Vegetarian Heritage Archives • Cooking with Carlotta

VEGAN CHERRY JELLIES

Carlotta Conti — Thu, 20 Jun 2024 00:30:59 +0000

Fancy a dessert that contains all the flavor of ripe cherries? If the answer is yes, then you absolutely have to try my vegan cherry jelly recipe. Forget about industrial jellies; here we only use fresh fruit pulp and agar-agar, a vegetable gelling agent, also suitable for those who have a particular diet (gluten intolerant), healthy, natural and incredibly tasty. Follow these simple steps to bring a summer concentrate to the table. A perfect vegan cherries jelly, inclusive delicacy, a recipe that can be transformed just changing the fruit with other seasonal one. The use of agar-agar forces me to use the decimal system, that is far more precise than the Imperial one.

Prep Time: 10 minutes | Sitting Time: 2 hours | Yields: it serves 4.

Ingredients:for vegan cherry jelly

6 G agar-agar powder
320 G cherry pulp, about 400 G cherries washed and deprived of stones and stems, diced
350 G water
32 G white sugar

Method:How to make vegan cherry jelly

Combine all the ingredients in a saucepan and boil for 4 mins. Blend with an immersion blender.
Meanwhile, lightly grease 4 small tins with vegetable oil. Pour cooled jelly into tins through a sieve. Refrigerate for 2 hours to set completely.
Remove from fridge and use the point of a sharp small knife to carefully release the dessert from the tin along the edges. Lightly grease your serving platter with oil. Place the platter upside down on top of the tins, then swiftly flip them over so that the tins is now upside down, and (hopefully) allow the dessert to fall out onto the platter.
Serve immediately, or refrigerate until ready to eat.

NOTES

+ 2 hrs refrigeration.

http://Agar-agar WikipediaBrief history of agar-agar

DARK CHOCOLATE CAPRESE CAKE

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ICED COFFEE DESSERT

Carlotta Conti — Mon, 10 Jun 2024 19:47:53 +0000

A fresh coffee dessert, ideal for the summer, and which will be appreciated by everyone. We will be able to serve it to all our guests, either the ones who have special dietary requirements and those who will just appreciate a light and fresh treat. If coffee makes us a bit too “nervous” we can use the decaffeinated one.

Prep Time: 30 minutes | Sitting Time: 30 mins | Yields: it serves 8.

Ingredients

200 G (1 cup) coffee
10 G (1 tbsp) instant coffee
200 G (1 cup) water, cold
360 G (3 cups) icing sugar, sifted
Cocoa powder to sprinkle
Ice

Tools

2 bowls, one bigger than the other, kept in the freezer
Electric whisk (hand mixer)

Method

After making the coffee, pour it in the small bowl, add sugar and instant coffee when it is still hot, so they melt perfectly, then add the water and put it in the freezer.

Chill for 20 minutes, put ice in the bigger bowl, put the smaller on it and begin to mix using the electric whisk.

Begin to use the electric whisk at minimum speed and gradually increase it until maximum speed is reached. It must be whipped for a total time of 15-20 mins.

Serve in individual glasses or cups and sprinkle with cocoa powder through a sift.

If you do not serve it all immediately, the leftover needs to be whipped again.

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TWO TOMATO JELLY

Carlotta Conti — Mon, 10 Feb 2020 10:49:38 +0000

What inspired me to make this tomato jelly was the need to prepare something healthy, with local ingredients, and because of my family’s cholesterol test results. It is ideal for a dinner with a big group because in can be made a day or two in advance, and it can make all our dining companions happy: it is vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, lactose-free….and light.

The xanthan gum is not essential, it is just a stabilizer and makes the colours more vivid, but it can also be a strong laxative if you overdo it, so be careful or avoid using it.

The addition of fennel and Sambuca liqueur is a touch of Rome, suggested by visiting Chef Fabio Campoli at the Florence Metro Academy.

