Macaroni Schotel - Macaroni Dutch style

This is a typically Dutch hybrid dish; and as with many Dutch classics, it combines the basic structure of international dishes with traditional Dutch ingredients. The Dutch are very adept at taking international favourites and giving them a quintessential Hollands twist. Often the flavours are mellowed for the blander Dutch palate, and it can sometimes be the case that little of the taste of the original dish is noticeable in the finished result. But sometimes, as with this macaroni dish, the combination of ingredients work so well together and bring something totally different. And this particular dish is a veritable meat feast, or more specifically a pork feast! It should come as no surprise that the Netherlands is one of the top pork exporters in Europe, (rivalled only by Germany), and that over half of all meat consumed in the Netherlands is pork. Its safe to say that Dutch people love eating pork!

Ingredients

500g half and half mince (50% pork, 50% beef)

200g smoked speck or lardons

1 red onion

2 cloves of garlic

1 packet of soup vegetables (finely sliced leek, carrot, shredded cabbage and celery leaves)

1 Tb tomato puree
1 tsp paprika powder
1 tsp thyme
1 tsp oregano
1 tsp black pepper
1 tsp turmeric
1 400g tin chopped tomatoes
500g macaroni
1 pork smoked sausage*
1 tin of pork hotdogs
a sprig of fresh parsley for garnish

* smoked sausage or rookworst is a favourite of many Dutch dishes, from stamppot and hutspot to brown bean soup and erwtensoep. It comes pre-cooked and vacuum packed.

Italian Three Bean Pasta Salad

This is a ridiculously easy and delicious salad that can be eaten as a side dish, starter or even as a main course. It should be served cold and is therefore perfect for picnics. The combination of lovely fresh ingredients and bright colours is a feast for the eye as well as the stomach. This salad is suitable for vegetarians.

You can use any beans that you want to make this salad. Whichever beans are easy to come by. Beans are part of the legumes family, and are a great source of fibre. They also help to reduce cholestorol and blood sugar levels, so all in all they are a pretty great food!!!

A Traditional Italian Meal Structure

Picture the scene:

A beautiful Tuscan landscape, a long wooden table laden with huge jugs of red wine, smaller jugs of olive oil and dishes of freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano is surrounded by several generations of one Italian family, all laughing and talking and eating together! It sounds a bit of a cliché I know, but the traditional Italian meal is not so far from this slightly idealistic picture. Traditional formal Italian meals, usually reserved for Sundays and special occasions these days, are long and elaborate affairs, with several courses and lots of wine and good conversation. Meals can often last for several hours! Contrast this to the UK style of "eat and run"; it is often difficult enough to try to get everybody to sit together at the same time to eat, let alone at a dinner table. The TV and sofa have replaced the dinner table and quality family time. OK, maybe that is also a bit of a cliché;  the truth is probably somewhere in the middle, but it remains the case that a family meal lasting several hours in the UK would be a rare thing indeed!

The first experience I had with a traditional Italian meal structure with multiple courses was on a family holiday back when I was 16 or 17. We were in Verona and decided to eat at this road side restaurant that seemed to be full of only locals, with us being the only tourists! My Dad ordered the set meal for all of us, including my 2 sisters who were I think 5 and 8 at the time. We were first given a large plate of salad brimming with fresh vegetables. When we had finished that we had plenty of time before the next course, and there was quite a bit of strong red wine being drunk!

The next course was a large plate of pasta with a tomato sauce. By this time I had drunk maybe a bit too much wine, due to the long pauses between the first and second courses, so I was having trouble finishing this plate off! My sisters did not even get half way through their pasta before they were full and feeling tired! I was dozing off myself waiting for what I presumed would be the dessert. After what seemed like hours (probably due to the wine!) the waitress brought our next course... a huge portion of steak with vegetables on a side dish, and more salad!!! By this time we could hardly even move we were so full, and I don't think any of us ate much more than a mouthful of the steak. The locals must have been looking at us as if we were crazy! Why had these pesky tourists ordered the set meal if they were going to leave half way through!!!

Anyway, safe to say, the traditional Italian meal is a leisurely affair, with course after course being served over the space of several hours. The conversation and interaction are as important as the edible ingredients, and make the whole affair a bringing together of several generations of families for quality time spent together.

If you ever have the privilege of partaking in a traditional Italian family meal, make sure you bring your appetite, remember to pace yourself, and above all, enjoy yourself and the company!

