marcelasenise, Author at lafoodsitter

Author

marcelasenise

I'm a foodie at heart. I never say no to good company over a meal. I love travelling. USA will always be my first choice of destination. Bourdain addicted. Food & Travel Consultancy / Communication, Marketing & Public Relations. Food writer for hobby.

All posts by marcelasenise

Tuscan bread

by marcelasenise

Italy is famous for having a whole variety of bread making. It changes according to each region. From North to South you have rye, durum wheat, crunchy, soft, focaccia, ciabatta to name a few. It has been counted around 300 types of bread.

Visiting a very beloved region of international and local tourists, when in Tuscany you will find one of the least flavoured breads. No salt is the main characteristic of it. Back during the Second World War salt was one of the most precious ingredients to have so “cooking” with it was rarity and mostly for the privileged. Nowadays reason being is because Tuscan food is rather heavier flavoured considering their culture of eating hunting meat, their selection of cold cuts, the classic aged pecorino, all foods with intese flavour for the palate thus a choice of a more plain taste bread to go with. Or simply having a slice with drizzles of olive oil, another typical product of Tuscany.
Right in the middle of the Maremma hills you can find a stoned house with a very famous oven called ‘Forno di Montegemoli’. They produce the original recipe (with a pinch of salt, but shhh! don’t say it out loud!) and distribute to most of local panetterie (bakery) and supermarkets within 50 kms.

People come from all over to visit the location, see a tuscan wooden oven and experience the amazing landscape that surrounds the house. Not to mention the smell! You can buy it too! They bake white and whole recipes.

Absolutely worth the drive around the countryside to reach them. If you are coming from or going towards Siena, San Gimignano make sure to include this stop on your trip. Check opening hours as they don’t work on weekends.

Paris will always be Paris!

by marcelasenise

Spoken and over spoken but no one ever gets tired of talking about Paris.
Walking yourself exhausted around those parisian streets, with those magnificent buildings, windows, flower stalls that only in Paris you can find, bringing color to the coolest or rainiest of days.
French patisserie? Chocolaterie? Boulangerie? In Paris you can go foodie crazy no doubt.
What I love the most about traveling to Paris is the certainty of always finding tradition and reassurance where you left last time you’ve visited.
Old places. New ones too.
Paris is always Paris!

Regina Sader

by marcelasenise

“I grew up living in the same house with my parents, grandma and auntie. I would spend hours in the kitchen with them when my mother was working. Trying absolutely everything. The best kibbeh was made by grandma.”

What is the importance of your kitchen in your house?
The kitchen is where everything starts. You prepare the food that gathers everyone together. It’s a huge pleasure and also therapeutical when I have the chance to cook and share such space of my life with people. I have very fond memories from my parents’ house kitchen with all those smells when my mother used to bake panettone or auntie mincing meat to prepare kibbeh for me….

What’s the best part of the day for you to cook?
I prefere to cook around lunch time. Evenings tend to be quite tiring after a long day.

Are you a creative “chef” or simply love to follow recipes?
I would say nor one or the other. Occasionally I do follow some recipes but mainly I cook what I’ve learnt from my lebanese auntie that used to live with us, from my mom and a very dear family friend that saddly is no longer here with us.

Three ingredients that are never missing in your kitchen cabinet?
Only three?! Well I can try: I consider all kinds of herbs one ingredient like parsley, mint and basil. Then it comes parmesan cheese and wine of course. Red and white!

How did your passion for cooking come about?
From my childhood. I grew up living in the same house with my parents, grandma and auntie. I would spend hours in the kitchen with them when my mother was working. Trying absolutely everything. The best kibbeh was made by grandma. We used to have a roost in the backyard so seeing my auntie killing the chickens, cleaning and cooking them was a very normal thing for me as a child to see. I loved eating the insides auntie would feed me. On top of it, I also had a italian mother-in-law that made the best fresh pasta ever together with some exquisite sauces and roasted meats.

What’s your favourite dish to cook that you know it can never go wrong with it?
Arabic dishes are my speciality. Tabouleh, dolma, eggplant couscous and prawns, hummus. Risotto is also something I enjoy cooking. And my kids love them all.

