02/26/08 Capri Chocolate Cake from CookiesFromItaly.com |
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"Chi parla in faccia non č traditore." (He who speaks to your face is not a traitor.) Welcome to another recipe edition from Adriana's Italian Bakery!
This week's Italian recipes:
-Focaccia con Olive e Rosmarino
-Pesce all'Acqua Pazza
-Torta di Cioccolato di Capri
Enjoy the recipes and the complimentary news article report from "Only In Italy.com".
Arrivederci!
Yours Truly,
Adriana Ciccarello
Cookie of the Week: Almonds and Amarena Cookies |
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Recipe: Focaccia con Olive e Rosmarino |
Focaccia con Olive e Rosmarino
Focaccia With Olives and Rosemary
Ingredients:
2 cups warm water (105° F; to 115° F;)
2 teaspoons dry yeast
4 and 1/2 cups (about) all purpose flour
2 teaspoons salt
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
24 black or green brine-cured olives (such as Kalamata or Greek), pitted, halved
1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary or 1 1/2 teaspoons dried
Directions:
Place 2 cups warm water in large bowl. Sprinkle dry yeast over; stir with fork. Let stand until yeast dissolves, about 10 minutes.
Add 4 and 1/4 cups flour and salt to yeast mixture and stir to blend well (dough will be sticky).
Knead dough on floured surface until smooth and elastic, adding more flour by tablespoonfuls if dough is sticky, about 10 minutes.
Form dough into ball.
Oil large bowl; add dough, turning to coat. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in warm area until doubled, about 1 and 1/2 hours.
Punch down dough; knead into ball and return to same bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in warm area until doubled, about 45 minutes or less.
Coat 15 x 10-inch baking sheet with 1 tablespoon olive oil.
Punch down dough. Transfer to prepared sheet. Using fingertips, press out dough to 13 x 10-inch rectangle. Let dough rest 10 minutes.
Drizzle 2 tablespoons olive oil over dough. Sprinkle olives and chopped rosemary evenly over. Let dough rise uncovered in warm area until puffy, about 25 minutes.
Preheat oven to 475° F.
Press fingertips all over dough, forming indentations.
Bake bread until brown and crusty, about 20 minutes. Serve bread warm or at room temperature. Serves 8.
That's it!
Recipe: Pesce all'Acqua Pazza |
Pesce all'Acqua Pazza
Fish in "Acqua Pazza"
Ingredients:
Four 5-ounce red snapper fillets
1/3 cup water
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
2 cups chopped tomatoes
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 and 1/2 teaspoons drained capers
Fresh Italian parsley, chopped
Directions:
Arrange snapper fillets in single layer in large nonstick skillet.
Add 1/3 cup water. Sprinkle with 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper.
Top with tomatoes. Drizzle olive oil over.
Sprinkle with capers. Season with remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Bring to boil.
Reduce heat to medium-low, cover and simmer until fish is just cooked through, about 15 minutes.
Transfer fish to platter. Boil sauce in skillet until thickened, about 10 minutes. Spoon sauce over fish and sprinkle with parsley. Serves 4.
That's it!
Recipe: Torta di Cioccolato di Capri |
Torta di Cioccolato di Capri
Capri Chocolate Cake
Ingredients:
1 and 1/2 cups walnuts (about 7 ounces)
1/3 cup all purpose flour
8 ounces bittersweet (not unsweetened) or semisweet chocolate, chopped
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
14 tablespoons sugar
7 large eggs, separated, room temperature
Powdered sugar
Directions:
Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 350° F.
Butter 9-inch-diameter springform pan with 3-inch-high sides. Line bottom with waxed paper round.
Finely grind walnuts with flour in processor; set aside.
Stir chocolate in top of double boiler over simmering water until melted and smooth. Remove chocolate from over water. Cool chocolate slightly.
Using electric mixer, beat butter and 7 tablespoons sugar in large bowl until light and fluffy. Beat in melted chocolate.
Add yolks 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Continue beating until smooth and light, about 3 minutes.
Mix in ground walnut mixture.
Using electric mixer fitted with clean dry beaters, beat whites in another large bowl until beginning to form soft peaks.
Gradually add remaining 7 tablespoons sugar and beat to soft peaks.
Stir 1/4 of whites into batter to lighten. Fold in remaining whites.
Pour batter into prepared pan; smooth top. Bake until tester inserted into center comes out with some moist crumbs attached, about 40 minutes.
Cool cake in pan on rack 10 minutes. Run sharp knife around pan sides to loosen cake. Release pan sides and cool cake completely (cake may fall as it cools). (Can be prepared 2 days ahead. Cover and let stand at room temperature.)
Transfer cake to platter. Sift powdered sugar over cake. Cut into wedges and serve. Serves 10.
That's it!
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Only In Italy! |
"Only In Italy" is a daily news column that translates & 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:
Italian Women Willing To Pop the Question
Rome - February 28 - One in three Italian women are prepared to get down on one knee and pop the question if a marriage proposal from their partners is not forthcoming, a new Internet survey revealed on Thursday.
Online community Badoo.com sampled the opinions of 1,500 Italian women for the survey. Around 44% of singles said they planned to get married at some point, with 33% insisting they would be prepared to do the asking themselves emulating Hollywood stars such as Renee Zellweger and Halle Berry.
Of those not afraid to take the initiative, 29% said they would like to propose by posting a video on the Internet so that friends could watch and comment on their performance. A further 16% would prefer to propose on live television, while 10% would opt for a large advertising billboard on the streets.
Some 22% said they would ask for an "I do" on a special occasion, such as Valentine's Day or a birthday, while 16% said they would make their move in more private surroundings like the top of a mountain.
"Hey cornuto! Mi sposi o no?!"
The compelling reason why these unfortunate Italian women are forced to propose is because most Italian men take advantage of long-term relationships to avoid matrimonial responsibility.
The motto: "Nobody buys the cow when they can milk it for free." The cow is understandably disappointed to be abandoned by a man who paces himself like a slug with whom she has been "engaged" for six, seven or nineteen years.
The 20th century introduced the comical use of the "fedina" (from the term "fede di matrimonio" for a wedding band). This is a ring similar to a wedding band but thinner and less expensive that young, clueless unmarried lovers exchange to indicate an "engagement." In reality, these are not formal engagements but just extended romances.
Engagements in Italy today which often span five to ten years result from irritating customs and circumstances. Nowadays, when non-marital sex is commonplace, it gives more assurance to a couple's relationship to say that they are "engaged," even if they are not.
It should be painfully remembered that most Italians live with their parents until marriage, unless there's a compelling reason (such as a job in a distant city) for moving out. The parents of the so-called happy couple exchange flowers and get to know each other. It is quite possible that they already know each other on a phony and superficial level. Usually, but not always, a date is set for the wedding, though in some cases this is two or three years away.
"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!
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