 The formal Italian meal structure

Aperitivo

This is a drink served before the meal to act as an appetiser for the coming meal. Usually an alcoholic drink will be served such as Vermouth, Martini, Campari, dry sherry or a dry white wine. 

Antipasto

Literally meaning "before the courses", this is generally dishes of cold starters, cured meats, salads, and breads. Occasionally hot starters such as Fritto Misto (fried mixed seafood) may be served. Examples of antipasti are bruschetta, Tonno e Fagioli, prosciutto ham with melon and Insalata Caprese.

Primo

This is the "first" course (not counting the other 2!) and is usually a hot dish of pasta, risotto (especially Northern Italy) or soup. The majority of primos are served without meat, but a tomato-based meat sauce may also be served over pasta. Some examples of primos are Risotto con Funghi, Minestrone soup, Penne all'Arrabbiata and Lasagne al Forno.

Intermezzo

When a meal is comprised of several hot courses, sometimes an intermezzo or palate cleanser will be served between the Primo and Secondo (first and second hot courses) to cleanse the palate, ready for the next dish. This will often take the form of a sorbet or granita, and may or may not be alcoholic. Lemon and apple sorbet are popular examples, often spiked with Prosecco or Limocello (Italian liqueur).

Secondo

This is the main dish of the meal and will usually comprise meat, poultry or fish. This will sometimes be served in a large platter with everyone able to help themselves to the portion size they wish. Examples of a secondo are Pollo alla Cacciatore (Hunter's Chicken), Osso Buco (Braised Veal Shanks) or Cotoletta alla Milanese (similar to Wiener Schnitzel).

Contorno

This is a side dish served together with the Secondo or directly after. It is usually comprised of local seasonal vegetables, either raw or cooked, or a green salad. The contorno is always served as a side dish to the meat course, never on the same plate.

Formaggio e Fruta

This is the first of the dessert courses (!), and comprises cheese and fruit. Both the fresh fruit and the cheese will be traditionally local produce of the region.

Dolce

This is the sweet dessert course, and examples would be Tiramisu, Zuppa Inglese (literally translated as English Soup, but is really a type of trifle), Gelato (ice-cream) or Cannoli (Sicilian pastries).

Caffè

No Italian meal would be complete without coffee served after the meal. This will nearly always be in the form of espresso, served strong and hot, and drunken quickly. Cappuccinos and other milk based coffees are generally served at breakfast time with a brioche or croissant, and would be frowned upon at the end of a meal as being too filling (!)

Digestivo

This is the concluding act of the meal, and is in the form of an alcoholic drink such as Grappa, Limoncello or Amaro. While the role of the aperitivo is to stimulate the appetite, the digestivo is drunk to aid the digestion. Whereas the aperitivo will be dry, the digestivo will usually be sweet or bitter.

Italian meals may contain only a few of these courses, or all of them. Needless to say there will be wine served all the way through the meal!

Buon Appetito! Enjoy! 

Penne all'Arrabbiata (Pasta tubes with spicy tomato sauce)

This is a simple and delicious pasta dish, requiring very few ingredients and taking little time to make. It is perfect as a "Primo" in a traditional Italian meal; this is the first course before the main Meat course or "Secondo", and is usually pasta, risotto or soup. It is great for vegetarians, or if you want to add some spek blocks or bacon, can be made into a main course.

Arrabbiata means "angry" in Italian, and the dish gets its name from the chilli peppers used in the sauce, which will certainly leave you red-faced, although hopefully in a happy way! Penne are circular pasta tubes, usually with a ridged exterior ("regate"). They are perfect for this type of sauce as the penne hold the sauce due to its cylinder shape.

Spaghetti alla Carbonara

The Italian take on bacon and eggs! This simple pasta dish originates in the Rome region, and is, along with spaghetti bolognese, perhaps the most well known of pasta dishes. The key to this dish is putting the eggs in at the right moment and mixing quickly enough so that you are have a sauce and are not left with scrambled eggs!

Lasagne al Forno

Along with pizza and spaghetti Bolognese, lasagne is probably one of the most famous of all Italian dishes, and has won admirers all over the world. It is a firm favourite in pub lunches up and down the UK. It is a surprisingly simple dish to make and is absolutely worth the time it takes to prepare, as the taste is amazing!

Lasagne al forno (simply lasagne in the oven) comes from the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy, where the world renowned Bolognese sauce was also created in... (shock horror) Bologna!!! Lasagne al forno borrows this ragù alla bolognese as one of it's three alternating layers, with the others being bechamel sauce, a white sauce made from milk and flour, and sheets of dried pasta or lasagne!