Lunch

Food & Drink, Lunch
Leave a comment

Lunchtime – Summer Salad with leftover pasta

Pasta Salad

Last Saturday night we enjoyed Strascinati with tomatoes, zucchini, and ricotta. We tucked a little bit away to make our lunchtime this Tuesday a little easier. In the morning, we put some mixed greens in a bag, and come lunch a little drizzle of quality balsamic and olive oil are added for a flavorful and light midday meal.

What are your favorite Italian lunches? Have a staple you return to over and over? We’d love to hear what you make with our products, let us know at info@viaumbria.com!

 

— Via Umbria.

 

 

Last Saturday night we enjoyed Strascinati with tomatoes, zucchini, and ricotta. We tucked a little bit away to make our lunchtime this Tuesday ...

Culture, Experience Italy, Food & Drink, Lunch, Recipes
Leave a comment

Goat Curds and Little Herds

IMG_4758

 

IMG_7751

How cute are these little white goats!?  Bill and and son Teddy and daughter Lindsey, along with Via Umbria favorite Simone Proietti-Pesci, got a chance to visit the goats last week when they stopped by the farm of local cheesemaker and winemaker Diego Calcabrina. Diego is well known and respected in the area for making goat cheese, alongside small batches of hand crafted Sagrantino wine.  He is very passionate about his work as a farmer and a winemaker. He holds himself out as a biodynamic farmer, which means he practices organic farming, as well as many other strictures about following the phases of the moon and getting in touch with nature’s natural rhythms.

 

The Menard family visited Diego for the first time last fall, and Lindsey, Teddy and Bill (along with Simone) revisited on the first day of their current trip. Cheese first.

 

And just how difficult is it to make goat cheese? The process is not too complicated but requires completely clean and unadulterated goat’s milk, which is an art in itself. Those goats are not always the most cleanly, or easy, to milk. And it requires a cheesemaker’s niche knowledge of the right feel of curd, and the correct temperatures during the different stages of the cheese process.

 

But you should try it at home. Goat cheese is best when ultra-fresh. You can still taste the…goats…which most of the time is a good thing. Yours may not end up as good as Diego’s, but you can always drop by Via Umbria and pick up a bottle of Sagrantino to wash it down.

 

Simply follow these few steps:

In a medium saucepan, we heat the fresh goat milk until it reaches about 180 degrees.

Then we remove from heat and stir in lemon juice. This separates the curds (the fat and protein, which becomes cheese), from the whey (the liquid).

We shake the little curds into their cheese containers, and place them on a tray that allows the excess whey to run off into the pail. One the desired amount of liquid has come off, the curds all set in their containers, making a solid block of cheese.

 

Ci Vediamo!

– Via Umbria

IMG_6133

 

IMG_4938

 

IMG_4941

 

IMG_1504

Meet our new friends! Read more

  How cute are these little white goats!?  Bill and and son Teddy and daughter Lindsey, along with Via Umbria favorite Simone Proietti-Pesci, got ...

Entertain, Food & Drink, Lunch, On the Table, Recipes
Leave a comment

Simone’s Super Bowl Snacks

IMG_7838

This Super Bowl Sunday, ditch the store bought salsa for some real food. These recipes from Chef Simone are an Italian twist on some classic favorites to keep you warm, full, and happy (no matter the outcome) this game day.

IMG_8286

And why not complete your foodie football day with some beers from Birra Perugia? Stop by our store in Georgetown to get your hands on the most unique imported brews and view the game in style.

 

POLLO ROLLO:

Ingredients: 

Ground chicken meat

Salt

Pepper

Parmigiano cheese

Oil

Garlic

Sundried tomatoes – chopped

Sundried tomatoes –  paste

Materials: Carta Fata Paper, available at Via Umbria

Instructions:
Mix all of the ingredients together in a large bowl, setting aside part of the tomatoes.
Lay out the Carta Fata on a table, put the meat in the middle of the paper. Press and spread the chicken out until is about half an inch thick.
Put the rest of tomatoes in the center of the chicken. Wrap the meat well until you have formed a tube.

Close the top and the bottom of the tube with string.
Boil for 20 minutes in hot water. The Carta Fata will not melt because it is magic!
After boiling, slice and serve with fresh salad by the side. Drizzle olive oil over the entire plate and serve!

 

MEAT BALLS WITH HOT SAUCE:

IMG_7815

Ingredients:

Beef ground 30% fat

Bread crumbs

Milk

Garlic parsley

Salt

Pepper

Parmesan cheese

Egg yolks

Tomato sauce

Garlic

Chili pepper

IMG_8984

Instructions:

Mix the meat with Rosemary and sage, and then the breadcrumbs, egg yolks, and parmesean. Start to make little ball.

In a pan, sauté the garlic and add the tomato sauce. Cook the sauce with salt and hot pepper until it thickens. Add the meat ball and go on to cook for 20 minutes.

IMG_8976

BEAN SOUP

IMG_8969

Ingredients:

Beans

Carrots

Celery

Onion

Garlic

Tomato sauce

Chili pepper

IMG_8212

 

Instructions:

Sauté the greens in a pan with the herbs too. When they are fragrant and cooked, add the beans (if using dried beans, they must be hydrated. The day before, put them in a bowl with water, and then boil them for 30 minutes and let stand). Sauté all of the ingredients little more and then add the tomato paste. Heat on low flame, simmering until soup becomes thick. Garnish with sour cream or Italian cheese and serve!

IMG_8970

— Via Umbria 

This Super Bowl Sunday, ditch the store bought salsa for some real food. These recipes from Chef Simone are an Italian twist ...