BBQ ribs

Double goat cheese, fried bacon, pepper burger

This is my latest attempt in burgers, it is a juicy combination of different tastes with a good variety of textures resulting in a delicious hardcore burger.

The burger has been mixed with onions, garlic powder, nutmeg, cayenne peppper, little salt, Worcestershire sauce and few drops of water. Than it has been smoked , heavily smoked with mesquite wood chips. I have cooked it on indirect heat but on a very hot grill to give the tipical stripes that any burger needs. Once it was almost done I have moved the burger over the hot coals to give the last flame and finished the cooking there.

In that burger I have combined two different goat cheese, a very fresh and creamy one to add a little sour, gerat with roasted red peppers and a semisoft one to give more body and melting compared to the previous. The result has been very impressive.

The composition and ingredients of the double goat cheese, bacon, pepper burger from the bottom are:

French mustard

two leaves of brasilian salad

beef burger (see coplete ingredients and detailed recipe)

semisoft goat cheese 

fresh creamy goat cheese

crispy fried bacon

grilled red peppers, marinated in extra virgin olive oil, garlic and little oregano

uncooked white onion

chipolte sauce

For the first time after cooking the burger, after I have covered it with the goat cheese, I have wrapped it in aluminium foil and placed it in the oven (moderate temperature) for few minutes to let the meat absorb its own juices and the cheese melts. The result is great, the meat is firm and extremely tender, ready to be eaten ..... try it.

Definitely one of the best and complex burger I have ever eaten.

Buon appetito

Cotechino e lenticchie, Pork sausage and lentils

A traditional new year's eve midnight dish. Cotechino e lenticchie, Pork sausage and lentils:

Cotechino is a rich Italian pork sausage from Modena.

It contains a lot of fat meats which allow it to be so tender, it really melts in your mouth.

The few slices shown in the pictures come from a medium sized cotechino, not precooked.

Cooking tips: set the cotechino in cold water in a capient soup pot and gently bring it to boil. Then cook for at least 2-2,5 hours. Once cooked gently remove it from the water and slice it not to thin as you want to feel its own texture, I would say half an inch or little less.

Serving suggestion: cotechino is usually served with lentils or mashed potatoes.

I have used green bio swiss lentils and here is how I have prepared them: soak the lentils for an hour in cold water, in a sauce pan heat some extra virgin olive oil and saute half onion and three diced slices of bacon over moderate heat for about 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Add the drained lentils, cover them with water add a couple of bay leaves and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to very low and simmer covered for 1-1,5 hours or until lentils are tender.

Servings 4

Ingredients:

a Modena natural cotechino 500, 600 grams or 17-21 ounces, 250 grams or 9 ounces of green lentils (great also are lentils from Castelluccio di Norcia, these lentils are grown in the area of Castelluccio di Norcia in the park of Monti Sibillini, located between the regions of Central Italy, Marche and Umbria, these lentils have very small, round and flat seeds. These lentils are often striped and vary in color between speckled green to faded yellow to light brown. The lentils are sowed in the spring and then in July and August the plants are cut and dried in order to remove the seeds. Castelluccio lentils are quite different than the other varieties available on the market: the climate and soil of the area contribute to their thin skin and soft consistency, allowing for them to be cooked without having soaked first).

Buon appetito