Would you receive an entire tv crew in your kitchen for a day?
Why not?!

Do you follow any tv shows or have a favourite cooking book?
I don’t watch it regularly but I love Nigella Lawson’s programs. I do have her books and many others but frankly I don’t make much use of them. Pure lack of time really. I do have also one book about food in all regions in Lebanon that just the pictures are spectacular!
I will one day visit Lebanon, the country of my origins!

Regina Sader loves to cook for family & friends when work allows. Brazilian born into a typical mixed race immigrant family. Her roots are all in her dishes with a history of food heritage many would die for to have it at home.

Francine Segan

by marcelasenise

“I became passionate about cooking about 20 years ago during a summer we spent renting a house in Italy. I was inspired by the wonderful local ingredients. I was inspired by the Italian friends I made who invited me to dinner for a homecooked true Italian meal. I was inspired by the delicious food I had in every ristorante and trattoria in Italy.”

What is the importance of your kitchen in your house?

Our kitchen is the most important room in our house. It’s the room where my husband and I start our day, over a cup of espresso and where we end our day each evening over dinner. It’s the room where our children love to sit and chat with me while I cook. It’s the heart of our home.

What’s the best part of the day for you to cook?

I like cooking in the late afternoon, after work. It’s very relaxing for me to cook after a day of work.

Are you a creative chef or simply love to follow recipes?

A little of both. I like to follow recipes from my Italian chef friends, but I also like to combine ingredients and spices in my own way to create new dishes.

3 ingredients that are never missing on your kitchen cabinet?

Fabulous artisan pasta like Felicetti, great olive oil from Tuscany or Umbria & Sicilian salt from Trappani

How did your passion for cooking come about?

I became passionate about cooking about 20 years ago during a summer we spent renting a house in Italy. I was inspired by the wonderful local ingredients. I was inspired by the Italian friends I made who invited me to dinner for a homecooked true Italian meal. I was inspired by the delicious food I had in every ristorante and trattoria in Italy.

What’s your favourite dish to cook that you know it can never go wrong with it?

My favorite dish is pasta with oil, garlic, hot peppers and a little colatura. I can never go wrong because I use only artisan imported Italian pasta & olive oil.

Would you receive for a day an entire tv crew on your kitchen?

YES! What fun.

Do you follow any tv show or have a favourite cooking book?

I don’t follow any particular tv show, but have many many favorite cook books. I buy cookbooks when I’m in Italy. One of my favorites is by Fabio Picchi, on using leftovers, and another is on Italian desserts by Salvatore di Riso.

Francine Segan, one of America’s foremost experts on Italian cuisine, an engaging public speaker, author, TV personality and consultant.

Bourdain’s latest Parts Unknown work is simply gold!

by marcelasenise

It has been out over a week now but just this afternoon I sat down to browse through Explore Parts Unknown…
Created in collaboration with Roads & Kingdoms and CNN, Explore Parts Unknown is bound to become the new digital encyclopedia to the world of travel, culture and food.

At “Parts Unknown,” we try to show how other people live, to encourage people to walk in others’ shoes. To that end, we’ve created a new digital experience where we will tell more stories, take deeper dives, and take you further into the world of the show.

Beyond Borders: Big night in Kashmir

As episodes are aired, the site is updated so you can have extra contents, more detailed interviews and stories of each location.
It is priceless. I’m not kidding when I say I spent over an hour reading some bits, without realising time passing by.
Pictures are stunning, writing is impecable.

You have short videos, recipes, storytelling to name a few. One section is geniusly called “KNOW – you’ll want to read this” and you rest assured you will click on it right away!

One of the things that I try to do with “Parts Unknown” is to show how other people live, to hopefully encourage them to go out and look at the world, to walk in someone else’s shoes for awhile. To that end, we’re launching a new digital experience to complement the show: “Explore Parts Unknown.” This space gives us the opportunity to dive deeper into locations that we’ve visited—we’re going to be launching original content around every PU episode, both past and future—allowing me to do more of what I do: tell stories. If this inspires people to follow their curiosity around the world, and get their passports renewed, then we’ve done our job. – Anthony Bourdain

A couple of hours after it was announced on Bourdain’s Instagram profile, I googled to check what it was being said…..there were shockinly more than 12 articles posted already!
Yes it is a big deal and it will only get bigger. I’m already addicted to UnknowParts Instragram account as well! Everyday a new photo with a short story.

