by Mr. Antonio Carluccio
Summer time is here again. For those not getting away from the oppressive heat that Kuwait can radiate in these months, staying inside is an absolute must. Hiding from the heat though can deprive us of restaurant visits and great food. That doesn’t mean you have to reach for the pizza takeout menu again though…
Bazaar has a better idea. Pulling in help from Carluccio’s we’ve put together a spread of divine recipes to help fill those long summer days. Located at The Avenues, Carluccio’s serves up affordable Italian cuisine in the form of breakfast, lunch or dinner. You can also stop by to fill up the home pantry from their delicious selection of fresh food such as cheese, olives and baked goods with an outstanding range of products imported from Italy. So brave the heat to head down and pick up the ingredients and then retreat to your A/C cooled home and get cracking on these delicious dishes. Some of them are a little advanced so if you’re a novice chef, don’t worry, you have all summer to perfect these recipes. Maybe you’ll be serving them up as part of your feats this Ramadan…
MOZZARELLA ARANCINI
WITH PEPOLATA SAUCE
ARANCINI RICE
350 gm Carnaroli rice
135 gm grated parmesan
35 ml olive oil
125 gm finely chopped white onion
4 sprigs of parsley
4 gm salt
4 sprigs of thyme
2 bay leaves
PEPOLATA SAUCE
100ml vegetable stock
1 peeled garlic glove
3gm ground black pepper
30ml olive oil
50gm white onion
100gm red bell pepper
100gm yellow bell pepper
5gm salt
ARANCINI
80gm bread crumbs
2 whole eggs – for egg wash
50ml whole milk
60gm ‘00’ flour
500ml vegetable oil
100gm buffalo mozzarella
Handful of basil leaves
All previously made arancini rice
All previously made pepolata sauce
Sprig of parsley for garnish
To prepare the arancini rice: Bundle the parsley, thyme and bay leaves with string. Gently sweat the chopped onions with the bundle in olive oil. Stir in the Carnaroli rice making sure all the grains are coated with oil. Season. Add water to the pan of rice and onions and bring to the boil. Transfer the pan to the oven and cook for 8 – 12 minutes, or until the water has been absorbed. Leave the rice to cool and once cool thoroughly mix in the grated parmesan. To prepare the pepolata sauce: Half the peppers and remove the seeds. Roughly chop the peppers and roughly dice the onion and garlic. In a large pot heat the olive oil, and add the onions and the garlic, lightly brown, then add the peppers. Once the peppers have browned add the vegetable stock and simmer until the peppers are tender. Blend the pepper mix and liquid until you have a smooth paste & season to taste. To prepare the arancini: Take 60gm of the arancini rice and roll it into a ball. Create a hole in the rice ball and stuff it with a small piece of mozzarella and a small piece of fresh basil and reshape. Roll the ball in the flour, then in the egg and milk mix and finally roll in the breadcrumbs. Heat the vegetable oil in a pan and deep fry the arancini ball until golden brown. Serve with a side portion of the pepolata sauce and garnish with a sprig of parsley.
BRUSCHETTA CON INSALATA
DI POMODORO
Serves 4
Ingredients:
4 slices of white crusty bread
500g vine tomatoes
120g roasted yellow peppers
65ml extra virgin olive oil
12g fresh basil, roughly chopped
12g garlic, finely chopped
4 spring onions, finely chopped
1g dried oregano
Pinch of salt
Pinch of pepper
Method:
Chop the tomatoes & the roasted peppers into 1cm cubes & place in a bowl. Add the finely chopped spring onion, garlic, oregano & basil to the tomatoes & peppers. Pour in the extra virgin olive oil & give everything a good mix. Add the salt & pepper to taste. Drizzle the slices of bread with olive oil and grill or toast until crisp. Heap the tomato mix on top and serve.
PENNE GIARDINIERA
Serves 4
Ingredients
24pcs Spinach balls
80gr Butter
20gr Red chilies
600gr Courgettes
20gr Garlic peeled
240gr Grano padano
500gr Penne regine
Method
Put a pot of water with salt for boiling. Cook the penne regine in boiling water till its al dente (takes about 10min). Grate the courgettes. Finely dice the chilies and the garlic. Heat the butter in a pan. Add chilies and garlic. Sauté. Add the grated courgettes and fry for about a minute. Add the cooked pasta to the pan and toss. Add some grated parmesan cheese. Season to taste.
Serve in a pasta bowl with 6 spinach balls on top.
CHOCOLATE FONDANTE
Serves 4
Ingredients
135gr Chocolate Dark Couverture
135gr Butter unsalted
135gr Whole eggs
70gr Castor sugar
55gr Egg yolk
30gr Flour
4 ea Aluminium silver cups
240 gr Vanilla ice cream –
4 pcs Mint leaves for garnish
Method
Brush the silver cups with softened unsalted butter and keep aside. In a bowl, combine the chopped dark chocolate and softened butter and put it over a bain marie until melted.
Meanwhile in a separate bowl, mix together whole eggs, egg yolks and castor sugar until fluffy. Do not over whisk. Pour the melted chocolate and butter mix over the eggs and whisk until incorporated. Sift the flour and fold it in the fondente mix. Pour the mix in the buttered cups until 3/4th of its quantity. Bake it in a pre-heated oven for 8 minutes at 180⁰C. Place the warm fondente upside down in a small bowl. Place a scoop of vanilla ice cream next to the fondente. Garnish it with mint leaves on the vanilla ice cream.
TIRAMISU
Ingredients
200g Mascarpone Cheese
200 ml Double Cream
124 grams Egg Yolk
70 grams Castor Sugar
3 grams Gelatin Leaves
160 grams Saviordi Biscuits
200 ml Espresso Coffee
Method
Whisk together mascarpone cheese and double cream in an electric mixer until slightly stiff. Set aside.
In another bowl, put the egg yolk and whisk slowly. Put the sugar with small amount of water in a pan and boil until it reaches 121 degrees. Put gelatin in ice water until soft. Squeeze the excess water and melt it into syrup. Add all to the egg yolk, put the mixer speed on high.
Put the egg yolk in a bowl and gently fold in the mascarpone and the cream mix using a spatula. Keep in the fridge to set. Heat up the coffee and add a little bit of water. In a bowl, soak the Saviordi biscuit in coffee and line the glass until full. Put laddles of mascarpone and cream mix on top and spread it even.
Line one more layer on top of the mix. Do not press the biscuits. Finish off the last layer with the mascarpone mix. Make sure its even spread and the mixture reaches the top off the glass.
Presentation:
Serve cold with dusted cocoa powder on top or melted chocolate.