Prep Time: 5 minutes | Cooking Time: 25 minutes | Total Time: 30 minutes | Yield: Makes 4 servings.

Ingredients

For the yellow jelly

14 oz (400 g) yellow cherry tomatoes
1 oz (20 g) onion, finely minced
Some wild fennel leaves
1 tbsp Sambuca (star anise liqueur)
1 tbsp olive oil
1 pinch xanthan gum
1 tsp agar-agar

For the red jelly

14 oz (400 g) red cherry tomatoes
1 tbsp olive oil
2 garlic cloves, peeled
1 pinch chili pepper
1 tsp agar-agar
1 pinch xanthan gum

Instructions

In a saucepan, sauté the onion in the olive oil and add the yellow tomatoes when the onion is golden. Add salt, cook for 10 minutes and add the Sambuca and fennel. Add the agar-agar and the xanthan gum and mix carefully.

Wet 6 small moulds and pour the liquid into each of them through a sieve. Place the moulds in the fridge and let cool for an hour.

In another saucepan, sauté the garlic cloves in the olive oil. When they are golden, discard them and add the red tomatoes. Add the chili pepper, season with salt, and let it simmer for 10 minutes.

Add the agar-agar and the xanthan gum and mix carefully. Remove the moulds from the fridge, Pour the liquid into each mould through a sieve and put back in the fridge.

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SPINACH PUDDING WITH PARMIGIANO SAUCE

Carlotta Conti — Tue, 06 Nov 2018 17:42:05 +0000

This sformato (pudding ) is an extremely simple but elegant way to create a main course which is quite unusual and tasty. In the Italian tradition, there is a rich collection of this kind of dish, made with vegetables and cheeses, or rice and pasta and complemented sauces.

Spinach pudding is an excellent escamotage to make people who do not love vegetables to enjoy them. I have always loved the combination of Spinach sautè in a pan with butter and then enriched by a generous sprinkle of Parmesan. In my family, it was a way to make us respect the prohibition of eating meat on Friday and we cooked eggs with the spinach. Fundamentally, these are the same ingredients, but the presentation is much nicer.

This spinach pudding is ideal for vegetarians or guest who follow a gluten-free diet if you remember to replace the normal flour of the sauce with a gluten-free one.

Ingredients for the puddings

2,5 oz. (80 g.) grated Parmigiano
17 oz. (500 g.) frozen spinach
1 oz. (30 g). pine nuts
4 medium eggs
1 pinch freshly grated nutmeg
Sea salt
Freshly milled black pepper
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 garlic clove
Butter and breadcrumbs for the ramequins

Ingredients for the Parmigiano sauce

1 cup (250 ml) whole milk
3 tablespoons (25 gr.) 00 flour
2 tablespoons (30 g.) butter
1 oz. (30 g.) grated Parmesan

Instructions for the puddings

Cook the raw spinach in a large pot of salted boiling water until just cooked through, about 1 minute. If using frozen spinach, let defrost, or microwave.

Using a slotted spoon, transfer the cooked spinach in small batches to a sieve. Use the sieve to squeeze ALL the water out of the spinach by pushing the spinach against the sieve.

In a frying pan, fry the garlic clove in the oil until the garlic is golden. Discard the garlic and sauté the spinach in the flavored oil.

Place spinach and pine nuts in a food processor and pulse. Add the other ingredients. Make sure the spinach is in tiny pieces and the mixture is thoroughly combined.

Carefully spread the ramequins with butter, line with breadcrumbs, and pour the mix to three quarters fill the ramequins.

Bake in a pre-heated oven at 400F – 200C for 30 minutes.

Instructions for the Parmigiano sauce

In a small pot, melt the butter and add the flour and salt. When your roux is golden add the warm milk (not boiled) and mix with a whisk. Bring to a simmer and thicken for 5-6 minutes, constantly mixing with a whisk. Take the pot off the stove and add gradually the Parmesan, whisking until the cheese is perfectly melted. Your sauce is ready to complement the pudding.