Beyond Borders: Vanilla is expensive, but labor is cheap

Well if you are a Bourdain fan you would know what I’m takling about. As usual spot on perfection on quality of work!
And in case you are new to his work or at least about this incredible series, on its fourth season, go on and get crazy by spending some hours of your day exploring & “traveling” Unknow Parts.

The kitchn

by marcelasenise

The Kitchn is one of my favorite websites of all times and this book sums up it all! It has been on my collection since it came out summer 2014 when I was in NYC. Why now to share it with you guys? Because it’s a must for kitchen and food lovers! Never too late!

La cucina dei mercati in Toscana

by marcelasenise

By the multi talented Italian blogger, Giulia Scarpaleggia.
She is also know as Jul’s Kitchen and is internationaly respected, followed and most of all her workshops have people attending from all over the world.

Photo from Jul’s Kitchen Blog

The story of a Syrian chocolatier

by marcelasenise

When speaking of Syria, war, refugees all I can think is how can these people rebuild their lives?
Back in Damascus Assam was a chocolatier but lost everything as we could all imagine.
When I came across the story of Assam Hadhad‘s family my joy was immense! How a wish of wanting to spread joy to show gratitude to Nova Scotia, the Canadian town that welcomed them one year ago when they flew away from the war, became their way of starting a new life.
Today, one year on, Peace by Chocolate has 10 employees and even Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has met the family enjoying bites of chocolate!
Never understimate the empowerment of food!

Shakespeare & Company Café

by marcelasenise

When George Whitman opened his parisian bookshop, together there was always a second part of the project that never came to life. The Shakespeare and Company Café. That was until 2015 when his daughter Sylvia and husband David decided to make her dad’s dream become reality.
With spring season right on, if you happen to be in Paris, do make sure to visit the location. Bookshop and Café are right next to each other, same place where Whitman started it all. A visit to their website is also well worth it! Not only impacably cool but full of historical information too.
Vogue magazine made a delicious article about it! Read it on…

Photo credits: Shakespeare and Company website

Michi & Fabri

by marcelasenise

“He’s a very useful hand in the kitchen but his main aim is to pinch the saucepans away to transforme them into lamps.”

What is the importance of your kitchen in your house?
It has a “leading role” importance.

What’s the best part of the day for you to cook?
Early evening.

Are you a creative “chef” or simply love to follow recipes?
Michela: I tend to creat and when trying following a recipe, I get it ¾ right and the rest I just add my final touch!

Three ingredients that are never missing in your kitchen cabinet?
Leek, parmigiano cheese and freshly grounded black pepper.

How did your passion for cooking come about?
Michela: Inherited from my family just like many of my passions.

What’s your favourite dish to cook that you know it can never go wrong with it?
Michela: Lentil curry and risotto.
Fabrizio: rich sauces for pasta.

Would you receive an entire tv crew in your kitchen for a day?
Michela: I would say so…

Do you follow any tv shows or have a favourite cooking book?
Michela: Books. Specially those from my favourite aunt and her sister: “La casa golosa” and “Fare festa” by Michela and Paola Brengola.

Michela Volante – is a Turin “born & bred” gal that lives and cook at the same house she was born! A writer, translator, school books author, she is very much in love with the word “writing” since she first learnt how to hold a pen in her hands. Domani andrò sposa e Uno a testa published by Ed. Frassinelli are her own novels.

Fabrizio Farina – a graphic designer of an eccleitc kind, achieved his position in the editorial world passing through the world of atomic energy. He’s also a radio speaker with his own show ‘Ettore’ on Radio2 and mad about sci-fi culture. Viaggi nel tempo (2016) is his most recent work with Einaudi Publishing house working on this priceless anthology. He’s a very useful hand in the kitchen but his main aim is to pinch the saucepans away to transforme them into lamps.
They share their house with their wonderful cats.