorana' comes from the martorana church, which began its life as a place of worship for Palermo's Greek Orthodox community. Here, one Easter, nuns shaped and decorated marzipan to resemble real fruit, then hung them in dormant trees to impress a visiting bishop.
Martorana fruits are made purely of marzipan and sugar, which is then set in moulds to give them the shape of various natural fruits.
http://www.manusmenu.com/marzipan-martorana
Pistachio cookies (Dolcini di mandorla pistachio)
The pistachio nut cultivated on the island of Sicily has a strong taste and is used to give distinct colour ad flavour to many of the Island's cakes and pastries.
The pistachio biscotti comes in many varieties: nobbly. smooth, round, long, soft and with or without candied fruits. Vintage Bakeouse have included its favourite recipe for you below:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/foodanddrink/recipes/9615662/Sicilian-pistachio-cookies.html
ITALY
Italian cuisine is one of the most diverse in Europe due to its regional styles of cooking, influenced by the availability of local ingredients, neighbouring regions, conquerors and the discovery of the New World.
This diversification started after the fall of the Roman Empire when individual city states began to develop their culinary identity by preparing their foods very differently.
Northern Italian regions tend to show a mix of more Germanic and Roman culture, with the cuisine using less olive oils, pasta and tomatoes, but more fats such as butter and lard, rice, corn for polenta and cheese for cream sauces. Whilst shellfish is very popular on the coast, rural areas are likely to include wild fowl such as rabbit, quail or grouse in many of their dishes.
The inhabitants of the southern regions of Italy enjoy many vegetable based foods, including soups and entrees. Similar to North Africa, the area is historically known for shepherding lamb and kid, both of which are important ingredients in the local diet. Referred to as the 'Soul of Italy', the southern region is home not only to the world famous pizza from Naples, but also to a variety of rich and spicy tomato sauces, some of the best olive oils, grapes and delicious citrus fruits.
Pizza
Now available worldwide, the history of the pizza can linked both to Jewish and Greek settlers in Italy as early as the 2nd century.
Suggestions have been made that the foundations of the pizza were laid by the Greeks, who enjoyed the meal in its most basic and authentic form: as a simple flatbread, seasoned and top with herbs, spices and dates, drizzled with olive oil and baked on a hot stone.
The word 'pizza' derives from the Latin word 'pinsa', meaning flatbread, and was sold by street vendors to the poor people of Naples during the 18th century.
In 1889, whilst accompanying her husband Umbeto I on a tour of her Italian kingdom, Queen Margherita frequently ate this peasant food with her people.
Later, when ordered by the Queen to bake a selection of pizzas, her chef created a special one, just for her, topping it with tomatoes, Mozarella cheese and fresh basil to represent the colours of the Italian flag. And this of course was the beginning of the Margherita pizza we still enjoy today.
http://www.deliciousmagazine.co.uk/recipes/pizza-margherita
Gelato
After all of this amazing and rich tasting food, we thought it would appropriate to finish with something cool and smooth to cleanse the palette.
Much or Italy's (and Sicily's) flavours can also be found in their gelato.
Gelato, the Italian word for ice cream comes from the Latin word 'gelatus' (meaning frozen). The consumption of flavoured ice is said to have begun in Asian cultures as far back as 3000 BC. When the practice arrived in North Africa, pharaohs of Egypt would offer their visitors a cup of ice mixed with fruit juices. Centuries later, Marco Polo returned to Italy from his travels and introduced his country to the techniques of making these sweet icy treats.
Gelatos and sorbets evolved from a 'between courses palette cleanser' in the 1500's to what we now know today as a thick, soft, creamy dessert in a variety of favours and colours.
http://www.foodnetwork.com/topics/gelato-recipes.html
Italian cuisine is one of the most diverse in Europe due to its regional styles of cooking, influenced by the availability of local ingredients, neighbouring regions, conquerors and the discovery of the New World.
This diversification started after the fall of the Roman Empire when individual city states began to develop their culinary identity by preparing their foods very differently.
