Yes, I do have a big grin on my face these days… And with good reason! My brand new TV show, Made In Italy with Silvia Colloca, premiers tonight at 8 pm on SBS 1 (Australia) and the tie-in bo…
After Italian? Look no further than Silvia Colloca, a woman who defines la dolce vita. Silvia’s recipes focus on the goodness of fresh produce and simple techniques.
This is a culinary wonder! Simply mix the ingredients and let time create your dough. No mess, no fuss. The next day, bake it and enjoy! This is one of my most popular and versatile recipes. You ca…
Very few things speak of Italy to me than a perfectly baked Pizza. The thought of a wonderfully crispy and thin crust, so masterfully stretched and folded to create the perfect base for our favorit…
Whether you call them eggplant, aubergine, melanzane or berenjena, let’s all agree that this spongy, tangy fruit is one of many nature’s gifts to us. Its versatility is such that you ca…
Hi, my lovely, hungry friends, here are the recipes from our second episode of Wok X Pot , starring Marion Grasby and myself. The show is currently streaming on my (and on Marion’s) YouTube c…
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In her latest cookbook Simple Italian , Silvia Colloca draws on her heritage to give us wonderfully simple Italian recipes.
Food writer and passionate home cook Silvia Colloca feels most Italian when she is in her kitchen.
I bet you have been looking at this picture thinking “that is gluten-free???”… Yes, indeed, it looks rather miraculous and I would love to take full credit for this creation, but …
Panettone is the ultimate Italian Christmas enriched bread. It’s more than a cake or a brioche, it is a piece of our culinary history and no Italian would dream of not slicing into this delec…
It is with great joy and anticipation that I share this recipe with you today. I have been trying to create decent and palatable gluten free breads for longer than I care to remember. I have had so…
With her trademark warmth and good humour, Silvia Colloca shares family stories and recipes that are close to her heart, and shows how simply a handful of fresh, seasonal ingredients can be transformed into something truly exceptional.
1. Pizza dough Pizza dough – William Meppem For both bread and pizza dough, Silvia recommends a slow fermentation process with a minimum of 12 hours up to 3 days. This way the dough becomes full of flavour. Make sure to use good quality flour. 2. Pizza toppings Pancetta and roasted tomato pizza – Al Richardson “Keep it simple. A good pizza has very few ingredients. This is because when you have a beautiful slow-fermented crust, you don’t want to overpower the flavour of the crust itself.” 3. Risotto Risotto Milanese – Steve Brown “If you stir ferociously while you cook risotto, you will end up with a gloopy mess. You want to pay attention to the pot and give it a little shake and a stir but you really don’t have to be hovering over it.” 4. Pasta “Make sure you boil pasta in a large pot of water and cook it for 2 minutes less than what the packet says. This will ensure that the pasta is perfectly al dente.” 5. Fresh vs dried pasta Fresh pasta Fresh pasta is normally made with eggs so you get added nutrition but fresh is also a lot softer. Silvia explains that dried pasta is not the cheap version of fresh pasta, it just serves a different purpose. For example you would not use fresh pasta with carbonara as the result would be too gooey. Remember to always buy the best Italian dried pasta possible to make the meal authentic. 6. Carbonara Spaghetti alla carbonara – Ian Wallace Do not EVER add cream to carbonara! It is absolutely not allowed. Silvia suggests adding 1-2 tablespoons of the pasta’s cooking water to the carbonara instead. The starch in the water will help add the creamy texture without dumbing down the flavours. 7. Bolognese Tagliatelle bolognese – Steve Brown “In Italy, bolognese is never a quick dish. People in Italy will devote a whole weekend to making perfect bolognese and anything requiring less than 7 hours of cooking is simply not enough.” Silvia adds that bolognese is never served with spaghetti! Always with tagliatelle. 8. The perfect side dish Braised Tuscan cabbage – Rob Palmer One of Silvia’s favourite side dishes is simply green vegetables sauteed in a pan with oil, anchovies and chillies. This works particularly well with cavolo nero and spinach and is fabulous in winter time as a complement to a meat dish. 9. Italian desserts Cannoli – Ben Dearnley Although Italians love sweet things, a traditional Italian dessert is not about cake. Rather it will be little pastries that can be enjoyed with coffee after the meal. Buon Appetito!
Pizza rustica is like a hybrid between a pastry and a calzone, with an unleavened olive oil pastry-like dough encasing anything your heart desires. In this case, a classic spinach and ricotta filling.
This simple recipe by Silvia Colloca produces a striking show-stopper of a dish that may be served as a starter or light lunch. You can replace the tiger prawns with scampi for a more extravagant version of this delightful dish.
Rich and moist don't have to mean heavy and unhealthy, and the olive oil and yoghurt power team achieve this perfectly to produce this berry loaf cake.
