For many chefs and gourmet cooks, Apicius is the source from which all Roman recipes began. Estimated to have been written in either the very late fourth or early fifth century A.D., it’s a chronicle of recipes that includes instructions on curing meat, making wine and a host of other interesting facts. The ancestry of many of today’s popular dishes by the best Italian Orlando restaurant trace back to this gastronomic compilation. The Etruscan diet was hugely comprised of a farro porridge or gruel called puls. While farro is a nut-flavored grain in the wheat family, puls was made from mashed […]
Italian Food
The Italian-Lover’s Pasta Dictionary
It is mind boggling to think that Durham wheat (semolina) mixed with water or eggs was transformed hundreds of years ago into one of the most popular and delicious foods recognized almost anywhere in the world! It can be challenging to correctly identify what is estimated to be over 250 different types and shapes of pasta–let alone determine which one is best suited to the dish or sauce you are preparing. Let’s break it down this way. If we sort the pasta shapes into the following categories the selection process becomes a little less overwhelming: Long Pasta: Spaghetti, vermicelli, linguine, […]
The Artistry Behind Italian Desserts
Any true foodie will tell you that before you sample the first bite of any dish you devour it with your eyes first. It makes sense; if something doesn’t look appealing to you, odds are, you won’t want to eat it. Italian desserts are masterful creations; beautiful to the eye and satisfying to the palate. Italian desserts have evolved over the centuries as the availability of products expanded, providing imported goods from around the world. Sugar was not readily available to Italian cooks prior to the 1700’s and desserts were mainly sweetened with honey and fruit. The finished products were […]
Italian Food by Season
As we do here in the States, Italian cooks feature the bounty of the seasonal harvest in their dishes. During the summer, Italian cuisine will reflect the abundance of eggplant, corn, zucchini, cucumbers, berries, almonds, apricots, figs, and plums, just to name a few. Eggplant will frequently replace meat in dishes as it is very versatile. It can be roasted, grilled, fried, or sautéed. It can be served room temperature or cold. Eating lighter dishes and foods that don’t require spending a lot of time in the kitchen are the key to surviving the Italian summer. Zucchini is served from […]
Eat Like an Italian This Summer
When the weather starts to warm and we begin to spend more time outdoors in the heat, our bodies naturally start to crave lighter and fresher foods. We don’t need to be comforted by heavy soups, stews, or sauce covered pastas. The same is true for folks all around the world, and in Italy the summer is a time of great celebration of the harvest of the freshest fruits, vegetables, and the bounty of the seas. This is part of the reasons the fine dining Orlando experts at Christini’s is featuring a delicious summer menu. Leggero, which means “light” in […]