Northern Italian regions tend to show a mix of more Germanic and Roman culture, with the cuisine using less olive oils, pasta and tomatoes, but more fats such as butter and lard, rice, corn for polenta and cheese for cream sauces. Whilst shellfish is very popular on the coast, rural areas are likely to include wild fowl such as rabbit, quail or grouse in many of their dishes.
The inhabitants of the southern regions of Italy enjoy many vegetable based foods, including soups and entrees. Similar to North Africa, the area is historically known for shepherding lamb and kid, both of which are important ingredients in the local diet. Referred to as the 'Soul of Italy', the southern region is home not only to the world famous pizza from Naples, but also to a variety of rich and spicy tomato sauces, some of the best olive oils, grapes and delicious citrus fruits.
Pizza
Now available worldwide, the history of the pizza can linked both to Jewish and Greek settlers in Italy as early as the 2nd century.
Suggestions have been made that the foundations of the pizza were laid by the Greeks, who enjoyed the meal in its most basic and authentic form: as a simple flatbread, seasoned and top with herbs, spices and dates, drizzled with olive oil and baked on a hot stone.
The word 'pizza' derives from the Latin word 'pinsa', meaning flatbread, and was sold by street vendors to the poor people of Naples during the 18th century.
In 1889, whilst accompanying her husband Umbeto I on a tour of her Italian kingdom, Queen Margherita frequently ate this peasant food with her people.
Later, when ordered by the Queen to bake a selection of pizzas, her chef created a special one, just for her, topping it with tomatoes, Mozarella cheese and fresh basil to represent the colours of the Italian flag. And this of course was the beginning of the Margherita pizza we still enjoy today.
http://www.deliciousmagazine.co.uk/recipes/pizza-margherita
Gelato
After all of this amazing and rich tasting food, we thought it would appropriate to finish with something cool and smooth to cleanse the palette.
Much or Italy's (and Sicily's) flavours can also be found in their gelato.
Gelato, the Italian word for ice cream comes from the Latin word 'gelatus' (meaning frozen). The consumption of flavoured ice is said to have begun in Asian cultures as far back as 3000 BC. When the practice arrived in North Africa, pharaohs of Egypt would offer their visitors a cup of ice mixed with fruit juices. Centuries later, Marco Polo returned to Italy from his travels and introduced his country to the techniques of making these sweet icy treats.
Gelatos and sorbets evolved from a 'between courses palette cleanser' in the 1500's to what we now know today as a thick, soft, creamy dessert in a variety of favours and colours.
http://www.foodnetwork.com/topics/gelato-recipes.html
Sources:
Images sourced from:
http://www.pinterest.com/
Blog content sourced from:
http://www.whygelato.com/gelato101/history.asp
http://bellanapolipizzeria.com/history-of-the-pizza/
http://www.frostgelato.com/historyofgelato_sorbet.html
http://www.bestofsicily.com/mag/art398.htm
http://www.lifeinitaly.com/food/pizza-history.asp
http://www.mangiabenepasta.com/cannoli.html
http://www.lifeinitaly.com/food/italian-regional-food.asp
http://www.syriatoday.ca/salloum-arab-sci.htm
http://www.bestofsicily.com/mag/art168.htm
http://www.yourguidetoitaly.com/history-of-italian-food-cuisine.html
Images sourced from:
http://www.pinterest.com/
Blog content sourced from:
http://www.whygelato.com/gelato101/history.asp
http://bellanapolipizzeria.com/history-of-the-pizza/
http://www.frostgelato.com/historyofgelato_sorbet.html
http://www.bestofsicily.com/mag/art398.htm
http://www.lifeinitaly.com/food/pizza-history.asp
http://www.mangiabenepasta.com/cannoli.html
http://www.lifeinitaly.com/food/italian-regional-food.asp
http://www.syriatoday.ca/salloum-arab-sci.htm
http://www.bestofsicily.com/mag/art168.htm
http://www.yourguidetoitaly.com/history-of-italian-food-cuisine.html