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BUTTERNUT SQUASH GNOCCHI: THE JOY OF AUTUMN

Carlotta Conti — Tue, 30 Oct 2018 14:58:05 +0000

Butternut squash is one of the many joys of the season: rain and cold temperatures are compensated by incredibly rich and comforting foods. It is another gift from the Americas, like potatoes.

Accompanied by a creamy Taleggio cheese sauce, this dish speaks about the valley crossed through the Po river, its fog, its chilly temperatures. In this discomforting weather, nevertheless, the inhabitants created a varied cuisine, sophisticated, that requires some manual skills but is a great source of satisfaction.

One of my personal favorites is this recipe of gnocchi: the great canonic recipe of gnocchi is enriched by the addition of Butternut squash. It is extremely versatile: the 00 flour can be easily replaced by the same quantity of gluten-free flour in order to create a dish which can be tasted by our celiac guests. It is important to underline that the temperature of potatoes and squash is fundamental: just tepid, not too hot, or it would require an excessive quantity of flour, nor too cold, or it would be very hard to knead. Still, for the egg intolerant or vegan tablemates, we can decide not to add the egg. We must be quite skilled, though, since the egg makes pasta easier to knead. (and of course, the Taleggio sauce should be replaced by a vegetables one.

This recipe, like many others, is a starting point for a journey in the pleasures of Autumn.

Prep Time: 5 minutes | Cooking Time: 25 minutes | Total Time: 2 hours | Yield: Makes 6 servings.

Ingredients for gnocchi

2 pounds (800 gr.) Hubbard squash, deseeded and cut in thin slices, then baked
1 pound (400 gr.) russet potatoes , steamed and peeled
1 medium egg
1 cup (130 gr.) pastry/00 flour

Ingredients for Taleggio sauce

7 oz. (200 gr.) Taleggio cheese
¾ cup (200 ml.) milk
1 tablespoon (20 gr.) butter
2 tablespoons (20 gr.) pastry/00 flour
1 pinch freshly grated nutmeg

Preparation of gnocchi

Push the potatoes (while still tepid/warm) through a food mill or potato ricer, onto a lightly floured work surface. In case the potatoes are too humid (moist) bake them for 5 minutes in the oven, before mashing them.

Gather the potatoes into a mound and make a well in the center. Peel the squash. Squeeze it, push it through a potato ricer and add it to the well. Sprinkle ¾ of the flour into the well and add in the egg.

Mix the ingredients by hand until a soft dough forms. If necessary, add more flour, a little at a time, until the dough has a smooth, evenly moistened consistency.

Lightly flour your work surface and divide the dough into at least eight portions. Roll the portions into 1-inch-thick ropes and cut the ropes into 1-inch pieces. Roll the gnocchi over a fork to shape them, if desired.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the gnocchi and stir a few times with a wooden spoon to submerge and separate them. Cook at a gentle boil until the gnocchi is tender and just beginning to float about 2 to 3 minutes.

Preparation of Taleggio sauce

Make a béchamel melting the butter over low heat, combining the flour and salt and whisking with a fork as you add to prevent lumps. Add the milk a little at a time, whisking as you pour.

Raise the heat to medium-high, and bring to a boil. Simmer for about 5 minutes to thicken, whisking to prevent and break up any lumps (eventually, use an immersion blender). Add the Taleggio, whisk for about 5 minutes to break up any lumps and join the gnocchi. Grate a pinch of nutmeg on the dish.

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GURGUGLIONE OF ELBA ISLAND, THE TUSCAN STEW OF VEGETABLES.

