This BBQ recipe has been published this week on the Academia Barilla newsletter, a great news channel that delivers once a month Italian culinary news, recipes and Italian gastronomy culture to thousands of email subscribers - all Italian food lovers should subscribe to it, so here is the direct link to sign up to receive it.

We always have plenty of gourmet content for our blog, so we rarely republish here articles and news already broadcasted by our newsletter. But this month the Mediterranean BBQ recipe is too catchy, and we strongly believe that there isn’t anything better than a BBQ for a family reunion, specially during this nice season.

The Chef Team of the Academia Barilla Culinary School shared with us a barbequing recipe for grilled assorted meats and skewers with a brand new seasoning, Academia Barilla’s Sapori Italiani Herb Mix, the key element that gives the touch of Italian taste to this recipe adding a special Mediterranean flair to your BBQs and every day cooking.

Sapori Italiani Herb Mix is available at the Academia Barilla online store.

MEDITERRANEAN MIXED GRILL HERB BBQ
(serves 4)

INGREDIENTS

- 1 lb. spareribs
- 1/2 lb. sausage
- 5 oz. turkey breast
- 4 chicken breasts
- 5 oz. fresh bacon
- 1 red pepper
- 1 onion
- 10 oz. lamb cutlets / rib chop
- 2.5 oz. Academia Barilla Sicilian Unfiltered Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 1/2 oz. Academia Barilla Sapori Italiani Herb Mix
- 1.7 oz. Academia Barilla Balsamic Vinegar of Modena aged 3 years
- lemon juice from 1 fresh lemon
- 2 garlic cloves
- 1 branch rosemary
- salt to taste

PREPARATION

Mix 1 oz of extra virgin olive oil and a pinch of Academia Barilla’s Sapori Italiani Herb mix in a large bowl.

Cut the turkey breast, sausage, bacon, red pepper and the onion into 1 inch chunks, add them to the mixture and toss to coat evenly. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate, allowing to marinate for 8 hours before grilling.

While the ingredients for the skewers are marinating, brush the chicken breasts with 1.5 oz of extra virgin olive oil, some lemon juice and season with Sapori Italiani herb mix. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate, allowing the chicken breasts to marinate for 8 hours before grilling.

Layer the lamb cutlet between plastic wrap and flatten them gently with a rolling pin or mallet. Place the ribs in a large dish so that they all fit in a single layer. Pour over the Balsamic Vinegar of Modena and sprinkle with 1 clove minced garlic and 1/2 a bunch of chopped rosemary. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate, allowing to marinate for 8 hours before grilling.

Using the remaining 1 clove minced garlic and remaining half of the rosemary, season the spareribs. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 8 hours.

When the marinating time is over, remove all items from the refrigerator. Make sure to spear the skewer ingredients (turkey breast, sausage, bacon, red pepper and the onion in 1 inch chunks) onto wooden or metal skewers, alternating the ingredients for taste and color.

About 30 minutes before beginning to barbecue, preheat the charcoal grill to 350 degrees. Prepare the charcoals according to the directions on the grill for barbecuing.

Cook the assorted meats until they are perfectly grilled to your liking.

Remember to salt the meat only at the end.
Buon appetito!

How about making this Father’s Day BBQ perfect, by adding to the present Chef gift ideas such as a traditional Chef’s jacket, that you can order also in a customized version with your dad’s name, or a traditional Chef’s hat would perfectly match the jacket.

Other gift ideas for a gourmet dad? Have you seen the latest gift ideas such as the Pinzimonio set (fits perfectly a BBQ), a set of Cheese Lover’s knives, or even just a gift certificate from the Academia Barilla online gourmet store?

Happy Father’s Day from Academia Barilla and Italian Food Lovers!

As described by the Wikipedia, other names for Millefoglie around the world are Mille-feuille (French), Napoleon (U.S.), vanilla slice, cream slice or custard slice (Commonwealth), all to describe a pastry made of several layers of puff pastry alternating with a sweet filling, typically pastry cream, whipped cream or jam. You can find the dessert name also written as “millefeuille” and “mille feuille“.

At the Academia Barilla Culinary School we thought this could be a perfect gourmet dessert to celebrate Mother’s Day, so we asked Chef Matteo Carboni to share with us the recipe, and also to prepare the dessert for us, so we could have some pictures, too (that, by the way, we uploaded also on Wikipedia).

We also took a small video of the preparation, available on YouTube and other video spaces, and of course embedded also here below in this post.

