Rustling Up Italian Style

CEBU, Philippines - “Italian food is specially created with the use of herbs and spices providing a better taste. It is also good for you since most meals are made at home and have no preservatives added”, Mary Tridico expresses. Together with her mother, Elisabeth, they both share the same passion for cooking – Italian style. They make almost anything to everything and I was curious to know if they could share some tips and recipes with me.

Mary and her mother best enjoy making the Classic Tiramisu most especially when guests come around for a visit, a speciality, which I have sampled and gladly enjoyed. “The proper way of making tiramisu takes a lot of effort but it is very much worth my time”, Mary admits. “The preparation starts by making the coffee dip with the use of strong espresso coffee, about 1½ cups. Then, I would add at least 2 teaspoons of sugar in it, stir, then, let the coffee cool down to room temperature and put aside. At the same time, I’d separate some egg yolks to beat, and then heat, until it becomes fluffy before adding sugar and Marsala wine or port as the closest alternative. This mixture is called zabaglione. Then, over a pan of simmering water, I would transfer the zabaglione mixture on top and whisk until it thickens. On the side, using another bowl and a spatula, I would mix together some whipped cream and mascarpone cheese until creamy adding this to the rest of the mixture”, she explains. “Now comes my favourite part, the assembling of the cake with the use of ladyfingers. Normally, the ladyfingers are soaked into the coffee mixture before transferring into a tray, but to avoid wasting the coffee mixture, I would evenly distribute the pieces into a tray and pour the whole coffee mixture until everything soaks in. Once this has been done, I would spread the zabaglione mixture over the ladyfingers, by repeating the step with a second or third layer with whatever remaining mixture I would have left. Depending on how I feel, I would top it with cream, but I never forget to sprinkle cocoa powder to make it look grand. Lastly, I’d refrigerate the finished tiramisu cake for about 4-5 hours or until it has a firm texture”, she says. Mary also admits to sometimes making a few changes to the traditional tiramisu by topping it with anything colourfully edible. She comments that “it is all about being creative in the kitchen with your cooking to helps you become a better cook, just like my mother who is a fantastic cook despite her hectic schedule”.

Mary’s mother, Elisabeth thinks that another recipe worth sharing is the making of simple homemade tomato sauce. “The process is so simple. Using a pot full of tomatoes, I would boil them in water for an hour roughly. Short after; I would remove the peel and place the tomato pulp into a glass bottle together with basil leaves. Then, I would put the bottle into a huge pan; let it boil it for two hours to enable the basil leaves to mix thoroughly with the tomatoes before leaving it to cool. You’ll know when it’s ready when the boiled water becomes cold”, she clarifies. “Tomato sauce is easy to store and has a long shelf-life. I make a lot of it whenever I get the chance to because the making has such a long process and it’s always good to have it ready when I need it”.

On average, depending on what you choose to cook, the Italian cooking process for a good full meal could take at least one to three hours. “Similarly like Filipinos, Italians also love to enjoy their meals as it gives the opportunity to be with the family and have a great time together”, Mary happily comments. Though Italian food is mainly linked to pizza, pasta and cakes, many Italians cook and prepare many other types of dishes since different regions in Italy serve their own specialities. “Let’s say for example, the region where I’m from is called Lombardy where we serve the best Polenta (a dish made from boiled yellow or white cornmeal normally served with salami and mushrooms). My mother, who is originally from Calabria, have fantastic Pasta Pasticciata (pasta macaroni with meat balls), a combination of tomato sauce, ricotta (cheese) and Sopressata (a type of salami typical from this region) served all together. Or for pizza, which originally comes from Naples, situated in a region called Campania”, Mary discloses.

The best way of learning to cook Italian food is to have a lot of experimentation in the kitchen making it very easy to combine everything once you get the hang of it. “When I was a little girl, I clearly remember my grandfather who used to cook pasta for himself with the use of eggs and flour. It was the simplest, tastiest dish and didn’t really cost a thing”, Mary recalls.

On a more personal side, I would have to acknowledge that Italian food is an indigenous and a pleasant way of cooking. Best of all, I enjoy eating it!