Andrea — Thu, 09 Aug 2018 15:07:42 +0000

Gurguglione is a typical stew of summer vegetables eaten by the miners of Elba Island.
It was mentioned when I visited the Ginevro gallery, that is a magnetite mine near Capoliveri, now closed because of the competition by developing countries. This stew was a typical dish of the miners of Elba Island, which has always been known for the richness of its mines since the Etruscans began to inhabit it.
A shiver ran down my spine as I entered the mine and I thought of those poor miners who had to venture into the bowels of the earth, with insufficient light and air, and work for 12 hours to excavate by a 35-kilos jackhammer the holes for dynamite. And then, after the explosion, loading the mining trolleys for hours.
In spite of being highly specialized workers, their payroll was so low that they had to keep a veggie garden in order to make ends meet and have enough food for the family. At the time vegetarianism was not an option, and the most of the European population suffered from a chronic deprivation of animal proteins. In the past, it was an entrée, while now it is served as an excellent side dish.
It is composed of the typical summer vegetables, zucchini, peppers, eggplant, tomatoes and onions, and it is a kind of stew that we can find in all Italian regions, with local variations. Some add olives, capers, celery. My mum makes a fricò frying each vegetable separately, due to the difference in cooking time of the various vegetables and then joins them in a tomato sauce rich in garlic and basil.
When these dishes so rich in fats were created, the most of people had such heavy jobs that the abundance of olive oil was not an issue. Yet, it is possible to reduce the quantity of oil if we use a good non-sticking skillet; when the dish was created the most common kind of pan was an iron one.

Prep Time: 20 minutes | Cooking Time: 2 hours | Total Time: 2 hours + 20 minutes | Yield: Makes 4 servings.

Ingredients

2 pounds green peppers, grossly chopped
3 big eggplants, grossly chopped
4 zucchini, grossly chopped
1 big white or yellow onion, grossly chopped
1,5 pounds tomatoes, grossly chopped
1 tbsp fresh parsley, finely minced
1 tbsp fresh basil, finely minced
½ cup olive oil if you use an iron pan ( ¼ cup for the non-stick one)
sea salt

Intructions

Put all the ingredients in a non-stick heavy skillet over medium-high and sauté for 10 minutes.

Cover with a lid, then reduce heat to moderately low.

Season with salt and cover it with the lid, so vegetables will cook in their own liquid, and make it simmer for at least a couple of hours until it is cooked

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EGGPLANT BALLS, THE PERFECT FINGER FOOD.

Andrea — Mon, 16 Jul 2018 16:17:04 +0000

These eggplant balls are perfect for finger food at your next summer party, or as an entrée for any summer meal. Eggplants are at their peak right now, being the sweetest and most delicious they can be during the year.
This is the simplified and lighter version of a recipe I had in Calabria, earlier this year. The ones I enjoyed in my Southern holiday were bigger – the food size is always bigger in Southern Italy – and had a heart of Caciocavallo cheese that melted in my mouth, burning my taste buds.
Eggplant is another incredible ingredient that demonstrates, once again, that Italian cuisine has always been welcoming ingredients and cultural influences all over the world.
Cultivated in Southern and Eastern Asia since prehistory, it reached the countries of the Mediterranean thanks to the Arabs. This is indicated by the numerous Arabic and North African names for it, along with the lack of the ancient Greek and Roman names.
While the cultivation of this solanaceous plant took root in Southern Mediterranean in the Middle Ages, it was only introduced in Central and Northern Italy after the unification of Italy in the second half of 19th century.
Pellegrino Artusi, the author of the first book of Italian cuisine of a unified Italy in 1891, The Science in the Kitchen and the Art of Eating Well, is the first to exalt this versatile vegetable.
“Forty years ago,” he writes in his recipe 399, “one hardly saw eggplant or fennel in the markets of Florence; they were considered to be vile because they were foods eaten by Jews. As in other matters of greater moment, here again the Jews show how they have always had a better nose than the Christians.”

Prep Time: 15 minutes | Cooking Time: 45 minutes | Total Time: 60 minutes | Yield: Makes 4 servings.