Ready for the recipe? Let’s go to the kitchen!

STRAWBERRY AND CHANTILLY MILLEFOGLIE
(serves 4)

INGREDIENTS

- puff pastry, 1 pound
- chantilly cream, 1 pound
- strawberries, 1/2 pound
- sugar (for decoration), to taste
- icing sugar (for decoration), to taste

INGREDIENTS FOR THE PASTRY CREAM

- fresh cream, 1.7 oz
- milk, 10 oz fl
- egg yolks, 2
- sugar, 1.7 oz
- white flour, 0.7 oz
- vanilla stick, 1/2

PREPARATION

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Unfold 1 puff pastry sheet and gently roll out into a piece of 12 inches with a rolling pin on a lightly floured surface.

Put it into a large baking sheet, previously buttered and prick all over with a fork. Trim edges of pastry with a knife.

Cut each sheet into rectangular of 3 x 1.5 inches. Sprinkle sugar on and then bake the sheet in the heated oven at 350° F until pastry is puffed and golden (approx 15 minutes).

Let it cool on racks. Aside, prepare the Chantilly Cream.

Boil the milk. Whisk egg yolks and sugar, add the flour and keep mixing.

Pour in part of the hot milk in order to obtain a smooth cream. Aromatize with vanilla stick and add the remaining milk very slowly.

Cook over moderate heat and keep mixing until thickened. Then let it cool quickly.

Whip the cream and add it to the Chantilly Cream.

In the serving plate , spread over one puff pastry cake base, part of the cooled pastry cream.

Cover it with a second puff pastry cake base.

Decorate the top and the plate with cubed strawberries, and icing sugar.

Check out our video below for more preparation details!

CHEF TIPS

Add few drops of Academia Barilla Traditional Balsamic Vinegar of Modena aged 25 years on the top for maximum gourmet results. You can easily find it at our online store.

Happy Mother’s Day from Academia Barilla and Italian Food Lovers!

Symbolizing both peace and the Holy Spirit, the Dove, has become the shape of the famous traditional Easter cake, Colomba Pasquale (Easter Dove), a classic dessert at any Easter meal in Italy. Here is the recipe for our Italian Food Lovers readers!

Ref: The source of the image above is Iginio Massari and Achille Zoia’s cookbook “Cresci - L’arte della pasta lievitata” (Grow - The art of baking dough), edited by Pavoni, and available at the Academia Barilla Gastronomic Library in Parma, Italy.

COLOMBA PASQUALE
(serves 8-10)

INGREDIENTS - for the dough

- 11.6 oz flour
- 1 oz yeast
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 8 oz of lukewarm milk
- 3 oz butter
- 1.3 sugar
- 4 egg yolks
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2.7 oz candy lemon zest finely minced
- 1/2 grated zest of fresh lemon

INGREDIENTS - for the syrup

- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 2 tablespoons water

OTHER INGREDIENDS

- flour to the base
- margarine to grease aluminum foil
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 1 oz sifted powdered sugar
- 1.4 oz peeled almonds
- 2 raisins

PREPARATION

Preheat the oven to 360 °F

For the dough

Place the flour in a large bowl, forming it into a mound. Add the yeast, sugar, 4 oz of lukewarm milk in the middle of the mound and knead the dough.

When completely incorporated, cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let the dough rise in a warm place for 15 minutes so that the dough is puffy.

While the dough is rising, melt the butter in a small pan or microwave it in a microwave safe container. In another small bowl, beat the yolks with the sugar.

When the sugar is completely mixed with the yolks, add the melted butter to the mixture and mix. Add the mixture of the yolks, sugar and butter and the remaining milk and flour to the dough, and continue to knead vigorously until the dough is firm and compact, making sure it is not sticky.

Subsequently, add the fresh lemon zest and candied lemon to the dough, and form a ball. Set aside and let the dough rise for approximately 30 minutes in a warm place.

For the syrup

In a small pot, bring the 2 tablespoons of water and 2 tablespoons of sugar to a boil; remove from heat and let cool.

For the dough

When the dough is ready, divide it in half and make 2 rolls (approximately 7 to 8 inches in size). Shape each roll into a dove. You may also choose to place each roll in a dove-shaped mold.

Cover the dough and let each dove-shaped roll rise for about 20 to 30 minutes until each is double in size. When the dough is ready, brush the surface with the syrup mixture and sift the powdered sugar over the top. Top each dove-shaped roll with almonds, pressing them in slightly.

