Energy for life : January 2015

2015/01/31

2015/01/30

Sicilian limoncello

“Limoncello” is usually served ice-cold after dinner.

Here is its recipe!

Ingredients:
-1 Liter of 90 proof alcohol (90 proof means the alcohol content is 45%, by volume)
-2 Liters of water
-900 Grams of sugar (4 1\2 cups)
-Peels of 6 lemons

1.Scrub and dry lemons.

2. Use a very sharp peeler to remove the peel from the lemons. Avoid the white pith – it will make the limoncello bitter.
3. Put the little peels in a wide mouth jar and pour over the alcohol. Close and leave to infuse in a cool, dark place for at least two weeks, shaking from time to time.
4. In a heavy bottom saucepan , mix the water and sugar. Slowly bring to a boil, for about 5 minutes, stirring constantly while boiling until it turns clear. Let cool. In the meantime, filter out the lemon peels from the alcohol.
5.Add the simple sugar syrup to the alcohol and mix well.
6.Close with a lid and leave in a dark place for two weeks.

7.Filter the Limoncello once more, and it is now ready to be served!

Old pictures

SOURCE: Laboratorio della Memoria-Montevago

https://www.facebook.com/groups/laboratoriodellamemoriamontevago2012/?fref=ts

2015/01/28

Scouting

2015/01/27

Sicilian sweets

by Clarissa Maurizio

The Danube Delta

2015/01/26

Poems (joint activity)

SICILIAN FLORA

2015/01/22

TYPICAL FISH IN SICILY

The fish market in Trapani ( Pescheria ), is a meeting-place where you can buy all kinds of fish and sea-food.

Here are the most common fish.

Swordfish is greatly appreciated by local people and tourists.

Good sword needs nothing but a simple olive oil-based marinade. After that, you can put it on the grill for a time and serve it with lemon, salt and herbs. You should taste it. It is delicious! .

Apart from sword, you can also buy shrimps, prawns, sardines , etc…

Here is a way how to cook delicious prawns….

Spicy Sicilian prawns:

Put your prawns in a large bowl together with rosemary, garlic, orange zest, peppers and oil. Let them marinate for at least 2 hours or over night.
You have to preheat your oven to 450 F/ 230 C degrees. After that, put your prawns on a baking pan evenly, sprinkle with salt. Bake prawns until pink, about 8 minutes. Squeeze the orange juice all over the hot prawns and serve immediately!

You can’t miss mussels. They are very tasty!

Here is a simple recipe: Sicilian mussels with citrus tomatoes & chili.

Scrub your mussels clean and remove the beards.

Throw the tinned tomatoes into a food processor and process until pureed. Juice your lemon. Finely chop the chilli and put all of them aside.

Heat oil in a large heavy pot.

Finely chop your onion, garlic, and rosemary.

Throw the onion into the pot and let them cook for a few minutes until they are soft.

Add the garlic and cook for a further minute.

Add the mussels, rosemary, honey, vinegar, and white wine.

Cover and cook . When the mussels open remove them from the pot and put them aside.

Add the 3/4 cup of white wine, the pureed tomatoes, orange juice, lemon juice, and chilli to the pot. Cover and boil for five minutes.

Put the mussels into the pot once again, season with the freshly ground pepper and cover simmering for another minute. Serve the mussels in deep bowls with the sauce poured over the top and lashings of fresh coriander.

The province of Trapani is full of old buildings,called “tonnare” (tuna factories) .Nowadays they are abandoned. On the contrary, in the past fishermen, after spending few days on the hunt, they went back home ready to prepare tunas. Trapanians like to call tuna “the sea pig”. Why? Because nothing of it is wasted !

As a matter of fact, you can eat the tuna fin, the tuna head , the tuna heart and the liver, etc…..

Waterland: Let’s look for it! (joint activity)

2015/01/20

I like pumpkin pie!

For the Romanian recipe, you grate the squash rather than puree it. Also, instead of the actual pumpkin, Romanians use butternut squash. It is sweeter and better suited for the pie. You can also make it with apples if you don't like pumpkin or if you want a different fruit. Enjoy! Ingredients: -2 butternut squashes, peeled, seeded and grated (use the large grating side) or 3 lbs apples, cored (peel on) and grated -1 Tbs cinnamon -1 cup sugar -2 tsp vanilla -1 cup vegetable oil -1 cup warm water -4 + cups flour -1 tsp salt -1/2 cup crushed pecans (optional) -powder sugar Directions: Mix grated squash (apples) with cinnamon, sugar and vanilla. Set aside. Preheat oven at 350 F. Prepare the pastry by mixing oil, warm water, salt and flour (a little at a time) until you get a nice soft but not sticky dough. Spray cookie sheet with the baking PAM (the one that has flour in it). On a lightly floured surface spread the dough until nice and thin, but be careful not to break it. Gently place the dough on the prepared cookie sheet. Spread the squash mixture on top of dough. Sprinkle with crushed pecans, if desired. Gently roll the dough like a burrito. Poke it with a fork all over the top (this will help it cook evenly without the dough busting open). Brush a little oil on top. Bake for 30 minutes or until golden brown. Cool it a bit, dust it with some powder sugar and enjoy!
by Andreea

2015/01/19

THE TYPICAL ITALIAN BREAKFAST

The typical Italian breakfast usually consists of a hot drink, just like “cappuccino” or caffè, accompanied by something sweet to eat- cake, cookies, pastries, brioche, croissants, or toast and jam.

SICILIAN ORANGE MARMALADE

-Ingredients:

1 kg of oranges

1,300 of sugar

1 l of water

1 lemon

Wash and cut the ends of the oranges. First cut your oranges into quarters and then into thin strips. Put these strips in a liter of water and make them stand in water for 12 hours. After that, put the oranges with all the water and the juice of one lemon in a pot and turn on the stove. Cooking takes about two hours and can be divided into three phases. In the first phase, you have to cook the oranges until the water boils. Boiling should last 30 minutes. In the second phase, you need to add sugar and start to stir to melt completely. With the sugar the first boiling ends. In the third phase, boil again everything and cook for about 1 hour until it has a consistency similar to that of honey. When you finish cooking, put the jam in jars, then cork and invert these jars to create the vacuum. After you have done all this, your jam is ready to be enjoyed. PS: During cooking, stir several times.