Ingredients

2 medium globe eggplant (about 1 pound – 800 gr.) (peeled and cubed ½ inch thick)
2 medium eggs
½ + ¼ cups breadcrumbs (100 gr.)
1 cup grated Pecorino or Grana cheese (100 gr.)
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
2 tbsp fresh flat parsley, finely chopped
marine salt and black pepper to season
1 + ½ cups sunflower oil (300 ml.)

Instructions

Boil the eggplant cubes in salted water from 10 to 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Check with a fork when they are soft. Drain the cubes and set aside to cool.

Squeeze all liquid from eggplant through the strainer and transfer the eggplant to a food processor. Add parsley, eggs, cheese, garlic, season with pepper, and pulse.

Scrape down sides of bowl, and blend again until smooth. Test to check if salt is needed, if so, add it and pulse again.

Grease your hands with oil, take a tablespoon of the mixture and form a ball using your hands.

Heat the oil in a deep frying pan over medium heat and fry the balls. You can also spread a bit of olive oil on parchment and bake them instead of frying.

Move to a serving dish and serve.

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CARMELA’S STUFFED EGGPLANT

Andrea — Sun, 04 Jun 2017 21:10:01 +0000

This recipe of stuffed eggplant was generously given me by Carmela, a very sweet woman from Puglia.

In Calabria they boil the eggplant whole and then scoop out the flesh. Of course there are many variations: stuffed with stockfish, with or without tomato, with meat…And of course each family claims its own version is the best one, and if I were you I would agree with them – just saying…

I love this one because it is vegetarian and really enhances the sweetness of ripe eggplant: capers and the herbs are totally Mediterranean.

We cannot help again to thank the Arabs who imported eggplant and gave us all these wonderful recipes that enrich the cuisine of the Mediterranean, from Lebanon to Spain.

It is a very rich dish, my advice is avoiding it for dinner, digestion is very demanding. Accompanied by a green salad, it is a perfect main course.

Carmela’s stuffed eggplant

These stuffed eggplant are a symbol of Southern Italy and summer, the season in which eggplants are ripe and sweet.

For tomato sauce
1 (28-oz) can whole tomato purée ((preferably Italian))
2 tbsp olive oil (extra virgin)
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 small onion finely chopped
1 cup water
6 basil leaves
sea salt for seasoning
1 pinch chili

• In case you do not find an Italian purée you might need to add 2 tablespoons tomato paste, 1 teaspoon sugar to add taste.

For eggplant and stuffing
8 round eggplants
1 oz. finely grated Parmesan
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 tbsp chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1 tbsp chopped fresh basil
2 cups vegetable oil
1 tbsp salted capers carefully washed
3 slices firm white bread Ciabatta style, torn into 1-inch piece (about 3 oz.)

Make sauce:
In a saucepan brown softly garlic and onion in olive oil, add the tomato purée, basil, a pinch of chili and season with salt. Add water, you need a sauce not too concentrated. Make it simmer for at least 20-25 minutes, until the tomato sauce turns sweet.
Fry eggplants and make filling while sauce simmers:
Cut the stem of the eggplants, halve them lengthwise. With a small sharp knife or a spoon, scoop out and reserve flesh, leaving 1/4-inch-thick shells. Chop flesh and transfer to a bowl.
Fry the eggplants, turning over once using 2 slotted spoons, until pale brown, 3 to 5 minutes total, then transfer, stuffing sides down, to paper towels to drain.
Fry the flesh in the remaining oil in the skillet, if needed add more olive oil. Strain it, squeezing the oil out of the flesh with a spoon against the strainer.
When the flesh is cold, pour it in an electric mixer with chopped bread, capers, basil, celery tops, garlic, parsley, eggs and a tablespoon of tomato sauce.
Spread some olive oil and 2 tablespoons of tomato sauce in a backing pan.
Firmly pack the eggplant stuffing into each eggplant shell and lay them in the backing pan, stuffing sides up.
With a spoon, spread the tomato sauce on the eggplants.
Sprinkle generously the Parmesan on the eggplants, and bake, until Parmesan is light brown, about 40 minutes at 350 F.

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