Add one raisin to each dove-shaped roll in order to make the eyes of the dove. To preserve the shape, wrap the cake with greased aluminum foil. Place the dove-shaped rolls in the preheated oven on the lower rack for 40 minutes.

When ready, gently remove the aluminum foil and allow the Colomba Pasquale cool before serving.

Buon Appetito and again Buona Pasqua from Academia Barilla!

Eggs are traditionally served in almost every dish, from soups to sweet breads, served on Easter Day to recognize that they represent rebirth and life. Another custom for Italians on Easter is to include lamb, grilled or roasted, on the menu to recognize and remember the sacrifice Jesus made on the cross. The Dove, symbolizing peace, has become the shape of the famous traditional Easter cake, Colomba Pasquale (Colomba means dove and Pasqua means Easter).

Today, we share with you the recipe for Lamb Chops with Basil Pesto, and tomorrow we’ll publish also the recipe for the classic Colomba Pasquale. Both entries will surely bring Italian gourmet highlights to your Easter Day menu.

Ref: The source of the image above is Valentino Marcattili’s cookbook “Il San Domenico di Imola - Estetica del cibo, le cantine, i sapori della tavola” (Imola’s St. Domenico - Food aesthetic, cantinas, the flavors of food), edited by Rizzoli, and available at the Academia Barilla Gastronomic Library in Parma, Italy.

LAMB CHOP WITH BASIL PESTO
(serves 6)

INGREDIENTS
- 3 pounds lamb loin
- 2 cups packed fresh basil leaves
- 1/4 cup pine nuts
- 2 garlic cloves, chopped
- 2/3 cup Academia Barilla D.O.P. Monti Iblei Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 1/2 cup freshly grated Academia Barilla Pecorino Gran Cru
- Academia Barilla Natural Sea Salt with Black Olives, to taste
- freshly ground Pepper, to taste
- Academia Barilla 8-years Balsamic Must of Modena, if desired

PREPARATION

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Clean the lamb loin and slice it into chops.

Combine the basil, pine nuts, and garlic in a food processor and pulse until the mixture is coarsely chopped. Add the D.O.P. Monti Iblei extra virgin olive oil and process until fully mixed and smooth.

Transfer the pesto to a large mixing bowl and season with Natural Sea Salt with Black Olives and freshly ground pepper and stir in the freshly grated Pecorino Gran Cru.

Sprinkle the Lamb chops with Natural Sea Salt with Black Olives and freshly ground pepper.

In a large grill pan, heat 2 tablespoons of D.O.P. Monti Iblei extra virgin olive oil over high heat and place the chops in the skillet and cook just until brown, about 1-2 minutes per side.

Transfer the Lamb chops to a large baking sheet. Roast the lamb in the oven for about 15 - 25 minutes or until they are cooked to the desired doneness. When done, pull the Lamb chops out and let them rest for about 5 minutes.

Spread the pesto mixture over 1 side of each chop so that it is covered in a thin pesto layer.

Transfer the Lamb chops to a large serving platter and arrange the Lamb chops with the pesto side up.

CHEF TIPS

If desired, sprinkle with a little extra freshly grated Pecorino Gran Cru and with Balsamic Must vinegar for an intense and sweet finish.

Buon appetito, and Buona Pasqua from Academia Barilla!

Remember that all the gourmet ingredients of this recipes are available at the best gourmet specialty stores, and are also a click away from you, available at the Academia Barilla online store!

Last month, while browsing the popular online encyclopedia, we realized that their editorial team always welcomes new contributors in many area yet to be fully covered - one of which is Italian cuisine.

We couldn’t resist the call and started by creating a basic profile for Academia Barilla, before started experiencing the pleasure of online collaboration and contributing to an article we linked to in recent times, right before Christmas.

Remember the Zuppa Inglese recipe we published as part of our Christmas Recipe Series?

In that blog post we actually used part of Wikipedia knowledge, when reporting about the origins of the dessert’s name. In order to pay back for the knowledge we got, we decided to publish the complete recipe of the Zuppa Inglese dessert on the same Wikipedia page, so that other Web users will be able to find it easily in the future.

We will definitely contribute more and more to the Wikipedia, and we’ll let you know when we do - but don’t worry, we made a commitment on sharing our premium content with you at Italian Food Lovers before sharing it with everybody else, so we’ll always be blogging here before publishing everywhere else on the web! Stay tuned with us!