My neighbour's courgettes...

My neighbour Maria is from Sicily and she often rings the bell with some delicious Sicilian Food to try.
These are grilled courgette (directly from her little veggie garden) with olive oil, white vinegar, garlic, salt and wild mint leaves.... the more you leave them marinating the better it is.

Happy summer to all of you, I'm leaving for the seaside right now, then I'm coming back in Septemper ready to give birth at home!!! :) The baby's due on sept. 3rd... wish me good luck ...

Brown Gnocchetti with Cherry Tomatoes and Tofu Cream

This is another quick recipe and wants to look and taste like the italian ricotta and pomodorini pasta. Once it's on your plate you won't tell the difference.
Ingredients:
wholemeal small pasta, I used orecchiette or gnocchetti
cherry tomatoes
Olive oil
Basil
For the white ricotta sauce I used a herby spreadable tofu but you can make your own if you wish.
Process the tofu with herbs, water, oil and a few capers if you like them.
Add more salt or capers according to taste.
This is so much like a typical southern italian dish.... enjoy!

Spaghetti with Sunflower Seeds

Super quick recipe to improve my calcium intake during pregnancy, and quite tasty too.
- Toast the seeds until slightly brown, set aside for a few minutes.
- Process the seeds with soy sauce, water and a little olive oil if you like. Taste it. It should look like a liquid creamy sauce, but not too liquid. It should not be thick otherwise it won't combine with the spaghetti. In that case add more water.
Always serve with bright coloured vegetables... enjoy :)
THIS IS MUCH NICER IF YOU ADD SOME FRESH CHOPPED ROSEMARY AND A TABLESPOON OF TOASTED SESAME SEEDS BEFORE GRINDING.

Raw cabbage with Gomasio and seaweed

I must admit the name of this recipe is not very tempting but I can assure it is a crowd pleaser :)
It's fresh, crunchy and very tasty, not to mention the magic effects that cabbage and sesame and seaweed have in our bodies :)
Shred the cabbage as thin as possible (not as I did today) and dress with the following:
Soy Sauce
Olive Oil
Gomasio (toasted and roughly minced sesame seeds)
Toasted seaweed, crumbled with your hands
This dressing is also good in green crunchy salads and plain pasta... enjoy :)

Marinated Italian Tofu

hi! I'm back again - finally. I called this Italian because it has the common combination of garlic, rosemary and olive oil. And it's simple as most of italian food is.
Method:
Slice the Tofu and place on a wide serving plate for one hour with all these ingredients:
Enough Soy Sauce to cover the slices evenly (not exactly italian but, nevermind)
Extra-virgin olive oil
Finely chopped fresh garlic.
Finely chopped fresh or dried rosemary.
Wait half an hour add more soy sauce if necessary, turn and reapeat on the other side.

Cook in a frying pan with a little more oil (if necessary) until golden brown and nice and crispy.
Simple but very tasty :) try it!

holidays

hi again, sorry for neglecting my blog, I found out I am expecting another baby and haven't been too well at all.
We will be away for a few weeks and all Tippitappi's orders will be processed by my sister Jessica, I think she'll manage ok.
Sorry if I can't answer all emails, I will get back to you as soon as I get home.
ciao and much love to everyone who reads my blog :)

eco-friendly fashion

A nice article on eco-friendly Tippitappi was published on "D di Repubblica" about a month ago.
I'm so flattered, and hopefully there's more to come! :)