She learnt to cook at her Nonna's knee, but Silvia Colloca was an actress and an opera singer long before she found her fame in food.
Have you met the latest food trend yet? Ladies and gentlemen, I give you… lamb ribs. Rewind to only a few months ago and even my butcher would have given me a quizzical look had I asked him for this cut of meat. How is it, then, that in such a short time we now have food magazines, cooking shows and supermarket shelves all proudly displaying an abundance of miniature ribs? The answer is because they are absolutely and unequivocally delicious. I am not normally inclined to embrace food fads (I am a traditionalist at heart, always championing food and recipes from my Italian heritage), but this could be an exception. Lamb ribs are a secondary cut of meat that magically turn into a mind-blowingly tender culinary sensation when they’re slow-cooked. The flesh is securely protected by fat, which reduces during the baking process and bastes the meat. You’re left with a perfectly moist, succulent treat that is ready to be devoured in one or two bites. Because ribs aren’t considered a prime cut they also don’t come with a hefty price tag, so they’re the perfect meat to turn to when catering for a group of hungry teenagers or carnivores alike. And if 1.5kg seems like an obscene quantity for only four people, keep in mind that once they’re cooked, they will shrink considerably. Another added bonus is they also make a great dinner-party dish as you can prep and assemble ribs rather quickly, before cooking them in a very low oven for up to three hours. No last-minute stress as guests arrive. Once ready, all that is left to do is to plate up on a beautiful serving dish or board (garnished with a few adornments) and then enjoy them with a matching glass of pinot.
From wholesome ragù to light and zesty spins on seafood, Silvia Colloca’s authentic Italian recipes are a celebration of everyday cooking.
A homemade calzone baked from scratch could well be the ultimate comfort food, and now gluten-intolerant friends need not miss out. Get creative with the fillings and make it to your liking.
The Sydney-based author, TV host and cook says this super-easy and inexpensive vegetarian pasta will convince even the least culinary skilled person they have kitchen prowess.
How many of you recall that famous scene from Disney’s “Lady and the Tramp”,when, as they fall in love by the suave notes of “Bella notte” being played on the mandolin…
My two months in Italy already seem so far away in the past. It has only been two weeks since I’ve been back, but, as it always is, all the things you put on hold and stop worrying about when…
Quite simply, my personal idea of comfort food. I suppose you can trace this back to when I was a child and mum would invariably turn to this treat for a Sunday afternoon tea. There was nothing mor…
Puff pastry is by far one of those kitchen staples I always stock in my freezer. I have attempted making it myself at times and, although I did love the end result, I wasn’t a huge fan of the…
Here they are, my fiends! After posting a picture of this buns on my Instagram page (@silviacollocaofficial), my inbox got flooded with messages asking for one thing and one thing only: post the re…
Yes, let’s be honest here. When I say “bread”, I mean cake. I am not quite sure how this kind of preparation got its deceiving name from, but the fact of the matter is, it’s…
Those of you who have travelled to Italy know how much we favour a sweet breakfast. Cafes are crowded with Italians standing by the counter dipping a pastry into their morning coffee before they se…
I am a summer person. I was born in summer. My true self seems to come to life at the early signs of the warmer months approaching. I hardly ever feel the heat, in spite of being feisty and hot-blo…
As the Holy Week marches on, I feel the urge to get my hands in more festive doughs! What could be better than home-made hot cross buns and scrolls? With the warm tang of cinnamon, the liveliness o…
5 more sleeps… If the Christmas spirit is abundant in your house as it is in mine, you are probably busy in the kitchen baking cookies, getting high on ginger and nutmeg and humming carols on…
Strictly speaking Madeleines are not an Italian sweet treat. So what are they doing in my Authentic Italian food blog, you may rightfully ask? It’s one of the best known, most loved French bu…
Nothing fills me with more joy than sharing my love for baking with my children. It’s both the ritual of creating an edible moment together, and the anticipation and excitement waiting for ou…
Italian cuisine is well known for its intriguing diversity. With such substantial regional differences, it is easy to encounter a type of recipe that is only ever made in a particular town or villa…
Resembling a focaccia, these yoghurt flatbreads are topped with vine tomatoes, chilli and ricotta on one loaf and potato and anchovy on the other.
Silvia Colloca’s newest book is dedicated to the home baker. Whether you’re a novice or you consider yourself a seasoned expert, this book has something you’ll love.
This simple recipe by Silvia Colloca produces a striking show-stopper of a dish that may be served as a starter or light lunch. You can replace the tiger prawns with scampi for a more extravagant version of this delightful dish.
Lemon and apricots go really well together and I love adding liqueur to my cake batter. This fluffy cake features sambuca and, typical of Italian desserts, calls for extra virgin olive oil rather than butter.
Food for the soul is something Silvia Colloca knows a lot about - and she’s sharing her recipe for a traditional Italian treat.
