Italian meatballs with mushrooms. Photo / Doug Sherring
Italian meatballs with mushrooms. Photo / Doug Sherring
Family comes first when it comes to eating. And no matter whether it’s Maketu or Amalfi, simple is best.
A few weeks ago, we were sitting on the Amalfi Coast sipping Campari spritzers and looking at the sun-kissed tourists and locals. The seafood we devoured was exquisite and the fresh produce tasted of warm sunshine.
The tomatoes were the best we have eaten, the sardines melted in the mouth and there were more varieties of pasta than we could dream of.
We have always thought we would feel at home in Italy and we weren't wrong. The small but powerful Italian woman who ran the local shop just down from the house we were staying in was convinced we were fluent in Italian.
We would leave with bags of her house-cured Parma ham and local buffalo mozzarella. The stall owners were passionate about what they were selling and it was infectious. It is safe to say we will be making several more trips back to Italy.
In our family, food is always at the centre of our gatherings. Family dinners mean there is always enough food for dinner and everyone's lunch the next day.
About five different conversations are going on at once and laughter is constant and we realised this is something we have in common with the Italians.
One of our favourite activities was to sit on the balcony at dinner time and listen to our neighbours enjoying their dinner, talking and laughing with each other, it sounded like home (just in another language).
One of the things that was reinforced was that when you have amazing produce, keeping a dish simple is key.
Something we ate in excess was the classic combination of melon and Parma ham. We were craving this combination of salty and sweet when we returned so, as soon as the melons started appearing on the shelves, we made our family this fresh salad.
We added creamy buffalo mozzarella and peppery rocket to the melon and Parma and enjoyed it in Maketu.
We also recreated a dish we had at a beautiful seaside restaurant. We used our New Zealand green-lipped mussels in a simple but delicious pasta dish.
The sauce is made from good-quality olive oil that you heat and cook the mussels in.
Adding the garlic and tomatoes once the mussels have just opened ensures the flavours remain strong. You can use any kind of pasta you like but we found this pasta which was similar to the pasta they used in the dish in Italy in our local supermarket.
We were staying in a house with the chefs we worked with in the South of France. When we didn't eat out for dinner we would all stay home and eat together.
Our favourite home-cooked meal was something Nick Honeyman made on our last night in Italy.
Using delicious Italian pork sausage he took the meat from the casing and made meatballs which he cooked in a velvety tomato sauce.
We added some sauteed mushrooms to ours and fresh parsley. All you need to have with this is a fresh green salad and some crusty bread.
5 Italian sausages 1 670g jar of passata 2 tbsp creme balsamic 2 cups of assorted mushrooms 1 tbsp olive oil 2 clove garlic finely diced Basil, thinly sliced Salt and pepper to season Bread to serve
1 Cut the casing of the sausage, squeeze out the mix and roll the sausage mix in to golf ball-sized balls.
2 Heat a large pan on a medium heat with the olive oil. Add the garlic and once softened and translucent add the Meat balls and brown all over. Cook for about 8 minutes.
3 Add the passata and balsamic and bring to a simmer. Cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
4 Heat another pan on high with some olive oil and fry the mushrooms until they are golden and caramelised. Season well with salt and pepper.
5 Lastly, stir the basil through the meatballs. Spoon into a serving dish and top with the fried mushrooms and another drizzle of the creme balsamic. Serve with a fresh crusty loaf of bread to mop up all of the sauce.
300g Gemelli pasta ½ cup olive oil 4 cloves of garlic, sliced thinly 16 mussels, cleaned and debearded ½ cup parsley, chopped 1 punnet cherry tomatoes Juice of 1 lemon Salt and pepper for seasoning
1 Bring a large pot of salted water to the boil (it should taste like the sea) add the pasta and cook until tender. This should take about about 12 minutes.
2 In a large pot, heat the oil and add the mussels. Put a lid on and cook the mussels until they are just opening. Add the garlic and cook for another 3 minutes before adding the chilli and tomatoes. Mix everything together.
3 Drain the pasta once cooked and add to the pot with the mussels. Finish with the lemon juice and parsley, then season to taste.
Melon and Parma Ham Salad
Melon, prosciutto and fresh mozarella salad. Photo / Doug Sherring
½ melon, de-seeded and chopped into small chunks 1 packet of Parma ham 1 packet rocket leaves 1 tbsp olive oil 1 tsp creme balsamic 250gm tub Mozzarella torn into pieces salt and pepper
To make the salad, take a piece of the Parma ham and wrap it around a piece of melon. Repeat this for each piece of melon.
Add the salad leaves to a bowl with the mozzarella. Dress with the olive oil, balsamic and season. Place the pieces of melon in the salad to serve.
