Chicken "cacciatora"

My grandmother used to make this recipe with the leftovers of the oven-roasted chicken which is a good way to start. Anyway, in this post, I suggest you to use the original Tuscan recipe, which is more tasty if you leave the skin on! In this case I used just leg cuts, because they are more tasty.

Ingredients for 4

1 chicken - About 1,2kg/3 lb cut into small pieces (including the bones and skin)

1  1/2 carrots

1/2 onion
2 celery sticks
1 clove garlic
400 grs - 1 small tin canned peeled tomatoes (and their juice)
6 spoons extra virgin olive oil
1 Rosemary stick
1/2 glass white wine
Salt and pepper

How to:

1) Put oil in a large pan , bring it to the boil, add the peeled garlic and put the chicken in the pan until golden brown (skin on). Turn the meat to evenly cook on both sides.

2) In the mean while wash and clean the carrots, onion and celery and chop them very well. 

3) Remove the meat from the pan, add the chopped vegetables in the same pan and let them cook until soft (carrots will change colour). Stir now and then.

4) Put  the chicken again, warm it up, and on the high heat add the wine and let it evaporate. Add salt and pepper.

5) Add the canned tomatoes and the rosemary cut into pieces and bring all to the boil.

Stir well, cover with a lid and let it cook for 15-20 minutes.

6) Stir again, put the meat upside down and let it cook for other 15 minutes, uncovered, until the meat easily comes off the bone. If the sauce is too thick, add a little bit of hot water or stock, if too runny, let it cook a little bit longer.

7) Enjoy with a large slice of rustic bread or with some boiled potatoes.

Pinzimonio

A refreshing and healthy appetizer to cool off the Summer heat! Cheap, light, colourful, easy to prepare and suitable for everybody!

Enjoy this informal way of starting a meal, it will be great while you wait for your barbecue!

You can put all the vegetable in a large bowl and prepare small bowls with a little dressing for each guest to dip the vegetables in, but also you can make single portion using a large glass and putting the salt/oil/pepper on the bottom.

Ingredients for 4 (adjust quantities by your taste)

1 cucumber

1 fennel

8 radishes (if you like them)

2 carrots

2 stalks celery

1 red/yellow pepper

2 endives

2 Long tomatoes or cherry tomatoes

Salt and pepper

Extra Virgin olive oil

How to: 

1) Wash, trim and cut the vegetables according to their type: the carrots, celery, cucumbers, long tomatoes and peppers should be cut into sticks. Cut the fennel and endive apart into sections.

Remove the roots and leaves from the radishes, making sure to leave a little bit to the stems, which will be useful for picking them up with your fingers.

2) Prepare the dressing: pour in each small bowl a tea spoon of salt, 2 table spoons of extra virgin olive oil, and sprinkle with fresh ground pepper.
(If you do not have small bowls use your imaginations, these are Ikea candle holders...)

3) Serve it to your guest who will dip the vegetables in the condiment.

Keep more salt/extra virgin olive oils and pepper ready for refill...